Hiroshima Traces

Pictures from South America coming soon...

2007-03-21T03:01:00.000+09:00

Off to South America

2006-12-29T14:58:00.000+09:00

On January 3 I will arrive in Lima, Peru after a 4 am departure from DC and a dreadful 5 hour layover in San Salvador. Leah and I will be heading southward across the Andes into Bolivia, hiking the four-day Inca Trail to Machu Pichu along the way. After crossing Lake Titicaca, we'll head through La Paz down the Andes as far south as the salt flats of Salar de Uyuni. From there we fly north to Quito, Ecuador, venture south to Guayaquil, fly to the Galapagos and back, and finish up with a final stretch through the Andes back to Lima. I'll return on March 5.

Myanmar

2006-11-17T16:23:00.000+09:00

According to an article in today's NY Times,"Myanmar’s per capita income is calculated at $175 a year, far below neighboring Bangladesh," setting this figure at roughly a third of the per capita incomes of either Sudan or Haiti. From the same piece:

The government’s budget for its AIDS program in 2004 was $22,000, according to a recent health survey by John Hopkins University Medical School.

The junta leader, Gen. Than Shwe, 73, whose early military training was in psychological warfare, was described by many here as a master manipulator of his minions. He insisted, apparently out of fear of a coup, that the capital be moved this year from Yangon, formerly Rangoon, to a new site in the jungle, Naypyidaw.

The move, costing millions of scarce dollars, was in step with the general’s belief that he marched in the footsteps of the old Burmese kings — the name of the new capital means “Royal City.” Then, as now, there was a fierce line between the rulers and the ruled.

For the first time, health workers said they were discovering severe malnutrition among children in urban centers, a true anomaly in a lush country that was once the world’s biggest exporter of rice.

An Intha boatman rowing with his leg, Lake Inle:

A monk at the floating Jumping Cat Monastery teaches cats to jump through a hoop, Lake Inle:

Novice monks studying at the country's third largest monastery, Bago:

The Golden Rock, a mansion-sized precariously perched gilded boulder at the very edge of a steep cliff, Kyatiyo:

Next to a gargantuan reclining buddha, Bagan:

Novice monks play soccer in an Intha village on the shore, Lake Inle:

The Mustache Brothers, Mandalay:

View of 4000 millenium-old temples, Bagan:

Bomblets, bomblets everywhere

2006-10-18T04:57:00.000+09:00

After a friend sent me a picture a few weeks ago of an Israeli cluster bomblet left in Lebanon, I realized that we are rarely presented with contemporary artillery photographs by the media. All of the following bombs and mines were produced in the US and were collected by a team led by Aki Ra, a twice-conscripted Khmer Rouge soldier who served with the Vietnamese occupation between these two stints. In the early 1990s he returned to northwestern Cambodia to work as a mine-clearer for the UN. He continued this work after the UN withdrew from Cambodia, and, having stockpiled an impressive collection of shells, opened the Cambodia Land Mine Museum after the conclusion of the civil war.

When I met Aki Ra in Siem Reap, he admitted to me that he believes he cleared some of the very mines he laid during the 1980s for both the Vietnamese/PRK and Khmer Rouge forces.

These MK-82 bombs (note "USA" painted on right-most one) were dropped from US planes, as were the cluster bomblets pictured above, originally encased by a much larger shell. The anti-personnel mines (the ones that look like mini-bombs) and the anti-tank mines (the pancake mines under the house behind the MK-82s) were supplied by the US to the Khmer Rouge and laid in Northwestern Cambodia in the mid-1980s. All were cleared by hand.

For the time being

2006-10-17T13:07:00.000+09:00

Fisherwomen under U Bein's Bridge, Amarpura, Myanmar:

Wat Phra Mahathat, Ayutthaya, Thailand:

In an Akha village near Louang Nam Tha, Laos:

Ta Prohm, Siem Reap, Cambodia:

Fruit vendors heading to a floating market at sunrise, Can Tho, Vietnam:

Backpacking in Southeast Asia

2006-05-30T22:50:00.000+09:00

I'll be in Thailand, Burma, Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam until September 1, after which I will finally return to Virginia.

Chiiori

2006-05-21T22:40:00.000+09:00

Chiiori is an Edo era farmhouse located in the Iya Valley of east central Shikoku. It was purchased by the travel writer Alex Kerr in the 70s, though he's apparently no longer affiliated with the project. Kerr's writing tends to be condescending and self-congratulatory expatriate ranting (a post on an Americans-in-Japan expat website put it perfectly, though I actually don't think this is a joke: "I would like to leave Alex Kerr alone so that he (and Ian Buruma) can have the peace and quiet to pen more books."), but all hard feelings aside, the house was incredible. After taking two trains and a bus through the mountains near Oboke, a small pickup truck was waiting for me on the side of the road. I hopped in the back and was ferried up the mountainside to Chiiori. The house is in fact so remote (as Kerr's book Lost Japan reiterates) that it was featured in TIME and appears in the current issue of the Atlantic Monthly. I'm not sure why I'm being such a cynic, as the place itself was truly breathtaking and the volunteer staff were incredible individuals. To be fair, I'll give Mr. Kerr the last word. From Dogs and Demons:

Occassionally one sees foreigners having an impact in certain out-of-the-way niches in Japan, such as Iya Valley in Shikoku, where the Chiiori Project, a volunteer movement centered on Mason Florence's and my old farmhouse, is drawing numerous foreign travelers and exchange teachers. The sight of all these foreigners trekking to such a remote place is reawakening local interest in reviving Iya's natural beauty.

Iya Valley:

Cobra Gold 2006

2006-05-17T16:57:00.000+09:00

With so many exercises happening between so many countries at one time, everyone is bound to receive great training to take back home.

Unfortunately, the above quote is not an excerpt from the Olympic Committee's homepage, but rather how the US Pacific Command website describes the commencement of the 25th annual Cobra Gold. What began in 1981 as joint US-Thai war games has turned into a full-blown Asian NATO, with this year's participants also including Singapore, Japan, and for the first time Indonesia. While this is Japan's second year participating, it is the first time the Self Defense Forces will actively take part in Combined Field Training Exercises. Despite an obvious violation of Article 9 of the country's Constitution, Japanese participation has been exceptionally euphemized, limiting activities to "humanitarian/civic assistance projects" (as opposed to the other countries' "peace support operations field training exercise in support of the United Nations Global Peace Operations Initiative (GPOI)").

Japanese rearmament is an explicit goal of the United States-Japan Security Consultative Committee Document Joint Statement signed on May 1 of this year by Rumsfeld, Rice, Minister of Foreign Affairs Aso Taro, and Minister of State for Defense Nukaga Fukushiro. (Rice and Taro pictured together, right.) Contained in the Statement:

The Ministers stressed the imperative of strengthening and improving the effectiveness of bilateral security and defense cooperation in such areas as ballistic missile defense, bilateral contingency planning, information sharing and intelligence cooperation, and international peace cooperation activities, as well as the importance of improving interoperability of Japan’s Self-Defense Forces and U.S. forces.

And there you have it: "interoperability" of Japan's SDF and US forces. As the new Japanese military chief of staff Massaki Hajime told Reuters:

Integrating the forces has been our dream since the Self-Defense Forces were established about 50 years ago.

Adopting the new joint staff system will also make it easier to coordinate with the United States, which has a similar structure.

Koizumi and the US military occupation of Okinawa

2006-05-16T15:06:00.000+09:00

The US and Japan negotiated a new "realignment package" on Monday, reports the Japan Times:

As part of the realignment package Japan and the United States finalized earlier this month, a new airfield will be built on the Nago coastline for relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma from downtown Ginowan, also in Okinawa, and Iwakuni will host a carrier air wing to be moved from Atsugi, Kanagawa Prefecture.

"The Nago coastline" plan--blatantly euphemized in the article--will entail destruction of the Henoko reef, habitat to three species of endangered sea turtles and the rare dugong, of which only 25-50 are believed to exist (pictured right). The Henoko agreement was negotiated with the US on February 6 of last year, prompting 22 boats of protesters to take to the Bay (pictured above). The continued occupation of Okinawa and threatening of the Henoko Reef has caused nationwide outcry, resulting in the formation of groups ranging from informal networks to organized campaigns, including the Save Life Society. No Base Henoko Tokyo, and the Futenma-Henoko Action Network, as well as a massive coalition of hundreds of US environmental and legal groups. According to the Progressive Portal:

Before the drilling platforms arrived, anti-military and pro-environment activists, some as old as 90, sat in at government offices for 10 days, occupied the beachfront for more than 250 days, and held a 20-day hunger strike. When the action moved offshore, so did the opposition. The scrupulously nonviolent activists, some of whom had not previously learned to swim, became skilled rowers and divers. Former Naha City Council member Suzuyo Takazato tells of 70-year-olds in wet suits diving into the waters to disrupt the attempts to bore holes in the sea floor. At the World Social Forum in Brazil and on a subsequent visit to the U.S. this month, Ms. Takazato displayed pictures of women and elders blocking drilling workers in rowboats and occupying the drilling platforms. Rowing out to the platforms at 6:30 every morning, day after day, week after week, the resisters have managed to prevent all drilling to date. Workers have not yet been able to install a single drilling engine on any of the platforms.

You can send an email to Japanese officials protesting these attacks on endangered species' habitats as well as the prolonged US military occupation of Okinawa here, thanks to a form letter created by Progressive Portal.

Relocation of Henoko residents has not been ruled out. The same Japan Times article describes how the tax-funded Japan Bank for International Cooperation will pay for the tentative relocation of a number of US military bases from Okinawa to American soil in Guam. The Asahi Shinbun reports that Japanese taxpayers will in fact foot 700 billion yen--or 59 percent--of the US military's relocation costs.

