High above the Tokyo Skyline

Tokyo Tower is one of the highlights of any visit to the city. At 333 meters (1,093 feet) it’s the tallest self-supporting steel tower in the world. Tokyo Tower is a must see in any tourist itinerary. The two observatories on the tower gives a panoramic view of Tokyo. The main observatory is located 150 meters, and a special one is at 250 meters up. On a clear and cloudless day you can even see Mt Fuji. It also has a wax museum, an aquarium, a Trick Art Gallery, and a cafe at the observatory.

Tower Facts and History

Tokyo Tower was built post-WWII Japan, and opened to the public in 1958. It was built by the Takenaka Corporation at a total cost of ¥2.8 billion. Though it’s modeled after the Eiffel Tower in France, it weighs only 4,000 tons, lighter than its model by 3,000 tons, thanks to advance in steel manufacturing and construction technology. Its unique orange and white color is due to air safety regulations, to make it visible.

Tokyo Tower is a well-known landmark that appears in movies, anime and manga. It has been destroyed in Toho’s monster films, and the setting for numerous dramas and movies. Tokyo Tower’s primary purpose is as a broadcasting relay station for several radio and television stations like NHK.

Its days as a broadcasting station are numbered with the construction of the Sumida Tower underway. This 610 meter tower, sometimes called the New Tokyo Tower, will be completed in 2011. For anyone who’s worried of the future of the tower, on December 2008 it’ll be eligible to become a state-designated cultural property. If it’s approved, it’ll join Nagoya TV Tower in the list.

[tags]tokyo tower, Japan[/tags]

Adding flavor with miso

Miso is a paste prepared from fermenting soy beans with a variety of grains, adding a body of flavor and aroma to many Japanese dishes. In the old days miso were made in homes all over Japan, but now it’s most often purchased in the grocery. There are regional differences in how the Japanese like miso. Those in colder regions like Sapporo prefer theirs to be saltier, while those living in more temperate climes will go for the milder, lighter taste. The soy beans are steamed, salted, and crushed, then a fermenting agent called koji mold is added. Its taste deepens and the aroma is more pungent the longer its fermented. Miso is mainly used to make soups that accompany every meal.

Miso can be identified based on the koji mixed with the soybeans, or the color and saltiness of the paste. Kome-miso, made from rice koji, is the most common type of miso. A variation made in Nagano called shinshu-miso is very popular and can be mixed with other types of miso. The remaining two types are mugi-miso, made with koji from barley, and mame-miso, which uses soybean koji. Aka-miso is the saltiest kind of miso. It makes a good stock for hearty soups. The darker color comes from its longer fermentation time. Yellow miso is another way to call shinshu miso; it’s versatile and is the best choice to store in the kitchen. Shiro miso, or white miso, is the sweetest and mildnest kind of miso, perfect to add in dressings, salads, and fish marinades.

Here’s a very simple recipe to make miso soup. It can be prepared with all sorts of vegetables. If you’ll be using hard vegetables like carrots, you will have to simmer it in the stock longer to soften it.

Ingredients:

• 3 teaspoons of miso (shiro-miso is the most recommended choice)
• 1/2 block of tofu
• 1/2 leek or one whole scallion
• 3 cups of dashi soup stock. You can make your own soup stock from scratch, or buy ready to cook powdered stock from the store.

1. Chop the leek or scallion and cut the tofu into cubes.
2. Heat the dashi stock in a pan. Add the tofu cubes and simmer for three minutes.
3. Put the miso into a bowl. Scoop a little of the dashi stock and slowly dissolve the miso.
4. Once it’s dissolved add it to the remaining stock in the pan. Drop in the leek or scallion pieces and take off the heat immediately. Miso quickly loses its flavor if boiled.

[tags]miso, japan, soup, recipe[/tags]

Limitless haiku

an old pond—
the sound of a frog jumping
into water
- Matsuo Basho

Haiku is the most well-known of the Japanese poetic styles. The beauty of it lies in its simplicity and limitations. In three lines totalling seventeen syllables, the poet conveys the mood of a scene based on several strict rules. These syllables are often divided into groups of five, seven, and five. Within these lines exists a wealth of meaning of one moment, frozen in time to be reflected upon.

Haiku grew out of hokku, the opening lines of the longer linked verse form called renga. The opening verses often set the tone for the rest of the poem. Lighter, less courtly versions of these linked verses called haikai no renga soon became popular with the masses. These usually portrayed everyday life in a humorous way, using wordplay and allusions to enliven the limited words. In the 16th century Matsuo Basho became well known as a master of this artform. His collections of poetry contained polished gems of profound depth, as he wielded the words to speak not only of a scene, but invoke emotions of happiness, compassion and despair. It was Masaoka Shiki in the 19th century who first took these three lines and established them to be appreciated independently. These days free-form haiku deal with a range of topics that goes beyond the seasons - the city, trains, the falling rain and technology - and yet they remain full of the same spirit as those made by the masters.

