Things To Know

There are a few important things to know about how I’m laying out this guide / post:

The Route

As I mentioned before, it’s much harder to come up with an itinerary for someone visiting for the second time. This particular route is one that I personally like because it gets you to some places that the regular Japan tourist probably wouldn’t venture. It gets you outside of the regular Tokyo-Osaka-Kyoto circuit, and you have a chance to see a big change in weather / temperature.

There is one problem with this route, though: You’re missing out on all of Western Japan in favor of the North / Northeast. So, keep that in mind when you’re deciding your second trip. Personally I like the North over the West, though, so that’s the whole reason why we’re focusing our time there during round two!

JR Pass

Just like with your first trip to Japan, you’re going to want to get a JR Pass. I’ve always used JRpass.com in the past, but I’m sure any of the JR Pass websites should get you what you need at a reasonable rate. For this trip, getting a JR Pass is 100% necessary. It may seem like a lot to spend ~$500 on a two-week ticket, but it’s going to save you so much in the long run. We’re going to be covering more distance via Japan Rail compared to last time, so don’t forget to order one of these!

Finding Places To Stay

Also like last time, I’m not going to go into much detail on where to stay. That’s going to be up to you. I’ll give you information on the general area, you find a hotel / ryokan / hostel inside that area.

Packing

I’d recommend packing a small rolling suitcase or backpacking it. You’ll be on the train a lot, so big luggage is just going to cause trouble. Pack light, wash your clothes often, and enjoy the ease of smaller luggage. If you have anything that you want to take back with you (and you will), I’d recommend sending it to yourself via postage, or just waiting until you’re in Tokyo / the airport to do your shopping.

Day 1: Fly Into Narita, Transfer And Fly To Sapporo

This time around, we’re just going to fly into Narita and then leave right after to go to Sapporo. Due to potential delays and all that, there are a couple of options here.

1. You could just do a direct flight to Sapporo, if that’s something you’re able to do.
2. You could schedule a transfer for soon after you get in.
3. You could schedule a transfer for later in the evening (if you arrive in the morning) or the early next morning.

I like “the next morning” personally, but it’s up to you. Point is, we’re flying into Narita (because I’m assuming that most people fly into Narita – if you’re not, then adjust accordingly) then getting on another plane to Sapporo. Note that this flight to Sapporo should be ONE-WAY.

Sidenote: If you have the time, and you should, be sure to go pick up your JR Pass at the airport station. You can get them in Sapporo too, but it’s easier if you just get it out of the way.

Days 2-4: Sapporo, Otaru, Nikka Whiskey

Welcome to Sapporo! I hope you found a nice place to stay. Depending on when you visit, it may be very cold and snowy or it may be moderately warm and sunny. Whichever it is, there’s fun things to do in both situations! I’d recommend spending your days doing something like this:

1. Explore Sapporo: There’s a lot to see and do in Sapporo, though most of them have to do with food. Be sure to eat some Jingisu Khan, go to the fish market and have some of the best seafood / seafood donburi you’ve ever tasted, go up the TV tower, visit Ramen Republic AND Ramen Alley, go to the Sapporo brewery, eat some melon, some soft serve, and some melon soft serve, and see the “Boys, Be Ambitious” statue (there are sheep and stuff too).
2. Otaru: Once you’ve gotten Sapporo out of your system, be sure to go to Otaru. It’s a moderately short train ride to the North and you get some awesome ocean views as your train rides right along the coast. If it’s winter and stormy out… the waves crash up against a wall just feet from the train. It’s awesome. In Otaru, at least in the summer, there are tons of shops. The place is pretty famous for its seafood, its various sweets companies (like, ridiculously famous and crowded), and canal. There’s plenty to do here and you can easily spend most of a day walking around.
3. Nikka Whiskey: If you don’t spend your whole day at Otaru, or you have priorities more in line with mine, you’ll want to keep riding the train to Nikka Whiskey Distillery in Yoichi. You will be able to taste some of the best whiskey you’ve ever had, and the tour/story of the place is pretty interesting too. Be sure to go to the bar and sample everything in the book. Don’t be tempted to buy any alcohol-related souvenirs (unless you’re planning to drink it while in Japan), though. You can’t mail alcohol in Japan, and carrying these bottles around will be a pain. You can buy pretty much everything Nikka at the duty free stores in the airport, and they’re often cheaper too.

There’s more to do in and around Hokkaido, depending on when you’re visiting. If you’re there during the winter, things like skiing and snowboarding will be options. If you’re there during the summer you might want to explore the outer reaches of this Northern Island, or go to Showa Shinzan for some hot spring time.

Days 5-6: Travel Day / Hakodate / Aomori / Sendai

Since we’re taking the train from Sapporo, you’ll have a lot of time to stop, look around, and then get back on (thank you JR Pass!). Do keep in mind that during the winter trains are often delayed, so make sure you’re flexible! Whatever you do, I’d recommend stopping and staying in one of these places for one or two of the nights, otherwise you’re in for a 12ish hour train ride back to Tokyo.

1. Hakodate: This city was the first in Japan to open its ports to foreign trade back in 1854 so it has some interesting architecture and influences going on. That being said, there was a huge fire in 1934 that wiped out a lot of it, so keep that in mind. It also has the Goryoukaku Fort, which is an awesome star-shaped fort (hard to see from the ground, though). The history of this fort is pretty interesting too, but I’ll leave that to your own curiosity should you choose to follow it.
2. Aomori: Probably my favorite place of the three, this city is at the Northern edge of Honshu (the main island) and also where the shinkansen starts and ends, depending on which direction you’re going. If you can get to Aomori, the rest of the ride back towards Tokyo should be pretty fast and easy. I don’t think you could spend several days here (at least on a 2-week trip), but if you do be sure to check out the Modern Art Museum, the Jomon Museum, and anything you can find that’s apple related. Basically, Aomori = Apples, so if you’re here during apple season then… good for you! Also be sure to try the vinegar, black garlic, and whatever other foods you can get your hands on. Aomori food is pretty awesome, and will be a nice refresher after all the Jingis Khan, beer, and seafood that you ate in Sapporo.
3. Sendai: Of course there’s Sendai as well, which is very close to where the Tohoku Earthquake of 2011 hit. The city itself is pretty much business as usual, though if you go outside the city to try to visit places like Ishinomaki (to go to Cat Island?) you’ll still see a lot of cleared land from where the tsunami hit. There’s plenty to do in Sendai, though when I’m there it’s usually to go to Cat Island, so… there you go. Sendai is also a good spot to stop for the night if it’s getting late and trains are running out.

Days 7-10: Travel, Tokyo, Mt. Fuji

Days 7-10 are going to depend on how long you spent in Northeast Japan. First you should spend some of it traveling to Tokyo. If it’s early enough, keep going to Mt. Fuji. If not, stay the night and then leave again in the morning. Don’t worry, we’ll be back.

In terms of “Mt. Fuji”, though, there are a lot of options. There are so many places on and around Mt. Fuji that are worth visiting that I’d need an entire other article or two to go through them. So, you’ll need to do the research for that on your own. It’s going to depend on things like whether or not you want onsen, whether or not you want to climb it, or whether or not you want to ride roller coasters. If it’s the last option, then be sure to go to Fuji-Q highland. There’s onsen there as well. Two of my favorite roller coasters are at Fuji-Q, and I don’t say that lightly.

Anyways, spend a couple days in and around Fuji. If you run out of things to do here you can always move on to the next section early and then go back to Tokyo a little early too.

Days 10-12: Things You Missed

These days are for things that you missed last time. What did you want to do that you couldn’t? Snow monkeys? Nikko? What else? There had to have been something, even if it’s just going back to Tokyo to sit in an arcade all day to play Gundam Extreme.

