Within a quarter mile radius from my house there are three major constructions going on building a house and there are four square vacant lots for sale. It has been like this more or less for the past decade, as far as I can remember, with housing constructions going on constantly at one place or another in turns.
My way to work is very similar as well.
Tokyo, is a city of constant transformation.
I did not notice this until I had a chance to see an exhibition held at a museum in Stockholm, Sweden a few years ago. I was only traveling using my holidays from school and I only happened to be in Stockholm and stop by in the museum while the special exhibition was held - but anyway, this special exhibition was a comparison of the capital cities of Sweden and Japan, i.e., Stockholm and Tokyo.
There were all kinds of comparisons made in various forms. For example, there was a comparison of transportation fares: I don't remember the exact numbers or ratios but I do remember that public transportation such as buses and subways were three-four times more expensive in Stockholm whereas taxi fares only showed a modest difference.
There was also a comparison in the crime rates, which to my slight surprise, said that the crime rate in Stockholm was higher than Tokyo although not dramatically different. I mean, determining only from my several-day-stay in Stockholm by that time the city gave me an impression of an extremely peaceful place. Come to think of it, though, considering the huge difference in the population (S-less than or more or less a million: T-twelve million) the gap between the actual numbers of those committing crimes widen largely.
Anyway, there was this display of a very well-made model of a certain area of Stockholm and Tokyo, three decades ago and today. Whereas the model of Stockholm thirty years ago and today showed only a mild difference, the models for Tokyo now and then looked almost entirely different that it was harder to spot the same buildings. Next to the model there was a brief analysis of the models and the cities, telling how things in Tokyo are literally constantly changing.
Viewing Tokyo as a city of busy transformation doesn't give me a strange feeling or the thought that "geez why are people so busy?" at all probably because I grew up most of my life in it. But I did feel a funny sense of contradiction cuz we often times boast our country's millenniums-long history and tradition. Perhaps the intangible things and artwork continue to be handed down, but look at the land, there's hardly anything left.
My father who is an architect once asked me to translate a presentation document explaining a project to completely renew an apartment building that was thirty years old. He needed an English translated version because he and his project team was going to ask for an opinion from a British architect.
One of the reasons for renovating the whole building was because it was getting old. Old.
My father, who (naturally) is an architechture freak who knows and has seen hundreds of buildings around the world laughed, "what a joke it would sound like to him (the British architect) to renovate a 30-year-old building because it's old." ...My understanding is that in Europe there are hundreds of buildings that are centuries old that it would sound ridiculous to address a 30-year-old flat to be old.
Well then, what about Japan...? That remains hidden for now, although I kind of have an idea for the answer.
Overall, together with the observations I make on other elements of Japan, I analyze that Japanese people have an aspect of not fearing changes at the very same time as being extremely conservative.
Today's update on Japan Mode: Sakidori Events vol3 - I think this'll be the last for February and will go on to March and April fairly soon.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
Wednesday, January 24, 2007
The Academy Awards, but...
Well... though I wrote The Academy Awards for today's title, I don't think I'm going to go in so much. It's just that the Japanese entertainment industry is getting a bit excited about the nomination of Japanese actress Kikuchi Rinko for best supporting actress. She played the role of a deaf and mute high school student in the film Babel and is nominated for the role. IF she receives the award, then she would be the second Japanese actress to get an Award for the first time in 49 years since the first winner Nancy Umeki in the film Sayonara.
Since the film isn't released yet in Japan I haven't seen the work yet and can't comment on it, but I do hope that she wins it. We need happy news.
Then, I hear that the film Letters from Iwo Jima is also nominated under four (?) categories as an American film. Well, since it is an American-made film it is not a surprise, but the fact that most of the film being made in Japanese language and still being recognized not as a foreign film but an American film is quite something. In any case, we are proud.
Speaking of films, a number of Japanese films seem to be striking the world's film market recently. Today I am going to update information about the film DORORO which is based on the manga (comic) by Tezuka Osamu. I've seen the trailer in theater and it was very exciting that I am thinking of go seeing it right away. It's a grand piece of work for a Japanese film for it was shot not in Japan but almost entirely in New Zealand, featuring good actors and welcoming one of the best action directors in the world. The last time I picked up a Japanese film it was Sakuran and it's only going to be released in Japan, but this one is going to hit the screens in 20 countries around the world. See here for more information.
