Plain Talk
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021Textbooks Then and Now by Marshall Hughes
Time marches on.
When I came to Japan to teach English in public schools more than 30 years ago I was struck by the complete lack of “negative” words in the public school English text books. Everybody was tall, strong, happy and either handsome or beautiful. Those were the words that were taught. Texts rarely included words like sad, unhappy, disappointed or even overweight, much less a word like fat. It was certainly a more pure time, especially in classrooms, and teachers didn’t want students to know such “bad” words. Everybody in the textbooks wore with just-washed clothes, and if the characters were Japanese - and almost all of them were - their hair was either, black, dark black or jet black.
Recently, I saw an advanced edition of the text book that my high school will use starting next year, and it contained many surprises. The new text book includes sentences such as “She is stubborn and talks too much,” “He’s bald,” “He is selfish” and “I hate horror movies.” When I came to Japan those sentences could never have been found in any text book. That last sentence would have read “I don’t like horror movies.” I’m not even sure “horror movies” would have been acceptable. Other sentences I was surprised to see include “My parents are getting divorced,” “I’m depressed” and “I was bullied in high school."
The illustrations in the textbooks have also changed compared to the 1980s, maybe as much as the vocabulary. In this new textbook there are people with tattoos, students sleeping at their
desks in classrooms while others throw paper airplanes and, gasp, interracial marriages.
Another thing that surprised me was the loosening of some grammar rules. When I first came to Japan and lived in rural Tochigi, even teachers whose English was little more than rudimentary knew well, and strictly followed, esoteric English grammar rules. These Grammar Nazis, some might now call them Grammar Democratic Socialists, knew arcane rules of grammar, even if they could not go into a McDonalds in an English-speaking country and be able to come out with a hamburger and fries.
Several times over the years I have asked a teacher, “Have you ever gone to Kyoto?” only to be told that I shouldn’t use that phrase because in Japanese college entrance test English it is incorrect. It should be, “Have you ever visited Kyoto?”
One sentence in this new book reads, “Patrick is more intelligent than me.” When I read this, alarm bells went off in my head. Of course, in everyday English a sentence like this is often used. Old Japanese textbooks would certainly have used “Patrick is more intelligent than I.” I wonder if this is really acceptable in Japanese college entrance tests these days. It certainly wasn’t OK 30 years ago.
Time indeed marches on…and each of us gets to judge whether that is good or bad.
時は進む。
公立学校で英語を教えるため来日した３０年前は、英語の教科書に「ネガティブ」な単語はいっさい見当たらなかった。登場人物はみんな背が高く、健康でハッピー、そしてハンサムか美女だった。教えるのはこうした単語だった。教科書には悲しい、不幸せ、残念、デブはもっての他、太りすぎといった単語さえめったに見られなかった。まさに純粋な時代だった。特に教室では、教師は「ネガティブ」な言葉を生徒に学んでもらいたくなかった。教科書の中の登場人物は清潔な衣類を身につけ、その登場人物が日本人であれば、必ずと言っていい程、髪は黒か、からす色、漆黒だった。
先日、自分が勤務する高校で、来年度使用する高学年用の教科書を見て、びっくりした。新しい教科書には、「彼女は頑固で話が過ぎる。」「彼は禿げだ。」「彼はわがままだ。」「私はホラー映画が苦手だ。」といった文章が載っていた。私が来日した時にはこうした文章が載った教科書は皆無だった。最後の文章は、「私はホラー映画が苦手だ。」だが、はたして『ホラー映画』という単語が教科書にふさわしいのかどうかわからない。他にも「私の両親は離婚する。」「落ち込んでいる。」「高校でいじめにあっていた。」
語彙と同様、イラストも１９８０年代のものとは変わった。新しい教科書には、入れ墨をしている人がいて、教室の机で寝ている生徒もいる。さらに紙飛行機を投げたり、喘いだり、異人種間での結婚をしている人も登場する。
他にも、文法の規則が緩くなった。初来日して栃木の田舎に住んだ頃は、初級者より少し英語ができる教師でさえ、難解な英文法の秘伝に厳格に従わなくてはならなかった。こうした文法ナチズム、文法国家社会主義と呼ばれるものには、難解な分法の法則があり、英語圏の国でマクドナルドに行った事がない人でもハンバーガーとポテトを手にして店を出る事ができる。
すいぶん長いこと、同僚に「京都に行った事がある？」と尋ねるとよくこう言われた。その言い回しは「君は京都に行ってしまってここにはいないの？」になるから、日本の大学入試の英語としては間違いだよ。「京都に行った事がありますか？」に正された。
新しい教科書に次の文章があった。「パトリックはミーよりかしこい。」その一文を目にして頭の中で警告音が鳴り響いた。もちろん、現在ではこの言い回しはよく使われる。昔の日本の教科書では「パトリックは私よりかしこい。」だった。日本の大学入試問題でこの文章はありなのだろうかと僕は疑問に思う。３０年前はＯＫではなかった。
時は、着実に進む。そして誤用かどうか判断するのは我々ひとりひとりだ。
Plain Talk
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD TNB Throwback: DECEMBER 25. 2015LIVING NEXT DOOR by Alma R. H. Reyes
What is it like “living together and growing together” in Japan?
First, in renting a place in Tokyo, you are painstakingly subjected to the disturbing real estate and landlord system of paying 2-months “reikin” (gift or key money that doesn’t return to you), 2-months “shikikin” (deposit that supposedly returns to you after the end of the contract), 1-month broker’s fee, and the first month’s rent―a total of six-month’s rent just for the initial payment. In other cities outside Tokyo, the payment values may differ, sometimes depending on the landlord system. In Kyoto, for instance, some real estate agencies charge 3-months reikin and 1-month shikikin, or 4-months shikikin, but zero reikin. Studio apartments may range from ￥70,000 up, while 2-3 bedroom flats can range from ￥100,000-200,000 or more, all depending on the building condition, location, close vicinity to the train station, etc.
