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2009/8/30

Tokyo Dolphins

Small Tokyo volcanic island hopes to lure back visitors with local dolphins

A school of dolphins swim around a reef off Miyake Island, Tokyo.

In 2000, the island of Miyake was struck by a volcanic eruption, and since then this small and distant slice of Metropolitan Tokyo has been struggling to attract visitors to its shores. However, there may be an answer on the horizon, the sea horizon that is: dolphins.

For people on Miyake looking to revive the island's tourist industry, the schools of dolphins are a present from nature. For the island's fishermen, however, the dolphins are also destructive interlopers in their fishing grounds. Meanwhile, the dolphins themselves swim on under summer-sun dappled waves, unconcerned with the dispute unfolding on nearby Miyake Island.

"It's over there," says a guide, a 70-year-old fishing boat captain, pointing to a spot dozens of meters ahead of the boat. We are about 20 minutes out from the port of Sabigahama, at a reef called Sanbondake, and Miyake diving instructor Shuichi Taguchi, 51, dives into the water. Dolphins draw close, swimming in circles around diver and boat.

Around 18 kilometers south of Miyake lies another small isle, Mikura Island, where around 100 dolphins live and locals have established a popular "Dolphin Swim" attraction. Taguchi, who also works as a guide for the attraction, says the sea creatures have "a strange charm" about them.

Just after the Great Hanshin Earthquake in 1995, the number of women from the Kansai region taking part in the Dolphin Swim tours jumped suddenly. "These women had experienced what it was like to have life taken suddenly away, so they decided to do what they wanted while they could," says Taguchi. "The Dolphin Swim was one of those things."

After the eruption of Miyake Island's Mt. Oyama nine years ago, unlike the playground for the young that was neighboring Mikura Island, Miyake saw its visitor numbers tumble by half. "I want to make the dolphins a major attraction and bring visitors back," says Taguchi, and he is not alone. One 46-year-old pension owner also expects the dolphins to be a new tourist draw.

However, not everyone is happy to see the playful ocean mammals off shore. The Japan Current, a major ocean current, runs along Miyake's coast, making the waters off the island a plentiful fishing ground. Splendid alfonsin fish caught there fetch high prices in Tokyo's Tsukiji Market, and are a major source of income for local fishermen -- income they do not want to see literally eaten up by the dolphins.

"It takes a lot of skill to catch an alfonsin," says the boat captain. "You have to sink an iron hook deep into the water to catch those fish, and then the dolphins eat 'em. They are the enemy," the boat captain finishes, shrugging his shoulders.

"We have to both protect the dolphins and the fishing industry," Taguchi says. "I want to set things up so both dolphin tourism and fishing can coexist, as they both support this island."

After a while, the dolphins playing with Taguchi slip away, disappearing beneath the waves washing up against Sanbondake Reef.

16:35 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Tokyo Lifer

2009/8/29

Healthy Japan

New Ways to Enjoy the Key Ingredients of a Healthy Diet

Whole tomato salad. (C)Celeb de Tomato
Whole tomato salad.

Specially selected grilled pork with tomato juice.

Vegetables are always one of the most popular choices for people looking to improve their eating habits, and now novel ways of serving and eating vegetables are gaining popularity. From restaurants whose menus focus on specific vegetables to patisseries offering vegetable cakes and other sweet treats, innovative vegetable eating habits are entering the mainstream.

You Say "Tomato," I Say "Arigato"Tomatoes are enjoying a particular boom in popularity. In Japan, tomatoes are often eaten raw in salads, and the most popular varieties have firm flesh and a taste that is more sweet than sour. A wider variety of tomatoes has become available at stores in recent years, such as fruit tomatoes grown to have a higher sugar content, and chefs have been busy devising novel ways for food lovers to enjoy each variety's distinctive flavor and texture.

Céléb de Tomato is a restaurant in Tokyo that has become popular thanks to its commitment to serving "tomato dishes that have never been tasted before." Here patrons can sample a wide range of tomatoes, including green mini tomatoes, milky white tomatoes, and black tomatoes whose sweet taste is complemented by a hint of bitterness. Needless to say, all of the restaurant's dishes - from appetizers to main courses and desserts - incorporate tomatoes in one way or another. Items from the menu include whole tomato salad, fish and meat dishes featuring fresh tomato sauce, and tomato bread. Among the restaurant's popular desserts are the ripe tomato brûlée and the roll cake made with homemade tomato jam.

Healthy DessertsCalories are always a source of concern when eating sweets and cakes, and this is another area in which vegetables are being used to create delicious, healthy dishes. Pâtisserie Potager is a vegetable confectionery that opened in Tokyo in 2006. The store, which also works to support farmers and provide nutrition education through its products, is based on the novel idea of mixing vegetables into desserts, an experiment that resulted in the creation of unexpected new flavors. One of its specialties, a green sponge cake made with puréed komatsuna (Japanese mustard spinach) sandwiching tomatoes and fresh cream, has been popular ever since the store opened. Other surprising combinations include a cheesecake infused with a purée of green soybeans and two-layer green asparagus and vanilla mousse wrapped in roasted tea sponge cake.

