Kansai Scene #156 May 2013

I’m free. Go on, pick me up.

無料 issue 156 May 2013

www.kansaiscene.com

Spring break special Mini-vacations: planning a pilgrimage, holiday at home

Plus+ Takarazuka Revue turns 100 Gold Coast: best summer escape, Koya-san’s new cool

+ Where To Go And What To Do —

Kansai Scene is proudly published and printed by Mojoprint

Local listings, news, maps and classifieds

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Contents Features Pilgrimage: Paths to peace

p08

Hidden wonders of home

p10

Macrobiotics made simple

p30

Travel

© Skye Hohmann

Features

COVER ARTIST: Skye Hohmann

Koya-san, Nara

p30

Gold Coast, Australia

p26

Food and Drink

El Salsa, Kobe

p17

Musubi Cafe, Kyoto

p29

Skye is a travel writer and photographer based in Nagano-ken.

Website: skyehohmann.photoshelter.com

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Made in Kansai

Takarazuka Revue

p14

Listings Film p25 Book p22 Event calendar

p32

Events & Festivals

p34

Art

p38

Club

p40

Live Music

p42

Business Finder

p44

Classifieds p47 Maps p52

kansaiscene

@kansaiscene

Kansai Scene is published monthly by Mojoprint

Enquiries

Publisher/Creative Director...............Daniel Lee Editor.............................................. Carla Avolio Sub-editor................................Donna Sheffield Production Manager..................... Rie Okamoto Accounts Manager......................... Michiko Lee

General mailbox@kansaiscene.com Advertising sales@kansaiscene.com Tel. 06-6539-1717 Fax. 06-7635-4791 Address Osaka-shi, Nishi-ku, Shinmachi 3-5-7, Eiko Bldg. 2F Website www.kansaiscene.com

Art....................................................Colin Smith Event & Festival............................ Yuki Uchibori Film...........................................Donna Sheffield Live music................................. Phillip Jackson Club.................................................Terumi Tsuji

Interested in writing for Kansai Scene? Please contact editor@kansaiscene.com after reviewing our writers guidelines: www.kansaiscene.com/write-for-us

DISCLAIMER Opinions expressed herein are not necessarily endorsed by the publisher. We take no responsibility for the quality or content of advertisements. Public and private parties appproached by those claiming to work for or on behalf of Kansai Scene should call this office to confirm the truth of any such claim, especially where money may be involved.

A bit of history Kansai Scene was founded by Peter Horvath and Nishikawa Keiko in 2000 and published by Jatin Banker between 2003 – 2011. Published monthly, KS provides English articles, information and listings for visitors and residents of the Kansai area.

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

for on the lookout KS is always ents and new newsworthy ev n. und tow openings aro ggestions to Email your su cene.com ais editor@kans

News & Openings

A lot more front Umeda — Good news for shopaholics now there are even more ways to spend your money in Osaka. Located close to the Osaka station building, Grand Front Osaka has opened. As the first of a two phase regeneration project for the Ume-kita area, the new complex, which has 11 floors with 266 stores, features Japan’s first Zara Home store, and western Japan’s first Ron Herman store. Muji, Actus and Keyuca have also pinned their flagship stores here.

Expectations are high for the complex: Hankyu Corporation bosses hope to make forty billion yen and serve 25 million customers in the next year. www.grandfront-osaka.jp

New look by the harbor Kobe — The shopping complex at Kobe Harborland has reopened after a makeover. The new centre is called Umie, and has 225 stores, including H&M, Old Navy and Diseagal, many of which are opening in Kobe for the first time.

Improvements to the building include walkways between the north and south malls and bigger bathrooms. There are also more parking spaces - now 3,000 - and a simplified parking fee structure. umie.jp

Got some news?

All the fun of the festival Nakanoshima — An annual event since 1973, the Nakanoshima Festival will be in town on 3-5 May. It’s perfect for Golden Weeks spent close to home, with three days of fun and games to keep the whole family entertained. There will be a flea market, food stalls, performance stage, movies, rides, and live music spread out across Nakanoshima in various zones.

Access: Yodoyabashi Sta (Midosuji line), Nakanoshima Sta. (Keihan line) www.nakanoshima.net

Get the beers in Namba/Sanjo — Two different craft beer events are being held this month, in Namba and Kyoto.

Spread out along an 800m stretch of the Kyoto Sanjyokai covered arcade, Craft Beer Festa in Kyoto boasts 100 types of beer, selected from 25 domestic brewers. With beers at ¥400 and plenty of food options, this event offers the chance for a light-headed stroll along a quaintly retro Kyoto shopping arcade. It’s on Saturday 11 May, 2pm– 8pm.

Later in the month, the two-day Craft Beer Live event will be held in Namba on Saturday 25th and Sunday 26th. It features 80 different types of local beer, selected from 19 Kansai breweries and costs ¥2,000 for five beer tickets (7oz size). Event times vary between the days: May 25 (Sat) 12pm–8pm • May 26 (Sun) 11am–6pm • Minato River Place Namba: www.tcbn.co.jp/beerfes Kyoto: www.kyoto-beer.com

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

French Connections Business network

The latest news for francophiles in Kansai,

by Stephan Ducoup

The Meish i Swap

International Networking Event

April 17 (We d) @ Wormwood

(Café Absin the B1)

KS — A new networking opportunity for local businesses started up last month, hosted by Kansai Scene.

The Meishi Swap was an informal business networking event held at Wormwood, Cafe Absinthe’s underground club and event space.

Kansai Scene Business Matters events have been launched to help connect our business readers with a range of networking opportunities, presentations and seminars focused on business-related issues in Kansai. Around 40 people joined the first event – a fascinating mix of business owners, entrepreneurs and freelancers of all ages and backgrounds.

If you missed out this time don’t worry – there are more monthly events being planned. The next event is May 21 (Tue) from 7–9pm at Trois Dix in Horie (see review in KS issue 152, January 2013). This issue’s Business Matters interviewee, Peter Sterlacci (see page 7) will be giving a presentation on his unique approach to Personal Branding.

It’s a great opportunity to learn how to promote brand YOU. Event entry is ¥3,000, including 1 drink and pinchos. For more details and to register, see: Time: 8–9p m (doors open Entry: ¥1,00 7:30pm) 0 w/1d

Address: Cafe Absinthe, South-Yo 1-2-27 Kitahorie tsubash Access: Shinsaib, Nishi-Ku, Osaka, Japan, i Bldg.1F, 550-0014. ashi Station exit 7 or Yotsuba shi Station *Business attire exit 6. preferred

Come and help us celeb rate the launc Kansai Scen h of the new e Business Matters group casual netwo rking event at this . Bring your and get swap business cards ping.

facebook.c om/groups/ksb usinessmatters

Bonjour!

Welcome May and the Golden Week! For those who’ve just arrived in Japan, don’t get confused; Golden Week isn’t a new James Bond movie, it simply means big vacations. I know that for most Europeans, big vacations means three weeks in a row off work.

But in Japan, you’re lucky if you get one solid week.

To make the most out of this unusually long holiday, most Japanese usually go traveling around the world in May. But here’s a tip: if you want to take a trip to France without paying the most expensive airfares of the year, then stay at home in Kansai and come to our french parties.

OSAKA: Don’t miss the great French Wine Party, Friday May 3 at Common Cafe - Nakazakicho (www.facebook.com/ francekansai) • French Movie nights at Umeda Skybuilding May 23 and 24 (www.gardencinema.jp/umeda/) KOBE: French meeting at Cafe de Paris - Kitano, Friday 24 May from 7:30pm KYOTO: French Movie night followed by conference at Kyoto Cinema (Cocon Karasuma), Thursday May 18 (www. kyotocinema.jp)

www.kansaiscene.com/ksbusiness-matters

• French Cafe Party on May 24 at KAWA CAFE from 7:30pm

How was your stay?

Osaka — Foreign travellers heading home are being quizzed by the Osaka Tourism Bureau. Staff from the bureau are asking tourists at Kansai International Airport to answer questions about how long they stayed and how much they spent on sightseeing while in Kansai. The information will be used to estimate tourism revenue and set business targets, according to Kunio Kano, head of the bureau.

If you prefer to stay at home, don’t forget to check your new episode of the french japanese web drama PARIS ALEAS on www.parisaleas.com

Flag thief at large Taisho — A nimble, ninja-like thief who loves flags has been targeting schools in the area. Not one, but two Japanese national flags were stolen from schools in April. Sangenyahigashi Elementary School’s flag was on a pole atop the four-story school building. On the same morning the school realised it was missing, another one was pinched from the grounds of Nakaizuo Elementary School.

Sample a French Party this Golden Week

A new group that aims to connect, inform and engage small business owners, entrepreneurs and individuals doing business in Kansai.

Networking opportunities

Presentation & networking event:

Seminars & presentations

with Peter Sterlacci

Parties & events More details and event registration:

Personal Branding May 21, Tue, 7:30–9:30pm @ Trois Dix, Horie ¼3,000 w/1d + pinchos

www.kansaiscene.com/businessmatters

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Business Matters

A question of identity Googling your own name is a bit egotistical, right? Wrong. Knowing your online identity could make or break your business.

Text: Dr. Stephen A. Zurcher, Professor of Management at Kansai Gaidai University

Who am I? This question has been with us for thousands of years and has been examined by philosophers, religions, and psychologists. But now, people are turning to the internet for answers to this question. We all have web identities whether we’re aware of it or not. And in an era when anything can be quickly googled, (in the United States HR managers have rejected candidates at a 70% level based on web searches) our online identities can have a real impact on our lives.

This month’s featured entrepreneur, Peter Sterlacci, started the Kyotobased company BeYB to help customers with managing their web identities and building a personal brand.

Kansai Scene: What prompted your interest in the web identity area?

I am my company’s brand and so when I decided to launch my business I needed a sense of how I appear on the web. The bottom line is that Google defines how the world sees you.

If you Google your name you might be surprised at what you see or even what you don’t see. Are you digitally distinct or digitally disguised? I needed to know. I used an awesome free tool called the ‘Online ID Calculator’, which measures your digital identity (www. onlineidcalculator.com). This gave me a starting point to know how to build my online reputation. It also was an eye opener as I discovered just how critical it is to establish an online presence that accurately communicates how I want to be known to the world. The web is a powerful force to both build and destroy one’s credibility, visibility, and likeability.

KS: When did you create your consulting company and who are your typical customers?

I started my business in the summer of 2011 after deciding to no longer do the corporate nine-to-five thing. My typical customers are Japanese who want to be “remarkable, not invisible” (to borrow the words of Seth Godin) in a global environment. Interestingly, I also attract foreign clients who want to know how to brand themselves in a culturally appropriate way in Japan.

KS: What are some common mistakes people make regarding web identity?

The biggest mistake I see is people rushing to create online profiles without being clear about their message.

This is where understanding your own personal brand is so critical. It is so much harder to change your online reputation later. Therefore, spending the time upfront to understand what you want to be known for is vital. The other mistake is simply not being strategic in what you post on social media, how your comment on a blog, or the images your share. All of this feeds into how you are seen and has the potential to come back and haunt you. Employers are scouring the web to learn about you, so I tell people to use the ‘grandmother test’. If you don’t want grandma to see it, then don’t post it!

KS: Can you suggest how we can improve our online identities?

We all need to get into the habit of ‘ego surfing’, googling our own name, on a regular basis. In some cases, you might have the same name as someone with

a bad online reputation. Here’s the good news. Digital dirt can be either cleaned up or hidden. A rule of thumb is to make sure at least the first page of search results conveys an accurate portrait of your identity. A great tool for this is www.vizibility.com, which creates your own free ‘search me’ button that links people to only the Google results you have pre-selected and verified about yourself. Another awesome tool is www.brandyourself. com, which offers a basic free service to optimize the first page of search results and ensure only the good stuff shows up! I personally pay for their premium accounts, which give me even greater control over my online reputation.

Finally, set up ‘Google Alerts’ for your name and Google will email you when your name shows up online. This helps you to stay on top of how the world sees you. http://personalbrandingjapan.com Dr. Zurcher is currently teaching an Entrepreneurship in Japan class for his foreign and Japanese students.

Peter Sterlacci will be the guest presenter at this month’s Kansai Scene Business Matters event:

Personal Branding: for your career & business in Japan & beyond • Date: May 21 (Tue) • Time: 7:30–9:30pm • Entry: ¥3,000 w/1d + pinchos • Venue: Trois Dix organic restaurant, Osaka For full details and registration, visit: www.kansaiscene.com/businessmatters

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Feature

Paths to Peace Looking to explore Japan from a different angle? Set aside some time and set out on a pilgrimage.

Text: Justine Lane • Images: Tanabe City Tourism Bureau

While the word may conjure up images to the contrary, you don’t have to be robed, or even religious, to undertake a pilgrimage. Every year, millions of people visit sacred sites around the world – and they do so for a variety of reasons. A pilgrimage may, as is often the case in Japan, be an important part of someone’s religion. It may be undertaken for personal spiritual reasons.

Some people are just interested in the travel aspects. Whatever your reason, a pilgrimage is a great way to experience the customs, history and culture of a place.

There are two main types of pilgrimage in this country. One involves visiting a number of holy spots, often, but not necessarily, in order. The other is a

journey to one particular holy place for example, the three grand shines of Kumano (Kumano Sanzan), Mt Koya, Ise, or Mt Fuji.

88 Holy Sites of Shikoku Associated with the Buddhist monk Kobo Daishi, this journey is a circuit of 88 officially designated temples, and, if you choose, 200 “unofficial” temples too. People have been undertaking this roughly 1,200km pilgrimage, which spans the four provinces of Shikoku, for more than 1,000 years.

Many pilgrims choose to begin at Ryozenji, in Tokushima, and then visit the other temples in order, travelling clockwise and finishing at Okubo-ji, in Kagawa. But you can actually start and

stop where you like. Mt Koya, over in Wakayama, is the starting and ending point for many travellers.

Foot, pedal, car or bus (or combinations thereof) are all possibilities for making the journey, and it is perfectly acceptable, as with the other pilgrimage routes, to break up your travels into many mini pilgrimages. If you do choose to walk the circuit in one go, be aware that you are looking at upwards of 30 km of footwork a day, and you’ll need to set aside a good month or two to complete it.

The trail offers ocean views, old townscapes and local specialties aplenty, not to mention heaps of hot springs that will feel like heaven to tired muscles. Dogo Onsen, near the

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Prep for Pilgrims DIY or rely?

With maps, blogs and guidebooks galore available online, it is totally possible to go the self-guided route. That said, KS recommends contacting the award-winning Tanabe City Kumano Tourism Bureau for Kumano Kodo trips, as they are super friendly and can help you with everything you will need – from maps to reservations and guides. Tour companies like JTB offer a range of packages too, though some Japanese ability may be required to arrange these.

Where to stay?

Inns and temples along the way provide reasonably-priced accommodation that Top left: Yamabushi trail, right: Kumano Hongu Taisha Bottom left: Nachi falls and pagoda, right: Kumano Kodo pilgramage route

51st temple, Ishite-ji, is said to be the oldest hot spring in Japan – a mustsoak!

Saigoku 33 Kannon One of the country’s most famous pilgrimages, this one has been undertaken for over 1,200 years. Similar to the Shikoku pilgrimage, it involves visiting 33 designated temples scattered across Kansai, and, if you like, three extra ones too. Again, there is a set order, but it’s not essential (and it may not even be possible) to follow it.

The route traditionally begins at Seigantoji in Wakayama, and ends at Kegon-ji in Gifu, meandering down to Lake Biwa, Amanohashidate, Kyoto’s famous Kiyomizu-dera and many more scenic spots in Kansai along the way.

The temples are dedicated to Kannon, the Bodhisattva of Compassion and Healing, also known as the Goddess of Mercy. This is a great and relatively easy pilgrimage for Kansai folk to do, as most of the temples can be reached by public transport, and you can visit a few at a time on your days off.

Kumano-Kodo This is a network of pilgrimage routes stretching across the mountainous Kii Peninsula, leading to Kumano Hongu Taisha, Kumano Hayatama Taisha and Kumano Nachi Taisha – collectively known as the Kumano Sanzan.

The shrines were registered in 2004 as UNESCO World Heritage, as part of the “Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range” property, which includes Mt Koya and Yoshino.

It is said that the Kumano Sanzan have their roots in ancient nature worship, which blended with Buddhism over the years. The pilgrimage routes have been used for more than a thousand years, initially by upper class types from Kyoto, then warriors, and finally “ordinary people”.

There are four main routes, offering treks of various length and difficulty.

