Japan
Photos : © Thérèse O’Leary Paintings : © Laurel Vogi You can find other works by Laurel by clicking here or under the ‘life’ tab.
2011 Autumn Tour of Kyoto Gardens, Inland Sea
and Shodoshima Island
Destination Management and Facebook photos of our trip
Arriving in Osaka via Hong Kong, Kansai International Airport is located on an artificial island in the middle of Osaka Bay. My flight arrived in the early evening and after a relaxing sleep at the Nikko Kansai Airport Hotel, an enjoyable breakfast and walk around the shops I meet two of my fellow travellers, Susan and Aileen for the bus trip to Kyoto.
Kyoto – an appreciation of feudal life in the city of temples, shrines and gardens of ancient Kyoto with its incredible natural beauty, rich autumn tones and noticable lack of tall buildings.
Day One : Ryoanji, Kinkakuji, Arashlyama, Ginkakuji with its fine examples of ranked sand, stones, ponds and displays of autumn leaves, Philosopher’s Path which follows a small stream overhanging with maples and cherry trees.
Day Two : Flea Market with the work of local artists, second-hand goods and antiques
Saihoji Moss Garden, Gion the famous Geisha Quarter
Day Three : Tofukuji Temple, Vermilion-lacquered Fushimi Inari Shrine, Nara Japan’s ancient capital, Kasuga Shrine, Todaji Temple
Day Four : Nijo Castle, Botanic Gardens
Day Five : Rural Ohara, Sanzenin Temple, Klyomizu Temple spectacularly constructed on huge pole supports on the hill side, Sannenzaka Slope
Day Six : Nanzenji Temple, Helan Shrine & Gardens, Museum of traditional art and crafts, handicrafts centre with woodblock prints, kimono, pottery, cloisonne and books.
Day Seven : MIHO Art Museum, Shigaraki Pottery, Ishlyama Temple, Lake Biwa
Day Eight : Awaji Island, Shikoku Island, Takamatsu, Ritsurin Gardens
Day Nine : Shodoshima Island, Kankaki Gorge, Nakayama Paddy Fields, Cave Temple
Day Ten : Okayama, Korakuen Garden, Bullet Train
Day Eleven : Tour ends in Kyoto
From a Facebook post of my Mum’s very special friend Sumiko Achiwa
-
- The flower name is Nemophila.
ネモフィラガーデン
なんとか間に合いました。
やさしいみず色♪
Of garden
I was in a while.
Gentle color ♪
Japanese name is rurikarakusa (瑠璃唐草) Baby blue eyes in English
sauntering schoolboys
armed to the teeth with iPhones
samurai tourists
© Photograph and poem by Margaret King.
Nijo Castle
Cautious strangers meet
Gold gingko leaves drifting by
Touch departing friends.
© Photograph and poem by Jan Brand. People on our trip enjoyed writing and sharing Japanese Haiku and Senryū poems.
No words are needed….
a flower’s joy expresses
All creation’s bliss
© Haiku by Asmira Woodward-Page
HAIKU
Purest of poems, a haiku contains in its seventeen syllables a seasonal allusion as well as a distinct pause or shift. Cherry blossoms and swallows mean spring; red maple leaves and deer convey autumn. Nature and its ephemeral beauty – this is haiku. Japanese woodblock artists have often drawn their water from the same wells of creativity used by haiku poets. A pleasure boat on a moonlit lake, a dozing bird beside a turning leaf – it sould surprise no one that Bashō, greatest of haiku poets, was an accomplished painter.
Watanabe Seitei (Shōtei) (1851-1918) “Blue Birds at Night” early 20th century
yuyami ni
mi o sagaseruka
eda no tori
Birds on the branches
in the evening darkness—
can they find berries?
—Sasabune (contemporary)
Tsuchiya Kōitsu (1870-1949) “Sring Rain at Matsushima” 1936
shima areba
mattsu ari kaze no
oto suzushi
Islands all around
with their pine trees; and the wind–
its sound is cooling
–Shake (1867-1902)
Andō Hiroshima (1797-1858) “Monkey Bridge in Kai Province” 1853-1856
urayamashi
utsukushiu natte
chiru momiji
Coveted by all,
turning into such beauty–
the falling red leaves.
–Shikō (1664-1731)
Nishimura Hodō (active 1930s) “Water Lillies”, c. 1930s
tsuyu akete
hajimete saita
ike no hasu
Rainy season ends–
water lilies in the pond
suddenly open.
—Sasabune (contemporary)
3D-Printed Shadow Art Reveals a Hidden Haiku – Drzach & Suchy introduce a new kind of encrypted message.
It is interesting to read that there have been Thirty-two Translations for Matsuo Bashô: Frog Haiku.
A couple of interesting books:
Shin Hanga: The New Print Movement in Japan by Barry Till
The shin hanga (“new print”) movement flourished in Japan for almost fifty years after being set in motion and nurtured by publisher Watanabe Shozaburo (1885–1962). Employing the traditional “ukiyo-e quartet”—a production system consisting of artists, carvers, printers, and publishers—shin hanga attracted Western as well as native artists. The studio teams created woodblock prints that updated traditional ukiyo-e (“pictures of the floating world”) prints by including Kabuki actor portraits, “beauties,” and landscapes and other nature themes, often birds and flowers. With lavish illustrations and expert commentary, Shin Hanga: The New Print Movement of Japan details the shin hanga movement and presents splendid reproductions of works by its principal artists.
Haiku: Japanese Art and Poetry Hardcover by
The strictest and purest of poetic forms, the Japanese haiku contains in its seventeen sound characters a reference to a season as well as a distinct pause or interruption. Cherry blossoms and swallows might refer to spring; red maple leaves and deer usually imply autumn. These seasonal allusions emphasize the essence of haiku: nature and its ephemeral beauty.
The graceful, evocative haiku featured here were composed by the renowned Japanese haiku masters of the past four hundred years, including Matsuo Basho, Taniguchi Buson, and Kobayashi Issa. The deceptively simple poems–rendered in English with Japanese calligraphies and transliterations–are paired with exquisite eighteenth- or nineteenth-century paintings and ukiyo-e prints and twentieth-century shin hanga woodcuts from the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, Canada. With their depth and delicacy, wide range of subtle hues, and time-honored focus on landscapes, birds, and flowers, these artworks–like their haiku counterparts–quietly capture a moment in time.
