Archive for July, 2009
Many Colors of Little Tokyo
Author: admin
Tokyo is Japan’s capital and the country’s largest city. It was originally a small castle town, named Edo, which with time became Japan’s political and cultural center and has now grown into one of the world’s most populous cities.
Tokyo tops the lists of tourist spots in the country and it encompasses every important aspect of Japanese life. A trip through Tokyo offers a perfect mix of modern and traditional Japan. Small as Tokyo is, there are many hills, plateaus, and mountains scattered around the city.
Tokyo has numerous outlaying Islands, with some volcanic islands in the Pacific such as the Izu and Ogasawara, among other islands are – Oshima, Toshima, Niijima, Shikinejima, Kouzushima, Miyakejima, Mikurajima, Hachijojima, Aogashima, Chichijima and Hahajima. Each island abounds in scenic beauty and has its own character. It offers many marine sports such as swimming, scuba diving, surfing, fishing and thereby is crowded by tourists during the summer.
The hottest tourist spots in Tokyo is Shinjuku. It is a major commercial and administrative center housing the busiest train station in the world. And in the vicinity of the station are crowded skyscrapers, electronic shops, cinemas, restaurants, bars and many international Tokyo hotels. Some of the hot spots are, Gyoen Imperial Gardens – an oasis within skyscrapers, Chuo Koen – Shinjuku central park, Kyu Ogasawara tei – Spanish styled house, Golden Gai – the bar district, Kabukicho – the red light district among others. Tourist especially flock Park Hyatt – the Tokyo hotel, to have a drink at the penthouse New York bar and to view Mt. Fuji from its peak lounge.
After Shinjuku, the next best thing in Tokyo is Ginza, recognized as one of the most luxurious shopping destinations in the world, a shopping mecca indeed. At Ginza one will find all the luxury brands from around the world, many in custom-designed boutiques.
Choosing Your Tattoo Parlor
Author: admin
Once you have made the decision to get a tattoo you’ll need to find a qualified tattoo parlor. This is a very important decision, as it can easily make or break your tattoo. Before you decide on a tattoo artist or tattoo parlor, you must first see if they are qualified. There are hundreds of thousands of tattoo parlors out there, some better than others. If you go to a less than perfect tattoo parlor, you could very well end up with an infection that can cause you more trouble than you ever thought possible. Finding out how long a parlor has been in business is very important – as this will tell you how much business the parlor receives.
When you look for the best parlor you should always watch for those who have the best history with keeping their equipment clean. Clean equipment and a clean studio is without a doubt the most important consideration when dealing with tattoos. If the artist isn’t licensed or not a professional there will be little to no guarantee that the equipment is clean. Health is a big concern with tattoos for most people, and for good reason. If you are looking to get a tattoo you should always make sure that the artists are licensed, the parlor is clean – and the equipment is sanitized and cleaned after each and every tattoo.
The best tattoo parlors will welcome you in with open arms, anticipating your business. When you meet the tattoo artist, he should be friendly and not intimidate you at all, nor should he at any time attempt to push a design on you. Under no circumstances should the artist try and talk you into getting a more expensive tattoo design if all you want is something small and simple.
Watching the Top 5 Attractions of Tokyo City
Author: admin
It’s the most populated city in the world, a city where 90% of residents read a comic book daily, and one of the few places on earth where riding a bike is usually quicker than driving. Tokyo is magical, eternally confusing to outsiders and yet perpetually alluring. With so many attractions vying for your attention during your trip to Tokyo, here are the top 5 things to do in the city.
1. Spend a day people watching at Yoyogi Park
Although you could spend any day here, the most exciting and interesting, from an observer’s point of view, is Sunday. The park is enormous — a former airstrip, army parade ground and site for the Olympic Games in 1964. All sorts of people gather on Sunday, from jazz musicians and jamming guitarists, to martial artists, singers and jugglers. This motley ensemble of characters is fascinating to watch.
