March 11, 2008
360 Cities Virtual Reality Project
I walk under this section of the Sobu and Chuo lines at least twice a week . The name of the station and surrounding area is Suidobashi. Located in the Kanda district of Chiyoda Ward, it is a lively and boisterous neighborhood. Beyond the tracks, standing at full attention, slightly left of center is the 43 story Tokyo Dome Hotel. I was surprised and delighted to find this photo of an area I know so well in the Tokyo section of the 360 Cities Virtual Reality Project.
The 360 Cities project makes use of Apple’s Quicktime VR and claims to be “the worlds fastest growing Virtual Reality network.” The site name would seem to suggest that panorama views of 360 cities around the world are on offer. But on closer examination, that claim becomes dubious. The photos are arranged sensibly by continent. North America and Asia feature seven and eight cities, respectively; Africa and South America each get one slot; Marshall Islands is the only “city” listed for Australia; while the remaining 25 cities are from Europe. That's far from a balanced representation. And the number of cities does not come close to 360.
But I'm not going to throw this site under the bus merely for a little over exuberance among the copywriters. Clearly 360 refers to degrees depicted in the photos. I, for one, happen to savor each and every one of those degrees while moving through these ever amusing panorama shots. It's kinda like crawling around in a little glass bubble. Though they only feature 43 cities, the site boasts that more than 5000 photos can be seen.
The Tokyo section alone has nearly 500 pictures. Some of them are quite stunning. I particularly like this photo of people standing under the cherry blossoms at Koshikawa Korakuen Koen. It seems as though panorama photos are continually being added to the Tokyo section, some as recently as last weekend.
Posted by scott at 12:40 PM | Comments (1)
March 07, 2008
LiveJournal Lolitas Take Tokyo
I recently learned about a mysterious journey to Tokyo taken by a small group of American women in mid-January 2008. In Deedlelu’s LiveJournal travelog one can see four gals dining, shopping and sight-seeing around town. What makes this photo-scrapbook more than just another LiveJournal photo-scrapbook is the elaborate Lolita fashion-wear worn by her and her companions: Swdpunk, pawteegal, and maetel9.
For some reason, I find their trip to be most intriguing. Why would four young women go to such effort and expense to travel so far to go sight seeing in such conspicuous garb? Judging from their expressions in the photos, they certainly seemed to be having a grand time. Maybe that’s all it’s about.
Maybe it was all just about a group of gals wanting to have some hard earned fun while realizing a dream in true Lolita spirit. That spirit perhaps finds best expression in the Brand Concept Statement of Lolita Fashion marketer Angelic Pretty:
Angelic Pretty provides adorable clothing covered in lace, frills and ribbons like that (sic) of the fairytale princess you dreamed about as a little girl. We want girls to never lose sight of that dream. And this is a brand for girls who want to keep that dream alive (emphasis mine).
Regardless, the photos and text in Deedlelu’s travelog provide an insightful, informative and entertaining take on getting around in Tokyo. They even managed to transform a potentially harrowing experience with the notorious "Free Huggers" into a smile-filled photo-op.
A quick scan of the five-page-long comment section that accompanies the travelog, shows that many people are interested in the adventures of this small band of travelers' quest to “keep that dream alive.”
Note: In looking through the LiveJournal pages of her companions, it becomes clear that there is more to this than meets the eye. They are up to something, and it looks as if we will learn more in mid-March. I’ll be paying attention. Will you?
Posted by scott at 01:02 PM | Comments (2)
February 27, 2008
Calling all Otaku
Let's not mince words, plenty of folks have discovered Tokyo Calling whilst on a quest for knowledge and information about anime, manga, cosplay, and general otaku shenanigans. For many, these facets of Japanese culture hold great allure. Being of the geezer generation, such matters are beyond my comprehension.
Only seldom have these segments of pop-culture entered the narrative. When the narrative has turned in that direction, it's only been obscurely and tangentially. Every time I've tried to broach these topics, my lack of knowledge has wound up serving no one and further diminishing my already flagging "street-cred."
So, it is with undisguised glee that I share my recent discovery of Akibanana. For seekers of knowledge and lore related to matters of anime, manga, otaku and collector culture who might happen upon these humble pages, Akibanana has what you're looking for. Akibanana's team of Tokyo-based bilingual content creators are trying to build a community for those like-minded souls looking for a cyber-home.