Some can be done as easy day trips, while others will require overnighting somewhere. Visits to the awesome natural hot springs should be mandatory – these are some of the nicest in Japan.

includes meals, but rooms need to be booked well in advance.

What to buy?

First on the list – a good pair of shoes!

Throw a foldable umbrella in your bag too.

You’ll also want a pilgrim’s book (nokyocho), which you can buy at major temples. The idea is to get your book stamped at each temple (which will cost a few hundred yen each time). Incense, prayer slips and some offerings are also recommended items to take on your journey.

What to wear?

Whatever you like! Traditionally, pilgrims in Japan wear white, with one of those conical hats, and they carry a staff. You don’t need to do that, but it may offer a richer experience, as well as change the way people view you on your travels.

What else?

Many of the routes are tougher than people think, so be sure not to overestimate your abilities. Plan everything properly, and don’t leave anything to chance. You’ll need to be extra careful in summer and winter too, when the extreme temperatures can be dangerous.

Resources: www.tourismshikoku.org/ www.tb-kumano.jp/en/

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Feature

Hidden wonders of home Think you’ve seen it all in Kansai? Probably not. This Golden Week, get well off the beaten track and discover the exotic right around the corner.

Text: Aaron Krall

Chances are that if you’re working here in Japan, you’ve often dreamed of taking advantage of your vacation time to explore different parts of Asia. And chances are that if you live in Osaka (recently found to be one of the most expensive cities in the world, second only to Tokyo), exploring the jungles of Vietnam or the beaches of Thailand remains only a dream because your travel budget is roughly ¥3,000.

But if you’re trapped in Osaka, Kyoto or anywhere in Kansai during your vacation time, fear not: you are in a place as exotic, beautiful and bizarre as anywhere else in Asia.

I’ve had several holidays at home, both in here and abroad, trapped by poor financial decisions and once by a missed flight from Incheon airport.

This has given me plenty of time to explore my local surroundings and I’ve discovered many hidden treasures along the way. So for anybody wanting to take a voyage of discovery while staying right at home, here’s a list of places all located within a day’s travel of almost anywhere in Kansai; places that are local wonders unknown to most, with some unknown to all but a select coterie of explorers.

Take for example Bentencho, a neighborhood I usually refer to as the Land of a Thousand Overpasses. Find-

ing myself there one morning after a long night of celebration and high spirits, I stumbled across the Museum of Modern Transportation (www. mtm.or.jp/eng), right next to Bentencho station, where the entry fee is a modest ¥400. Inside, the entire history of Japanese transportation technology, from trains to motorcycles to warships, is laid out. There are some great photo opportunities available with frightening engines the size of cars and adorable cars the size of golf-carts.

Of course Osaka is full of great museums, and although everyone knows about the interactive exhibits at the Science Museum, who’s ever been to the Osaka Human Rights Museum (www.liberty.or.jp/topfile/human-top. htm), found a short distance from Imamiya station? Japan is often cited as an example of a nation fraught with racism and discrimination that is unwilling to address its own faults. But the Osaka Human Rights Museum, with its exhibits on the discrimination suffered by gay, lesbian and transgendered people, ethnic minorities such as the Ainu, and even the Hibakusha - victims of the WWII atomic attacks - proves that Japan does have a level of self-awareness at which many would be surprised.

If museums don’t interest you, why not get out of the city and take a trip into Shiga prefecture to the small town of Hikone? There you’ll find the stately castle of Ii Naoske, who was directly responsible for convincing the emperor to open Japan’s gates to foreigners (he was later assassinated for his efforts.

Quelle surprise). Hikone Castle

(www.city.hikone.shiga.jp/hikonejo) looms above the town and yet blends seamlessly into the nearby hills and forests, which would be a treat for any hiking or camping enthusiast. Hikone is also right on the coast of Lake Biwa, which is a perfect place for swimming, boating, picnicking or even some kitesurfing. From Hikone, one can find easy transportation to the Koga Ninja Village (koka.ninpou.jp), which is well worth a visit. Did you know ninjas could tell the time by looking into a cat’s eyes? Exhibits include a shurikenthrowing range and demonstrations of various ninja techniques.

“I’m not interested in that stuff! Gimme some adventure!” I hear some of you say. So be it! Like any country that grew into the modern world a bit too fast, Japan has left pieces of its own past lying around in hidden places, waiting to be explored. Places like the abandoned Takarazuka Stone Crushing Plant (Osaka Saiseki Kojo), where the gravelly road material was once made. The town of Takarazuka, of the all-female Revue fame (see our story on page 12), is a popular tourist destination nestled between the Rokko and Nagao mountain ranges. It sits on the water and has great hot springs and an annual fireworks display, but to me the real treasure here isn’t the hiking and swimming or the Tezuka Osamu

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Shiga Kyoto

Hyogo Tezuka Osamu Manga Museum

Awaji-shima Naruto Bridge & whirlpools

Hikone Castle

Myoshin-ji Temple

Abandoned stone crushing plant

World Peace Giant Kannon

Lake Biwa

Koga Ninja Village

Osaka

Osaka Human Rights Museum Museum of Modern Transportation

Tarui Southern Beach Isonoura Beach

Mie

Nara

Wakayama

Manga Museum (www.tezukaosamu. net/en/museum) - it’s the abandoned industrial plant. Not for the weakwilled, the place is spooky, surreal and amazing to explore. Nature is in the process of reclaiming it, and while this only adds to the site’s ethereal beauty, it occasionally makes such exploration slightly dangerous.

A safer venue for exploration would be the World Peace Giant Kannon, the 3rd largest statue in Japan and the 13th largest in the world. Located on Awaji Island, the Kannon statue - and the building serving as its base - has a fascinating history too long to include here, except to say that after the original owners died and the Lehman Brothers took it over (yes, THOSE Lehman Brothers) and subsequently went under themselves, it has been abandoned. Poignantly beautiful, the Giant

Kannon statue is a perfect example of the kind of hidden treasures found in this wonderful country.

If you’re looking for the kind of relaxation that only the sound of waves breaking upon a beach can offer, you’re in luck. Nowhere in Kansai, or Japan for that matter, is more than an hour or so from the coast. There are some lovely beaches on Awaji Island, which lies between Kobe and Shikoku, connected to the mainland by the longest suspension bridge in the world. From the island, one can also take a ferry out to view the Naruto Whirlpools, vast water vortexes caused by water flowing at incredible speeds through the narrow strait between Tokushima and Awaji.

If the idea of sailing out into enormous whirling water pits seems a bit frightening, they can be just as easily viewed from the Naruto Bridge that spans the gulf. Of course, if you’re on

a budget and want to stay local, you have the choice of a small, secluded beach like Tarui Southern Beach (not even an hour from the Nankai Namba station) or a large beach with the associated atmosphere and crowds such as Isonoura in Wakayama City.

Finally, if your idea of a vacation is a spiritual retreat rather than a mental and physical retreat, you could always do a temple-stay at the famous Myoshin-ji Temple Complex (www. myoshinji.or.jp/english) in Kyoto. Legendary swordsman and folk-hero Miyamoto Musashi trained there briefly, and the temple complex is enormous and full of history. (Be prepared for an early morning zazen session, though!)

There are rock gardens and sand gardens and the whole place feels so holy you might start feeling guilty for no reason at all.

With so many places to see at home, you clearly don’t need to go far for an exciting Golden Week.

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Made in Kansai

A centenary of song It’s been 100 years since the president of Hankyu Railways started an all-female troupe to draw passengers to Takarazuka.

KS meets a former Takarasienne to hear the inside story of this iconic company.

Text: Sally McLaren • Photos: Courtesy of Shiori Gibson

The Takarazuka Revue Company (宝 塚歌劇団, Takarazuka Kagekidan) is a unique and enduring part of Japanese popular culture. Since the early 20th century, this all-female musical troupe has performed both male and female roles in lavish adaptations of mostly Western genres such as Hollywood movies, American literature and Shakespeare. Recent productions include the Takarazuka version of the 2001 movie Oceans 11 and Hemingway’s For Whom the Bell Tolls. Classical Japanese literature and even Manga are also part of the Revue’s repertoire with

productions of The Tale of Genji and Black Jack. Takarazuka productions are heavy on romance, allowing the otokoyaku (male role) and musume-yaku (daughter role) stars to shine on stage as they sing, dance and act out epic love stories.

The Takarazuka Grand Theater and its training facility, the Takarazuka Music School, are based in Takarazuka city in Hyogo Prefecture. There is also a theater in Tokyo and the Revue’s five troupes of Hana (flower), Tsuki (moon), Hoshi (star), Yuki (snow) and Sora (cosmos) - with approximately

400 members total - rotate between western and eastern Japan. Both theaters reportedly attracted combined audiences of 1.88 million in 2011, earning the company around ¥25 billion.

The Revue’s audience is also unique - estimated to be 90% female and including highly organised fan clubs for the top stars of the various troupes.

It’s been observed that Takarazuka fandom now passes from generation to generation within families - mothers, daughters and granddaughters attend shows together.

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This year, the Revue marks the 100th anniversary of its founding. It started in 1913, when railroad baron Kobayashi Ichizo decided that an allfemale musical theater group would be an ideal attraction to increase the number of passengers alighting at the Takarazuka terminus of his Hankyu line from Osaka. Kobayashi was undoubtedly tapping into the trends of the Taisho era (1912-1927), when Japan enthusiastically embraced Western modernity. A trip to Paris had inspired him to create “modern girls” and he imported the style of the Folies Bergere, a French Cabaret. The Revue is still owned by Hankyu Railway Corporation and Kobayashi’s values are still part of its ethos. This is evident in the Revue’s motto; kiyoku, tadashiku, utsukushiku, (modesty, fairness and grace), which according to the Revue’s website is “fervently alive in the hearts of the performers and staff ” and aims to produce “a pure, elegant and welleducated personality.”

Incredibly high standards of performance and deportment are expected of the young women who enter the Takarazuka Music School. It has a reputation for a very strict training regimen. According to former Takarazuka actress, Shiori Gibson, her two years at the Music School, which she entered at 16 years old, “were as hard as training for the army.” The three-day audition process was particularly arduous. She says there were 1,300 girls competing for 40 places. The pressure to make the final selection was intense, but “once you get into the school you don’t want to give up. You become more confident.”

Gibson auditioned for the school during its “boom time” in the late 1970s. The Revue’s production of the Rose of Versailles, based on a popular manga and anime series about the French Revolution, had been a huge success since it premiered in 1974 and had increased the popularity of the company. BeruBara, as it is locally known, is still the Revue’s biggest hit and fans are flocking to performances during this centenary year. Gibson says the Revue is still so popular because it is an

escape into a “beautiful and glittering” world, where the men are “unreal”. Her motivation to join the Takarazuka Revue was twofold - she says she wanted to perform on stage, but she knew that she also wanted to do something special. And there’s certainly no other school of performing arts in Japan that is comparable. During her two years at the school, where it was compulsory to live in the dormitory and there were very few days off, she studied a wide variety of music and dance styles including opera, ballet, and traditional Japanese dance. Of equal importance was the early morning cleaning of the classroom - including dusting with paintbrushes and using sticky tape to eliminate any dirt from the floor - and marching. The local Self Defense Force unit were instructors at the school, teaching the students to move in tandem as preparation for the Revue’s famous line dance.

Finally, Gibson made her debut as a musume-yaku in the Hana troupe and performed in up to eight productions a year for six years. She took the stage name Mikage Shiori; “Mikage” means “beautiful shadow”. Gibson says she knew she couldn’t be a top star because she was too small in height. “So many people were competing to be a top star, but I was quite happy being stardust.”

Despite her modest attestation, Gibson had her own fan club and has many stories of fans delivering fresh food and flowers to the stage door, and sending her letters and gifts.

As the Revue celebrates its 100 years, Gibson says that she feels proud to have been a part of it. “Takarazuka is a world of dreams, but it’s also a world in which you can be fearless,” she says.

It is this sentiment that is currently propelling the Revue overseas in an attempt to gain new audiences. In April, the Revue performed in Taiwan and there are plans for more shows in Asia in the future.

The Manga Connection Tezuka Osamu, the creator of Atom Boy was raised in Takarazuka. His mother was a big fan of the Revue and he saw dozens of performances with her as a young boy. It was this experience that apparently led him to create the romantic tale of the crossdressing Princess Knight, considered to be one of the foundational works of Shojo (girls’) manga. Subsequently, the Revue has adapted Tezukacreated manga, such as Phoenix and Black Jack, into popular stage productions.

With such strong mutual inspiration, a visit to the Tezuka Osamu Manga Museum is a must. It’s located just beyond the Grand Theater.

Open 9.30am–5pm, closed Wednesdays, ¥700. tezukaosamu.net

Upcoming Performances & Getting Tickets The Takarazuka Revue performs every day except Wednesdays at the Grand Theater in Takarazuka, Hyogo Prefecture. Performances start at 11am and 3pm. Tickets cost between ¥11,000-3,500 and can be purchased through the Revue website, Ticket Pia, or Lawson Ticket. There are also tojitsu tickets available on the day from 10am for ¥2,000.

Getting a ticket can sometimes be tricky because fan clubs buy up blocks of tickets to see their favourite stars. Upcoming shows for 2013 are in the “classic” genre but will certainly show off the Revue’s unique dramatisations and lavish costumes.

The Rose of Versailles (4/19-5/27) Romeo and Juliet (5/31-7/8) Arsene Lupin (7/12-8/12) Song of Love and Revolution Andrea Chénier (8/16-9/23) 1-1-57 Sakaemachi, Takarazuka-shi, Hyogo-ken 665-8558 Tel: 05700-00-5100 www.kageki.hankyu.co.jp

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Travel

Visit the spirits in the sky The sacred mountain top temple town of Koya-san has evolved for over twelve centuries in blissful isolation from the clamour of hectic modern Japan.

Text and images: Daniel Olsson

The approach to Koya-san, Wakayama-ken, is enough to get anyone in the mood for a spot of mountaintop spiritualism.

About an hour out the train plunges into a series of steepsided, densely-wooded mountains that will glue your nose to the window as Japan’s ethereal natural character begins to wash over you. The final ascent to the mountaintop temple town is via a funicular railway - essentially a stepped train carriage that is pulled up a narrow mountainside track by a metal cable - and the journey, although not too long, is enough to make it feel like a pilgrimage. As is typical of Japan there is a bus to take you the last couple of kilometres and, unless you take the rather long and out-of-the-way “walking road”, this is your only choice as walking is prohibited on the bus route.

Koya-san was established as the centre of Shingon Esoteric Buddhism by Kukai (known as Kobo Daishi after his death) in 816. Kongobu-ji, at the centre of Koya-san, still maintains this role and now resides over 10 million Shingon Buddhists and nearly 4000 temples scattered across Japan. Kobo Daishi is one of Japan’s most revered spiritual leaders and is in fact considered to reside in a permanent state of meditation in his mausoleum, hidden away at the back of Toro-do (Lantern Hall), in Oku-no-in. The hall’s thousands of lanterns, some of which have possibly been burning for over 900 years, make it one of Koya-san’s greatest attractions for the secular tourist.

Kongobu-ji, however, is the main draw for Japanese Buddhists and is considered a major site of pilgrimage for those of the Shingon sect. The present structure was built towards the end of the 19th century but still boasts fabulous ornate screens from the 16th century as well as Japan’s largest rock garden. If you have a hard time appreciating rock gardens this one might convince you of their ability to instill a sense of calm spiritualism - some say the rocks represent hundreds

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of worshipers bowing towards the temple to listen to the priest’s sermon.

A stone’s throw from Kongobu-ji is Garan - a fantastic temple complex housing some of Koya-san’s oldest buildings. Legend has it that Kukai, while studying in China, threw his sankosho (a three pronged buddhist ceremonial tool) towards Japan and later, while traveling, discovered the tool speared into a pine tree on Koyasan. There he began the construction of Garan. The vermillion pagoda (Daito) will be an awesome sight in the spring sunlight, but be sure to venture further and explore the entire compex.

Although the east and west pagodas are not as imposing as Daito, they are some of the oldest surviving buildings in Japan.

After checking out the temples take a short walk down the main road to Oku-no-in. To really appreciate the hugeness of this ancient mausoleum make sure you enter via Ichino-hashi and wind along the cobbled path, which meanders for two kilometres through the massive cedar trees and ancient headstones, to Toro-do, Kukai’s final resting place. This immense graveyard is chock full of interesting tidbits from Oda Nobunaga’s grave to a coffee-cup shaped memorial remembering Ueshima Coffee Company’s past employees. Look out for a moss covered headstone, erected in 1908, on which is engraved eloquent English text that utterly puts the often comical modern museum captions and restau-

rant English to shame. Exploring Okuno-in at anytime can be enchanting but as dusk falls so does a beguiling misty light that will make it considerably easier to accept that Kukai is sitting just out of view in eternal meditation.