Haiku: Japanese Art and Poetry presents thirty-five pairs of poems and images, organized seasonally. The Introduction details the origin and development of haiku, the lives of the most famous poets, and the obstacles faced when translating the concise yet complex lines.
Hokusai: beyond the Great Wave
If your visiting Sydney and love Japanese Gardens there is one at the Auburn Botanical Gardens. There are also kangaroos and peacocks to see.
Lesley Kehoe Galleries – Japanese Art, Melbourne
Pictures: Japanese Life Recreated With Lego
YHA Magazine with an article on Japan – link
Working a winter snow season in Japan
Eda-Tokyo Museum 江戸東京博物館
The Metropolitan Edo-Tokyo Museum opened its doors in March 1993 as a space to reflect on the history and culture of Edo-Tokyo and envision the city and life of the future. Housed in a unique building modeled after an elevated-floor type warehouse, the museum has been a landmark and popular tourist attraction in Tokyo since its opening.
The permanent exhibition, showcasing original objects and replicas, offers visitors a journey through the 400-year history of Edo-Tokyo since Tokugawa Ieyasu entered Edo. In addition to the permanent exhibition, the museum holds special exhibitions at the first floor gallery five to six times a year and carries out various other events, including lectures and workshops on the history and culture of Edo-Tokyo.
We hope that the museum can be Tokyo’s center for the creation of new culture and a place of respite for visitors.
Real Japanese Gardens
Japan’s finest gardens can be found in Kyoto, Kamakura and Tokyo – The cities have been capitals and centers of Japanese culture and religion for centuries. The gardens, temples, palaces with world-famous gardens have seen times of war, devastating fires, earthquakes and survived until today for you to enjoy.
JGSDF PR centre
This is a facility where you can learn more about the Ground Self-Defense Force, which provides experiences you have little opportunity to encounter in everyday life.
Nezu Museum （根津美術館）
The Nezu museum is a private collection of Japanese and Asian art – from calligraphy to painting, ceramics and textiles. The industrialist and president of the Tobu railway company, Nezu Kaichiro was an avid art collector. The site of the museum and garden used to be his private residence, which he bought in 1906. After his death in 1940, his son founded the museum to preserve the collection. In World War II however, the museum and gardens were severly destroyed.
The hilly garden has two ponds that are connected by small streams. Upon every turn of the numerous winding paths, you can see a new garden lantern, memorial stone, Buddha or Kan’non statue. The garden also has some well-preserved tea houses. Near the main building, you can find a modern cafe. The wide window front on three sides let’s you enjoy the garden while having a light lunch or coffee and cake.
The Nezu Museum was founded to conserve and exhibit the collection of pre-modern Japanese and East Asian art that Nezu Kaichirō (1860-1940) had passionately built. Kaichirō, a businessman whose career included being president of the Tōbu Railway Co., Ltd., was born in Yamanashi and became interested in art early in life. Upon moving to Tokyo in 1898, he displayed his abilities as a businessman and politician and expanded his field of activities to include education as well. Becoming an enthusiastic practitioner of the “way of tea” further spurred his enthusiasm for collecting, and his daring, bold approach became almost legendary. Moreover, Kaichirō did not view his collection as a private treasure trove but wish to share its enjoyment with the general public.
teamLab
teamLab is a collaborative, interdisciplinary creative group that brings together professionals from various fields of practice in the digital society: artists, programmers, engineers, CG animators, mathematicians, architects, web and print graphic designers and editors. Referring to themselves as “Ultra-technologists,” their aim is to achieve a balance between art, science, technology and creativity.
NATIONAL GALLERY VICTORIA HOKUSAI Exhibition 21 July – 15 Oct 2017
Katsushika Hokusai is regarded as one of the most influential and creative minds in the history of Japanese art. His unique social observations, innovative approach to design and mastery of the brush made him famous in Edo-period Japan and globally recognised within a decade of his death.
“From the age of six I had a mania for drawing the forms of things.
By the time I was fifty I had published an infinity of designs;
but all I produced before the age of seventy is not worth taking into account.
At seventy-three I learnt a little about the real structure of nature,
of animals, plants, trees, birds, fish and insects.
Consequently, when I am eighty I shall have made still more progress;
at ninety I shall penetrate the mystery of things;
at one hundred I shall certainly have reached a marvellous stage;
when I am one hundred and ten everything I do, be it a dot or a line, will be alive.
I beg those who live as long as I to see I keep my word.”
10 -15 February 2014
Tearing the Mask, NIDA – An exploration of Japanese Performance introduced by Richaqrd Emmert and Jeff Janisheski.
A unique beauty of the Japanese artforms Noh, Butoh and Kabuki with rarely seen films and documentaries. Screened on a traditional Noh stage set in the Parade Atrium which is a covered outdoor amphitheatre. I was able to see some of these films.
‘Seami and the Noh Theatre’ 1991
‘Noh drama is one of the world’s great classical theatre genres. Although often compared to ancient Greek theatre for its use of masks, chorus and music, Noh theatre is unique.
Handed down over the centuries, it remains a vital performing art to this day. Its present form, which is a combination of two earlier types of performance known as ‘Sarugaku’ and ‘Dengaku’, was realised by Kannami in the 14th century. But it was his son, Zeami, who honed and perfected it into the highly refined structure it achieved and has retained up to the present.
Zeami’s life was a long and eventful one. It was a life that ranged from early, dazzling success at court to lonely exile in old age. Yet through it all he continued to write – not only plays that are popular and still performed, but essays and treatises on the art and concept of Noh drama itself.
Featured in this film are highlights from five representative Noh plays. Reflecting the very essence of Noh are the stately warrior play ‘Kiyotsune’ by Zeami; the moving ‘Jinen Koji’ by Kannami, his father; and the elegant ‘Izutsu’, the sad ‘Kinuta’ and the dynamic ‘Toru’, all also by Zeami.
Noh theatre reflects the pathos and depth of the human condition and mirrors the sorrows and aspirations of us all.’
‘The Noh Mask ‘ 1987
Outstanding Noh masks have played a major part in the perfection of Noh, a form of theatre that describes the world of the mind. This film shows the beauty of the masks and the role they play during performances, when the expressions they convey reflect delicate shades of emotion.
The Noh play ‘Aoi-no-Ue’ is introduced, which portrays the intense jealousy suffered by a woman. The deigan mask, used in the first half, depicts dignity struggling against anguish; the hannya (demon) mask, used in the second half, depicts anger and sadness.