How did Koizumi respond to the residents of Okinawa, Yamaguchi, and Kanagawa prefectures who have repeatedly expressed--in both mass demonstrations and official public referenda for over a decade--their disgust with LDP complicity in the US military occupation of Japan?

Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi intends to leave it to the next session of the Diet to deliberate the bills related to Japan's cost burden. Koizumi has kept stressing that his priority is to keep his promise to Washington. Yet, he decided to let his successor explain the situation to the public.

Okinawa

2006-05-11T21:32:00.000+09:00

I spent Golden Week island hopping around Okinawa. The following five posts include my trips to Zamami-jima, Naha, Ishigaki-jima, Taketomi-jima, and Iriomote-jima. All photos can be enlarged by clicking on the image.

Zamami-jima

2006-05-11T20:36:00.000+09:00

Located in the Kerama archipelago about 30 km west of Naha, Zamami-jima has but one small village with a population of about 600. Famous for its winter whale watching and summer diving opportunities, I stepped off the ferry from Naha when I spotted a whale statue and a giant "Welcome to Zamami Isl." sign.

Apparently, "Isl." was an abbreviation for "islands" plural, and I was not on Zamami Island, but instead on nearby Aka-jima in the Zamami Islands, a sub-archipelago of the Kerama Islands. I walked into the only place to stay on the island and asked where my guesthouse was located. They had no idea, which I found bizarre on an island with a population of well under a thousand. The innkeeper's daughter did know of my minshuku, tossed me in her van, and floored it back to the dock. We were just in time to see the ferry pull out...one of three ferries daily. Luckily I only had to wait another couple of hours for the next "ferry" (a three-seater, pictured below) to Zamami-jima.

The Kerama Islands (and Zamami-jima in particular) were occupied by the US Navy navy during World War II, from which they could attack the main island of Okinawa-Honto. The great Japanese historian Ienaga Saburo describes this tragic episode:

Garrison commander Akamatsu Yoshitsugu of Tokashikijima, Kerama archipelago, Okinawa, ordered local inhabitants to turn over all food supplies to the army and commit suicide before U.S. troops landed. The obedient islanders, 329 altogether, killed each other at the Onna River with razors, hatchets, and sickles. U.S. forces occupied nearby Iejima and used some of the local people to take surrender appeals to Akamatsu's unit on Tokashikijima. Akamatsu's men klled the emissaries and many members of the island's self-defense unit for allegedly violating orders. On another Okinawan island, Zamami, unit commander Umezawa ordered the island's elderly and children to commit suicide in front of the memorial to local war dead from the Sino and Russo-Japanese Wars. The remaining islanders were forbidden to pick any potatoes or vegetables. Thirty persons who violated the order were starved or shot.

A memorial was erected by the residents of Zamami Village on Aka-jima in honor of the 200,000 who perished in the Battle of Okinawa:

My birthday dinner at a minshuku in Zamami Village:

This minshuku was built by the innkeeper's (pictured above, left) great grandparents more than 120 years ago. The structure miraculously survived the war, though some of the floorboards only barely survived the Levenson stomp:

A shiisa perched on the roof:

Furuzamami Beach:

Naha

2006-05-11T17:18:00.000+09:00

Naha is the largest city on the largest island of Okinawa, and served as the capital of the Ryukyu Kingdom. The population is just over 300,000, or about a quarter of that of the entire Okinawa archipelago. Naha is filled with Americans--American soldiers--as 20 percent of Okinawa-Honto (the island on which it is located) is occupied by US military bases. To put that into perspective, 75 percent of American bases in Japan are located on Honto, or just under 30,000 US troops. It's no wonder then that Okinawans resent this presence, a stale leftover from the US handover of Okinawa to Japan in 1972. (Okinawa was independent until Japanese annexation during the Meiji Restoration.) In 1995, Okinawans voted overwhelming in a referendum to end the occupation, and Governor Ota attempted to make good on his promise to do so. The Japanese Supreme Court overruled Ota's authority, and the largest airbase, Futenma, remains an eyesore just north of Naha (in the middle of Ginowan, population 90,000). The current proposal is to move the base northwards near the second largest city of Nago, to destroy the massive Henoko Matsuda reef, and float Futenma on a heliport in the Henoko Bay. In a blatant subversion of democracy, all subsequent (post-1995) referenda by the people of Henoko and Ginowan--again, overwhelming in favor of ending the occupation of their land by US soldiers--have been flagrantly ignored by the US and Japanese governments:

Prime Minister Koizumi told Kaga “we are now discussing things with together with the Americans. The most important thing is to be of the same mind within our government inside Japan. We must,” Koizumi emphasized, “not be of different opinions.”

A Pentagon official visiting Japan this week was more frank. “If Futenma’s transfer problem will not clear,” he said, “America is not going to think about returning a part of the base at Kadena, the southern military port, or on reducing the number of Marine Corps troops here.”

Sanshin concert in a restaurant on Kokusai-dori:

Tennyo-bashi, a bridge to the building Bezaitendo. It was built in 1502 to house a Buddhist scripture presented to the Ryukyu Kingdom by the king of Korea in the 15th century:

The remains of the late 15th century Enkakuji, once the head temple of Rinzai Buddhism in Ryukyu.

Stone gate of the Sonohyan-utaki, a shrine built in the early 16th century. The shrine itself was destroyed in the Battle of Okinawa:

Shuri-jo, the castle of the Ryukyu king, in service from the early 1400s until 1879 (the year of the Japanese annexation). It was largely destroyed in the Battle of Okinawa, though it was meticulously restored about a decade ago:

Seiden, the main palace at Shuri-jo:

Throne room:

Ishigaki-jima

2006-05-10T19:59:00.000+09:00

Ishigaki-jima is the third largest Okinawan island and the most populous in the Yaeyama archipelago. About 35,000 people live in Ishigaki City, and 5000 are scattered around the rest of the largely rural island. Home to Okinawa's tallest peak, unsurpassed coral reefs (including a rare species of blue coral--ao-sango--and over a thousand others), a large manta ray habitat, and incredible beaches.

Kabira Bay:

View of the bay from my minshuku:

Kabira Shrine:

A Yaeyama firefly. Starting at sundown, the fireflies--roughly the size of gnats--start to rapidly blink for the next half hour before shutting down for the night. The forest on the mountainside was covered with blinking lights so dense that it was overwhelming.

The dead coral beach at Yonehara:

Yonehara Double Reef South:

A sea cucumber:

A manta ray just north of Kabira. The wingspan on this thing was about 15 feet:

A tourist brings a can of Spam home to the family. I knew the stuff was huge in Korea, but apparently it's big in Okinawa as well...to the point that I had to ask them to hold it from my goya champuru in one restaurant, and a fast food chain actually offers Spam burgers.

Okinawan pork is famous throughout the country:

A large jar of habu-shu. Habu is Japanese for pit viper, and the extremely poisonous snake is the most common in Okinawa. Shu is the same kanji used for sake and just means any type of liquor. Thus habu-shu is a massive jar of 100+ proof awamori with a giant pit viper or two shoved into the bottle.

Taketomi-jima

2006-05-10T17:14:00.000+09:00

The traditional village island of Taketomi-jima is home to less than 300 residents. Every building on the island is a single story (save for the small two-storey youth hostel), and almost every one is shingled with terra-cotta tiles, and adorned with a shiisa figure. All of the roads except for the main one are unpaved, and buffalo-drawn suigyusha carts are often more frequently visible than cars.

View over the village rooftops:

Painted shiisa, ferocious lion statues perched on most Okinawan-style rooftops:

Sunset from the west pier:

A highly venomous blue-lipped sea krait, close relative of the cobra (both are "elapids...characterized by a hollow fixed front fang and neurotoxic venoms"):

A Japanese tourist rocks an H. Rap Brown t-shirt reading "Violent Harvest for Black Militants." The fine print details a police assault on Brown. The fashionista had heard neither of Brown nor the Panthers.
Holding it down for Amir's in Taketomi:

A suigyusha driver plays his sanshin:

Star-shaped sand on Kaji Beach:

A stone wall in front of a traditional shiisa-adorned house with coral shapes representing the 12 doshi animals. I tossed a five yen coin to mine, the inoshishi...or warthog.

A giant butterfly near Aiyaru Beach:

A suigyusha filled with passengers:

Iriomote-jima

2006-05-09T22:03:00.000+09:00

While Iriomote-jima is the second largest island in Okinawa, the population is under 2000. The main road only encompasses the eastern perimter of the island, and the barely navigable mountainous interior is covered with forking rivers and dense tropical rainforest. Iriomote is renowned throughout Japan for the famous yamaneko (Iriomote lynx), though only about 100 are currently estimated to exist.

View of the sunset from my minshuku:

Hoshizuna Beach:

A blue-lipped sea krait, an ocean dwelling, highly poisonous water snake related to coral snakes and cobras. Note the paddle-like tail:

Urauchi River:

Kanpire Falls:

Kayaking on the Urauchi-gawa:

Sakishima suonoki trees:

Hiking through calf-deep mud in a mangrove swamp:

Mangroves:

Okinawan music festival:

Dinner at a sushi restaurant run by a local fisherman:

Umibudo (green caviar):

Papaya kimchi:

Mountain vegetable tempura:

Kirishima

2006-04-27T21:14:00.000+09:00

The first tract of land to be designated a National Park in Japan, Kirishima is the site where, in Shinto mythology, the grandson of the sun goddess descended to earth. It is supposedly from this god--Ninigi-no-mikoto--that the Japanese imperial line originated. The park contains 23 volcanoes--many of them active--as well as 10 crater lakes.

