Model Train Convention at Tokyo Big Site

I was at International Model Train Convention held at Big Site in Tokyo on August 17, 2013,and helped my friend's member shop. He is one of my high school classmates and has been selling LED interior illumination lights for model trains.

He is one of those railway train mania. He designed some of the LED lights he sells as he was an electronic engineer in his previous life.

To go to Big Site, I took Yurikamome line and got off at the "Kokusai Tenjijo Shomen-Genkan Mae" station. You can walk up to Big Site directly from there. I liked Big Site's huge, red three-dimensional symbol mark, which looked to me very Californian.

Once open, people started pouring in and the exhibition floor got very crowded, which was more than I expected.

Pic：Model trains running against the background picture of a mountain.

Model trains of variable sizes and colors were running in and out very realistic model mountains, towns populated with people, and fields, passing by model stations (with people) and over rivers and roads (with various model vehicles) with whirring sounds here and their in the convention floor. I was slowly getting why some people get enthralled with very realistic world of miniatures with emphasis on trains.

Pic：Model trains running in a miniature landscape garden.

The average patrons of the convention were pot-bellied men of 30s and 40s, wearing T-shirt and long sleeved top. Women are definitely minority but according to my friend, their number had been gradually increasing over the years. My impression was that some of the women are engineers. There were many fathers with their kids, and children gave lots of energy to the exhibition floor. I talked to foreigners such as German and Chinese.

"The train is coming into the 3rd platform... The train is passing by the 2nd platform... Please stand back behind the white line to avoid danger." I think that almost all train users have gotten tired of those announcement female voice. However, for those railroad fans, those sweet voices may be another ultimate object of their passion. At one booth, each time model trains approach the model station, those announcements were heard, which was very frequently. Never tired of looking at trains or hearing the announcements - The convention is the space where manias can express such intimate feelings toward trains and females, represented by sweet voices, without any reservation.

Pic：Toy gardens are so detailed, almost superior to model trains. Dr. Hyao Kawai, a psychologist who uses a toy garden for analysis, would love it.

The above is one of my favorite exhibits. The upper, half-sphere part of the contrivance spins as you rotate the handle on the lower part. That rotates the background scenery of a Bullet Train and gives you an impression of as if the train is running, although it actually remains at the bottom all the while. You can see special local products such as apple, brevoort fish and sushi studded on the half-sphere background surface.

The creator of the half-spere says, "I am not a railroad fan but love to build things like these. That's why I put them on the exhibition."

Another of his work. The background blue is refreshing. I love this one best.

Kanze Noh-gakudo at Shibuya

I wasn't sure about trying Noh chants. But went anyway, because I wanna try at least once in my life time.

I got off at Shibuya and took the building 109 exit to emerge on the ground. I saw on my left "Kujira-ya," an old and famous restaurant. Soon I was walking up on a gentle slope and saw the sign of「Kanze Nohgakudo (観世能楽堂)」on the side wall of an oldish concrete building three-story high. I felt "Oh, sheet" and at the same relieved, as I reached at my destination without getting lost even once.

I entered Kanze Noh-gakudo and opened the door of auditorium. Inside, there are a traditionally roofed Noh-stage building on the right side of the open ceiling space and the long corridor extending from the stage to the left. Seats are spacious and surround the L-letter shaped traditional Noh theater structure comfortably.

The main Noh stage made of Japanese cypress is glittering softly. It sticks out deep in the audience seat, which is dark compared to the stage, though the audience seat never gets as dark as that of a western auditorium even during performance. The Noh stage looked as if it were the other side of the real world, that is, it appears unreal and is blissfully beautiful. Drawn on the backdrop of the stage is a stylized pine tree whose clusters of needles simmer in bluish green. On the backdrop of the right side of the stage, thick bamboo sticks are in soft green as if they are shining in a sun ray right after a passing shower. I suddenly understood why we Japanese describe a personal big moment as "standing on the stage." The Noh stage appeared to be such an exorbitantly happy place.（Snapshot below is from the Kanze Nohgakudo home page)

Performance begins without any audio announcement or greeting.

Four men wearing hakama and carrying instruments with them came on the stage from the small door located at the corner on the right wall (with bamboo drawing) of the stage and sat on the floor with their back against the pine. Five more men and one woman came on and sat their back against the bamboos. "Mai-bayashi or 舞囃子," one kind of Noh about which I had had no idea of what it was like, was about to begin. The four men on the left began playing a Japanese drum, a knee drum, a shoulder drum and a whistle respectively. The five men who'd perform Noh chant, or "jiuta," sat on the floor with the woman in Japanese kimono at the top of their triangle formation.