The film shows different types of masks, and commentary is given on dramatic presentation and the choice of masks for specific roles.’
Noh Dōjōji [The Dōjōji Temple – A Noh Play]
‘This film shows the full performance of Dōjōji, one of the most dramatic plays in the classical Japanese Noh repertory, bookended by highlights from two other performances of the same piece.
A legend tells of a yamabushi mountain priest who, during his travels, often visited the home of a man who had a young daughter. The father once jokingly told his daughter that when she grew up she would marry a priest, and she innocently believed him. Time passed, and the priest visited several years later. The daughter, now being older, chided him for not claiming her as his wife. The priest rejected her, and when she became enraged, he ran away to Dōjōji Temple and asked to be hidden from her. The priests lowered a huge temple bell and hid him in it. The girl followed him, but was caught at the flooding Hidaka River without a boat to cross over. Jealous rage transformed her into a serpent. The serpent swam across the river, found the lowered bell at the temple and lashed itself around it. The bronze bell grew hot and the priest was roasted alive inside.
The Noh play begins many years later. The above incident has been almost forgotten and the temple is at last dedicating a new bell to replace the one destroyed many years before. Though ordered by the chief priest not to let any women into the temple for the ceremony, the temple servants allow a shirabyōshi dancer to enter since such performers typically perform dressed as men. The dancer promises to dedicate a dance for the new temple bell. The woman is in fact the jealous spirit of the serpent-woman. After her long dance, she leaps into the new bell, bringing it down. The chief priest is informed and he relates the old story of the serpent-woman demoness. As she appears from under the bell in her true form, the priests confront her with prayers by rubbing their rosaries until she is finally subdued.
This is a special play in the Noh repertory in that it is considered the ‘graduation ceremony’ of a professional Noh actor. Participation in this play generally leads to acceptance as a full member in the Noh-performing world.’
‘Traditional Japanese Culture: Kabuki’ 1997
‘The Edo Stage: Kabuki and Bunraku’ 1982
‘Like the theatre of other cultures, Kabuki and Bunraku reflect the society in which they were born – its morality, dreams and changes. In the case of Japan, the mid-to-late Edo period was a time of deep-seated dissatisfaction with feudal morality, and Kabuki and Bunraku plays echo the growing power and consciousness of the common people.
This film features extracts from two plays, ‘Sukeroku yukari no Edozakura’, a Kabuki comedy, and ‘Sonezaki shinju’, a tragedy written for Bunraku by the great playwright Chikamatsu Monzaemon. These plays reflect both the laughter and tears of Edo-period Japan.’
The Lovers’ Exile: The Bunraku Puppet Theatre of Japan 1980
‘The Lovers’ Exile features the incomparable Bunraku Theatre of Japan: the world’s most sophisticated puppet theatre. For those unfamiliar with Bunraku, the spectacular staging and emotive power of the puppet handling, music and narrative will be a revelation.The Lovers’ Exile is an adaptation of ‘Meido no Hikyaku (The Courier for Hell)’ by Chikamatsu Monzaemon.
The Lovers’ Exile was filmed in 1979 at Daiei Uzumasa Studios, Kyoto, on a specially constructed Bunraku stage, and performed by all the major Bunraku masters of the day, many of whom were National Treasures, or who obtained such designation later. Appearing are Takemoto Koshijdayu, Takemoto Mojitayu (now Sumitayu), Takemoto Oritayu (now Tsunatayu), Tsuruzawa Enza (5th), Tsuruzawa Seiji, Nozawa Kinshi (4th), Yoshida Tamao, Yoshida Minosuke, Yoshida Bunjaku and Kiritake Kanjuro (2nd) – the greatest Bunraku stars of the Showa era.’
‘Butoh: Piercing the Mask’ 1991
‘In the early 1960s Butoh dance exploded onto the Japanese stage. The shockwaves ripped the Japanese dance community apart and shattered stereotypical images of the Japanese people. Sexy, violent, humorous and nihilistic, Butoh confronted Japanese society, ridiculing and mocking traditional conventions of beauty and behaviour. This documentary pierces the mystery and mystique of a dance movement adored by the West and largely ignored by the Japanese. It uses archival and modern footage of leading Butoh performers – Dairakudakan, Hakutobo, Kazuo Ono – and interviews with Butoh specialists to throw light on the essential Butoh themes of darkness, violence and eroticism to get to the core of the nature of Butoh.
Going beyond its examination of Butoh as dance, Butoh: Piercing the Mask, delves into the relationship between culture and society. It portrays Butoh as a primal scream, uttered at a time when the post-war invasion of Japan by Western cultural and social conventions forced artists to re-invent their own identity. It raises questions about the Japanese people by revealing connections between some of the darker aspects of Butoh and Japanese culture. It examines Butoh’s relationship to contemporary life against the backdrop of modern Tokyo.’
‘Butoh: body on the Edge of Crisis’ 1990
‘Although Butoh is often viewed as Japan’s equivalent of modern dance, in actuality it has little to do with the rational principles of modernism. Butoh is a theatre of improvisation which places the personal experiences of the dancer on center-stage. The dancer is used as a medium to his or her inner life, but not for the portrayal of day to day existence. A Dionysian dance of nudity, eroticism, and sexuality, Butoh’s scale of expression ranges from meditative tenderness to excessive grotesqueness. By re-establishing the ancient Japanese connection of dance, music, and masks, and by recalling the Buddhist death dances of rural Japan, Butoh incorporates much traditional theatre. At the same time, it is a movement of resistance against the abandonment of traditional culture to a highly organized consumer-oriented society. An alliance of tradition and rebellion, Butoh is one of the most fascinating underground dance movements. Butoh: Body on the Edge of Crisis is a visually striking film portrait shot on location in Japan with the participation of the major Butoh choreographers and their companies.’
Talks and Demonstrations
Lynne Williams, Director/CEO, NIDA
Jeff Janisheski, Head of Acting, NIDA
Richard Emmert, Professor of Asian Performing Arts, Musashino University, Japan
Yukio Waguri, Artistic Director, Kohzensha Butoh Company, Japan
Allan Marett, Emeritus Professor of Musicology, University of Sydney
above copy from NIDA web site
JAPANESE CINEMA
Some of the cultural practices that shaped the development of one of the worlds oldest and largest film industries were Benshi, Kamishibai, Utsushi-e and Bunraku, here are some examples. Sadly, except for a few titles, there in nothing of the early cinema.