As I was skimming through the news topics just now, I also found out that MUSHISHI, a film based on the manga by Urushibara Yuki is also receiving passionate distribution offers from more than ten countries around the world including US and Australia. Since it's most likely going to be shown in other countries, maybe I should try to see if I can officially feature MUSHISHI as part of Japanese film entertainment on my website.
All right, that's all for today.
Since the film isn't released yet in Japan I haven't seen the work yet and can't comment on it, but I do hope that she wins it. We need happy news.
Then, I hear that the film Letters from Iwo Jima is also nominated under four (?) categories as an American film. Well, since it is an American-made film it is not a surprise, but the fact that most of the film being made in Japanese language and still being recognized not as a foreign film but an American film is quite something. In any case, we are proud.
Speaking of films, a number of Japanese films seem to be striking the world's film market recently. Today I am going to update information about the film DORORO which is based on the manga (comic) by Tezuka Osamu. I've seen the trailer in theater and it was very exciting that I am thinking of go seeing it right away. It's a grand piece of work for a Japanese film for it was shot not in Japan but almost entirely in New Zealand, featuring good actors and welcoming one of the best action directors in the world. The last time I picked up a Japanese film it was Sakuran and it's only going to be released in Japan, but this one is going to hit the screens in 20 countries around the world. See here for more information.
As I was skimming through the news topics just now, I also found out that MUSHISHI, a film based on the manga by Urushibara Yuki is also receiving passionate distribution offers from more than ten countries around the world including US and Australia. Since it's most likely going to be shown in other countries, maybe I should try to see if I can officially feature MUSHISHI as part of Japanese film entertainment on my website.
All right, that's all for today.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Would Fish Disappear?
Japanese food culture seems to be getting increasingly popular around the world, is what I understand from different articles and TV shows lately. Most of what makes it popular comes from the healthiness which I guess we can be proud of, but personally am not too sure of. Certainly, our diet takes in a huge variation of vegetables and fish, and it is commonly known that fish fat is easier on your body than fat from other meat like beef and pork. But has anyone picking up Japanese cuisine gave attention to how salty the food on the whole can be?
Anyway, the amount of sodium is not what I wanted to write about today. Today I want to cast an eye on the fishing industry in relation to the global expansion of diet based on fish.
A couple of nights ago I saw a portion of this TV program called Spaceship Earth (Suteki na Uchusen Chikyu-go). Its topic for the night was "See the world from the kitchen : sea-bream, blowfish and flatfish are mountain delicacies!?". Well of course, these fish definitely come from the ocean.
The show started with an introduction telling us how Japanese food culture is becoming more and more popular around the world, of how the global diet tendency is turning their eyes on healthiness, and how the stomachs of the world are wanting fish. A prominent example of this is the sudden increase of the demand of tuna, save tuna-eating cultures such as Japan (I know we overfish), and the variation of fish being eaten globally seems to be expanding more and more. If the current situation continues, experts calculate that all the natural (=noncultured) fish would go extinct by 2048.
It is of course important to prevent overfishing, yet it is as important to find some kind of alternative ideas to prevent fish from completely dying out from this world. One of those alternatives a Japanese professor came up with is the invention and development of this mysterious water.
What is so mysterious about the water, you'll know immediately once you see the scene of a goldfish and snapper swimming in the same watertank. It is a water that enables saltwater fish and freshwater fish to swim together. If you see it from the conclusion the fish grown in such environment would be cultured fish, but this mysterious water has characteristics that can save culture fishery from various problems they have today.
First of all, the water composed of minimum amount of kalium, sodium and other minerals prevent fish from being affected by various diseases. Then these elements encourage fast growth of the fish, and cuts down dramatically the culturing cost. In addition, it doesn't limit the location of culture fishing to the ocean meaning in the future, there may appear saltwater fish which its production area is in the depth of mountains.
At the same time of anticipating such future, I fear the destruction of the eco-system. The best way is not to make the future into something that requires these kinds of alternatives, but the question is, is it already too late or not? There's a lot we need to think about: for us, reflect upon the amount we fish because we're definitely fishing more than we can consume - which means waste - and for the others, find out the right amount of supply that meets the demand before they fall into a situation like us.
Speaking of healthy food and Japanese food culture, the daily update on Japan Mode is Japanese Tea Culture vol.3 - which talks about the three most popular green tea refreshment drinks (canned and bottled drinks) and the Green Tea War in 21st Century Japan.
Anyway, the amount of sodium is not what I wanted to write about today. Today I want to cast an eye on the fishing industry in relation to the global expansion of diet based on fish.
A couple of nights ago I saw a portion of this TV program called Spaceship Earth (Suteki na Uchusen Chikyu-go). Its topic for the night was "See the world from the kitchen : sea-bream, blowfish and flatfish are mountain delicacies!?". Well of course, these fish definitely come from the ocean.
The show started with an introduction telling us how Japanese food culture is becoming more and more popular around the world, of how the global diet tendency is turning their eyes on healthiness, and how the stomachs of the world are wanting fish. A prominent example of this is the sudden increase of the demand of tuna, save tuna-eating cultures such as Japan (I know we overfish), and the variation of fish being eaten globally seems to be expanding more and more. If the current situation continues, experts calculate that all the natural (=noncultured) fish would go extinct by 2048.
It is of course important to prevent overfishing, yet it is as important to find some kind of alternative ideas to prevent fish from completely dying out from this world. One of those alternatives a Japanese professor came up with is the invention and development of this mysterious water.
What is so mysterious about the water, you'll know immediately once you see the scene of a goldfish and snapper swimming in the same watertank. It is a water that enables saltwater fish and freshwater fish to swim together. If you see it from the conclusion the fish grown in such environment would be cultured fish, but this mysterious water has characteristics that can save culture fishery from various problems they have today.
First of all, the water composed of minimum amount of kalium, sodium and other minerals prevent fish from being affected by various diseases. Then these elements encourage fast growth of the fish, and cuts down dramatically the culturing cost. In addition, it doesn't limit the location of culture fishing to the ocean meaning in the future, there may appear saltwater fish which its production area is in the depth of mountains.
At the same time of anticipating such future, I fear the destruction of the eco-system. The best way is not to make the future into something that requires these kinds of alternatives, but the question is, is it already too late or not? There's a lot we need to think about: for us, reflect upon the amount we fish because we're definitely fishing more than we can consume - which means waste - and for the others, find out the right amount of supply that meets the demand before they fall into a situation like us.
Speaking of healthy food and Japanese food culture, the daily update on Japan Mode is Japanese Tea Culture vol.3 - which talks about the three most popular green tea refreshment drinks (canned and bottled drinks) and the Green Tea War in 21st Century Japan.
Monday, January 22, 2007
The Empty Winter
Late January would normally be the very depth of winter in Japan, but the waves of global warming is becoming stronger and stronger year after another. This winter is a severe one - not in the sense of coldness but rather the opposite, warmness.
Winter is supposed to be cold and brings snow to more than half the area of the country but this year we've hardly had any snow on national average. Snow causes trouble in the metropolis (especially Tokyo because even if it snows every year, the city structure and systems are not used to dealing with the thinnest bit of snow) and in the rural areas too if it gets too deep, but no snow causes bigger trouble for these rural - suburban villages, for these places snow means money.
I'm pretty sure this can be said for snow/wintersports resorts in other parts of the world, but having no or little snow means having no or little business in the ski mountains and hot spring resorts all over Japan. Whereas normally the ski mountains would be packed with thousands of skiers and snowboarders, the slopes are emptier in terms of visitors and in terms of whiteness. The slopes are close to bare than covered with thick snow, and some of the mountains barely keep their business by adding manmade snow.
There is an increasingly famous and popular tour in the northern part of the country called the snow drift experience tour, but they're not going to have it apparantly because there is no snow drift this winter.
It was only last night that the old houses of World Heritage village Shirakawago were lit up for winter illumination (though having said illumination, it's nothing like the ones we have in Tokyo. It's more aesthetic and fantastical). Usually at this time of year, at least a foot of heavy snow pile on top of the thatched roofs but this year you can see the thatch which makes the sight very... incomplete.
The first snow in Tokyo was more than a month later as compared to last winter, though like I just mentioned, snow isn't really welcome in the city. Warm is good, at least for my fingertips and toes, but a warm winter is somewhat sad and empty.
There's a famous Japanses classic literature called Makuranoshoshi by Seishonagon, and there's a part she writes about the four seasons. The first line for each season describes the most valuable element of the season, of what makes that particular season distinct and special. (note: below is a quick translation of my own and is not cited from a properly translated and published article/document)
Haru wa akebono - Spring, sunrise. The whitening rims of the mountains and the slightly purple, thin clouds.
Natsu wa yoru - Summer, night. The moon of course, yet dark nights with fireflies or drizzle have as much flavor.
