Benefits of the Japanese Ofuro (Soaking Tub)

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Aren`t we all like Tom Cruise in the “last Samurai” who fell in love with the beauty and purity of Japanese traditions?

And above all what is more lyrical than the Japanese ritual of bathing, cleaning the body from impurities, soaking and soothing in hot water? Actually I hear this story all the time, of westerners who visit japan for leisure or business entering reluctantly in an onsen (hot spa) and returning home with an addiction for hot tubs. Soaking is actually so obvious, so natural, it fills up the gap that modern life creates in our lives. Like the “tea ceremony” or the “ikebana” (flower arrangement) or the sushi, what strikes us westerners is the poetic simplicity and pure beauty of this ritual. Entering in a Japanese ofuro (wooden hot tub) is a regenerating experience for both the body and mind and I bet you are never going to forget your first time.

Japanese ofuro
You can find more about Japanese ofuro bathtubs from this homepage: www.bartokdesign.com/japan

First of all, soaking in 42-43 C (107-109 F) hot water improves blood circulation, skin irritation, and eases the expulsion of toxins from the body. The steam and flowing water originate minus-ions which have direct anti-aging effect and are beneficial for relaxing the mind.

There are different types of Japanese baths: from the hot springs where you bathe in natural ponds, to modern ceramic or acrylic tubs equipped with recirculating systems. A tub relatively unknown in the west is the wooden tub, which combines the advantages of being compact and built with natural material. A wooden bathtub has high thermal insulation and soft touch, moreover it generates a soothing cedar aroma when filled with hot water.

wooden hot tub

I read often of so called “Japanese Tubs” built with inappropriate woods, using mitered joints or other phony details which will cause poor performance and leaks. I think that there are many types of deep soaking tubs, many types of ofuro-style tubs etc. Anyway we should be more precise when we talk about Japanese Tubs. First of all, “Japanese Tubs” are made in Japan. (aka: Chinese tubs are made in China or American tubs are made in the US). If they are made in wood, they should use only coniferous wood (not teak, mahogany etc.). Then these tubs should be handmade, using techniques of wood joinery derived from traditional ship building. Only these details developed during the centuries guarantee performance, durability and genuinity.

I recommend to consult the Bartok design Japan Co. homepage for hundreds of examples and FAQs answered. If you are looking for natural bath accessories visit their hinoki bath accessories page. (direct purchase with PayPal is available).

Help Japanese artist get honored in New York City

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Japanese realist painter Samizu Matsuki is being honored in New York City on October 20th for being first woman ever inducted into the famous Salmagundi Art Club, nearly 40 years ago. Salmagundi Club membership is limited to greatest of realism artists painting in America. As one of the last survivors of the first group of women accepted into the Salmagundi Club, she is extremely honored by this opportunity.

Salmagundi Club website http://www.salmagundi.org

The event, “Pioneer Women: First Ladies of Salmagundi Club” is 6 to 8pm at the Salmagundi Art Club, located at 47 Fifth Avenue, New York City.

Please help Samizu, who is frail and very poor, and lives in Maine USA, raise $1,000 US to pay for travel for her and two paintings, to receive this honor, by visiting Samizu’s “kickstarter” fundraising page. Check out this link to Samizu Matsuki’s kickstarter page.

Samizu Matsuki’s gold medal winning triumph was for returning techniques of Western Classical Realist artistry, refined through generations of Japanese art schools, back to the West. This was in defiance of then-prevailing American fixation on abstract expressionism. Her work electrified enormous crowds who came to her exhibited works.

Matsuki’s meteoric flash was short lived. Failing health at end of the 1970s cut short her career, despite many offers of commissions and exhibitions. Yet during her brief intense career Samizu was like an artistic accupuncture needle, reopening long closed channels of creativity, playing a subtle yet critical role in re-establishing  the legitimacy of highly realistic oil painting in the 1970s American art scene.

Matsuki’s unique ‘magical realism’ style was also influenced by Setsuko Migishi at Joshibi University in Tokyo. Samizu is a 1958 graduate of Joshibi, then called Womens College of Fine Arts.

Travel Volunteer Project – A meaningful contest to promote Tourism in Japan

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This post is a contribution made by Eric, a Travel Volunteer Team Member.

In an effort to show the world that Japan remains a safe destination and promote international tourism back to Japan, we are sponsoring two “Travel Volunteers” to visit Japan’s 47 prefectures during a 100+1 journey.