OTOWAZA and Benshi narration in Japanese silent film 和楽器と弁士の無声映画上映会
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-SBXG4xY_M
Kamishibai
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wkD7lRzaPsw
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v6URceEr_zc
and
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O_Ugic0n49M
Utsushie
http://www.f.waseda.jp/kusahara/Utsushi-e/What_Is_Utsushi-e.html
Bunraku – puppet theatre
COLLECTION OF MANY EARLY JAPANESE FILMS and other cinema influences
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJbHAZngPm0
A Cat, Shozo and Two Women (Neko to shozo tofutari o onna) 1956
A Charred Water Lizard (Imori no kuroyaki) 1908
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7aubUkD_2k4
A Crazy Page/A Page Out of Order (Kurutta ippeiji)1926
A Grievance about Public Morality (Kotoku no nakigoto)
A Group of Japanese Men Swimming (Danseito no suiei)
A Maroon Wooden Drum (Ebicha no mokugyō)
A River Fête at Ryōgoku (Tōkyo Ryōgoku no kawabiraki) 1905
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c570423kdG4
A Story of Floating Weeds ( Ukigusa monogatari) 1934
A Story ofJapanese Yakuza (Nihon Kyokakuden) 1964-71 series
A Taxing Woman (Marusa no gonna) 1987
A Taxing Woman Part 2 (Marusa no gonna 2) 1988
A Tipsy Life (Horoyoi jinsei) 1933
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdowJS4Aid0
A Treatise on Japanese Bawdy Song (Nihon shunka-ko) 1967
A View of Nikko (Mikko no kokei) 1905
A Woman Aviator (Onna hikoka) 1913
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H_Py_OZ1r4k
Abe Clan, The (Abe Ichizoku) 1938
Actual Scene of the Asakusa Flower Garden, The (Asakusa hanayashiki jikkyō) 1903
Actual Scene of the Fifth Osaka Exhibition, The (Osaka daigokai hakurankai jikkyō) 1903
Actual Scene of the Kyoto Gion Festival, The (Kyōto gion matsuri jikkyō) 1903
Actual Scene of the Kobe Naval Review, The (Kobe kankanshiki jikkyō)1903
Adventures of Jirocho (Jirocho sangokushi) 1952-54nine part series
Adventures of Jirocho (Jirocho sangoku-shi) 1963-4
Age of Assassins (Satsujinkyo jidai) 1965
Age of Irresponsibility in Japan (Nippon musekinin jidai) 1962
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yYHk2QT91E8
(Akanishi Kakita) 1936
Amateur Club (Amachua kurabu) 1920
Amended Record of Japanese Zigomar, The (Zoku Nippon Jigoma kaishin-roku) 1912
An Actor’s Revenge (Yukinojo henge) 1935
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hl4_uxbD_uY
An Autumn Afternoon (Samma no avi) 1962
An Inn at Osaka (Osaka no ado)1954
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vf81rezRxi8
Apart from You (Kimito wakarete) 1933
Art of Shinto-Style Sword Drama (Shintō-ryū kenbujutsu sugekimi) 1908
Bad Sleep Well, The (Warui eats modo you nemuru) 1969
Band of Ninja (Ninja bugeicho) 1967
Bandits on the Wind (Yato gaze no nana o hashiru) 1961
Battered Energy of Desire, The (Oshima Nagisa)
Battle of Honno Temple, The (Honnoji gassed) 1909
Bell Forest (Suzu ga modi)
Benkei of the Bridge (Hashi Benkei)
Between War and Peace (Senso to heir) 1947
Blood Is Dry, The (Chi wa kawaite ire) 1960?
Boy (Shonen) 1969
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zBj9y1Gu9y0
Bride Talks in Her Sleep (Hanayome no negoto) 1933
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5f4Chp10Vms
Brothers and Sisters of the Today Family, The ( Todake no kyodai) 1941
Burden of Live (Jinsei no onimotsu) 1935
Burglar on the Roof
Bushido—Samurai Saga (Bushido zankoku monogatari) 1963
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3vIr5gpmKY
Captain’s Daughter, The (Tai-i no musume) 1929
Carmen’s Pure Love (Karumen junuosu) 1952
Catch, The (Shiiku)1962
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E6Pl3qze668
Ceremony, The `Ceremonies, The (Gishiki) 1971
Children—The Precious Disturbance (Kodakara modo) 1935
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PqkSVPA6DGE
Christian Rebel, The (Amakusa Shiro tokisada) 1962
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ajX1xsPowM
Chuji’s Travel Diary (Chuji tab nikki) 1927
(Kunisada Chuji) 1935
Chug Makes a Name for Himself (Chuji uridasu) 1935
Chūshingura 1932
Climactic Operation, The (Kojo sakusen) 1974
Code of an Outlaw, The (Yatamono no okite) 1969
Combat without a Code (Jingi maki tatami) 1972-74series
Common Soldier’s Story, The-series
Crest of the Man, The ( Otoko no monsho) 1963-66
Cruel Story of Youth or Naked Youth for export (Seishun zankoku monogatari)1960
Cuckoo-New Form, The (Shin hototogisu) 1909
Daimyō Saburo-maru 1914
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yd36RJ0nzdM
Dancing Girl of Azu (Izu no odoriko) 1933
Dandyish Procession (Haikara no gyōretsu)
Dawn (Reimei) 1927
Dawn at the Soga Brothers’ Hunting Grounds (Soga kyōdai karma no akebono) 1906
Days of Youth (Wakaki hi) 1929
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RpH_Dqbz5ME
Death by Hanging (Koshikei) 1968
Dear Summer Sister (Natsu no imoto) 1973
Demon Thistle 1908
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wcqXTfgqOEI
Diary of Yunbogi (Yunbogi no nikki)1965
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ESXByGdUn8
Diary of a Shinjuku Thief ( Shinjuku dorobo nikki) 1968
Dispersing Clouds (Wakare-gumo) 1951
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2oS6Esfow8
Dodeskaden 1970
Dr Kimuyo (Joi Kinuyo sensei) 1937
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qTNcbsYZH1E
Dragnet Girl (Hijosen no onna) 1933
Drinking Habit and the Family, The (Inshu to katei)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-FYhv39l8jE
Drunken Angel (Yoidore tench) 1948
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aVbHBYuYG6E
Early Summer (Bakushu) 1956
Education of Old Ideas, The (Kyu-shiso no kyōiku)
Empire of Passion, Ghost of Love, The Realm of Desire(Ai no borei) 1978
End of Summer, The (Koharyakawake no aki) 1961
End of the role of the Schoolgirl, The (Jinshin no ura-omote)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3j7qR-HzMwM
Enoken’s Kondo Isamu (Enoken no Kondo Isamu) 1935
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cq-0pA8_bdU
Equinox Flower (Higanbana) 1958
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVsSrv9GFoM