Alternatively, you could also head West for a day or two. I wouldn’t go too far (as that will be another trip… let’s say your third one), but feel free to look around and see the things you want. These are free days after all, and Mt. Fuji provides a nice “middle ground” between Tokyo and the West.

Days 13-14: Tokyo, Shopping, Going Home

Once again there has to be some time for shopping / Tokyo touristing. There’s always a lot to do in Tokyo, though I tend to avoid the city as much as possible. Come back, get your omiyage done, and head on out. Don’t forget to pick up your Nikka Whiskey at the duty free shop in Narita (and leave some space in your suitcase as well).

For A 1-Week Trip

To turn this into a 1-week trip instead of a two, you’ll want to cut out the Fuji part, the “things you missed” part, and then shorten up your time during days 5-6 to just one day if you can. Of course, you can now adjust more appropriately on your own since you’ve been to Japan before and know what you like and don’t like, but that’s where I’d use the ol’ trip razor.

I hope this helps some of you to plan your second trips to Japan! Let me know in the comments what kind of second trips you’d plan if it were you. Surely it will help out some other people planning second trips who don’t have the same tastes as me :)

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The two spheres are often portrayed as heavily contrasting or even conflicting and both are also involved in stereotyping of each other. I’ve lived in Osaka for a year and am living in Tokyo right now and sometimes I question – are they really that different in the end?

Having experienced both, I want to go through some of the alleged differences between the two, questioning the “accepted wisdom” to see how much wisdom there really is.

But First, Some History

Kinkakuji in Kyoto

Let’s start with the basics. Now Tokyo is (obviously) the economic and political capital of Japan with a metropolitan population of around 30-35 million. The Kansai bloc of Kyoto, Osaka, Nara and Kobe and surrounding cities has around half that at 17 million.

But it didn’t use to be this way. Tokyo (and wider Kanto) only became a political center in Japan after the Kamakura shogunate and the shift in power from the imperial court (in Kyoto) to the warrior classes. Even then, Edo (present day Tokyo) during the Edo shogunate was only one of the “three capitals” (三都) of Japan: Edo being the seat of power of the Shogunate, Kyoto being that of the Imperial Court and Osaka the center of commerce.

Perhaps you can now see how this rivalry began getting so serious.

Cultural Differences

Guess whether this is Osaka or Tokyo

When you compare the Kansai and Kanto regions, you get the sense that culturally, things are quite different. Of course, television, stereotypes, and more help to perpetuate this, but there are some reasons why the two regions have long been considered the center of two distinct cultural spheres, even to this day. The most basic being:

• The sides which people stand on the escalators – Osaka on the right, Tokyo on the left.
• Food – Osaka is famed for its Okonomiyaki and Takoyaki, Kyoto for traditional Japanese sweets, and Tokyo for Monjayaki.
• Prices – Most things, especially rent but not really for transport, are cheaper in Osaka
• Society – Western Japan including Kansai still has significant problems with dowa (burakumin) discrimination. Kansai (especially Osaka) is often associated with the Yakuza

Other stuff can be googled. What I really want to focus on is the dialect and the stereotypes of the people, so we’re going to move on to that.

The Dialect

Nande da yo just can’t compare

I’m going to go on a rant here. For anyone who thinks that the Kansai dialect (Kansai-ben) is “not Japanese” or is “wrong”.

KANSAI-BEN IS JAPANESE IN THE SAME WAY AS KANTO-BEN IS.

You got me? Let me say that again.

KANSAI-BEN IS JAPANESE IN THE SAME WAY AS KANTO-BEN IS.

Heck if it wasn’t for the Kansai dialect, there would be no keigo (honorific speech) in Kanto-ben. The dialect of Kanto borrowed the honorific patterns of Kansai-ben because it did not have any keigo in the first place.

But anyway, there’s a lot of variations even within Kansai-ben but these are the rough traits.

• Differences in words: Honma in place of Honto, Oru instead of Iru, Akan instead of Dame etc.
• Sound differences: Tendency to pronounce “s” as “h” eg. “san” becoming “han” etc.
• Stress pattern differences: eg. “Hashi” with the stress on the first syllable means “bridge” in Kansai and “Chopsticks” in Tokyo. “Hashi” with the stress on the second syllable is the opposite.

There is significant variety even within Kansai-ben though. The list above is in reference to Osaka-ben, or the accent most stereotyped as being “Kansai-ben.” Kyoto-ben (especially geisha-speak) may be different even though it’s also considered Kansai-ben.

If you’d like to dive even deeper into Kansai-ben, Wikipedia seems to have a lot to say about it.

The People

Then we come to the people – and the various stereotypes about them.

“Kansai=interesting people”

Downtown – One of the many famous Kansai comedy duos

The whole of the Japanese media is full of this. Television is awash with Kansai comedians doing their acts in Kansai-ben. The fact that the most famous comedy company (Yoshimoto Kogyo) is headquartered in Kansai also reinforces this.

Kansai people are often seen to be “talkative” and “with a good sense of humour.” Other stereotypes include how Kansai people ignore red traffic lights, are far more honest, individualistic and “go along with their honne （本音で生きる) ie. ignoring social rules when they want to.

Kyoto people in general are viewed to be more refined because, well, it’s Kyoto. Osaka people, due to its association with business, are sometimes viewed as business oriented, greeting each other with Moukarimakka/儲かりまっか (Are you earning well?).

“Tokyo = Evil”

I exaggerate but a minority of Kansai people do say this. Most of it is more out of rivalry rather than actual dislike or malice I think, though. The Tokyo-is-evil stereotype is nowhere as strong as the Kansai-has-interesting-people stereotype. Tokyo is after all considered to be the “standard”; Kansai is the “outlier” from standard Japanese culture.

Anyway, I’ve heard quite a few half-joking comments about “cold Tokyo people” (冷たい東京人). When I told people that I was moving over to Tokyo. For example, a few (and certainly not a majority) came and warned me about Tokyo. I’ve even seen quite a few “❤ Osaka / F*** Tokyo” T-shirts being worn around before.

While a majority do just make passing comments about the topic, there are however a few people who have a very strong sense of Kansai-pride (surprisingly strong amongst some non-Japanese foreigners) and by extension sometimes also have a strong dislike of Tokyo.

But Are We Really So Different?

Osaka’s Tsutenkaku Skyscraper

To be frank, I think the whole Kansai-Kanto differences thing is a bit overblown.

Certainly some truth to it, sure. For example, Tokyo trains tend to be really quiet – the only people talking tend to be foreigners and high school girls. People even stare at you when you talk in a reasonably audible voice. From my own experience, Kansai trains, especially the Osaka municipal subways, are much livelier.

In addition, yes the Kansai people I’ve met do generally tend to be chattier than the Tokyo people that I’ve met. And their sense of humor also tends to be stronger too. Though perhaps that’s because as a foreigner who actually has lived in Kansai (and who uses Kansai-ben) we tend to gel better.

However, nobody has ever used Moukarimakka on me, nor have I ever heard it used in my presence. Perhaps the older generation still uses it to each other but the younger folks certainly do not.

The “Tokyo is evil” or “Kansai is better” perception is something that I definitely cannot abide with. On the one hand, a portion of the foreigners living in Tokyo just don’t like Tokyo. It’s not rare that I hear the someone saying “if only it were somewhere else in Japan”. And since Kansai is the most obvious alternative, you sometimes see some foreigner Kansai worship.

Plus, I’ve also had arguments with other foreigners in Kansai during trips back there who are very keen on bashing Tokyo. Usually it’s because it’s too crowded / it’s colder than Kansai / it’s more expensive / traveling time is longer / the drinks are weaker / the people smile less etc. All of which of course fall somewhere into the Kansai-Kanto differences stereotypes.

Kobe seaside

Both I think are being too extreme. True enough, if you dislike crowds then Shibuya and Shinjuku may drive you insane. And yes, because rents are higher commuting time may be higher since people’s houses are further away (the farther away you are from Tokyo, the cheaper your rent is probably going to be).