Then, there are certain “rituals” foreigners need to practice as well. Ningen kankei (human relation) in Japan is a very intricate learning process, and can cause friction, stress and harsh social pressure if not observed well. For instance, the first thing you need to do when you have moved in to your new abode is to present small gifts to your immediate neighbors, introduce yourself with a bow, and the usual “Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu.”
In some cases, when you go away on a vacation, it is customary to inform your immediate neighbors about your absence, again, with the bow and “Yoroshiku Onegaishimasu.” Then, when you return, it would be better to offer them some “omiyage” gift as a gesture of thanking them for looking after your place. If you hold a party that may make some noise, you would appear polite to ask your neighbors for pardon in advance.
Do you have trees around your home? Watch out that the leaves don’t fall off on the property of your neighbor during a harsh typhoon or windy day! Do you know there is a property line around your home? If you own a bicycle, normally, you are not supposed to station your bicycle beyond your private property line.
When you are having some home repairs done that may involve pounding on the wall, sound of drilling, scaffolding on the exterior, or even the mere smell of paint, you may have to apologize to your neighbor in advance for the “inconvenience.” When the repair is over, you may be expected to again apologize and thank your neighbors for their patience, and offer them small gifts like fruit, soba noodles, or a piece of cake!
There are, indeed, so many rules to adhere to in Japan, and we have to be more sensitive in giving respect to our neighbors who on the other hand, also demand a high level of expectation from you, whether you’re a Japanese or not. Welcome to comfort living in Japan!
Unfinished business
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD MAY 17. 2019Farewell to a Japan Jazz Icon by David Gregory
The messages from all over Japan read aloud during the service helped us realize how widely Koyama-san touched lives and how many like us were feeling something newly missing from our worlds. But, although wonderful and sometimes saddening us, they did not trigger crying. That happened next.
Those first few notes of the "'Round About Midnight" Miles Davis version, the cut Koyama-san always used to open Jazz Tonight, performed by a live piano and trumpet duo up front near the coffin, did it: Instant recognition, recollections, sighs around the room, eyes closed, arms crossed, heads dropped back or down, and tears, at least for me. How many times had we heard, after Miles breathed his somber opening, Koyama-san's low, raspy voice welcoming us into the studio with, "Minna-san, gokigen ikaga desho-ka everybody, how are you feeling?"?and never thought that someday we would hear him ask about us no more?
Koyama-san's widow, whom, like him, had never known me, stood alone at the coffin head and bowed in silence to everyone in turn after they placed flowers around his body as the duo continued with another slow number, the trumpet sounding so strong and crisp and unusual in a memorial service hall. After we placed our flowers, she responded to my hand on her shoulder, a touch just meant to console her, by immediately turning and reaching for me?a total stranger?burying her head in my chest, and breaking down. She needed that hug that everybody sometimes needs. She let go after her respite when she was ready to face the coffin and everyone else again, and returned to her position. Going to Kashiwa in a snowstorm was worth it just for those few moments when I could do something for her.
So our Kashiwa day was both sad and good. But, why did I even want to go a funeral for a man whom I only knew by voice, and who, although linked to jazz, was not even a musician?
Koyama-san and his Jazz Tonight program I listened to since at least the early 2000s. For more than sixteen years, while my life in Japan has been filled with huge uncertainties, he has been here Saturday nights on the radio, reliable, keeping me connected to the world's music and opening my ears to music from Japan I would not know without him. Listening to him always made me feel good, no matter what had happened in my life during the week or what was coming up in the weeks ahead. Koyama-san and Jazz Tonight were my respite. How well can I replace that comfort?
Koyama-san, thank you for helping this foreigner feel good in Japan. Please rest well in jazz heaven.
NHK Radio, thank you for giving Koyama-san a way to connect with us. Please encourage other DJs to continue doing what he did so well.
To Koyama-san's surviving family members: Please care well for yourselves now, and thank you for supporting and sharing Kiyoshi with us.
The Smallest Box by David Gregory
She came over to my table and asked if I remembered her.
“That’s my boyfriend over there.”
Their table hugged a pillar blocking the sunny Tokyo Bay view enjoyed by the other customers that afternoon in Chiba’s AquaRink ice skating facility café.
“Maybe we will marry next year.”
On my way out, I stopped to congratulate the potential groom to be. What I later heard happened with Hiromi and Hiroshi that night at another place also close to the bay sounded so too good to be true that I visited that place to confirm it really happened. It did.
Hiroshi had reserved for the course menu that night at OCEAN TABLE, next to Chiba Port, on the second floor, where tables sat by the huge windows facing Chiba Port Tower and Tokyo Bay. No view-blocking pillars there. And they had a wait, even with their reservation, because it was Christmas Eve, which in Japan matters much more than the following day; the Eve is the year’s couples’ night out, and single women without dates that night can feel their whole year was wasted.
Hiroshi had changed into a suit after skating, and had urged Hiromi, against her protests about overdressing, into a plaid one-piece, raising expectations. They had never come to a place this nice, one requiring reservations. Saizeriya was more their speed: fast faux-Italian, cheap, and everywhere.
The unexpected wait made Hiroshi antsy. He relaxed and all was perfect after they were seated.