Aki wa yuugure - Autumn, sunset. The birds flying back to their nests and the crickets singing after sunset.
Fuyu wa tsutomete - Winter, early morning. Burning fire in the brazier in the cold of the snow and frost.
When I first studied about this literature in secondary school I didn't really understand why a cold morning could be so good, but after I've grown a little more mature I've come to appreciate the changes in the seasons and their specialties. So in this sense coldness of the winter too, is something that should be there as a season. Losing it feels like losing something very important that our predecessors kept for thousands of years.
Today's update on Japan Mode: This Week's Events in Tokyo - well... there wasn't much to introduce this week so I chose some month-long events. One's about winter peony, another's on media arts (includes digital arts, animation, manga, graphic design, etc. in Japan - sounds pretty interesting) and the last one is on stars and ukiyoe prints created by Hokusai.
Winter is supposed to be cold and brings snow to more than half the area of the country but this year we've hardly had any snow on national average. Snow causes trouble in the metropolis (especially Tokyo because even if it snows every year, the city structure and systems are not used to dealing with the thinnest bit of snow) and in the rural areas too if it gets too deep, but no snow causes bigger trouble for these rural - suburban villages, for these places snow means money.
I'm pretty sure this can be said for snow/wintersports resorts in other parts of the world, but having no or little snow means having no or little business in the ski mountains and hot spring resorts all over Japan. Whereas normally the ski mountains would be packed with thousands of skiers and snowboarders, the slopes are emptier in terms of visitors and in terms of whiteness. The slopes are close to bare than covered with thick snow, and some of the mountains barely keep their business by adding manmade snow.
There is an increasingly famous and popular tour in the northern part of the country called the snow drift experience tour, but they're not going to have it apparantly because there is no snow drift this winter.
It was only last night that the old houses of World Heritage village Shirakawago were lit up for winter illumination (though having said illumination, it's nothing like the ones we have in Tokyo. It's more aesthetic and fantastical). Usually at this time of year, at least a foot of heavy snow pile on top of the thatched roofs but this year you can see the thatch which makes the sight very... incomplete.
The first snow in Tokyo was more than a month later as compared to last winter, though like I just mentioned, snow isn't really welcome in the city. Warm is good, at least for my fingertips and toes, but a warm winter is somewhat sad and empty.
There's a famous Japanses classic literature called Makuranoshoshi by Seishonagon, and there's a part she writes about the four seasons. The first line for each season describes the most valuable element of the season, of what makes that particular season distinct and special. (note: below is a quick translation of my own and is not cited from a properly translated and published article/document)
Haru wa akebono - Spring, sunrise. The whitening rims of the mountains and the slightly purple, thin clouds.
Natsu wa yoru - Summer, night. The moon of course, yet dark nights with fireflies or drizzle have as much flavor.
Aki wa yuugure - Autumn, sunset. The birds flying back to their nests and the crickets singing after sunset.
Fuyu wa tsutomete - Winter, early morning. Burning fire in the brazier in the cold of the snow and frost.
When I first studied about this literature in secondary school I didn't really understand why a cold morning could be so good, but after I've grown a little more mature I've come to appreciate the changes in the seasons and their specialties. So in this sense coldness of the winter too, is something that should be there as a season. Losing it feels like losing something very important that our predecessors kept for thousands of years.
Today's update on Japan Mode: This Week's Events in Tokyo - well... there wasn't much to introduce this week so I chose some month-long events. One's about winter peony, another's on media arts (includes digital arts, animation, manga, graphic design, etc. in Japan - sounds pretty interesting) and the last one is on stars and ukiyoe prints created by Hokusai.
Friday, January 19, 2007
The Make-up Culture
As I travel every now and then to various destinations, I realize that not so many women wear make-up the same way we do here in Japan. The same way, means most if not all of the following:
- foundation (liquid and powder)
- concealer
- face powder
- eye shadow (usually using several colors)
- eyeline
- mascara
- eyebrow
- cheek
- lipstick or lip gloss
and when it comes to ladies with more perfect make-up, layers of them. Whether you think this is less, normal or too much depends on, I guess, the society you live in and the culture you grew up in. For many Japanese females belonging to the age range of 18-27,28 or so, I think I can say this is normal.
I notice that here in Japan we have a unique culture of wearing make-up, and like in clothing and hairstyle there is a trend in make-up as well that shifts every season and gradually changes year after another.
