I’d like to introduce you this interesting
band.

—-Crow×Class～黒鴉組～—–

The first Visual Kei band that is composed entirely of
professional Japanese instrument musicians.

I made some costumes for the band.
Between me and this band is not only about job
for me. I approve their purpose (I want to translate this in the future) for this project, so I
support them in many ways.

I hope this band will be known by many people.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-RVRyLdIdM&feature=plcp

Article in English+video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7X9xKJkod8&feature=player_embedded

(Big thanks to Kurita-san!)

The next gig is on 17^th this
month in Meguro.
The next of the next is 2^nd June
in Ootsuka.

To know more details, more up coming shows,
please check CrowClass’s Facebook page.
http://www.facebook.com/crowclass

Please”Like”it and receive news about this
band!

Message, ticket booking etc are available
in English!

Zo no Hana Park (Elephant’s Trunk Park) in Yokohama

A red balloon is attached with a string above the tip of the roughly 10-meter trunk.

When the wind blows, it looks like an elephant trying to reach out for an apple with its trunk, often drawing the attention of people taking a walk at nearby Yamashita Park and Red Brick Park.

Red Brick Park in Yokohama

The object is scheduled to be removed on May 13, but “We would like to consider setting it up on other occasions such as the port-opening festival in June,” a park official said.

Elephant’s Trunk Park (象の鼻パーク) in Yokohama city’s Naka Ward opened in 2009. The area was so named as an embankment built in the port 150 years ago was shaped like the animal’s trunk.

View Elephant’s Trunk Park (Zo no Hana Park ) in a larger map

The dinning room ‘Ricca’ is newly built for serving dinner and breakfast to guests staying in the new Western style rooms.

Basic idea of providing local products or related products is specifically performed at the new restaurant ‘Ricca’. The concept of ‘Ricca’ is ‘Being blessed with natural resources from their hometown Kinosaki where storks are brought up.’ There is a legend that a wounded stork was found first and it healed the wound here in the 7th century. City of Toyooka has promoted protecting and trying to increase number of storks in the district, and now wild strokes have steadily increased its number.

Left: Famous Japanese brand ‘Tajima-beef’

Right: Rich local seafood ‘Matsuba-crab’

Local food materials, such as Tajima beef, Matsuba-crab, and river fish from Kannabe area, are positively arranged in their dishes. Also, they contracted with local farmers to purchase directly their farm products. Safe and fresh local vegetable is always available throughout the year. This is one of their advantages that they can use safe local food materials from specified farmers or fishermen.

Left: One of the dinner courses in winter season

Right: Variety fresh local food products in breakfast dishes

Night view of ‘Ricca’ is also very attractive

View Nishimuraya Hotel Shogetsutei in a larger map

＜Reference materials＞

Monthly Hotel Ryokan January 2012

http://www.ikyu.com/

http://www.jalan.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/

http://www.jnto.go.jp/

http://www.kinosaki-hotsprings.com/

http://www.travel-around-japan.com/

■For travelers from overseas

As a certified guide-interpreter in English and also a writer of the website “Cool Japan Guide”, I am very happy to introduce ‘Nishimuraya Hotel Shogetsutei’ in Kinosaki Onsen Resort. If you have something to ask, like to make reservation, or need English speaking tour guide when visit to Kinosaki Onsen Resort, please feel free to contact us. Thank you for your kind cooperation, I am looking forward to your contact.

Please Contact Us/お問合せ

■Introduction of the specialist for Onsen design

If you like to build a real Japanese style hot spring facility in your country, I would like to introduce one of the best Japanese architects, Mr. Hiroshi Ebisawa, who is the author of a technical book ‘ONSEN’ specialized in design for Japanese Style SPA. The bilingual book written in Japanese-English is published by Rikuyosha Co. (http://www.rikuyosha.co.jp/) which is available at most bookstores in Japan.

Please contact: http://www.e-koubo.co.jp/

    The last Golden Week was the chance for my family and me to visit Kamogawa Seaworld, which is famous for the dynamic killer whale performance in Japan.
(  http://www.kamogawa-seaworld.jp/english/index.html )

    These photos were taken by my husband. (View them larger by click!) He concentrated on catching the moment of the killer whale somersaulting and kicking a ball!! The audience in the front section got wet to the skin.

The killer whale ready to somersault!

The killer whale kicked the ball - out of the field!

     Besies the performance of killer whales, Kamogawa Seaworld puts on various performances of sea lions, dolphines, beluga white whales. We could cover all performances in one day.

The sea lion's smile

    Can you see the sea lion’s smile? When the sea lion lifted up its lips and made a smiling face, all the audience bursted into a hearty laugh!

