Category: Culture

Modern Day Samurai

Samurai (侍) were the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan.

Historically, katana (刀) were one of the traditionally made Japanese swords (日本刀 nihontō) that were worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan, also commonly referred to as a “samurai sword”.

Shimeji (Japanese language： シメジ, 占地) is a group of edible mushrooms native to East Asia, but also found in northern Europe.

London Boots Ichi-gō Ni-gō (ロンドンブーツ1号2号, meaning “London Boots #1 #2”) are a Japanese comedy duo (kombi) that originally performed manzai-style stand-up, but now are mainly known for their TV appearances and as hosts of a handful of off-the-wall variety shows. The two members are Atsushi Tamura (田村淳) and Ryō Tamura (田村亮), and though they have the same surname, there is no relation and they in fact come from very different backgrounds. By the late 90’s, London Boots, or Lonboo (ロンブー, ronbÅ«) as they are often called in Japan, had already landed a spot as the hosts of their own show.

Sean Lennon says “This is Saiko Chodo Ii Honda.”

Sean Taro Ono Lennon (Japanese name Tarō Ono (小野 太郎 Ono Tarō); born October 9, 1975) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, guitarist and actor of English, Japanese and Irish Descent.

A hybrid electric vehicle (HEV) is a type of hybrid vehicle and electric vehicle which combines a conventional internal combustion engine (ICE) propulsion system with an electric propulsion system.

In an interview in early February 2011, a Honda executive disclosed that Honda produces around 200,000 hybrids a year in Japan.

[Kyoto is] the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.

Maiko (まいこ, マイコ) is a Japanese word for dancing girl and is an apprentice geisha.

A pulled rickshaw (or ricksha) is a mode of human-powered transport by which a runner draws a two-wheeled cart which seats one or two persons.

Snow Monkeys Enjoying Jigokudani Hot Springs

An onsen (温泉) is a term for hot springs in the Japanese language, though the term is often used to describe the bathing facilities and inns around the hot springs. Onsen come in many types and shapes, including outdoor (露天風呂 or 野天風呂 roten-buro or noten-buro) and indoor baths.

Jigokudani Monkey Park (地獄谷野猿公苑 Jigokudani Yaen Kōen) is in Yamanouchi, Shimotakai District, Nagano Prefecture, Japan. The name Jigokudani, meaning “Hell’s Valley”, is due to the steam and boiling water that bubbles out of small crevices in the frozen ground, surrounded by steep cliffs and formidably cold and hostile forests. It is famous for its large population of wild Japanese Macaques (Macaca fuscata), more commonly referred to as Snow Monkeys, that go to the valley during the winter, foraging elsewhere in the national park during the warmer months.

The Japanese macaque (Macaca fuscata), historically known as saru (“monkey”), but now known as Nihonzaru (Nihon “Japan” + saru) to distinguish it from other primates, is a terrestrial Old World monkey species native to Japan. It is also sometimes known as the snow monkey from the fact that it lives in areas where snow covers the ground for months each year—no primate, with the exception of humans, is more northern-living, nor lives in a colder climate.