One of the most popular souvenirs for boys from Japan is Samurai Sword.
If it is not a genuine sword, you can take it home when it is packed in your check-in luggage (not in your carry-on luggage).
When it comes to a genuine sword, you need to get an official permit for export.
Currently you can export them to the U.S. and most European countries with a permit, but cannot do so to China and Korea.
Hararie
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The team, nicknamed Nadeshiko Japan, received the "National Honor Award," which recognizes those "whose distinguished accomplishments have brought the light of hope to society," according to the Prime Minister's Office.
The Japan women's national soccer team, or Nadeshiko Japan (なでしこジャパン), is a selection of the best female players in Japan and is run by the Japan Football Association (JFA).
Japan defeated the U.S. in the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup Final in a penalty shootout, becoming the first Asian team to win the FIFA Women's World Cup.
The etymology of "Nadeshiko(なでしこ/撫子)" is "Yamato Nadeshiko(やまとなでしこ/大和撫子)".
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Yamato Nadeshiko (やまとなでしこ/大和撫) is a Japanese term meaning "personification of an idealized Japanese woman", "ideal" in the historical context of the patriarchal, traditional culture of Japan.
This floral metaphor, combining Yamato, an ancient name for Japan and nadeshiko "Dianthus superbus, large pink", or frilled pink carnation, literally translated as "Japanese Dianthus".
So, "Nadeshiko" is a Japanese woman (with all the traditional graces), or an ideal Japanese woman, and it is a figure of speech for the beauty of Japanese women who are neat and tidy.
In Japan, women's soccer has never been popular, and oftentimes attendances at games have been lower than 1,000 people.
Very few of the members have pro contracts.
Sponsorship was not worth the cost in terms of raising company profiles.
Many scrape by on part-time jobs.
When the national team was preparing for the World Cup they start practice until after 7 every night, because most of the members had part-time jobs during the day at convenience stores and other small businesses.
Many stalwarts of the national team who played central roles in Germany, including captain Homare Sawa, have suffered from the league's financial hardships.
Their salary there is "very small."
Nadeshiko Japan was winning in spite of their meager remuneration.
Nadeshiko Japan players do receive small daily stipends and will get bonuses for their victories.
Yet the monetary rewards are modest -- only 1.5 million yen each for winning the World Cup.
If you watched the Women's World Cup soccer tournament held in Germany in July, you probably remember at least one of the brilliant Japanese players.
Her name is "Homare Sawa" － she scored five goals during the tournament, and was awarded the Golden Ball as the tournament's best player.
Sawa was born in Tokyo in 1978.
She practiced hard among other boy players, and joined a team in the women's soccer league soon after entering junior high.
Ever since then, Sawa has been making a lot of effort not only to improve her own game, but also to make women's soccer more popular.
From 1999 to 2004, Sawa played in the U.S., where women's soccer is much more popular than it is in Japan.
In one interview, she said she was "jealous" to see how well-established women's soccer was in the U.S.
Now that Japan has won the Women's World Cup for the first time in its history, the popularity of women's soccer in Japan is bigger than ever.
A lot of media reporters and fans have been chasing the players, and Sawa has decided to move house for reasons of security and privacy.
Still, she has been trying to do as many media interviews as possible to make sure that this popularity is long-lasting and not just a flash in the pan.
When the boom is over , if there are still a lot of people who remain fans of women's soccer, then Sawa will truly be able to enjoy the pleasure of victory.
And, I think given what these women have done for Japan, not to mention the Japanese media, they deserve to be paid big money.
Hararie
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Fukushima nuclear accident due to Japanese huge earthquake.
A preliminary analysis suggests that a fire inside the unit 4 reactor building at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant may have been sparked by hydrogen gas from unit 3, Nature News has learned.
The new findings contradict previous reports of serious fuel damage at the unit 4 reactor and may mean that clean up of its fuel will be less difficult than previously feared.