     Kamogawa Seaworld would be a good destination of a one-day trip from Tokyo. It’s about 200km from Utsunomiya, where we live. It’s about 100km from Kashiwa, where my parents live. This time we made a one-day trip (by car) from my parents’.

View Larger Map

The auction, which opened on May 10 with a starting bid of 1 yen (US$0.01), currently has a bid of 509,000 yen (about US$6,372). The bid will end at 11:59 p.m. on May 16 in Japan.

The winning bidder will need to provide various images such as a full-body photograph, and photos from multiple angles of the face and hair. A digitally-rendered image will then be created of the winner and projected from the statue.

The winning amount will be donated to charity to aid the victims of last year’s earthquake and tsunami disaster in Japan.

A video of an earlier test of the cockpit feature can be viewed below.

View DiverCity Tokyo Plaza in a larger map

“We will build several attractions, including a school for wizards,” a spokesman of USJ said.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida

With a total investment of around 45 billion yen, the entertainment park in the city of Osaka will recreate castles and villages that appeared in the films about the boy wizard in a new corner of the park to be constructed on part of its parking lot.

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida

The Wizarding World of Harry Potter in Orlando, Florida

USJ expects the number of visitors to increase by several million from the current 8 million or so annually.

Parade at Universal Studios Japan

The operator of USJ which opened in 2001, is a private firm licensed by the U.S. Universal group. It has attractions featuring Sesame Street, Peter Pan’s Neverland, and the Land of Oz, among others.

Will the magic of the wizarding world of Harry Potter attract a number of people to Osaka?

View Universal Studios Japan in a larger map

A international art ivent”Design Festa vol35”
will be held on may 12th(sat) and 13th(sun) at Tokyo Big Sight.
Alice Garden with the another gothic brand SNOB will participate to the event.

It’s a exciting big event♪
We hope you come and enjoy this event!

Booth No.H-83・84

[Design Festa]
http://www.designfesta.com/

★Alice Garden ：http://alicegarden.jp/

★SNOB :http://snob-mode.jp/

Unfortunately we had devastating tornadoes in Kita Kanto region on the 6th.  One of them wreaked havoc in Mashiko.  I haven’t heard a lot of damages there but I suspect bad weather prevented people to come.  Even Utsunomiya city were I live had a gust.

According to Shimotsuke Shimbun (local newspaper) said that city of Moka and the towns of Mashiko and Motegi in Tochigi, around 914 houses were damaged by a gust.

Nikko English Speaking Guide

view from river side

大きな地図で見る

Sadako’s movie “Sadako 3D”was made this year for the first time in 12 years and is going to be released on this May 12th.   As a promotion event of the newest movie of the popular series, more than 50 women in  “Sadako’s costume” made a “parade” in Shibuya station area in Tokyo ,where they all took a pose of  jumping out of a TV monitor, on May 6th.

The parade was divided into three groups and they distributed “a letter from Sadako” to passers-by at Shibuya entrance, Shibuya MarkCity, and Moyai statue respectively. There were 12 kinds of contents in the letters. Some are written as, “This time I jump out of a screen, for I have got fed up with coming out of a well”, “See my new movie, or I will curse you, even you will see it , I will curse you anyway”, ” I have a surprisingly nice body. ” and others. Totally 10,000 letters were handed there, while  promotion trucks of the movie were driving around the town.A lot of excited young people took photos of the parade, some being shouting , screaming in joy or fear…

Temari’s friend, VAMPIRE ROSE from VAMPIRE CAFÉ
which is a restaurant in Ginza, released the 2^nd CD

“Vampire Destiny”.
I participated to the release party.

It was his talk show and photo shooting with him
and so on.

I enjoyed special lunch course menu related the
titles of each songs of the new CD.

http://ameblo.jp/from-vampire-rose/

AliceGarden  http://alicegarden.jp/

SNOB   http://snob-mode.jp/

Although, the new Western style guestrooms are a part of ‘Nishimuraya Hotel Shogetsutei’, it is like a separate highly qualified small resort hotel with a new restaurant ‘Ricca’. Originally these old Japanese style rooms in the ‘Tsukinoto’ guest house have rather less beautiful vista and could not set normal rate than other rooms. These rooms had been usually arranged for group guests in lower rate. The new Western style guestrooms are therefore built for expecting new customers ‘Dankai-junior’ generations (30s-40s). These generations tend to fond of highly qualified rather small resort hotels than large scale gorgeous ones.

Comfort Suite is only two rooms available. The suite room of this type is consisted of a twin bed room, a living room with sofa and dinning furniture set, a bathroom, and a walk-in closet. One of the Comfort Twin is connectable to the Comfort Suite.

Living room of Comfort Suite

Only a piece of painting created by a painter Chiaki Horikoshi is seen on the wall in simple space without any excessive decorations.