Juices made with raw fruits and vegetables are a popular way for health-conscious consumers to get their daily vegetable intake. Fresh juice stands have become a common sight at major train stations in cities like Tokyo and Osaka. Kale and spinach juice and goya (bitter melon) and guava juice are among the nutrition-packed juices lining the stands' counters, which are popular with commuters, students, and other busy people keen to supplement their diets.

Green soybean cheesecake. (C)pâtisserie Potager
Green soybean cheesecake.

Green asparagus and vanilla mousse.

The Healthy Appeal of Bean Sprouts

Sprouts from mung, soy, and other varieties of beans are also in the spotlight for their health benefits. Bean sprouts have long been used in Japanese cuisine - in stir-fried dishes and miso soup, for example. In addition to being a plentiful source of potassium, vitamin C, dietary fiber, and other nutrients, they are also very affordable, and their popularity has been growing in recent years. So much so, in fact, that a cookbook featuring numerous distinctive recipes incorporating bean sprouts proved a runaway success, selling over 100,000 copies in the space of a year. Restaurants, too, have been adding bean sprout dishes to their menus, offering such items as bean sprout quiche and bean sprout spring rolls.

21:37 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Food and drink

2009/8/27

Heaven & Hell

Bodaiji Temple's main hall

Osorezan (Mount Osore) is ranked along with Koyasan and Hieizan as one of Japan's three most sacred places. It was discovered over 1000 years ago by a Buddhist priest in search of a sacred mountain that resembles the world of Buddha. Today, it is the site of Bodaiji Temple.

Osorezan is translated as "Fear Mountain", a name that comes in part from the mountain's exceptional landscape. The area is rich in volcanic activity, and a strong smell of sulfur permeates the air. The ground is gray and barren and marked by openings that steam, bubble and blow hot water. Lake Usori, located next to the temple, is colored various shades of blue due to its high sulfur content.

Sanzu no Kawa

Osorezan is also known as entrance to afterlife, because it features geographical elements similar to descriptions of Buddhist hell and paradise, including eight surrounding peaks and a river, Sanzu no Kawa, which has to be crossed by all dead souls on their way to afterlife and is often compared to the River Styx of ancient Greek mythology.

Among the souls trying to cross the river are the souls of dead children and unborn babies who build piles of pebbles along the riverbed (Sai no Kawara) in an attempt to get to the other side. They are supported by Jizo, a popular bodhisattva of Japanese Buddhism, who protects the souls from evil demons, which constantly try to destroy the piles of pebbles.

Statues of Jizo are commonplace around Osorezan, as are piles of stones and pebbles. The pebbles are offerings to Jizo by parents of dead children in the hope that he will use the stones to help their children gain access to paradise. Brightly colored toy windmills are another common offering frequently seen around Osorezan's grounds.

Every year, Bodaiji's festival (July 22 to 24) attracts the bereaved and those hoping to communicate with lost loved ones through mediums, known as Itako. Itako are blind women who have undergone extensive spiritual training. In order to commune with the dead, they perform austere purification rituals for three months prior to the event and enter into a deep, prolonged trance during the festival.

Although access can be a challenge due to the lack of public transportation, Osorezan is a well known destination and the temple is equipped with overnight lodgings for guests. Both overnight and day visitors to the temple can use the simple hot spring baths located on the temple grounds.

Walking paths crisscross Bodaiji's unique temple grounds, affording visitors plenty of opportunity to stroll around the site and take in the scenery. A walk along the shores of Lake Usori is recommended, although visitors should avoid the poisonous water.

22:37 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Japan

2009/8/26

Next Tokyo Olympics!

Parents and children take part in an overnight camp experience at the proposed site for the Tokyo 2016 Bayside Olympic Village. The planned village will allow athletes to reach 70% of the venues within 10 minutes. It will have 70,000 beds, large rooms, free wireless Internet connections and international digital TV available in every room to cater for all athletes and officials.

22:43 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Tokyo Lifer

2009/8/23

Imperial Registration

New U.S. Ambassador to Japan John Roos rides in a carriage to the Imperial Palace in Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo, on Thursday, where he presented his credentials to Emperor Akihito.

15:58 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Tokyo Lifer

Sunflower Bloom

A field of sunflowers in Hokuto, Yamanashi Prefecture where the Akeno Sunflower Festival is being held until August 31.

15:12 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Japan

2009/8/22

Back Alley Tempura In Ginza

You can enjoy back-alley tempura in all it's glory in Ginza at Ten Asa. Much of Ginza’s nightlife is on side streets like the ultra-expensive Namiki Dori, with its brand-named upscale fashion houses, reknowned hostess clubs and exclusive expense account-only restaurants. But one block over on Suzuran Dori is a myriad of cheaper drinking holes and eateries clustering toward Shimbashi. Many of these spots are hard to find, but none is more hidden than Ten Asa, one of my favorite tempura restaurants and a quintessential Ginza experience.

You approach Ten Asa down a dark cleft, barely shoulder-wide, between two multistory buildings. Walk past blue plastic garbage cans, strumming air conditioning units, ragged mops, perhaps an alley cat or two, and eventually you’ll spot the glow of a lighted sign at a noren-curtained entrance. Slide open the door and you’ll find a lovely, traditionally appointed restaurant with an L-shaped counter seating nine.