Fallen Blossoms (Hana chorine) 1938
Faithful Servant Naosuke (Chuboku Naosuke) 1936
Failure of Overconfidence (Unubore no shippai)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=308ozh1YkOE
Family Games (Kazoku geimu) 1983
Feather Cloak Dance of Miss Tenkatsu, The (Tenkatsujo no hagoromai) 1906
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUAwr7KKruI
Fifth Scene of the Loyal Forty-Seven Retainers, The (Chūshingura godanme)
Fighting Soldier(Tataku hentai) 1940
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UOn7tMy1LQ
Fires on the Plain (Nobi) 1959
First Steps Ashore (Joriku dai-ippo) 1932
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYZxaJomG8Q
Five Scouts ( Gonin no sekkohei) 1938
Floating Nest of the Little Grebe, The (Nio no Ukisu) 1900
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHpVeD9kJEI
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c570423kdG4
Floating Weeds (Ukigusa monogatari)1934 and 1959
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKeQ7U9mSm4
Floating Weeds 1959
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AO-1aZQ-uUY
Flower of Green Tea over Rice, The (Ochazuke no avi) 1952
Funeral, The (Ososhiki) 1984
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoDtJ5KccTM
Gate of Hell 1953
Genroku Dance of the Yoshimachi Dancers, The (Yoshimachi geigi genroku odori) 1905
Ghost Mirror (Yūrei kagami) 1908
Girl Students’ Military Arts (Jogakusei no bugeitaiso)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RykvoNxp12M
Good Morning (Ohayo) 1959
Grand Motion Picture on the Boxer Rebellion (Hokushinjihen katsudō daishashin) 1900
Great Metropolis: Chapter on Labor, The (rodehen) 1930
Green of the Pine, The (Matsu no midori) 1911
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhaPZdD2fxE
Groom Talks in His Sleep, The 1935
Growing Up (Takekurabe) 1955
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfABwM-Ppng
Harakiri (Seppuku) 1962
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d88a5saLrj4
Harp of Burma (Biruma no tategoto) 1956 and 1983
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8PW9zYEAuI
Hen in the Wind (Kaze no nana no mender) 1948
Hidden Fortress, The (Kakushi torrid no san akunin) 1945
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LV3z2Ytxu90
High and Low (Tengoku to jig) 1963
History of Japanese Film Music (Nihon eiga ongaku shi)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yENyN-CVQeU
Hitokiri (Tenchu) 1969
Hometown (Furusato)1930
Hoodlum Soldier (Heitai yakuza) 1965
Hosokawa Covered with Blood (Hosokawa no chidaruma)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mS8YraEXC9c
Human Condition, The (Ningen no joke) 1958 – 1961
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BR0hy0N2FBg
Humanity and Paper Balloon (Ninjo kamifusen) 1937
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GTlGyJKQjRM
I was Born but…. (Umarete wa mita keredo…)1932
If We Don’t Abandon This Child (Kono ko sutezareba) 1935
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pCRyjFwwjGA
Ikiru (1952)
In the Realm of the Sense (Aino koriida)1976
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oiIcsGTZDgA
Intention of Murder (Akai satsui) 1964
It’s Tough to Be a Man (Otoko wa tsurai yo) series
Japanese Don, The (Nihon no don) 1981
Japanese Cherry Blossoms (Nihon sakura) 1909
Japanese-Made Social Puck Moving Picture (Nippon-sei shake pukku katsudō shashin)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n1J9Migw-zQ
Japanese Summer:Double Suicide (Muri shinju nibon no borei)1967
Japanese Zigomar (Nippon Jigoma) 1910
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrmMQ6Do7zw
Jirocho and Mt Fuji ( Jirocho Fuji) 1959
(Kaketoji Tokijiro) 1929
Katsuben Story, The 1957
(Kavita Akanishi) 1936
Komatsu Riyuzo Part ll 1939
Koume of Kanaya (Kanaya Koume) 1930
Kumagai Fan Store, The (Ogiya Kumagai) 1908
Lady and the Beard, The (Shukujo to hide)
Largest Gambling Den in the Postwar Period, The (Sengo said no toba) 1969
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiZAW4T1ZFg
Late Autumn (Akibiyori) 1960
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XU-iOxf4vI0
Late Spring (Banshun) 1949
L’Amour (Ramura, aka Aibu) 1933
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hInlU3dtdi4
Lightening Burglar (Inazuma goto)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQF88yjvH7k
Life of Matsu the Untamed, the (Kuho Matsu no issue) 1943
Life Story of Saint Nichiren, The (Seishō Nichiren Daishi gochidai-ki) 1910
Lilly of the Valley (Tsuruganeso) 1935
Little Man, Do Your Best (Koshiben gambler) 1931
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Qxy_dUiRpU
Live of Oharu, The (Saikaku ichidai onna)1952
Lonely Roughnech, The (Subishiki Ranbomono) 1927
Long-Sought Mother aka Mother He Never Knew, The (Mabuta no haha) 1931
Lottery Jackpot (Senryoraku) 1935
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmMbDZtE_aw
Lower Depths, The (Donzoko) 1957
Loyal Forty-Seven (Chūshingura) 1962(Forty-Seven Loyal Retainers)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X39n4LQBTtk
Man Who Left His Will on Film (Tokyo senso hiwa) literally Secret Story of Postwar Tokyo aka He Died after the War 1970
Marching On (Shingun) 1930
Men Who Tread on the Tiger’s Tail, The (Tora no o fumo otokotachi)1945
Mito Komon Part II 1932
(Minamoto Musashi) 1962-1970
Modern Yakuza, The (Gendai yakuza) 1969-71
Modern hash 1929
Morning for the Osone Family (Osoneke no asa) 1946
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GfDwlKMyboE
Most Beautiful (Ichiban utsukushiku) 1944
Mother (Haha) 1929
Mr Pu (Pu-san) 1953
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L527VK0FIfc
Mud and Soldiers (Tsuchi to heitai) 1939
Munekata Sisters (Munekata shimmy) 1950
National Boarding House (Kokuyu no Geshukuya)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yCk8Gvjt2u0
Neighbour’s Wife and Mine, The (Madamu to nyobo)1931
New Great Detective Zigomar (Shin Jigoma Dai-tantei) 1912
New Katsura River (Shinkatsura gala) 1909
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1i8soyd0h9M
Night and Fog in Japan (Nihon no your to kiri)1960