But this idea that Kansai people are easier to socialize with and that Tokyoites are cold seems suspect to me. After all, I know plenty of people who had the full cultural shock and gaijin social isolation in Kansai even though they were supposed to be surrounded by “warm, friendly Kansai-jin”.

Doesn’t their sense of humor help to get to know them though? Well, this is just my observation, but let’s just assume, as it is commonly, that Japanese people tend to avoid serious topics in favor of safe ones – social harmony needs to be kept. In Kanto, the conversation may descend into awkward silence before someone tries to change the topic. In Kansai however, humor may be used (rather skillfully) to change the topic before the awkwardness.

The latter may be good and all and give a few good laughs. But the point is the same – topics are still kept safe, opinions kept silent and conversation safely shallow. Entertaining is not the same as personable.

There is also a view that since there are far more foreigners in Tokyo and the surrounding areas, Tokyoites are far more used to foreigners than Kansai people, excluding Kyoto people who are used to tourists. This is just an opinion (I don’t know of any evidence for or against it). But what is true is that quite a few of my friends do feel more “stared at” in Osaka than in Tokyo.

Kansai ♥ Kanto

The Torii “Tunnel” of Fushimi in Kyoto

While it may sound like I’m thrashing Kansai above, I’m not. I do genuinely like the place having lived there for a year.

I do think that the “Tokyo-bashing Kansai pride” and the “It Would Be Better Over There” views need to be taken down a few notches. It seems to me that these are extremely misleading and exaggerate the differences between the two. No matter how different the histories etc. are, Kansai is part of Japan – the similarities are probably more than the differences.

But anyway, just as an ending note I’d just like to say that Tokyo is not the whole of Japan. There’s many other parts of Japan, such as the Kansai region, which are very worth visiting or even staying in. So if you’re heading over to Japan or in Tokyo right now, consider taking a trip over to Kansai – there’s really a lot to see.

Bonus Wallpapers!

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Only Here In Japan: Repetitive Riots

After the era turned from Shouwa (1926-1989) to Heisei (1989-), there have not been any riots in Japan… except for the ones in Nishinari. The history of riots performed by day-layborers, called Nishinari-Boudou or Kamagasaki-Boudou, is quite a long. The first Nishinari riot happened in 1961. The most recent riot happened in 2008 and was the 24th to occur in Nishinari. It lasted for 6 days.

You may still think, “Having said that, it’s still Japan and it shouldn’t be that dangerous.” But a riot is still a riot and can be quite violent. For example, during the 22nd riot which lasted for 5 days in 1990, Minami-Kasumi-Chou station of Hankai Tramway was burnt down and over 100 policemen were moderately to severely injured.

Although the 1990’s riot was triggered by a police officer receiving a bribe from a Yakuza member (Japanese mafia), the catalyst of such an event need not be anything of great consequence. For example, an argument in a restaurant over a bill is what initiated three of the riots, including the most recent. The riot in 2008 was actually caused by the way policemen treated a day-laborer in the police station after a disagreement over a bill in a restaurant, but still, it seems a bit extreme, especially since it only initially involved one customer.

It goes to show how much unrest there is in this area when something little like this is enough to start a riot (on three separate occasions, no less). Another surprising trigger was when a fruit shop worker accidentally caused a drunken day-laborer to fall down. One result of this riot was the burning of the fruit shop. Furthermore, there is a famous covert leftist organization that tends to encourage rioting among the laborers. So, you never know when and how it will happen.

The 25th Riot Rumor

There is also a rumor that the 25th riot may happen soon because of Osaka’s outspoken and controversial mayor: Tooru Hashimoto. As a part of his “Osaka Metropolis Plan”, he has thrown around a few ideas to improve this area, such as the “Nishinari Special Ward Plan”, which would provide a tax break for newcomers. Not surprisingly, his idea really got on the nerves of the long time residents of Nishinari.

Mayor Hashimoto also tried to make an elite school in this area, but the idea was quickly declined due to many intractable issues such as the very frequent unlawful dumping of garbage and the rampancy of drugs. Furthermore, the mayor is thinking of amalgamating the Nishinari-ward with the Tennouji-ward, where wealthy people live. It’s expected to be quite problematic. So, the place is kind of a tinderbox at the moment and you probably wouldn’t want to find yourself there when even the tiniest of sparks form. Who knows, maybe your visit will cause the next riot?

The Highest Anonymity In Japan

In the last article, we talked about the super cheap Doya-inns. Unlike the other accommodations in Japan, you don’t need to show your ID to stay there. It may be a good thing, if you are the type of person who is quick to lose or forget things because you won’t need to worry about bringing your passport in. However, in other words, it also means that you don’t know who your neighbors are and the person staying next to you could be a criminal.

It may sound a little discriminative, but in fact Tatsuya Ichihashi, who was sentenced to life in jail for the rape and murder of a British ESL teacher, was living in Nishinari before his arrest. Although he stayed outdoors during his first visit and apparently never used a doya-inn, he was able to obtain a job three times through some day-laborer-recruiters without revealing who he was. If a reward of 10 million yen wasn’t offered for tips leading to his arrest, he may have continued on in that area.

In Japan, not every wanted person has a price on their head and Nishinari has long been a place where criminals can come if they want to stay under the radar while earning some cash. Due to the ease and frequency of this, police often make inquiries, but most people don’t want to be an informant without receiving a reward. Another big name, Fusako Shigenobu, founder of the now-disbanded Japanese Red Army was also hiding in Nishinari. So, you should be aware that you could easily run into a wanted criminal here.

Tuberculosis

As I mentioned in the first article, there are some homeless people who can’t even afford to stay in the super-cheap Doya-inns. There is a shelter for them near a public park, but they never stay there as long as they are healthy. In other words, only sick people use the shelter. It’s kind of an unwritten rule. Hence, going there is risky because one might catch an illness… such as tuberculosis.

According to Youmiuri newspaper on Feb 4 2012, Nishinari’s tuberculosis incidence rate is the highest in Japan, at about 13 times that of the national average (0.0233% in 2004). About 20% of the newly registered tuberculosis patients in Osaka are homeless and 24% of all tuberculosis patients in Osaka are people from the Nishinari-ward.

The rate of tuberculosis in the shelter is said to be dramatically higher than all other places in Nishinari-ward, but living and sleeping outside can be very difficult and nearly impossible during the winter. Most of them live with dogs and bring them under their blankets when they sleep as a source of heat. This helps but is obviously not enough. Over 200 people are found dead on the streets every year.

Many Strong Yakuza

In this small Kamagasaki area, there used to be around 70 Yakuza offices. There were so many Yakuza here that a common quote arose: “Even a dog, if it walks, will bump into a Yakuza”. There are not as many as there used to be, but over 20 Yakuza offices still exist. The biggest office is the head office of the Azuma-gumi at at 1-11-8 Sannou Nishinari-ward, Osaka.

The Azuma-gumi continues sailing on their own, unlike most of the other Yakuza groups who have melded into the Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan’s biggest Yakuza organization. After passing the Anti-Organized Crime Law in 1991, all Yakuza offices stopped displaying their “name” out front, including the powerful Yamaguchi-gumi. But, almost all of the name plates still exist in Nishinari. By this fact alone, you can imagine how strong the Yakuza are in this area.

Another factor that confirms their power is the number of drug dealing spots they have. Actually, all of their spots are well known by the locals. The most famous spot is the Sannou intersection where there are mass gatherings throughout the night. Moreover, the most notable drug dealing spot is right in front of the police station. How’s that for strength? Surprisingly, somebody even flagged the popular meth dealing spots on Google maps. Drug dealers get arrested from time to time, but it’s more like a performance by the police than anything else. More often than not, dealing is simply ignored.