Go ahead and give 'em a visit, you won't be disappointed.
Posted by scott at 01:52 PM | Comments (0)
February 26, 2008
104 Seconds of Amusement
Matthias from Nippon Express found and posted a link to this amazing video of the Roller Coaster in Tokyo Dome City. I walk past it three or four times a week and have posted a couple of photos of it and the "Big - O" ferris wheel through which it passes on the Flickr. I've always wished I still had such a sense of adventure as to take a ride on The Thunder Dolphin - though daughter #2 keeps trying to get me to taker her on it. Thanks to Matthias and whoever shot the video, I can experience it to this extent. It's all I need, thank you.
Posted by scott at 10:49 AM | Comments (5)
February 16, 2008
Tokyo Panoramas
The picture above of a happy tweaker in Akihabara is part of series of interactive panorama photos by Nancy Donaldson and Ben de la Cruz recently published on the Washington Post website. They are part of a larger interactive series from the Post entitled Tokyo Stories.
I'm a sucker for these gimmick shots. Seeing familiar scenes in this format is an amusing diversion.
Hat Tip to the Mellow Monk
Posted by scott at 10:12 AM | Comments (0)
January 09, 2008
Look at the birdie
I had the good pleasure to meet Josh McKible at the January Pause Talk. Josh is a Tokyo based illustrator who's involved in a most interesting project. The Paper Bird is an example of downloadable PDF art with, according to the website, the most simple instructions: "Download, Print, Cut, and Play!"
If you fancy yourself an illustrator, you can even request a blank Paper Bird template from Josh which you can, in turn, design and submit for inclusion on his site for others to enjoy.
Apparently, this is nothing new. Josh cites BenTheIllustrator's Speakerdog Paper Toys as a source of inspiration for the Paper Bird project. A few moments spent at Speakerdog will reveal that this is an enormously popular artifact remix activity - suitable for paper enthusiasts of all ages.
One suggestion: when you make your Paper Bird, be sure to tape a small coin on the inner side of the bottom panel. This will serve as ballast to keep the birdie from flying away or tipping over.
Apparently a video tutorial on how to cut, and assemble the Paper Bird is forthcoming. If possible, I'll try get permission to put it on Tokyo Calling TV.
Posted by scott at 12:28 AM | Comments (1)
January 28, 2006
Alarming Read
Tip of the hat to The Phantom Professor for pointing out this recent NYT article on hikikomori.
Posted by scott at 07:12 AM | Comments (0)
December 30, 2005
Tokyo Clash
This poster is for a recent concert coinciding with the three year anniversary of Joe Strummer's untimely passing. Having just found out about it through an entry on DJ KATWO's blog, I wasn't able to participate in the Raleigh Calls Up for the spirit of Joe. Maybe next year.
It is always interesting to discover the existence of such scenes. I'd imagine that the folks who went to the event near Yoyogi station are as die-hard a group of Clash fans as you are likely to come across.
Posted by scott at 02:36 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
November 09, 2005
All aboard
I don't know why I'm so taken with the Answer Bus . One would think that we have more than enough search engines already. Asking, "What is the best podcast?" didn't reveal the answer I'd have hoped for.
Yet, when I asked ,"How are main ideas developed in college compositions?" a number of cool links came up that point to some interesting resources we can use during tomorrow's lesson.
For some reason I can't figure out, the referral logs on Tokyo Calling have recently recorded a number of inbound links from teh Answer Bus. If I can only figure out how to put it into a question...
Actually, a better question would be, "When will the next episode of Tokyo Calling be released?"
Posted by scott at 12:08 PM | Comments (1)
November 02, 2005
Let's get ready to write
NaNoWriMo has just begun. They have a really cool podcast to encourage and track the development of participants journey to write 50,000 words this month.
By the way NaNoWriMo means National Novel Writing Month. Don't let the name fool you. It's an international event. Check it out.
Posted by scott at 03:06 PM | Comments (0)
October 27, 2005
More on NEETs
I bumbled my way through my attempted description of the sociological phenomenon in Japan termed NEET. Luckily, 3Yen.com has this informative article from last March which sheds some light on the subject.
