The primary of the contest whose purpose is to choose “Moe-type cute or beauiful girls” started on Sep.1st 2011 and Chiu says, she is so happy to have achieved such a glorious goal because she had started making intensive efforts for the contest for about two years since the last contest, having been supported by a lot of her fans. Chiu says, “Though I look innocent but actually I like Japanese sake and have tastes of those of middle-age men”.

Chiu was awarded sub-prize money of 100,000 yen and  a right to debut as a singer to produce CDs.  Takuro Morinaga, a currently famous and popular TV commentator who is known as a enthusiastic figures collector as well, made a remark about her, saying, she is overwhelmingly Akiba-like, and so, she  has successfully caught the heart of  Akiba-type geeks”.

The Japan Record Award (Grand Prix) was conferred on “Flying Get” of AKB48, which has sold more than 1587,000 cds and No.1 hit of  all of the five AKB’s songs that sold more than one million this year, namely, “Everyday Katyusha” ,”Kaze wa Fuiteiru”, “Uekara Mariko”,and “Sakura no Kini Narou”.

AKB48 has received the Japan Record Award for the first time since their debut in 2005.  Minami Takahashi, the captian of the group says in her speech “We are so happy now  we have done our best for whole of one year since  last time here “, Atsuko Maeda, No.1 winner of the AKB48 election this year said, “I want to say thank you very much to everyone”, and Yuko Oshima, the captain of TeamK said, “Flying Get is sung by the selected members of the election, therefore, this award given by all of our fans ”.

AKB is one of thge most popular idol groups at the moment and Exile, the winner of the Grand Prix three years in a row 2008-2010 had given up the nomination of their song this year showing fairness and appreciation to fans , AKB was thought to be the leading candidate.

“AKB Project” including AKB48, SKE48,NMB48,HKT48, JKT48, and SDN48 is going to perform at the NHK “Kouhaku Utagassen” on the new year’s eve (tomorrow !) ,whose total number is  210 on the stage that is the record high of the population of a group of performers of Kouhaku Utagassen in history.

Other award receivers are as follows;

Best New Performer/  Fairies

Excellent Works/ “Esperanza” (Kana Nishino), “Go Go Summer!”(KARA), “CALL” (AAA), “Kono Yoru wo Tometeyo” (JUJU), “Shounai Hiya Kaze no Naka” ( Kaori Mizumori),  “Jounetsu no Mariachi”(Kiyoshi Hikawa ), “Soredemo Shjinjiteru” (FUNKY MONKEY BABYS), “Flying Get”(AKB48), “Why?(Keep Your Head Down)”(Toho Sinki), and “Waratte Tainda”(Ikimonogakari).

And all other awards and the receivers’ names are annnounced  on the above mentioned official website of The Japan Record Awards.

More than enrusiastic 800 people visited the J-FEST ,which was beyond the capacity of the venue in Moscow. At the cosplay event , 30 groups that had passed the preliminary contest out of 80 groups showed their Japanese popculture-related costumes. The winners were given tickets to take a travel to Japan, which made them quite happy and excited as they are interested in the anime and its related  cosplay culture’s “mecca” in Japan.

At the cafe consists of four sections, namely “Theater”,”Cafe”,”Private room”,and “Shop”.  At “Theater”, you can enjoy buffet style meals with movies of AKB’s concerts on a large screen. At “Cafe”, you can enjoy special dishes created by AKB’s members ,which are to change from month to month. And “Private Room” whose capacity is 16 people is equipped with DVDs of AKB.  In addition, at “Shop” you can buy original items related to AKB.

Sometimes AKB’ members make “surprise” visits to the Cafe& Shop, which  makes customers amazingly happy.

And here is another new information concerning AKB48 project. On this Oct. 1st,  AKB’s management announced it is going to launch a project of a new sister group of AKB48. The new group is “TPE48″,  which is to be based in Taipei, the capital of Taiwan.  Further details of the project will be noticed to public at the end of this year, and the new group is expected to start theatrical performances around the summer in 2012.

TPE48 is to be the second sister group of AKB48 out of Japan, following JKT48 which I wrote about here before.http://www.tenkai-japan.com/2011/09/12/jkt48-project-launched/

Nadeshiko Sushi(http://www.nadeshico-sushi.com/) was visited by about 40 attendees to the party at that night, all of whom had bought a special ticket to join it in advance…including myself !     

Actually the party was so fun. We played games such as “wasabi Russian roulette” at which only some of  about 40 sushi nigiri contained a lot of spicy wasabi(/green horseradish paste). I happened to draw that doomed one…but the game was fun.

The sushi chefs of Nadeshiko Sushi are all female, whose backgrounds are quite unique respectively. For example, some chefs are foreigners such as a Chinese studying Japanese and huge fan of video games, some are returnees from English speaking countries and speaking impeccable English, some  are idols or voice actors,and so forth.