A common ventilation system shared by the two reactors could have allowed explosive hydrogen gas to seep from unit 3 to unit 4, a new analysis from the Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) concludes.
The work is preliminary and could still turn out to be wrong, the company emphasized in a note to industry insiders seen by Nature.
But it could explain why fuel inside unit 4 appears mostly intact, contrary to early reports of heavy damage.
Shortly after a massive earthquake and tsunami on 11 March, three operating reactors at Fukushima Daiichi found themselves in serious trouble.
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The tsunami knocked out the unit 1, 2, and 3 reactors' backup cooling systems, causing their nuclear fuel to heat up and melt.
As it did so, it released volatile hydrogen gas, which built up inside the reactors.
When the gas was vented to relieve the pressure, it triggered a series of massive explosions that destroyed their outer buildings.
Masataka Shimizu, the president of Tokyo Electric Power Co., stepped down Friday amid spiraling financial losses related to the ongoing nuclear crisis at the crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi power plant.
Shimizu's resignation was widely expected, and it came on the same day the utility, commonly known as TEPCO, reported the biggest losses in the history of the company.
"[The Fukushima crises] has caused a caused a considerable amount of anxiety and burdened the public tremendously," Shimizu told reporters.
"Considering those factors, I must take responsibility.
It's important to draw a line, right now."
In Chernobyl accident (April 26, 1986), all children in Kiev in Ukraine that was the capital were protected from May to September in the rest home in old Soviet various places.
Japanese Government should protect all pregnant women and children who live in the radioactivity radiation exposure region.
The soil of Fukushima Prefecture of the school in Fukushima City and Koriyama City is exposed to radiation.
Japanese Government has raised an radiation exposure amount standard value to "It is 20 millisieverts year".
Japanese Government has been severely criticized from not only Japan but also the world.
How stupid Japanese politicians are.
"A standard value 20 millisieverts" is "General public reference level after the state of emergency convergence" provided by International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP).
It is a standard value for the adult, and is very high amount of radiation exposure for children.
The president of Tokyo Electric (9501.T) had asked the government earlier on Tuesday to help shoulder a compensation bill for the nuclear crisis that is expected to run into tens of billions of dollars.
so...Japanese Government will increase taxes.
Tokyo Electric said, "Our fundraising situation is extremely difficult,""If this situation continues ... sooner or later we will not be able to secure enough funds, potentially affecting not only fair and timely compensation payments for victims but also the stable supply of electricity."
Sooner or later...electricity prices will be raised.
"What does Japanese Government think?"
"When does Japanese Government help the earthquake victims?"
Almost all Japanese think so.
We are suffering from stupid Japanese Government and stupid Tokyo Electric.
Japanese earthquake damage for as of May 21, 2011
The dead: About 15,000 people
Missing persons: About 9,000 people
Evacuees: About 200,000 people
Hararie
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The massive earthquake of maximum magnitude 9.0 occurred in the Pacific Ocean coast in Tohoku in the history of the observation in Japan on March 11, 2011.
A very intense shake of seven in the seismic intensity was observed in Miyagi Prefecture, and the tsunami was observed in various places in the Pacific Ocean coast.
Hararie
]]>The tsunami is terrible.
The death toll soared.
The tsunami is terrible.
Big aftershock, frequent occurrence.
Fukushima nuclear plant: Reactor core: Melt: a radiation leak
Hararie
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There is a special Valentine's Day custom in Japan --- women give men chocolate to show their affection.
However, this is a custom that smart chocolate companies spread to boost their sales, and it has been very successful.
Now the chocolate companies in Japan sell more than half of their annual sales during the week before Valentine's Day.
While honmei choco; 本命チョコ (=chocolate for the favorite) is given to someone very special, giri choco; 義理チョコ (=obligation chocolate) is usually given to your male family members, classmates, co-workers and so on from a sense of obligation.
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However, there has been more variety in the categories of Valentine's chocolates in the last few years.