Ten Asa serves a fantastic lunch, the tempura teishoku set (¥2,700) or the less expensive tendon box lunch set (¥1,600), but to appreciate the full tempura experience, you need to try a dinner course such as the Yumei (¥6,800), with its eight tempura tidbits.

Arriving at 5pm on a recent evening, I have my choice of seats, but soon other customers drift in: a grey-haired gent in an elegant brown kimono, then a pair of businessmen in shirts still brilliantly white and crisply starched.

The course features seasonal vegetables, fish and other delicacies, lightly battered and crisply fried, interspersed with several other dishes, including a starter, a small salad, then rice, miso soup, pickles and, finally, a dessert.

Tempura marries well with a cool glass of chardonnay (¥1,000) or a flask of chilled sake like the rich and mellow junmaishu Dai-shichi (¥2,800), but most customers order a cold bottle of lager (¥850). With your drink, you’ll get a few deep-fried hone sembei (“bone crackers”), including the cord-like backbone of an anago eel, salted and crunchy, tied into a pretzel; a crisp ribbon of kisu fish backbone; and two sets of delicate shrimp legs from the crustaceans you’ll soon be eating.

At a leisurely pace, each item is placed like a work of art on the folded sheet of pristine white paper in front of you: baby corn, complete with silk, cooked to a popcorn-like nuttiness; a shiitake mushroom as thick as a rib eye steak and just as meaty; megochi (flathead fish) with firm tasty flesh; a tiny eggplant; a golden onion, the size of a ping pong ball, sliced in half. Just add a touch of the Okinawan sea salt, says the chef.

A woman in a deep blue kimono glides in and sits next to the grey-haired gent. She is of a certain age too—her coiffed raven-black hair shines. Her crimson nails click on the beer bottle as she pours him a fresh glass. Soon they are engaged in lilting conversation.

Next to me another businessman enjoys his tempura while reading a book on Buddhist statues. Dessert comes—a scoop of deep pink plum sherbet, flecked with ume flesh, and a cup of jade green sencha.

The kimono couple laugh. A lover’s tryst? Who knows? Who cares? It’s Ginza after all.

0:53 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Food and drink

2009/8/21

Cheap Shibuya & Others

Shibuya which is Tokyo's most bustling youth oriented neighborhoods welcomes diners on a very low budget! It’s amazing to think that the price of food and drink in Shibuya has actually gone down during the ten years I have lived in Japan. In the mid-2000's, lunches were ¥1,000 or a little over; these days most are under ¥1,000. Bars have also held the line on prices, with many serving beer for about the same cost as in the early ’80s. Here's my favorite budget picks...

Standing Sushi Uogashi Nihon-Ichi

Smack in the middle of Center-gai, Standing Sushi stands out for its ¥75 plates, which is even lower than the ¥100 ones at the conveyor belt shops that were all the rage back in the ’90s. There is another shop in the chain, over off Dogenzaka, but the Center-gai location plays jazz, stays mellow even when deluged by all sorts of non-Japanese customers, and has service that’s always friendly. Plus, it’s a fantastic deal—some visiting Norwegian friends couldn’t get over the fact that prices here were a tiny fraction of those back home. While the cost of many items has crept above the ¥75 benchmark, the rises are certainly justified. The seafood rolls, for example, are interesting and filling for just ¥250. Beware of all the mayonnaise on many items; it seems to be the only way to satisfy young people on a fast-food diet rich in animal fats. Also, the word aburi really means that they take a propane torch and scorch the food—not aesthetically pleasing, but at these prices, who complains? Plan on getting a nice full feeling for about ¥1,000, or somewhat more if you go for expensive stuff like uni, ikura and toro.

25-6 Udagawacho. Tel: 03-5728-5451. Open daily 11:30am-11pm.

Fujiya Honten Standing Bar
Every time I trudge down the stairs of Fujiya Honten Standing Bar, I get the feeling that I’m back in 1967. Located on the other side of the block from its sister pub, this classic standing bar comes complete with many patrons past retirement age (though the recent economic downturn draws in youngsters). It used to be that you would never see a woman here, but nowadays a few manage to stop in. The appeal is basic: all the classic izakaya drinks and foods, at the lowest prices you’re likely to find in Shibuya. A huge grilled shake-kama (salmon jaw)? Just ¥350 and quite filling. Vegetable items clock in at around ¥200, and deep-fried fare at around ¥300. I always enjoy saying that the sake list starts at ¥400 (for the Iwate-kura Junmaishu) and goes down from there, bottoming out at ¥280 for the Something-or-Other Kanbai (alas, not the famed Koshi-no-Kanbai). Plan on spending ¥1,000 per person, unless you’re a remarkably big eater and drinker.

B1, 2-3 Sakuragaoka-cho. (Located in the same building as the wine bar, but the entrance is around the corner on the other side. Look for the small black sign in front of stairs to the basement.) No phone. Open Mon-Fri 5-9pm, closed Sat-Sun & hols.

