2010 September | Japanese Language Blog

Posts from September 2010

Impressive Japanese Skyscrapers

Sep 28 2010

Japan is becoming a sprawling metropolis of skyscrapers. Here are some buildings in Japan that are interesting, beautiful and certainly awe inspiring.

Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower (モード学園コクーンタワー) is not your usual looking skyscraper. It is 669 feet tall, and is in the shape of a cocoon. The Skyscraper houses three higher education facilities. Hence, the cocoon shape was meant to symbolize education as the nurturing force for students.

Bunkyo Civic Center (文京シビックセンター) is a large government building located in Tokyo. It is 479 feet high. The design of the building has been hailed as a pez candy dispenser.

Tokyo Tower (東京タワー) is 1,091 feet tall. The Tower was built to accompany an antenna for several broadcast companies. Tourists can go up the tower and look down below to see the city. There are also two observation decks from which you can get a 360 degree view of the world.

Roppongi Hills Mori Tower (六本木ヒルズ森タワー) is 781 feet tall. Tourists can visit the building and go to restaurants, gift shops, libraries and museums. The Tower is also home to several corporate offices, and is the fifth tallest building in Japan.

Mode Gakuen Spiral Towers (モード学園スパイラルタワーズ) is located in Aichi Prefecture (愛知県). Like Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower, Mode Gakuen Spiral Tower is home to three education facilities. Mode Gakuen Spiral Tower is 558 feet tall.

The Kishiwada Danjiri Festival

Posted by Ginny No Comments

Sep 25 2010

The Kishiwada Danjiri Festival (岸和田だんじり祭) is a cart pulling festival. The cart is made of wood and decorated with cards, gifts, ornaments and flowers. It’s believed that the spirit resides in the cart, so all sorts of offerings and written prayers are placed in the cart. The highlight of the festival involves the pulling and pushing of the cart by the townspeople.

In the Kishiwada Danjiri Festival, the men push the wooden carts by a system of ropes and wheels. The carts are pulled and pushed by using the strength of the men. There are also several men who ride atop the cart. These men hold their fans for balance and adjust their movements to the movements of the cart.

In order to organize the movement of the cart, there are musicians who set the rhythm or the pace of movement. The Kishiwada Danjiri Festival can get dangerous. When the carts are moving especially fast, the cart may careen into people or buildings. The men riding the cart may even fall off, especially if they lose their balance. Despite the danger, the Festival is still observed and appreciated by spectators.

Japanese Waterfalls

Posted by Ginny 1 Comment

Sep 22 2010

Japan is home to some of the most majestic and scenic waterfalls. Some of the more famous ones are :

Kegon no Take (華厳滝) or Kegon Falls is one of the tallest waterfalls in Japan. Unfortunately, the altitude is what makes this a popular suicide spot as well.

Nunobiki no Taki (布引の滝) or Nunobiki Falls are famous because several poets and novelists have mentioned the Falls in their poems and stories.

Nachi no Taki (那智滝) or Nachi Falls is well over 100 meters tall. There’s a shrine near the waterfall, making the pilgrimage to the waterfall a sacred site.

Tsukimi

Posted by Ginny No Comments

Sep 19 2010

Tsukimi (月見) is a very low key festival. It’s celebrated on the 15^th of the eight month on the lunar calendar. It’s said that the 15^th of the eighth month is when the moon is the brightest and fullest. People go outside to see the moon, and as you can see, it’s very visible in the dark :

A common tradition is to make white, round, sweet dumplings called tsukimi dango (月見団子); which are made in the shape of a round moon.

If you’re wondering what those round, brown things were in the video, those were chestnuts. The 15^th of the eighth month on the lunar calendar is a day of large harvests. The chestnuts symbolize the plentiful harvest.

Enka Music

Posted by Ginny 1 Comment

Sep 16 2010

Enka (演歌) music is a combination of Jazz, Blues and traditional Japanese music. Enka music is especially popular with the postwar generation in Japan. To this generation, Enka songs bring back some of the nostalgia of the “good old days” as well as memories of hardship and poverty.

Hachiro Kasuga (春日八郎) is considered the first Enka singer. His hit song was “Wakare no Ipponsugi” (別れの一本杉,) which means “Farewell One Cedar”.

Hibari Misora (美空ひばり) is the queen of Enka music. My favorite song sung by her is Ringo Oiwake (リンゴ追分) or Apple Forked Road.

Jero (ジェロ) is an African American of Japanese descent. He’s dressed like a rapper, but as you can see in “Umiyuki” (海雪) (Ocean Snow), he has the “Enka voice”.

You may not like Enka music, but at one time Enka music dominated the Japanese music industry. So historically, it was an important pop culture phenomenon.

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