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RfWfTr4GbaM
Nights.s Wife, The 1930
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xZ2y_zoidNA
Nightly Dreams (Yogoto no yum) 1933
Nightly Dreams, Apart from You
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k2ZkHDXWwVg
Ohara (aka Good Mroning )Ohio (1959)
Once More (Ima hitotabino) 1947
One Night’s Lodging (Isshoku ichiham) 1968
One Thousand and One Nights of Travelling (Matatabi senichiya) 1936
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ciGEjeZTcU
Only Son, The (Hitori musk) 1936
One’s Sin (One ga tsumi)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35y5S5_V-cE
Orochi 1925
Oryu (Hibotan Oryu) 1968
Oryu’s Visit (Oryu sanjo) 1970
Otomi Stabbed 1908
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fWoKN9uC_Z4
Our Neighbour Miss Yae (Tonari no Yae-chan) 1934
Pastoral Symphony (Den’en kokyogaku) 1938
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aO67ot2phhQ
Pleasures of Flesh (Etsuraku) 1965
Pheasant in a Burnt Field (Yakino no kigisu) 1909
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mVrZM0ZbCe4
Police 1933
Prison Breakout in Saghalien, The (Karafuto no hagoku)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y80AthahCIg
Quiet Duel, The ( Shizukanaru kept)1946
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xCZ9TguVOIA
Red Beard (Akahige) 1965
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zqoyl2p8_lw
Rashomon (1950)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-i-I72-Fsqw
Red Beard (Akahige) 1965
Record of a Living Being (Ikimono no kiroku)1955
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33YaBsaIqPg
Record of a Tenement Gentleman 1947
Respect for the Emperor (Sonno jodi) 1928
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVP5o0Y_94U
Rickshaw Man (1958)
Riding on a Ball in Real Society (Katsu-shakai no tamanori)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzZmqsVs9V8
Samurai Rebellion (Joiuchi) 1967
Samurai Trilogy (Jusashi Minamoto)1940 and 1954-56
Sanshiro Sugata 1943
Scarlet Bat, The ( Beni komori) 1931
Scene of Minamoto Musashi’s Elimination of the Baboons, The (Miyamoto Musashi hihi taiga no ba) 1908
Second-Rate Comedian aka Something like That (No yo na mono) 1981
Semi-Japanese Semi-Western Wedding (Wayō sechū kekkonshiki) 1908
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gfABwM-Ppng
Seppuku (Hara-diri) 1962
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mw6LyyoeGE
Seven Samurai (Shichinin no samurai) 1954
Shadow Figure (Kageboshi) 1909
Shanghai 1932
Sky is Clear ( Sora wa haretari) 1925
Song of the Flower Basket (Hanakago no ute) 1937
Spring in Southern Islands (Nanto no haru) 1925
Steel Edge of Revenge, The (Goyokin) 1969
Stone Bridge (Shakkyō)
Story of the Last Yakuza in the Showa Period, The (Showa zankyoden) 1965-72
Story of Tank Commander Nishizumi (Nishizumi sensacho-den) 1940
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-yielLYZ5lo
Stray Dog (Nora ini) 1949
Street without End (Kagirinaki hodo) 1934
Succeeding the Second (Nidaime shame) 1968
Surface and True Feelings of People’s Minds, The (Jinshin no ura-omote)
Sword of Vengeance series
Successful Love, The (Ai no seikō)
Sumo Wrestler’s Debut (Ippon batata dohyoiri) 1931
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6BsHxN4r1Rk
Sun Legend of the Shogunate’s Last Days
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hjX6J3g_gmM
Tale of the Loyal Forty-Seven Retainers, The(Chūshinguara)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iV7fV46BUek
Tampopo 1986
Tange Sazen 1933
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB_M5bNLi7s
Tange Sazen and the Pot Worth a Million Ryo (Tange Sazen—hyakuman ryo no tsubo)1935
Tattoo of a Lion, The (Karajishi shugi) 1965
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1lHpLUseW38
Ten Dark Women (Kuroi junior no gonna) 1961
Tenth Scene of Taikoki, The also known as Ehon Taikoki (Taikoki jūdanme) 1908
Theatre of Life, The (Jinsei gekijo—Hishakaku) 1963
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qv7QRoE-oH8
There was a Father (Chichi arise) 1942
Three Beauties (San rem ka) 1934
Throne of Blood (Kagemusha) 1980
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-yHW3drgs4
Three Outlaw Samurai (Sambiki no samurai) 1964
Three Resurrected Drunkards (Kaette kits yopparai) 1968
To Sleep So As To Dream 1986
To The Distant Observer 1979
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LbQKUzZqf8
Tokyo Chorus (Tokyo no gassho) 1931
Tokyo Snowscape (Tōkyō no sekkei) 1905
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3O0a_WPfl8Y
Tokyo Twilight (Tokyo boshoku) 1957
Tough Guys behind Bars (Kabe no nana no korinai mermen) 1987
Tragedy:The Self-Immolation of the Captain (Higeki: sancho no junshi)
Trial of Vivienne Ware, The 1932
True Account of the Ando Group, The (Andagumi jitsuroku) 1978-79
True Character of Gentlemen Nowadays, The (Tosei shins hi no shotai)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHIRcbAMFHo
Tsubaki Sanjuro (Sanjuro) 1962-Sanjuro (Tsubak Sanjuro) 1962
Twenty-Six Japanese Martyrs, The 1930
Two People at Dojō Temple (Ninin dojōji)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C8Z3DYtUP0E
Ugetsu (Ugetsu mongatari) 1953
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h58eATm8knA
Ugetsu Monogatari 1953
Viewing Scarlet Maple Leaves (Momijigari)
Village Bride, The (Mura no hanayome)1928
Violence at Noon (Hakuchu no troika)1967
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQLZzxSBYLU
Wanderers (Matatabi) 1973
War at Sea from Hawaii to Malaya, The (Hawaii-Marei ski kaiser) 1942
Well-Mannered Beasts, The aka Elegant Beast (Shitoyaka na kedamono) 1962
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wLPmGIHR-A
What did the Lady Forget (Shujo wa nani o waster-tala) 1937
Where Chimneys Are Seen (Entotsu no mire basho) 1953
Wife Be like a Rose (Tsuma yo bra no yo ni) 1935
Woman of the Mist (Oboroyo no gonna) 1936
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_nW5e-NHO3o
Woman of Tokyo (Tokyo no gonna) 1933
Woman Samurai 1908
Woman Who Touched the Leg (Ashi ni sonata gonna) 1926
Wonderful Men in the World of Yakuza (Yakuza those no suteki na mermen) 1988