Bedroom of Comfort Suite

As well as other new Western style rooms, semi-double size beds (120cm width) products of Simons co. are arranged.

	A set of wide writing table, closet, and dresser is neatly arranged behind of the headboard of the beds.

Universal designed twin room is consisted of a twin-bed room, a sofa set, and a bathroom.

Including universal design shower room, this type of twinroom is suitable for handicapped guests. Rate with two meals is 29,400 yen per person on normal season. A closet, a refrigerator, and a mini-bar are neatly arranged in the room

Comfort twin is a standard room which is equipped with a twin-bed, a furniture set of sofa or chairs, a shower room with rain shower, and a walk-in closet.

Comfort twin has a wide walk-in closet. The shower room is equipped with rain shower and floor heating. Rate with two meals is 29,400 yen per person on normal season.

Different furniture is arranged in another type Comfort twin room.

Arrangement of tools and amenity goods in the new Western style guestrooms

Usually, it is said that generations in 30s-40s are infatuation with big-name brands. They are not simply concerned about major brands but something different value among them.  

Amenity goods and equipments in the new Western style rooms are carefully selected to match their demands. A fat screen TV, a blue-ray player, a digital sound projector, a Bluetooth audio receiver, a Wi-Fi, a LAN terminal, an air cleaner, a humidifier, and a hair dryer are standard arrangements. And French spa brand ‘Omnisens’ products are arranged in the bathroom.

Local made or related materials are positively used in the renovation project

Yukata for the new Western style rooms are newly prepared in collaboration with ‘United Arrows Ltd.’ and ‘Chiso’.

Yukata cotton kimono used for room guests in the new Western style rooms are newly prepared in collaboration with one of the well known apparel makers ‘United Arrows Ltd.’ and a traditional Kyoto-yuzen kimono maker ‘Chiso’. Because, Yukata cotton kimonos are indispensable for their guests when they go out for ‘Sotoyu’ tour in Kinosaki. These new stylish Yukatas were designed in local oriented motifs which are well suited to their guests in 30s-40s.

Tools and equipments in the rooms, such as wooden dress hangers, luncheon table cloths, and room key holders, are made by local makers.

Left: Clothes hangers are original products made by a local maker ‘Nakada-kogei Co.’

Right: Key tag is prepared by a local maker ‘Toyooka Kaban’

＜Reference materials＞

Monthly Hotel Ryokan January 2012

http://www.ikyu.com/

http://www.jalan.com/

http://en.wikipedia.org/

http://www.jnto.go.jp/

http://www.kinosaki-hotsprings.com/

http://www.travel-around-japan.com/

View Nishimuraya Hotel Shogetsutei in a larger map

■For travelers from overseas

As a certified guide-interpreter in English and also a writer of the website “Cool Japan Guide”, I am very happy to introduce ‘Nishimuraya Hotel Shogetsutei’ in Kinosaki Onsen Resort. If you have something to ask, like to make reservation, or need English speaking tour guide when visit to Kinosaki Onsen Resort, please feel free to contact us. Thank you for your kind cooperation, I am looking forward to your contact.

Please Contact Us/お問合せ

■Introduction of the specialist for Onsen design

If you like to build a real Japanese style hot spring facility in your country, I would like to introduce one of the best Japanese architects, Mr. Hiroshi Ebisawa, who is the author of a technical book ‘ONSEN’ specialized in design for Japanese Style SPA. The bilingual book written in Japanese-English is published by Rikuyosha Co. (http://www.rikuyosha.co.jp/) which is available at most bookstores in Japan.

Please contact: http://www.e-koubo.co.jp/

The story is a comedy about Lucius, an architect of public bath houses in ancient Rome, who time-travels to various modern day baths in Japan and explores the two cultures in the world “that have loved baths the most: the Japanese and the Romans.”

The original manga is written by Mari Yamazaki. The movie is directed by Hideki Takeuchi and distributed by TOHO.

I had a chance to see this movie! Let me say this is one of the best movies I’ve ever seen – from cross-cultural and comparative cultural point of view, from comedy point of view, from historical point of view, and from TOCHIGI point of view!!

Tenguyu at Kita-Onsen

Kita-Onsen in Nasu, Tochigi, was chosen as a location for the heroine’s parents house in the movie. Kita-Onsen is considered one of the secret baths (meaning “onsen” not known to many people.)
Here is the English website of Kita-Onsen.
( http://www9.ocn.ne.jp/~kitanoyu/mokujie.htm )

View Larger Map

The brand is also inspired by the enchanting darkness of Gothic dresses.Reflecting Gothic themes, Atelier Pierrot’s color tone is mainly black and darker color palettes, but also includes a hint of calm colors, like white and wine.

Photos>

Video>