Speaking of which, the Nishinari police station is different from other stations. It’s called “The Fort” because the building is surrounded by an iron fence. The front door, also made of iron, is guarded 24 hours a day.

What the Yakuza Do In Nishinari?

There are so many Yakuza jobs out there that we don’t even know about. So, I’ll introduce some of the main ones right now.

First of all, they work as day-laborer-recruiters, called 手配師 (Tehai-shi) – the same that Tatsuya Ichihashi used. They’re given a new job every day and take a very handsome percentage of the rate provided for for the laborers – all illegally, of course. Just for your information, the word for “to skim off too much commission” is ピンハネする (pinhane-suru). At some point in the process, most Yakuza jobs wind up pinhanesuru-ing someone’s money.

Normally, day-laborers go to The Nishinari Labor Center to get a job. In this center, the rule is “first come, first served”. The recession is hitting this slum as well, so getting a job is pretty competitive. It’s common to see people start lining up around 4 a.m.

If you are a registered resident who isn’t able to get a job, you could still get an allowance. However, if you aren’t registered, the only way to get a job is by talking to the recruiters in the station wagons waiting to deliver you directly to a job site.

There is another type of pinhane-job called 囲い屋 / kakoi-ya. In this job, the Yakuza gather homeless people and help them get welfare, then take a kickback from their allowance every month. Last year, one Yakuza member of the Yamaguchi-gumi was arrested for earning more than 200,000,000 yen (around $2 million).

Another Yakuza job is the operation of gambling circuits, which is also illegal in Japan. The most well known place of gaming is in Triangle park, which is located just 50 meters from the police station. This place primarily plays dice, but illegal poker and blackjack games are also easily found. They are held in secret doya or apartment rooms. You need an invitation or someone to take you to play there, though.

This area can be pretty nasty at night. There are around 60 groups of thieves called シノギ屋 / Shinogi-ya. They usually hit you from behind and steal all your belongings. If you were their target, you’d be extremely lucky to come out of it with only minor injuries. Sadly, many people are injured at the hands of these groups.

Slave Trading

In the above paragraph, I wrote “pretty nasty”, but that’s not nearly the extent of things. One of the traditional Yakuza jobs here is “slave trading”. It’s a very common tale to hear of Yakuza recruiters deceiving homeless people and selling them to isolated labor camps called タコ部屋/tako-beya to make them work as slave laborers. So the story about a day-laborer who gets into a station wagon, disappears, and is never heard of again, is very cliche.

It seems that some people like this were also taken to Fukushima to clean up the nuclear mess.

It sounds awful enough already, yet the economic depression is seemingly making Yakuza “slave trading” even more frequent and undiscriminating. According to Tokyo Breaking News, who succeeded in interviewing a Yakuza working in Nishinari, their “target” for slave trading is shifting from day-layborers to teenage girls. Their intent is to sell them as sex slaves. This interview was done in August 2013 and this Yakuza group started kidnapping girls in Spring of that year. Let me present some of the interview.

“I work with two other guys as a team and we have kidnapped over 20 girls at this point. We rent a station wagon for it. A member who has a driver’s license rents the car, then we throw on a fake license plate that we stole from a neighboring area such as Sakai city in Osaka. We target teenage girls solely because we can sell them for good money to Yakuza offices. The average is from 200,000 to 300,000 yen per girl. A good one could be up to 400,000 yen, so each of us can get over 100,000 yen, even after deducting expenses such as the cost of the rental car. Once we rent a car, we make our own quota. It’s much easier than you’d think because we choose girls. We don’t kidnap serious looking ones, but rather those that look like delinquents. For example, those who are looking for 援助交際 (compensated dating) on the application LINE or those sitting on the side of the road at midnight. Such girls are usually living a tough life already and things in their lives tend to be secretive, even if they plan on running away. Running away from a Yakuza office, on the other hand, is pretty difficult. They probably take photos and videos and threaten the girls in many ways in order to keep their income flowing in. However, there is a rumor that Osaka Prefectural Police have started investigating these cases. I’ve earned quite a lot money from this job already, so I’m thinking it soon might be time to quit.”

This has been going on for quite a while. In fact, some people in Osaka have also been arrested for violating the Child Welfare Act. For example, in 2002, a 44-year-old guy and a 17-year-old guy were arrested for holding a 17-year-old runaway girl in confinement. They knew of her through a website, and forced her to work as a hooker for 8 months. Her quota was 6 people a day and her salary was 500 yen/day. One of her clients was an officer of the Osaka Prefectural Police. In another recent example, Shouhei Yoshizaki (22-year-old) and Kazuki Shimohama (21-year-old) were arrested in September 2013 for managing a prostitution agency that delivered 15-17-year-old teenage girls to hotels. In each case, the set price was 15,000yen. This type of business is called デリバリー・ヘルス / Delivery-Health or デリヘル / deriheru.

Japan’s Largest Prostitution District

Speaking of which, Japan’s largest prostitution ring, called Tobita-shinchi (a.k.a Tobita-yuukaku), is on the East side of the main Kamagasaki area. Although prostitution is officially prohibited in Japan, this outfit remains untouched by police because they are afraid serious security problems may arise if they shut this area down.

If you watched the youtube videos about this area, you might feel a bit strange as you see the seemingly endless stream of little rooms. What you don’t see in the video is that the there are rooms on the other side of the street, as well. Inside each room is woman on display, often dressed in cheerleader or anime costumes, sitting and smiling beneath bright lights and an elderly woman called やり手ばばあ / Yarite-babaa (a.k.a. 曳っ子 / Hikikko) sits in each doorway and acts as the negotiator.

Just as a heads-up, if you were a woman interested in visiting this area, those Yarite-babaas are often very harsh towards women because men tend to avoid going into these rooms if women are around. When my boyfriend and I went to spa world, I took him here to show him a different side of Japan. Sure enough, with a chain of harsh name calling, threats and hand gestures, I was told that this is not a place for one such as me and that I should quickly remove myself.

There are still over 150 such places remaining. Since it is officially illegal, they are all registered as a 料亭 (ryoutei), a traditional Japanese style restaurant, and all of girls are listed as “waitresses” on the legal documents. Their official excuse is “something may happen between a waitress and a customer at their own will while the waitress is serving, but it’s none of our business”. To follow this excuse up, a little snack and a drink are provided. The average price is about 15,000 yen for 20 – 30 minutes depending on the woman. With “restaurants” literally taking up entire city blocks, this area is so singularly devoted to this type of business that even the street names are extensions of it – 青春 (Seishun) Street, literary meaning The-Spring-Time-of-Life Street and 妖怪(Youkai) street, literary meaning Monster Street.

There is, in fact, one actual restaurant in this area called 鯛よし百番 (Taiyoshi-hyakuban). Long ago, when whore houses were given license, this place was legally providing what its neighbors are now illegally selling. When laws changed, so did its type of service and it is now registered as a cultural property. It’s a very popular restaurant, however, so getting a reservation is not so easily done.

So, that just about does it for basic information about this Japanese slum area. There are probably more things going on that we don’t know about than things that we do. I was interested in this area when I was younger and my university was only a few stations away, so I once asked one of my male friends who looked really strong to go there with me and have a walk around. While walking, I felt as though everyone was staring at me. Maybe it was just because seeing a woman in the Kamagasaki area is pretty rare. (You can find a lot of videos of this area, but people in the videos are almost all male.) I was quite scared because I believed they thought I was just someone trying to peak in on their way of life, as though it were some sort of exhibition. Nobody likes being treated like that, of course. I didn’t want to upset anyone, so walked around quietly and quickly and, luckily, nothing happened.