The traditional way to experience Koya-san is to stay at one of the many shukubo (temple lodgings) that will provide you with a vegetarian evening meal, a futon for the night, and a rousing early morning sutra chant.

This is the expensive option (around ¥12,000), but if you’re looking to enjoy the mountain’s magic for less then the newly opened Koyasan Guesthouse Kokuu is the place to stay. At around ¥3,000 a night it’s an absolute steal.

Ryochi, who runs the tiny cabin-esque lodging with his wife, has created a wonderful atmosphere that both compliments Koya-san’s ethereal nature and instills a feeling of youth and adventure. An evening dining on their homemade Indian curry followed by a game of UNO Extreme (in which the guests often pray to Kukai for luck) around the log burning stove is as unique an experience as you’ll find in the traditional shukubo. And if you’re up for an early start, you can make the 10 minute walk through Oku-no-in to Toro-do for the 6 am incantation. Beware, however, that as a mountaintop island it is around five degrees colder than the lowland, so you might need a jacket. An advantage to this is that, even in May, you may still be able to see the cherry blossom.

Ways and Means • Koya-san is not tiny but is still easily negotiated on foot. There are regular buses running from the centre of the village to the cable-car and from Garan to Oku-no-in.

• Koya-san is most easily accessed from Namba on the Nankai-Dentestu line and takes a little over 90 minutes, setting you back ¥1,230 (plus ¥760 for the rapid service). From Wakayama or Nara you can go via Hashimoto but from the Kyoto area it is best to go via Namba. All trains terminate at Gokurakubashi from where you can take the cable-car.

Where to Stay and Eat • Koyasan Guesthouse Kokuu (¥3,000) is the best value spot in town.

Although you’ll be getting a curry and a game of UNO rather than a tatami and vegetarian meal, the main highlights of the temple town are still yours to explore. www.koyasanguesthouse.com/en/ • If you want the more traditional experience then Eko-in (¥10,000) is a good option as it also offers the chance to study zazen (seated meditation). www.ekoin.jp/en/ • Dinner is easiest taken at your accommodation but if you’re looking for a sample of Koya-cuisine during the day then Hanabishi Honten offers a delicious vegetarian lunchtime set.

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Food and drink

Tex-Mex to rave about Mexico’s May holiday is just the time to check out this spicy slice of Spanish and Tex-Mex in Sannomiya.

Text: Esperanza Urbaez • Images: El Salsa

Warm lighting, passion red ceilings, royal blue walls graffitied with handwritten messages, sombreros, St. Mary statuettes. And skulls. These are what you first notice after stepping into this Old West Tex-Mex saloon-like space in Sannomiya. But it doesn’t take long for your senses to be hit again with the smell of mouth-watering food, and the sound of Latin music, laughter and the occasional roar of Tequila! Bienvenidos to El Salsa.

Since opening in November last year, the three-leveled bar and restaurant is fast becoming a favourite in the Kobe dining scene due to its festive atmosphere and decor, friendly staff, and quality food and drinks. The latest venture of the restaurant chain Entec, which appropriately prides itself on its fresh, hand-made cuisine, El Salsa offers a wide selection of healthy and delicious Tex-Mex and Spanish dishes.

Although tailored to the Japanese palette (i.e. it won’t leave you with a flaming tongue), the food has enough

spice and flavour to leave a zingy fiesta in your mouth.

The iron-plate grilled chicken (¥880), sprinkled with tequila and set on fire at the table, is as exciting to see as it is to eat. The Spanish tapa, ajillo, octopus, mussels and shrimp (¥750) sautéed in a delectable sauce will make you sing Olé! There’s also a great range of beer-friendly dishes such as the classic Mexican chorizo enchilada (¥750), spicy mince tacos (¥650), and nachos baked over cheese with chili and beef (¥580).

It would be wise to pursue this path because El Salsa’s drinks are its forte.

The Mexican beers (¥600) such as Corona, Sol, Dos Equis, Negra Modelo and Bohemia are popular with diners.

Among their long list of cocktails and wines, a tasty choice is their ‘Corogarita’ (¥600), which is a margarita with an upside down Corona in it. Selecting from their range of over 20 kinds of tequila can be tough, so a fun option to go with is the Shotgun (¥500), especial-

ly on Friday and Saturday nights when fun is the name of the game. (From 9pm on both nights the sombrero and poncho-clad staff conga line their way to every table singing the Tequila song and serving up ¥100 shots of Cuervo tequila, which invariably turns into an impromptu party every weekend.)

El Salsa is made for parties. The private party floor, six and eleven specialty courses (¥1,980/¥3,200) with the added all-you-can drink option (¥1,500), plus the varied a-la-carte menu make it perfect for a night on the town with a group of friends to celebrate a birthday, anniversary or even Cinco de Mayo. This Mexican holiday was originally held to commemorate the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862, but has gained popularity around the world as a celebration of the country’s heritage. So for those who are looking for a lively, savory and Latin-infused dining option in Kobe, El Salsa’s サル says Bienvenidos!

El Salsa • Address: 3-1-1, Kitanagasadori, Chuo-ku, Kobe, Hyogo, 650-0012 (3 min from Motomachi Stn.) • Tel: 050-5796-2867 • Open: 5pm–12am (6 days a week, Fri. open until 2am) • Price range: Food ¥2,000-2,999; Drinks ¥500-2,000 • Go to dish: Iron-plate grilled chicken, enchilada, tacos • Best bit: festive atmosphere, quality savory food, close to the train • Worst bit: modest portions, not open for lunch

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Kansai Seen Life through the lens of Kansai based photographers

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Koi Nobori Traditional koi carp-shaped windsocks streaming in the breeze in Uda, Nara Prefecture.

They can be seen across Japan from April to early May, in celebration of Children’s Day (May 5).

Photographs by Corey Zwegers www.flickr.com/photos/zwgggrs/

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Language

海外生活日記

Talking about holiday plans

What is it like living in…

Kenya?

Tomokazu works as a member of Japan Overseas Cooperation Volunteers in Kenya, home to some of the world’s most stunning natural scenery and animals. KS

The first week of May features three consecutive national holidays that have become collectively known as Golden Week. Take a few additional days off either side and you are left with a fantastic opportunity to enjoy the spring weather and get out and explore.

As long as you don’t mind the queues, traffic jams, and inflated prices that is. Be it at the hair salon, train station or office, there is often no escaping discussing your holiday plans in Japanese, even if you have no plans at all.

Arm yourself with these common phrases and you’ll be golden.

ゴールデンウィークに何をしますか？

Goruden Weeku ni nani o shimasu ka? 家族と東京ディズニーランドへ 行きます。

Kazoku to Tokyo Dizunee-rando e ikimasu. 特に何もしない。

Toku ni nanimo shinai. 田舎で友達とキャンプします。

Inaka de tomodachi to kyampu shimasu. お金がないから家でゴロゴロする。

Okane ga nai kara ie de goro goro suru. 彼氏と一緒にサイパンに行きます。

Kareshi to issho ni saipan ni ikimasu. ゴールデンウィークはどこへ行っても 人がいっぱい。

Goruden Weeku wa doko e ittemo hito ga ippai. ホテルは全部満室になってしまう。

Hoteru wa zenbu manshitsu ni natte shimau.

What are you doing for Golden Week?

I’m going to Disneyland in Tokyo with my family.

Nothing much.

I’m going camping in the countryside with friends.

I can’t afford to do anything so I’m going to stay at home.

I’m going to Saipan with my boyfriend.

Everywhere is very crowded during Golden Week.

Hotels are all booked up.

asked all about life there.

Interview by Sarasa KItano ケニアで何をしていますか。 ケニア野生生物公社で働いています。地域 の小中学校への出張授業、遠足で国立公園 に来た学生や各種ワークショップでのプレ ゼンテーションなどの教育活動に従事しなが ら、調査活動の手伝いをしています。今年初 めにはモンバサ市内でケニアの国立公園・保 護区の野生動物とその保全を紹介する写真 展を開きました。現在は計画中のエデュケーション・センターの開設 に向けてコンテンツを作成中です。 ケニアへ行くまで。 青年海外協力隊のOBを通じアフリカで野生動物保護の仕事がある ことを知りました。生物好きの自分にとっては夢のような話だったの で、迷わず応募し、派遣が決まりました。 何語を話しますか。 挨拶や簡単な日常会話はスワヒリ語、込み入った話になると英語を 使います。スワヒリ語は研修や語学学校でみっちり学習しましたが、 スワヒリ語が通じないと英語に逃げてしまってなかなか上達しませ んね。驚くべきことに多くのケニア人はトライリンガルなんです。 英語・スワヒリ語と、それぞれの出身部族固有の言語を話します。 何を言っているのかさっぱり分からない時は大抵部族語で話してい ます。スワヒリ語は沿岸部の商人たちが使っていたユニバーサル・ラ ンゲージで、バンツー諸語とアラビア語をベースに、様々な言語か ら語彙を借用しています。英語の成り立ちにも似ていますね。 ケニアに住んで予想外によかったことは。 不便な暮らしを覚悟していたのですが、意外にも大抵のものは手に 入ります。都市部では殆どの人が携帯電話を持ち、スマートホンの 普及率もかなりのもの。猛烈な勢いで発展しており近代的なアパー トや豪華なショッピングセンターが続々建設されています。一方で 貧富の差はさらに広がり、経済発展の恩恵をあずかれない人々の救 済という大きな社会問題もあります。 ケニアのここがすばらしい! 圧倒的な大自然です！たくさんある国立公園の中でも、アンボセリ国 立公園ではタンザニアにそびえるアフリカ第一の山、キリマンジャロ をバックにアフリカゾウの群れを見ることができます。私の任地モン バサをはじめとする海洋国立公園ではグラスボート、シュノーケリン グ、ダイビングで壮大な珊瑚礁や色とりどりの無数の熱帯魚の群れ を見ることも。サファリ・海・山と超一級の絶景が揃ったケニア、一生 に一度はぜひ訪れてください。 Follow Tomokazu http://africanwildlife.blog.fc2.com/

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Books

Free Stuff!

Leading By Edo-xample

reader One lucky KS . of Just Enough can win a copy ail your name em aw dr the om To enter @kansaiscene.c to: giveaways

by May 17. ct Mark the subje ’.

‘Just Enough

Life is good, but all too often it’s at the expense of the planet. A new book reveals how we can reverse our gas-guzzling ways by learning from our Edoite forefathers.

Text: Sam Evans

With all the ominous buzzwords floating around like “global warming” and “carbon footprint”, it is safe to say that those of us who haven’t spent our lives in a cave are aware that we continue to negatively affect the environment with our choices. New Orleans native and Kanazawa Institute of Technology professor Azby Brown writes Just Enough as a stern warning that the problem is more serious than many of us think, but more importantly to offer a solution by teaching us the ways of Edo period Japan.

So why Edo period you ask? All is explained as Brown reveals how the country entered the Edo period in 1603 cracking under the pressure of having to support a population of twelve million people. It was through savvy technological advances, more economic use of land, and most importantly a seismic change in attitude towards resources and waste that led Japan to conquer its problems, emerging from the brink of collapse to comfortably accommodate a populous of thirty million less than two centuries later.

The message that Brown screams through this book is that we must relearn the methods of the Edoites and become equally sustainable if we are to overcome the similar predicament we face today. “Japanese society almost collapsed due to environmental degradation,” writes Brown. “The fact

that it did not is what makes it such an instructive example…This book is about a mentality that pervaded Japanese society then and that can serve as a beacon for our own efforts to achieve sustainability now.”

What follows is a collection of diagram-accompanied fictitious stories through which Brown takes us on a tour of Edoite life, revealing the methods they employed to achieve sustainability. First we pass through a typical rural community where we learn about gravity-reliant irrigation systems and the government’s meticulous attention to the health of the forests (even down to instituting tree censuses that accounted for almost every single tree).

After this, Brown guides us through Edo and teaches us how the majority of families used human waste to fertilize their urban lots and therefore subsidise their living; how everything was reworked and reused; and how measures like these contributed to making Edo the world’s first sustainable metropolis.

Brown takes time to reinforce the lessons in his tales with more directlyinstructive chapters where he lists the steps to becoming a sustainable society in a way that is easy to follow. The result is a book that is thought-provoking and commanding in its purpose but written in a way that is humane, vicarious and a pleasure to read.

• Title: Just Enough • Author: Azby Brown • Publisher: Tuttle Publishing • ISBN: 978-4-8053-1254-4 • Price: ¥1,800 • Format: 190x228mm 244p paperback

Five lessons to be learnt from Edo Japan: Use human waste Flushing our waste and then cleaning our water consumes energy. Why not kill two birds with one stone and separate waste from the water supply to use as a free, natural fertilizer?!

Recycle everything Scrap metal, wood, cloth...with a little effort and creativity all materials can be reworked again and again to avoid ending up in landfill.

Sustainable deforestation Forests support the ecosystem and contribute to the general health of the environment. If we don’t adopt sustainable deforestation methods immediately we might lose them all.

Energy efficient design Design our homes to take more advantage of natural energy and take less energy to build, repair and demolish.

Use just enough Use only what you need: decadence is detrimental!

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May 31

Evil Dead

Evil Dead © 2013 Universal Studios. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

May 3 • 91 mins • Horror • Director: Fede Alvarez • Stars: Jane Levy, Shiloh Fernandez, Jessica Lucas

Pointless remake of the 1981 Sam Raimi classic. Five friends staying in a remote cabin have a quiet weekend and do some gentle soul-searching... oh alright then, they find a book of the dead, and unleash some nasty demons. Goriness ensues.

Celeste and Jesse Forever

Film previews

Oblivion

KS

Pick

Action, Adventure, Sci-fi Director: Joseph Kosinski Starring: Tom Cruise, Morgan Freeman, Olga Kuryienko

There are many things we know for sure about Tom Cruise. Hollywood’s highestpaid actor, he starred in his first movie at 19, but the role that really launched his career was the cool, risky pilot Maverick in Top Gun (1986). After that he had a string of big hits, playing a range of characters from a hateful yuppie in Rain Man (1988) to a plucky sports promoter who had to show Cuba Gooding Jr the money in Jerry Maguire (1996). He came to Kansai in 2003 to film The Last Samurai – go out to Mount Shosha in Himeji and the locals will happily show you some of the spots he filmed in. In fact, Japan loves Cruise so much, the Japan Memorial Day Association named 10 October, 2006 Tom Cruise Day in his honour. He’s the Hollywood actor who has visited Japan the most, and he always goes out of his way to spend time with his fans, including once catching a bullet train from Osaka to Tokyo and posing for photos with over 100 people.

Cruise’s latest offering, Oblivion, which sees him teaming up with the director of TRON:Legacy, is a satisfying combination of solid acting, post-apocolyptic earth scenes and Morgan Freeman’s gravelly voice. Cruise is a repairman clearing up the mess on earth after an alien war, but does he really know the truth behind it? All the weirder when you remember Cruise actually believes in alien life forms, as he’s a scientologist. Oh yes, there are many things we don’t know about Tom Cruise.

His links with the weird world of Scientology. The reasons latest wifey Katie Holmes decided to call it quits after five years. How exactly he manages to look 20 years younger and buffer than he did 20 years ago. But happily we can be sure that when it comes to acting, he always delivers.

Don’t forget you can find a list of local cinemas online at www.kansaiscene.com/cinemas/

May 25 • 92 mins • Comedy/Drama/ Romance • Director: Lee Toland Krieger • Starring: Rashida Jones, Andy Samberg, Elijah Wood

From best friends at high school to lovers and out the other side – Celeste and Jesse are getting a divorce, but so amicably it doesn’t even seem like it’s over until one of them finds somebody new. Rashida Jones wrote this bittersweet screenplay and also stars as the main female lead. Thoughtful, charming and packed with wit.

Drift May 25 • Drama, Sport • Director: Ben Nott, Morgan O’Neill • Starring: Sam Worthington, Lesley-Ann Brandt, Xavier Samuel

A sleepy Aussie coastal town in the 1970s is home to two brothers who share a love of surfing. They try to turn their passion into a career by making wetsuits and boards for the growing surf community. But small family businesses aren’t so easy to run when local gangs and film-makers start to get involved.

Stoker

Stoker May 31• 99 mins • Drama/Mystery/Thriller • Director: Chan-wook Park • Starring: Mia Wasikowska, Nicole Kidman, Matthew Goode

Family ties take a creepy turn in the first English-language move from Oldboy’s director, Chan-wook Park. After India’s father dies, an uncle she never knew about appears to console her and her slightly unstable mother. Uncle Charlie isn’t all he seems, of course. More than a few nods to Hitchcock’s 1943 Shadow of a Doubt.