The idea for this project came from one of our employees at The Real Japan: three months after the events, we were brainstorming on ways to restore confidence and bring back tourism to Japan. We had all seen the coverage about Japan from international media and felt an important part of information was missing… Although the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear issue are terrible disasters which claimed many lives, Japan as a country was NOT entirely destroyed or irradiated. All other places outside the evacuation zone remained totally safe. But the media never mentioned it.

An idea arose and immediately caught everyone’s enthusiasm: ”How about creating a contest to win a journey through all 47 prefectures of Japan in 100+1 days and report on a Blog and social media? All travel and accommodation expenses, including international airfares would be covered by the project. Impossible? Crazy? The seed for the “Travel Volunteer” project was planted…

Japan Travel Volunteer Project

www.travelvolunteer.net

We also involved Japanese tourism businesses from all over the country to sponsor a part of the journey and many contributed in the form of complimentary room-nights at hotels and Ryokans, with local guides offering their services to escort the Travel Volunteer for free in their city. We would like to thank them for their support.

On July 6th , after one month of excitement and intense work, the Travel Volunteer website was launched. It took off immediately, with over 200 applications in less than two days. Two weeks later, the Facebook page of our project was shared more than 10,000 times!

On July 31st, the application closing date, we had received 1897 applications from 85 different countries in the world… Every applicant was requested to pay a USD 5.00 fee to enter the contest, thus ensuring they were serious and committed. The funds were raised to support “On The Road”, a grass-root NPO, actively involved in the reconstruction efforts in the devastated Tohoku region.

Message Board of Support and Hope in Japan

Board of Messages full of Support and Hope

On August 15th, we had read all 1897 applications and pre-selected 5 candidates based on their answers to three simple questions:

  • What is your personal reason to apply for Travel Volunteer?
  • If you are selected, what would be your dream while in Japan?
  • Why should we choose you?

The “lucky five” were 3 single applicants – 2 female & 1 male) from Canada, Malaysia & Ukraine, plus two couples from the UK and the USA.

On September 13th, they were invited to join the final selection process (return flight paid) at Kaikaro, a prestigious Geisha Tea House in Kanazawa, in presence local personalities and Japanese TV’s covering the event. The selection process was broadcast live on U-Stream (watch it here) and on local & regional TV’s.

Foreigners getting into Japanese culture

Foreigners (Gaijin) wearing traditional Japanese kimono with Geisha girls and learning more about Japanes tradition as well as culture.

This non-profit project also aimed at raising funds for a grass-root NPO called “On The Road”, actively involved in the reconstruction efforts in Tohoku region, through a USD 5.00 application fee. As a result, USD 10,000 have been raised and symbolically handed over to the President of “On The Road” by the 5 pre-selected candidates, at the end of the ceremony.

Akita City Food and Beverage Association Annual meeting

Contestant winners Katie & Jamie from the UK who will be visiting 47 47 prefectures of Japan while they blog about their experiences!

On September 15th, our finally selected Travel Volunteers – Katie & Jamie from the UK – departed Kanazawa at 08.50 am to their first destination, Toyama. They are now on their way through Japan and will keep blogging everyday about their journey in Japan, until Christmas Eve on December 24th, when they will be in Tohoku, distributing gifts to children displaced by the tsunami.

For more information, please visit:
The Website: Travel Volunteer｜トラベルボランティア
The Blog: (Japan) Travel Volunteer Blog
The Facebook Page
The Twitter Page

Top 5 Universities in Japan

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Here is a current list of the top 5 universities in Japan.

  1. The University of Tokyo – (Tokyo Daigaku) a major research university. Fifteen prime ministers in Japan have studied at University of Tokyo. During the Summer Olympics in 1964, the university hosted the running portion of the pentathlon event. The University’s School of Science and the Earthquake Research Institute are both represented on the national Coordinating Committee for Earthquake Prediction.
    University of Tokyo
  2. Kyoto University – (Kyoto Daigaku) It is the second oldest Japanese university, and formerly one of Japan’s Imperial Universities. The university claims six Nobel Laureates and two Fields Medalists among its faculty and alumni.
  3. Osaka University – (Osaka Daigaku) It is the sixth oldest university in Japan, and formerly one of Japan’s Imperial Universities. Not only is it one of the top research institutions in Japan, it’s very difficult to get into.
  4. Nagoya University – (Nagoya Daigaku) It is one of the most prestigious universities and it’s one of the top research institutions in Japan, and Nagoya Law School is considered as one of top Law schools in the country. It’s very selective with the students they select.
    Nagoya University
  5. Tohoku University – (Tohoku Daigaku) It is the third oldest Imperial University in Japan and one of the 13 universities selected by the government to lead the internationalisation of higher education in Japan. They offer international degree courses taught completely in English, at both undergraduate and graduate level. The radiology department has been actively measuring radiation levels throughout the city of Sendai since the Fukushima Nuclear Power plant meltdown, which is about 100 kilometers south. One of the interesting research centers they have is the Research Center for Prediction of Earthquakes and Volcanic Eruptions.
    Tohoku UniversityYou can view the top Japanese Universities and see where they stand in the country of Japan as well as where they are listed in top 500 worldwide rankings right here.