Sai-no-kawara:

A crater lake:

Kirishima-jingu, the shrine dedicated to Ninigi-no-mikoto:

Chiran

2006-04-23T23:12:00.000+09:00

Chiran is small town centered around a collection of samurai houses dating from the early 18th century. The Sata family, one of the richest factions of nearby Kagoshima's Shimizu clan, built these buke-yashiki along a landscaped lane as their primary residences. Oddly, the Shimazu clan fought England in 1863, and the town features a small Anglo-Satsuma Museum. More recently, an airfield in Chiran was used as the point of departure for kamikaze pilots en route to Okinawa. The Special Attack Peace Hall memorializes the 1035 teenagers who attempted suicide attacks on Allied ships in the Battle of Okinawa. All in all, only 56 American ships were sunk, and just over 400 were severely damaged. On display in the hall are a number of soldiers' relics, uniforms, and even the remains of a detonated kamikaze plane unearthed from the Pacific. The main room features poetry, farewell letters, and photos of the pilots, the majority in their late teens or early twenties.

The manicured gardens on the grounds of some of the buke-yashiki houses:

Memorial to Special Attack Forces and an original kamikaze bomber:

Reconstructed pilots' barracks:

A few of the 1035 stone lanterns in memory of the kamikaze pilots who died in the Battle of Okinawa:

Sakurajima

2006-04-23T20:21:00.000+09:00

The largest island in the Kagoshima Bay, Sakurajima is one of the most active volcanoes in the world. The eruption of 1914 was so violent that the lava flow connected the island to the eastern shore of the bay. The volcano was pacific enough when we visited the island, though a column of smoke could be seen emanating from the mouth of the crater...when the weather wasn't terrible, which was 90 percent of the time.

Views of the red tide:

The otorii of the Shinto shrine Kurokami-jinja, buried in the 1914 lava flow. The gate originally stood over 10 feet high.

View from Sakurajima:

In Furusato Onsen, a massive cliffside rotemburo on the bay featuring a cave-like sacred camphor tree and a shrine to a local dragon god. For hundreds of years locals have allegedly been filling up liter bottles and drinking the naturally hot water. It is reputed to be a remedy for hemorrhoids.

Sakurajima, the volcano:

Rebensons go to Kyoto: The East

2006-04-22T19:01:00.000+09:00

Kiyomizu-dera:

Zoe drinks from Kiyomizu-dera's Otawa waterfall, the remedy for all afflictions:

Zoe in front of Ryouzen Kannon:

My parents at Heian-jingu:

Ohanami in the gardens of Heian-jingu:

Ginkaku-ji:

Rebensons go to Kyoto: The West

2006-04-22T18:45:00.000+09:00

On the grounds of the zazen temple Ryouan-ji:

Zoe at Kinkaku-ji:

At another zazen temple, Daitoku-ji:

Nighttime ohanami at Nijou-jou, the early 17th century residence of the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu:

Iwakuni

2006-04-20T19:30:00.000+09:00

About 40 km west of Hiroshima is Iwakuni, once the headquarters of the Kikkawa clan, a family of daimyou, or feudal lords. While the area at the base of the castle is a relatively well preserved 17th century castle town, Iwakuni is also home to a US Marine Corps Air Station (pictured left) currently housing 10,000 personnel, "the Marine Corps' best kept secret." On March 12 of this year, 59 percent of Iwakuni residents turned out to vote on a referendum to extent the US-Japan treaty that allows the base to exist, and a resounding 90 percent voted "no." And yet just as in Okinawa, Koizumi has reassured Bush that the base will be allowed to stand. (In the case of Okinawa, Koizumi has devised a number of anti-democratic methods of evading a 2005 residents' referendum against bases on Okinawa-Honto.) A growing anti-base movement in Iwakuni has mobilized in the wake of the referendum, but Koizumi continues to placate Bush with empty promises. As Eric Johnston of the Japan Times wrote for Japan Focus recently, "[W]hoever sits in the Prime Minister's chair come September will have to deal with the fact that even local municipal governments where opposition to hosting more troops may not be as strong as Iwakuni are going to have to be diplomatically finessed into accepting an agreement that they had no direct say in."

A statue of Sasaki Kojiro, famous for his duel against the legendary Musashi Miyamoto in 1612 (incidentally Sasaki's last act); also featured in the long-running manga "Vagabond" series, a multi-part graphic biography of Musashi.

Kintai-kyou, a five-arch wooden bridge constructed by Kikkawa Hiroyoshi in the mid-17th century:

A statue of Kikkawa Hiroyoshi, leader of the Kikkawa clan. His castle is visible on the mountaintop:

Ohanami

2006-04-07T21:25:00.000+09:00

Hana = flower, mi = viewing. The first week or so of April is an occassion for nighttime barbeques under the pink cherry blossoms bathed in lantern light. The flowers only last for about 10 days, so people come out in droves. The park in which I live--Hijiyama--is famous in Hiroshima for its sakura (cherry trees), so the normally pacific nights are punctuated by Japanese fight songs and inebriated shouting matches.

The RERF statistics department's ohanami lunch:

Okubo-sensei, the Japanese director of RERF:

Sumo in Tokyo

2006-04-05T16:23:00.000+09:00

These pictures are from the biggest sumo tournament of the year at the National Sumo Stadium in Ryougoku, Tokyo. A "tournament" is truly a full day, running from about 8 am until 6 pm, with matches taking place in order of seniority. Sumo-sans are ranked in cohorts, with the main cohort--the ozeki wrestlers--being the equivalent of the World Series, or more aptly, of WWF's (or now WWE?) WrestleMania.
In front of the stadium:

Tossing a hand-full of salt to purify the ring:

All of the ozeki wrestlers line up around the ring prior to their bouts:

Asashoryu, the only current yokozuna, performs the ritual yokozuna dance, complete with thunderclap stomps and Shinto fringe hanging from his belt. Yokozuna is the only rank higher than ozeki, though the criteria for becoming one are relatively ambiguous. The Hawaiian Akebono become the first non-Japanese yokozuna in 1993, with the Samoan-cum-Hawaiian Musashimaru and Mongolian-born Asashoryu (below) following suit.

Rebenson goes to Korea

2006-02-14T16:39:00.000+09:00

The following four posts include my trip around Korea with Leah from Seoul to the DMZ, back to Seoul, across the country to Busan, north to the ancient capital of Gyeongju, and finally back to Seoul. Click on the map below for the full-size image:

Gyeongju

2006-02-11T00:28:00.000+09:00

Gyeongju was the capital of the Shilla Dynasty--the largest of Korea's three main dynastic precursors--from 57 BC, and became the capital of the entire peninsula when the Shilla ruler conquered neighboring Gogureyo and Baekje at the end of the 7th century. When the dynasty expanded at the end of the first millenium, the capital was moved northwards to Seoul. Due to the city's second millenium obscurity, it is incredibly well preserved. Much restoration work was undertaken in the 70s under the aegis of US-backed dictator Park Chung-hee.

Early 6th century Buddhist temple and World Heritage site Bulguksa:

Yet another World Heritage site. The mountaintop grotto at Seokguram housing a massive stone buddha. Unfortunately, pictures inside were prohibited:

Cheomseongdae, the oldest known observatory in East Asia, dating from the first third of the 7th century:

Inside the dozens of grass-covered tumuli through southern Gyeongju lie the bodies of the Silla royal family, dating back to the 5th century. A number of them have been excavated, yielding numerous artworks and treasures. These tumuli were left fully intact in the center of downtown, and it was really quite incredible to behold 25 meter high burial mounds right in the center of a city.

On Namsan mountain in southern Gyeongju--a World Heritage site, of course--UNESCO has recorded 122 temples, 64 stone pagodas, 57 stone buddhas, tumuli, palaces, ruins, and who knows what else. Leah and I hiked for about 7 hours in the Siberian winds around the peak, and it was well worth it:

Sixth century Buddhist temple Girimsa, a fourteen building complex on the outskirts of Gyeongju:

Another sixth century Buddhist temple: Gulgolsa. This one features a massive stone buddha carved into the cliffside in the early sixth century:

The Sea Tomb of King Munmu, a seventh century Silla king who willed his burial underwater just off the coast. The idea was that if he were interned in the ocean, he would be reincarnated as a dragon and return to Silla to fend off Japanese colonists. Allegedly, this is the only underwater tomb in the world.

The ruins of the seventh century temple Kamunsa. It was constructed by King Munmu as a resting place for him when he planned to return as a dragon. He died before it was completed, and his son finished the deed.

Kimchi for sale at a market:

Busan

2006-02-07T19:23:00.000+09:00

Downtown:

The grounds of Beomosa, a late 7th century Buddhist temple:

Geumjeong Fortress on top of the mountain Geumjeongsan:

View of Busan from the top of Geumgeongsan:

Panmunjeom, Demilitarized Zone (DMZ)

2006-02-01T19:32:00.000+09:00

At the border. South Korean (Republic of Korea) soldier on the right, North Korean (Democratic Peoples' Republic of Korea) guardtower on the left:

With an ROK soldier inside the UN negotiations trailer that straddles the border:

The negotiations table inside the trailer. According to an American UN soldier who was present, a couple of weeks before my visit, Bush was in this very trailer for negotiations. Two DPRK soldiers entered the trailer, walked straight over to the wall of flags, tore down the US flag, and wiped their boots with it. Now, each nation has its own flag icon laminated onto a piece of plexiglass.

Danish UN soldiers guard the ROK side of the border. That marble slab is literally "the border":

Center for diplomacy on the ROK side:

DPRK guardtower:

A DPRK sniper watches from his post:

Kijungdong, DPRK, known to South Koreans and UN soldiers as "Propaganda Village." Allegedly no residents inhabit the city. The flag tower visible below is the tallest in the world; it was heightened after the ROK heightened their own tower in Panmunjeom:

The "Bridge of No Return" across the border. POWs were exchanged across the bridge after the war ended in 1953. It also opened the racist 2002 James Bond film "Die Another Day".