Fujiya Honten Wine Bar
Until a few years ago, this was an old-line neighborhood liquor store whose business suffered as the area morphed from a residential to a commercial district. With little foot traffic, the owners decided to take out the shelves and refrigerators and put in a U-shaped bar and tables. Voila! A standing wine bar with bottles at retail prices. No wonder it’s crowded all the time. Often I will go in and find a bottle I want, drink a glass or two from it, then recork it and shove it into my backpack to finish at home. Fujiya has a friendly, knowledgeable staff, and the menus are made up of product sheets from the distributors/importers that have been bound into a large notebook. Once you start paging through, you’ll find it hard to keep from ordering more. The small food dishes, mostly under ¥700, include items like cheese assortments, cured European meats, pickles, olives and even a mini-lasagna.

2-3 Sakuragaoka-cho. Tel: 03-3461-2128. Open Mon-Sat 5-9:30pm, closed Sun.

Spice Garden
Shibuya is awash in Indian restaurants, most of them distinguished by their sameness. Not so with Spice Garden, up at the top of Dogenzaka where it meets route 246. First, you have to figure out the ticket vending machine and make your selection. You’ll notice that prices for a meal are a few hundred yen lower than at places in the center of Shibuya. Also, the spices here taste fresher, and there is more variation in the flavors from dish to dish than at the usual Indian restaurants, where it seems like different meats have all been plopped into the same curry sauce.

28-4 Maruyama-cho. Tel: 03-3770-0177. Open daily 11am-2am.

Shanghai Shokudo
For years and years, this was a mom-and-pop Chinese restaurant not far from the Udagawacho “robot” koban, but the current eatery emerged after a facelift and a change of management. Shanghai Shokudo serves two daily specials for ¥500 each, with countless more at ¥600. These are fairly complete meals, with large portions and surprisingly good quality food, though it helps to keep your expectations low. The gyoza are superbly porky and garlicky, with chewy handmade skins. Five of the dumplings cost just ¥250, or ¥500 with a beer. I recommend the enormous plate of happo-sai (chop suey), loaded with strips of pork and hard-pressed spiced tofu that has a consistency like cheese. Check out their low prices for party spreads, starting at around ¥800 per person. Also note that the staff are all Chinese and speak practically no Japanese apart from the names of the dishes.

2-30 Udagawa-cho. Tel: 03-3477-1630. Open daily 11am-midnight

Black-Brown
This is a little coffee shop that time seems to have left somewhere back in the mid-’70s; surprisingly, it sits next to a branch of Shinsei Bank. Plates of spaghetti run from ¥300 to a bit over ¥500, and complete meals can be had for about ¥650. There is also a surprising array of low-cost desserts. Drinks are ¥150, or just ¥100 when ordering food, and even at that price the glasses of wine (usually Spanish) are surprisingly drinkable. Once you manage to get your tickets from the vending machine, take a seat and enjoy one of Shibuya’s best dining bargains. Black-Brown is quite popular with young women, and several of them stay a while to re-do their makeup.

B1, 2-29-19 Dogenzaka. Tel: 03-3464-1616. Open daily 11am-11pm.

Others In Other Places Around Tokyo...

Ramen shops are usually the haunts of students and ojisan, so the opening of Fuga in Asagaya (2-13-2 Asagaya-Kita, Suginami-ku; http://tinyurl.com/fuga-tokyo) is something of a surprise. This sleekly designed eatery is stylish and clean, with jazz BGM and a variety of tables in addition to counter seats. The owner is said to have visited “countless” ramen shops gathering information on how to make the best tantan-men—and it shows. Fuga’s award-winning version of the dish comes in several varieties, including regular (above, ¥880), shrimp (¥1,180), chicken (¥980) and even cheese (¥980). Other ramen dishes include chuka soba (¥700), the ever-popular chashu (¥950), wonton (¥950), and a variety of salt-broth-based noodle bowls: plain (¥700), chashu (¥950), butter (¥800) and chicken (¥700). A plate of five gyoza dumplings costs just ¥350, and Fuga also offers rice dishes like chashu donburi (¥400).

Cremamore serves up exactly what Tokyoites are hungry for during the dog days of summer: authentic Italian gelato. Recently opened in Shiodome’s Nippon TV Tower (B2, 1-6-1 Higashi Shimbashi, Minato-ku; www.cremamore.co.jp), the new shop joins branches in Hiroo, Jiyugaoka and LaLa Port Tokyo Bay, as well as overseas locations in Italy, France and Switzerland. All of Cremamore’s gelato is made from scratch following the original Italian manufacturing process. To ensure freshness, milk, eggs and fruit are purchased in Japan, and no preservatives, artificial coloring or additives are used. Besides traditional flavors like lemon, strawberry, pistachio and chocolate, Cremamore offers offbeat gelato like tomato, pumpkin and even “sparkling wine.” Limited time-only flavors include pineapple-basil and strawberry with bitter chocolate. A small (single-flavor) cup or cone is ¥400, while two flavors cost ¥450 and three go for ¥500. Dieters will be happy to learn that gelato contains less than half the dairy of normal ice cream—so dig in!