We now see tomo choco; 友チョコ (=chocolate for friends), which is exchanged between female friends, and my choco; マイチョコ (=chocolate for myself), which women buy as a treat for themselves.
These new concepts came out of campaigns by confectionery makers, who were hoping to increase sales of chocolates.
And in 2009, a leading confectionery maker, Morinaga, introduced a totally new concept of chocolate that might shake the foundation of the Japanese Valentine's Day custom.
And in 2009, a leading confectionery maker, Morinaga, introduced a totally new concept of chocolate that might shake the foundation of the Japanese Valentine's Day custom.
It is called gyaku choco; 逆チョコ (=opposite chocolate), which is given by men to women.
According to Morinaga's research in 2008 on about 600 women in their 20's and 30's, about 90 percent of them said they would like to receive chocolates from men.
By the way, the sales of chocolates decrease in the years when Valentine's Day is on a weekend, because schools and offices are closed and so women don't have to give giri choco to their classmates or co-workers.
Will men buy chocolates also this year and help the confectionery makers with their sales?
Maybe in a few years, Valentine's Day will be a day when men give chocolates to women --- who knows?
Hararie
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In Japan, there are not only baths in the home but also SENTOU, or communal bathhouses.
SENTOU is a type of Japanese communal bath house where customers pay for entrance.
Users pay fees for entrance(called bandai; 番台).
The owner of SENTO or his family receives the fees at Bandai.
The SENTOU fee in Tokyo is 450yen(about 5.3dollars) in 2011.
"Sen(洗)" of sento means fee, and "Tou(湯)" of sento means hot water.
And each SENTOU has two big rooms that separate men and women.
Traditionally these bath houses have been quite utilitarian, with one large room separating the sexes by a tall barrier, and on both sides, usually a minimum of lined up faucets and a single large bath for the already washed bathers to sit in among others. (Sentou's Layout: Borrowed from Wikipedia)
And you can see the inside of SENTOU on this web page.
People are required to wash themselves first, and then they can bathe in a big bathtub to relax and sometimes communicate with other bathers.
Some Japanese find social importance in going to public baths, out of the theory that physical proximity/intimacy brings emotional intimacy, which is termed skin-ship(=Physical contact) in Japanese.
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Bathing in Japan is said to have originated in the Nara period, or during the 8th century.
Buddhist teachings said that bathing could expel evil and bring in happiness, so some temples had bathing rooms for people to bathe themselves.
The very first communal baths are said to have emerged during the 12th century, and from then on they grew more and more popular.
By the 18th century, SENTOUs were loved by people as places not only for bathing but also as places for communicating with others.
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Then during the 20th century, SENTOUs were modernized and some SENTOUs began to have saunas, bubble baths, massage services, and so on.
However, at the same time, home baths rapidly became popular and fewer people had need for SENTOUs.
In Tokyo, there were about 2,700 SENTOUs at the most in 1968, but as of 2009, there are only 900 SENTOUs left.
While some traditional SENTOUs have had to close, other SENTOUs are trying to preserve the SENTOU culture as well as do something new to bring in more customers.
Some SENTOUs produce their own, design-conscious bathing goods, while others make the most of their "venues" and host events such as rakugo (traditional Japanese comic monologue performances), small concerts or yoga lessons.
Although the SENTOU may be changing its form a little, it may always remain a place for people to meet and communicate with others.
Hararie
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"お年玉(otoshidama)" is a Japanese custom in which adults give children money over the New Year's holiday.
At the New Year, Japanese kids have been enjoying looking at their purses or bank accounts.
It is because they temporarily become rich at the New Year of every year.
Otoshidama, or gift money, is one of the New Year's traditions of Japan, which makes children all excited right after Christmas is over.
During New Year, they get money from adults, usually their parents, relatives or neighbors.
Otoshidama is given when people visit friends, neighbors, and relatives between January 1-3.