For example, a couple of decades ago the trend was the so-called "surfer-make" which was generally represented in sky blue eye shadow and rather bright pink lipstick. Eyebrow trimming which is a common sense today was not so common back then, so thick brows were the mainstream.
A decade ago was about the time when "natural-make" started to spread (save the whole gal phenomenon). This is a kind of make-up in which you put on some make-up, but only within the extent of making your face look as if you don't have so much make-up on. Colors were close to the natural color of your skin and lips.
Right now since about a year ago, the idea of "chocolate make-up" came up using colors close to gold, bronze and brown. These colors mostly deal with eye make-up and lipstick (in the case of lipstick, a bit more redder than brown) but also are used for cheeks.
The reason for wearing full make-up, not point make-up like just mascara and lipstick, mostly comes from wanting to make your face look more distinctive, I think. I wouldn't go into the topic of inferiority complex that a lot of Japanese people have with their features and figures, but for women especially, there is definitely a tendency of wanting to make the eyes look bigger and rounder and lips sexier.
In addition to the above reason, there is also this kind of tacit understanding that wearing make-up is part of the social etiquette. If you're going out for grocery shopping it doesn't really matter so much, but if you are meeting someone like at work or are going to be present in a group of people (whether you know them or not) you might want to put some on. Of course, this isn't a rule and there are many people who don't wear make-up at all times so it's completely up to the individual and no one has the right to criticize anyone for not wearing it. I'm not sure if this has something to do with it or not, but there's been an understanding in Japanese tradition and culture since hundreds of years ago to completely separate private and public faces, to draw a clear line between the this-world and the other-world in many senses.
Thus, wearing make-up is part of the every-morning preparations for many college students and working women in Japan. But mornings are super busy unless you get up hours before you set out, and wearing this much make-up takes a surprising long time if you do it neatly. When I was in univ some of my friends were telling me they get up two hours before they leave home - an hour and a half for shower, make-up and hair styling, and half an hour for the rest of the preparations.
So I was thinking that this is the case for many females who look so perfect on trains and schools and office, but I was surprised to read an article based on a quick poll of how much time working females afford for everyday make-up. Nearly 80% of the twenties through fourties only required less than 20 minutes, covering most or all of the items mentioned earlier. I was like, wow, and this morning I observed how much time I needed to wear make-up, and wow, it only took me 15 minutes - which was less than I thought I needed every morning.
To many people who don't have the habit of wearing make-up, 15-20 minutes may seem like a long time just to wear make-up (like men who always wonder and complain why women take too much time to get ready), but if you want to look good and as perfect as you can, it's pretty short. I guess it's not like it only takes that little time, but women train themselves and obtain the ability to make preparations more efficient and shorter.
So that was my thought for the day. Not much point really.
Today's update on Japan Mode (will be up around 17:00 JST): webmanga CharmyNurseM chapter 8
- foundation (liquid and powder)
- concealer
- face powder
- eye shadow (usually using several colors)
- eyeline
- mascara
- eyebrow
- cheek
- lipstick or lip gloss
and when it comes to ladies with more perfect make-up, layers of them. Whether you think this is less, normal or too much depends on, I guess, the society you live in and the culture you grew up in. For many Japanese females belonging to the age range of 18-27,28 or so, I think I can say this is normal.
I notice that here in Japan we have a unique culture of wearing make-up, and like in clothing and hairstyle there is a trend in make-up as well that shifts every season and gradually changes year after another.
For example, a couple of decades ago the trend was the so-called "surfer-make" which was generally represented in sky blue eye shadow and rather bright pink lipstick. Eyebrow trimming which is a common sense today was not so common back then, so thick brows were the mainstream.
A decade ago was about the time when "natural-make" started to spread (save the whole gal phenomenon). This is a kind of make-up in which you put on some make-up, but only within the extent of making your face look as if you don't have so much make-up on. Colors were close to the natural color of your skin and lips.
Right now since about a year ago, the idea of "chocolate make-up" came up using colors close to gold, bronze and brown. These colors mostly deal with eye make-up and lipstick (in the case of lipstick, a bit more redder than brown) but also are used for cheeks.
The reason for wearing full make-up, not point make-up like just mascara and lipstick, mostly comes from wanting to make your face look more distinctive, I think. I wouldn't go into the topic of inferiority complex that a lot of Japanese people have with their features and figures, but for women especially, there is definitely a tendency of wanting to make the eyes look bigger and rounder and lips sexier.
