The 13th photo (oops, anyone suffering from triskaidekaphobia ? ) from my Reflections series is from Ueno, on Asakusa-dori:

It’s time for this week’s collection of cool and interesting Japan related links:

Halloween Tokyo 2009 Edo-Period Recycling Hakata Lantern Festival Sendai-shi via @tokyotopia Miko-Mai or Miko Kagura Kobe Biennale 2009 – lights and sounds Debating the fate of Shimokitazawa Yuta: The Japanese shamans World’s Greatest City: 50 reasons why Tokyo is No.1 via @tokyotopia A trip back in time to the hometown of Nankichi Niimi

Previous week: Weekly J-Links 5

In Japan, old and new are joined not only in architecture, but also in the dressing style. One of the main aspects I love about Japan is the fact that it is one of the few modern countries where the traditional dressing is still “trendy".

Of course, it’s not very surprising to see older people traditionally dressed, and I have met many ladies dressed in kimono, walking on the streets of Asakusa.

What is amazing is how much the Japanese young generation is fond of the traditional dressing.

Yukata is a summer kimono, made of cotton or synthetic fabric, with brigh colors and various patterns. During the Heian period, the nobles wore yukatabira (yu - bath and katabira - under clothing) after taking a bath. In time, the term shortened to yukata.
Later, the wariors also started to wear yukata, and during the Edo period, when the public baths become very popular, the yukata became widely worn by the public.
Today, since the late 90’s, the popularity of the yukata is steadily rising.

Dressed in yukata, all the Japanese girls become beautiful and they have a certain charm, delicacy and elegance. I always felt the need to take pictures with them…

One of the cutest Japanese mascots is Laugh-kun, the Fuji TV mascot. Laugh-kun first appeared in the successful Warau-Inu (Laughing Dog) variety show, a series aired on Fuji-TV during 1998 - 2003.

If you visit the Fuji TV building in Odaiba, you may even meet him or even take your photo with him.

If you’re not so lucky (I wasn’t… ), you may be content with the statue from the observatory or with one of the many souvenirs…

As I wrote about some time ago, I like very much these small shrines hokora, located on the side of the roads, like this one I discovered while strolling in Washimiya.

It is dedicated to Inari, kami of fertility, rice, agriculture and success. Inside, two pairs of kitsune guardians (males and females), the messengers of Inari.

It is one of the few shrines I’ve met left in disarray a little bit, with some statues fallen and with dried branches, but like this it seems to have even more charm…

The first time I heard a sanshin, I was in the park behind the Tokyo Metropolitan Building, where a boy and a girl were practicing together.

I loved the sound, and I understood why it is said to have healing powers…

Similar to the more famous Shamisen but with a smaller neck and body, the sanshin is an instrument with 3 strings, derived from sanxian, a Chinese instrument that have come to Okinawa during the 14th century.
The body is covered in either habu or python skin and the neck is made from a black tree.
It was initially used only by nobles, but in time it became popular and several centuries later, the sanshin spread and became a popular Japanese instrument.

Here are some recordings with old Okinawan music, accompanied by the sanshin:

Behind the Senso-ji complex in Asakusa, there is a small temple, Zeniduka-Jizo, with a very interesting story, one of those stories that makes you wonder what would you have done in the same situation.

On the place of today’s temple, at the beginning of the 18th century, there used to be the courtyard of a family named Yamaguchi. One day, while working in the garden, the woman discovered a pot filled with Kanei-Tsuhou coins (money used in Japan from the beginning of the Edo period until the beginning of the Meiji era).

Image via Wikipedia

The woman was afraid that from then on, the family will rely solely on those money, will stop working and will decline, so she… re-buried the money.

Soon, the Yamaguchi family become prosperous. On the place where the coins are buried they enshrined Jizo, and later the temple build there was named Zeniduka, “Coin Mound”.

The temple we see today was rebuilt in 1964.

In Tokyo, every square inch of green space is precious and must be used at maximum. Since long time ago, those who have not been able to have a garden, have found a simple and beautiful solution: the flower pots placed on the floor or on the sidewalk, near the entrance.

