… Japan will offer 10,000 foreigners free airfares to visit the country next year, in an attempt to boost the tourism industry which has been hit by the ongoing nuclear disaster, a report said Monday.
The Japan Tourism Agency plans to ask would-be travellers to submit online applications for the free flights …
Tourists are sometimes disturbed by how women are depicted.
Yet since equal rights legislation went into effect after WW II, it may be that the role of women in society is paralleling what’s happened in other “western” nations:
… the fixed image of the Japanese woman has been that of the office lady, who becomes a housewife and a kyoiku mama after marriage. But a new generation of educated women is emerging, that is seeking a career as a working woman. …
wikipedia – Working women in Japan
The large eyes were actually originally inspired by American characters such as Betty Boop, Mickey Mouse, and Disney’s Bambi.
Manga (comics) are still popular in Japan. On every train car I’ll see a few people reading them.
Anime (animated cartoons) are very popular too.
Discomforting are Japanese manga and anime porn, often violent. But that’s a small subset of the industry. In 2011 strong warrior princess stereotypes are (arguably) good role models for girls. If you feel Buffy and Xena are good role models.
Better than this, I’d say:
Cosplay (コスプレ), short for “costume play“, is a type of performance art in which participants don costumes and accessories to represent a specific character or idea. Characters are often drawn from popular fiction in Japan …
In Tokyo there are a subset of those called Harajuku girls:
… teenagers gather with like-minded friends in places like Tokyo’s Harajuku district to engage in cosplay.
Since 1998 Tokyo’s Akihabara district has contained a large number of cosplay cafés, catering to devoted anime and cosplay fans. The waitresses at such cafés dress as game or anime characters; maid costumes are particularly popular. …
… So, it may just be all dress-up fun.
One thing is certain, Japanese women spend an incredible amount of time and money getting dressed.
I feel their pain, a fashion victim myself, agonizing over what to wear each morning.
I have a team of Geishas feeding me all day long at the World Gymnastics Championships.
Domo arigatou gozaimasu.
Likely the most popular overnight hiking destination in Japan is Kamikōchi.
People go to walk high ridges and scramble Mount Yari (槍ヶ岳 Yari-ga-take), … one of the 100 Famous Japanese Mountains. … 3,180 m (10,433 ft).
For two days we had perfect weather. (Trip report and photos coming soon.) I put up my tent on a ridge a couple of hundred metres beneath the “spear” (槍 yari).
The first night was fantastic, one of the best spots I’ve ever camped. Both sunset and sunrise.
… but the second night a storm blew in at 10pm. I listened to an audio book all night, frantic to pack up my soaked belongings at first light. I descended directly to the Tokyo bus.
As a result I missed the infamous “Daikiretto” (die-key-ret-toe – all I see is ‘DIE’).
It will be too late in the season for me this Autumn, but one day I’d love to do the 65km Tate-Yama to Kamikochi traverse of the “Northern Alps”.
The huge city has many big, green and peaceful spaces.
See more of my random Tokyo photos.
Misinformed, I exited the wrong side of Shinjuko.
oops
Shinjuku Station is used by an average of 3.64 million people per day in 2007, making it the busiest train station in the world in terms of number of passengers. …
For about a half hour I was entertained by the manswarm. Eventually I decided to cross over to my intended destination.
After another 90min, I finally gave up and went home. There seemed to be no way to cross Shinjuku East to West. In fact, I needed to watch this instuctional first. There are three different ways to cross.
Click PLAY or watch it on Vimeo.
My friend Kraig Becker linked to this:
One of the more interesting aspects of traveling through Japan is the bullet train, so named because of their distinctive shapes and the fact that they routinely hit speeds in excess of 150 mph. The trains are well known for being safe, efficient, and on time, making them a popular way to get around the country.
… Andrew … wanted to see if he could cross the length of the country by train in a single day – a journey of more than 1200 miles …
Click PLAY or watch it on YouTube.
Gadling – Crossing Japan in a day with National Geographic’s Digital Nomad
I’m confirmed tomorrow to head for the Northern Alps to hike out of Kamikōchi:
… a remote mountainous highland in the western portion of Nagano Prefecture, Japan, which has been preserved in its natural state. …
It is sometimes referred to as the “Japanese Yosemite,” although it is considerably smaller than its American counterpart. …
34km
Japan’s classic alpine route.
I’ll be back online by Oct 2nd.
Following the gymnastics competition in Japan, I joined some of the Canadian delegation for dinner and sightseeing.
We were quite impressed.
… Construction of Minato Mirai 21 (“Port Future 21”), a major urban development project on reclaimed land, started in 1983.
… the tallest Ferris wheel in the world. The 860m-long Yokohama Bay Bridge opened in the same year. …
All’s well that ends well. The Canadians were very happy to have come to Yokohama, despite arriving in a Typhoon and experiencing a minor earthquake.
After too many hours to count, and 6 movies (all good), I’m safely installed in a central Tokyo hostel.
It’s easy to get here from the airport. Only 90min 🙂 by train and subway. Simple.
Blue skies. No sign of a typhoon.