I was surprised at how extraordinarily well jiuta men carried their voice in chanting. The knee and shoulder drums would resonate as if to cut jiuta men's penetrating voice in slices. Intoned shouts of "Oh,""Yei," or "Ha" would chime in between knee and shoulder drums and whistle's often sharp melodies. The men's shouts were so clear and loud that I couldn't help wondering where in the body those voices had come from. The combination of the percussion and human chants and shouts was crisp, rhythmic and so cool.

My friend danced and chanted a piece called "Ukon." I was stunned and wondered how she was able to project such a loud voice especially because I've known her as having rather thin voice.

Performance suddenly ended and the next one began.

Watching several performances, I imagined how Lord Nobunaga Oda, a 16th century war lord and a Noh lover carried his body on a stage. And many samurai worriers. In between their wars.

I got it why some people are absorbed to the world of Noh. It's a happy, pure and brilliantly creative space in which stylized human shouts resonate with chants, in which the sounds of instruments slice the air and human voices in myriad ways and angles, on whose floor white tabi socks glide gracefully and occasionally with thumps. The shiny wooden stage appears as if it were floating above the oblong garden lined with white ballast and dotted with pine shoots. And the closeness of the performer and audience gives an air of conspiracy (or a promise) that both contribute to the construction of a happy, creative space.

P.S.: There is an Inari shrine right next to the Noh-gakudo on the same premise. I wonder what kind of relationship they have between them.

Musashi-Itsukaichi City's local veggie and SF Chinatown

Itukaichi Farmers Center in Musashi-Itsukaichi (Tokyo) is located on Itsukaichi Kaido Way, which is where I found a local vegetable, or "ji-yasai," called "Norabo-na."

I boiled it and mixed with katsuo-bushi fish frakes and a small amount of soy source. Gee, it reminded me of the veggie I used to buy in Chiantown when I was in San Francisco. See the pic below: It has thick leaves, fat stems and white flowers, if in flowering season.

I have linked a pic of Norabo-na vegetable. It grows like this. Definitely, it belongs to the family of green mustard.

Chinatown in San Francisco has lots of veggies you've never seen in Tokyo. It's clear that Chinese people love veggies and eat a wide variety of them including those looked like ornamental house plants (which, by the way, I tried)!

I love chinese veggies because they have much more distinct vegetable tastes and smells than those available in Japanese and US supermarket in cities. Now having learned about a local vegetable in Musashi-Itsukaichi, I started wondering that many veggies in Chinatown are originally local veggies brought in to San Francisco by Chinese immigrants from their hometowns.

I liked「芥菜」in miso soup. It looks like takana, a popular Japanese veggie used in pickles. It could be takana really. In Chinatown, it has two varieties: thick and thinner ones. It has slightly bitter taste, which I love. It appears that Chinese people fry them in hot deep oil first and cook them with garlic. Or they make pickles with daikon-raddish and carrots. I saw them in Chinese restaurants.

It took me a long time to try Japanese-spindletree-ish thing or "Masaki" because it was as if it were trees rather than veggies, but once I eat its leaves (no stem), they were so delicious. It's only available short time in spring. I don't know the name.

I wonder whether or not those Chinese veggies in Chinatown might have been available some local areas in Japan, as Chinese people have migrated into Japan since 10th century. One thing it seems clear to me is that those veggies available in Tokyo and US supermarkets are select veggies among many because of their long-lasting characteristics after harvest, and we the consumer have come to believe that those in supermarkets are the only edible veggies.

Above pic is "oil plant" or "油菜" in Chinese. It might mean "Green mustard." It's sold almost all year around. It appears that the same veggie changes its name as it grows - just like buri. Smaller the better. It's possible that they look very similar to me but for those who know, small and bigger ones are completely different plants. Actually, I asked shop people but they said those veggies were all the same. I used to boil them and mix them with tomato and balsamic vinegar.

Cherry Blossom at the peak in Tokyo

Originally, it's April the 5th. then moved to March the 25th. Yesterday, Japan Meteorological Bureau (JMB) declared, "It's tomorrow, March the 23rd!"