They talked. They ate the Christmas Dinner courses. They ignored the soft Christmas background music. They admired the gleaming, golden Christmas Tree rising from the first-floor buffet area through the open center space across from their table. They could see outside the sparkling flashes and half the tree in Port Tower’s Christmas Illumination, and beyond, the lights from the ships on and facilities around Tokyo Bay, appearing almost twinkling. Perfect—but not for Hiromi.
She went to the toilet. Still he had not asked. The day was done. The reservation system only allowed them two hours there. They had been together all day. He had remembered her birthday-just by coincidence, also that day-with a necklace at AquaRink. Nice, but was that all? He had pestered her since early December about what Christmas present she wanted until she had finally exploded with, “Nothing! Don’t you know I just want a proposal?!” And had added she wanted it to be a surprise. Here he had the perfect chance, and he was wasting it.
She could try enjoying what was left of the evening. Dessert was next. At least here was better than Saizeriya….She was still stuck when she returned to the table, and had no chance to do or say anything, anyway. It was his toilet turn.
Their desserts came. Hiromi sat and waited and pondered the future. Outside, the tower stood alone against the dark sky and Tokyo Bay’s inky darkness.
Their desserts waited. Maybe his tooth was bothering him again. Maybe he was just tolerating it to make the night go well. Maybe for her. Maybe she should go to check on him. Wait-maybe she just heard his voice across the room.
No, only Santa Claus, posing for photographs with diners at the far table. He then started circling the room, giving a small present from his big sack at each table. She could check after he was done.
Hiroshi still had not returned to his seat when Santa reached their table. He handed Hiromi a big, red stocking, by far the room’s largest gift, accompanied by a squeaky, “Atari! You’re a lucky one!” Yeah. She set it aside and Santa moved on. What was he still doing in the toilet?
Santa finished his round, returned to Hiromi, and pointed at her unopened stocking with squeaky, “Un! Un!” grunts. The other diners had opened their presents. She forced a smile and said she was waiting for her boyfriend to return. “Un! Un!”
When Hiromi still resisted, Santa took the stocking in his white-gloved hands and opened it himself. Out first came a big, pink box, heart shaped. He opened that and pulled out another heart-shaped box, and then, from inside that, another heart-shaped box. Another smaller, heart-shaped box followed. He removed from that an even smaller heart-shaped box, and thrust it to Hiromi with one more squeaky, “Un!”
Still gone. Well, he’d miss it. Hiromi obeyed Santa this time and opened it, the smallest box in the room …and her mind and face went blank.
After that frozen moment passed, Hiromi looked at Santa. The second shock hit, and more followed. Santa Claus had ripped off his gloves, furry hat, sunglasses, and huge, flowing beard. He took the box from her?she was still speechless?dropped onto one knee, held the open box out and up to her in both stretching hands, and said in a voice loud enough for everyone in the room to hear, “Hiromi-san, boku-to kekkon shite kudasai! Hiromi, please marry me!”
Outside, to anybody looking, Port Tower’s Christmas Illumination still flashed, and the lights on and around Tokyo Bay still appeared almost twinkling. Inside OCEAN TABLE, on the second floor, everything was happening so fast that Hiromi just did not know which was more difficult to believe: Hiroshi and the ring he first tried slipping onto the finger on her right hand, the one he had taken in his before she held out her left hand, or the following PAN! and PAN! PAN! PAN! PAN! PAN! and PAN! PAN! and PAN! explosions ripping and ribbons shooting around the room as diners at the floor’s other tables popped the party crackers they had found with the notes in their presents from Santa Claus.
Copyright © 2018 David L. Gregory All rights reserved.
I Did It! by David Gregory
She had been here before. But, those were tour-guided or hand-held visits. After living most of her life in white-bread suburban USA, driving everywhere, shopping in giant malls and supermarkets, and needing only one currency and one language, my mother ventured out on her own, within and beyond Chiba, during one trip to Japan. From her notes, here are Dorothy's...
ADVENTURES IN JAPAN
Grocery Shopping in Neighborhood―Walk five blocks...buy only one bag...walk five blocks back. Survived it!
Shopping in City Center―Walk six blocks to bus stop. Ride bus fifteen minutes. Arrive at stores. Walk around. Look. Decide: cookies.
Buying: “Ikura desu-ka how much?” Hmm. “Kakimasu kudasai write please.”
Paying options: give large bill, let clerk figure change, or open change purse, let clerk take out correct amount. Decide to just give some cash.
Clerk shakes her head (“NO! MORE!”), then counts out correct amount needed from register and shows me. I mimic her action from my change purse. Smiles! Deep bows with many, “Arigato gozaimasu thank you very much!”-es.
(My error: thought there was decimal point in Yen price....)
Open cookies, expecting pirouettes with chocolate centers. Instead, peanut butter waffle rolls, no chocolate. No wonder, now I see peanut sketch on package. “Shoganai can’t be changed,” I did it to myself. It could have been worse!
~~~
Travelling to Visit Friend’s Family on Other Side of Chiba―Walk ten blocks to train. Purchase ticket. Electronic lady on ticket machine screen says, “Arigato gozaimasu” and bows. Ride train twenty minutes, watching for correct stop, get off, walk seven blocks to house. I did it myself!
Visiting Hisae Overnight―My Japanese study partner in USA returned to Japan, now lives on other side of Tokyo Bay.
Take large purse and large tote bag with jacket, nightie, toothbrush, cosmetics. Walk six blocks to bus stop. Ride bus to train station. Ride train eighty minutes to Yokohama. Find correct exit from station. EASY. Did not even look at note in pocket explaining route and Japanese signs. And, look! Hisae and three-year old Kei are waiting! “Hello!” they say! Many hugs!