As I introduced in these two articles, there are plenty of pros and cons about Nishinari, so I hope I didn’t sound overly critical. I thought it was important for you to at least learn of what can and does transpire in this area before choosing it for its cheap accommodations. If you read this and you’re completely fine with staying in the area, that’s great because you can save a lot of money. If you are scared of this area, that’s totally understandable, too. In either case, I wish you a safe and wonderful time in Japan.

Bonus Wallpapers!

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Although the locals tend to avoid this area, it has surprisingly become a sort of mecca for foreign backpackers due to the cheap accomodations. The reason why they don’t mind staying in such a place is because it is statistically way safer than their own home countries. Apparently, there are even a few guide books that say this outright: “Nishinari-ku: the most dangerous area in Japan, but not as bad as your own country.”

But, can you really be confident that this place is not as dangerous as your own country? It’s possible that you may feel quite comfortable in those areas at home, but, many things are done differently country to country. So, how cheap are things in Nishinari-ku? Is it really worth visiting or staying here? Let’s find out in this two part article.

Nishinari Ward

There are 24 wards in Osaka City, and one of them is Nishinari, which takes up a whole 2.8 square miles. If you type “Nishinari” in Google Maps, it will show you where the Nishinari Ward is. Perhaps you’ll even recognize some of the more popular landmarks nearby.

This area is famous for the Tennouji Park, Tennouji Zoo, the Tsutenkaku Tower, deep fried kebab-style restaurants, and “Spa World,” which has many different kinds of onsen from around the world as well as scary water slides. One slide is called “The Death Loop,” if that helps to paint a picture.

After reading the above paragraph you may be wondering something like, “Mami, you said the locals tend to avoid that area, didn’t you?” Well, the park and zoo are in Tennouji-ward and the other sight-seeing spots called Shinsekai (literally meaning “new world”) are all located in Naniwa-ward. Only Midousuji Boulevard separates Naniwa from Nishinari, but the difference is still quickly noticeable. So, if you are a little worried about going to Nishinari, make sure not to cross the road to the “other side” of Japan.

Furthermore, the slum area doesn’t cover the whole of the Nishinari-Ward either. The undesireable areas of Nishinari are found around Haginochaya, Taishi, and Sannou. In May 1966, Airin-chiku became the area’s offical name, but most of the locals continue to call this area “Kamagasaki” or “Nishinari”.

Although not found in the above mentioned areas, Japan’s largest red-light-district, Tobita-shinchi (a.k.a Tobita-Yuukaku) also makes its home in Nishinari-ward. Though it’s advisable to avoid this area in real life, especially if you’re a woman, when writing an article about Nishinari it’s nearly impossible to bypass.

Kamagasaki: Nishinari in Nishinari-ward

Until the mid Meiji-era (1868-1912 AD), Osaka’s slum area was located in Nagamachi, which is now Block 1-3 Nipponbashi in Chuuou-ward, and the Kamagasaki area was just a small fishing village with a graveyard and an accompanying execution grounds, a vestige of the Edo (1603-1867) Shogunate.

The Nagamachi area had many extremely cheap inns for day laborers (called Kichin-ya), but for the purpose of making more available accommodations for the fifth National Industrial Exhibition being held in 1903, a law was passed forcing all inns in the Nagamachi area to move to the Kamagasaki area in 1898. In turn this forced the day laborers to follow, and so began the Kamagasaki slum.

Just as a note, some people mistake Kamagasaki (or Nagamachi) area to be the distinctive village of Burakumin, but they are different. The Nagamachi and Kamagasaki slums were naturally formed by homeless people and wanderers, whereas the Buraku hamlets were officially formed as outcaste communities in the Japanese feudal era.

The Kamagasaki area is only ~500-800 square meters but the population is said to be around 20,000 to 30,000. The actual number is unknown because many of the people there are homeless and aren’t even on the residential registration. Since there are so many Doya-inns (previously known as Kichinya-inns) in such a small area, its population density is said to be 3 or 4 times that of Tokyo’s 23 wards.

Sakaisuji Street divides the area into West and East and each side has different characteristics. On the East side, there are many wooden rental houses and also a shopping arcade called “Tobita-hon-doori” (a.k.a Doubutsuen-mae-ichiban-gai). Thus, it still exhibits a similar resemblance to, and a taste of the ambiance of old Osaka. On the West side, there are many multistoried Doya-inns as well as restaurants and launderettes for laborers. Regional improvement facilities are also increasing in number.

Super Cheap Doya-Inns

In the 90’s there were around 200 Doya-inns. Now it’s nearly half of that due to the aging of the laborers. Some Doya-inns changed into public welfare housing where residents pay rent with public assistance. Although those public housing complexes are no longer available, other Doya-inns are open for not only day-layborers but anyone else who needs a bed. In fact, Doya-inns first started to be used by foreigners in 2002, when the FIFA World Cup was held in Japan and Korea.

News of the cheap accommodations and convenience traveled quickly among world travelers and now it’s becoming a backpackers’ paradise. I even came across a person who tweeted that he wants to make homeless and foreign friends at the same time, so he is thinking of staying over night in a doya.

The cost of Doya-Inns start at 400 yen/night (~$4). However, the cheapest places (400-1000yen/night) are very competitive and are usually already occupied by fixed residents. But, don’t worry. There are still plenty of other cheap places starting from 1000-2500 (~$10-$25) yen/night. Furthermore, if you were rich enough to pay over 2500 yen/night, you could stay at a nice “hotel” in and around this area, as well.

According to Hotel Price Index, the average hotel price in Japan is around $150/night, so now you have a better idea as to how cheap these Kamagasaki “hotels” really are.

In terms of what you’re getting, the average Doya-inn is around 54 square feet (3 tatami mats). The bathroom and toilet are shared, or you may have to go to another inn or hotel to take a shower. Some rooms are becoming non-smoking for backpackers, but you can still smell the stale cigarette smoke that will be stuck there for years to come.

What Else Is Cheap?

As many of you have probably already guessed by now, the accommodations are not the only thing that is inexpensive. Let’s have a look around to find out what else can be done on the cheap.

Super Tamade

First, in Kamagasaki area, there are 5 super cheap grocery stores called “Super Tamade.” Super Tamade was founded in 1992, coinciding with the final decline of the Yakuza in Tamade of the Nishinari-ward. There is a well-known rumor that this discount grocery store chain is run by the Yakuza, but I will leave that up to your imagination.

This discount grocery chain goes to extreme lenghts to stand out in comparison to others, not only for their brightly decorated appearance but also their unbelievably cheap prices.

(A flyer of Super Tamade)

For example, they have a unique 1 yen (~1 penny) sale system. If you spend 1,000 yen or more, you can buy one of their special items at 1 yen. Several items are selected everyday and they are usually canned food, drinks, vegetables, meats, eggs, etc… The amount you can purchase at 1 yen is restricted, but it’s still a nice surprise, isn’t it? They are so friendly to day laborers that they also offer a variety of bento boxes starting at 200 yen.

Himawari

There is also a 24/7 cafe restaurant called “Himawari” (meaning sunflower) managed by Super Tamade in the Nishinari-ward. They offer breakfast for about 300 yen and lunch sets for about 500yen.

Cheap Foods Other Than Tamade

There are many cheap teishoku (set menu) restaurants. For example, manpuku-shokudou provide “home-made” set meals for 400 to 500yen that will fill a traveller’s stomach.

Most of the restaurants in Kamagasaki also have a tachinomi (standing bar) because it’s more economical for both restaurant owners and laborers.

Tachinomis offer quick and simple meals, as well. For example, one place sells “cooked instant ramen” for 200yen and another sells “homemade curry rice” for 300yen.

Free meals are sometimes distributed in a public park, but you need to bring a container and wait in a super long line.