Bills are folded into three sections and put into small envelopes, then handed to the children of close friends and relatives.
* That special small envelopes is called "ポチ袋(pochi-bukuro) or お年玉袋(otoshidama-bukuro)" in Japan.
Children usually receive otoshidama until they finish high school, though it is not uncommon for university students to get money these.
And, it's a wonderful tradition for children; maybe not so wonderful for adults.
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According to the research done by Bandainamcogames(Japanese toy manufacturer), an average child got 25,606 yen (about US$300) this year(2011).
While most of the children answered they wanted to buy either video games or clothes, 68.1 percent of them said they would actually deposit the money into their bank accounts.
Maybe their parents have taught them what it's like when a bubble bursts.
Otoshidama money is enclosed in a special small envelope(they are called pochi-bukuro or otoshidama-bukuro), so children don't get to know how much money is in there until they're finally released from the boring family gathering and rush to their rooms.
It can be difficult for adults to decide how much money they should give each child they don't want to spoil them by giving them too much, while they also don't want to be considered stingy by giving them too little.
Parents also need to know how much and from whom their children get money in order to say thank you afterwards.
But most children start to worry when they hear their parents saying "How much did you get?"
But most children start to worry when they hear their parents saying "How much did you get?"because it may be followed by "Oh, you got a lot! I'll save the money in your bank account so that you'll be able to use it when you get older.
"Now, Give Me The Money!"
If you ask your Japanese friends, most of them will probably tell you the story about the mysterious, secret bank account, hidden or completely vanished, to be more accurate forever.
So, Japanese children learn the most important thing about life when they're still young "Life is full of ups and downs."
The way to fold like this Japan's bills is popular though the bills used for Otoshidama is folded to three sections usually.
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Hararie
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"成人式(Seijinshiki)" is a Japanese annual event.
It is dedicated to the nation's young people who have reached the age of 20.
The second Monday of January, Japanese people attain legal maturity at age 20, and after that, they are eligible to vote.
(The holiday used to be on January 15, but in 2000 it was moved to the second Monday of the month.)
Coming of age day is observed as a national holiday, and municipal governments celebrate coming of age day for 20 year olds on this day.
(In current practice, some of those attending the coming of age ceremony are actually only 19 years old; attendees are those whose 20th birthday falls between April 2 of the previous year and April 1 of the current year.)
Festivities include coming of age ceremonies (seijin-shiki?) held at local and prefectural offices, as well as after-parties amongst family and friends.
As styles of ceremonies are different from region to region, it is common for 20-year-olds dressed in formal outfits including many women in gorgeous kimono called "furisode" to attend it.
(Japanese women wear "Kimono" on such special occasions as social events, ceremonies, and traditional events.)
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Japanese men wear Kimono that is called "Haori-Hakam", or they wear the usual business suits.
"Haori-Hakam" is Kimono style for the man in Japanese Samurai(Bushi) age.
"Seijinshiki" is a very joyous and wonderful traditional Japanese event for the people of coming-of-age and their families.
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Genpuku(元服): a ceremony to celebrate one's coming of age in old Japan |
Seijinshiki comes from an ancient ceremony of "元服(genpuku)".
It was a ceremony where young people changed their formal outfits of children into those of adults, to start being treated as adults.
In the past, this ceremony was held when young people were approved to be grown up and to have attained maturity both in body and mind conditions, and it seems that the age wasn't exactly stipulated.
Around the 16th century, warriors changed the ceremony into "元服式(genpuku-shiki)".
It was carried out it in a style that people of coming-of-age had their forelock cut, and this indicated that they became adults.
Later, this ceremony was widespread among common people and farmers, and lasted until the end of the Edo period.
Such is an origin of "成人式(Seijinshiki)"
Early in the morning, Japanese women who participate in Seijinshiki go to the beauty parlor.
They set the hair there, make up, and wear the Kimono.
To end all the processes, it is necessary for about four hours.