It’s Saturday, so here’s this week’s collection (the richest so far) of cool, interesting, remarkable J-Links (in no particular order):

Tokyo International Manga Library Officially Announced Buddhist Sutra Chanting Distribution On Cellphone Most dramatic internet shake-up in 40 years to allow web addresses in languages from Arabic to Japanese Momochi Matsuri (photo) Replica of English church built on 21st floor of Japanese tower block via @JapanSoc Animated stereoviews of old Japan 10 Ramen Shops in Tokyo Worth Visiting via @tokyotopia Himeji Castle (photo) Tatara Festival in Kawaguchi City, Saitama Free museums in Japan Shrines shine light into the inner soul Kawagoe festival floats (photo) Leading Akasaka geisha says looking beautiful alone is not enough Koyasan Images (photo)

Previous week: Weekly J-Links 4

I think that the best place to admire Yokohama from high above is from the heights of the Yokohama Landmark Tower.

Click on photo for higher resolution:

If the weather is good the landscape is stunning, and you can see as far as Hakone, the Tanzawa Mountains and sometimes, the Mount Fuji.
I was careful to visit the tower in a clear and sunny day, after a strong storm. I was able to see Tanzawa, however Fuji was hidden in the clouds.

I could have stayed there the whole day, without getting tired, admiring the view. I stayed long enough to have fun looking for known places and, of course, to take some photos.
Here’s a first set of bird’s eye view photos, and naturally, some landmark information. I will get back soon with a set of detailed photos.

Looking towards north-east, the 3 tall buildings in the foreground are the Queen’s Tower A, B and C:

Click on photo for higher resolution:

The round shaped building (intended to look like a sail) is the Yokohama Grand Inter-Continental Hotel and on its left, with the white roof, there is the Pacifico Yokohama convention center:

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To the right, we can see the Cosmo World Amusement Park, with the Cosmo World Ferris Wheel:

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With a height of 224.9 meters, the Shinjuku Mitsui Building is now only the 8th tallest building in Tokyo, but it had its moment of glory. Between September 1974 and March 1978, it was not only the tallest building in Tokyo, but also the tallest building in Japan. It lost the first place in 1978, when the Sunshine 60 from Ikebukuro (239.7 meters) was finished.
Today, the tallest building in Japan is the Landmark Tower in Yokohama.

Mitsui Building draw my attention with its dark, sober colors, contrasting the surrounding buildings.

I also like the X-shaped structures, 6 stories tall, giving the building a unique appearance. Without them it would have been just another banal building built in the ’70s American style.

It is considered that the kawaii trend appeared in Japan at the beginning of the ’70s, when a new writing style appeared, called burikko-ji. Used by Japanese teenager girls, with fine lines and stylized, rounded characters, the new style was written laterally, inserting in the text drawings like hearts, stars and smileys.

However, according to other opinions (mine too…), the kawaii trend was always part of the Japanese culture.

That would explain the abundance of kawaii characters that can be seen everywhere in Japan, loved by women and children but also by men and used by companies and state authorities… like this Major Earthquake Emergency Road sign I discovered in Suginami, portrayed by… a happy kawaii fish…

In the park behind the Senso-ji Temple we can see the statue of one of the greatest kabuki actors from the Meiji period, Ichikawa Danjuro IX.

The statue represents him playing the role of Kamakura Gongoro Kagemasa, from the Shibaraku play. Yes, the play is about the same Gongoro Kagemasa from the samurai story I was writing about two weeks ago, the samurai who continued to fight, with an arrow stuck in his eye.

Also, the statue represents Danjuro executing a kabuki technique called aragoto ("rough style", from aramushagoto - “reckless warrior matter"), created by Ichikawa Danjuro I, a bombastic style exaggerating all the aspects of the role to portray valiant warriors.

Talking about bombastic style, I enjoyed the ornaments from the fence surrounding the statue.