Ma Chambre in Roppongi Itchome (Izumi Garden Tower 3F, 1-6-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku; www.ma-chambre.com) is also doing its part to help locals get through the summer. On Friday, September 4, the elegant French restaurant will host a "vegetable tasting" event featuring produce from Nishiwaki Farm in Nagano. The ¥8,000 full-course dinner includes herbed cucumber and feta cheese cocktail; "Kita Akari" potatoes and foie gras confit seasoned with black sesame; red bell pepper and Mimolette gateau; fresh fish from Numazu with creamy eggplant; stuffed French quail with corn galette; and, for dessert, soufflé glace with tomato confiture and Tawny Port. Seating is limited to just 50 people, so book your spot now by calling 03-3560-5013 or via the website.

The owners of Hanabi in Nakameguro are so confident you’ll enjoy your meal that they’re offering an eye-opening deal to repeat customers: bring the receipt from your first visit, and 40 percent of that total will be discounted from your next one. Located on the Meguro River and melding the flavors of Europe, Japan and the rest of Asia, Hanabi (2-16-11 Aoba-dai, Meguro-ku; www.hanabi-nakame.jp) offers dishes like spicy Korean cucumbers (¥480), tandori shrimp (¥580) and vegetable terrine (¥580). Kushiyaki items include the usual chicken and pork skewers (from ¥150), plus shiitake (¥200), eringi mushrooms (¥180) and quail egg (¥200). A lineup of four pizzas is accompanied by a full page of pastas, as well as main dishes like stir-fried pork with oroshi ponzu (¥980), chicken Nanban with housemade tartar sauce (¥880) and yougan yaki (a tabletop stone grill). Top off your meal with desserts ranging from traditional Japanese wagashi (¥980) to banana-caramel parfait (¥1,080), gelato and gateau au chocolat (¥880).

21:57 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Food and drink

2009/8/20

JAL Drastic Restructure

Transport ministry wants drastic restructuring for JAL

TOKYO — The transport ministry said Thursday that the business improvement plan being formulated by Japan Airlines Corp needs to give no part of the company "sanctuary’" so the struggling airline will gain public support.

"JAL’s improvement plan cannot win society’s trust unless it is improved and no aspect of the company is given a free pass," Hiroaki Taniguchi, vice minister of the Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Ministry, said at the first meeting of an expert panel tasked with monitoring the improvement plan.

"We would like the panel to scrutinize the contents of the improvement plan and provide frank and harsh advice," Taniguchi said.

The six-member panel will offer JAL advice on reform plans needed to rebuild its management and have them reflected in its business improvement plan, including drastic restructuring steps.

The panel, chaired by Takehiko Sugiyama, president of Hitotsubashi University, intends to regularly monitor the business improvement plan, the ministry said.

Executives of lenders that agreed with JAL to extend a total of 100 billion yen in loans, such as the Development Bank of Japan, Japan Bank for International Cooperation and Mizuho Corporate Bank, attended the meeting as observers.

At Thursday’s meeting, JAL officials briefed the panel on business improvement steps the airline is studying and said that it is planning to compile the plan by the end of September and release to the public.

During the gathering, panel members criticized the plan for being abstract and lacking the philosophy to compete and win globally, ministry officials said.

One member suggested that the transport ministry should also consider such measures as alleviating landing fees of airplanes at airports, the officials said.

Hit by a decline in the number of travelers amid the global economic downturn, JAL incurred a consolidated net loss of 99 billion yen in the April-June quarter.

Transport minister Kazuyoshi Kaneko has shown the ministry’s stance of aiming for government-led rebuilding of JAL’s management, telling a news conference earlier this month, "The ministry would like to steadily supervise and monitor" the airline.

http://www.japantoday.com/category/business/view/govt-wants-drastic-restructuring-for-jal

21:24 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Travel

2009/8/18

Manna

Tired of the typical lunchtime lineup? Well, meals are anything but typical at Manna, a swanky reservations-only spot in Yoyogi Koen, Tokyo. Manna serves up raw, vegan fare, which means that dishes consist of fruits, vegetables, nuts and seeds that are blended, juiced, dehydrated and artfully arranged, but never heated to over 48°C.

During summer here, we can think of nothing better than a luscious meal of fruit and vegies so we headed to Yoyogi Koen to investigate. Manna is located on the sixth floor of a modern residential building; the space is compact but chic, with exposed concrete and an unbeatable park view. Rather than creating an air of exclusivity, the reservations-only system was set up to guarantee that none of the food goes to waste, but we relished feeling like members of a private club when we were buzzed in.

We opted for the lunchtime set menus. “Course 1” includes soup, appetizer, main dish, salad, dessert and drink (¥2,800). Course 2 adds fresh fruit and another dessert (¥3,800). If you think it’s impossible to fill up without meat (or heat!), just go for Course 2. Trust us, you won’t have a hankering for much more than a lazy stroll through the park afterwards.

In fact, from our terrace table, we couldn’t help but appreciate the parallel between the lush greenery of Yoyogi Park and the vibrant colors on our plant-based plates. As we took in the combination of fresh food and al fresco dining, the slow pace of our meal suited us, but those with time limitations may find themselves rushing through their final course.

From the drink menu, we ordered a fruit and green vegetable smoothie, which may be the perfect way to sneak some greens into your diet. This fruity, pulpy, sweet and refreshing concoction, despite its verdant hue, contained no trace of green vegetable taste. Our other beverage, chai-flavored almond milk, was a heady blend of spices that would have appealed to us more at the end of our meal, but was tasty nonetheless.

The main dishes, a choice of sushi, pizza, or hummus sandwich, are also available as “Plate” lunches for ¥1,300. The pizza, our pick, uses a dehydrated nut and seed-based “bread,” which is softer and denser than its cooked counterpart, yet hearty and satisfying. The cheese, a pate made from walnuts and basil, has a texture that resembles ricotta rather than mozzarella, but the fresh herbs lend it a complex and full flavor. Topped with slices of eggplant, chunks of mushroom and fresh basil, this dish very closely approximates the flavors and textures of a conventional pizza, minus the heat and grease.

With everything from chocolate chip shakes to macaroons, choosing a dessert was painstaking, but the brownies did not disappoint. Dates, nuts and raw cacao gave this treat a gooey “fresh-baked” texture. The accompanying chocolate sauce was so mouthwateringly addictive we had to stop ourselves from licking the plate.

The menu items at Manna may only loosely resemble the conventional versions of their namesakes, but your taste buds won’t mind at all.

http://www.mannafest.jp/

21:18 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Food and drink

2009/8/17

Hello Kitty Onward...

Hello Kitty still capturing hearts in Asia after 35 years

TOKYO — Hello Kitty, Japan’s much-loved feline character, is continuing to captivate fans across and beyond Asia with its ever-changing, ingenious designs.

To mark the 35th anniversary of the adorable feline character, Sanrio Co, the creator of Hello Kitty characters, is offering a stellar lineup of events including an exhibition of Hello Kitty designs in Tokyo and similar events in Hong Kong and South Korea.

At the Daimaru Inc department store in Tokyo, visitors can take a trip down memory lane at the ‘‘Hello Kitty Art Exhibition’’ featuring Hello Kitty designs from 1974 to 2008.

Organizers said the exhibition provides a rare showcase of all Hello Kitty designs, reflecting Japan’s changing trends and times. For example, in the 2007 design, Hello Kitty is portrayed with flash eyelashes that were in vogue at the time.

A 10-year-old girl visiting the exhibition with her mother said she liked Hello Kitty because the character was ‘‘cute’’ and that she was particularly smitten with the 1999 design showing the character as a fairy as she was born in that year.

‘‘Being a fan of Hello Kitty myself, I may have passed on this affection to my daughter,’’ the girl’s mother said. ‘‘I think this character has an appeal that goes beyond generations and borders.’’

The exhibition, running through Tuesday, also features 10 original artworks by Hello Kitty’s designer Yuko Yamaguchi and goods produced in collaboration with personalities such as popular Japanese singer Ayumi Hamasaki.

Not to be outdone, Hello Kitty supporters in Hong Kong and South Korea are also adding excitement to the anniversary events. In Hong Kong, there is an interactive, mini-theme park called Kitty Lab, and in South Korea, the country’s famed Lotte Department Store will hold a ‘‘Hello Kitty Hello Lotte’’ event, including a Hello Kitty gallery and a stamp rally, at its five outlets, according to Sanrio.

Hello Kitty fans are also being treated to a variety of 35th anniversary goods including an item with a tartan theme, which will go on sale in September, and the first quiz book on Hello Kitty, which is currently on sale.

http://www.japantoday.com/category/lifestyle/view/hello-kitty-still-capturing-hearts-in-asia-after-35-years

20:10 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Tokyo Lifer

From Big Company To Pastry...

Former AIG manager cooks up new career as chef

Financial meltdown prompts insurance expert to act on his passion for pastries

Fresh start: David Cisan (second from left) conducts a cooking class at the cafe Notting Hill in Tokyo's Nishi-Azabu district earlier this year.

The collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc. and other U.S. financial giants changed people's lives around the world, and David Cisan, a former manager at American International Group in Japan, is one of them.

In the global financial meltdown last year, Washington bailed out AIG and a small number of other institutions, but Lehman and some others went under.

Amid the financial turmoil, the 40-year-old Hawaii-born insurance expert decided to leave the industry after almost 20 years and take his life in a different direction by becoming a professional pastry chef.

Now he runs classes in English teaching how to bake muffins and brownies at Notting Hill Cakes & Gifts, a British-style cafe in Nishi-Azabu in Tokyo's Minato Ward owned by British baker Mark Peterson.

"The whole financial crisis made this decision much easier," Cisan told The Japan Times in a recent interview.

"The timing was good to make a change," he continued. "It was a difficult decision to make, after long years in the financial industry. But then, looking at the whole industry and the way things are going, I thought maybe now is the right time."

Cisan is one of thousands who left foreign financial institutions in Japan in recent months.

Many got new jobs in the same financial services industry, according to job consulting experts. But others have opted for entirely different career paths.

