Shiori, literally means woven by poems, what a beautiful name for an amazing woman. Her life should have been full of different colors, dreams, adventures until that night, when the darkness occupied her being. We are as shocked as Shiori. The fact that Japan’s journalism industry and police force are dominated by men, the lack
Categoryuniquejapan
World’s Best Kindergarten in Japan
We saw this best kindergarten in Japan via TED talk several years ago. What a courageous try in architecture and philosophy! Takaharu Tezuka is an architect, founder of Tezuka Architects, and Professor at the Tokyo City University. Tezuka and his wife built schools centered on trees, play areas created from interwoven wooden beams and hospitals that
Why Japan Has No Mass Shootings?
Pray for all people impacted by mass shooting in Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida <10 shootings in Japan annually vs. 30000 in the US, what a big difference! Japanese people and government have learned a hard way during World War eras that violence is not going to bring any good to the
Architecture in Memo Pads – Japanese Aesthetics
How different a memo pad could be? Japanese company Triad’s Omoshiroi Block is giving us the surprise. Adjective おもしろい/Omoshiroi has basically two meanings, ‘interesting’ or ‘funny’, which can be used in vary situations. One thing comes from both meanings, which is positivity, what we experience while watching at all these beautifully designed memo pads. Tearing off
Family Crest and Pattern Design – Japanese Aesthetics
Japan’s pattern design can be well demonstrated via over 5000+ family crests. Family crests, Kamon are Japanese emblems used to decorate and identify an individual, a family, or (more recently) an institution or business entity. While mon is an encompassing term that may refer to any such device, kamon and mondokoro refer specifically to emblems used
The Origins in Obuse – Japanese Aesthetics
In 1980s, when Japanese towns were following the trend to be modernized and adapted to a new era, Obuse stayed quiet and somehow reserved the authentic taste of ancient Japan. With a population of 10,000 inhabitants, Obuse is a small town in Japan. It is located in Kamitakai District in northern Nagano Prefecture. From
100 Years Old Dessert Shop
In Sakai, Osaka, Kanbukuro is an old dessert shop established in 1329, which is only about 5 minutes walk from Nanshuji, the Buddhist temple famous for Sen-no-Rikyu, the best known tea master in Japanese history. In 1583 Toyotomi Hideyoshi commenced the construction of the grande Osaka Castle on the site of the Ikkō-ikki temple of Ishiyama
100+ Years Old Businesses Series – Sakan Ryokan, Modernized Inside
Akiu is the nearest hot spring resort in Sendai, the hub city in Thohoku region, northeastern Japan. The Akiu Hot Spring is among the three oldest hot springs in Japan. The name “Sakan” comes from a man named Kanzaburo Satoh who first started a small “ryokan” (Japanese inn) in Akiu about 1,000 years ago. His descendants
100+ Years Old Businesses Series – Geisha
We include Geisha as a part of this series because it does count as a business as Geisha was originally equal to female entertainers that made a living by having this unique identity. Before Geisha appeared, in the early stages of Japanese history, female entertainers who usually came from displaced families in the late 600s. Sexual
100+ Years Old Businesses Series – Sankogan, the Pill of Three Lights
The history of Sankogan can be traced back for approximately 700 years, back to the late Kamakura period. In the Yamatonokuni region in those days, the Ochi clan was one of the most important powerful families. Ochi clan’s brain is the Komeda family which was specialized in medicine and pharmaceuticals, and prescribed various drugs and