I did it!
Then, still more travel: train together fifteen minutes, short taxi uphill to lovely apartment, sunny and bright.
Returning to Chiba, just reverse process. Next time, we can meet at a station halfway in between. I can do it.
I can do it!
Copyright (C) 2015 David Gregory. All rights reserved. Chiba, Japan
Book Review
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD MAY 11 2018Cherry Blossoms in the Time of Earthquakes and Tsunami
by Rey Ventura Reviewed by Randy Swank video maker and scriptwriter Rey Ventura won the 2015 National Book Award for his third collection of essays, Cherry Blossoms in the Time of Earthquakes and Tsunami, but for some strange twist of fate you will find very little information on this book. You can’t even buy it on Amazon. This is a shame because Cherry Blossoms... is a beautiful, insightful and thought-provoking book. |
Cherry Blossoms in the Time of Earthquakes and Tsunami |
In "Miniskirts and Stilettos" we meet Ginto, a young lady who comes to Japan dreaming of making it big as a singer and entertainer but has to deal instead with a much darker reality; while "Mr. Suzuki Tries Again" and "Into the Snow Country" are tragicomic tales of arranged marriages where the dreams and expectations of bride-starved farmers from Japan's Deep North clash with those of young Filipino women who want to escape their poverty and go into marriage "as a girl goes into a convent." Ventura tells these stories with a great eye for detail and manages to find a ray of light even in the darkest corners, or poetry in the midst of a nuclear disaster. The book's first essay is called "The Slow Boat to Manila" and indeed, slowness is the first word that comes to mind when considering Ventura's approach to writing. Everything Ventura does is slow. He is no magazine reporter after all, and will spend days or even months getting to know a person he wants to write about. That's the kind of personal commitment and deep connection with his subject that one feels when reading his essays. |
Tokyo Fab
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021
Broadway Our Way Concert
For one night only, the Fairfield County Children's Choir lights up Broadway! Join us on February 27 at 7 pm for "Broadway Our Way." Together but separate, our talented children from 19 local towns will perform an hour-long virtual concert of Broadway favorites that will livestream to quarantine bubbles, families, friends, and far-reaching music fans. Tickets are $30 per household; everyone is guaranteed a front-row seat.
The lights may be off on Broadway, but we promise our choristers will transport you to The Great White Way from the comfort of your home. Highlights include three show-stopping virtual choirs of nearly 300 soaring voices singing "The Greatest Show" from The Greatest Showman, "Happiness" from You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, and "Do Re Mi" from The Sound of Music. Our audience will enjoy talented soloists and two sing-alongs from favorites including Aladdin, The Secret Garden, Newsies, The Last Five Years, Beauty and the Beast, Bring It On, Ame´lie, Frozen, and Wicked.
Date：2/28 (Tue), 2021 9:00am
Venue: Online
https://www.singfccc.org/
Bella Beats Winter Showcase
The Bella Beats dance team was founded in 2011 as a high performance dance troupe. Over the past ten years, the troupe has performed at many community events. As a team they have traveled across Canada and the United States, participating in workshops, classes, and parades at Disneyland, on Broadway, and much more!
This season, they have focused on technique, strengthening, and of course - adaptability! Four performance teams take the stage, with dancers ages 6 - 16. Their two competition teams are also presenting their competitive pieces as they prepare for a season of virtual competitions.
Offered at the show are many pieces, in many different styles. A few of the pieces were created by Bella teachers, some by the dancers themselves, and some via Zoom with the industry's leading choreographers.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy the performance. These dancers are incredible in so many ways!
Date：3/1, 2021 9:30am − 12:00pm JST
Venue: Online
https://www.belladance.ca/bella-beats
What’s App With You?
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021
Wallace & Gromit: Big Fix Up:
From the magical world of Wallace and Gromit comes a first-of-its-kind experience - a real-time AR adventure, featuring a new story that YOU and the whole family can take part in! The duo have a new business venture, ‘Spick & Spanners’, which has won a contract to clean and fix the whole of Bristol… but they’ll have to work for pie magnate and wannabe city mayor Bernard Grubb who sees ‘The Big Fix Up’ an easy vote-winner for his election campaign. There’s a lot to do… which is where YOU come in! Sign up to the app and become part of Wallace and Gromit’s Spick & Spanners crew, enhancing your world with authentic, colourful and detailed augmented reality as you take part in a clean-up operation like no other! And you’ll also have a mystery to solve along the way, too…
LEGO(R) VIDIYO(TM):
For kids to express their creative passions & make their own music videos! Discover a whole new way to play with LEGO(R) VIDIYO(TM): an exciting new music video maker that lets your kids express their passion for music, dance and play in a completely safe and positive social networking community for young creatives. Using augmented reality to bring our all-new LEGO Bandmates to life, kids can rebuild their everyday world and direct, produce and star in their very own music videos to the beat of their own imagination. A fun, interactive social network app for kids to turn screen time into creativity time, LEGO VIDIYO sets the stage for the next generation of young music creatives to be inspired, everywhere.
Tokyo Voice Column
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD TNB Throwback: FEBRUARY 26. 2016
Living in the Hot Spring paradise by Cherry
It has only been one year since I first came to study in Beppu city, Oita prefecture but I already felt attached to this place as if it was my own hometown, Vietnam.