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On seijinshiki day, almost all Japanese women take a picture of the souvenir picture in the photograph studio.
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The event is celebrated all across Japan with the new adults being felicitated by the local government.
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| The ceremony is commonly known as 成人式;Seijin Shiki (adult ceremony). |
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The youths of different localities are invited by the local administrations and are handed over few gifts along with the prestige of being a Japanese adult. Thus making them more responsible for the country. |
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The ceremonies are presided by the head of the local administration.
Though most 20 year olds attend the ceremonies, which usually include speeches etc, in recent years the generation gap has been creating some disturbances.
These have ranged from talking on cellphones to letting off fireworks during the speeches, and heckling the mayor or guest speaker.
Some local governments have responded by shortening the speeches and making the ceremony more fun (in some cases including entertainment and even bingo games and karaoke).
Japanese young people's senses are like a child.
I think that Japanese adults should preach them "Adult's definition and morality".
Hararie
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賽銭(saisen) is a type of offering to Japanese god(shinto), originally given on the occasion of a visit of gratitude for the fulfillment of a prayer.
We(Japanese people) offer money to the gods as a token of our joy and gratitude for the realization of our wishes or to express our faith and respect.
By offering money we express our respect to the gods with no expectations.
This kind of money is called "賽銭(Saisen)" or "お賽銭(Osaisen)" in Japan.
Saisen has the meaning of a monetary gift of prayer or reverence at temples and shrines.
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With the development of a monetary economy, we came to scatter money though in the old religious festival, we scattered grains of rice on the ground.
Many of Saisen is thrown in in "賽銭箱;Saisen Bako(Shinto coin box)" put in front of the Shinto shrine and the buddhist temple in Japan.
And worshipers at a shrine may ring a bell before depositing their coins and praying.
Saisen is typically offered by individuals on the occasion of irregular visits for the purpose of making personal entreaties to the Japanese god.
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And the offerings at New Years shrine visits (hatsumo-de) alone amount to a considerable sum.
It is because the Japanese dedicates the amount of money for the entreaty of one year to Saisen box.
(Many of Saisen of Japan in the New Year is a large bill.)
Video: Saisen total in Shinto Shinto shrine
Saisen bako(賽銭箱) is the vintage small size wooden religious collection box in Japan.
Boxes such as these are found at the entrance of nearly every Buddhist temple or Shinto shrine in Japan.
The same type of saisen box is used in Japan for both temples and shrines.
The worshipper bows twice, claps his or her hands twice and then bows again before offering a prayer. (They may ring a bell before praying)
And they throw a few coins into the saisenbako.}
Video: How to worship at a shrine
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神社(jinja); Shinto shrine for Shinto |
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神社(jinja); Shinto shrine for Shinto |
Japan has the main two religions.
The one is "Buddhism."
And, the other is "Shinto."
Shinto is often considered to be the native religion of Japan, and is as old as Japan itself.
The name Shinto means "The way of the gods", and Shinto gods are called "神様(Kami-sama)".
A video a little while ago is the visit to a shrine visit to a shrine manners of the Shintoism temple.
Shinto is a pantheistic religion.
There are thousands of Shintoism temples in Japan everywhere.
There is another usage in each religion.
To put it briefly, the Buddhism is "Postmortem religion", Shinto is "Entreaty religion."
Hararie
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The Japanese have a custom of sending New Year's Day postcards to their friends and relatives, similar to the Western custom of sending Christmas cards.
The postcard is called "Nengajou(年賀状)" or "Nenga Hagaki(年賀はがき)" in Japan.
In Japan, starting from mid-December, everybody starts sending Nengajo, New Year postcards for friends, relatives and colleagues.
Their original purpose was to give your faraway friends and relatives tidings of yourself and your immediate family.
In other words, this custom existed for people to tell others whom they did not often meet that they were alive and well.
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| General Japanese postcard |
New year Nengajou |
Japanese people send these postcards so that they arrive on the 1st of January.