In addition to the above reason, there is also this kind of tacit understanding that wearing make-up is part of the social etiquette. If you're going out for grocery shopping it doesn't really matter so much, but if you are meeting someone like at work or are going to be present in a group of people (whether you know them or not) you might want to put some on. Of course, this isn't a rule and there are many people who don't wear make-up at all times so it's completely up to the individual and no one has the right to criticize anyone for not wearing it. I'm not sure if this has something to do with it or not, but there's been an understanding in Japanese tradition and culture since hundreds of years ago to completely separate private and public faces, to draw a clear line between the this-world and the other-world in many senses.
Thus, wearing make-up is part of the every-morning preparations for many college students and working women in Japan. But mornings are super busy unless you get up hours before you set out, and wearing this much make-up takes a surprising long time if you do it neatly. When I was in univ some of my friends were telling me they get up two hours before they leave home - an hour and a half for shower, make-up and hair styling, and half an hour for the rest of the preparations.
So I was thinking that this is the case for many females who look so perfect on trains and schools and office, but I was surprised to read an article based on a quick poll of how much time working females afford for everyday make-up. Nearly 80% of the twenties through fourties only required less than 20 minutes, covering most or all of the items mentioned earlier. I was like, wow, and this morning I observed how much time I needed to wear make-up, and wow, it only took me 15 minutes - which was less than I thought I needed every morning.
To many people who don't have the habit of wearing make-up, 15-20 minutes may seem like a long time just to wear make-up (like men who always wonder and complain why women take too much time to get ready), but if you want to look good and as perfect as you can, it's pretty short. I guess it's not like it only takes that little time, but women train themselves and obtain the ability to make preparations more efficient and shorter.
So that was my thought for the day. Not much point really.
Today's update on Japan Mode (will be up around 17:00 JST): webmanga CharmyNurseM chapter 8
Thursday, January 18, 2007
The Big National Event
A HUGE national event is coming up this weekend. It's not so important culturally or traditionally or religiously, but it could be the crossroad of life for many youths in Japan - it's called the "center-shiken", the "center examination".
The center-exam is kind of like an equivalent to SAT in the States and though I'm not sure of the name I think there's a similar one in South Korea too (sorry, I don't know the educational systems in other countries). It's a big exam most people who want to go on to college are required to take, and the scores for this exam become the guideline and indicator of whether you have chances to go to the school of your choice.
If a Japanese person wants to go to college/university, the most common way is to take a written entrance exam (juken) and simply get high scores. But since this style of exams only pushes students to remember facts and hinders them from obtaining real learning skills in their teenage years, an increasing number of colleges/univs are getting started with interview-style and other exams based on self-presentation and self assessment. The center-exams are used for both methods though not for all schools.
You can read more about Japanese education system and issues in the educational policies here at my ex-bosses blog. It's a pretty good and detailed series and it's up to date, too.
Anyway, this center-exam is the starter of the whole college entrance exam battle, or "juken-sensou" as we call it in Japanese. It's been around for decades, and sadly it seems like even with the gradual change in education tendencies and the decline of birthrates (= scramble of students) this so-called battle won't disappear for a while.
As mentioned a bit in the past entries (fortune telling / blood type characters ) Japanese people are pretty superstitious. And together with the millennium-long tradition and natural character of playing with words, there is this funny custom of wishing best luck with objects, animals and food. For example, there is this little ornament of a frog at the entrance of my house and this is for safe return because frog is "kaeru" and "kaeru" is also the verb for "to return (home)".
Similar beliefs (though by no means serious worship) exist with good luck on passing exams. The most historical one, at least among the ones I know, is tonkatsu. Tonkatsu is a Japanese dish of pork cutlet, and I don't knot about the "ton" part but "katsu" means to win. So what people do is to eat tonkatsu before an important test.
The custom spread rapidly in the food business especially in the snack industry. A famous one - and a product even originally non-Japanese - is KitKat. KitKat pronounced in Japanese "kitto-katto" is somewhat close to the sound of a short sentence "kitto katsu" which means " (I'll/you'll probably win). "Probably" here is a pretty strong possibility. A corn puff snack Carl (kaaru) turns into the verb "to pass" if you add an "u" sound on the top so that too is an exam-lucky snack. If you switch the order of the sounds of the name of the famous chocolate stick snack Pocky, it (the sound) becomes "kippo" which is good news.