The pleasant surroundings are one of the reasons I like here. I had taken a hiking to a long beautiful coastline across the city, and a city night view from Beppu Wan has become my favorite spot. Also, the hospitality especially from the elderly has made a deep impression on me. I still remember when I had trouble using a bus, one fine grandmother came to help me. Using my crappy Japanese I thanked and had a talk with her. She is living with her husband, whose son works in Tokyo. Despite the hustle life, he always manages to come back to see them. Listening to the story reminded me of my parents back home. Before getting off the bus, I was gifted a bag of Kabosu, Oita prefecture’s famous citrus fruit. How can I forget such a kind-hearted woman?
Back to my life in Beppu, can you imagine living in a place having the world’s renowned hot springs? From upon the Kannawa district to downtown area, Beppu provides us with series of hot springs where we can soothe our body and soul after hard days’ work. What is more, by joining the ‘Hell Tour’, you can visit the hot springs with different colors and enjoy hot spring eggs. The Beppu Hot Spring Festival in April is the biggest festival where there are parades, fireworks and most hot springs are free of charge. I believe not only international tourists but Japanese people will definitely enjoy Beppu’s hot springs during vacation.
Having been living here for one year, I am satisfied that I made a right choice to study in this wonderful country. I am sure not only me but any other international student would feel the same. Dear Tokyoites, why not taking a chance and visiting Beppu, the hot spring paradise?
学業のため大分県、別府市にやって来てまだ１年だが、早くも私の生まれ故郷、ベトナムと同じぐらい大切な場所となった。
素晴しい自然に囲まれた環境は、私がここを好きな理由のひとつに挙げられる。別府市の長くのびる海岸線をハイキングしたし、別府湾を望む夜の景色は私の大好きな場所となった。それに加え年配の人達はとても暖かく私に深い感動をあたえてくれる。バスに乗車する際、困った時の出来事は忘れられない。親切なおばあさんが助けてくれた。へたくそな日本語でお礼を述べた後、話をした。彼女はご主人と別府に住んでおり、息子が東京で働いている。忙しい東京生活にもかかわらず、両親に度々会いに来てくれる。彼女の話を聞いているうちに故郷の両親を思い浮かべた。バスを降りると、かぼすの入った袋をくれた。大分県の名物であるフルーツだ。こんな心優しい人を忘れることはないだろう。
別府での私の生活に戻ろう。世界でも有数の温泉地での生活がどんなものか想像できる？鉄輪（かんなわ）からダウンタウンにかけてたくさんの温泉が湧き出ており、忙しい一日を送った身体と精神を安らかにしてくれる。さらに、『地獄めぐり』ではさまざまな色の温泉が観光でき、温泉卵を食べることができる。４月には別府温泉祭があり、パレードや花火大会が開催され、ほとんどの温泉に無料で入泉できる。外国人観光客のみならず日本人でも別府の温泉をきっと気に入るはずだ。
ここに来て１年だが、この美しい環境で勉学ができる事に大変満足している。私だけでなく他に大勢いる海外からの学生達も同じ気持ちでいるだろう。どうぞ東京に住んでいる方も、温泉天国である別府に観光にいらしてください。
MUSEUM -What's Going on?-
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021
Constable A History of His Affections in England
The nineteenth-century painter John Constable (1776-1837) ranks with J.M.W. Turner for innovating English landscape painting and deepening appreciation for the genre. Constable devoted himself to painting the places that were intimately related to his own life in England: numerous paintings of Salisbury, Hampstead, Brighton, and the rural landscapes of his native Suffolk speak of everything he loved and nurtured with such great care. In addition to oils, water colors, drawings, and prints from the Tate Collection, the exhibition will also display around twenty works by contemporaries of Constable. Never wavering in his pursuit, Constable brought to life a world of vibrant landscape painting that will be presented through eighty-five works, including some outstanding pieces from collections in Japan.
John Constable
《Hampstead Heath with a Rainbow》
1836, Oil on canvas, 50.8 x 76.2 cm, (C)Tate
"Constable is one of the best-known and certainly one of the very greatest painters of nature. The exhibition will include plentiful examples of his expressive and vigorous open-air oil sketches. Some of these were painted in the fields and along the lanes of his native Suffolk. Others, such as cloud studies painted in Hampstead or beach scenes made in the coastal resort of Brighton, convey a remarkable sense of freshness and of open air breezes, which should prove a welcome antidote to visitors given their recent experience of a global pandemic." - Art Historian, Anne Lyles
Period: February 20 (Sat) to May 30 (Sun), 2021
Venue: Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, Tokyo
Hours: 10:00-18:00 (last admission 30 minutes before closing)
-21:00 on Fridays (apart from holidays) and on the second Wednesday of the month.）
Closed: Mondays (apart from holidays, February 22, March 29, April 26)
Admission: General: ￥1,900 High school and University studentS: ￥1,000 / Elementary and Junior High school students: FREE
For more information, please visit
ROBERT DOISNEAU LA MUSIQUE PARIS
《I had fun throughout my lifetime, building my own small theater.》 - Robert Doisneau
Perhaps best for his famous 1950 image of a couple kissing on the streets of Paris―Le baiser de l'ho^tel de ville (Kiss by the Town Hall)―Robert Doisneau, along with Henri Cartier-Bresson, was a pioneer of photojournalism. Doisneau captured unassuming images of street life around Paris, as well as working on prestigious advertising and photojournalism campaigns. “The marvels of daily life are so exciting; no movie director can arrange the unexpected that you find in the street,” he once said. Recruited as both a soldier and photographer for the French resistance at the outbreak of the Second World War, Doisneau also produced images of France in wartime.