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Travel

All that glitters is Gold Coast With Jetstar offering specials to the Gold Coast from around ¥50,000, this summer it’s easy to escape the humidity without giving up your sunshine.

Text: Kris Lund

The state of Queensland is envied across Australia for its weather.

Nicknamed “the Sunshine State”, one of its most successful and apt tourism slogans is: “Beautiful one day, perfect the next.” At no time of the year is this truer than during its winter. From May to August, daytime temps hover around 20°C, with crystal-clear sunny days, a glistening ocean, views as far as the eye can see – and the air-conditioning set to medium.

The Gold Coast is a 40km stretch of golden sand beaches and headlands backing onto a lush tropical rainforest hinterland. It was settled by farmers and saw millers in the late 1800s and soon after a string of coastal holiday

villages grew up along the length of the coast. A city developed around these hubs, with an economy largely driven by tourism. During the 1950s and 1960s the coast really boomed as one of Australia’s domestic tourism hotspots, famous for its relaxed, liberal, boardshorts-and-bikinis beach lifestyle.

It all starts at Surfers Interestingly it was Japanese developers in the 1980s bubble era who lead the charge to further enhance the Gold Coast as a tourist destination, injecting millions of dollars like steroids into Surfers Paradise, transforming it from a kitsch beachside enclave to a

towering international tourist Mecca, complete with a Hard Rock Café and McDonalds. Now, the Surfers highrises that line the yellow sand beach are one of Australia’s most recognised tourist icons.

To be honest, most Australians bypass Surfers for the less developed, uncrowded gems that are found everywhere across the coast. But if you ask me, Surfers is the perfect place to start a Gold Coast holiday. After flying in, it’s only a 30-minute ride to your apartment or hotel where your holiday can begin. The first thing you’ll want to do is head to the beach – which will be no further than 100m or so from wherever you stay – to get some of that

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Getting there and around Jetstar flies daily to the Gold Coast, leaving KIX in the evenings and flying in just after dawn. Sign up to Jetstar’s newsletter to be notified of their specials, which are offered several times a year.

Your best bet is to book a transfer to your hotel from the airport, as public transport is not worth the hassle. Once settled, buses are the cheapest and easiest option for getting around, while taxis are convenient but quite expensive and not recommended for long trips.

Left-main: Aerial view of the coastline / Left-top: Rainbow lorikeets at O’Reilley’s Rainforest Retreat / Left-bottom: Surfing lesson. Above-left: Natural Arch waterfall / Above-right: Whale watching

Hire car is a convenient, affordable option, especially if you want to explore the length of the coast and get into the hinterland.

famous golden sand between your toes and wade in the postcard-perfect blue water. Water temps in winter are generally about 18°C, which really is a little too chilly for a relaxing dip, but not unbearable if you really must get in.

Sea World, Dreamworld and Movie World, there is something to keep eve-

Get the party started

Get back to nature

Wander back through town and start to plan the coming days. Within Surfers alone there are countless restaurants, bars and other attractions, and no shortage of information outlets and brochure stands to give you an idea of all that’s on offer.

I recommend you get a feel for your surroundings with 360 degree views at the top of Q1 – what was the world’s tallest residential building when it was built in 2002. For the more adventurous, it’s possible to venture outside and climb around the building’s spire, 270 metres above the beach.

Back at sea level, jump in amphibious sightseeing bus - the Aquaduck - to tour the local beaches and canals, or check out the local attractions like the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! Odditorium or the special effects fun house, Infinity. If you want to get the adrenaline pumping, strap yourself into the slingshot bungee, take a ride on a jetboat, or don a wetsuit and take a surf lesson – you are in “Surfers Paradise” after all!

Beyond Surfers, the coast is your oyster. For families, it’s no secret that the Gold Coast is one of the theme park capitals of the world. Between

If you’re after a nature-based holiday, you’ve come to the right place.

The hinterland’s mountains are full of surprises, like O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat where you can feed wild rainbow lorikeets, and take the Tree Top Walk along a series of suspension bridges among the rainforest canopy.

Nearby Natural Arch is a cave set deep in the cool rainforest with a waterfall plunging through its ceiling into a freshwater pool below. If you head there in the evening you can catch the sight of the waterfall in daylight, and then the cave illuminated by thousands of glow worms at night.

Back at the coast, make the most of winter’s whale watching season by jumping onboard a cruise sailing out into the open ocean. There you can marvel at migrating humpback whales heading north from Antarctica to the warmer waters off Queensland to breed. If you’re lucky you’ll catch some mothers and babies heading back south at the end of the season, or even the famous albino whale, Migaloo.

ryone happy. Oh, and don’t forget the

Currumbin Wildlife Sanctuary. Oth-

erwise, check out the tourist brochures and choose your own adventure.

Kristian Lund is a Gold Coast-based journalist and also publisher of Niseko’s Powderlife magazine and Powderlife.com.

Check out www.experienceoz.com.au/ gold-coast for activity ideas.

Where to stay Sea Temple, Surfers Paradise 8 The Esplanade, Surfers Paradise Seventy-seven floors of uber luxury right on the beach at Surfers. You really will feel on top of the world.

Mint, Coolangatta 80 Marine Parade, Coolangatta Host to the world surfing tour’s Quiksilver Pro, Coolangatta is the true home of local surfing culture.

O’Reilly’s Rainforest Retreat, Canungra Lamington National Park Road, Canungra Sleep among the sounds of the rainforest and explore the magnificent hinterland.

Where to eat Dracula’s Cabaret Restaurant, Broadbeach 1 Hooker Boulevard, Broadbeach Not just a meal, but an evening of entertainment as well at this ever-popular cabaret restaurant.

Oskar’s on Burleigh, Burleigh Heads 43 Goodwin Terrace, Burleigh Heads Fine dining and spectacular views day or night alongside the Burleigh Heads surfing point.

Currumbin Surf Lifesaving Club, Currumbin 741 Pacific Parade, Currumbin Perched on a rock jutting out into the ocean, locations don’t get any better than this.

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Food and drink

Putting your best foot forward For runners - and their lazier friends who just like food - Musubi Cafe serves as an ideal base to explore the picturesque scenery of Arashiyama and beyond.

Text: Daniel Tang • Images: Luo Lan

Arashiyama is a special place. It’s natural beauty has featured in countless on-screen productions, and its temples attract thousands of visitors each year.

Spring and autumn are particularly busy times, with cherry blossoms and colourful leaves eliciting a flurry of activity. Natural beauty and simplicity is celebrated, epiphanies revealed.

Zhou Enlai noted this in his 1919 poem, Arashiyama in the Rain, where he wrote “rays of sunshine shall break through the clouds” to convey his joy at realisations gained upon reflection.

It is fitting then, that Arashiyama would become the fulfilment of Hiromi Hirabayashi’s own realisation: the Musubi Cafe (musubi meaning “connections” in Japanese), an establishment that caters for runners and those in search of a more balanced lifestyle.

Hiromi, like many office workers, found her life consumed by work. A former editor-in-chief at one of Japan’s largest wedding magazines, she worked so much she started to get physically ill. “I had an irregular life cycle. I was so busy I actually got sick,” she said.

“I didn’t have any hobbies apart from work and my health got very bad...

I started running to get healthier.”

Although she started consistently running, work still dominated 80% of her life. “I wanted a permanent change. I realised I wanted to share the pleasure of running and eating every day.” She

left her job, and in April 2009 opened the doors of her cafe.

The building itself has three levels.

The top floor has four showers/change rooms, all equipped with shampoo, soap and hair dryers. There are also lockers and a multi-purpose room, used for events such as yoga sessions.

The ground level is where the kitchen and most of the seating is located, while the basement is reserved for trophies, memorabilia and a library of running-related books. It’s darker here and the seats are more comfortable: a perfect place to relax after a strenuous run, shower and hot meal.

This brings us to the food. The menu aims to provide non-oily but simple and tasty fare; this means dishes such as baby bamboo and Horikawa burdock curry, steamed chicken with herbs, and a brown rice chicken casserole. The set meals come with a variety of kobachi (literally ‘small bowls’), such as daikon and citron pickles and marinated chrysanthemums. Produce is all sourced locally and seasonally, carbon footprint in mind, and from people Hiromi or her staff personally know. Numerous, but not all, of the ingredients are organic, with the emphasis on sustainable farming. And with a second branch of Musubi opening in April, now there are two good reasons to get off the couch and into the great outdoors.

Musubi Café ムスビカフェ • Address: Kyoto, Saikyo-ku, Arashiyama, Nishiichikawa 1-8 • Access: About 200m from Hankyu Arashiyama Station. (New branch is at Kyoto, Higashiyama-ku, Miyagawasuji 1-234) • Open: Monday to Saturday 10am–10pm. Sunday 10am–8pm.

Closed Tues.

• Price range: ¥300-950 (food); ¥450650 (drinks). One day locker use and shower ¥500.

• Go to dish: Vegetarian set meal, changes every two to four days (¥850).

• Go to drink: Musubi ginger ale, made with fresh ginger and sugar from Hokkaido beets (¥600).

• Best bit: Healthy, tasty and affordable food. Clean showers and large lockers.

• Worst bit: Limited variety of dishes.

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Food and drink

Macrobiotics made simple Airing out the summer beachwear isn’t far off. Not confident you’ll squeeze into the shorts or bikini so safely? Stop following faddy diets and eat to improve your health, well-being and happiness.

Text & Images: Helen Marvell

We all know that rather than following restrictive and regulated diet rules, the common sense approach to losing weight is simply to eat healthily and exercise everyday. I’m no diet expert, in fact I’ve put on about 4kg over the last few months by eating too much limited edition chocolate (Melty Kisses are just so tasty!), but I do believe that when you eat healthier food, you feel better in yourself and your body smiles from the inside. When I feel like I’ve overindulged I always turn to a macrobiotic meal to make me feel better.

The word Macrobiotic comes from Greek; macro meaning long, and biot meaning life. It’s all about being sensi-

tive to the effects that food has on our mind and body by eating a balanced diet that uses a variety of ingredients.

The approach is to eat small, colourful portions of fresh, seasonal, and locally produced foods, avoiding those that are highly processed, refined, or produced from animals. This means that most macrobiotic food is suitable for vegetarians, and sometimes for vegans too! The standard ingredients of macrobiotic meals are whole grains, soy and vegetables.

It’s no surprise that eating well powerfully affects your health, and there’s a lot of research to support the theory that macrobiotic eating can

help to prevent and even potentially cure lifestyle illnesses, such as diabetes and cancer.

It’s thought that the macrobiotic way of eating started in Japan. Its roots can be traced as far back as the Edo period when Japanese peasants weren’t allowed to eat meat so lived on a diet made up primarily of rice and soybeans to give them protein. It’s for this reason that most macrobiotic recipes include standard Japanese cuisine ingredients.

Many Asian foods are considered to have both a yin and yang property, with one of them being more dominating. It’s believed that it’s best to have

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yin and yang at a balance to achieve health, as a balance restores and sustains your spiritual energy, your ‘Ki’. Macrobiotic food strives to keep this balance. For example, tomatoes, peppers and potatoes (among other vegetables) are rarely used because they are considered too yin.

The Western fast food influence is gradually expanding across Japan.

In fact, Japan comes only second in the world to the USA for number of McDonalds restaurants. With fears that growing waistlines and lifestyle diseases will soon sweep the nation, it’s about time that macrobiotic food is re-introduced to Japan. Indeed it has recently become a popular trend amongst (but not exclusive to) ladiesthat-lunch, who meet up for a gossip and to eat a healthy meal at the many macrobiotic restaurants and cafes that are popping up across Kansai.

Superstar Madonna is such a fan of macrobiotic food that she employed Japanese cook Mayumi Nishimura for seven years to cook for her at home and on worldwide tours. In fact Nishimura, now 56 years old and still looking incredible, has since become a bit of a celebrity herself, taking part in many media interviews and publishing several books on macrobiotic food.

Actress Gwyneth Paltrow is another spokesperson for macrobiotic foods.

She originally started her strict dedication to macrobiotic food to help her dying father when he was diagnosed with throat cancer. Other celebrities that have been very open about embracing a macrobiotic lifestyle include Yoko Ono, Barbra Streisand, John Travolta and Nicole Kidman.

Why not try adding macrobiotic elements to your lifestyle to see if it works for you? A quick Google will bring up an array of simple macrobiotic dishes to try at home, and because of the Asian influence most ingredients can easily be found on your doorstep. Or check out the easy recipe opposite, and our guide to eating out macrobiotically. While you’re visiting macrobiotic restaurants, look out for information on macrobiotic cookery classes.

EAT OUT Tenmusu 116 Nami-bun, Iwade, Wakayama / 073663-5363 • Opening hours: 12pm–3pm/

EAT IN Delicious Rice Balls To make around 10 you’ll need: • 200g brown rice • ¼ of an onion • 50g breadcrumbs • Pinch of basil • Pinch of salt and pepper • Oil for frying 1. Cook the rice in a rice cooker 2. Meanwhile cut the onion into small pieces and fry 3. Mix the rice, onion, salt, pepper and basil in a bowl 4. Take about a handful of the mixture and using your hands roll into a ball.

Continue with all of the mixture 5. Roll the balls in breadcrumbs until they are fully covered 6. Shallow fry until golden brown 7. You can remove 100g of the rice and replace with seasonal vegetables of your choice, for example butternut squash, pumpkin, peas, broccoli or chickpeas. Be sure to cook them first and add them to the mixture in step 3.

Closed on Sundays

This restaurant is set in the home of cook Yuka Nakano. At lunchtimes this charming traditional Japanese home with a modern interior is turned into a cosy restaurant where beautiful lunch sets are presented for around ¥1,500.

This restaurant is reservation only, and is best visited with a Japanese speaker.

Atl Café http://atl-cafe.com • 1-24 2F, 2-chome, Chuo-ku, Osaka-shi, Osaka/Tel: 06-6212-0066 • Opening hours: 11:30am-midnight

This cafe has a touch of European influence and they serve wonderful fresh whole wheat bagel sets at lunchtime, a rarity in Japan! The cafe is on the 2nd floor, a 3-minute walk from Shinsaibashi station, and the big windows allow you to people-watch from one of the most interesting areas of Osaka.

Sets cost between ¥850-1,000.

Search www.happycow.net for more macrobiotic restaurants in your area.

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This month in Kansai

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ART

EVENT

EVENT

Details p.34

Details p.35

The Osakan Dreams Details p.39

Confectionery Festa in Kobe

Nara Spring Festival

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9

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ART

EVENT

EVENT

ART

Details p.38

Details p.34

Details p.34

Kansai Collections

Kimono Beauty

Oharame Festival

Shiro Matsui: Forwards Backwards Details p.39

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LIVE

EVENT

FESTIVAL

Details p.35

Details p.42

Details p.35

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CLUB

LIVE

EVENT

ART

Details p.34

Details p.38

Wakanagi Concert

Vibes @Union Details p.41

Ken Stringfellow & Shonen Knife

Ray Parker Jnr. @Billboard Live Osaka Details p.43

The 11th Thai Festival Osaka

Yokaichi Giant Kite Festival

Mifune Festival Details p.36

Gaetan Kubo: Hysterical Complex

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

4

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FESTIVAL

EVENT

CLUB

FESTIVAL

Pillow Festival Details p.36

Osaka Kita Yard World Festival 2013

Blissdom presents Celebration of Departure @Mme Kiki

Nozaki Mairi Details p.36

Details p.34

Details p.41

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CLUB

ART

ART

FESTIVAL

Tightrope Dancing @Circus Details p.41

Koji Tanada: Tachinoboru (Rise)

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LIVE

EVENT

LIVE

LIVE

Steve Appleton Details p.43

Details p.39

Kansai Scene Business Matters: Personal Branding@ Trois Dix

Japanese Ghosts and Eerie Creatures

Aoi Festival Details p.36

Details p.39

Sakanaquarium @Osaka Jo Hall Details p.42

Toshinori Yonekura @Chicken George Details p.42

Details p.07

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ART

ART

LIVE

LIVE

Details p.39

Details p.42

Japanese Masterpieces from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Details p.38

50 Years of Japanese Painting

Mr. Children @Osaka Jo Hall,

Trio Estrangeiros ft.

