Japan and Japanese

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Ever notice that the most outspoken feminists are ones who most likely were never asked out on a date?
 
It is off topic (which is Japan and Japanese) but an interesting read on the current subtopic written by an American woman who was a fashion designer from a privileged background pre ww2, worked in a Wright aero engine factory during the war, and was a victim of McCarthyism post war.

The book is called Why women cry : wenches with wrenches and is a very interesting read. The preceding chapter is called Gentlewomen and not-so-gentlewomen


 
"Town to block Mount Fuji view from troublesome tourists.

A huge black barrier to block Mount Fuji from view will be installed in a popular photo spot by Japanese authorities exasperated by crowds of badly behaved foreign tourists.

Construction of the mesh net -- 2.5 meters high and the length of a cricket pitch at 20 meters -- will begin as early as this week, an official from Fujikawaguchiko town in Yamanashi Prefecture said.

"It's regrettable we have to do this, because of some tourists who can't respect rules," leaving litter behind and ignoring traffic regulations, he told AFP.

It is the latest direct action in Japan against overtourism after residents of Kyoto's geisha district banned visitors from small private alleys this year......"

If this was Osaka or Tokyo, exclusive space for such tourists would be provided soon as the overtourism is a rare good business chance. I have suggested the town to have a large camera stage donated by LAWSON - one of the largest convenience store chains in Japan.


 
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Very regrettable to punish all for the actions of some.

You have bad tourists everywhere. I remember watching Japanese tourists from a tour group actually climb into an oven at a WW2 concentration camp to take pictures of themselves in the ovens. I don't judge all Japanese because of the actions of these few idiots, and we don't ban them from coming or restrict their views. Point simply is, a few bad apples don't paint the picture of the majority.
 
Build it and charge admission!
 
Osaka people may be optimistic about the safety.
Seriously, on March 28, there was a gas explosion accident at the construction site for Osaka Expo which is scheduled in next year.

"The Japan International Exposition Association (Expo Association) announced that the explosion accident that occurred during the venue construction for the 2025 Osaka-Kansai Expo was due to the failure to measure the gas concentration before work.....The accident occurred on March 28th when a spark from welding work ignited gas and caused damage to a part of the concrete floor near an outdoor event plaza toilet."

A crucial point which media did not tell in details is that unmeasurable amount of methane gas that caused the accident this time due to the landfill made decades ago exists underground. I believe the association minds this but looks trying to ignore because of their tight construction schedule. Please take care.

Expo 2025 venue image

 
This is a little bit academic topic.

A historical mystery of Japan "Where was the ancient country "Yamatai-koku (Yamatai-country)" which is said in ancient China's documents ruled by Empress Himiko, in Kyushu or in Nara?" may have been solved by a young Japanese historian Yuichiro Makurazaki recently.

He concludes in his report "Japanese people have been reading 邪馬台 as YAMATAI without doubts for centuries but this was pronounced YAMATO in ancient China."
If this is true, Yamatai-koku is the original state of Japan located in Nara. This looks too simple to be noticed for centuries certainly.


Empress Himiko

 
So, where is Empress Himiko's grave?
This Tomio Maruyama burial mound in Nara is thought one of the possibilities as Chinese shield-shaped bronze mirrors and a massive ceremonial sword were discovered.

5-meter wooden coffin buried in fourth century unveiled in Nara



Mirrors



Sword

 
There are swords that size available still for training and sparring, called a Montante. They are large and heavy - you have to lift the handle with both hands, kick the blade up with your right foot and swing it over your shoulder, ready for one big sweep. Rarely would you get the chance to do it twice in battle, so according to my Sword Instructor, the man wielding it was the highest paid soldier, as he had the shortest life expectancy. Apparently they would wear colourful or decorative clothing too, the only man allowed to do so. He would be in the front rank, for obvious reasons, and make one big sweep, the aim being to take out as many of the enemy as possible in one go, and clear a space for his fellow soldiers to swarm into. Pretty amazing stuff.
 

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