Self-portrait of Robert Doisneau, 1949 in Villejuif, France
Robert Doisneau (1912−1994) is one of France's most celebrated photographers. He produced many excellent works depicting Paris, and continues to be dearly loved by many around the world. This exhibition features some 200 pieces that richly convey Doisneau's unique sense of music. These photographs were taken over the 1930s to the 1990s, capturing chansons, jazz performances, and many more musical moments as they bloomed in the streets of Paris. Based on an exhibition met with high acclaim at the Muse´e de la musique within the Philharmonie de Paris (located in the 19th arrondissement of Paris) and held from the end of 2018 to the spring of 2019, his works have now traveled to Japan in a rearranged display.
Period: - March 31, 2021 (Sun)
Venue: Bunkamura THE MUSEUM
Hours: 10:00-18:00 / - 20:00 On Fridays & Saturdays (last admission 30 minutes before closing)
Admission: Adult: ￥1,500 / College & high school students: ￥700 / Junior high & elementary school students ￥400
For more information, please visit
Strange but True
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021
S.O.S.:
Three Cubans have been rescued from a deserted island in the Bahamas after reportedly living on coconuts and rats for 33 days. The trio were airlifted to safety by the US Coast Guard on Tuesday after being spotted waving flags during a routine air patrol. Various local media reports suggested the group had lived on conch shells, rats and coconuts while struggling to find freshwater. The two men and a woman told rescuers that their boat had capsized in rough waters between Cuba and the Florida Keys, leaving them stranded on Anguilla Cay, according to reports. Mike Allert, the aircraft commander on the helicopter, told ABC News that a helicopter hoisted the group off the island in a 30 minute rescue. They were then brought to the Lower Keys Medical Center in Key West, Florida, with no reported injuries, officials said, adding that they were fatigued and dehydrated. Lieutenant Justin Dougherty added: ‘I am amazed that they were in such good shape. That is pretty extraordinary’, Local 10 reported. ‘It was incredible, I don’t know how they did it.’
Watch Out for the Angry Cow:
An escaped cow ran inside a hospital and attacked patients, knocked over chairs and caused general panic. CCTV from the waiting room shows how the animal got inside and started running around, like a bull in a china shop on February 13. A group of people inside ran to a corner for safety but were followed by the cow that then slammed into them. In the video, the cow falls several times allowing some patients to escape, but leaves an injured woman trapped on the floor as two men manage to grab the animal’s lead and pull it away. Local newspaper Vanguardia said nobody was seriously injured in the incident as the trampled woman was treated for minor contusions and pain while the rest of the patients did not seek treatment. The rogue cow also damaged two motorcycles at the hospital’s entrance and some chairs in the waiting room...
Links
Guesthouse Tokyo
10 minutes to Ikebukuro.
Interhouse
safe and accessible solution for your accommodation needs in Tokyo.
Sakura House
1830 monthly furnished rooms at 204 locations in Tokyo.
BAUHOUSE
Private furnished rooms in Roppongi, Akasaka, Azabu-Juban etc.
J&F Plaza
Furnished & unfurnished guesthouses and apartments in Tokyo.
May Flower House
Tokyo furnished apartments. Ginza, Roppongi, Yotsuya and more.
TenTen Guesthouse
33,000yen/30 days for working holiday students.
GOOD ROOM TOKYO
Share room, Private room, under 50,000yen
MOVE JAPAN
Private furnished rooms in Tokyo with free internet. Call us first or call us last!
Tokyomove.com
Hassle free moving starts from 6000yen.
Tokyo Helping Hands
Very flexible working hours to effectly help you with moving, deliveries, disposal, storage and more!
AirNet Travel
We'll cut you the best air ticket deals anywhere.
Fun Travel
Discount air travel & package tours 2min from Roppongi Stn.
No.1 Travel
We go the extra mile for you. International air tickets and hotels.
JR Tokai Tours
Top-value travel to Kyoto, Osaka, Nagoya from Tokyo by Shinkansen.
Matsuda Legal Office
All kinds of Visa, Immigration & Naturalization, International Marriage etc.
Futaba Visa Office
Licensed immigration lawyer & certified public tax consultant.
American Pharmacy
English speaking pharmacy since 1950.
Tokyo Skin Clinic
EU-licensed multi lingual doctors.
Tax-free AKKY
Japanese Appliance, Watch, Souvenirs
Tokyo Speed Dating
1st Sat. & 3rd Sun. at Bari n Roppongi ETC.
Tokyo Spontaneous
Picnic, Parties, Language exchange
TMA
Japanese women & Western men.
Tokyo Fab
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021Broadway Our Way Concert
For one night only, the Fairfield County Children's Choir lights up Broadway! Join us on February 27 at 7 pm for "Broadway Our Way." Together but separate, our talented children from 19 local towns will perform an hour-long virtual concert of Broadway favorites that will livestream to quarantine bubbles, families, friends, and far-reaching music fans. Tickets are $30 per household; everyone is guaranteed a front-row seat.
The lights may be off on Broadway, but we promise our choristers will transport you to The Great White Way from the comfort of your home. Highlights include three show-stopping virtual choirs of nearly 300 soaring voices singing "The Greatest Show" from The Greatest Showman, "Happiness" from You're a Good Man Charlie Brown, and "Do Re Mi" from The Sound of Music. Our audience will enjoy talented soloists and two sing-alongs from favorites including Aladdin, The Secret Garden, Newsies, The Last Five Years, Beauty and the Beast, Bring It On, Ame´lie, Frozen, and Wicked.
Date：2/28 (Tue), 2021 9:00am
Venue: Online
https://www.singfccc.org/
Bella Beats Winter Showcase
The Bella Beats dance team was founded in 2011 as a high performance dance troupe. Over the past ten years, the troupe has performed at many community events. As a team they have traveled across Canada and the United States, participating in workshops, classes, and parades at Disneyland, on Broadway, and much more!