Ones that can't really related the names to good luck for the exams related the goods with cherry blossoms. Cherry blossoms is the symbol in Japan for the season spring, and spring is the season when the new school year starts. The term "sakura saku" = cherry blossoms bloom is used to describe happy situations, in which somebody's long effort finally achieves a goal. Cherry blossom isn't really a food but the petals and leaves are sometimes used for dishes and sweets, and it has a unique aroma too, so snacks add hints of cherry blossom fragrance or extracts or just color the food slightly pinkish to ride on the juken wave.
Like this, a good load of snacks are trying to increase their sales by relating these snack products to the national event. The tendency is escalating every year and this year I see more than the last. Not that many people take it seriously, but I find it pretty funny looking at the line-ups on the shelves of super markets and convenience stores. It sounds stupid, but I like this aspect of Japanese character of making everything into something else and doing stupid things seriously.
We're supposed to be stern, rock-hard serious people, right?
Today's update on Japan Mode: Yojijukugo - is a four-kanji-idiom which most derive from ancient Chinese sayings but are used commonly in Japanese language. I haven't had new posts for this section for nearly two months, so it's the first update in a pretty long time. For the first edition of the new year I chose ones that have ambitious meanings.
The center-exam is kind of like an equivalent to SAT in the States and though I'm not sure of the name I think there's a similar one in South Korea too (sorry, I don't know the educational systems in other countries). It's a big exam most people who want to go on to college are required to take, and the scores for this exam become the guideline and indicator of whether you have chances to go to the school of your choice.
If a Japanese person wants to go to college/university, the most common way is to take a written entrance exam (juken) and simply get high scores. But since this style of exams only pushes students to remember facts and hinders them from obtaining real learning skills in their teenage years, an increasing number of colleges/univs are getting started with interview-style and other exams based on self-presentation and self assessment. The center-exams are used for both methods though not for all schools.
You can read more about Japanese education system and issues in the educational policies here at my ex-bosses blog. It's a pretty good and detailed series and it's up to date, too.
Anyway, this center-exam is the starter of the whole college entrance exam battle, or "juken-sensou" as we call it in Japanese. It's been around for decades, and sadly it seems like even with the gradual change in education tendencies and the decline of birthrates (= scramble of students) this so-called battle won't disappear for a while.
As mentioned a bit in the past entries (fortune telling / blood type characters ) Japanese people are pretty superstitious. And together with the millennium-long tradition and natural character of playing with words, there is this funny custom of wishing best luck with objects, animals and food. For example, there is this little ornament of a frog at the entrance of my house and this is for safe return because frog is "kaeru" and "kaeru" is also the verb for "to return (home)".
Similar beliefs (though by no means serious worship) exist with good luck on passing exams. The most historical one, at least among the ones I know, is tonkatsu. Tonkatsu is a Japanese dish of pork cutlet, and I don't knot about the "ton" part but "katsu" means to win. So what people do is to eat tonkatsu before an important test.
The custom spread rapidly in the food business especially in the snack industry. A famous one - and a product even originally non-Japanese - is KitKat. KitKat pronounced in Japanese "kitto-katto" is somewhat close to the sound of a short sentence "kitto katsu" which means " (I'll/you'll probably win). "Probably" here is a pretty strong possibility. A corn puff snack Carl (kaaru) turns into the verb "to pass" if you add an "u" sound on the top so that too is an exam-lucky snack. If you switch the order of the sounds of the name of the famous chocolate stick snack Pocky, it (the sound) becomes "kippo" which is good news.
Ones that can't really related the names to good luck for the exams related the goods with cherry blossoms. Cherry blossoms is the symbol in Japan for the season spring, and spring is the season when the new school year starts. The term "sakura saku" = cherry blossoms bloom is used to describe happy situations, in which somebody's long effort finally achieves a goal. Cherry blossom isn't really a food but the petals and leaves are sometimes used for dishes and sweets, and it has a unique aroma too, so snacks add hints of cherry blossom fragrance or extracts or just color the food slightly pinkish to ride on the juken wave.
Like this, a good load of snacks are trying to increase their sales by relating these snack products to the national event. The tendency is escalating every year and this year I see more than the last. Not that many people take it seriously, but I find it pretty funny looking at the line-ups on the shelves of super markets and convenience stores. It sounds stupid, but I like this aspect of Japanese character of making everything into something else and doing stupid things seriously.
We're supposed to be stern, rock-hard serious people, right?