"After a while in any industry, people get tired — people want to change. And that's what happened to me," Cisan said. "It's very common in the U.S. that people do that kind of thing. That's a midlife career change."

But such changes may not be so familiar in this country, where the job market generally lacks flexibility.

"There were two big trends in their job hunting," said Yuichi Misato, a career consultant at Intelligence Ltd., which helps people find new jobs, referring to businessmen who left foreign financial firms in Japan during the financial crisis in 2008.

One trend is to work for small consulting companies specializing in certain areas, such as mergers and acquisitions. Another trend is to get jobs as financial experts at corporations, Misato said.

Others sought jobs as bureaucrats.

Many applied for several openings at the Financial Services Agency, a financial watchdog. When the agency posted job listings on March 13, the first such advertisement after the financial industry's meltdown last year, 120 people, including many who had worked for foreign financial firms, applied. Only four were hired, the agency said.

Amid such job-hunting, Cisan's drastic career change may be unique. But he said he had been preparing for it for a long time.

Passionate about baking sweets since he was a teenager in Hawaii, Cisan attended a professional pastry program on weekends at Le Cordon Bleu in Tokyo while he was working as a manager at AIG. A year and a half later he received his diploma in pastry-making from the famed French cooking school.

Before he resigned from AIG in November, he had already offered baking classes at home to friends and colleagues on weekends.

Later, he relocated classes to his community center's kitchen in Tokyo's Ota Ward, which was larger and better equipped for classes. After he met Peterson earlier this year, he started to teach at Notting Hill.

The classes at the cafe have so far proved increasingly popular.

In July, Cisan and a couple of other instructors had six classes, each with eight students. In August, they expanded to 16 to 20 classes, and hope to have 26 to 30 classes by September, Cisan said.

But business in Japan is not always so easy, he said.

"Japanese consumers are very brand-conscious, quality-conscious and price sensitive," he said, adding that presentation, packaging and wrapping are also very important to customers.

"Japan is one of the most difficult consumer markets in the world. But if you can crack it, it's the most lucrative," he said.

Cisan said he is happy he has a challenge.

"Because if I don't try now, and I do something else or get involved in something else, and then, 20 to 30 years from now and in the back of my mind, like 'Oh, you never did try baking and now I'm too old.' I don't want to have these regrets later," he said.

"If I do this and fail, so what? At least I know I tried," Cisan said.

http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/nb20090815a1.html

18:53 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Tokyo Lifer

J-San Francisco!

Billed as the J-Pop festival delivers in S.F.

Sarah Frank (left) and Ada adopt the Harajuku style of dr...

Yuka of the 6%DokiDoki girls performs at the J-Pop Summit...

Crowds packed into Japantown to watch the performances at...

Billed as the J-Pop summit, attractions included Japanese rock bands, a dance party, art demonstrations, beauty contests and the premiere of the movie "20th Century Boys."

J-Pop refers to the Japanese popular culture phenomenon, in which comic books, animation, film, music and clothing trends have intersected to influence lifestyles and shape identities. It has gained a notable presence in the United States, mostly among the young.

Proponents say that the glassy New People center on Post Street - a three-story, $15 million structure completed this year - will pump much-needed new life into Japantown, an area dominated by a handful of large 1960s indoor malls, which some see as drab and outdated.

"The center gives San Francisco's Japantown this new pop culture, which is just huge in Japan. Up until now we've had more traditional Japanese retail here," said Paul Osaki, executive director of the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California. "It will give Japantown a shot in the arm."

The 20,000-square-foot center offers a 143-seat basement cinema, which will screen Japanese films and animation, a top-floor art gallery, and two floors of stores selling Japanese books, figurines and other curios as well as clothes inspired by Tokyo's trendy Harajuku District.

Seiji Horibuchi, who led a team of investors to build the New People project, said there is a core group of 5 million J-Pop followers in North America. Once mostly focused on comics and animation, J-Pop fans also have developed an interest in contemporary Japanese music and film, he said.

"I hope the center will be a gateway for people to explore the culture in more depth and expand their understanding of it," said Horibuchi who in 1986 founded a San Francisco company that translates Japanese comics into English.

The crowd of several hundred who clamored to enter the center was dominated by teenagers and young women - many dressed in the Harajuku "sweet Lolita" style, in which girls present themselves as Victorian children or dolls and resemble characters like Little Bo Peep or Alice in Wonderland.

Franny Ferreira, 17, and Grace Dixon, 16, both from Albany, were first in line for the opening after arriving in the wee hours Saturday morning.

Both were dressed like life-size dolls wearing frilly bibbed dresses.

"I like the fashion and the lifestyle. I'd like to move to Japan," Ferreira said.

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/08/15/BA5P19980M.DTL

18:05 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Places

2009/8/16

Big Earthquake On It's Way To Tokyo?

Quake-prone Japan still waiting for 'the big one'

TOKYO — When a powerful earthquake hit near Tokyo this week, many Japanese instantly shared the same dreaded thought -- that "the big one" had struck bringing death and devastation on a massive scale.

The worst fears of millions did not come true this Tuesday morning.