The acronym (Not in Education, Employment or Training)has been around for a while. As usual, I'm only just now discovering it. I am intrigued by the use of English words to form an acronym which is itself is another English word (phonologically, at least)to describe a category of Japanese youth. Would English be used if the term weren't a perjorative one.
Any links or information about the NEETs would be appreciated.
Follow UP:
The Washington Times had this article in February of last year. It seems that the term was first used in England in the mid-nineties to describe a similar trend among the youth.
Follow UP on a Follow UP:
As usual, I should have checked Wikipedia first!
Posted by scott at 04:43 PM | Comments (0)
October 18, 2005
As rumored
I remember seeing a television commercial half a year ago about WiFi in the Metro stations. Just today, I saw this sign for a hotpoint at Ichigaya station (near the Namboku Line). I have no idea how widespread the service is or whether it is free or not - I wasn't carrying the laptop today.
I'll be at that location again on Thursday and will take the computer and digital camera to get a better snap-shot (this was taken with an old mobile phone). Hey, wouldn't it be cool to record and post a quickie podcast from a Tokyo subway station?
Stay tuned for yet another in a long line of FIRSTS from Japan's First Podcast! (unless Rich is reading this and beats me to it)!
Posted by scott at 03:32 AM | Comments (3)
April 08, 2005
Caffeine Society Presents Cafe Haiku, A Book of Photographs and Witty Haiku
One of the coolest radio stations in North America: KBOO in Portland, Oregon will have a live webast of Cafe Haiku. The event will happen live for 3 hours and you are invited to contribute a haiku. Visit the website for more details.
Posted by scott at 07:38 AM
March 11, 2005
A new podast from Japan
Herro Flom Japan is a brand new English language podcast from this neck of the woods. Rich has hit a homerun with this 40 minute introductory episode. Don't be alarmed by the length (as they say in Australia), it is entirely listenable and good.
Perhaps the best part of the show comes near the end in a soundscape Rich takes us on near Shibuya station. His converstaion in English and Japanese with a street performer with a toy piano is priceless. He may well have discovered a star. You also won't want to miss his description of the clandestine recording kit he devised for capturing audio out in the real world. It is even sneakier than Bicycle Mark's ingenius contraption.
Trust me when I say, "This is a must listen to podcast!"
Posted by scott at 02:03 PM | Comments (0)
February 24, 2005
Going My Way
A few listeners have been asking about Japanese language podcasts. Going My Way RADIO is one I just found through PodcastAlley. It is well produced with good BGM. For those of you with higher levels of Japanese abiity than I have, this might be just what you are looking for. All of his past episodes are available from the weblog main page. I'll pull an excerpt from an episode and feature it on the next Tokyo Calling. With any luck at all, that will come this evening. As Adam Curry says, "We've got a lot to talk about."
Posted by scott at 10:03 AM | Comments (0)
February 08, 2005
Would you believe....
I took the two eldest daughters to the park a couple of days ago with mp3 recorder in hand. The conditions were quite windy, but I was still able to get enough "material" for a welcome back podcast. Problem is, there's just not the time to put the pieces together.
Hopefully, tonight something will happen. I appreciate your patience.
Posted by scott at 09:45 AM | Comments (0)
November 01, 2004
Halloween in Tokyo
I talk about Halloween in Tokyo in episode 3 of Tokyo calling. This picture is from an ad from Jusco, a nearby chain grocery store. As best as I can figure out, most folks here think of Halloween as a holiday for enjoying pumpkin. The three items from left to right are baked pumpkin pudding for 100 yen, pumpkin custard for 178 yen, and pumpkin gratin in an actual pumpkin bowl for 498 yen. Back in the states I remember seeing many pumpkins this time of year.
But my only culinary memory is of pumpkin pie, which I never actually cared for until I became an adult.
I went to another grocery store today and they had a huge Halloween Display near the entrance. The artwork around the display consisted of pictures of witches, black cats, bats, and jack-o-lanterns. The merchandise was all pumpkin based food stuff. They had pumpkin granola (muesli), pumpkin chips, pumpkin soup, pumpkin oil, and they even had small jars of Gerber brand pumpkin souffle baby food.
At least, there aren't the bands of costumed youth walking the streets after dark raising hell. I wonder how many people in the states will be injured due to too much trick and not enough treat...
Posted by scott at 12:00 AM