Seoul

2006-01-30T18:09:00.000+09:00

View of Seoul from the peak of Namsan:

Buddhists leave winter solstice services at Jogyesa, Seoul's largest temple:

One of dozens of structures at Changdeokgung, a World Heritage palace constructed in the first decade of the 15th century. Seoul's center of power in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries:

Gyeongbokgung, the 15th and 16th century center of power until it was destroyed in the 1592 Japanese invasions. It was subsequently destroyed in the early 20th century by the Japanese colonial authority, but rebuilt after the war.

Roof detail depicting the mythological seven evolutionary stages of humanity:

Interior detail of a Gyeongbokgung building:

Statue of King Sejong the Great, inventor of the phonetic hangeul alphabet in 1443. Strangely, hanguel wasn't adopted by the state until 1945. Kim Il-Sung substituted the 24 letters for Chinese characters, bringing literacy to uneducated industrial laborers in the DPRK; the US-installed ROK dictator Syngman Rhee followed suit shortly after.

View of the city across the Hangang River:

Leah comes to Hiroshima

2006-01-22T18:03:00.000+09:00

Views from my roof of RERF and the Inland Sea:

In Shukkei-en Garden:

Yoshinogari

2006-01-14T00:40:00.000+09:00

Located in north central Kyushu (in Saga Prefecture) about halfway between Nagasaki and Fukuoka is the third century BC town of Yoshinogari, discovered by contractors surveying for a housing development in 1986. It is reported to be one of the oldest cities surrounded by a moat and includes hundreds of burial pots containing decapitated and arrow-pierced skeletons. It was allegedly tied to the Chinese mainland, and interestingly it is mentioned in the sixth century Chinese chronicle "Account of the Wa People."

Huis ten Bosch

2006-01-14T00:23:00.000+09:00

Just northeast of Nagasaki along the Kyushu coast is Huis ten Bosch--Dutch for "House in the Forest" after Queen Beatrix's Netherlands palace--a bizarre and extravagant theme park. The "theme" here is the Netherlands...in general. Twice mired by bankruptcy, this lame but hysterical attraction was opened in 1992 by a Japanese entrepeneur (reportedly at a cost of 250 billion yen, or about 2.5 billion dollars at the time) and today reportedly draws visitors from all over East Asia who desire a sampling of the crassest Occidentalism. Among the greatest features are a "Dutch" restaurant street without a single Dutch (or even non-Asian, save for an Italian) restaurant, a Dutch cheese house with overpriced American cheese marketed as gouda, and a brilliant 3D film called "Mysterious Escher." Apparently MC Escher is Dutch, but the film doesn't pertain to his life; rather it details the exploits of a Dutch girl whose dog "Foofy" is sick as the film opens, and she must find a magic waterfall to save him (the contingency escapes me). It was filmed in Dutch and is dubbed in Japanese (with Chinese and Korean headset options, of course). Finally, one can relive the Great Dutch Floods by sitting in a chair and watching 800 tons (seriously) of water pour onto a windmill. No historical background is given, and so I have no idea when/if these floods even occurred.

Nagasaki

2006-01-14T00:16:00.000+09:00

View of the city from the top of Inasa-yama mountain:

The Peace Park:

Bombed out ruins of Urakami Cathedral in the Peace Park:

Photo taken near the Cathedral in August 1945:

Rebenson and Reah go to Tokyo and Korea

2005-12-14T13:50:00.000+09:00

I'll be travelling with Leah for for the next couple of weeks to Tokyo, Hakone, Seoul, and...Pyongyang? Busan? I'm not quite sure yet, but I'll figure it out soon enough. I'll be back in Hiroshima on January 11th. That means Chanukah in Korea and New Years in Tokyo.

WTO meeting commences in Hong Kong

2005-12-13T23:02:00.000+09:00

According to police estimates, 4500 protesters clashed with police today in the third biannual session of the Doha development round of the World Trade Organization talks (compared with the organizers' estimate of roughly 10,000). (After 1999's infamous Seattle meeting, the Doha round began in Doha, Qatar, followed by a 2003 meeting in Cancun and this year's meeting in Hong Kong.) One hundred South Korean protesters were reported to have "leapt into Hong Kong harbor"--Victoria Harbor near Wanchai--in protest, pictured above. (A map is available here). A group of 200 nonviolent demonstrators is pepper foamed by riot police, left.

European Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson wrote a lukewarm op/ed in today's New York Times arguing that not only has "the European Union ... made significant concessions on agriculture on several occasions," but further that "Brazil, for example, should offer to reduce import tariffs on industrial goods." While it is easy for Mandelson to make sweeping generalizations about so-called "free" trade, he ignores all relevant data. In 2003 for example, Brazil imported four times from the US what the US imported from Brazil. In terms of Mandelson's own EU, Germany led the pack with a tenth of imports, followed by France's one-twentieth and Great Britain's one-fortieth. (All data from the WTO's own International Trade Centre.) Before Mandelson criticizes Brazilian trade policy, he would be apt to focus on current EU intentions. Just today the French Trade Minister told the New York Times, "The European Union will not make a new offer."

According to a World Bank study of comparative world tariffs, exceedingly high US tariffs remain in all classified sectors, and the large majority of European countries maintain higher non-industrial tariffs (read: agricultural sector) than almost any developing country.

Even the Washington Post's generally abominable Robert Samuelson sees the light.

Target: WTO

2005-12-12T11:29:00.000+09:00

Tomorrow, December 13, marks the first of the six-day Hong Kong venue of the World Trade Organization's Doha round. Following a 15,000-strong demonstration at last month's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) conference in Busan, including an insurgency of hundreds of South Korean farmers who met riot police with steel pipes (left), roughly 10,000 demonstrators are expected to arrive in Hong Kong for tomorrow's actions. Economic information, rationale, strategy and tactics, and daily reportage can be found at Target:WTO, an excellent compilation site with the apt slogan, "Derail, Dismantle, Destroy!"

This year's talks mark three years since South Korean farmer Lee Kyung Hae (right) publicly committed suicide at the Cancun WTO talks in September 2003. Lee was an active opponent of the WTO's protection of American agrobusiness and forced importation of American rice and soy beans into the largely agricultural economy of South Korea. James Brooke wrote in the New York Times in 2003:

To protect farmers, South Korea has tariffs of over 100 percent on 142 farm products — consumers here pay about four times American prices for rice — helping support six million farmers in a nation of 47 million people.

But South Korea's real money is made selling cars, ships and cellphones around the world. To keep markets open for its economy, the world's 12th largest, South Korea has recently made concessions on food imports, in bilateral talks and in preliminary negotiations in the W.T.O. With each concession, life gets a little harder for the farmers.

"It is not hard to guess why he chose to terminate his life," said La Jung Han, an official in Seoul at the the Korean Advanced Farmers Federation, a group Mr. Lee headed for many years. "Probably, the main motivation was despair." It was "a despair deeply imbedded in the conditions of the farmers, the agriculture industry and the rural communities."

The Hong Kong police, as well as Interpol and Hong Kong immigration, have already compiled lists of over 300 alleged troublemakers (who have yet to commit illegal acts) to deny visas, as well as raided the union headquarters of local migrant workers who might publicize their poor working conditions during the conference. (For more on the plight of Indonesian migrant workers in Hong Kong, check out this study conducted by the Asian Migrant Centre based in Hong Kong.)

Rebenson goes to Kinki...and this time actually posts the pictures

2005-11-20T21:28:00.000+09:00

After proscrastinating for over a month, I have finally posted pictures of my trip to Kyoto and Nara for all the Rebenson fans out there. (Cam'ron, I see you!) After receiving countless complaints from an anonymous critic who posts under the monicker "comrademerlin," I have finally taken the time to sort through the absurd number of pictures I took while traveling. Updates will be much more frequent, now that I have gotten this beast out of the way. More to come mid-week. And this time I mean it. BONUS: More Koizumi hating to come. I'll be ranting about last week's APEC conference sooner than you can say "privatization."

Day 1: East Kyoto

2005-11-20T20:13:00.000+09:00

Kyoto was the second capital of Japan, from 794 until it was moved to Edo (now Tokyo) by Tokugawa Ieyasu at the beginning of the 17th century. The city is a virtual Disneyland for lovers of imperial history, with well over 2000 temples and shrines, as well as innumerable castles and palaces and tombs and Buddha knows what else. I spent the (long) first day attempting to see all of East Kyoto (in the pouring rain), and was mildly successful. (Note: Anyone who is the least bit obsessive-compulsive should avoid Kyoto at all costs. While Hiroshima and Nara each garner a mere five pages in most guidebooks, Kyoto fills over forty.)

I began the morning at Sanjusangen-do, an unbelievably long hall filled with 1001 gilded statues of Kannon, the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy. All statues are nearly idenntical (each with dozens of arms), but upon a closer inspection, every one of them is unique, differing in facial expressions, items held in their multiple hands, etc. In addition, the hall contains a couple dozen statues of demons, warriors, and demigods from Japanese Buddhist folklore. Unfortunately, my pictures don't do it justice, as pictures inside are prohibited. (This was the recurring theme of Kyoto.)

From there I walked through the cobbled streets of Gion, the oldest section of the city, on the way to Kiyomizu-dera, an 8th century temple that is arguably the most famous in Japan. Among its attractions are a man-made waterfall; taking a sip is alleged to cure any and all ills. I still had a headache from all the school groups there, but hey, maybe you have to be Buddhist for it to work...