Jesse Harris, Dadi & Vinicius Cantuaria @ Taku Taku, Kyoto Details p.43

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Events

May 26

Yokaichi Giant Kite Festival 2013年東近江大凧祭り FREE

Fureai-Koen Park, Shiga

Head down to Fureai-koen Park for this thrilling Japanese kite festival. The Higashi-Omi odako kite is renowned for its fine art and aerodynamic design - look for the holes in its fabric that reduce the wind resistance. Make sure you catch Japan’s largest kite, which is 15 meters high, 12 meters wide and 700 kilograms, being hoisted into the air by 100 kite pullers. With a kite flying contest, market stalls, a popular TV character show and more, this will be a thoroughly enjoyable day out for young and old alike.

Time: 9:20am–3pm (if it rains, event will be postponed until Jun 2) • Admission: free • Access: JR Biwako line Notogawa stn free shuttle bus to the venue • Tel: 0748-24-1234

Event Listings Kimono Beauty 特別展 Kimono Beautyシックでモダン な装いの美 江戸から昭和 Nara Prefectural Museum of Art, Nara • Until June 2

A display of dozens of exotic and ornate kimono from the private collection of American William Sturgis Bigelow (1850–1926).

Admission: ¥1,000 adults, concessions • Closed May 7,13, 20, and 27 • www.pref.nara.jp/ dd.aspx?menuid=29325

Oharame Festival 大原女祭り Ohara no Sato, Kyoto Until May 12 FREE

Ohara is famous for an interesting women’s activity, known as Oharame, whereby female street vendors walk around carrying bundles of firewood for sale on their heads. Try on their traditional working kimono and enjoy walking around the peaceful neighbourhood dressed as Oharame!

Admission: free • Access: Keihan Railway Demachiyanagi stn bus to Ohara • Tel: 075-744-2148

May 4

Japanese traditional martial arts will be performed in front of the altar in Shimogamo shrine. Enjoy a showcase of judo, kendo, and swordplay using the long wooden poles of naginata and the chained sickles of kusarigama.

Musha-Ningyo Meguri 商家に伝わる武者人形めぐり Omi Shonin Yashiki Gokasho, Shiga Until May 26

Meet beautiful musha-ningyo dolls representing the legends of Japanese heroism. Visit famous houses on this picturesque old street showcasing these antique figurines.

Admission: ¥600 • Access: Omi Railway Gokasho stn; 20min walk

Confectionery Festa in Kobe 洋菓子フェスタ in Kobe FREE Daimaru Kobe, Hyogo May 2–7

Indulge yourself in a vast array of artisan quality cake, sugarsculptures, and sugar-novelties made by Kobe’s top chefs. Join cookery workshops, purchase fantastic products, and sample tempting desserts!

Admission: free • Access: JR Motomachi stn; 3min walk

Flamenco dancer at the Osaka Kita Yard World Festival

Osaka Kita Yard World Festival 2013 大阪キタヤー ド・ワールドフェスティバル2013 FREE Nakatsu Geijutsu Bunka Nura Pierrot Harbour, Osaka • May 3–5

Head to Pierrot Harbour for some international entertainment.

Watch live music, performances and a fashion show, and enjoy purchasing goods and cuisine from various countries.

Admission: free www2.odn.ne.jp/sugar-town/

Traditional Martial Arts Exhibition 古武道奉納 FREE

Shimogamo-Jinja, Kyoto

Admission: free www.shimogamo-jinja.or.jp

Earth Day Kobe 2013 FREE Minato no Mori Park, Sannomiya May 4 & 5

Show your support for environmental protection at an outdoor event for the whole family.

There will be hundreds of shops, tasty organic food, yoga events, live music, soap making, and lots of other activities for young and old.

Admission: free www.earthdaykobe.com

Pet Kingdom ペット王国 2013 Kyocera Dome, Osaka

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May 25 & 26

May 3–5

Aioi Peron Festival

Nara Spring Festival

相生ペーロン祭り

平城京天平祭 春

FREE

Aioi-Wan Bay, Hyogo

FREE

Heijo-kyo Palace site, Nara

Things are heating up as Aioi City gears up for this dynamic dragon boat race. See dozens of serious rowers racing in the traditional craft. The boats – rigged with decorative patterns and fearsome dragon-like heads – are crewed by 32 people per boat plus drummers, a gong percussionist and a rowing instructor. With many other events going on alongside the boat races, the festival is a great day out for everyone. Attractions include a colourful parade of energetic dance teams, stalls for foodies and many others. Also, 5,000 fireworks will light up the festival on the evening of the 25th.

Heijyo-kyo was the capital of Japan during the Tenpyo-era (729–749), and its palatial remains are a registered Unesco World Heritage site, together with other historical areas of Nara. The city hosts this annual jamboree, spread over the three-day Golden Week period, in celebration of this 1,300 year history. The festival features a gorgeous historical parade and street performances, a giant maze, a bustling market, and the uber-popular Nara mascot character, Sentokun on hand, promising great fun for all the family.

Time: 9:30am–4:30pm • Admission: free • Access: JR Ako line Aioi

Yamato Saidaiji stn; 15min walk • Tel: 0742-25-0707

stn bus to Shiyakusho-mae • Tel: 0791-23-7133

www.tenpyosai.jp

May 5 & 6

Prepare for a cute overload of small animals at the Pet Okoku. Bring your pet and enjoy a dog fashion show, a question and answer corner, and many events for our pint-sized friends.

Admission: ¥1,300 adults (¥1,500 at door), concessions www.pet-oukoku.jp

food, bewitching dances, exciting Thai boxing and many other activities will be on offer.

Admission: free • Access: JR Loop line Osakajokoen stn/Subway Nagahori Tsurumi-ryokuchi line Osaka Business Park stn www.thaiconsulate.jp

Kobe Shinkaichi Music Street 2013 神戸新開地音楽 祭2013 Minatogawa Park and Surroundings, Hyogo May 11 & 12 FREE

Thai Festa in Osaka-jo Park

The 11th Thai Festival Osaka 第１１回 タイフェスティ バル大阪 FREE The Baseball Field in Osaka Castle Park, Osaka May 18 & 19

Osaka Castle Park will turn into Little Thailand this weekend. Spicy

Join the largest free music show in Kansai. There’s something for everyone here including performances of all kinds of music, an art market, delicious food stalls and an amateur singing contest.

Admission: free http://shinkaichi.or.jp/ongakusai

Wakanagi Concert 邦楽の 会「和奏伎」演奏会 FREE Kyobashi, Osaka May 16

Time: 10am–5pm • Admission: free • Access: Kintetsu Railway

Enjoy traditional rakugo, shamisen, plays and dance performances at this free concert, depicting characters from the Tokugawa era.

Doors open - 1:30pm / Play starts - 2pm • Access: 5–10min walk from JR/Keihan Kyobashi Sta. Creo Osaka east 1F hall www.wakanagi.com

The 16th Tour of Japan 第16回ツアーオブジャパン 第一ステージ堺 FREE Daisen Park, Sakai, Osaka May 19

Watch the opening time trial stage of this year’s Tour of Japan; a gruelling eight-day, six-stage professional road cycling race.

Both domestic and international riders will compete against the clock over a 10-lap circuit of Sakai’s Daisen park.

Admission: free • www.toj.co.jp Access: 5min walk from JR Mozu station

The 43rd Kobe Festival 第43回神戸まつり FREE Sannomiya, Hyogo May 19

This annual festival transforms central Sannomiya into a sea of food vendors, dancers and live music.

The main roads will be car-free to make way for a giant parade featuring marching bands and carnival dancers.

Admission: free www.kobe-matsuri.com

Celtic Music Festival 2013 Windward Ocean Club, Nishinomiya May 25

Stamp your feet to live Irish music and Breton dances at this outdoor music event by the sea.

Admission: ¥2,500 (adv) ¥3,000 (door) • Open 1pm–9pm www.celticmusicfestival.net

Find more listings online at: www.kansaiscene.com/listings

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Festivals May 4 & 5

Photo provided by Biwako Visitors Bureau

May 4

Shinoda Firework Festival 篠田の花火 FREE

Shinoda-jinja, Shiga • May 4

Pillow Festival まくら祭り FREE

Experience the beauty and magnificence of traditional Japanese fireworks held to please the god of Shinoda shrine.

Expert pyrotechnists show off their special explosions, which include blue lights appearing like fireflies from a cloud of smoke, plus large artworks painted in the night sky. This annual religious event is one of the largest in Shiga and has been designated as a significant intangible folk cultural asset of Japan.

Hine-jinja, Osaka • May 4 & 5

Enjoy this centuries old religious festival featuring unique flagpoles in the region. See bundles of 25 colourful pillows tied on bamboo poles, which is characteristic of the Makura Festival. Some people say that the pillows represent straw rice-bags, while other people believe they symbolise being blessed with children. Watch a parade of vigorous local men in happi short kimonos as they walk for seven kilometres with three of the bamboo poles singing folk songs to celebrate the festival.

Time: 8pm • Admission: free • Access: JR Biwako line Omihachiman stn bus to Ueda; 5min walk • Tel: 0748-36-5573

Admission: free • Access: JR Hanwa line Hineno stn bus to Higashiue • Tel: 072-467-1162

Festival Listings Nozaki Mairi のざきまいり

Take part in this amusing Buddhist ritual where participants try to catch heart-shaped paper fans, believed to be lucky charms, as they are thrown from buildings.

Make sure you get there at 3pm for the action.

Nozaki Kannon Temple, Osaka • May 1–8 FREE

Much loved by Osaka people, this annual Buddhist festival, which features classic Japanese attractions, is a popular pilgrimage destination and traditional spring activity.

Admission: free • Access: JR Gakken Toshi line Nozaki stn; 8 min walk

Waka Festival 和歌祭 FREE Kishu Toshogu Shrine, Wakayama • May 12

Enjoy one of the largest religious festivals in Wakayama. Watch the vigorous mikoshi portable shrines running up stairs, bustling taiko drumming, demonstration of naginata halberd, and much more.

Admission: free • Access: JR Wakayama stn bus to Gongen-mae.

Aoi Festival

Mifune Festival

Aoi Festival 葵祭

Mifune Festival 三船祭

Kyoto Imperial Palace and Surroundings, Kyoto • May 15

Togetsukyo Bridge and Surroundings, Kyoto • May 19

One of the oldest festivals in Kyoto, Aoi actually appears in arguably the world’s oldest novel, The Tale of Genji. This slow-moving parade of people wearing colourful historical costumes moves from the Imperial palace to Kamigamo-jinja via Shimogamo-jinja, so there are lots of good spots to catch the action.

Witness this glittering boat outing from the Heian era where twentyfive richly decorated boats sail along the river Oi to commemorate the deity of the Kurumazaki shrine.

http://kyoto-design.jp/special/aoi

FREE

Admission: free • Access: Keifuku Railway Kurumazaki-jinja stn

Uchiwamaki うちわまき Toshodaiji Temple, Nara • May 19

Admission: ¥600 adults, concessions • Access: Kintetsu Railway Nishinokyo stn; 8 min walk

Sand Festival 第45回 砂まつり大会 FREE Shirahama Beach, Wakayama • May 26

Watch as over 20 amateur teams turn thousands of tonnes of beautiful white sand into an impressive display of sand sculptures.

Admission: free • Access: JR Kinokuni line Shirahama stn bus to Shirahama

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Kids and Family

Perfect playdate for parents Kansai Kids Network connects English speaking families with fun activities and events. This month, they’re kicking things off with their annual Golden Week picnic. And everyone’s invited.

Text: Helen Hayashi

Have you ever been at a loss for what to do with your kid, and along that line, someone (with some kiddos) who might enjoy doing it with you?

Thinking up fun stuff that keeps you and your kids busy, and happy, is a quest that renews every day. But if you’re a family in Kansai, then you’re in luck! There’s a whole crew of folks who are all in the same boat; who are all looking for good places to meet, and good people to do it with. Three years ago Kansai Kids Network was created to bring these families together, and in that time has grown to a collection of over 150 families and kid-friendly groups from all over Kansai. We’ve also just launched a shiny new website, but the best way see the real action is to join us on Facebook.

Here’s a smattering of some of the different gatherings we’ve had, to give you a taste of the fun. We have playgroups in North Osaka, Kyoto, and one for newbie mums, all run by parents who are pros at working with kids. We also feature classes in parent/

child yoga, music, eco awareness, and sign language for babies. Frequent gatherings at fun kid centers, such as Kids Plaza, USJ, Dream 21 and Kido-kid at Bournelund are always a huge hit. We’ve joined or hosted amazing workshops, such as making Tanabata garlands at Kukkia Kids (a fantastic wooden toys workshop) and making our own vermicomposting bins (whee, worms). Seasonal gatherings include spring hanami parties, playing in the water at Rokko Island and Utsubo Koen, enjoying the autumn leaves in Minoh, and ice skating. Of course, we also have the all-important Easter, Halloween and Christmas parties.

And there’s always someone up for community events, such as Oktober Fest at the Deutsche/European School in Kobe.

In fact, there’s a community event coming up that I’d love to invite you to attend. During Golden Week, KKN will gather for our annual picnic at the Nakanoshima Children’s Day Festival (www.nakanoshima.net). There are

lots of kids games, crafts, rides, and last year’s event even had a maze. There’s also an “eco” aspect, as all of the rides are handmade from reclaimed wood and other recycled materials. We will meet at 10:30am on Sunday, May 5, which is Children’s/Boy’s Day. After we run around and tire ourselves out on all the rides, we’ll have a picnic together. If last year is anything to go by, tickets for the rides and games should be reasonably priced. The crafts should also be hugely popular, with lots of lovely volunteers helping the kids, so be sure to get there early.

We can’t wait to meet up with you and your family. If not during the festival, then some other time soon!

What’s KKN? Kansai Kids Network’s goal is to connect English-speaking families in the Kansai area. We want to help you network and build your community.

The group’s Facebook page is a bulletin board for family-oriented events throughout Kansai. You could be hosting a class, looking for company for an event, or just posting information about something cool for kids.

We’re pleased to announce that along with the publication of this article, we’re launching our website: www. kansaikidsnetwork.com. There you can find great resources for families in the Kansai area, and a link to our Facebook group, which you can request to join.

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Art

Until July 15

Kansai Collections National Museum of Art, Osaka

Untitled by Jean-Michel Basquiat

Apr 6–Jul 15 • 20th century Western painting, sculpture, photography, etc.

Open: 10am–5pm (until 7pm Fri); closed Mon (when Mon is a national holiday, open Mon and closed Tue) Admission: ¥1,200 Access: Keihan Watanabebashi Sta. www.nmao.go.jp

KS

Pick

Focusing on 20th century Western art, Kansai Collections brings together highlights from the collections of six major museums in the Kansai region: the National Museum of Modern Art, Kyoto; the National Museum of Art, Osaka; the Museum of Modern Art, Shiga; Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art; the Museum of Modern Art, Wakayama; and the planned Osaka City Museum of Modern Art. The journey through modern art history begins around the turn of the last century with paintings by Cezanne, Picasso, and Matisse and continues up to the present day with contemporary work by artists such as Richter and Tuymans. Among the works on display are sculptures by Rodin, Brancusi, Arp and Giacometti, a room of Cornell’s exquisite box assemblages, and contemporary photography by Sherman and Struth.

Kansai Collections provides an inspiring and thoughtfully assembled overview of modern European and American art, with key works from just about all the movements: Abstract Expressionism, Surrealism, Pop Art, Color Field painting, Dada, Art Informel, Futurism and more. There’s something for everyone to enjoy.

Running concurrently at the museum are Pablo Picasso: The Prints and Ceramics, and Mieko Shiomi and Fluxus, an intriguing retrospective of work by the conceptual artist and composer and her associates.

Art Listings Kyoto

• Admission: Free • Access: subway Jujo Stn, JR/Kintetsu Kyoto Stn or Keihan Tobakaido Stn www.kodamagallery.com

Masterworks from the Collections of the Prince of Liechtenstein kubo gaetan @ Kodama gallery

Gaetan Kubo: Hysterical Complex FREE Kodama Gallery • May 11–Jun 15

Installations and video works dealing with clinical psychology, disorders and treatments.

Open: 11am–7pm; closed Sun, Mon and national holidays

FREE Kyoto Municipal Museum of Art • Mar 19–Jun 9

Work by renaissance and baroque masters including Rubens, Raphael, Van Dyck and Rembrandt.

Open: 9am–5pm; closed Mon (when Mon is a national holiday, open Mon and closed Tue)

re: framing FREE Kyoto Art Center • Apr 13May 26

Works by three artists who take painting outside the frame and “reframe” space itself.

10am–8pm • Admission free • Access: Subway Shijo stn, Hankyu Karasuma stn, or Shijo-Karasuma bus stop http://www.kac.or.jp

Henri Cartier-Bresson Photo Exhibition Kahitsukan Kyoto Museum of Contemporary Art • Until May 26

Black & white photos by the legendary French master of candid and street photography.