But the powerful tremor centred 170 kilometres (105 miles) from the Japanese capital -- the world's largest urban area with 35 million people -- was a sobering reminder that a catastrophic earthquake is decades overdue.

The quake, which US seismologists measured at 6.4, was only "a rehearsal for us in preparing for a bigger, real disaster", said one resident, fisheries official Masaki Yamada, in the port of Yaizu near the offshore epicentre.

The experts agree. The Earthquake Research Committee warns of an 87 percent chance that a magnitude-eight earthquake -- 100 times more powerful than this week's tremor -- will strike the same region within the next 30 years.

For the neighbouring Kanto plains, home to Tokyo's vast urban sprawl, the chance of a major quake of magnitude seven for the same period is 70 percent, said the government agency, which revises the probabilities every year.

The last time a "big one" struck Tokyo was in 1923, when the Great Kanto Earthquake claimed more than 140,000 lives, many of them in fires. Previously, in 1855, the Ansei Edo quake also devastated the city.

Japan, located on the tectonic crossroads known as the "Pacific Ring of Fire" and dotted with volcanoes, is one of the world's most quake-prone countries, and Tokyo is located in one of its most dangerous areas.

The megacity sits on the intersection of three continental plates -- the Eurasian, Pacific and Philippine Sea plates -- which are slowly grinding against each other, building up enormous seismic pressure.

Small quakes are felt every day somewhere in Japan, and people take part in regular drills at schools and workplaces to prepare for a calamity, such as the 1995 Kobe earthquake that killed more then 6,400 people.

Many buildings have been reinforced since the 1980s while families are urged to keep quake survival kits at home, official tremor alerts can be sent via mobile phones and parks and schools are sign-posted as quake shelters.

Japan's high level of earthquake preparedness is seen as part of the reason the casualties and damage from Tuesday's quake were low compared to that caused by similar tremors in many other parts of the world.

One woman was found dead in her home under a pile of books that fell on top of her, and eight more people were seriously injured, but most of the 123 reported casualties suffered only minor injuries.

Nearly 5,200 buildings were damaged, but few of them very badly. A nuclear power plant, factory assembly lines and bullet train services all went into automatic shut-down when the earth started shaking.

Concern, however, has focused on whether the quake was a harbinger for a "big one" in the Tokai region, which has not seen such a quake in 150 years and where many people have bolted their furniture to floors and walls.

Japan's Meteorological Agency quickly concluded that the "seismic activities are not linked to the predicted Tokai quake," Takashi Yokota, chief of the agency's quake prediction division, told a press conference.

But other seismic experts remained cautious and said the strong tremor, the second in two days, could be an ominous sign of worse to come.

"I believe that all the seismic activity seen in the area in recent years has been leading up to ... the Tokai earthquake," said Shozo Matsumura of the National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Prevention.

"If the energy that would cause the Tokai quake has already reached the critical point, (Tuesday's) earthquake could act as the trigger."

Katsuhiko Ishibashi, a seismologist with Kobe University who first warned of the risk of a Tokai quake 30 years ago, told the Yomiuri daily: "The quake might have accelerated activities that would lead to the Tokai quake."

Kishie Shigekawa, an expert of urban disaster prevention at Fuji Tokoha University, called for thorough preparations.

"The Tokai quake would be so massive that in many ways we could not do enough to be adequately prepared," she said.

"But Tuesday's tremor proved again that good preparation and information sharing at the town and community level still works to minimise the damage. We need to do the same for the big one."

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j8oDuFVeJPfihHKzIAXV5FIeOkxQ

17:49 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Tokyo Lifer

Summer Pool

Swimmers enjoy themselves at Toshimaen amusement park pool.

16:22 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Tokyo Lifer

Climbed Mount Fuji!

I am currently on Bon Summer Vacation here and climbed Mount Fuji for the first time this week!

Check out the pictures on my Facebook:
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=5050&id=100000052408518&l=480f43e294

16:14 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Japan

2009/8/15

Mount Fuji Summer

Lines of climbers' lights continue up to the top of Mount Fuji in the Yamanashi Prefecture city of Fujiyoshida, at around 2 a.m. on Friday. The number of those climbing Mount Fuji reaches it's peak during the ongoing Bon summer holiday period. Nearly 10,000 climbers are expected to visit the mountain each day over this weekend.

21:41 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Japan

Imperial Vacation

Crown Prince Naruhito, Princess Masako and their daughter Princess Aiko holding the family dog arrive at Nasushiobara, Tochigi Prefecture to vacation at the imperial villa there.

21:14 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Travel

2009/8/14

Beach Days

Enoshima Eastside Beach in the Kanagawa Prefecture city of Fujisawa is ablaze with colorful beach parasols under the scorching sun on Thursday. Nearly 600,000 visitors flocked to the beach on Thursday, the first day of the big Obon Summer Vacation period here in Japan.

23:02 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Japan

Awa Dance Festival

Women perform a dance as the four-day annual Awa Dance Festival opened in Tokushima Prefecture on Wednesday.　Performers do the Awa folk dance through a street crowded with spectators. A total of around 100,000 dancers are participating in the festival, which runs through Saturday.

22:21 | 添加评论 | 固定链接 | 写入日志 | Japan