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCjsazHO0c0
Yakuza Front on the Tokaido Path (Ninkyo Tokaido) 1958
Yakuza on the Road (Matatabi waraji) 1929
Yataro’s Travel Hat (Yataro gasa) 1932
(Yojimbo) 1961
Young Days of Jirocho (Wakaki hi no Jirocho) 1960-62
RADIO
Airplane Drone (Bakuon) 1939
Danger (Tanko no naka)1925
Osaka Elegy (Naniwa erejii) 1936
COMIC
chamber Iwami Jutaro 1937
REMAKES
A Story of Floating Weeds (Ukigusa monogatari) 1934 as Floating Weeds (Ukigusa) 1959
I was Born but … (Umarete wa mita keredo…(1932) into Ohayo (1959)
Harp of Burma (Biruma no tategoto) Two versions 1956 and 1983
Samurai Trilogy (Musashi Miryamoto) two versions 1940 and 1954-56
The Life of Matsu the Untamed (Muho Matsu no issue) 1943 retelling Rickshaw Man 1958
OTHER INFLUENCES
A Three-Man Collision (Sannin otoko no shototsu)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZNAHcMMOHE8
A Trip to the Moon (Le Voyage dans la lune) 1902
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MhC4ESwuPPI
All Quiet on the Western Front1930
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1dgLEDdFddk
Arrival of a Train (Arrivéedue train à La Ciotat) 1985
Ball of Fire (1942) Howard HawksintoA Song Is Born (1948) Hawks
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXFhMXmABfg
Bend of the River
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A1HaEQ6CZII
Blue Angel, The 1931German Joseph von Sternberg
Clear Skies Avenge (Tenhare adauchi)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Oeq47VQoQs
Dishounered 1931
Fire-Bug, The 1905
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FoLxNeBI6BM
Great Train Robbery, The 1903
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FYum7hczQiI
Hero of Liao Yang, The
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TdovPrwATnU
In the Realm of the Senses (1976)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t_ueqCTuR6w
Jack and the Beanstalk1902
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9v4DrYNNHlo
Jazz Singer, The
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zgc-4AOE4IQ
Judge Priest (1934) into The Sun Shines Bright (1953) John Ford
L’Amour 1933
La petite Lise 1930
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZTY0_GZitI
La Strada 1954 Fellini
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWZr7wDu_zE
La Vie de Moise
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fn6JdpmW6Y
Lady in the Lake1946
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NzPnjndCoy0
Lady and the Gent, The 1932
Law of the Newly Invented 20th-Century Puck (Niju seiki shinhatsumei pukku o hakurai kuinige no ho)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9iGos7nDTLs
Lonsdale Operator, TheD. W. Griffith 1911
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tDWBGM7Gs30
Love Parade, The
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GX_w0EKj2mA
Man from Laramie, The
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ji7rWVvvY0M
Man’s Castle 1933
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnPXRPyHdIQ
Marriage Circle (1924)Lubitsch
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iHlLg0f_Z5k
Man Who Knew Too Much, The(1934, 1956) Hitchcock
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u80OARwTRBw
Morocco 1931
Morphology of the Folk Tale
Mythologiques
Napoleonic Epic, The (L’Epopée napoleonienne)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCNpXw6fzoc
Passion Play Pathé
Quatorze juillet 1932
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W-Jn2vieXdA
Ride Lonesome
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zf4wUmBM6gk
Sous les toits de Paris 1930
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kpKrvkussjw
Seventh Seal, The 1956Bergman
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z9zh4a30Lm0
Seven Men from Now
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H7yoyhtxuX8
Tall T, The
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mt672NhZRi4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqlUqWH17AI
Three Bad Men (1926) reworked into Three Godfathers 1926)
True State of Parisian Coeds’ Depravity, The (Danjo gakuseidaraku no shinso)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cOWAfMbs4Zc
Under the Roofs of Paris (Sous les toits de Paris) 1930
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1UGTMOHZHjc
Winchester ’73
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2aYk728etYg
Zigomar 1911
Therese O'Leary 
WOW! I love it!! You have some great pictures and having the temple or location name right on the image is wonderful tool!
Thanks for sharing and have a wonderful trip to Mongolia! Mary
May 18, 2012 at 9:23 PM
Hi Mary,
Pleased you liked the pictures from our trip, it was a great group and a trip with lots of happy memories. I wish it could have been longer. Mongolia was amazing and a completely different experience from Japan. I loved the Gobi desert, the wide open spaces and being part of their culture for a short time. I experienced and learn’t so much about a country and its people that we do not hear or see very much about. I have put some photos and drawings with some information about the trip by clicking here or under ‘travel>asia>mongolia’. Enjoy.
Cheers,
Therese
October 22, 2012 at 11:09 PM
Hi Therese,
Great photos…hmmm… wonderful memories of an excellent trip with a great group of like minded people. Laurel’s paintings are superb. Many thanks for alerting me to your website. What creative extended family and friends you have! Cheers Jan
http://www.womensvirtualwalkingclub.com/
December 24, 2012 at 11:56 AM
Hi Therese ! beautiful, I love it.
Leo & Sabina
December 24, 2012 at 3:44 PM
Hi Therese,
Our trips to Canberra’s flower show (Floriade), all around Tasmania and Japan have been all great in themselves, yet different in content. Hilary, Me and Mum. Dec 25.12.12 at 4:08 PM.
December 25, 2012 at 5:11 PM
Hi Mum,
Yes and where to next?
Love,
Therese
December 30, 2012 at 2:21 AM
Hi Therese,
Stunning pictures .. I’m always in awe of the beauty and tranquility emanating from Japanese gardens. Your trip must have been rewarding, it seems you packed a lot of sights into it!