Open: 9am–5pm; closed Mon (open when Mon is a national holiday) • Admission: ¥1,400, ¥1,000 university and high school students, ¥500 junior high and elementary school students • Access: subway Higashiyama Stn or bus to Kyoto Kaikan Bijutsukan-mae www.city.kyoto.jp/bunshi/kmma/

Osaka Japanese Masterpieces from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston Osaka City Museum of Fine Arts Apr 2–Jun 16

One of the largest exhibitions of pre-modern Japanese art treasures ever held.

Open: 9:30am–5pm; closed Mon (when Mon is a national holiday, open Mon and closed Tue) • Admission: ¥1,500 (tickets can be purchased online) • Access: JR or subway Tennoji Stn or Kintetsu Osaka-Abenobashi Stn www.boston-nippon.jp www.osaka-art-museum.jp

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Until Jun 9

Until May 26

Soma no furudairi, Utagawa Kuniyoshi

Koji Tanada: Tachinoboru (Rise) Itami City Museum of Art

Contemporary sculptor Koji Tanada works in a very old-fashioned medium: wood carving, specifically the ancient Japanese technique of ichibokuzukuri (carving a sculpture out of a piece of wood from a single tree, a technique often used in Buddhist sculpture). He sculpts stylized figures of boys and girls with elongated limbs, which appear fragile and off-balance and yet possess a self-assurance and solemnity reminiscent of sacred icons. As suggested by the title of the exhibition, Tachinoboru (Rise), the youthful figures seem to ascend heavenward like columns of smoke, wavering and yet inexorable.

The Itami City Museum of Art itself is architecturally attractive, with pleasant gardens and a white-walled exterior that reflects the local community’s history as a home to many sake breweries.

Photo by Kei Miyajima

Apr 6–May 26 • Sculpture (figurative wood carving) Open: 10am–6pm (until 7pm Fri); closed Mon (when Mon is a national holiday, open Mon and closed Tue) Admission: ¥800 • Access: Hankyu or JR Itami Sta. http://artmuseum-itami.jp

Japanese Ghosts and Eerie Creatures Osaka Museum of History

Welcome to the dark realm of yurei (ghosts) and yokai (eerie creatures), Japanese spooks appearing in Edo-period woodblock prints and ink paintings as well as other historic materials. Basically yurei are the spirits of dead humans, and yokai are spirit-monsters, often shape-shifting, that range from the malicious to the merely mischievous. The beings depicted here range from ghastly women with no legs to capricious woodland sprites such as the river-dwelling kappa, and the illustrations portraying them are as often funny as frightening. If you’re curious about local lore, enjoy a good frisson, or appreciate macabre manga such as GeGeGe no Kitaro, catch this exhibition to see how these ghouls played on people’s imaginations in centuries past.

Apr 20–Jun 9 • Paintings, prints, etc. depicting Japanese ghouls Open: 9:30am–5pm (until 8pm Fri); closed Tue (when Tue is a national holiday, open Tue and closed Wed) • Admission: ¥600 Access: Subway Tanimachi 4-chome sta. www.mus-his.city.osaka.jp

Wakayama

Walking Man CAS (Contemporary Art and Spirits) • Apr 20–May 11 FREE

Shiro Matsui @ Artcourt galleryy

Shiro Matsui: Forwards Backwards FREE Artcourt Gallery May 11–Jun 22

Installations, some interactive, made with various dynamic materials including water and fish.

Open: 11am–7pm, until 5pm on Sat; closed Sun and Mon Admission: Free • Access: JR Sakuranomiya, JR Osakatenmangu or subway Minamimorimachi stn www.artcourtgallery.com/index.html

A three-person show of kinetic art, performance art and computer animation.

Open: 2pm–7pm; closed Tue and Wed • Admission: Free • Access: JR, Kintetsu or subway Namba stn

The Responsive Eye Contemporary Art Space Osaka (CASO / Kaigandori Gallery) Apr 30–May 12 FREE

A five-person show of contemporary art in assorted media, held in a converted warehouse near Osaka Bay Open: 11am–7pm (until 5pm on May 12); closed Mon Admission: Free Access: Subway Osakako stn www.caso-gallery.jp

50 Years of Japanese Painting The Museum of Modern Art, Wakayama • Apr 20–Jun 16 Haruka Yamagishi, The Osakan Dreams Vol. 3

The Osakan Dreams Vol.3 FREE JR Osaka Mitsukoshi Isetan 6F/DMO Arts 3F • May 1–14

Celebrating its 2nd anniversary, JR Osaka Mitsukoshi Isetan hosts a group collection of contemporary Osaka art, representing the pick of the Osaka galleries.

Open: 10am–8pm daily• Admission: Free • Access: JR Osaka stn www.dmoarts.com

Modern and contemporary Japanese painting from the past half-century Open: 9:30am–5pm; closed Mon (when Mon is a national holiday, open Mon and closed Tue) Admission: ¥340 • Access: Nankai Wakayama Stn www.momaw.jp

Find gallery access details and more listings online at: www.kansaiscene.com/listings

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Club

May 18–19

The Star Festival The Star Festival (Dance Music) • Acts: Daddy G, DJ Krush, DJ Koze, Function, Mark McGuire, Neel, Brando Lupi, DJ Nobu, James Dean Brown, Eye, Kaoru Inoue, Tomoki Tamura, Ree.K + more • Open: 1pm • Admission: ¥6,000 (ADV: ¥5,000) • Where: Hiyoshi (Kyoto) • www.thestarfestival.com

One of the most promising party crews in Osaka, The Star Festival is throwing an outdoor festival in the beautiful country side of Kyoto. Though it’s a one-day festival, The Star Festival presents many of the world’s best DJs and producers; Daddy G from Massive Attack, techno prodigy Koze from Germany, deep minimal techno hero Function, two Italian techno rising stars, Neel and Brand Lupi, Mark McGuire, ex-guitarist from American electronic band Emeralds, James Dean Brown from Berlin, Japanese turntable maestro DJ Krush and the list goes on and on. If you are thinking about bringing your camping gear, be sure to get the advance ticket which includes the camping fee (the festival kindly offers a special advance ticket for foreigners). If you don’t have a car, catch a train from Kyoto station and then a shuttle bus will take you to the festival. For more ticket information and the full lineup, check out the festival website.

Above: Daddy G. Below: Koze

Club Listings May 2 (Thu) Circus Club Museum 10th Anniversary Tour (Techno) • DJs: Surgeon, Terry

Donovan, Kihira Naoki, Rok Da House • Open: 7pm • Admission: ¥3,000/1D (ADV: ¥2,500/1D) • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-62413822 • circus-osaka.com

Onzieme Electrojunkie 5th Anniversary

James Zabiela (House/Electro) • DJs: James Zabiela, Ko-Matsushima, Taku-Hero, Shinji + more • Open: 8pm • Admission: ¥3,000/1D (ADV: ¥1,500) • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6243-0089 • www.onzi-eme.com

Union

Union

Slave To The Rhythm (House)

Gloria (House) • DJs: Eleto,

• DJs: Cazuja, Fuzimoto, Tejima, Ryoji Oi • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.clubunion.jp

3 (Fri) Azure Heartbeat 2nd Anniversary (Hiphop) • DJs: Lead, B-Ball + more • Admission: Genlemen: ¥3,000/1D, Ladies: ¥1,500/1D (Before 11pm: ¥FREE) • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6212-0226 • www.club-azure.net

Circus Shackleton Japan Tour (Techno) •

Live: Shackleton • DJs: TBA • Open: 7pm • Admission: ¥3,000 (ADV: ¥2,500) • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6241-3822 • circus-osaka.com

Hirame • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.clubunion.jp

World-Kyoto Asobinite!! (Electro/House) • DJs:

Ram Rider, Uchida, 2Boy, Kohsuke, Missileman + more • Open: 7pm1am • Admission: ¥3,000(ADV: ¥2,500) • Where: Kyoto • Tel: 075212-4119 • www.world-kyoto.com

4 (Sat) Circus Agile feat. Radio Slave (Techno) • DJs: Radio Slave, Monashee, Ryo Yoshida, Shami aka Shimaxx, Chucky • Open: 7pm • Admission: ¥3,000 (ADV: ¥2,500) • Where:

Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6241-3822 • circus-osaka.com

Joule Queen x Vuuv Festivial (Trance/

Techno) • DJs: Protoculture, Scotty, Energy Dai, Ryosay, Q’hey, hidetaka + more • Open: 8pm • Admission: ¥3,000/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6214-1223 • club-joule.jp

Union Vino (House) • DJs: Yabu, Uoshima, Kino, Toshimi • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.club-union.jp

Universe Universal Adventure - Chris Liebing 3 Hours set (Techno)

• DJs: Chris Liebing, Q’hey, D41 ex.energydai, Yasuhiro, Fujioka, Takatsugu Wada + more • Open: 3pm - 11pm • Admission: ¥3,000 (Advance: ¥2,500/1D, Before 5pm:

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

¥2,000) • Where: Namba • cavaretuniverse.com

5 (Sun) Circus Fat Jon Japan Tour 2013 (Hip-

hop) • Guest: Fat Jon • Live: Ramza, andviceversa, Endrun, Yoshimarl • DJs: Ce$, pharakami • Open: 8pm • Admission: ¥2,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6241-3822 • circus-osaka.com

Move Danny Krivit Japan Tour (House) • DJs: Danny Krivit, K-suke, Nobu, Masaaki, Piro • Open: 10pm • Admission: ¥3,500 (ADV: ¥3,000/1D, WF: ¥3,500/1D) • Where: Otsu(Shiga) • Tel: 077-5233870 • www.club-move.com

Union Technova (House) • DJs:

Compufunk aka Lovegod, Kenji Tazaki • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.clubunion.jp

World-Kyoto DDD (House) • DJs: Daishi Dance,

Mitomi Tokoto • Open: 10pm-1am • Admission: TBA • Where: Kyoto • Tel: 075-212-4119 • www.worldkyoto.com

6 (Mon) Mme Kiki Blissdom presents Celebration of Departure (Dance music) •

Live: Hiroyuki Okano, Wanico • DJs: Sudo Brothers, Isao Sudo, Takashi Sudo • Open: 3pm -11pm • Admission: ¥3,000/1D with finger food • Where: Kobe • mmekiki.net

10 (Fri) Union 4Rapture (House) • DJs: Toshiyuki

Goto, Masaaki, Nagisa • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.club-union.jp

11 (Sat) Circus Gotham City (Electro/Bass Music)

• DJs: 80Kidz, Eyez, An + more • Open: 8pm • Admission: ¥3,000/1D (ADV: ¥2,500/1D) • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6241-3822 • circus-osaka.com

Joule Takkyu Ishino (Techno) • DJs: Takkyu Ishino, Shin Nishimura, D41 ex.energydai, DK-Baseline, Hidetaka + more • Open: 8pm • Admission: ¥3,000 (ADV: ¥2,000/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6214-1223 • club-joule.jp

Onzieme Darren Emerson (House) • DJs:

Darren Emerson + more • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥3,000/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-62430089 • www.onzi-eme.com

Union Extended Mix (House) • DJs:

peechboy, Daisuke Ito, Susuke, mayu, Afr • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.club-union.jp

12 (Sun) Circus Tightrope Dancing (House) • DJs:

Daniel Wang, Ageishi, Tetsuo • Open: 6pm • Admission: ¥2,500/1D (Before 9pm: ¥2,000/1D) • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6241-3822 • circus-osaka.com

Union Mode (House) • DJs: Takeshi Kitazaki, U-Ichirow • Open: 3pm • Admission: ¥2,000/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.club-union.jp

17 (Fri)

24 (Fri) Joule

Union O.S.G (House) • DJs: Mitchy,

Naoto, 244 aka 822, Dongri, Shiba, Shami • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.clubunion.jp

18 (Sat) Union Gulp! (House) • DJs: Osakaman,

mottsu, Koji Fujimoto • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.club-union.jp

World-Kyoto Switch (Hip-hop & R&B) • DJs:

Sancon, Tora, Danbo, Hifumi + more • Open: 8pm-1am • Admission: Gentlemen: ¥2,500/1D, Ladies: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Kyoto • Tel: 075-212-4119 • www.worldkyoto.com

Kireek TV Tour Final in Osaka

(Breaks) • Acts: Kireek, Hifanam Red Spider, Shingo Nishinari + more • Open: 8pm • Admission: ¥3,000 (ADV: ¥2,500) • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6214-1223 • club-joule.jp

Union Vibes (House) • DJs: Konishi, Hirose, Kitaura, Milk.Bro, SilverFoxx • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.club-union.jp

25 (Sat) Circus Digital Vision (Techno/House) • DJs: Omb, Show-hey, Shu, Ptbk, Masaya, Airi • Open: 8pm • Admission: ¥2,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6241-3822 • circus-osaka.com

Conpass Zettai-Mu Iration Steppers in Japan (Dub/Reggae/Hip-hop)

• Acts: Iration Steppas, 1945 aka Kuranaka, Mighty Massa, Sak-dub-I + more • Open: 6pm • Admission: ¥TBA • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6243-1666 • compass.jp

Union Sexy Trax (House) • DJs: Ise,

Tsubasa, Yuzo, Kenji Tazaki, ao Ikeda, Juniko • Open: 9pm • Admission: ¥1,500/1D • Where: Shinsaibashi • Tel: 06-6251-2242 • www.club-union.jp

World-Kyoto DDD (House) • DJ: Daishi Dance

• Open: 10pm-1am • Admission: Gentlemen: ¥2,500/1D, Ladies: ¥2,000/1D • Where: Kyoto • Tel: 075-212-4119 • www.world-kyoto. com

Find more listings online at: www.kansaiscene.com/listings

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Live Music

KS

Pick

May 31

Trio Estrangeiros ft.

Jesse Harris, Dadi & Vinicius Cantuaria

Singer-songwriter Jesse Harris, bassist Dadi, and percussionist Vinicius Cantuaria; though the three have collaborated in the past, it’s only recently that they have come together as a live trio. Dadi played on the Jesse Harris album Sub Rosa and co-wrote the track Rocking Chair, an album that also saw a guest spot from Cantuaria.

Prior to this short Japanese tour, the three-piece played three warm-up gigs in Rio to rapturous audiences. Singersongwriter-producer Jesse Harris is no stranger to Japanese shores and has built a large and very loyal following. Over the past eighteen years, as well as his own solo releases he has worked with a number of high profile artists (most notably Norah Jones).

These are not gigs to be missed and they will sell out fast, so don’t hang about!

Singer-songwriter-producer’s Latin inspired trio • Club Quattro, Osaka - May 30/ 7pm · ¥6,000 · Tel: 06-6311-8111 • Taku Taku, Kyoto - May 31/ 7pm · ¥6,000 · Tel: 075-351-1321

Live Music Listings May/June Rock & Pop Robben Ford

Orianti

Newton Faulkner

Billboard Live Osaka, Osaka May 17

Club Quattro, Osaka May 21

Rock Guitar • 6:30pm/9:30pm • ¥7,900/¥9,400 • Tel: 06-6342-7722

Pop-R&B • 7pm • ¥6,825 • Tel: 067732-8888

Singer-songwriter • 7pm • ¥5,500 • Tel: 06-6311-8111

Club Quattro, Osaka May 15

Guitar • 7:30pm • ¥6,000 • Tel: 06-6535-5569

Mika Namba Hatch, Osaka May 15

Toshinori Yonekura

Toshinori Yonekura Ken Stringfellow

Nightwish

Ken Stringfellow & Shonen Knife

Nightwish

Amaranthe Club Quattro, Osaka May 17

Namba Mele, Osaka May 17

Janku Fujiyama

Steve Appleton

Big Cat, Osaka May 17

Club Quattro, Osaka May 20

Ayumi Hamasaki

Leon Russell

Osaka Jo Hall, Osaka May 15–16

Billboard Live Osaka, Osaka May 20

Singer songwriter • 7pm • ¥7,000 • Tel: 06-6535-5569

Rock • 7pm • ¥6,300 • Tel: 06-63118111

Guitar • 7pm • ¥4,000/¥6,500 • Tel: 06-6344-3321

Pop • 6:30pm • ¥8,500 • Tel: 067732-8888

Rock • pm • ¥3,000/¥3,500 • Tel: 06-6634-1539

Singer-songwriter • 7pm • ¥5,500 • Tel: 06-6311-8111

Rock • 6:30pm/9:30pm • ¥6,900/¥8,400 • Tel: 06-6342-7722

Namba Hatch, Osaka May 21

Meta • 7:30pm • ¥7,000 • Tel: 067732-8888

Toshinori Yonekura Big Cat, Osaka May 22

Pop-R&B • 7pm • ¥6,825 • Tel: 067732-8888

Sakanaquarium Osaka Jo Hall, Osaka May 22

Pop-rock • 7pm • ¥5,800 • Tel: 066882-1224

Toshinori Yonekura Chicken George, Kobe May 23

Muse, Kyoto May 25

Pop-R&B • 7pm • ¥6,825 • Tel: 075223-0389

Mr. Children Osaka Jo Hall, Osaka May 29–30

Pop-rock • 7pm • ¥7,350/¥7,875 • Tel: 06-7732-8888

Trio Estrangeiros ft.