That variety of the characters of the chefs is one of the best attractions of this sushi restaurant.  If you speak Chinese or English, some chefs there are to be your best servers, and if you are interested in  video games such as “Monster Hunter”, then, you will be most welcome, for the restaurant perodically hosts Monster Hunter events  on weekend nights. You can enjoy  visiting there in your own favorite styles.

At the anniversary party on the 1st, one chef graduated from the restaurant and one ”apprentice” chef was promoted to a “full fledged” chef. So, a special ceremony to celebrate the two “leaving chef” and “new chef” was hosted by the owner, master, other chefs, and the attendees, which must be a memorable event for all the people there at that time.

Akihabara, the city where this special sushi restaurant is located, is the mecca of subculture of Japan or even the world today, such as manga, anime,games and so on. Nadeshiko Sushi is a symbol of a perfect harmony of old and pure traditional culture of Japan and up-to-date subculture. And in addition, this restaurant always welcomes not only Japanese but foreign customers who love sushi, Japanese cuisine, and old and new cultures here in Japan.

Uchimizu is an old custom which involves sprinkling or pouring ladelfuls of water (rainwater or used bathwater is generally used rather than tap water), onto the walks and gardens outside homes or shops to keep down dust or ease the heat, and encourage community interaction.

When it gets really hot in Tokyo, the locals like to sprinkle water on the street in front of the house or shop. It’s an old tradition that has become popular again here. In the heat, water on the streets evaporates naturally and during this process, a small amount of energy (0.58kcal/1g water) is absorbed from the surrounding air. When many people perform uchimizu the difference can be quite noticeable.

Website Let’s Uchumizu details how to perform uchimizu in step-by-step detail, and also provides the following guidelines, a uchimizu etiquette guide:

・Be aware of passers-by and other participants.
・Refrain yourself from watering on busy streets.
・Sprinkle water in a quiet and safe place.
・DO NOT WATER at curves, crossroads, or over manhole covers.
・It makes the street highly slippery.
・ Car drivers and bike riders: Please be careful when entering watered areas.

The Akihabara district in Tokyo, popular with shoppers and tourists for its cluster of shops selling electronics gadgets, anime and pop culture items, reopened Sunday part of a vehicle-free pedestrian zone on January 23 for the first time since a fatal rampage in June 2008.The town opened a 570-meter section on its main street, Chuo-dori, to pedestrians. It will be open on Sundays from 1 p.m. on a trial basis until June.

The street was flooded with waiting shoppers and tourists when it reopened to pedestrians at 1 p.m.It will be open to 5 p.m. through March and 6 p.m. through June. If no problems are reported, it will remain open from July.

The street had been a car-free zone since 1973 on Sundays and holidays as it drew large crowds of shoppers.
But the local authorities decided to close the pedestrian zone after a man drove a truck into Chuo-dori just past noon on a Sunday in June 2008, hitting and killing three men before fatally stabbing four people and leaving 10 others injured.

A post manned by local residents, firefighters and police officers has been erected to ensure safety in the area. Signposts have also been put up around the area, urging people not to engage in antisocial activities, which were occasionally reported when the pedestrian zone was open.

Gundam Cafe Akihabara

Gundam Cafe Akihabara has opened its doors on Apr.24.About 200 people lined up in Akihabara waiting for the official start of Gundam Cafe at 8:30.

Gun-Pla-yaki

The cafe’s biscuit-like Gun-Pla-yaki is modeled after the very first 1/144 Gundam plastic model kit ever sold.

The Gundam Cafe sign reads , “Gundam style’s official cafe and bar started since A.D. 2010. Continuing ’till U.C. 0079!”

more>>

Gundam cafe Akihabara

Bandai is set to open Gundam Cafe Akihabara on April 24,in commemoration with the animation series’ 30th anniversary.

Gundam　Cafe Akihabara

Just located in the newly designed Akihabara area accessible from the JR Station at the “Denkigai Exit” and just below the Yamanote line, Gundam Cafe Akihabara is the ultimate stop for any Gundam fans either from Japan or visiting Japan.

Gundam　Cafe Akihabara

The 60-seater, 144.2-square-meter cafe serves Jaburo Coffee which is connected to a story of the series about a fictional military base in Jaburo, Brazil, and Gun-Pla-Yaki or a gundam-shape pancake.

"mono-eye" shaped pasta

Offering a unique Gundam like atmosphere with several unique piece of Gundam History, this Cafe like any other Cafe will let you enjoy a selection of bereave, snacks and even “mono-eye” shaped pasta.

The cafe will also sell the newest merchandise available.

View Gundam Cafe Akihabara in a larger map

● Why 634 meters?

That’s partly because they want to build a higher tower than the TV tower, which is scheduled for completion at the end of this year in Guangzhou, China. It will be 610 meters tall.

The other reason is how to read the number “634″.

