Kabuki, Takarazuka, and more

Hello all. Today is Monday here, which is always busy for us, since we have to do all of Sunday's work too. Dennis and Daisuke are off today too, so we have to check their mail.

Today's J-List post is below. You can also read it on the J-List website or the JBOX.com site.

I'm often asked by readers who are planning a trip to Japan what they should see while they're here. I've travelled around Japan quite extensively, usually hitchhiking or riding the "Youth 18" ticket, which lets you go anywhere you want in a 24 hour period for $20 as long as you don't mind riding the slow local trains. While the Kanto (Tokyo) area has a lot to see, the Kansai (Osaka) area is honestly a lot more interesting for visitors, with the beautiful cities of Kyoto and the older, quieter Nara nearby, the grandest castle in Japan (Himeji), the New York-esque bustle of Osaka, and some nice hot springs. If you do find yourself in the Tokyo area and want to escape the asphalt and concrete, try going to Nikko, a nice collection of temples about 75 km from Japan's capitol, where Ieyasu Tokugawa (the first Tokugawa Shogun) is interred. Near Nikko is another attraction we like to visit every few years: Tobu World Square, an amazing theme park where you can see see famous sights from all around the world in 1/25 scale. Here are some pictures of this great place for you.

One of the most famous images of Japan are the bright costumes and imagery of Kabuki. A popular form of stage entertainment that's four centuries old, Kabuki features men playing both male and female roles on stage, with interesting stories from Japan's past. Because the speech is very stylized and old, it's hard for fans to understand what's being said, so you can rent earphones that allow you to listen to commentary in modern Japanese or English. Since women are not allowed to participate in traditional Kabuki, they have the Takarazuka Revue, an all-female performance company established in 1914 as a way for women to express themselves on stage. Just as men play both male and female parts in Kabuki, women play both roles in Takarazuka, and they do it very well, too. While Kabuki is very traditional, Takarazuka is lively and colorful, often borrowing themes and stories from Western stage and musicals. Takarazuka actresses are very popular, especially the stylish otoko-yaku (male role performers).

"You've been in Japan too long when it takes you several seconds of deep thought to recall the first name of the President of the United States." It's true -- you'd be surprised what living in a foreign country can do to your ability to recall seldom-used information, or even remember some English vocabulary words. Try going years without ever hearing or uttering difficult words, like "gynecologist" or "irreplaceable" -- they can be quite difficult to dredge up from the depths of your memory, even if English is your native language. It's especially bad for gaijin who work as English teachers in Japan, because you can go for months without hearing any English except the simplified speech of your students, which invariably begins to affect your English in a negative way.

Here are today's "really cool products" that I thought were especially noteworthy. Note: the J-List links below may be for adult products and should probably be considered "not safe for work." See the JBOX.com site if under 18 or offended by this kind of stuff.

	Zeppan Meisha Collection. This is one of those things that is not that popular, but which we carry anyway, because damnit, it's cool. This is a series of classic cars from the 1960s and 70s, recreated in every detail by Konami. A really cool item for collectors or for people who think these vehicles are just plain cool.
	Final Fantasy X -- Battle ULTIMANIA. A nice (and very thick) book in Japanese with lots of art, screenshots and general data on FFX. A very nice item, mainly because they give you hundreds of pages and it's all printed so nicely.
	Pinky Street *09* -- Dark Blue Coat & Red Jacket. Another cool Pinky Street figure, we just love the stylish look of this series. You can change the clothes of the doll by changing her head to the other clothes set.
	Fuka Fuka Totoro Plush Doll. Fuka fuka is a Japanese word (kind of an onomatopoeia) that means soft and fluffy. And soft this Totoro plush is, since it's made by Sun Arrow, a company we like to mention becuase their stuff is so damned good. This plush toy is 1000 times better than the Taiwanese knockoff products found in your local anime store at the mall.
	I Love Hentai T-shirt. If you really love hentai, here is your shirt. Hentai is a word that means "sexually perverted" (not all that nice a word, really), but which has come to represent adult anime, manga, and other fun and harmless adult art themes from Japan. We're rather proud of this shirt (there's a yaoi one for girls, too).