Thanks for sharing your experiences.
Brigitte from Paris
December 29, 2012 at 11:10 PM
Hi Brigitte,
Yes, everywhere we went there was something amazing to look at and experiencing. So much to take in, in such a short amount of time. Having a great group of fellow travellers certainly was a big part of it. Destination Management did a wonderful job looking after every detail and making sure our trip included as much as we could manage and I think everyone wanted more. Mum has done several trips with them and I can only imagine what the spring and winter might be like. Laurel, who did the paintings is doing another trip with them and I cannot wait to see her paintings. Japan might be a nice change from Paris.
Therese
http://www.toursgallery.com/index.htm
December 30, 2012 at 2:18 AM
Yes, a nice change from Paris would be welcome, especially in winter…
Enjoy the summer months, Therese, Australia is a great place to be!
Brigitte
December 30, 2012 at 2:40 AM
Hi Therese,
Nice presentation of the photos you took on our Japan Tour. If anyone wants to see more photos we have more and different photos on our 2 facebook sites. Toursgallery … and Toursgallery Destination Management. My first day back in Australia today after leading our latest Christmas in Burma Tour.
Cheers,
Ken
Destination Management
Small Group Escorted Tours since 1983
facebook
http://www.facebook.com/Toursgallery
http://www.facebook.com/Toursgallery.Destination.Management
web
http://www.toursgallery.com/
http://www.small-group-travel.com/
youtube
http://www.youtube.com/DestMgt
January 1, 2013 at 1:47 PM
Chris and Laurel have been back to Japan, I found their photo on one of Ken’s newsletters, facebook link. No secrets anymore.
It was a small group of 10 and I understand our group was the best. I loved that bit, I enjoyed our group too. Some comments from Laurel’s eamil
“This trip was an indepth immersion into Japanese “things” so we experienced an amazing Bonsai garden, a fabulous glass museum at Hakone (apparently there are lots of amazing little museums at Hakone and this one was Venetian glass), a stunning Kimono museum that featured the work in Shibori of one man, an amazing Begonia greenhouse (it must have covered over an acre or two, and included an owl breeding facility with about 50 different owls from all over the world) and lots of beautiful views including Mount Fuji and Cherry Blossoms. While the Cherry Blossoms were stunning, as Hillary had said, I think I prefer some of the Autumn scenes. But maybe that’s a toss-up. ”
“Ken and Mayumi were wonderful guides, as usual.” ” We did see snow on Cherry blossoms as the weather turned quite cold at one point. You’ll notice that we all had on lots of layers in the photo.”
“We were in Kyoto for 4 days before the tour began and we stayed at the Rihga Royal Hotel during that time. We went back to a few places we had been to before and tried some new ones. We both like Heian and Tenryuji and wanted to see them at a different time of year. We visited Myoshin Shrine and saw weeping cherry trees there, and there were only a few other people. Very delightful. That must be why I planted 2 weeping cherry trees when we got back. The deer have trimmed one so it no longer weeps and I’ll have to see if it recovers. We also spent 4 extra days in Tokyo. Saw some museums and temples but it is such a big city that it would take years to see everything.”
I think this link will work to find the photos on Ken’s Destination Management facebook page, Great photo.
June 20, 2013 at 9:28 PM
From Therese re “samurai schoolboys”:
I thought your poem might be a Haiku and was chatting with Mum about it. I have updated the web credit with your poem being a Senryuu, hope that is right.
From Margaret:
I would defer to Hilary on all such matters. My word pictures were a way of capturing images and emotions while we were travelling – more vivid and personal in a way than photos. The 5-7-5 structure is a discipline to shape words; I don’t strictly follow the haiku ideals.
One evening in Kyoto, exploring with Yevgeny, he took me to a beautiful square temple in a courtyard, not far from the main shopping street, but almost deserted. Two tiers of white lanterns were hung around the perimeter. It was breathtakingly simple. But when I turned around, a crescent moon was just about to sink into the silhouette of a pine tree.
silver crescent moon
lying on a bed of pines
but lying to me
Maybe closer to haiku form, but still personal: a dear friend who had grown up in Hungary, with a classical education, had been taught, in Latin, the “the moon lies” because when it looks like a C in the sky it was in fact waning, or decrescendo; when it looks like a D it was waxing, or crescendo, so the moon lies. Akos was delighted to find when he came to Australia that the moon didn’t lie! Waxing moons have a C shape in the southern hemisphere.
But here in Kyoto, I was seeing a moon that was “lying” to me, and couldn’t resist the double meaning. I didn’t have my camera with me
that night, but the image is so firmly fixed in my memory – words and image melded. Do the words evoke an image in your mind? Or does it require the visual experience first?
January 23, 2014 at 9:17 PM
Hi Therese,
Margaret seems to have a wonderful knack for capturing the moment. Great!
Its a lovely thought, about the moon so I could not resist adding this phrase from Chinese poet Yu Liangshi. “When I scoop up the water, I hold the moon in my hands It was on a sign outside a tea house we visited dd 1745.
Following is my effort. I’ve sent the photo to you by email; as suggesed
Cautious strangers meet
Gold gingko leaves drifting by
Touch departing friends.
Cheers Jan
January 28, 2014 at 4:06 PM
_____
From: a & m king [mailto:margarth@netspace.net.au] Sent: Tuesday, 28 January 2014 10:08 PM To: ‘Therese O’Leary’ Subject: RE: [New comment] Japan
You are the catalyst for sharing memories with friends! Great images from Jan.
42 degrees here today, so not much mental reserves left always hoping for the cool change so we can sleep and recover.
M
_____
January 30, 2014 at 10:28 PM
Aileen Wood was on our trip in 2011, she is dedicated to the identification of cultivated plants and has a plant named after her in recognition of work. It is the Eremophila woodier, a desert shrub. When I googled it I found this info:
Eremophila, family Scrophulariaceae
The genus Eremophila is endemic to Australia and has over 200 species occurring across the landscape. The new species, Eremophila woodiae, is a small resinous shrub with densely crowded linear leaves and purple tubular flowers. It is endemic to a small area in western central Queensland, but is locally common. Described by Mark Edginton and named in honour of Aileen Wood.
and this web site
https://www.qld.gov.au/environment/plants-animals/plants/new-plants/
Fantastic and well done.
December 26, 2015 at 12:01 PM