Cheap Vending Machines

Although Japan’s cheapest beverage vending machine (10yen) is in the Fukushima-ward of Osaka, they have their own cheap cans too. All of the cheap beverages are made by Sangaria, a local company in Osaka. The average price of Kamagasaki’s vending machines ranges from 50 to 70 yen/can, whereas the average Japan-wide price is 120 yen. Unlike the cheapest vending machine in the Fukushima-ward, at least here you actually get to choose what comes out of the machine.

Interestingly, Sangaria gets its name from a famous Chinese poem called “Spring View” by Toho, “国破れて山河在り” or “國破山河在 (guó pò shān hé zài)” in Chinese, which means; “The country is destroyed; yet mountains and rivers remain.” So, I feel like the company is saying, “Even though Japan was bankrupt, Sangaria’s cheap beverage will remain.” Please don’t say that I’m the only one that thinks that because they made a song for a commercial that went;

いち にい サンガリア
1 2 3(san)-garia

にい にい サンガリア
2 2 3(san)-garia

サンガリア サンガリア
Sangaria Sangaria

国破れて サンガリア
The country is destroyed: yet Sangaria remains.

敵も味方も ヨンダリア
You should invite both friends and foes. (Yondaria sounds like “youndariya” in Kansai-ben, which means “you should invite”)

みーんなで仲良く 飲んだりア サンガリアコーヒー
You should all drink Sangaria coffee together as friends. (Nakayoku-nondaria sounds like “nakayoku-nondariya” in Kansai-ben, which means “you should drink as friends”.)

Needless to say, there are many alcohol vending machines, as well.

Seemingly Cheap Shops

There are also several shops displaying unique signboards. For instance, the board of a clothing store called Yasuda-ya says “まだ高いですか!!”, which means “Is it still expensive?”. There is an Izakaya restaurant in the arcade that goes by the name “甘すぎてすいません”, which means “Sorry for spoiling you”. Speaking of “sorry,” sorry, but I’m not sure if these places are actually cheap or not, but it’s a fairly safe bet given their signs and where they are located.

Cheap Movies

There is a small movie theatre called Tobita-Cinema where you can see 3 movies for 800 yen. If it is Tuesday, it’s 500 yen.

Cheap Or Even Free Haircut

The average price of a haircut is around 800 yen in this area. If you were really broke, sometimes volunteers will offer you a free haircut. There’s usually a notification posted somewhere beforehand. In order to get a free haircut, you have to get a numbered ticket in the morning in the public park because they usually have a maximum limit.

Granted, if you’re reading this you’re not likely to be homeless, but don’t be taken aback that I’ve told you where to get a free haircut. Believe it or not, when I took my boyfriend to Spa world, we came across a caucasian man sleeping on flattened out cardboard boxes.

At first we weren’t able to see him because of the blanket he’d fashioned out of cardboard to get away from the drizzle that night. Yes, he wasn’t even able to stay in a Doya-inn and had to do Aokan (sleeping outside). We had some leftover nan bread from the curry restaurant we’d just come from, so my boyfriend offered it to the man.

As he rustled to grab the bread we realized that he was not Japanese when his response – “Ah, cheers man. Thanks” – was unmistakably that of a native English speaker. We never asked him anything about how he came there, but like I said at the beginning of the article, you never know what will happen there.

What’s Coming Up Next

Now that you know what’s here (and how cheap it is), please come back tomorrow to learn more about the “dodgy” side of Nishinari. It will tell you what makes this place somewhat dangerous (though maybe not as dangerous as you might expect). Go ahead and rent out a night in a Doya-Inn and we’ll see you in the morning!

Bonus Wallpapers!

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And map!

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This means that I’ve spent years having to explain, over and over and over again, what a capybara is. I wouldn’t have this problem if I lived in Japan, where the capybara is as famous and beloved as it truly deserves.

What The Heck Is That Thing?

The capybara is the world’s largest rodent. The minute you mention this, people immediately think “giant rat.” Then it’s an uphill battle to convince them of what an adorable and awesome animal it is.

If the capybara were a giant rat, actually there’d be nothing wrong with that. Rats are pretty awesome animals also – they’re intelligent and sociable and make great pets. But in fact, capybaras are more closely related to a different pet rodent: the guinea pig. Look at the nice square shape of both of them and you’ll see the family resemblance.

However, capybaras are MUCH larger: on average about a hundred pounds, two feet tall, and four feet long. Yeah. Stop and think about that for a moment. Awesome, right?

And unlike most familiar rodents, capybaras are semi-aquatic. They’ve got a number of interesting adaptations for this lifestyle. Their feet are slightly webbed, which helps with swimming and walking on waterlogged ground. Their ears, eyes and nostrils are set on the top of their head, so they can swim almost totally submerged (for a more familiar example, think of how a hippo swims with just the top of its hear showing above the water.) They can also hold their breath to stay underwater for up to five minutes.

Another significant fact for our purposes here: they are definitely not native to Japan. They’re found in the southern parts of Central America and northern South America.

(Just to throw in a couple more important rodent facts while I’ve got your attention: There are more species of rodents than any other order of mammals (over 1,800), and, rabbits and bats are NOT rodents.)

The Capybara Enjoys Japanese Culture

Why are the Japanese mad about capybaras? I could just attribute it to the fact that they’re the world’s experts in kawaii, and capybaras are so totally obviously adorable. But still, to think they’re cute, people have to know about them in the first place. There weren’t even any capybaras in Japanese zoos before 1970, when the Ueno Zoo got some from Uruguay. So it’s curious that people are familiar with them when we in the US, though much closer to its native habitat, aren’t.

A lot of the credit should probably go to two places that were early leaders in the field of capybara appreciation in Japan. Each started a uniquely Japanese capybara tradition that has spread across the country.

Back in the 1980s, keepers at Izu Shaboten Park, a botanical garden and zoo located in Shizuoka, were inspired to combine the semi-aquatic nature of the capybara with the semi-aquatic part of Japanese culture: they gave them an onsen.

It was actually sort of the animals’ own idea, as explained by a keeper.:

“In the winter of 1982, we were washing the capybara’s exhibit area with hot water when one of the staff noticed the capybara relaxing in a puddle that had formed. From that we got the idea of making an onsen for the capybara so they could bathe in it.”

You can see a photo of the original and current capybara onsen here on their website.

This is such an obviously brilliant idea that it’s since been widely imitated, as we’ve seen on Tofugu before. They even get the traditional yuzu bobbing in their baths in the winter.

Another center of Japanese capybara devotion opened in the 1980s: Nagasaki Bio Park, which one blog calls “the Holy Land of capybaras.”

Nagasaki Bio Park was designed specifically for close-up encounters with animals. Here, visitors can enter the enclosure with the capybaras, hand-feed them, and pet them.

We’d never have capybara onsen in the US because we don’t have onsen, but we’d also never have capybara petting pens, for a couple of reasons. One is that petting animals has become more or less politically incorrect in the zoo business here. Wild animals are supposed to be kept wild, even if there’s no chance they’ll ever be released into their natural habitats, and in my jobs at zoos, what was technically called “animal contact” was frowned upon and strictly regulated.

This attitude doesn’t seem to be shared in Japan, luckily for the capybaras, who from the look of videos like this one seem to enjoy the scratching and belly rubs.

The other reason that we don’t get to know capybaras up close at US zoos is that we’ve got lots of lawyers, and capybaras have lots of large teeth. Even at the BioPark, parents with small children have to listen to a keeper give them a warning talk before entering the enclosure – but if they decide it’s OK, they can go ahead in.

BioPark doesn’t seem to be fearful of lawsuits from people being injured by animals – in fact, you can get personal with much larger critters there, according to their website:

“Especially exciting is hand-feeding large animals such as rhinos and hippos. It’s an experience you cannot expect in every day life.”