This season, they have focused on technique, strengthening, and of course - adaptability! Four performance teams take the stage, with dancers ages 6 - 16. Their two competition teams are also presenting their competitive pieces as they prepare for a season of virtual competitions.
Offered at the show are many pieces, in many different styles. A few of the pieces were created by Bella teachers, some by the dancers themselves, and some via Zoom with the industry's leading choreographers.
Sit back, relax, and enjoy the performance. These dancers are incredible in so many ways!
Date：3/1, 2021 9:30am − 12:00pm JST
Venue: Online
https://www.belladance.ca/bella-beats
What’s App With You?
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021Wallace & Gromit: Big Fix Up:
From the magical world of Wallace and Gromit comes a first-of-its-kind experience - a real-time AR adventure, featuring a new story that YOU and the whole family can take part in! The duo have a new business venture, ‘Spick & Spanners’, which has won a contract to clean and fix the whole of Bristol… but they’ll have to work for pie magnate and wannabe city mayor Bernard Grubb who sees ‘The Big Fix Up’ an easy vote-winner for his election campaign. There’s a lot to do… which is where YOU come in! Sign up to the app and become part of Wallace and Gromit’s Spick & Spanners crew, enhancing your world with authentic, colourful and detailed augmented reality as you take part in a clean-up operation like no other! And you’ll also have a mystery to solve along the way, too…
LEGO(R) VIDIYO(TM):
For kids to express their creative passions & make their own music videos! Discover a whole new way to play with LEGO(R) VIDIYO(TM): an exciting new music video maker that lets your kids express their passion for music, dance and play in a completely safe and positive social networking community for young creatives. Using augmented reality to bring our all-new LEGO Bandmates to life, kids can rebuild their everyday world and direct, produce and star in their very own music videos to the beat of their own imagination. A fun, interactive social network app for kids to turn screen time into creativity time, LEGO VIDIYO sets the stage for the next generation of young music creatives to be inspired, everywhere.
Tokyo Voice Column
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD TNB Throwback: FEBRUARY 26. 2016Living in the Hot Spring paradise by Cherry
It has only been one year since I first came to study in Beppu city, Oita prefecture but I already felt attached to this place as if it was my own hometown, Vietnam.
The pleasant surroundings are one of the reasons I like here. I had taken a hiking to a long beautiful coastline across the city, and a city night view from Beppu Wan has become my favorite spot. Also, the hospitality especially from the elderly has made a deep impression on me. I still remember when I had trouble using a bus, one fine grandmother came to help me. Using my crappy Japanese I thanked and had a talk with her. She is living with her husband, whose son works in Tokyo. Despite the hustle life, he always manages to come back to see them. Listening to the story reminded me of my parents back home. Before getting off the bus, I was gifted a bag of Kabosu, Oita prefecture’s famous citrus fruit. How can I forget such a kind-hearted woman?
Back to my life in Beppu, can you imagine living in a place having the world’s renowned hot springs? From upon the Kannawa district to downtown area, Beppu provides us with series of hot springs where we can soothe our body and soul after hard days’ work. What is more, by joining the ‘Hell Tour’, you can visit the hot springs with different colors and enjoy hot spring eggs. The Beppu Hot Spring Festival in April is the biggest festival where there are parades, fireworks and most hot springs are free of charge. I believe not only international tourists but Japanese people will definitely enjoy Beppu’s hot springs during vacation.
Having been living here for one year, I am satisfied that I made a right choice to study in this wonderful country. I am sure not only me but any other international student would feel the same. Dear Tokyoites, why not taking a chance and visiting Beppu, the hot spring paradise?
学業のため大分県、別府市にやって来てまだ１年だが、早くも私の生まれ故郷、ベトナムと同じぐらい大切な場所となった。
素晴しい自然に囲まれた環境は、私がここを好きな理由のひとつに挙げられる。別府市の長くのびる海岸線をハイキングしたし、別府湾を望む夜の景色は私の大好きな場所となった。それに加え年配の人達はとても暖かく私に深い感動をあたえてくれる。バスに乗車する際、困った時の出来事は忘れられない。親切なおばあさんが助けてくれた。へたくそな日本語でお礼を述べた後、話をした。彼女はご主人と別府に住んでおり、息子が東京で働いている。忙しい東京生活にもかかわらず、両親に度々会いに来てくれる。彼女の話を聞いているうちに故郷の両親を思い浮かべた。バスを降りると、かぼすの入った袋をくれた。大分県の名物であるフルーツだ。こんな心優しい人を忘れることはないだろう。
別府での私の生活に戻ろう。世界でも有数の温泉地での生活がどんなものか想像できる？鉄輪（かんなわ）からダウンタウンにかけてたくさんの温泉が湧き出ており、忙しい一日を送った身体と精神を安らかにしてくれる。さらに、『地獄めぐり』ではさまざまな色の温泉が観光でき、温泉卵を食べることができる。４月には別府温泉祭があり、パレードや花火大会が開催され、ほとんどの温泉に無料で入泉できる。外国人観光客のみならず日本人でも別府の温泉をきっと気に入るはずだ。
ここに来て１年だが、この美しい環境で勉学ができる事に大変満足している。私だけでなく他に大勢いる海外からの学生達も同じ気持ちでいるだろう。どうぞ東京に住んでいる方も、温泉天国である別府に観光にいらしてください。
MUSEUM -What's Going on?-
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021Constable A History of His Affections in England
|
John Constable |
"Constable is one of the best-known and certainly one of the very greatest painters of nature. The exhibition will include plentiful examples of his expressive and vigorous open-air oil sketches. Some of these were painted in the fields and along the lanes of his native Suffolk. Others, such as cloud studies painted in Hampstead or beach scenes made in the coastal resort of Brighton, convey a remarkable sense of freshness and of open air breezes, which should prove a welcome antidote to visitors given their recent experience of a global pandemic." - Art Historian, Anne Lyles |
Period: February 20 (Sat) to May 30 (Sun), 2021
Venue: Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, Tokyo
Hours: 10:00-18:00 (last admission 30 minutes before closing)
-21:00 on Fridays (apart from holidays) and on the second Wednesday of the month.）
Closed: Mondays (apart from holidays, February 22, March 29, April 26)
Admission: General: ￥1,900 High school and University studentS: ￥1,000 / Elementary and Junior High school students: FREE
For more information, please visit
ROBERT DOISNEAU LA MUSIQUE PARIS 《I had fun throughout my lifetime, building my own small theater.》 - Robert Doisneau |
Self-portrait of Robert Doisneau, 1949 in Villejuif, France |
Robert Doisneau (1912−1994) is one of France's most celebrated photographers. He produced many excellent works depicting Paris, and continues to be dearly loved by many around the world. This exhibition features some 200 pieces that richly convey Doisneau's unique sense of music. These photographs were taken over the 1930s to the 1990s, capturing chansons, jazz performances, and many more musical moments as they bloomed in the streets of Paris. Based on an exhibition met with high acclaim at the Muse´e de la musique within the Philharmonie de Paris (located in the 19th arrondissement of Paris) and held from the end of 2018 to the spring of 2019, his works have now traveled to Japan in a rearranged display. |
Period: - March 31, 2021 (Sun)
Venue: Bunkamura THE MUSEUM
Hours: 10:00-18:00 / - 20:00 On Fridays & Saturdays (last admission 30 minutes before closing)
Admission: Adult: ￥1,500 / College & high school students: ￥700 / Junior high & elementary school students ￥400
For more information, please visit
Strange but True
TOKYO NOTICE BOARD FEBRUARY 26. 2021S.O.S.:
Three Cubans have been rescued from a deserted island in the Bahamas after reportedly living on coconuts and rats for 33 days. The trio were airlifted to safety by the US Coast Guard on Tuesday after being spotted waving flags during a routine air patrol. Various local media reports suggested the group had lived on conch shells, rats and coconuts while struggling to find freshwater. The two men and a woman told rescuers that their boat had capsized in rough waters between Cuba and the Florida Keys, leaving them stranded on Anguilla Cay, according to reports. Mike Allert, the aircraft commander on the helicopter, told ABC News that a helicopter hoisted the group off the island in a 30 minute rescue. They were then brought to the Lower Keys Medical Center in Key West, Florida, with no reported injuries, officials said, adding that they were fatigued and dehydrated. Lieutenant Justin Dougherty added: ‘I am amazed that they were in such good shape. That is pretty extraordinary’, Local 10 reported. ‘It was incredible, I don’t know how they did it.’
Watch Out for the Angry Cow:
An escaped cow ran inside a hospital and attacked patients, knocked over chairs and caused general panic. CCTV from the waiting room shows how the animal got inside and started running around, like a bull in a china shop on February 13. A group of people inside ran to a corner for safety but were followed by the cow that then slammed into them. In the video, the cow falls several times allowing some patients to escape, but leaves an injured woman trapped on the floor as two men manage to grab the animal’s lead and pull it away. Local newspaper Vanguardia said nobody was seriously injured in the incident as the trampled woman was treated for minor contusions and pain while the rest of the patients did not seek treatment. The rogue cow also damaged two motorcycles at the hospital’s entrance and some chairs in the waiting room...
Links
Guesthouse Tokyo10 minutes to Ikebukuro. Interhousesafe and accessible solution for your accommodation needs in Tokyo. Sakura House1830 monthly furnished rooms at 204 locations in Tokyo. BAUHOUSEPrivate furnished rooms in Roppongi, Akasaka, Azabu-Juban etc. |
J&F PlazaFurnished & unfurnished guesthouses and apartments in Tokyo. May Flower HouseTokyo furnished apartments. Ginza, Roppongi, Yotsuya and more. TenTen Guesthouse33,000yen/30 days for working holiday students. GOOD ROOM TOKYOShare room, Private room, under 50,000yen |
MOVE JAPANPrivate furnished rooms in Tokyo with free internet. Call us first or call us last! Tokyomove.comHassle free moving starts from 6000yen. |
Tokyo Helping HandsVery flexible working hours to effectly help you with moving, deliveries, disposal, storage and more! |
AirNet TravelWe'll cut you the best air ticket deals anywhere. Fun TravelDiscount air travel & package tours 2min from Roppongi Stn. |
No.1 TravelWe go the extra mile for you. International air tickets and hotels. JR Tokai ToursTop-value travel to Kyoto, Osaka, Nagoya from Tokyo by Shinkansen. |
Matsuda Legal OfficeAll kinds of Visa, Immigration & Naturalization, International Marriage etc. |
Futaba Visa OfficeLicensed immigration lawyer & certified public tax consultant. |
|
American PharmacyEnglish speaking pharmacy since 1950. |
Tokyo Skin ClinicEU-licensed multi lingual doctors. |
|
Tax-free AKKYJapanese Appliance, Watch, Souvenirs |
Tokyo Speed Dating1st Sat. & 3rd Sun. at Bari n Roppongi ETC. Tokyo SpontaneousPicnic, Parties, Language exchange |
|
TMAJapanese women & Western men. |
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50 Shades of Yikess