It's the full bloom date for cherry trees in Tokyo. Every year, JMB forecasts the full bloom date for every district in Japan; so people can shuffle their plans and choose a date for "cherry blossom viewing" or "a cherry blossom appreication party."

My choice of viewing area was Kanda-gawa (Kanda River or "神田川"). I hopped on a Tokyo Metro Yurakucho line train and got off at the Edogawa-bashi station in the late morning.

Truly, it was super beautiful.

Cherry Blossom viewing is "the ultimate" flower viewing or "hanami (花見）". When people say "hanami," it means "cherry blossom viewing." There's a walkway on both sides of the river with several bridges over it. Very convenient for appreciating cherry blossoms and making a trip back to the starting point.

Many people enjoy picnic with sake under a cherry tree. Many more walk along Kanda River to enjoy cherry blossom from different angles.

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Along Kanda River and next to "Basho-an" and famous "Chinzan-so," there's "Eisei Bunko" museum or "永青文庫", some of its collection such as Japanese armors and swords were shown at Asian Art Museum in San Francisco a couple of years ago.

Kanda River's cherry tree type is "Somei Yoshino (染井吉野), representative of a cherry tree. Flowers of this kind bloom in globular, and flowers in one ball bloom all together this year.

Carps and turtles live in swiftly flowing Kanda River. which used to overrun. Today, overflows will be led to a huge underground duct system to prevent flood.

Hanami will span only a week at most. If there's a windy day, cherry trees shed their flowers at once, leaving naked stems and twigs...

P.S. 3/30/13

Cherry flowers have been holding amazingly well.

Temperature has dropped since the 23rd, and we had no major rains or windy days in Tokyo. Today, people are enjoying "sakura fubuki, or cherry flower storm" in which petals are falling softly like a rain, even though there's no slightest breeze. Cherry petal falling reminds me of Gilda's song of cry in Rigoletto's quartet. Pathways underneath have become as if they were lined with pink carpet. Cheery blossom is beautiful from beginning to the end...

Japanese Plum is in full bloom in Tokyo

Flower viewing is a national pastime. From mid-February to mid-March, it's a blossom season for ume or Japanese plums. People go to see them in droves.

This year (2013), weather was cold and the blooming of Japanese plums (early blooming types) was delayed for two weeks but today, due to warm weather, early blooming types are in full bloom together with those in late blooming types.

There are several places famous for Japanese plum blossom viewing in Tokyo. I went to Ikegami Japanese Plum Garden (池上梅園). It has about 30 kinds of Japanese plums, of which 150 trees bear "hakubai (白梅)" or white plum flowers and 220 trees, "kobai (紅梅)," or pink plum flowers. During flower season, it announces flowering status via web.

In Tokyo, Japanese plum flowers and fragrance can be enjoyed for the next two weeks.

Tokyo Metro Asakusa line's Nishi-magome is the nearest subway station. It's about 7-minute walk to Ikegami Baien (Ikegami Japanese Plum Garden). You'll soon see flowers on your left.

Foxy Sasuke Inari Shrine in Kamakura

Kamakura has lots of points of interest such sa Tsuruoka Hachiman-gu but here, I focus on "Sasuke Inari Jinja (佐助稲荷神社)" or Sasuke Inari Shrine.

Sasuke Shrine is located kind of near "Zeniarai Benten," although you need to walk through "Keshouzaka Kiritoshi" from Zeniarai Benten, which is, by the way, also an interesting place.

What makes Sasuke Inari interesting is its foxes. "Inari" is one type of the gods in Japan. As fox is the Inari god's messenger, a pair of foxes or two always sits in the premises of the Inari shrine. At Sasuke Inari, you see not just a pair, but you'll soon notice many sitting here and there in the shrine!

This pair is located just below the right-side fox of the main stone pair. White ceramic foxes are those offered by people to make their wishes come true.

Sasuke Inari is supposed to have a supernatural power to bring romance between two people. If you want to marry with someone in your mind, you may come here, purchase a white ceramic fox and offer it to the Inari, asking for the god's help. It's like donation because the shrine uses money acquired to maintain their premises.

You'll notice a bib around a fox neck. Why is it? One theory is that parents who lost their babies tied a red bib around the fox to appease the baby's soul and allow them peacefully to become a budda in heaven.