An interesting fact about this statue is that right next to it, in April, takes place a 400 years old festival called Naki-zumo ("Crying sumo” or “Crying Baby Contest").
At this festival, babies held by sumo fighters are placed facing each other and compete for the loudest cries, while the judge repeats “nake, nake” (cry, cry). The loudest baby is declared the winner.
This is a prayer for the children to grow up in good health and it is also believed that the cries are driving away evil spirits.

There are many stories about the origins of Maneki Neko, the well known Japanese statue. Here’s, in my opinion, the most beautiful of them all:

At the begining of the Edo period, on the place where today is located the Gotokuji Temple, it was a small temple where a very poor monk lived, accompanied only by his cat, named Tama.

One day, a noble man, according to some writings Ii Naotaka from Hikone, was returning from hunting and, caught in the rain near the temple, took refuge under a nearby tree.
After a while, he observed a cat sitting in front of the temple’s entrance, beckoning him to enter. Surprised, the noble moved towards the cat and immediately the tree was struck by lighting.

As a gratitude for having its life saved, the noble became the temple’s patron, and the temple soon became prosperous.

After the cat died, it was buried in the Temple’s cemetery and the Maneki Neko sculptures were made to honor the magical cat.

Maneki Neko are charms for good luck and prosperity, as Tama brought to the small temple. According to some sources, since then, Maneki Neko has been considered an incarnation of the Goddess of Mercy, the deity who watches over and protects people.

The temple was renamed Gotokuji Temple in 1697 and today there are hundreds of Maneki Neko, of various sizes, brought by people praying for business success, but also for their lost or sick cats.

Of course, I bought myself a Maneki Neko, which I’m keeping on my desk.

Here’s one of the tallest narrow buildings I’ve encountered in Tokyo, located near the Suidobashi Station (close to the Tokyo Dome).
The building is squeezed on a narrow strip of land, between the street and the Kanda River:

This week’s collection of cool, interesting, remarkable J-Links:

Kawagoe Festival October means Matsuri. Matsuri means Kagura. Part 5 Asia UNESCO World Heritage Sites (photos) Simply Luv-a-Bull A weekend trip to the castle city: Okayama Tokyo: Town of Terror Tokyo festival to screen Japanese dolphin slaughter film Five UNESCO Castles on One Small Island: Okinawa, Japan (via @tokyotopia) Takarazuka in Tokyo Daily yokai portraits Treasures of the Imperial Collections

Previous week: Weekly J-Links 3

Sometimes, a photo reminds me of a haiku… like this Raindropped Blue Hydrangea, by Mark Highton Ridley:

hydrangea
a bush is the little garden
of a detached room

Basho

Click on photo for higher resolution:

This post is also my entry to this months freebie prize draw at the Highton-Ridley fine art photography website. If you’re a blog or site owner, you can also participate!

One of the most beautiful places in Kamakura is the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine, built in 1180 by Minamoto no Yoritomo, the first shogun of the Kamakura Shogunate.

There are a lot of interesting things to be said about this Shrine (and a lot of beautiful photos) and I will return to this topic on another occasion. Today I want to propose a photowalk on the shores of the ponds, covered with superb lotus flowers.

The ponds name, Genpei, reminds of the Genpei War, between the Minamoto and the Tiara clans, finished with the victory of Minamoto and followed by the founding of the Kamakura Shogunate, in 1192.

The ponds are located after the main entry, right after passing the torii…

… and are separated by 3 bridges, placed very close to each other.

As you already know, I like modern buildings, with unusual or daring designs, and for this reason Odaiba is one of my favorite places.
Actually, even the first building ever built in Odaiba, in 1974, had an unusual design: Fune no Kagakukan (Museum of Maritime Science).

The building’s architecture was inspired after the famous luxury liner Queen Elizabeth II.

The Museum of Maritime Science is a marine and nautical culture museum, I enjoyed a lot the descriptions and the history of ships and even a ship handling simulator.