And, Nengajo is posted on time (usually before December 25th), the Japan Post guarantees the delivery on time.
Japanese Nengajou1 has special externals for that.
The end of December and the beginning of January are the busiest times for the Japanese post offices.
To deliver these cards on time, the post office usually hires students part-time to help deliver the letters.
It is customary not to send these postcards when one has had a death in the family during the year.
There is also a lucky draw number at the bottom of each Nengajou.
You might get lucky and win prizes, so the more Nengajou you receive, the higher your chances will be.
Though it is said that the chances of winning the Nengajou draw is slimmer than the lottery.
The Nengajou is called "Otoshidama tsuki Nenga Hagaki; お年玉付き年賀はがき" in Japan.
The prizes are all goods.
The Nengajou prize in 2011 is "LCD TV, traveling abroad, notebook computer, digital camera, and inkjet printer set, electric bike, and digital camera, etc.".
People get their nengajo- from many sources.Most of these have the Chinese zodiac sign of the New Year as their design, or conventional greetings, or both.
The Chinese zodiac has a cycle of 12 years.
Each year is represented by an animal.
It is called "Juunishi; 十二支(Twelve zodiacal signs)".
The animals are, in order: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, sheep, monkey, rooster, dog, and boar. 2006 was the year of the dog, 2007 was the year of the boar, 2008 was the year of the rat, 2009 was the year of the ox, 2010 is the year of the tiger, and 2011 is the year of the rabbit.
For 2006, famous dogs like Snoopy and other cartoon characters were especially popular. For 2008, Mickey Mouse and Minnie Mouse were popular.
The postcards may have spaces for the sender to write a personal message.
Blank cards are available, so people can hand-write or draw their own.
Rubber stamps with conventional messages and with the annual animal are on sale at department stores and other outlets, and many people buy ink brushes for personal greetings.
Special printing devices are popular, especially among people who practice crafts.
Software also lets artists create their own designs and output them using their computer's color printer. Because a gregarious individual might have hundreds to write, print shops offer a wide variety of sample postcards with short messages so that the sender has only to write addresses.
Even with the rise in popularity of email, the nengajo- remains very popular in Japan.
However, young people in Japan like greeting by the cellular phone more than Nengajou.
Hararie
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福袋(fukubukuro) is a Japanese New Year's Day custom where merchants make grab bags filled with unknown random contents and sell them for a substantial discount, usually 50% or more off the list price of the items contained within.
In Japan, New Year is celebrated on a much bigger scale than Christmas.
While many stores stay open on Christmas Day, almost all stores are closed during the first three days of New Year.
However, these days it is also quite common for department stores and other large retail stores to open from January 2.
Many people flock to the huge sales and also to the "fukubukuro," or "happy bags."
Fukubukuro are one of the most typical features of the Japanese New Year.
*The term is formed from Japanese 福;fuku(good fortune/luck) and 袋;fukuro(bag).
(The change of fukuro to bukuro is the phenomenon known as Rendaku.)
As the name indicates, they are bags (usually paper) that contain several items inside.
The items are usually much more valuable than the price of each fukubukuro (ex: 10,000 yen fukubukuro may contain items that are worth 30,000 yen), so, fukubukuro are considered to be a "good deal."
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Fukubukuro usually are snapped up quickly by eager customers, with some stores having long lines snake around city blocks hours before the store opens on New Year's Day.
Many stores and brands sell fukubukuro nowadays.
The most popular ones are the fukubukuro of trendy fashion brands, with the price around 5,000-20,000 yen (about 40-170 dollars).
At Shibuya 109, the most famous fashion complex in Japan, about 40,000 people form a line in order to buy fukubukuro every year.
Department stores also sell special fukubukuro that are super-expensive or very unique.
For example this year, Mitsukoshi sells a 2.8 million yen (about 33,000 dollars) fukubukuro that contained a Ryoma Sakamoto's solid gold statue.