There's another thing about Sasuke Inari Jinja. Though you tend to see Inari jinja less in your neighborhood nowadays, you have chances to see several while growing up in Japan. Most fox statues in Inari, however, don't have facial expressions as severe as Sasuke Inari's. See above pics. The foxes have unfriendly and beastly look and even have fangs protruding from their half-opened mouth. Those I've seen since my childhood have more comical or expression-less look. I wonder that people in the 13th century (that's when Sasuke Inari was constructed) regarded foxes as dangerous animals inconveniently living in their proximity but at the same time believed in their supernatural power and awed them.

You take "Shonan Shinjuku Liner"to visit Kamakura. It's about one hour ride from Ikebukuro.

Sakaguchi's "Resume" at Tokyo Watarium

The Kyohei Sakaguchi exhibit, which was over a couple of days ago, made me laugh a good laugh. I agree with Kyohei Sakaguchi 80 percent, which is in fact quite high.

His work, "Resume," warmed my heart. I've been agonized by the Japanese resume form quite a while.

Japanese resume (see pic below) is the perfect representation of "life on the track": You are expected to go to a high school after a junior high, then proceed to a college and then straight to a company. No nonsense between schools and between schools and the so-called real world. "The" Japanese resume form predicates on life on the track. In a sense, it's even a minimalistic tour de force of conceptual arts.

After graduating from a college in the US, I continued my education via enrolling in a number of courses at different community colleges, part of the adult education system that USA should be very proud of. I also changed my employers several times to expand my knowledge and experience. My education and work life therefore totally run off from the Japanese form. I feel I'm "crucified" on the criss-crossing lines of the Japanese resume form. I feel I'm out of question from "their" viewpoint because my life does not fit to life on the track.

Roland Berthas, one of my favorite writers, says, "Scratch the surface, and there's a history." I tried it when I was fumed with the resume form, and somehow a Chinese term,「科挙」、pronounced "Kakyo," emerged on the surface of my brain. "Kakyo" is an infamous examination system created in China circa B.C. 200. Is Japanese resume might be one of the vestige of Kakyo and incredibly still surviving?

Pic: Watarium Museum. It goes well with yellow.

　 While I was away from Japan、a cream ban has evolved、a telephone box almost completely disappeared in Tokyo, and subway lines changed its name to "Metro" and multiplied in the underground world of Tokyo, the form of Japanese resume has not changed even a bit (and the design of the 10 yen coin hasn't changed at all). Isn't it weirdly stagnant?

So Mr. Sakamoto's "Resume" warmed my heart and I feel love toward the artist.

If I write Sakamoto style resume, I'll include playing with my brothers (cooping up a cat in an empty wooden apple box and trying to observe the cat's behavior when pouring a water from the above etc) going for a long walk with neighboring kids after school. Those were important matters definitely involved in shaping my inner space called mind. I especially liked going for a long walk (sometimes by myself), which was quite an adventure for me at that time. We just walked to a far away place to make a return trip to home. I often picked up a rusted bottle opener etc. on the way and kept it as a treasure in my tin box. Sakamoto's resume didn't include those staff. My guess is that he didn't have siblings. Also, when he was a kid, it might have been too dangerous for a kid to go for a walk by themselves.

I feel I'm forced to fit myself to that form of cross, which is "resume."

Missing Japanese people in Algeria

Fourteen Japanese people are still missing at the In Amenas gas field, which was attacked by terrorists a couple of days ago. The natural gas plant is located 1,300 kilometers away from Algiers, the capital of Algeria. It's a tiny, lonely corner of the vast Sahara desert.

When dispatching employees to such a desolate place in an extreme hinterland with political uncertainty, why doesn't the company train them how to use Twitter from their mobile device before dispatching?

It may be that the company doesn't like the idea that their employees freely communicate their observations and ideas to the outside world. Or is it because there's no way to use Twitter in the middle of the Sahara? That's very possible. Hope things will work out fine.

The snapshot is from here.

Tokyo's snowing!

"Oh my god!" my friend exclaims and I look out through a window...

This is the first snow in Tokyo in 2013.

It's only once a year if there's snow in Tokyo. Usually none.

Kadomatsu decoration to welcome New Year

"Kadomatsu" is one of "the" new year decorations placed at the entrance of a house, company building, store etc. Pic below is kadomatsu placed at the entrance of shopping mall right underneath Tokyo Skytree. It's always placed in pairs to frank the entrance.