Speaking of school groups, this group of middle school girls followed me for over a block until they finally got the courage to ask me for a picture. I'm famous!

Just north of Kiyomizu-dera is the Tomb to the Unknown Soldier.

I then stopped at Kodai-ji, a late 16th century temple presided over by the wife of Hideyoshi Toyotomi, the knight who ruled Kyoto at the time. The temple's gardens were spectacular.

Yasaka-jinja, a shrine that served as a sacred spot for Shinto and Buddhist alike prior to the Meiji Resoration.

For lunch I had to try kaiseki-ryori, supposedly the most refined cuisine in Japan. The restaurant was over 400 years old, and dinner sets run about 300 bucks per person. I have no idea why, as the lunch sets are allegedly almost identical and cost just over 20 dollars.

Chion-in serves as the headquarters for the Pure Land sect of Buddhism, dating from the end of the 12th century.

The largest bell in Japan. To conceptualize the scale, I'm about twice the height of the flower design in the center.

So much historical [expletive--for the grown-ups!] that it's even in the road!

Heian-jingu, a late 19th century shrine (though it's more like an estate) built to commemorate the 1100th anniversary of the city; now one of the city's most famous landmarks.

Konchi-in, a sub-temple of Nanzen-ji (next):

Nanzen-ji, a Rinzai zen temple allegedly one of the most important in the city. Dates from the mid-17th century.

I ended the day at Ginkaku-ji, the Temple of the Silver Pavilion. After trekking the 2 km Philosopher's Path--the daily route taken by early 20th century philosopher Kitaro Nishida--I made it to the temple. Modeled after its partner in rhyme Kinkaku-ji (the Temple of the Golden Pavilion, described above) in the 15th century, Gingaku-ji was a cultural center of Kyoto after it was erected. Unfortunately, most of the compound burned down during wars over the course of the centuries, but as Rough Guides so profoundly states, "It must be a glorious [glorious, I say!], ethereal sight under the reflected light of the moon."

Day 2: Northwest Kyoto

2005-11-20T12:24:00.000+09:00

I spent the second day visiting the temples in Northwest Kyoto. I began at the zen temple Ryoan-ji, world famous for its centuries-old rock gardens, undiscovered until the 1930s. For some reason, there is a prohibition on photographing many of the best rock gardens at the zen temples, but I managed to find a few that allowed pictures.

From Ryoan-ji, I moved on to the Kyoto Museum for World Peace. Based at Ritsumeikan University, this isn't your run-of-the-mill Japanese peace museum, a la Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Rather, it closely scrutinizes both Japanese and American imperialism and war crimes committed from the 1930s through the end of World War II. The final leg of the exhibit historicizes contemporary conflicts, from Guatemala and El Salvador to the Israeli Occupation, in the context of WWII imperialism, explaining what has changed and what has not. Included in the WWII display were some original Japanese anti-war pamphlets, as well as some colonialist propaganda materials:

After leaving the museum, I walked to the nearby temple Kinkaku-ji, "The Golden Pavilion." Originally a 14th century shogun villa, it later became a temple, and it remained so until it was burned down by an angry monk in 1950. They've since rebuilt the temple, and it was regilded with taxpayer money in the 1980s.

After the museum, I walked to the gigantic zen temple complex of Daitoku-ji, home to over a dozen temples, many sporting rock gardens and impressive collections of 15th century art. I began with a meal of fucha-ryori, traditional vegetarian zen cuisine.

After lunch, I explored the temple grounds.

I finished the day at Nijo-jo in central Kyoto, the 18th century palace of the Tokugawa shogunate.

Great belt buckle being sold on the street:

Day 3: Nara

2005-11-19T22:33:00.000+09:00

Nara was the capital of Japan from its founding until 794, when the capital was moved to Kyoto. The prime draw is Nara Park, a few square kilometers of temples, shrines, and ancient statuary. Inhabiting the park are throngs of filthy, tourist-assimilated deer that snatch purses and harrass picknicking families. Incidentally, they are sacred to the Shinto priests who inhabit the park, and I happened to arrive just in time for Shika-no-Tsunokiri--the annual antler cutting ceremony. I didn't attend however, as the piercing shrieks of the animals were enough to keep me away, in addition to the two-hour wait to "get in." See, the monks have capitalized on the tourism potential and erected a mini-stadium in which the wrestle deer to the dirt and take to their antlers with hacksaws. I saw a couple of post-ritual deer, and they did not look too happy, not to mention the strange stumps jutting from their foreheads.

My first stop was at the mid-7th century temple Kofuku-ji. The real attraction here is the statuary (dating from the same period), but alas, it was inside the temple buildings, and photography was prohibited--as in most treasuries of statuary in Nara, unfortunately.

At Kofuku-ji, I met a Naranese artist on his way to offer prayers to the family god, Wakamiya, at the Shinto shrine Kasuga Taisha. We talked (in Japanese!) on the way, and he showed me some photos of his speciality--tattoos of Kabuki figures on forearms. (Mom: I was tempted, but fear not, I resisted the urge.) We chatted all the way to Kasuga, where he showed me some of the Shinto prayer rituals.

From the shrine, I started walking to the next temple when it started pouring, Just as I passed an ominous mini-shrine...

...the cheap-ass bootleg flip-flops I purchased on the street in the Dominican Republic tore. I don't mean snapped, I don't mean came apart; I literally mean tore. The sole just ripped right down the middle. I had to walk one-sandaled in the pouring rain to the closest bus stop--half a km away--and take the bus to the nearest dollar store. (My shoes were in my backpack in a coinlocker in the Kyoto train station.) Of course, shoes in Japan don't usually run any larger than US9--10 if you're lucky--and being the proud wearer of size 13s, I had to make do in these ridiculous things from the 100 yen shop:

From there, I went back to Nara Park, where I visited Shin-Yakushi-ji temple, built in the mid-8th century by the Empress of Japan. Nothing too exciting from the outside here, but bear in mind it's all original 8th century. Inside was an outstanding collection of lifesize statues of Buddhist and mythological demons, but again, no pictures allowed. One of the buildings here offered a traditional lunch in a traditional setting--yudofu: tofu boiled with seaweed, everybody's favorite (mine!).

From there, I walked across the length of Nara Park...

...and arrived at Nara's prime attraction, Todai-ji, a gigantic mid-8th century temple (or rather, complex of dozens of temples) and home of the largest bronze statue in Japan, the 15 m high Cosmic Buddha--Daibutsu.

The Daibutsu might not look so spectacular as a photograph, but keep in mind it's 5 stories high:

In back of the Daibutsu is a wooden pillar with a small opening. Legend has it that if you are able to squeeze through, a spot will be reserved for you in heaven. Sizism, I say! Only children are really able to make it through.

From there I explored the rest of the temple grounds, which is really a couple of square kilometers and took a couple of hours.

Another six months

2005-10-05T20:56:00.000+09:00

I just received news that my research grant has been extended for another six months, meaning that instead of leaving RERF at the end of November, I will now be staying on until May. I never thought I'd be grateful to the US Department of Energy (my funders), but I have to admit, I am.

More on Japanese right-wing neo-nationalists

2005-10-03T21:00:00.000+09:00

Four uyoku ("right-wing," often with the connotation of extreme neo-nationalism) protesters were arrested in Tokyo on Friday for allegedly slandering the high priest of the Meiji Shrine near Harajuku. They apparently slandered the priest for embezzlement, though the claims remain unsubstantiated. Their motive for riding around downtown Tokyo in trucks launching ad hominem attacks via megaphone was apparently a shrine display that included the Japanese phrase refering to Emperor Meiji as "his highness"--as opposed to the desired "his majesty."

Past campaigns of these uyoku groups have included banning a cultural reference to the 1937 Nanjing Massacre and the return of the emperor to power. According to a 1996 police estimate, the uyoku consist of over 1000 groups with in excess of 100,000 members.

These fascist groups are nothing new. Perhaps the best known uyoku story is that of famed author (and Bataillean?) Mishima Yukio's brown-shirted private army, the Tatenokai, established in 1968. In November 1970, the Tatenokai staged a coup, attempting to overthrow the constitutional government and reinstate the emperor, wholly of their own volition. After taking a general hostage, Mishima demanded that the military hear him out. The soldiers met his fanaticism with laughter, and he proceeded to commit seppuku, or ritual disembowlment. Per his request, he was then decapitated by fellow Tatenokai member Morita Masakatsu, rumored to be Mishima's lover.

Osaka High Court rules Yasukuni Shrine visits unconstitutional

2005-10-01T19:22:00.000+09:00

I was walking to my favorite restaurant for lunch when I was temporarily blocked by an ongoing parade. I couldn't make out what was being celebrated, as all of the banners were Japanese brand names and all of the costumed characters were brand mascots. A multinational business conference? How to market products to even younger children? A red Power Ranger-looking guy--face mask and all--handed Sogo (a national Japanese department store chain) balloons to toddlers while various candy brands' mascots shook their booties to a band playing various jingles. I knew Japanese cities were bastions of crass consumerism, but wow.

I pressed onward and--what was it now?--noticed a large group of suits screaming into megaphones. A large megaphone was attached to the roof of a sedan, and the shouter was driving around the block. Another great feature of Japanese cities is the tendency of neo-nationalist proto-fascist groups to ride around daily in their cars shouting praises to the emperor and curses to Russia, China, and both Koreas. (They tend to refer to the unsigned WWII treaty between the USSR and Japan, according a coworker; I've heard them reference the Russo-Japanese War.) This was different, however. Rarely do the two-bit LaRouchies leave their cars. They were out in droves harrassing shoppers for their signatures on petitions. (Of course they didn't bother me, as they are neo-nationalists.) I approached them, however, and realized what was at stake: yesterday's Osaka High Court ruling contradicting an earlier ruling by the Tokyo High Court. The Japan Times reports that the ruling involves the separation of shrine and state, and that Koizumi is not permitted to visit religious sites in his official capacity. While the Prime Minister claims that he does not represent the state when he undertakes these visits, he has consistently represented them in interviews in this capacity in the past, and he has signed the guestbook as "Prime Minister Koizumi Junichiro." The ruling comes at a time of both national and international outcry over these visits, including an August protest in Tokyo in which police assaulted the non-violent protesters with wooden batons and arrested six.