Jesse Hall, Dadi & Vinicius Cantuaria Club Quattro, Osaka May 30

Latin influence • Singer-songwriter • 7pm • ¥6,000 • Tel: 06-6311-8111

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

May 20

May 17

June 7

Steve Appleton

Amaranthe

James Blake

Eight years ago British singer-songwriter-producer Steve Appleton was playing his own material on a piano in a London West End restaurant; within three years he’d signed to RCA Records. Interestingly his debut single ‘Dirty Funk’ reached only number 67 in the UK charts but achieved the lofty spot of number 2 in Japan. The track, written by Appleton when he was just sixteen, has been a commercial success.

It became the biggest radio song of the summer of 2009 in Japan and was even used for a TV commercial.

The multi-instrumentalist, who took the support role to Anastacia’s 2009 tour, has gone from strength to strength both commercially and in his own songwriting. He shows a maturity beyond his years and encompasses a number of genre influences.

Genuine talent stands the test of time and Steve Appleton will be around for a long time to come.

Formed in 2008 (originally going by the name Avalanche but changing this due to legal issues – all sounds a bit Spinal Tap), their style has been described as “a combination of modern metalcore style breakdowns, harsh screams and heavy guitar riffs…a healthy dose of pop fused with a heavy metalcore inspired melodic death metal sound.”

The band released the new album Nexus in March this year, which reached the top spot in a number of international metal rock charts.

No strangers to Japan, Amaranthe have a firm fan base here so tickets will go faster than their guitar riffs. Of their music, the band says “[It] fuses the most cutting edge of melodic metal with immediate and catchy choruses that will leave you humming for days.”

(Or screaming.)

The UK music scene seems to be full of singer-songwriters-producers right now, which can only be a good thing for both the industry and music fans alike. The latest to head Japan-way is Londoner James Blake. His debut was released in 2011 and reached number 9 in the UK charts. The follow-up to this, Overgrown, was released just last month. The single ‘Retrograde’ received strong reviews and as a precursor to the album things are looking good for the young man.

Blake, son of prog rock guitarist James Litherland (who worked with Leo Sawyer, Steve Marriot and Alexis Korner), plays his music solely in the electronic genre, but don’t let that lead you to thinking that it’s soulless computer programmed perfect sounds and rhythms. Blake’s songs are full of passionate emotion and complemented by strong vocals.

British singer-songwriter-producer

Melodic metal meets pop melodies with Swedish-Danish Amaranthe!

Club Quattro, Osaka • Rock • 7pm

London based electronic singer-

• ¥6,300 • Tel: 06-6311-8111

songwriter-producer • Namba Hatch,

Club Quattro, Osaka • May 20

Osaka • June 7 • 7pm • ¥6,000 · Tel: 06-

• 7pm • ¥5,500 • Tel: 06-6311-8111

6535-5569

Trio Estrangeiros ft.

Jesse Hall, Dadi & Vinicius Cantuaria Taku Taku, Kyoto May 31

Latin influence • Singer-songwriter • 7pm • ¥6,000 • Tel: 075-351-1321

Jiro Wang Namba Hatch, Osaka May 31

Pop vocal • 6:30pm • ¥9,500 • Tel: 06-7732-8888

Sophia Namba Hatch, Osaka June 1–2

Rock • 1st-5pm/2nd-4pm • ¥5,800 • Tel: 7732-8888

Milky Holmes Zepp, Osaka June 2

J-Pop • 5:30pm • ¥6,000 • Tel: 066344-3326

James Blake Namba Hatch, Osaka June 7

Singer-songwriter • 7pm • ¥6,000 • Tel: 06-6535-5569

Michael Jackson the Immortal World Tour Osaka Jo Hall, Osaka June 6–9 & 13–16

Pop Tribute • 6th & 7th 7pm/8th&9th 4.30pm/13th&14th 7pm/15th&16th 4.30pm • ¥12,000/¥25,000 • Tel:067732-8888

Edgar Winter & Rick Derringer Billboard Live Osaka, Osaka June 8

Rock • 4:30pm/7:30pm • ¥6,900/¥8,400 • Tel: 06-6342-7722

T-Square Zepp, Osaka June 15

Pop-rock-fusion • 5pm • ¥6,800 • Tel: 06-7732-8888

Jazz & Blues Sinne Eeg Mister Kellys, Osaka May 15

Jazz • 7:30pm/9:30pm • ¥5,250/¥7,500 • Tel: 06-6342-5821

Jon Cleary Trio Taku Taku, Kyoto May 18

Piano Funk • 7pm • ¥5,000/¥5,500 • Tel: 075-351-1321

Ray Parker Jnr. Billboard Live Osaka, Osaka May 25

Rnb Funk • 4:30pm/7:30pm • ¥7,400/¥8,900 • Tel: 06-6342-7722

Keiko Lee Mister Kellys, Osaka June 12

Jazz vocal • 7pm/9:30pm • ¥5,500/¥6,000 • Tel: 06-6342-5821

Find more listings online at: www.kansaiscene.com/listings

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Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Kansai Business Finder Wining & Dining Absinthe Mediterranean Restaurant Cafe/Bar

Nishi-ku, Kita-horie 1-2-27 South Yotsubashi Bldg. 1F Osaka Tel: 06-6534-6635 Url: www.absinthe-jp.com

Asbinthe Solaar Roof Top Restaurant Cafe Bar & Beer Garden

Chuo-ku, Namba 5-1-18 Namba Dining Maison 8F Osaka Tel: 06-6633-1445 Url: www.absinthe-jp.com/absinthesolaar

Himalaya Indian Restaurant

Kita-ku, Umeda 1-2, Osaka Ekimae, Dai-2 Bldg. B1 Osaka Tel: 06-6545-6116 Url: www.meera.jp/en/himalaya

Meera Indian Restaurant

Chinese Cafe Eight

Osaka YWCA

TNT-PC

Chinese Cuisine

Global Network of Women

English PC Support

Chuo-ku, Soemon-cho 7-2 Luz Shinsaibashi 5F Osaka Tel: 06-6125-5338 Url: www.chinesecafe8.com

Kita-ku, Kamiyama-cho 11-12 Osaka Tel: 06-6361-0838 Url: www.osaka.ywca.or.jp

Nishinomiya-shi, Maruhashi-cho 6-8-1F Nishinomiya Tel: 0798-65-7555 Url: www.tnt-pc.com

Dublin Bay

Arthur Murray Dance School

Miyabi Int’l Gyoseishoshi Law Firm

Dance Studio

VISA Lawyers in Osaka

Chuo-ku, Minami-senba 3-5-28 Osaka Tel: 06-6245-1731 Url: www.arthurmurray.co.jp

Kita-ku, Nishitenma 1-8-9 Viequ tower #2406 Osaka Tel: 06-4981-7439

Irish Pub

Chuo-ku, Dotonbori 2-1-5-B1 Osaka Tel: 06-6213-1122 Url: www.irishpub-dublinbay.com

Zerro The Place to be...

Chuo-ku, Shinsaibashi-suji 2-3-2, Queen’s Court Bldg 1F Osaka Tel: 06-6211-0439

The Blarney Stone Shinsaibashi The Irish Pub in the Heart of Osaka

Chuo-ku, Higashi-Shinsaibashi 2-527 Kohda Bldg B1F Osaka Tel: 06-6484-2220 Url: www.the-blarney-stone.com

Kita-ku, Umeda 1-3-1, Osaka Ekimae, Dai-1 Bldg. B2 Osaka Tel: 06-6348-0134 Url: www.meera.jp/en/

The Blarney Stone Umeda

Outback Steakhouse

Kita-ku, Sonezaki 2-10-15 Sonezaki Center Bldg. 6F Osaka Tel: 06-6364-2001 Url: www.the-blarney-stone.com

Australian Themed Steakhouse

Kita-ku, Umeda 2-1-24 Shinsakurabashi Bldg. 1F Osaka Tel: 06-6457-7121 Url: www.outbacksteakhouse.co.jp

Murphy’s Irish Pub First Irish Pub in Japan

Chuo-ku, Higashi-shinsaibashi 1-631 Lead plaza 6F Osaka Tel: 06-6282-0677 Url: www.murphysosaka.com

Fubar Restaurant and Bar

Chuo-ku, Shinsaibashi-suji 1-5-22F Osaka Tel: 06-6245-3757 Url: www.fubarosaka.com

Captain Kangaroo Food, Sports & Rock ‘n’ Roll

Kita-ku, Sonezaki-shinchi 1-5-20 Okawa Bldg. 1F Osaka Tel: 06-6346-0367 Url: www.roo-bar.jp

Chedi Luang Horie Traditional Thai food

Nishi-ku, Kita-horie 1-7-11 Osaka Tel: 06-6535-1515 Url: www.chedi.jp

> for maps see kansaiscene.com/business-finder

The Irish Pub in the Heart of Osaka

Coolabah Sports Cafe

Chuo-ku, Nishi-shinsaibashi 2-1613, Housen Bldg. 1F Osaka Tel: 06-6213-5153 Url: www.coolabah.jp

Ali’s Kitchen Pakistani & Arabic Cuisine

Chuo-ku, Shinsaibashi-suji 1-10-12B1 Osaka Tel: 06-6553-2292 Url: www.aliskitchen.jp

Trois Dix Macrobiotic & slow food restaurant

Nishi-ku, Kitahorie 1-22-4 Osaka Tel: 06-6648-8336 Url: http://locoplace.jp/t000094365/

Marga Language Service Japanese Language School

Chuo-ku, Onoe-dori 5-1-27-8F Kobe Tel: 078-271-6446 Url: www.marga.jp

Doshisha Business School Discover the Doshisha Global MBA

Doshisha University Karasuma-Imadegawa, Kamigyoku Kyoto Tel: 075-251-4600 Url: gmba.doshisha.ac.jp

Futaba Language School

Yuko Tamaki Accounting Office Accounting & Tax Services

Chuo-ku, Tanimachi 1-7-3-8F, Osaka Tel: 06-6809-1955 Url: www12.plala.or.jp/ytaccounting/ indexeng.html

International Solution Group Investments, Real Estate, Taxes US and Japanese

Chuo-ku, Tanimachi 1-3-17 suite 1001 Osaka Tel: 06-6949-0144 Email: kansai@isgjapan.com

Kyokushin Karate Osakacentral Branch Dojo

Japanese Classes in Shinsaibashi

Karate classes (Mon.20:00-,Thu.20:00-,Sat.19:00-)

Chuo-ku, Minamisenba 4-10-201101 Osaka Tel: 06-6244-2528 Url: www.futaba-japanese.com

Kita-Ku, Tenma 2-2-17 Nakano Bldg. 1F Osaka Tel: 090-4762-0016 Email: http://osakachuo.blogspot.jp

Osaka Abacus Association

Creamy Kids

Let’s learn Abacus!

Minatoku, Yunagi 2-13-7 Osaka Tel: 06-6572-6877 Url: https://sites.google.com/site/ osakasoroban/

Shops & Services Mojoprint Full Color Printing

Education

Nishi-ku, Shinmachi 3-5-7, Eiko Bldg. 2F Osaka Tel: 06-6539-1717 Url: www.mojoprint.jp

Kobe YWCA

Brastel Remit

Global Network of Women

Send money overseas

Chuo-ku, Ninomiya-cho 1-12-10 Kobe Tel: 078-231-6201 Url: www.kobe.ywca.or.jp

Sumida-ku, Yokoami 2-6-2 Tokyo Tel: 0120-983-891 / 03-6869-4851 Url: www.brastelremit.jp

International Modeling Agency

Kita-ku, Umeda 1-2-2 Osaka Ekimae, Dai-2 Bldg. 2F Osaka Tel: 06-6347-7705 Url: www.pre21.com/creamy

Pakmail Amagasaki We Ship Anything, Anywhere!

Tsugiya 2-2-28 Amagasaki Tel: 06-6492-8950 Url: www.pakmail-ama.com

Pakmail Esaka We Ship Anything, Anywhere!

Suita, Esaka-cho 1-23-17 Osaka Tel: 06-6330-8988 Url: www.pakmail-osaka.com

Sweatshop Union T-Shirt Print Shop

Naniwa-ku, Sakuragawa 4-5-19 Osaka

To list your business in the Kansai Scene Business Finder contact sales@kansaiscene.com for more details.

Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Tel: 06-4394-8850 Url: www.sweatshop.jp/eng

Shinmei Law Office Business Lawyer

Kita-ku, Nishi-tenma 4-11-22, Hanshin-shinmei Bldg. 501 Osaka Tel: 06-6362-8013 Url: www.shinmei-law.com/e

Exeo International International Dating Parties

Kita-ku, Umeda 1-1-3-3F Sky Lounge Mariage Osaka Tel: 050-5810-3977 Url: www.exeo-international.com

ACCJ Kansai American Chamber of Commerce in Japan

Kita-ku, Dojima-hama 1-1-8, Dojima Park Bldg. 5F Osaka Tel: 06-6345-9880 Url: www.accj.or.jp

Travel

GS Travel

Oriental Process

Best Fares in Osaka

Apartments for Rent

Chuo-ku, Higashi-Shinsaibashi 1-13-21, Wadayoshi Bldg 302 Osaka Tel: 06-6281-1230 Url: www.gs-travel.com/en

Ikuno-ku, Tsuruhashi 1-1-36 Osaka Tel: 080-1422-4679 Url: www.orientalprocess.com

H.I.S. • No.1 Travel

Shared houses across Osaka

We go the extra mile for you

Kita-ku, Umeda 3-4-5, MainichiIntecio 15F Osaka Tel: 06-6133-0273 Url: www.no1.his-west.jp

Real Estate & Accommodation Takani Co. Ltd. Total Solution for House-hunting

Yodogawa-ku, Nishimiyahara 2-335 Osaka Tel: 06-6396-6770

Mayflower House Guesthouse

World Express Kobe’s Popular Travel Agency

Chuo-ku, Kotonoo-cho 5-3-5, Green Chapeau Bldg. 104 Kobe Tel: 078-222-5050 Url: www.wexp.co.jp

Chuo-ku, Izumi-machi 2-1-15 Osaka Tel: 0120-881-456 Url: www.osaka-mayflowerguesthouse.com/en

Entrance Japan Kita-ku, Shibata 1-14-8-9F Osaka Tel: 06-6136-3330 Url: www.entrance-japan.com

TOA Furnished / Non-Furnished lofts for rent

Nishiyodogawa-ku, Tsukuda 1-1-36 Osaka Tel: 06-6471-8136 Url: http://passage.sunnyday.jp

Chuo-ku, Higashi-Shinsaibashi 1-2-23-5F Osaka Tel: 06-6252-7630 Url: www6.ocn.ne.jp/~boy

Oriental Dental Clinic English Speaking Dentist

Chuo-ku, Nakayamate-dori 3-4-7, Oriental Medical Dental Bldg. 4F Osaka Tel: 078-321-2717 Url: www.oriental-shika.com

K Studio New York English Speaking Beauty Salon

Kita-ku, Toyosaki 5-2-22-2F Osaka Tel: 06-6371-9033 Url: www.ksny.jp

Interaction Hair

Health & Beauty

Stylish cuts to suit you and your lifestyle

Ishida Women’s Clinic

Nishi-ku, Minami-Horie 1-14-12201 Osaka Tel: 06-7501-7313 Url: www.in-hair.jp

Women’s Health Care in Osaka

Asashi-ku, Shinmori 2-1-26 Osaka Tel: 06-6951-9701 Url: www.ishida-clinic.jp/en

Hair Art & Make up BOY Hair and Make Up

Procyon Apartment Executive apartments for rent

Chuo-ku, Uchiawajimachi 1-1-6 Osaka Tel: 06-6942-5766 Url: www.palforest.com/residence

45

47

Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

Classifieds

Place your ad online at: kansaiscene.com/classifieds

Employment > Education ELT Professional – Senri

Chuo Native-speaker English teacher required for company courses in Senri-Chuo, Tues.