6 can be pronounced as “mu”, 3 can be pronounced as “sa”, 4 can be pronounced as “shi” in Japanese. So 634 can be pronounced “Musashi”, which means the area extending from Saitama, to Tokyo, to Kanagawa. And the Sky Tree will be stood in the area where is formerly known as Musashi.

You’ll be able to command a panoramic view of Musashi from the tower. As soon as you visit its observatory, the scene of Edo period streets will come out in front of you. And your heart will go out to the Tokyo’s history… They put that much ardor in the number of “634″.

● Tourism department will launch.

Sumida-ku, a factory town which is located at the foot of the Sky Tree. Its local block associations, business entities and those who are in charge of political affairs have been having a monthly meeting. They discuss the tower-centered regional revitalization project. The construction of the Sky Tree began in July 2008. Sumida-ku expects that the annual number of visitors will be 552 million and it will generate 88 billion yen (approximately US$880 million).

Sumida-ku carried out a questionnaire survey through internet last year and As many as 80% of respondents answered that they would like to visit the tower at least once.

Then the regional government became serious about attracting tourists. Sumida-ku will establish the tourism department in its city office this coming April. Also they are planning to build a memorial hall which commemorates Katsushika Hokusai. Hokusai is an internationally-respected Edo Period ukiyo-e master who was born in that region.

● A map for construction workers.

The chamber of regional revitalization made maps for tower construction workers. Those maps contain information about local restaurants and are put in a corner of a building office. Workers can go home with copies. What a good arrangement it is!

● Fanzine “Sky Tree Report”

A magazine with pictures of a construction site has been published.

You can enjoy seeing the tower’s “growth record” by reading it. There are pictures that was photographed the site from a number of angles. Also it tells you good photo spots to film the tower under construction.

That magazine is edited by a man who used to live another area in Tokyo. He moved to Sumida-ku because he wanted to see whole process of the tower construction. He’s going to sell some copies at Tokyo Anime Fair at the end of this March.

● The mascot character of Sky Tree

A tourism information center was set up near the tower site. It’s called “Oshinari-kun No Ie” (“Oshinari’s House”).

What’s Oshinari? It’s a Mascot character of the Sky Tree. It promotes the tower district called Oshiage and Narihira-bashi.

Local volunteer staff are stationed in Oshinari’s House and they serve you free green tea and cold water, paid coffee, beer and refreshments. You can see progress situation there and they give out local restaurant maps and free information magazines. You can take a rest and gather informations about local shopping areas at Oshinari’s House.

*** Oshinari’s profile ****

<What’s “Oshinari”?>

“Oshinari” represents “Oshiage” and “Narihira-bashi”, the tower district. Its name consists of the initial Chinese characters of those place-names (Oshi: 押, Nari; 業).

<Concept of this character>

Oshinari is designed to look like Ariwarano Narihira, which is responsible for its name. Narihira is a poet from the Heian period, about a thousand years ago. It wears an ancient style hat inspired by the tower.

<His bio>

Born at Oshinari’s House and raised in the tower district.

<Character>

Cheerful, vital and genuine.

<Hobby>

Writing Japanese poems (waka), Playing with cats in a shopping area

<Favorite food>

Inari-zushi (a type of sushi), dango (Japanese dumpling), shijimi (basket clam… a kind of shellfish)

Tokyo Sky Tree is very accessible from both Narita and Haneda Airport. Local residents, so called “Edokko” (true-born Tokyoites or people who were born in downtown Tokyo) welcome you with their sophisticated hospitality. We Japanese treasure conformity (和; wa) and a circle of people (輪; wa). We take a great deal of “wa” (conformity and a circle of people) so we respect cultural diversity.

Welcome to the Tokyo Sky Tree!

View Tokyo Sky Tree in a larger map

Pokemon characters on bento

Housewives make bentoes for their children but many kids tend to hate green peppers or carrots. So mothers had to exercise wisdom to encourage them to eat food like those kinds of vegetables.

Then finally they found the way. They started to put cartoon (or anime) character-shaped foodstuffs on bentoes and kids got excited at them. It may be no exaggeration to say that mothers have revolutionized the way of making bentoes.

Black Jack

Portrait of kabuki actor

In Akihabara, you can learn how to make Chara-ben in the French language! The Institute of Creative Industries and Culture (ICIC) will have a Chara-ben workshop in this coming March. “Obento” is experiencing a boom in France now.

*For more details, please look at; http://www.icic.jp/workshop/cat/o/000117.html (Japanese)

Akihabara is truly the “facility” to offer cutting-edge information!

We are the organization called “Akibaland Tours” who gives guided tours to you, Akiba lovers from abroad. 
We give you trilingual tours in English, Chinese and Japanese. No other tours will do that.
Moreover, our guides are all COSPLAYERS!! 

Akihabara is the 3D wonderland where popped up from Anime or manga to the real world. 
You can gather cutting-edge informations there. 

So let’s enjoy Akihabara together! Akihabara ni oide yo! 

*For more details, please look at our website; http://www.akiba-tour.com