2. Watch the local giants
What better way to immerse yourself in Japanese culture than by taking in the national sport? There are few spectacles more intriguing than the sight of two barely-covered behemoths squaring off against one another, each with the intention of taking his opponent down or bundling him out of the ring. Sumo is a source of national pride in Japan and the wrestlers are viewed as heroes. The next major tournament in Tokyo, held at Kokugikan stadium, will run from September 9 – 23. Tickets go on sale August 4; visit Sumo.or,jp for more information.
3. Marvel at Japanese fashion
When it comes to clothes, Tokyo is beyond cutting edge. The colors and designs are like something from another planet. Head straight to Harajuku (Harajuku station on the Yamanote line) and spend the day seeing what sorts of new threads you can spot. Close to the station is Takeshita-dori, where you’ll find many independent designers stores, Yoyogi Park, where you can spot gaggles of Gothic Lolitas, and Omotesando, for high-end fashion outlets.
Origins Zodiac Astrology
Author: admin
The Babylonians are generally acknowledged to have originated the practice and science of astrology. Their astrological charts enabled them to predict the recurrence of seasons and certain celestial events. So, in the beginning and for more than 2,000 years, astrology and astronomy were the same science.
Babylonian astrology was introduced to the Greeks early in the 4th century BCE and, through the studies of Plato, Aristotle, and others, astrology came to be highly regarded as a science. It was soon embraced by the Romans (the Roman names for the zodiacal signs are still used today) and the Arabs and later spread throughout the entire world.
While earliest astrology was used to bring a sense of order out of apparent chaos, it was soon employed to predict weather patterns, primarily for agricultural purposes. It was eventually widened to include forecasts of natural disasters, war and other events in the affecting the human condition. Once success in these fields was established, it was a natural evolution for astrology to be used as a means for advising for kings and emperors and, in time, the population at large.
The zodiac (which is derived from the Greek word meaning circle of animals) is believed to have developed in ancient Egypt and later adopted by the Babylonians. Early astrologers knew it took twelve lunar cycles (i.e., months) for the sun to return to its original position. They then identified twelve constellations that they observed were linked to the progression of the seasons and assigned them names of certain animals and persons (in Babylonia, for example, the rainy season was found to occur when the sun was in a particular constellation which was then named Aquarius, or water bearer).
What Manga Girls Read
Author: admin
Of Japanese comics (known better as manga) fans grows daily among both men and women. Unlike American comics mostly targeting men, manga has a lot of sub-genres with some addressing exclusively women of various ages.
A manga is usually created by one (often with assistants) drawing a comics and writing texts. However there’s also group activity like the Clamp band, still a normal team is 3-4 people at most. Professional manga is next to amateur manga – doujinshi (dojinshi). The following is mostly about professional manga.
A popular genre is shojo (shoujo) manga literally meaning a young girl. So it targets women audience aged 10 to 18. Shojo manga was first created primarily by men but then many female writers have sprung since about 1969.
Shojo manga is multi-genre and -topic including historical drama and science fiction. It often describes romance and emotions pertaining specifically to girls.
Many publishing houses specialize in this type of manga – Shueish with Ribon monthly magazine, Kodansha with Nakayoshi magazine and others. Most series were first printed in such magazines and then serialized.
* Hot Gimmick by Miki Aihara
* Fruits Basket by Natsuki Takaya
* Peach Girl: Change of Heart by Miwa Ueda
* Hana-Kimi: For You in Full Blossom by Hisaya Nakajo
* Love Hina by Ken Akamatsu, Anita Sengupta
* Kare First Love by Kaho Miyasaka
* Doubt by Kaneyoshi Izumi
* Happy Hustle High by Rie Takada
* The Wallflower by Tomoko Hayakawa
* Beauty is the Beast by Tomo Matsumoto
A sub-genre of Japanese fantasy anime and manga called magical girls (maho shojo) tells about girls with superhuman abilities forced to fight evil and protect the Earth. Stories with magic and a transformation like Full Moon wo Sagashite often feature girls with a secret identity. Magical girls known in Japan as majokko (witch girl) generally don’t refer to modern magical girl anime first of which was Sally, the Witch in 1966. This genre counts hundreds of stories. Here’re just some except the ones mentioned before: