Japan Archivi - Keep Calm and Drink Coffee

TASHIROJIMA: ISLAND OF CATS

Mar 30, 2024 | WHO CARES, WHO CARES

Tashirojima 田代島 is an enchanting island populated mainly by cats.

Hidden among the waves of the Sea of Japan, Tashirojima emerges as an enchanted oasis where pussycats reign supreme.

Located in Miyagi Prefecture, this small island has become world famous as ‘The Island of Cats’, a place where feline inhabitants outnumber humans and where the presence of these creatures is honoured as an ancient tradition.

The history of Tashirojima is intertwined with the bond between the island and its cats. Over the centuries, local fishermen are said to have believed that the presence of cats brought good luck and prosperity to their boats and fishing.

Today, Tashirojima is a unique tourist destination, captivating visitors from all over the world with its picturesque landscape and feline population.

Wild cats roam freely around the island’s streets, interacting with tourists and providing moments of joy and entertainment.

The islanders have also built several ‘neko-jinja’ (cat shrines) in honour of their furry friends, where visitors can pay their respects and leave offerings such as toys or food for the cats.

In addition, there are also some tourist facilities on the island that welcome visitors eager to experience the unique atmosphere of this feline community.

For cat lovers, Tashirojima is a true paradise on earth.

Here they can stroll through the island’s picturesque coastal landscapes, interact with a diverse cat population and fully immerse themselves in the culture and tradition surrounding these fascinating animals.

In conclusion, Tashirojima is much more than just an island: it is a world apart, where the presence of cats is considered sacred and where daily life is permeated by the magic and affection of these adorable animals.

For anyone seeking an escape from the hustle and bustle of modern life and a unique encounter with Japanese nature and culture, Tashirojima is the perfect place to explore and discover.

Massimo

PACHINKO

Jun 10, 2023 | WORLD

Pachinko パチンコ is the name of something that is perhaps less understandable to Westerners, but only because we have other manifestations of alienation and ludopathy.

Pachinko パチンコcould be synonymous with mockery.

Verbal Kint taught us that the greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did not exist. And like that… he is gone.

Even gambling in Japan “does not exist” because it is banned. And it disappears under the name “entertainment” definition by which Pachinko is classified.

Many of us have been through a Pachinko parlor running: along with Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson in the movie Lost in Translation.

Pachinko is a hybrid game, we could say it is the representation of contamination: halfway between a pinball machine and a slot machine.

The trick is precisely the balls that from the game become the very object of winning but cannot be exchanged for money.

By playing Pachinko you can only get prizes of various kinds: chocoloate bars, pens, lighters, candy, T-shirts, cosmetics, bicycles, shopping vouchers, up to so-called “special” prizes i.e. silver or gold objects enclosed in plastic bags.

These special prizes can be exchanged at points outside but nearby Pachinko Parlours: the TUC Shops = Tokyo Union Circulation.

I found precise regulations regarding the installation of these phantom vertical pinball machines, but the risk of addiction?

These Pachinko Parlors are places where people are subjected to extremely high noise levels and bright lights.

The players appear to be sitting helpless, completely estranged, as if without identity in the flow of these slow, mechanical movements that cancel out time.

I am very struck by the slogan of a company that runs Pachinko Parlors:

Joy in life

We resolve to bring joy to the lives of our staff, our customers, and society as a whole through our business.

I do not see joy.

I found a survey from which it mainly shows that the Pachinko Parlour is a place to go alone.

A ball weighs 5.4 gr. a one-dollar box contains two thousand balls, so the weight corresponds to kg. 10.8!

I was thinking … with ten kg. of coffee how many cups can we get? 🙂 😉

RETURN TO TIFFANY

Nov 5, 2022 | FASHION, WHO CARES, WORLD

Return to Tiffany is Maison Tiffany’s iconic collection.

Its origins date back to 1966, when Tiffany first began selling key chains with the now famous phrase “Please Return to Tiffany & Co. New York.”

The key chains were assigned a unique registration number, which ensured that Tiffany & Co could trace the keys back to the owner if they were lost.

That’s why Return to Tiffany: because the prestigious Fifth Avenue store would be able to reunite the data through a precise and confidential serial number.

In the fifty years that have passed, the Return to Tiffany collection has made its mark as a symbol of the tradition of craftsmanship, a fundamental pillar of Tiffany.

A Tiffany advertisement showed the perfect gift for Valentine’s Day: a heart-shaped Return to Tiffany tag in 14-karat yellow gold, priced at $11 …

Over time, there have been several evolutions: in 1980, Tiffany debuted the first piece of jewelry incorporating the Return to Tiffany tag, a heart-shaped yellow gold pendant on a necklace.

The collection expanded to an assortment of rings, bracelets and earrings, each with its own personality, all engraved with the emblem reminiscent of Tiffany‘s unparalleled style.

Have you ever happened to lose something?

I’d like you to tell me that you found it or that it was returned to you by some good soul.

According to Article 928 of the Civil Code the delivery of the object found must be made known by publication for two successive Sundays and must remain posted for three days each time.

These seem like archaic concepts now that all kinds of information is disseminated online.

In Japan have a special name for lost or forgotten items: WASUREMONO 忘れ物.

Don’t you find it cute?

For them then, return is a very important issue; they are extremely precise and accurate.

The most commonly forgotten items are:

. cell phone

. bag

. train, bus, metro pass

. wallet

. umbrella

. keys

. electronic cigarette

Keys therefore come long after an object that did not exist in 1966: the cell phone, yet Tiffany’s continues to represent somewhat “the heart of New York.” Or not?

BEFORE THE COFFEE GETS COLD

Sep 17, 2022 | BOOKS

Before the coffee gets cold is the first of Toshikazu Kawaguchi川口俊和 trilogy best sellers, we had already talked about it here.

While reading it, I also found a nice description about the now famous siphon coffee!

The author describes a depression coffee pot, however I don’t really like the word “depression” combined with the coffee pot, which instead represents a small happy moment.

In any case, the ritual is told like this:

Nagare poured hot water into a lower cruet, then brought it to a boil to allow it to rise through the siphon into the upper cruet, where he poured ground coffee, which was then filtered back into the lower cruet.

Coffee plays a very important role in the stories told in Before the coffee gets cold, stories touching deep inside.

If you had the chance to say something that you should have told or would have wanted to say, in a moment that has already fled away, however, what would it be?

I know, it’s getting very personal here, because these thoughts are generally dedicated to the affections.

Feel free to share whatever you want.

In the meantime, I would also propose a fantasy variant, somewhat keep calm style …

Such as pointing out to Michael Stipe that R.E.M.’s decision “to stop being a band” caused a loss for the music.

Or, still about Japan, asking Sofia Coppola if she foresaw how much Lost in Translation fans would not let the whispering “come between” them and the curiosity of discovering Bill Murray’s words in Scarlett Johansson‘s ear.

Or just thank Meryl Streep now and always for showing the world that true Beauty has no canons, and that producing King Kong should have presupposed knowledge of the important underlying message about who the real monsters are.

All this only ever before the coffee gets cold …

I must acknowledge the undoubtedly brilliant idea of the author, who among other things made an unusual choice for the context: in the book itself he tells us that

coffee arrived in Japan in the Edo period, towards the end of the 17th century. At first it did not satisfy Japanese taste buds, and it was certainly not considered a pleasant drink, but then again it was not surprising since it tasted like black, bitter water …

Fortunately, things have since changed 🙂

What about you, did you love coffee right away or did you experience an evolution?

MEMORY OF WATER

Aug 13, 2021 | CULTURE, ENVIRONMENT, MUSIC

“If vibration is energy, than resonance is the reverberation of energy, and resonance is thus capable of relaying energy.”

These words of Masaru Emoto contain the essence of his studies on the memory of water.

Did you already know this theory?
When Massimo told me about it, I was literally enchanted.

Music, as I have already written, for me is energy and constitutes an essential component.

Even water is a a very important element that in my case takes the form of the link with the sea.

But how do they combine?

Masaru Emoto undertook extensive research of water around the planet, not so much as a scientific researcher, but more from the perspective of an original thinker. At length, he realized that it was in the frozen crystal form, that water showed us its true nature.

How? By freezing water samples previously exposed to music of various kinds and subsequently observing the crystals.

It even sounds like a fairy tale right?
It strikes with all the delicacy of the Japanese universe and their attitude, which I sincerely envy.

Listening to this interview I have been impressed by some passages, for example when he declares: “I feel I have a lot in common with Don Quixote.”

Or when he speaks of Japanese spiritual tradition and HADO: literally the crest of the wave, which represents precisely the energetic vibration that is transformed into the memory of water.

Wonderful.

However, I must also say that personally, considering Japan and water, my thoughts cannot help but run on the dramatic situation in Fukushima and the imminent running out of time left for the tanks.

Also for this reason, Dr. Emoto’s intent to dedicate himself to children, who do not have the negative imprinting of adults, is even more precious through his Peace Project.

How to blame him?

And it seems we can not be wrong even with regard to his studies on which a double-blind test was carried out to reconfirm.

What do you think about it?

On the emotional wave of this way of music materializing into crystals, I then found myself reflecting on another wonderful moment in which music impresses the memory: pregnancy.

In this regard, I would be SO happy if someone wanted to tell me their experience.

I have always made our son listen to music: before he was born and also after. On the type of music, perhaps I was not very orthodox …

In this regard, I found Dr. Alexandra Lamont‘s thesis: senior lecturer in music psychology at Keele University, according to which children can remember things from the uterus much longer than we thought.

The University of Leicester research study reported by NewScientist explains that:

Psychologist Alexandra Lamont found that year-old babies still recognised and had a preference for musical pieces that were played to them before being born. Previous studies have only shown babies being familiar with pre-birth experiences when they were a few days old.
Lamont had thought the children might develop a taste for the style of music played by their mothers, but this was not true. Instead, she was surprised to find that the babies could discriminate and remember individual songs.

By Alexandra Lamont I also found a World Café participatory discussion “coincidences? I do not think so …”

A part from jokes, what music would you like to crystallize in your memory?