By the way, these fukubukuro are sealed firmly so you cannot see what's inside until you buy one.
Does it sound silly to pay for something without knowing what it is?
Well, fukubukuro are not only considered a "good deal," but also something that people try their luck on.
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| Fukubukuro of fashion brands | Fukubukuro of cosmetics brand | Fukubukuro of cake brand |
If you find something good in the bag, it can be a good start to the new year.
If you find something you don't like or you don't need?
Well, remember we live in such a convenient age where you can always go to an Internet auction site and change those items into something more valuable to you "money."
Hararie
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The most popular girl group of the 00s was probably Morning Musume, quite a large group with as many as 16 members at one time.
But now in the 2010s, it seems that the most popular girl group is a much larger group called AKB48.
As the name suggests, AKB48 basically consists of 48 girls, with occasional slight increases or decreases in the number.
AKB48 was launched by the producer and famous songwriter Yasushi Akimoto in 2005.
AKB stands for AKiBa, or Akihabara the town in Tokyo now known as the home of the "otaku" or geek.
The concept of the group is "Idols you can actually go and see," and they even have their own live performance venue in Akihabara.
*AKB48 live performance venue: AKB48劇場(AKB forty eight gekijou) |
]]> What is "AKB48"?
The most popular girl group of the 00s was probably Morning Musume, quite a large group with as many as 16 members at one time.
But now in the 2010s, it seems that the most popular girl group is a much larger group called AKB48.
As the name suggests, AKB48 basically consists of 48 girls, with occasional slight increases or decreases in the number.
AKB48 was launched by the producer and famous songwriter Yasushi Akimoto in 2005.
AKB stands for AKiBa, or Akihabara the town in Tokyo now known as the home of the "otaku" or geek.
The concept of the group is "Idols you can actually go and see," and they even have their own live performance venue in Akihabara.
*AKB48 live performance venue: AKB48劇場(AKB forty eight gekijou) |
One of their unique features is that they're divided into several groups and take turns to give concerts at the venue almost every day.
So, the concept is true you can actually go see them.
Another unique thing about AKB48 is that they face annual elections by fans since 2009.
There's a very strict rule that forbids them from having a boyfriend if they break that rule and it becomes apparent, they'll be kicked out of the group immediately.
In "AKB48 fan balloting" of the second times in this time, 21 members were elected from ""AKB48", "SKE48 that is AKB48's sisters group", and 104 people in "AKB research student"; total".
Ranking |
Name |
Group |
votes |
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1 |
Yuko Oshima (大島優子) | AKB48 | 31448 |
2 |
Atsuko Maeda (前田敦子) | AKB48 | 30851 |
3 |
Mariko Shinoda (篠田麻里子) | AKB48 | 23139 |
4 |
Tomomi Itano (板野知美) | AKB48 | 20513 |
5 |
Mayu Watanabe (渡辺麻友) | AKB48 | 20088 |
6 |
Minami Takahashi (高橋みなみ) | AKB48 | 17787 |
7 |
Haruna Kojima (小嶋陽菜) | AKB48 | 16231 |
8 |
Yuki Kashiwagi (柏木由起) | AKB48 | 15466 |
9 |
Sae Miyazawa (宮澤佐江) | AKB48 | 12560 |
10 |
Jurina Matsui (松井珠理奈) | ＳＫＥ４８ | 12168 |
11 |
Rena Matsui (松井玲奈) | ＳＫＥ４８ | 12082 |
12 |
Tomomi Kasai (河西智美) | AKB48 | 11080 |
13 |
Aki Takajo (高城亜樹) | AKB48 | 11062 |
14 |
Minami Minegishi (峯岸みなみ) | AKB48 | 9692 |
15 |
Rrena Ono (小野恵令奈) | Secession | 9468 |
16 |
Rie Kitahara (北原里英) | AKB48 | 8836 |
17 |
Sayaka Akimoto (秋元才加) | AKB48 | 8049 |
18 |
Amina Sato (佐藤亜美菜) | AKB48 | 6921 |
19 |
Rino sashihara (指原莉乃) | AKB48 | 6704 |
20 |
Haruka Nakagawa (仲川遙香) | AKB48 | 6567 |
21 |
Miho Miyazaki (宮崎美穂) | AKB48 | 6371 |
Many prominent members have left the group in the past couple of years and for a while now, the group consisted of less than 48 members.