The ship’s funnel is actually an observatory, offering a superb view:

Some of my Gundam photos were taken from here:

View towards the Tokyo Bay:

View towards Odaiba:

And here’s the Google Maps/Street location:

In Yokohama’s China Town you can find the Mazu Miao Temple, one of the most colorful and ornamented temples I’ve seen. Unfortunately, because I was there at noon and the sun was intense, I couldn’t take a panoramic view, but I can offer you some details and a great view of the gate:

Click on photo for higher resolution:

The Mazu Miao temple is the newest Chinese Temple in Yokohama Chinatown, officially opened in March 2006.
There’s an interesting story about it:

Initially the place was allocated for an apartment block, but part of the “Citizen-based town planning", the members of the community decided that the block will have a negative impact on the cultural landscape.
After negotiations, with money raised through contributions from all over Japan, they bought the land from the developers (at a price of 990 million ¥ - approx. 11 million $) and they built the Mazu Temple.

The Temple is dedicated to Mazu, the Goddess of the sea, protector of sailors and fishermen, on of the most popular Chinese Goddesses.
Recently, the Chinese customs and traditions dedicated to Goddess Mazu were designated by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.

When the Tokyo Sky Tree project started, the new tower from Sumida was to be the world’s tallest tower, with a height of 610 meters.

In the meantime, the construction of the Guangzhou TV & Sightseeing Tower just finished and the tower from China became the world’s tallest tower, with a height of 610 meters, surpassing the CN Tower from Toronto (553 meters).

foto: Wikipedia

But the Japanese are not willing to concede… They just changed the project, extending the height of the antenna with 24 meters, so, when finished, the Tokyo Sky Tree will reach 634 meters. The antenna will be called Musashi, the old name of the region.

The construction is advancing fast, I photographed the tower in August, when it was 70 meters height:

… and here’s how it looks, just a month later:

foto: Wikipedia

Approx. 1 km south-east of Kamakura Station, you can find the Jo-eiji Temple, known also as Botamochi-dera.

Here, on September 12 1271, a strange drama took place, considered a miracle by the adepts of Nichiren Buddhism.

The monk Nichiren, the founder of the Nichiren sect, was a controversial figure of that epoch, because his teachings conflicted with the teachings of other Buddhist sects. Nichiren considered that his school, based on Lotus Sutra, was the only correct form of Buddhism and all the other forms where heretical or unfit. He also criticized the government and the religious leaders, and eventually was arrested by the shogunate and sentenced to death.

On the day of his execution, when he was taken towards the place of execution, he passed by the Jo-eiji Temple.

Here, a woman from his sect offered him botamochi, cookies made from rice flour and sweet azuki bean covered with sesame.

During his execution, the executioner’s sword was apparently stricken by a lightning bolt. The terrified executioners stopped, considering this was a divine intervention and the witnesses said that the botamochi was what saved Nichiren’s life.

Since then, the Temple is known as Botamochi-dera and, on every September 12th, a celebration for Nichiren takes place and the visitors receive “lifesaving botamochi” as charm against bad luck.

A “Reflections” photo taken this summer in Shimbashi, Tokyo:

This week’s collection of cool, interesting, remarkable J-Links:

Squaring the circle in sumo Japanese reactions to Obama’s Nobel Peace Prize Shikoku Jour 2 - Marugame, TakoYaki, Le Dernier Samouraï et Matsuri à Toyohama (photos) Shinjuku Photowalk - Dusk till Night (photos) Monk completes Mt. Hiei’s thousand day mountain marathon Colour Your World in Furano Japan’s new hi-tech ‘graveyards’ Anatomy of Japanese folk monsters Proposed maglev train would do Tokyo-Osaka run in just 67 minutes Geisha ‘delivery service’ throws performances open to public

Previous week: Weekly J-Links 2

In the old time in Japan, it was a custom for wealthy families to donate horses to shrines, as part of the invocations and a sign of respect for kami.
In time, this practice changed, first the donations became horse statues and finally changed into small wooden plaques featuring the painting of a horse, called ema.

On these plaques, the worshipers are writing their thanks, wishes and prayers, hanging them on special racks at the shrines, in order to be read by the kami.