People put "kadomatsu" to let a New Year god take notice of their house and cajole him in. If he comes in, the family will have a good year. A New year god likes to perch on a tree branch with a bunch of green leaves; hence kadomatsu. I think there are a multiple number of New Year god (if not, how come he can walk in or fly in many houses on the same day?). He's definitely so small and light-weighted as to be able to perch on a tree branch without breaking it.

Basic components of modern kadomatsu are bamboos, pine needle leaves and a rope(s) made from rice straws.

Kadomatsu pair placed at the entrance of a shrine. Notice bamboos have full height and leaves intact, while Skytree's bamboo tops are truncated. The shrine's pair is an old style mostly seen, say, many decades ago.

This pair is a simplified form of the modern kadomatsu at another shrine. Most people put kadomatsu of this style at their houses because it's less costly.

Above is a simplified decoration of another type being suspended from the center of the beam of the entrance.

Tokyo Skytree: Best time to visit in winter

Almost every Tokyoite has been talking about "Skytree" and I've had hard time understanding their enthusiasm. Then a high school senior class reunion was held, including a visit to Skytree. So I rode Tokyo Metro Hanzomonsen and got off, for the first time, at the Oshiage station, which is where you get off when visiting Skytree.

Our reunion group easily entered the building as we had made reservation way ahead and paid 2.500 yen per person. If you purchase a walk-in ticket, you'll pay 2,000 yen (500 yen less) but might need to wait a bit longer to enter. It appeared it's no longer crowded than used to be.

Below is a pic taken from the lower-level observation gallery. Notice there's a grove underneath the tall building. Famous "Senso-ji (temple)" is located immedaitely below the grove as it belongs to the green-roofed temple. Taking a very careful look, you'll see green lines extended from Senso-ji to the left. That's the roofs of also famous "Nakamise (Nakamise shopping promenade)," where you can buy Japanese traditional suvenirs, food and junk. The river is equally famous "Sumida River."

You pay extra 1,000 yen to get to the upper-level observation gallery. If you know you'd be never back to Skytree and weather's good, it's worth going up.

Sunset. A little protruded thingie at the center is Mt. Fuji.

When Tokyo Tower's lighted up in the dusk, it looks as ephemeral and fragile as an ant lion, which somehow hits your soft spot and makes you nostalgic.

Night view is something. The vertical bridge over Sumida River is "White Beard Bridge," according to my old high school classmate.

Best time to visit Skytree in winter is around 4:00 pm. You can observe day, dusk and night views and at about 6:00 pm descend the tower to head for Asakusa for dinner.

New Year dishes welcoming 2013

On the new year day, we have for breakfast "ozoni," which is a soupy dish with rice cakes. Each local area has its own version of ozoni. For instance, Tokyo's ozoni is said to use more soy source than that of Kyoto.

Even Tokyo, there are many variations according to where originally people come from geographically and/or socially etc.

I usually use chicken, hakusai (Chinese cabbage), spinach, carrot and mochi (rice cake) for ozoni. It's accompanied with "osechi" cuisine such as "kamaboko (fish cake)" and "datemaki" on a separate plate (used to be layers of boxes). We usually have ozoni for the first three days of the new year.

This year, I simplified New Year's day breakfast, omitting many "osechi" or New Year dishes. I don't feel like having them except very basic staff.

Let's look at yellow things on a dish on the left. Round yellow things are "datemaki," which is made of eggs and sugars and almost all osechi include it. Its original form looks like "makizushi roll" and you cut it into slices and eat it. Here, I put two slices on the dish. A bit too sweet for me.

"Kazunoko"is next to datemaki. it's herring eggs and considered auspicious because it suggest hundreds of offspring.

Kamaboko is the half-round, red and white piece made of fish paste and solidified on a piece of wood. You slice it when eating it. The combination of red and white colors is considered auspicious and kamaboko with red surface fits to a new year day.

A bunch of cooked small fish below kamaboko is "tazukuri" and is one kind of anchovy. It was mainly used as fertilizer many years ago, although now it became part of human food. Tazukuri symbolizes bountiful harvest.

Black round thing is a lucky black bean. It requires good cooking knowledge to cook such huge beans without breaking its shape while cooking in a huge pot.

My grandmother used to make layers of "osechi" placed in layers of urushi boxes. Nowadays, you can buy grand osechi layers at a department store.