Today's update on Japan Mode: Yojijukugo - is a four-kanji-idiom which most derive from ancient Chinese sayings but are used commonly in Japanese language. I haven't had new posts for this section for nearly two months, so it's the first update in a pretty long time. For the first edition of the new year I chose ones that have ambitious meanings.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
Fancy Phones
Ten new models of cell phones were announced yesterday from au (KDDI) and NTT DoCoMo respectively like they do every 3 months. Softbank didn't make its announcement the same day but I'm pretty sure they're going to do so in a short while. au and DoCoMo are going to have four more models each so for spring there will be 14 kinds of new designs coming out from each carrier.
Because spring is the beginning of the new school year or office year, it is the most busiest time for cell phone companies. A good load of students entering a new school is likely to get new phones as well as freshmen in office because they're going to be using their phones for business on top of private.
Therefore the energy the phone companies give to the spring models is more than extraordinary. They've got to get new customers, and especially after the distinctive victory and defeat among the three companies in the battle of the introduction of the number portability system, they're all going almost mad.
The models for DoCoMo focused on the appearance, of making it thinner and lighter than the previous models. Most of the new ones have the function of wallet-mobile in which your phone carries e-money meaning you can make payments with your phone by just touching a panel with it. This function was only included in the higher and more expensive models, but because the function and system spread wider they made the function more handy for all people.
au, the winner of the number portability battle strengthened the quality of displays and media contents. Not that the displays weren't as good as others, it just made them clearer and more smoother. But more than anything, I think the difference between au and the other two is the passion in designing. au has this project called "design project" which releases models that focuses on artistic designs on top of the spec of the phone, and the ones in this project are designed by the designers of the day or next-generation designers. It was only a couple of days ago that I heard in the news that four models from this design project are going to be kept and displayed in MoMa for its artisticness. The newest one, by the way, looks simple but is covered by this special kind of smooth material that feels soft and comfortable on your skin. They even say it's a new kind of skin. I'd like to feel what it's like, though I'm not sure if I want to have it as my own...
You can read the mobile article on Japan Mode if you want to know more about Japanese cell phones and what kinds of elements have higher priority in making, selling and buying cell phones in Japan.
Okie, I have to make this short cuz I'm really super running out of time.
Today's update: Sakidori Events - Major cultural events in February vol.2: there're five all together but I'll add more in the upcoming week. They're all big events and are very Japanese so even if you can't come you might want to have a look of what kinds of events are being held over the winter. I also got lots of help from city offices so there's a good lot of pictures too.
Because spring is the beginning of the new school year or office year, it is the most busiest time for cell phone companies. A good load of students entering a new school is likely to get new phones as well as freshmen in office because they're going to be using their phones for business on top of private.
Therefore the energy the phone companies give to the spring models is more than extraordinary. They've got to get new customers, and especially after the distinctive victory and defeat among the three companies in the battle of the introduction of the number portability system, they're all going almost mad.
The models for DoCoMo focused on the appearance, of making it thinner and lighter than the previous models. Most of the new ones have the function of wallet-mobile in which your phone carries e-money meaning you can make payments with your phone by just touching a panel with it. This function was only included in the higher and more expensive models, but because the function and system spread wider they made the function more handy for all people.
au, the winner of the number portability battle strengthened the quality of displays and media contents. Not that the displays weren't as good as others, it just made them clearer and more smoother. But more than anything, I think the difference between au and the other two is the passion in designing. au has this project called "design project" which releases models that focuses on artistic designs on top of the spec of the phone, and the ones in this project are designed by the designers of the day or next-generation designers. It was only a couple of days ago that I heard in the news that four models from this design project are going to be kept and displayed in MoMa for its artisticness. The newest one, by the way, looks simple but is covered by this special kind of smooth material that feels soft and comfortable on your skin. They even say it's a new kind of skin. I'd like to feel what it's like, though I'm not sure if I want to have it as my own...
You can read the mobile article on Japan Mode if you want to know more about Japanese cell phones and what kinds of elements have higher priority in making, selling and buying cell phones in Japan.
Okie, I have to make this short cuz I'm really super running out of time.
Today's update: Sakidori Events - Major cultural events in February vol.2: there're five all together but I'll add more in the upcoming week. They're all big events and are very Japanese so even if you can't come you might want to have a look of what kinds of events are being held over the winter. I also got lots of help from city offices so there's a good lot of pictures too.
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