In time, the paintings on ema diversified to various animals from Shinto mythology, Chinese zodiac, folklore (e.g. kitsune) or representations of kami:

Since the growth of the anime culture, many elements of Shinto practice and mythology appeared in the anime plots so, for me, it wasn’t very unexpected that several years ago, ema started to feature paintings of anime characters.

One of my favorite buildings from Tokyo’s skyscraper district Nishi-Shinjuku is the headquarter of Sompo Japan Insurance, one of the big financial companies from Japan (Sompo means “property insurance"). Also, at the 42nd floor, there’s a Museum of Art dedicated to the Japanese painter Seiji Togo.

I love the graceful shape of the building. The architects’ (Uchida Shozo) intention was to give the building a shape reminding of Mount Fuji. Also, it is often pointed out that, seen from the side, the buildings looks similar to the second A from Atari logo.

On the street between the Kamakura Station to the Tsurugaoka Hachiman Shrine, you can find a Roman Catholic Church, Yukinoshita.

In the light of the sunset, the place looks quiet and calm. However, the icons from the inside and an inscription are reminders of the tumultuous period of the Christian persecution in Japan.

It is about a drama that happened in August 1623, when 5 Christians, a priest (Hilario Magozaemon), his wife and 3 Franciscan monks from Asakusa (Francisco Galvez, Juan Chozaemon and Pedro Kisaburo) were arrested and taken to Edo, where they were executed 4 months later.

14 years later, a powerful revolt of Japanese Catholic peasants (the Shimabara rebellion) took place, one of the few uprisings during the Tokugawa shogunate. However, the formal persecution of Christianity continued until 1850.

The 5th place, MIQ:

As you probably know, a prominent aspect of Japanese popular culture is kawaii. Translated with “cute” or “adorable", kawaii generally represents the concept of looking or behaving like a child. Kawaii can be a dressing style (e.g. with vivid colors, like a princess), a walking style, some gestures, characters, food dishes, toys, etc.

From all these aspects encountered in Japan, the most surprising for me were the warning panels with kawaii characters. Generally, a character is considered kawaii if it has a big head, curved body, small hands with few (or without) fingers, short legs, small (or missing) mouth, small nose and big eyes…

… like this warning panel wave from the Kansai Rinkai Park.

One of my favorite Shinto Shrines is the Goryo Jinja, located approx. 2 kilometers from Kamakura Station.

The Shrine is dedicated to the spirit of a samurai with an impressive courage, Kagemasa (Gongoro) Kamakura, from the Tiara clan.

A symbol from the Shrine that caught my attention, a pair of fletchings represented on the roof, is related to an impressive story taking place in the year 1085, during a battle from the Gosannen War.

Kagemasa was only 16 years old when he participated on a battle. During the battle, he was hit by an arrow that pierced his left eye.
However, the samurai continued to fight, with the arrow stuck in his eye, until the battle was over.

Image via Wikipedia

When he returned in the camp, another samurai tried to remove the stuck arrow by putting his foot on Kagemasa’s forehead.
But, because being stepped on the face by foot was considered an insult, Kagemasa was angered, stopped him and accused him of rude behavior. His colleague apologized for his rudeness and the arrow was eventually pulled out in a different manner.

Kagemasa’s bravery was highly praised as a role model for samurai and he even became a Kabuki hero.

To commemorate this story, the fletchings became the crest of the Shrine and that’s why they appear on the roof.

Again about Tokyo’s mixed architecture, this time a small and old building from Ueno, on Asakusa Dori, “squeezed” between two newer and larger buildings.

View Larger Map

Here’s what caught my attention this week:

October means Matsuri. Matsuri means Kagura Le temple du chat de la fortune Amazingly narrow apartment Today Hiroshima and Nagasaki Places (photos) Versace to Shutter Its Japan Stores Anime fans rev up ‘otaku’ car festival (photos) Vending Machine Extravaganza Mikurajima 2016 Olympic Games: Governor of Tokyo described as an eco-con artist in leading Japanese businessman’s daily 18-m Tetsujin 28/Gigantor Monument Officially Opened Tokyo Game Show 2009 (photos)

Previous week: Weekly J-Links 1

As a child, I was fascinated by adventure books with explorers and pirates and I was dreaming of sailing away… I know, it’s unusual for a girl, but I even learned some sailing and navigation terms.
So, when I visited Hakone, I couldn’t miss the opportunity to enjoy the pirate ships from the Lake Ashi.