Because of the limited number of syllables haiku writers use certain poetic phrases to represent a season or idea. The moon, the mists, even the sound of water can represent the vibrant spring or the solitude of autumn. Often two of the lines will contain a complete thought, while the remaining line points the reader back to the reality enclosed in its words. Every reader sees a haiku differently, caught by what they see and interpret in these words.

[tags]haiku, japan, Matsuo Basho[/tags]

Hello Kitty!

A sweet little kitten with a red ribbon on its left ear has enjoyed the affection of girls for many years. Her name is Kitty. She was created in 1974 by Sanrio, a company that designs and sells character products.

In the early days, Kitty was featured on stationery, such as pencil cases and notebooks, as well as on other products like cups and hand mirrors. These products became very popular among girls in elementary and middle school, and friends would compare how many they had. Girls exchanging Hello Kitty goods as gifts at birthday parties has been a common sight since this time.

“She’s small and cute and roundish, and that’s what I like about Kitty,” says Fujita Natsumi, a 13-year-old living in Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture. Her mother is a fan, too. “I have lots of Hello Kitty clothes and color pens that my mom gave me.” Her favorite is a stuffed toy that is 20 centimeters (8 inches) tall, and it has been with Natsumi since before she could remember.

In 1996 the media reported how several TV personalities and singers had their own collections of Hello Kitty goods, and from then on, many high-school girls and young women came to collect them as well. A new word, Kiti-ra (combining the character’s name and the Japanese pronunciation of the English suffix -er as in carpenter or lover), was even coined to refer to people who have a deep affection for Hello Kitty goods.

From around this time, Kitty began showing up on products that adults could buy for themselves, such as kitchenware and daily necessities. Nowadays, Kitty can be seen on just about anything, from small articles like cell-phone cases to home appliances like TVs and toasters (which will brand a Kitty face on the toast), and even on larger articles, like furniture and golf bags.

There are also Hello Kitty products for men, such as neckties. The list still goes on, spanning a very wide range of products: There are pancake-like sweets in the shape of Kitty’s face, Kitty notebook computers, hundreds of different kinds of Kitty amulets, taxis furnished inside with Kitty decorations, and Hello Kitty Quno, the Kitty model of a subcompact car known as a “ridable Choro-Q.”

Some Hello Kitty products can only be bought in limited areas. The handkerchief that 15-year-old Yamamoto Yuka treasures depicts Kitty standing in front of Lake Shinji in Matsue, a city in the north of Shimane Prefecture where she lives. “This design is only sold in Matsue,” Yuka explains. “The picture in Kitty’s background and her costume is different from region to region. I have the Hida Takayama handkerchief, too, and I want to collect all the different versions from around the country.”

Kitty will celebrate her thirtieth anniversary this year. She continues to win over more admirers of a wide range of ages, and there already are families with three generations of Hello Kitty fans.

Cherry Blossoms

Going to Japan in Spring? During spring cherry blossom (sakura) viewing parties (hanami) and cherry blossom festivals are held all over Japan. Cherry blossom viewing has been a Japanese custom since the 7th century when the aristocrats enjoyed looking at the cherry blossoms and wrote poems.

People drink, eat, and sing during the day and night. It is like a picnic. People bring food, do BBQ, or buy food from vendors. Among various food people eat in cherry blossom viewing, dango is very popular. It is a chewy snack made of rice flour.

In Tokyo, Ueno park and Yoyoki park are very popular places for cherry blossom viewing. In those place, there is even competition for the best spot. If you do not like a crowd, you can go to mountains or other quiet places for cherry blossom viewing.

Stop by any castles, parks, shrines, temples, and school yards near you. There are cherry trees everywhere in Japan. Also, if you are planning to visit Kyoto, spring is the best time. Kyoto’s historical sites are famous for their cherry trees. Many tourists visit Kyoto for cherry blossoms.

Sakura is the national flower of Japan, and there are over four hundred varieties of cherry trees in Japan. Yama-zakura, Shidare-zakura, Higanan-zakura, Kan-zakura, and Miyama-zakura are very popular.

Sakura is different from the cherry of other countries. The Japanese cherry tree does not yield fruit like other cherry trees. The cherry blossoms bloom at different times throughout Japan. The cherry blossoms begin blooming in Janurary and they are at their peak in late March to April in the Honshu region.