6:20-8:30 pm and/or Thurs. 7:008:00 pm, April~Sept. Cambridge CELTA/DELTA, Trinity Cert/ Dip TESOL, or ELT-related M.A. & relevant teaching experience required. 4,500~5,000 yen/hr. Call for more info: 078-382-0394 www. languageresources.org International Coordinator for Abeno

International Coordinator for Abeno - Abeno Ward seeks an experienced English teacher who can also promote Abeno internationally. Univ degree, Japanese ability, and valid visa required. Mon-Fri, 30 hrs/wk.

354,000/mth. Deadline: 16th Apr. For more info: http://www.city. osaka.lg.jp/abeno/ ts0001@city. osaka.lg.jp Native part time teachers

needed. Fridays afternoons and evenings and Saturdays. Place: near JR Koshienguchi, between Amagasaki and Nishinomiya.

Students: Mainly adults and a few kids. 2200-2500 yen per hour of teaching plus transport.

Kiteenglishschool@gmail.com www. kiteenglish.com Native teacher(s) needed.

JETS Academy, an English

school designed for adults (upper beginners-lower advanced) in Nishinomiya seeks well-experienced native English teachers on Wed. (10:30-12:00), Fri. (19:30-21:00), and Sat. (4:00-5:30). 4,000 yen per/ hr (6,000 yen per/one lesson). Please contact info@jetsacademy.org www. jetsacademy.org/

Native English Teacher Recruitment For Children

in Osaka Sakai city From 1 time 3 times per week. Students:2 to 4-year-old children. Time:9:30am2:30pm. Salary:1500-2000 yen per hour. If you are kind,bright and love

children,please contact us. Please send resume to info@vacation-es. co.jp We are looking forward to seeing you. www.vacation-es.jp/ PT ENGLISH/FRENCH TEACHERS School in Ashiya/

Okamoto is looking for FT/PT English and French teachers ASAP. University diploma is preferable.

Must be native speaker with valid visa Payment: 2700-3000yen per hour and transportation. Contact us by email: ashiyaplus@hotmail.co.jp Kid's English Lessons (mostly) Beautiful Takarazuka

City We are on the hunt for a great new English teacher to join our school. We are a nice size being not too big or small. New demand for kid's lessons. Part-time hours leading to more work. Top conditions, a real pearl - foreign owned, neat team spirit. Someone's dream. Tony Sands: don.1@mac. com

Saturday English Teacher Needed for Immersion Program

ASAP Native teacher needed for immediate start.. Experience with phonics/reading/writing/speaking as well as teaching large groups.

Computer skills needed. Ability to teach other subjects in English beneficial. Location: Uji, Kyoto.

20,000 yen/day. Apr-Jul, Sep-Jan. Trans. + performance bonus. http:// ritskids.ujc.ritsumei.ac.jp/contents/ applicant@ritskids.org

> General Group Leaders We want

the best Japanese! Small adventure operator seeking Japanese nationals with love of travel.Strong J & E ability,traveled extensively throughout Japan, exceptional organization, great people skills.

Interested in showing travelers 'real' Japan.Cycling/Hiking Leaders wanted also. Email for more details: aaron@bashukwaytravel.com www. bashukwaytravel.com Operations Director We are setting up in Osaka and

looking for experienced manager to lead company of 30. We import Kitchen Equipment for McDonald's.

Salary ¥10-15M. Preferably Bilingual and advantage to have had a similar position. Also looking for Warehouse, Market Managers, Admin staff. Please contact for more: andy.odoherty@hki.com www.hki.com/

Non Native Japanese speaker needed in May June

Looking for Beginner/Intermediate level of non-native speaker of Japanese. Come join practice teaching class for Japanese teacher training school in Kyoto. 850yen/ hr.The classes will be held on Mon Fri Sun. If you are interested, please contact/send us your CV asap: yymrk6363@hotmail.co.jp

Kansai Corporate Classes CES is seeking professional,

experienced English instructors for p/t and semi-f/t corporate classes and Intensives in Shiga, Hyogo, Osaka, Nara, Kyoto. P/t hourly rates 3,500-4,500 yen per hour. For further information, please forward resume with availability to mark@ cesjapan.co.jp PART-TIME: Nightclub Hostess スタッフ募集 Looking

for Female hostess staff (weekend staffers a plus!). Nightclub will offer English-only service. Basic Japanese ability & proper visa required.

Will provide transportation after shift ends. ¥1500/hr ~ please call 080-6188-3645 worldline888@ yahoo.com Let's talk in English with customers!

Looking for Male bar staff!

Looking for male bar staff. Age: 20~40 years old. Nightclub will offer English-only service. Basic Japanese ability & proper visa required. ¥800 per hour, 3 days a week. Please call 06-6781-2116 / 080-6188-3645 Kikaku111@hotmail.co.jp Let's talk in English with customers!

English speaking bar staff

wanted for newly opened bar in Umeda. Beer & Pizza Gosuke.

Conversational level Japanese required. All nationalities welcome.

3 hrs a night, 6pm–5am. ¥900/ hr (first month ¥850/hr). Please contact the manager, Mr. Asada at 06-6312-3387 (4pm–midnight).

For Rent

Osakako subway station. 3month min stay required, No key money, no guarantors needed, No Agency fees. Call Alex 09037030314 www.abhousingosaka.com alex@ abhousingosaka.com 1K apt in Rokko Near Hankyu

Rokko & JR Rokkomichi stns.

6-mat room + kitchenette & unit bathroom. Cnr room - lots of natural light. Rent 45,000 per month. Incl. aircon, fridge, washer; other furnishings by negotiation. No key money - refundable deposit only (1 month's rent). No agent's fees deal direct with Gareth: kirinoji@ gmail.com

Shared accommodation for rent in Osaka【Wagokoro】

Rent45,000~,9.72m2~,8min walk from JRSenrioka st.【Marche Awaza】Rent46,000~,7.29~,7min walk from Awaza st. No key money, deposit or guarantor. Furnished.

Initial cost: 1st month’s rent & dealing charge(15,750) Contact info: 06-6136-3330 / info@entrancejapan.com / www.entrance-japan. com

Health KANDA MEDICINE in OKAMOTO, KOBE SHIATSU,

ACUPUNCTURE and MOXIBUSTION Okamoto stn. on Hankyu Kobe-line, or Settsumotoyama stn. on JR Kobe-line Open everyday except Sunday and Public holiday 6am - 8pm 5,000 yen / session Tel: 078-412-5385 iPhone 090-9692-8758 hidomo@gmail. com SHIATSU COURSES are also Offered. ENGLISH SPOKEN www. zenonecompany.com/en/health/

ffeilden houses, apartments, shops & offices in Kobe Contact us in English ffeilden@yahoo.co.jp Tel: 090-9286-1216

www.ffeilden.com KOBE: No Key money No agency fee Bigger than most.

Sharing OK. With washer, fridge etc.

Two big sunny apartments, 3LDK Sumiyoshi: 63m2 ¥98,000 3LDK Kobe University: 61m2 ¥98,000 Eng or Jpn. 090-9286-1216 ffeilden@ yahoo.co.jp Osakako Apartments Available 1R semi furnished

55000yen/month 2DK semi furnish 75000yen/month 2DK full furnish 85000yen/month 2LDK unfurnish 90000yen/month 2LDK full furnish 110000yen/month 1~2min walk to

Courses and Classes Yamamoto Miki Handicraft School Make original items

-bags, pouches & sewing kits, using ribbons, beads, lace... How about children's start of school kits?

Bring clothes to repair/renovate. ¥2000/2hr class. 10am-9pm M-F, 1-5pm Sat. Pls bk 090-8797-5725

49

Kansai Scene magazine MAY 2013 kansaiscene.com

miki-y.tg7@docomo.ne.jp Everyone is welcome!

Japanese lesson in Osaka

Let's learn Japanese! Taught by a JEES certified native Japanese teacher. Private lesson at coffee shop, anywhere convenient. Tuition fee is reasonable. Communication/ Brush up on your Japanese Preparation for JLPT Instructor can speak English. www.jpnlessonosaka. net/ Email: fu.nihon555@gmail.com STAND UP PADDLE (SUP) LESSON & MINI TOUR Try new

water activity in KOBE. It's easy and fun!! Hyougo canal is the best place to start to play SUP for beginner.

Close to downtown of KOBE(3 min walk from Misakikohen station. subway kaigan line) 4000/2h p.p.

Yas Sekiguchi www.paddle55. com 080-4973-5588(10:00~19:00) yas_skyhigh@hotmail.com

Private Japanese Lessons in osaka Lessons: Private lessons/

am. Course material provided for free. Near Sakaisuji-Hommachi and Kitahama. Call: Moritomo Ken 066572-6877 https://sites.google.com/ site/osakasoroban/

Full color printing.

From bar flyers and business cards to company brochures and logos — order your printing online today.

050-5805-6312 info@mojoprint.jp

Announcements

Group lessons/Communication/ Preparation for JLPT / Skype lessons. Time:10:00am9:00pm Monday to Saturday Location:Center of Osaka City Place:a coffee shop or anywhere with free seating Price: 60min 2,000yen • 90min 3,000yen • 120min 4,000yen Access japaneselesson@gmail.com http:// japaneselessonosaka.jimdo.com/

Bilingual Christian Church near Utsubo Park

Need Japanese lessons?

"BUN" (Business Unites Network)

SUNDAY 12PM & 2PM // TUESDAY 7.30PM // Location: SHINSAIBASHI // Bilingual | Live Music | Life-changing message | fun & contemporary atmosphere | make friends in Osaka | www.osaka. jesuslifehouse.com

provides Japanese Lessons between Osaka and Kobe, Akashi (Umeda, Amagasaki, Itami, Nishinomiya, Ashiya, Kobe & Akashi). We make a lesson only even once! No entry fee and No registration fee. For more details, please visit our website! http://japanese-bun.blogspot.jp/

Events FREE ABACUS CLASS for

FOREIGNERS FREE ABACUS CLASS for FOREIGNERS offered

by O.C.C.I. and Osaka Abacus Assoc. to promote int'l goodwill.

Individualized lessons taught in Japanese or English. Saturdays 10-12

For Sale Used 1979 Yamaha FG-201B

Acoustic Guitar Great guitar! Has a nice deep sound. Comes with free hardshell case. Asking ¥10,000 Jesse: jessecelee@yahoo.com

If not now, then when? If not me, then who? I can be support to study Japanese. I’ll able to meet your challenge it in Umeda. So now, I'm proposing a more balanced approach to achieve your demands.

Kazuo Funane: aiming2004jp@ yahoo.co.jp

Sayonara Sale and Free

Japanese English language exchange partner

lockable hard saddlebags and rear box, alarm, added tach, cruise control, high mileage but regularly maintained, leaving Japan must sell. ¥250,000 or best offer. Email: steve@ seatraveler.com

Giveaways Sayonara Sale. Some free items OR cheaper items free with purchase of larger ones.

Please visit my blog page for descriptions, photos and prices. http://tambasayonarasale.blogspot. jp/ Thanks OSAKA SAYONARA SALE. BEAUTIFUL FURNITURE AT

Mustard Seed Christian Church near Utsubo Park! Bilingual worship event every week on Sunday starting at 11:00 a.m. Music and food.

Everyone is welcome, families too!

See website for information: www. mustardseedosaka.com

Bilingual English/Japanese International Church

Free Giveaways

Be a hero to cats! Japan Cat

Network is looking for loving homes for rescued cats and dogs. Foster or adopt to find a friend and save a life!

Meet available pets at japancatnet. com

Language Exchange

1100cc Yamaha DragStar Excellent riding condition,

ROCK-BOTTOM PRICES. Sofa, spacious desk, chairs, coffee table (kotatsu), washing machine, fridge, and lots more. All in near-perfect condition, less than one year old.

Leaving Osaka in July, everything must go! www.alexjordan.org/ sayonara. Contact: alex@alexjordan. org. Pickup: Nagai station

Pets

interested in the tours. hideo matsuura: matsuurahideo@hotmail. com

Free Household Miscellany in Daikokucho

Some miscellaneous free stuff. For details, descriptions and photos go to http://sayophotos.blogspot.jp/

Other Share experience about setting up your own school I'd

like to set up my own little school and I'm looking for people who have similar plans or who have experience in this matter to share.

Any info about good places, offices to rent etc.welcome! Andreas Volk: andreas@volk-gaikokugo.de shall we go scuba diving? please contact me if you are

needed I am a Japanese man looking for native English speakers who want to speak more Japanese and I am so pleased to help you do it in Osaka area!! please email me if you are keen on!! cheers. yasuyuki kawasaki: japaneseladdie@gmail. com

Let's do language exchange! I and my friends(JF)

are looking for language exchange partner. Let's study together in OSAKA. Any level is OK!! Rimi Makino: rimim@hotmail.com

Please Teach Me English I

am Japanese Girl. I want to study English with Foreign Girls. ALL AGES & ALL NATIONALS I can teach you Japanese and help you have while your stay in Osaka.

Its thrill & fun to meet you soon.

Thanks. inpnansrgp3@gmail.com SPANISH friends are needed! I am a 23-year-old JP

girl. I would like to learn Spanish.

I can speak English. Please contact me; chiyokoito@gmail.com I also have interest in French and Chinese as well. Waiting for your email. ITO CHIYOKO: chiyokoito@gmail.com

Sorry…

Due to space restrictions we are unable to print all classified ads.

See kansaiscene.com for more classifieds online, including personals!

Umeda

Bank

Post Office

Entrance Japan

Cine Libre Umeda 3F

Theater Umeda

ARC 6F

Grand Front Osaka

Umeda Sky Building

35F German Umeda 4F Consulate Garden Cinema Westin Hotel

Yodobashi Camera

JR Osaka Sta.

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Mitsukoshi Isetan

Hospital

Church

Hotel

Shrine

Loft Maruzen & Junkudo Club Noon

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Uniqlo

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Nikko Hotel

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North

Midosuji

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Family Mart

El Pancho

Yotsubashi

Kitahorie Hospital

Movie Theatre

Nagahori tsurumi-ryokuchi line Nagahoribashi

Ali’s Kitchen

1F

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Crysta (underground shopping) Nagahori dori

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Chedi Luang

Shrine

Tokyu Hands

Arthur Murray

Nishiohashi

Church

Hotel

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Mizuho Bank

Shinsaibashi-suji (shopping arcade)

Shinmachi

Kansai Scene Mojoprint Office

Bank

Post Office

Dotonbori

Sakaisuji

Shinsaibashi/Namba

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Shin Kyogoku Cine Lalibe

Sanjo

Wakamatsu-dori

Mina

Hankyu Line

Teramachi Area

0

Hotel Okura

OPA

Daimaru

N

Kyoto Royal Hotel

Jomo Gas

Kawara Machi

Kobe City Hall

Shiyakushomae

Gokomachi-dori

Fuyacho-dori

Tominokoji-dori

Yanaginobanba-dori

Sakaimachi-dori

Tozai Subway Line

Kobe Kokusai Shochiku

Sannomiya Hanadokeimae st.

Aoyama

Mitsui Sumitomo Bank

Kyoto City Hall

Kyoto

Port liner

Daimaru Dept.

Kainan lin

Minato Bank

Sansei Hosp.

World Express

miya anno JR S Sun City OS Cinemas 7F Junkudo iya Mint Kobe m no San Tower Hotel Tokyu Inn SannomiyaRecords SOGO Dept.

Marga 5F Kinokuniya 8F Kobe Kokusai Kaikan 1F HSBC

Flower road

Subway

Route 2 San Plaza Sannomiya Cine Marui Center Phoenix Center Plaza East Plaza West Junkudo Kowka 4F

2F Guild

Kyukyoryuchi Daimarumae

miya

d.

Nankin-machi

1F 7F Hobgoblin

Sannomiya

Sanchika un

Hanshin line

Motomachi

Midnight Express 5F

Trinity 3F

tetsudo Kobe kosoku

Hanakuma Park

a KIC

ak

oz

d Fu

Sh iei Ya ma te s

Hyogo-ken Prefectural Hall

Kobe Grocers

Movie Theatre

Kobe YWCA

1F Bistrot Cafe De Paris

Ikuta Police Station

Oriental Dental Clinic 4F Hotel Tor Road

Temple

ine

Tor Road

Soraku Park

Shrine

Yamamoto-dori

Cafe Terrace De Paris 3F

Pearl Street

Kobe Mosque Kobe Womens St. Michael’s Junior International College School Yamate kansen

Church

Hotel

Kitanozaka

Kitano-cho

Hospital

a

Bank

Post Office

Hunterzak

Sannomiya

Kyoto Museum of Contemporary Art Gion Hotel

Joko-in 0

200m

Gion Kaikan

N Yasaka Jinja