Rebenson goes to Shikoku

2005-10-01T19:04:00.000+09:00

The equinox is a national holiday in Japan, so I was blessed with a second three-day weekend. I visited Matsuyama, Dougo, Kotohira, and Ooboke/Koboke in Shikoku, and Okayama in Honshu on the return trip. The five following posts contain pictures of these locations.

I traveled to Shikoku by ferry, and I got some great views of the Inland Sea from the boat, if by "great" I mean industrial wasteland.

In all fairness, there are some beautiful parts of the Inland Sea further east, but the area between Matsuyama and Hiroshima is almost entirely industrial. Here is one less industrial picture:

Matsuyama

2005-10-01T18:47:00.000+09:00

My first stop in Shikoku was Matuyama, about two and a half hours by ferry from Hiroshima across the Inland Sea. I wasn't particularly interested in visiting Shikoku's biggest city, as the island is renowned for its temples, rivers, and ruralscapes, but I wanted to visit Dougo, located nearby. I decided to visit Matsuyama-jou, a mountaintop castle constructed in 1602. I rode a ski-lift to the top.

A guard near the entrance insisted on taking this corny tourist photo:

The view from the castle was great, but the castle itself was a disappointment. Unfortunately, the main building was under renovation, and thus entirely obsfuscated by scaffolding and wire mesh. Nevertheless, here are some good pictures of other buildings in the castle complex.

And to convey my disappointment:

A row of suits of armor in the main castle:

Nietzsche plays dress-up:

A view through a gunport:

A view of the castle grounds:

Dougo

2005-09-29T20:30:00.000+09:00

There is a town-within-a-city in Matsuyama called Dougo. Yet another onsen town, its claim to fame is the Dougo Onsen Honkan, the oldest hot springs in Japan. It is especially well known for being the setting for Natsume Souseki's 1906 novel "Botchan," reputably the most widely read novel in the country. Of course I had to be a tourist and read my copy along the way. Not that I'm not a tourist just because I "live" in Japan.

The onsen appears in the earliest surviving history of Japan, dating from the 8th century. Despite its nominal significance, the bath itself wasn't particularly enticing. The main onsen only contains one medium-sized pool; most contain a few, as well as saunas, hot showers, (near freezing) cold tubs, and scalding hot high-pressure showers.

A bust of Natsume Souseki is featured in the room Botchan used when he visited the onsen--whatever it means for a novel's protagonist to visit a really existing place.

After the onsen, I ventured to Isaniwa Shrine, dedicated to Hachiman, the god of war. This mid-17th century shrine sits at the top of 140 stone stairs.

From there, I headed to the highlight of Dougo (in my humble opinion), Ishite-ji. The main temple complex houses a number of structures--some dating from as early as 1318--and is one of the most sacred temples on the 88 temple circuit (see the next post for more information). The name--"stone hand temple"--derives from a story involving Buddhist demigod Kooboo Daishi.

I know, I know, just another temple. But let me finish. The best part of Ishite-ji is that the temple invests its revenue in a special form of religious expression; let's call it "surrealo-Buddhism." Behind one the temple buildings adjacent to a mountain is a cave entrance artificially sculpted into the stone. What ensues is right out of a Herzog movie.

Once inside, the hallway is almost pitch-black. You can make out a row of stone Buddhas lining the walls, but anything away from the entrance might as well be invisible. I used my flash for the second photo to give you an idea of what the hall contains.

There are a few occasional bizarre relics placed around the floor amidst puddles of accumulated water from the constantly dripping ceiling. An example, below. It sort of reminds me of that evil kid (Ned?) in "Toy Story."

After a number of twists and turns, I could make out some flashing lights in the distance, which turned out to be strobe lights. I also heard some strange wails, which turned out to be emitted by a speaker duct-taped to a large Buddha in the chamber ahead.

My "Rough Guide to Japan" describes the atmosphere of this room as one that "create[s] the impression that you've stumbled into an esoteric rave." Of course I couldn't capture the strobe lights on film (or Compact Flash card, rather), but I did manage to get some of the statues and hanging beads under the red light.

It only gets stranger. After another long, dark Buddha-lined hallway, I saw the light of day. After exiting the cave, I realized I was on some rural highway called "Route 26."

Across the highway to my left was a fat smiling Buddha...

...and a gargantuan demonic statue perched atop a gate.

Entering this gate, I followed a path lined with painted statues, peeling from age.

Ahead, I could see a giant gold sphere surrounded by yet more odd statues. Feral cats and roosters marched around the entrance, seemingly leaving each other alone.

Just to the right of the entrance sat a malnourished, Christ-like ascetic, deep in prayer.

I followed the short staircase into the globe to find about two hundred wooden statues arranged around the periphery.

After I left the globe, I decided to see what lay further down the road. Retracing my steps, I passed some notable statues, as well as a bizarre cobweb-covered shrine decorated with upside down umbrellas.

As I proceeded, I noticed a towering statue of Kooboo Daishi atop a mountain close to the road. I walked to the mountain, which turned out to be Ishite-ji's graveyard. There are many stairways up the mountain, but each ends in a random spot, only to lead to another stairway. After twenty minutes or so of navigating this labyrinth, I gave up, and headed down.

Finally, I retraced my steps through the cave and left the temple.

Kotohira

2005-09-28T17:31:00.000+09:00

I took a train along the north coast of Shikoku from Matsuyama to Kotohira, home to Kotohira-guu, popularly known as Kompira-san. ("Kompira-san" is a nickname for the Hindu-cum-Shinto guardian of mariners, Omono-nushi-no-Mikoto.) On the way to the base of the mountain on which Kompira-san is located, I stopped briefly at the Takadooroo Lantern, a massive wooden structure near the station. This tower dates from just before the Meiji Restoration and served in the late 19th century as a warning beacon in times of impending attack.

I also stopped at the Kinryoo Sake Museum for a sample or six...

...and at Kompira Udon for some lunch. Sanuki-udon is the specialty of Kagawa Prefecture. Although these thick noodles are available throughout Japan, they are made fresh in Kagawa-ken. Usually I'm not a fan, but here it was surprisingly superior.

After lunch, I headed to Kompira-san. The original shrine on this spot dates from the 9th century when Buddhist/Shinto demigod Kooboo Daishi ordered its erection. Although it originally served as both a Buddhist and Shinto temple, Buddhists were eschewed during the Meiji Restoration. Today it is among the top three Shinto holy places in Japan, that is to say, in the world. Reaching the main shrine of Hon-guu entails climbing 785 steps. A smaller shrine--Oku-sha--demands 583 more. Asahi-no-Yashiro is holy enough that a number of seniors shell out 5000 yen (a little less than 50 dollars) to be carried up the steps in a small "car" supported by a bamboo staff.

The long, strenuous climb is marked by a number of shrines, statues, and various buildings, ranging from stables housing white horses sacred to Shintoism...

...to a mid-17th century reception hall ("Shoin") containing a number of famous prints.

A large number of Buddhist pilgrims come to Kompira-san, as well as 87 other temples on the Shikoku trail first traveled by Kooboo Daishi and his Shingon ("True Word") sect of Buddhists. They generally wear wide-brimmed straw hats--yes, the cone kind--and carry walking sticks. Some of the most ascetic pilgrims only use money that is donated by passersby; see below.

After a long climb, I finally arrived at the Asahi-no-Yashiro--"Sunshine Shrine."

From there, it was only two more flights of stairs to the Hon-guu, the main shrine that serves as a location for most of Kompira-san's activities. Most tourists stop here, as the remaining 583 steps (and treacherous they are) take you to an unremarkable shrine.

Said unremarkable shrine--Oku-sha--was actually not so bad. Located at such a high altitude, it offered incredible views of Kotohira and surrounding mountains for 20 km, all the way to the Inland Sea.

Ooboke/Koboke

2005-09-27T21:44:00.000+09:00

Situated in the Iya Valley in Tokushima Prefecture, Shikoku, Ooboke and Koboke literally translate to "large place of danger" and "small place of danger." The two large gorges make up a portion of Mt. Tsurugi Quasi-National Park, an ambiguous status that the Japanese government provides to parks lesser than National, but greater than Prefectural. I stayed in a small minshuku ("guesthouse") about four kilometers from Ooboke, though it took considerably longer to get there, as it is situated amdist the winding peaks of the Iya Valley (famous for its soba, locally grown buckwheat noodles). The minshuku was located a short walk from Kazura-bashi, a 12th century bridge built entirely out of mountain vines. The Taira era premise was that when enemies approached, the army could easily chop down the bridge to prevent them from crossing the river. Despite the fact that it is now reinforced by hidden steel cables, it is still pretty terrifying to cross the bridge--especially as an acrophobe.

The next morning, I got up early and took a boat down the river through Ooboke and Koboke. Massive rock formations adorn both of the banks, though I had to selectively include photographs here to accentuate its appeal. Unfortunately, some of the higher rocks were leveled to make way for a large under-construction convention center, a few upscale hotels, and some hideous nondescript buildings. With that said:

Okayama

2005-09-26T18:10:00.000+09:00

I probably wouldn't have stopped in Okayama were it not necessary to change trains there, but it does have its attractions. Walking from the train station towards Okayama Castle, there is a river that contains an island, home to Koorakuen, reputably one of the nicest gardens in the country.