American Express Launches Global Friends of Japan Facebook Program

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Alicia for American Express sent me an email to inform me that in August, American Express launched ‘Friends of Japan,’ a global program on Facebook designed to revive global attention on relief efforts since the East Japan Great Earthquake struck the region five months ago. People from around the world are encouraged to share ‘Messages of Hope’ through the ’Friends of Japan’ section of American Express Japan’s Facebook page (facebook.com/americanexpressjapan). The ‘Friends of Japan’ Facebook experience will be translated into eight languages for the international audience and American Express, which has more than 1,100 employees in Japan, will donate $1 towards the relief efforts for every message of hope posted from anywhere in the world.

American Express Friends of Japan Continue reading →

Street Food in Japan

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If you’re looking for an exciting Japanese experience while saving some money, make sure to check out the street food in Japan. I’ll talk mostly about the Tokyo area because that’s where most people visit.

There are a lot of street food vendors around the city, but of course, most of them move around.  I’ll tell you where they usually are, but I can’t guarantee 100% they will be there. The weekends are your best bet to catch them.

japanese street food vendors

japanese street food vendors

Ramen – lots of vendors around the city. One of the more popular ones is in front of Shinjuku West Exit. This is a highly recommended ramen chain –it has a huge following and you can expect to stand in a long line during lunch time and dinner time. Visit the site here.

Takoyaki – fried octopus balls with special sauce and bonito flakes. Famous from Osaka, it`s also widely enjoyed in Tokyo.  Especially during weekends, Yoyogi Park will have a few vendors.

Yakisoba – Fried noodles with meat, nori (dried seafood flakes) and sometimes with pickled ginger is found during festivals, or you can also find vendors in Yoyogi on weekends.

Yakitori – skewered chicken with a variety of sauces. They are usually found in streets during festivals, sometimes Yoyogi park, or just order them from Izakaya (like “EN”)

Okonomiyaki – fried pancake type food (see it here). I think it kind of tastes similar to Takoyaki. There are restaurants throughout Shinjuku, like this one in Kabukicho.

Crepe – Although crepe are not Japanese, there are modern Japanese versions of crepe. They are not healthy and usually strange ingredient combinations, but they are most definitely a Tokyo thing.   You can find them everywhere, especially Harajuku Takeshita Street (across from the Harajuku station Takeshita Exit. (Harajuku and Yoyogi are walking distance, so if you would like to see Yoyogi Park from Harajuku station, just take the “Omotesando Exit” instead of Takeshita.)

Street food in Japan seems to be the cleanest atmosphere when I compare it to other countries I’ve visited. Ramen and Yakisoba are my favorites.

random street food in japan

random street food in japan

Featured Recipe: Onigiri (Japanese rice ball)

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The Japanese rice ball (Onigiri), which is shaped like a triangle instead of being complete round, is a handy snack that you eat any time and take almost anywhere.

To make onigiri you will need the following:

  • 3 cups freshly cooked rice
  • Sea salt
  • 2 sheets of Nori (dry seaweed sheets) cut into strips approximately 5cm wide and 10cm long
  • Black and white sesame mix
  • Small bowl of water

For the onigiri filling:

  • 3 Umeboshi
  • 1 grilled salmon (shredded)
  • 3 tablespoons bonito mixture (mix bonito flakes with a little soy sauce)
  • 1 small cup of mixed tuna with mayo

Instructions to make onigiri

  1. In a small rice bowl, add a little salt and a scoop of rice.
  2. Make a hole in the middle with your thumb and place one umbeboshi inside.
  3. Cover with a little more rice.
  4. Wet your palms with a little water and add a little salt.
  5. Place all of the rice in your hand and gently roll into a ball.
  6. Shape the ball into a triangle with rounded edges and place a strip of nori on top or sprinkle with sesame mix.
  7. Follow these steps for all of the other fillings.
  8. Optional:  You can also evenly mix the rice with salmon or bonito mixture and shape into a triangle without nori.
Japanese Onigiri

Japanese Onigiri

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