Finally, in March this year, there was a large reshuffle between the 3 teams of AKB48.
As a result, many members new members unfamiliar to myself were introduced into the teams.
SKB48: |
AKB48 Secession |
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|---|---|---|---|
|
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 |
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| 10.Jurina Matsui (松井珠理奈) Birth:1997 |
11.Rena Matsui (松井玲奈) Birth:1991 |
15.Rrena Ono (小野恵令奈) Birth:1993 |
|
Hararie
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I introduce an interesting web page about "Bounenkai" that is one of the strange customs of Japan to you.
I explain to you by using the photograph because there is no photograph in that web page.
Bonenkai(忘年会) can be translated literally as "forget-the-year party."
People gather at izakaya (Japanese-style bars) to think back on the past year and hope that the coming year will be a good one.
It may sound like a serious gathering, but most "bonenkai" actually turn out to be occasions to get drunk and party.
As a result of bonenkai, there's another thing we get to see more often in December "yopparai", or drunks.
Many foreigners say "Why do the Japanese have to get so drunk?"
Yes, as this comment shows, it's not rare in Japan to see people who are so terribly drunk that they can't help sleeping on the train back home and missing their stops; then they throw up on a train platform or even in a train (excuse me for having to introduce such a gross topic!); or even sleep over in the street or on a platform until the next morning.
]]> What is Bounenkai?
I introduce an interesting web page about "Bounenkai" that is one of the strange customs of Japan to you.
I explain to you by using the photograph because there is no photograph in that web page.
Bonenkai(忘年会) can be translated literally as "forget-the-year party."
People gather at izakaya (Japanese-style bars) to think back on the past year and hope that the coming year will be a good one.
It may sound like a serious gathering, but most "bonenkai" actually turn out to be occasions to get drunk and party.
As a result of bonenkai, there's another thing we get to see more often in December "yopparai", or drunks.
Many foreigners say "Why do the Japanese have to get so drunk?"
Yes, as this comment shows, it's not rare in Japan to see people who are so terribly drunk that they can't help sleeping on the train back home and missing their stops; then they throw up on a train platform or even in a train (excuse me for having to introduce such a gross topic!); or even sleep over in the street or on a platform until the next morning.
*The photograph is very indistinct because of the individual privacy protection.
Please note that not all Japanese people are like this─only some.
What's interesting about this is that those drunks are not "vagabonds," but are just "ordinary" people.
They may be college students who are enthusiastic in their study; office workers who work faithfully for their company, or even executives of major companies.
And they still sleep on the streets.
Maybe some of those drunks have two personalities and switch to "somebody else" by drinking, just like "Jekyll and Hyde".
But why is it accepted, though not encouraged, in Japanese society to get so drunk that you cause trouble for others?
One reason may be that drinking is widely acknowledged as "something to release one's stress."
As a result of releasing stress, people sometimes say bold things that they usually wouldn't say (e.g. saying "You're wrong!" to your boss), or do stupid things that they usually wouldn't do (e.g. kissing someone you have had a crush on).
Of course, some of them get into big trouble afterwards by those "impetuous" words or actions.
But some others don't, because the words or actions were considered to be done by a "somebody else."
This logic may not sound reasonable, but it may be seen after many drinking occasions.
Anyway, please don't be too astonished if you happen to see those drunks in Japan.
They are just being stupid for a while, but are usually nice and serious people.
Hararie
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