Yeah, that’s for sure… But thanks to the exhibit at Bio-Park, petting capybaras has become so popular in Japan that it’s almost getting to be something you can expect in everyday life. It’s now possible in quite a number of other places, such as Nasu Animal Kingdom in Tochigi prefecture, and a friend recently made me very jealous by sending me a photo of her son petting and hand-feeding a baby capybara at Elephant Kingdom (Ichihara Zou no Kuni) in Chiba (more about this later).

So despite the fact that Americans are much nearer to the capybara’s homeland, the Japanese have had much more opportunity to get to know capybaras, and thus to learn to appreciate their somewhat unconventional but undeniable charm.

Capybara becomes a Cartoon Character

Capybaras have really taken off in the last ten years or so, since the real animal merged with another major Japanese cultural tradition: the cute anime character.

Kapibara-san was first introduced as a prize in game arcades in 2003. It became popular enough that after a couple of years the company that created it, called Tryworks, started selling products with the character including books and stuffed toys.

Kapibara-san is far from an anatomically correct scientific illustration of a capybara. The company’s explanation is that when the designer randomly drew a capybara for a presentation, she didn’t remember exactly what one looked like. This strikes me as a sort of implausible and unnecessary origin legend. All you need to do to explain Kapibara-san is to take the basically rectangular shape of a capybara and put it through the universal animal kawaii-processor that softens all the rough edges of a critter. It’s basically the same way we got our not-very-realistic teddy bears (or, taken to an extreme, a cartoon aardvark with no snout at all.) But that’s their story and they’re sticking to it.

In 2006 Tryworks introduced a website and additional characters in the Kapibara-san world, which include another South American animal, a llama, and some very round birds. You can buy a full range of Kapibara-san products, including – just looking around my own house now – calendars, towels and washrags, stationery, candy, refrigerator magnets, cell phone charms, and quite a number of other things that I decided I couldn’t fit in my suitcase on my last trip.

If you want to shop efficiently for Kapibara-san goods, head for the Tokyo Station Character Street shopping area, where Kapibara-san has its own store, right alongside world-famous, iconic Japanese characters like Hello Kitty.

Capybara Capitalism

Many others have now seen the commercial potential in the capybara craze. A couple of years ago I checked into an onsen hotel in Toba in Mie Prefecture, and on the hotel desk there was a sign with a picture of a capybara. For a moment I thought this was an elaborate joke that my friend, knowing my obsession, had somehow convinced the hotel to play when she made our reservation. But the sign, which was there to announce that the local aquarium had recently acquired capybaras, had nothing to do with me. The aquarium apparently thought it was enough of a selling point to attract the average Japanese visitor.

Along with the live animals the aquarium had many capybara souvenirs, including sweets in a capybara-shaped box, quite a large number of stuffed toys, mugs, and t-shirts (which, disappointingly, only came in children’s sizes).

Other zoos, aquariums, and museums have taken up the challenge with ingenuity as well. Saitama Children’s Zoo sells ramen with a capybara on the package (don’t worry, no capybara were harmed in its manufacture – it’s yuzu flavored). I also stumbled across fantastic capybara souvenirs in places that only had the most marginal connection to the critters, like this fabulous fan from the National Museum of Nature and Science in Ueno Park.

And while this isn’t something you can buy, it’s worth noting that Izu Shaboten, originator of the capybara onsen, promotes them in what’s now a traditional Japanese fashion: with people in huge capybara mascot suits.

Capybara Chroniclers

Need to know more about Japanese capybaras? A lot more? There are a number of blogs written by serious capybara fans that know the names, personalities, and family histories of individual capybaras in various zoos and parks around the country. It’s another thing you’d never find in the US, where zoo visitors may know the names of individual elephants and pandas, but animals like the capybara rarely get that kind of detailed attention. Here are a few:

• Capybara Camera
• Capybara Engine
• Masaki Tokutomi’s capybara blog
• Capybara World (in English)

There’s also an incredibly detailed website where you can find out where to see capybaras in Japan. It’s in Japanese, but if you can’t read it, you can get enough of the gist via Google Translate to help get you started on your capybara pilgrimage.

You can even find out where you can pet capybaras – in addition to the places already mentioned, a couple more are at Izu Animal Kingdom in Shizuoka and Fuji Safari Park. There seems to be at least twenty, although it was hard to count, because I was so jealous and so sorry I don’t live in Japan that I couldn’t think straight. There are photos, links, and lot of details about the capybara contact situation for the places the blogger has visited.

Finally, the site also has a list of where you can go see capybara onsen. So what are you waiting for? Go! And send me pictures!

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Bonus Wallpapers!

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Additional Sources

• The history of Kapibara-san
• The first capybaras at Ueno Zoo
• The rules for kids at Nagasaki Bio Park
• Tryworks
• Kapibara-san

Images by Linda Lombardi unless otherwise credited.

In this article, I’ll talk about Edo Castle, the NPO (non-profit organization) that wants to rebuild it, and what some people in Japan think about it. Then I’ll share some of my ideas for Japan’s “THAT PLACE.”

Is Edo Castle the symbol of Japan?

You’ve probably heard that Tokyo will be hosting the 2020 Olympics. Naturally, the Olympics will provide an excellent tourism opportunity for the island country, and one organization is hoping to use 2020 as a grand unveiling of their project: The NPO江戸城再建 (Rebuilding Edo Castle NPO) aims to garner enough consensus and financial backing to rebuild what used to be the tallest part of the former Edo castle city-compound.

To get an idea of how big this area was, visit this fascinating page at JCastle. Edo Castle’s outer moat stretched 15 km, while the inner moat was 5 km long. Without stopping for anything, it’d take you about 3 hours to walk the outer moat and 1 hour for the inner one.

Modern-day Tokyo does not have a castle. There’s the Imperial Palace in Chiyoda ward where the royal family lives. There’s a moat and a kind of mini-castle called the Fujimi-yagura. But neither of these are a castle fortress like Nagoya or Osaka’s, and those behemoths are only around half the height of Edo-jo’s tallest tower.

Like a lot of historic places in Japan, the original Edo-jo location didn’t change as much as the important buildings themselves did. Edo was established in the 11th century, but it wasn’t until 1457 that the place got a proper compound and was called a “castle.” This Edo-jo landed in the lap of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Ever ambitious, he devised a large-scale expansion of Edo which included a 59 m. high donjon (central tower). It got built, alright. And then was destroyed, and rebuilt, and destroyed, and rebuilt, and destroyed one last time in the 1657 Meireki Fire. It is said that when the flames spread from the donjon to the surrounding Edo urbanity, 100,000 people died — a fifth of Edo’s population.

Rebuilding the Castle

According to the NPO’s website, after the fire, the shogun’s half-uncle insisted that “Giving relief to the disaster victims and to rebuilding the districts of Edo come first. So forget the tower.” But the shogun and others were so prepared and ready to fund a third rebuilding of the tower that they managed to reconstruct the stone base before coming around to their senses.

And that was it. The tower didn’t get rebuilt. It had stood, then fallen, rinse and repeat, for a mere 50 years of the shogunate’s 250 year government. So then why does this NPO, founded in 2004, want to rebuild this unlucky central turret?

They assert that Edo-jo is necessary to “give future Japanese a historical legacy that is representative of Japan’s traditional and unique spirit” and which would attract visitors from around the world “with its charm and vibrancy”. They argue that currently, tourists mostly come through Tokyo, but when they do, all they get to see is Asakusa or Akiba, “And that’s a little sad, isn’t it?” The really cool stuff is all at a distance from the metropolitan hub.

Their plan is to rebuild a historically accurate 6-floor citadel on the same old pedestal that never got a purpose (except distressing OCD tourists with its mis-matched bricks). The costs would be around 40-50 billion yen (400-500 million USD), and would have to get special permissions for: 1) being such a tall wooden structure, 2) looming over the residence of the imperial family, and 3) being rebuilt on the yet-untouched, unexcavated pedestal remains.