Click on photo for higher resolution:

The pirate ships from Hakone belong to the Odakyu company and are connecting Togendai, the terminal for the Hakone Ropeway, to Motohakone-ko or Hakone-machi. Small travel tip, if you buy a Hakone FreePass, the boat ride is included in the price.

The 4 ships are replicas of real historical ships (but not actual pirate ships). I traveled with The Royal, inspired by a 17th-century French sailing warship named Soleil-Royal, colored in red, with a double-decker promenade and observation deck:

Click on photo for higher resolution:

In Tokyo, on Ohmon-dori, close to the Suitengumae station, I discovered this small Shrine with an unusual location, in an apartment building.

The torii and the temizuya are located just outside, while the Shrine occupies the first floor of the building.

Small and simple, but it looks beautiful:

The temizuya:

The tallest building in Japan is the Yokohama Landmark Tower (295.8 meters), Minato Mirai 21, Yokohama.

Tokyo Tower is 332.5 meters tall, but it is not a building, so it is considered the tallest artificial structure.
The Tokyo Sky Tree, currently in construction, will be ready in December 2011 and will be 610.5 meters tall, but it is also not considered as building, so the Yokohama Landmark Tower will remain Japan’s tallest building.

Landmark Tower also holds the record of the tallest hotel in Japan, because the Yokohama Royal Park Hotel occupies the 49th to 70th floors.

The elevator from the Landmark Tower is the second in the world regarding the speed (after the elevator Taipei 101), the trip from the first floor to the 69th taking just 40 seconds.

One of the most easy to spot mascots in Tokyo is Pipo-kun, the mascot of Tokyo Metropolitan Police. You can see posters or paintings with Pipo-kun displayed on walls, construction sites fences or shop windows.

Pipo-kun was created in 1987, and his name is derived from two words, “people” and “police". He’s cute and happy, strong, and always well-informed (that’s why he has an antenna).

Of course, Pipo-kun has its own webpage, on the Tokyo Metropolitan Police official website, with advices for children, downloadable coloring books and even his own song.

One of the most beloved Japanese deities is Jizo, a Bodhisattva (Bosatsu in Japanese), known in Japan as O-Jizo-Sama or Jizo-san, considered patron of children, expectant mothers, firemen, travelers, pilgrims and aborted or miscarried babies.

In Buddhism, it is considered that all living beings are born into one of the six states of existence (Samsara in Sanskrit, the cycle of life and death). All beings within these six realms are doomed to death and rebirth in a recurring cycle, unless they can break free from desire and attain enlightenment.

Jizo Bosatsu vowed to relieve the suffering souls in each of the six realms of existence and this is the reason why Jizo are often represented in groups of six (Roku Jizo), each of the six Jizo assigned to one of the six realms.

The most beautiful story about the Six Jizo is Kasa Jizo (Jizo with braided hats).

Once upon a time, there lived and old man and his wife. At the end of the year, the old man went to sell braided hats since they had no food to celebrate New Year.

Unfortunately, the old man could not sell a single hat. On this way home, he found six Jizo that had been snowed. He covered the heads of the Jizo with the hats he carried and as he had only five hats, he gave to the last Jizo the hat was wearing.

When he returned home, he told his wife that he failed to sell a single hat and instead, had put them on the heads of six Jizo. The old woman approved him and said: “You did a good thing.”

At night, while they were sleeping, they heard heavy thuds outside the house. They went out and saw that six Jizo wearing braided hats were leaving after putting a lot of rice and food at the doorstep. Thanks to the food brought by the six Jizo, the old man and his wife had a happy New Year.

And here’s a very nice anime version of the Kasa Jizo Story (with narration in Japanese):