Views of Okayama across the Asahi ("sunshine") River:

I crossed the Tsukimi ("Moon-viewing") Bridge to Okayama Castle, a late 16th century palace nicknamed U-Jo ("Crow Palace") after its black wood paneling. While the castle was pretty incredible, most of the grounds were destroyed during World War II raids. The castle was severely damaged, but the city rebuilt it shortly thereafter.

From the top of Okayama-Jo, there is a great view of Koorakuen, a top three garden in Japan, according to the guidebooks.

Japanese tourists come from far and wide to visit Koorakuen, but as it appears in the picture above, it just looks like a manicured golf course. While most royal gardens (this one dating from the 17th century) contain elaborate flower patches amdist landscaped lakes and paths, this one is primarily composed of large unblemished lawns. Strangely, this is its draw for Japanese tourists, as such lawns are rarely found in Japan. The red-crested cranes on the premises, however, are largely ignored, and my photographing them must've elicited a few "stupid gaijin" thoughts in the minds of the other tourists. It would've been a very nice place to read on the grass, but of course signs informed visitors, "Kusa ni aruwanaide kudasai"--"Please do not walk on the grass."

Rebenson goes to Kyushu

2005-09-20T19:11:00.000+09:00

In honor of this year's joyous Respect-for-the-Aged Day three-day weekend, I decided to forget the zero Japanese seniors that I know and head to Kyushu, the southernmost of Japan's four main islands. On Saturday morning, I boarded the shinkansen for Beppu, and subsequently visited Amagase, Kumamoto, and Aso. The four posts that follow contain pictures of each location, respectively. Being the now compulsive blogger that I am (I never thought that word would escape my lips), I have attached a map of my journey, below.

Beppu

2005-09-20T19:01:00.000+09:00

I planned a substantial layover in Beppu on the way to Amagase so that I would be able to partake in the world famous suna-ya sand bath ritual. Beppu is one of only two places in the world to offer this luxury (the other being Ibusuki, also on Kyushu), and so I had to do it. Takegawara Onsen is a Meiji-era wooden structure in an alley of south Beppu that offers said sand baths. One is buried up to his neck in piping hot sand and left to roast for ten minutes. After 600 seconds (yes, I was counting) of excruciating pain, one submerges himself in a cloudy sand-ridden hot tub. I would've snapped some photos of heads floating above the sand, but as I was naked, I had nowhere to store my camera.

Me and some ten-minute friends in front of Takegawara Onsen:

Some views of Beppu's comericalized and polluted coastline:

Amagase

2005-09-20T18:45:00.000+09:00

Despite Beppu's reputation as one of the best onsen towns in Japan, I found it dirty, sleazy, and overcrowded with tourists for the most part. I ventured about 30 km west--past the far superior but still touristy onsen town of Yufuin--to Amagase, a regional secret unheard of to most non-Kyushu residents. The small town is situation on a river, and small hotels, restaurants, and apartments dot both banks, linked by a series of six bridges. Onsen are located literally in the river, separated from the freezing river water by stone barriers. Hot sulfuric water is piped in from the volcanic mountains just behind the river's banks.

Who needs pilot wings when you have a captain's hat?

My room in the "ryokan," a traditional Japanese inn with tatami-mat rooms. A one-inch thick futon is rolled out for sleeping, and "chairs" consist of two-inch thick cushions. But hey, you pay extra for that. The added bonus is that onsen ryokan have public baths on the top floor, generally consisting of three or four massive sulfuric hot tubs, a sauna (this one complete with televised sumo matches), a foot massager, and sit-down showers. I would've included pictures, but I don't think a dozen naked Japanese men would've been too thrilled.

A riverside onsen. These things are close to boiling--literally. They keep their saunas at around 90 degrees Celsius (remember that 100 is boiling), and the onsen aren't too far behind.

The anonymous river that cuts Amagase in two:

Kumamoto

2005-09-20T18:26:00.000+09:00

About halfway down the west coast of Kyushu is Kumamoto, a decent sized city, and home to Japan's third largest castle. While this claim may come across as a little unimpressive ("No, really! I visited the 7th largest flea market in all of Ft. Lauderdale!"), bear in mind that practically every city, town, and village in Japan--islands included--have castles, and the only larger ones in the entire country are in Osaka and Nagoya. The grounds remind me of the Tower of London in terms of size, but the castle and surrounding turrets are significantly more massive. On a random note, the local delicacy is "basashi"--raw, thin slices of horsemeat covered in crushed garlic. It appears bright red, and it smells exactly like you would expect. It's times like these that I am thankful for vegetarianism.

That's no dunce; it's a statue of Katou Kiyomasa in front of one of the castle's turrets. He was granted lordship of Kumamoto Prefecture for his support of the Tokugawa regime in the early 17th century. He erected this castle in 1607.

The castle theater, home to many a Nou performance. Those stone walls were constructed before this region had the capacity to cut stone bricks, so each oddly shaped boulder was wedged between others. The grounds are surrounded by 13 km of outer wall, and divided by 5 km of inner wall.

A view of one of the castle's many turrets across the moat.

And yet another turret, this one across a field from the castle.

And finally, the castle itself:

Aso

2005-09-20T17:50:00.000+09:00

Aso, a small farmtown in eastern Kumamoto Prefecture, is the site of the world's largest volcanic caldera. Although the once monolithic volcano exploded into a number of independent volcanoes close to 200,000 years ago, the peak of Naka-dake (sometimes simply referred to as "Aso-san") is still active, as can be seen in the pictures below.

I stayed in a "minshuku," a traditional guesthouse generally doubling as a private residence. This particular minshuku was located on a farm that primarily grew corn and raised cattle.

The town of Aso only contains a couple of restaurants and a handful of souvenir shops. The name of this store--when transliterated--reads "Po-po shop." Note the appropriately placed "Police" sign in the upper left of the photo. Couldn't have done it better myself. Even better is the hiragana to the left of "Po-pop shop" on the same sign: "Omiyage & Kara-age," or "Souvenirs & Fried Chicken." A dynamic combo, I must say.

Below is Komezuka, the "hill of rice," just north of Aso-san. Legend has it that the depressed peak was formed when folk hero Takeiwatatsu-no-mikoto grabbed a handful of rice for his starving village. I have no idea how it actually formed, and no one in Aso seemed to know either.

A couple of views across Kusasenri, the large plateau in the center of caldera dotted with lakes. Roughly 60,000 years ago, the entire caldera was filled with rainwater--a diameter of over 20 km--but today, only sparse lakes remain.

A view of Naka-dake, Aso's active peak, across Kusasenri.

A buddha in front of a shrine at the foot of Naka-dake. Those aren't clouds in the background...

A sulfuric mixture collects at the base of the cliffs around Naka-dake. Many Japanese tourists are holding their nose and groaning, but I kind of like the smell.

After a steep ascent, I reach the top of Naka-dake. Though it may look mediocre in the pictures, keep in mind that it is over 1506 meters high, so that is no mere hole in the ground you're looking at.

Koizumi: the newest Reagan/Thatcher neoliberal?

2005-09-14T21:27:00.000+09:00

Courtesy of the Asia Pacific Forum on WBAI New York, political scientists John Campbell and Patricia MacLachlan explain how Koizumi rode out the second largest landslide in postwar Japanese history on an issue as seemingly irrelevent as postal reform. What does postal privatization really entail? Campbell compares Koizumi's neoliberalism to that of Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher, and MacLachlan provides a history of the Japan Post since the Meiji era. Listen here.

Rebenson gets a green card

2005-09-13T19:05:00.000+09:00

It's official! I am now a legal resident of Minami-ku (South Ward), Hiroshima.

In other news, my worst fears about Koizumi's privatization plans have begun to materialize. Of course, it was no surprise that the LDP-Komeito coalition will now pass his postal privatization bill.What should garner contempt--though not be unexpected--from those who believed his rhetorical campaign promise of "atarashi Nihon"--"a new Japan"--is how far he will take this landslide mandate. Even the right-leaning Asahi Shimbun is critical of his nascent call to preemptively deregulate the Japan Post for private operators. Roughly four out of five of Japan's 25,000 post offices are small branches called "tokutei." As the business of the tokutei will now be the business of private corporations, expect to see mergers, consolidations (read: lay-offs), and in effect, a widespread loss of access for consumers outside of city centers. While a number of mountain and rural tokutei are staunch LDP supporters, it is pure myth that Koizumi will reward tokutei as a whole; in fact, only 20 percent of tokutei are located in these areas. Expect the worst.

And the privatization campaign will not stop there. In today's New York Times, Tokyo University political scientist Ikuo Kabashima warns of impending pension privatization, and others have elsewhere described deteriorating relations with South Korea. The latter matter--that of foreign relations, namely with South Korea, North Korea. and China--was completely evaded in pre-election rhetoric, despite consistently degenerating talks. A South Korean protester ignites a Japanese flag, left.

Kurashiki

2005-09-12T20:42:00.000+09:00

Kurashiki is a small town (by Japanese standards, but easily the size of Richmond, population-wise) about two hours east of Hiroshima in Okayama Prefecture. It is famous for its museums, and the Ohara Museum houses the best modern art collection in Chugoku (Western Honshu). More importantly, this town is home to a top ten pizza place in the world, according to Gourmet Magazine. (Think Grimaldi's in New York, 2Amy's in DC; better than the latter, not than the former.)

Honmachi, a 17th-century area of Kurashiki, filled with antique pottery shops, small restaurants, and coffee shops:

A room in Ohashi-ue (translates to either "house of chopsticks" or "bridge house," take your pick), a 17th century samurai house:
An incredible antique toy store:
The Ohara Museum's Japanese Contemporary Annex:
The Ohara Museum's ancient Buddhist and Japanese crafts wing:
And again. Those lily pads were transplanted from Monet's property in Giverny:
A view of the canal:

Q: In a Japanese public bathroom, where can you find the soap and paper towels?