Japan’s Thoughts on Edo-jo

Though the NPO has existed for nearly ten years, in the wake of the recent Olympics news, an Asahi Shinbun article described the Rebuild NPO Project. Japanese responses were various. Let’s start with one that will give you Deja Vu (remember the shogun’s uncle?) :

「そんな無駄金あったら震災復興に使えよ」 “If you’ve got that kind of money to waste, then use it for the recovery of disaster-struck areas.” —Anonymous

Move on to those concerned about taxes:

「寄付だけでやるなら反対はしない。税金は一切使うなよ！」“If they do it solely on donations, then I have nothing against it. But don’t you dare use a penny of my tax!” —Anonymous

Stop at the dream door:

「…東京に江戸城とかカッコヨクね？え。なんでみんな批判てきなんだろう。めっちゃカッコイイじゃん。たぶん、超みんな行くと思う。おれ、めっちゃ行きたいもん。」 “…Wouldn’t it be cool to have an Edo castle in Tokyo? I wonder why everyone’s criticizing it. It’d be so awesome. I bet literally everyone would – I would definitely want to go.” —Takuya Sebec Kawamura

And stare down the dream-crusher:

「バッキンガム宮殿、紫禁城、凱旋門。全部本物。東京には歴史的ランドマークがないことを痛感自国の歴史に無知なだけ。東京の事をまともに知らない人間が外国で日本を売り込もうとするから恥をかくのだよ。そもそもレプリカ造って「歴史的」ランドマークだなんてありえないでしょ？」 “Buckingham Palace, Beijing’s Former Palace, The Arc de Triomphe – they’re all the original thing. The people who feel that Tokyo doesn’t have a historical landmark are just ignorant of their own country’s history. The people who flat out don’t know anything about Tokyo are those in other countries. Coming from a platform of “Let’s make Japan into a market for them” is embarassing. And anyway, it’d be ridiculous to build a replica of a landmark and call it ‘hisorical’.” —Mahito Kanayama

Country without a Monument?

A country of earthquakes, monsoons, fires, and constant humidity is naturally a country where frequent reconstruction is built into even the most admired landmarks (e.g., Ise Jingu, home of Amaterasu and the Yata Mirror). But here are three things that could be symbolic and monumental for Japan with no cost, just a bit of marketing elbow grease, and without straying much from Tokyo.

Tenshu-dai

It’s possible that the “Rebuild Edo-jo” folks are onto something. Maybe the remains of the tower, the Tenshu-dai pedestal itself, should be Japan’s symbol. You might think that sounds stupid, as if I’m suggesting your unfinished porch should become the logo for a new restaurant or something. But reconsider the history of the Edo donjon: the third time people thought about rebuilding the tower, somebody said “Let’s put that gold where it’ll count,” and what’s more, the shogun listened. The shogun and the rich folk took care of their town. Edo grew bigger. Edo became Tokyo, and all without that looming tower as part of its identity.

Sometimes its the negative space that’s important. To quote Thoreau: “If you have built castles in the air, your work need not be lost; that is where they should be. Now put the foundations under them”. Standing on the spot where the shogun’s power-tower used to be, you can gaze unhindered towards the sky and dream. How’s that for a symbol of Japan?

Mount Fuji

Without Googling, can you think of a monument in Somalia, in Argentina, or even in Canada? If you’re from those places, it might be easy. But if you aren’t, it becomes clearer what the NPO for Rebuilding Edo-jo is going for: international recognition. Paris’ Eiffel Tower and Moscow’s Kremlin seem very representative of those cities, their culture, and are literally big things to visit.

Comparing those monuments to spots in Tokyo does make me wonder what Japan’s centrally-located monument could be. Of course, finding something super historical, big, and impressive is a tad difficult considering not much of those things survived the WWII Tokyo Air Raids.

Except, you know, Mt. Fuji. That survived the war. It happens to be the subject of hundreds of Ukiyo-e prints and is surrounded by beautiful tea-farming, lake-dotted countryside. It’s not in Tokyo, though, and it isn’t open all year for hiking. Furthermore, with all the international visitors to Mt. Fuji, apparently some invasive flora has found its way to Mt. Fuji’s ecosystem. Yet, if Tokyo looked closely at the mountain’s naturally grown reputation and also its efforts to chisel more tourism, surely they would build a plan for how to stack a Tokyo landmark up to Fuji’s height.

Asakusa

With skillful marketing, Asakusa’s Senso-ji-area could easily be made into that building-sillhouette or camera zoom that screams “Japan” and makes obaachans proud. Asakusa began as a fishing village, then got famous when two fisherman dragged a golden Bodhisattva from the river. They built Senso-ji, a temple, to honor the Kanon Bodhisattva and people came from everywhere to see. Later, a shrine was made to honor those two fisherman. Asakusa transformed, much the way Edo-jo did, from humble beginnings into something incredible. Asakusa also had a hip-cool-Shibuya kind of phase, but now, with a five-story pagoda, a temple, a shrine, a marketplace, and a giant lantern at the Kaminari-mon, Asakusa is as much a tourist destination for Japanese citizens as it is for international visitors.

This is despite the fact that most of its buildings (e.g., Senso-ji, the lantern, etc.) are not original. Various fires, plus the WWII Tokyo Air Raids, destroyed many cultural landmarks here, but Asakusa meant enough to be rebuilt. For comparison, unlike the gigantic Edo Tower, Asakusa’s gate has been at the same spot, with more or less the same features despite multiple reconstructions, for about 400 years. If it’s good enough to make some famous Ukiyo-e artists depict it, it’s right up there with Fuji in being a monument of Japan. If Tokyo capitalized on the Kaminari-mon and its lantern, the symbolism would be on par with the Olympics’ torch lighting the way for some cross-cultural, cross-generational bonding. Due to its long history, the lantern as a symbol could be picked up by both the younger folks and the older generation in Japan.

So What’s Japan’s Symbol?

When I went to Japan, I didn’t know about any landmarks aside from Tsukiji Fish Market and Mt. Fuji. My bucket-list destination revealed itself after hours of Ukiyo-e research for a class: the Kameido Tenjin Jinja taiko bridge. It’s just a red bridge that used to be so circular that it was dangerous. Now it has steps so it doesn’t even look that drum-like, but it was still quixotic to stand there, looking at all the skyscrapers, looking at those stupid helper-steps (I can handle a slope!), and imagine what it was like from those Ukiyo-e I’d seen of the exact spot I was standing.

We find symbols in the smallest and simplest things, so while it might be helpful for Japan’s economy to market one, which one is still clearly a debate. Whether you fall into the Edo-jo or the Edo-no camp, I hope I’ve helped you think a little bit about Japan’s historical monuments. And even if you’ve never taken a marketing class, I want to hear what you think could be ‘that symbol’ and why you think so.

Sources

• Hashi. “The Imperial Family’s Mysterious Treasure“, Tofugu. Jan. 18, 2013.
• Japan National Tourism Organization. “The 62nd Regular Removal of the Grand Shrine of Ise – Shikinen Sengu”
• JCastle. “Edo Castle Project”.
• “Municipalities Make Efforts to Attract Foreign Tourists – a Case Study of Fujieda City”. Hiragana Times. July 2012
• National Geographic, Education. “Mount Fuji: Symbol of Japan“
• Numata, Ryoichi. “Mount Fuji Habitats Threatened by Foreign Flora,” Japan Times. Sep., 15 2013.
• Rebuilding Edo-jo Association. “Edo-jo Saiken Q&A”.
• Thoreau, Henry David. Walden, or Life in the Woods, p. 356. Oxford University Press, 1999. Originally published 1845.
• “東京五輪のために500億円かけて「江戸城」再建？“. Asahi Shinbun. Sep. 9, 2013. Translation “Edo Castle to be Reconstructed in time for 2020 Olympics?” at JapanCrush.

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