2005-09-12T20:38:00.000+09:00

A: Wherever they stashed the toilet seat. (No, that's not a urinal.)
Japan: The only country in the world with porcelain ashtrays over urinals in public bathrooms. (Not even in Virginia!)

Finally, a Carp win; now, only 20 games behind...

2005-09-12T20:22:00.000+09:00

The Hiroshima Carp sent the Yokohama BayStars back to Tokyo where they dreamed up that atrocious name for a baseball team. With a two-run homer and four runs in the 6th, the Carp finally gave me a reason to accept free tickets from work.

The other visiting fellow, Dr. Smith from NC State and Ishi-san from Stats:

Eri-san from Tumor Registry smiles for her udon, while I exhibit an embarrassing emo shirt:

Halftime ramen:
With all of this technology, why do they still rake the infield by hand?
Post-game interview. How is that mascot a carp? His official name is "Sridey," as in, one who srides into bases.

When all liberals are neoliberals, conservatism wins.

2005-09-12T20:01:00.000+09:00

After weak showings by the opposition parties, Koizumi and his LDP remain in power. You can kiss regional stability goodbye, not to mention relative domestic equity and Article 9. But what did you expect?

Below are some priceless campaign posters:

A local Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) candidate. The parallels between this party and the American Democratic Party are eerie.
A couple of Komeito candidates, a Buddhist party in coalition with the LDP. Together, this coalition now holds roughly 4 our 5 seats in the Diet. Thanks, voters! Great power-fist poses, eh? Power to privatization!
A local Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) candidate shows his true patriotism (for which country?) with a lengthy JFK quote. Maybe it's not trite in Japan? Brilliant slogan: "Try to the best."
The son of a former prime minister easily took the win for the LDP in Kurashiki. Underqualified son rides in on his father's coattails--reminds me of someone...

Commence: Typhoon season

2005-09-06T10:13:00.000+09:00

Work was cancelled today, as Typhoon No. 14--a little classier than cute anthropomorphic names, eh?--is expected to hit Chugoku by mid-morning. According to the Asahi Shimbun, winds at the eye of the storm are in excess of 160 kph and roughly 90 kph within a 300 km radius. No one here seems to be particularly worried, however; every September is known as typhoon season, and apparently this is run of the mill. Shikoku and Kyushu tend to shield Honshu from the worst of it. Kyushu and Okinawa usually get it particularly bad, and by the time of arrival at Hiroshima, the storm is generally downgraded to a class four.

Rotten beans

2005-08-30T20:45:00.000+09:00

Despite all the talk of Japan being difficult for a vegetarian, there are a few traditional restaurants that serve only tofu concoctions. The kanji for "tofu" (above) literally means "rotten beans," though this is a butchered translation. The first kanji--"to"--can also be pronounced "mame" (as in "edamame") and refers specifically to soybeans. The second kanji--"fu"--means, for lack of a more appetizing word, "rotten," but a better translation would probably be fermented. Many Japanese dishes are made from soybeans fermented or "rotted" in some form. Miso (the paste used in miso soup) is actually ground soybeans mixed with salt and mold culture and canned for close to three years. Natto is--well, natto is actually literally rotten soybeans, often mixed with raw egg. So anyway, this particular tofu restaurant's chef grows his own crop of mame on the outskirts of Hiroshima, and he makes his own miso, tonyu (soy milk, but with more of a tofu flavor), tofu, and various other traditional tofu dishes whose names escape me. A dinner set typically comes with miso, tonyu, plain tofu, agetofu (battered and quickly deep fried), ground soybean paste with ginger and garlic, mashed tofu with edamame beans, rice, and soy ice cream for desert.

In other news, here I am rocking the yukata I wear around every day after work.

Finally, here is a good overview of Japanese postal privatization in the context of the upcoming elections.

Buddhist ceremony at Tamon-in Temple

2005-08-28T11:46:00.000+09:00

This morning I attended services at a Buddhist temple at the foot of Hijiyama. It lasted roughly half an hour, and only about nine people were in attendance. The ceremony was in honor of a sort of proto-deity representing music, and throughout the chanting--Japanese transliteration of the Sanskrit text--the worshippers shook wooden sticks with metal rings, the clanging sounds representing music.
The monk promptly departed after the conclusion of the service, and an elderly woman served o-cha (tradiational green tea) and kumquat gelatin to all in attendance--myself, my coworker Teramoto-san, and about six ladies in their 40s and 50s. This temple is not particularly noteworthy to the passerby and eludes most travel books, but the elaborate graveyard houses the descendants of Rai Sanyo, one of the most renown Japanese Confucianists, painters, and calligraphers. Buddhist scholars' graves are frequently marked by short conic headstones; note them in the photograph below.

All Buddhist temples have a large bell near the temple itself. The significance of Tamon-in's bell is that it was obliterated in the A-bomb blast, but the wooden housing survived with minor structural damage. Note the splintered wood--still in tact--as well as the replaced bell's nascent inscription, "No More Hiroshimas." A near by concrete tower was also damaged (slightly twisted, below).

Newsweek pro-Koizumi propaganda

2005-08-27T20:16:00.000+09:00

This week's Newsweek International Edition features two cover stories on Koizumi. The leading article by correspondent Christian Caryl refers to anti-Koizumi LDP members as "rebels" and practicioners of "old-crony politics," the latter label corresponding to Koizumi's legacy of union cronyism quite nicely. The piece attempts to depict Koizumi as a man taking a stand against wasteful public works projects financed by the LDP, and yet he has made no attempt to address these issues directly. Employing hyberbolic (and prevaricating) rhetoric, Caryl describes the Japanese President as a "revolutionary leader," comparing him to Boris Yeltsin. If neoliberalism and globalized capital are revolutionary, then the author is right on point. The only thing Koizumi and Yeltsin have in common is perhaps a tendency towards relative privatization, though in completely incomparable contexts. The author is correct in pointing out that the LDP priveleges an elite group of multinationals and unions (though he could be more explicit), but inaccurately protrays Koizumi as a member of an LDP faction that scorns this cronyism. Imagine Cheney calling for the privatization of social security and giving Republican deals with Kellog, Brown, and Root as the rationale! The privatization of Japan Postal, the world's largest bank, endangers the holdings of the Japanese people and repositions $3 trillion against labor interests. The solution is not to privatize the bank, but to scrutinize and reform LDP-endorsed spending policies.

Give postal privatization the boot!

2005-08-26T21:17:00.000+09:00

On September 11--two weeks from Monday--nationwide elections will be held in Japan. These elections are arguably among the most important in Japanese history, as they could displace Junichiro Koizumi's reigning Liberal Democratic Party, a party which (aside from nine months in 1993) has not been in the minority since the end of the US occupation. The postal service is currently in the public sector and serves as a sort of national investment bank. Valued at over $3 trillion, it the largest bank in the world, and likewise Japan holds the largest stockpile of foreign reserves of any nation. Last month, Koizumi tried to force through a privatization bill that would in effect place the postal service in the hands of private corporations, much the same as Bush's attempted privatization of social security. Not only would this allow for the outsourcing of taxpayers' money (remember Argentina?), but it would privelege a few elite LDP unions and multinationals with Koizumi ties. After the bill was defeated in the legislature, Koizumi purged his party of all opposition, forcing all anti-privatization LDP members to form a new coalition for the upcoming election. The LDP has made a calculated effort to run pro-Koizumi politicians against the center-right opposition in every (yes, every) prefectural race on September 11. The historic gravity of this election is that it greatly diminishes the monolithic powerhouse of the LDP, creating a vacuum in which the Democratic Party of Japan (the center-left party) have a chance in the race. Koizumi's call for early elections, however, would leave open the possibility of a far right LDP (purged of all opposition) winning the elections. Imagine a US Republican Party purged of its McCains, Hagels, and Warners! I am not arguing by any means that the DPJ are the would-be saviors of this trend towards extreme neoliberalism, but I am wary of very drastic changes that have occured in Japan during Koizumi's stint as President. Consider: the Self Defense Forces deployed internationally (Iraq) for the first time in post-WWII history, an illegal (under the infamous Article 9) army larger than that of Britain, the fifth largest navy in the world, the twelfth largest airforce (larger than Israel's), consistent visits to the Yasukuni Shrine honoring 13 recognized war criminals, four prefectural sanctions of revisionist history textbooks that all but ignore pre-war Japanese imperialism, and now a massive statewide postal privatization bill. For a country with single-payer health care and whose poorest fifth hold the greatest share of the GDP in the world, Japan--the Japanese people--must be wary of this attempt to rob them of their wages for the profit of LDP's inside elite and US-based multinationals. As the banner above (translated, of course) reads, "Give postal privatization and Koizumi the boot!"

View from my apartment window atop Hijiyama

2005-08-25T20:40:00.000+09:00

Hiroshima Castle

2005-08-25T20:37:00.000+09:00

Colleagues at the Radiation Effects Research Foundation

2005-08-25T20:34:00.000+09:00

Taiko (traditional drum) concert in Shoujikimura

2005-08-25T20:30:00.000+09:00

Mitaki Temple

2005-08-25T20:21:00.000+09:00

Miyajima Fireworks Festival

2005-08-25T20:11:00.000+09:00

Hiroshima Carps [sic] maintain eternal last place

2005-08-25T20:05:00.000+09:00

Hiroshima Day, 60th Anniversary

2005-08-25T19:42:00.000+09:00

Arrival by shinkansen

2005-08-25T19:40:00.000+09:00