Category: Uncategorized

The views from Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi Prefecture.

Views from a car, Fujiyoshida, Yamanashi, 9/27/2017

A pair of barn swallows (Hirundo rustica) made a nest on the light box.  The light kept the nest warm at night.  There is a large pond nearby; therefore, plenty of insects are available to feed nestlings.  Incubating the eggs about two weeks, five fledglings appeared from the nest.  The pair kept busy feeding the fledglings.  Finally, yesterday morning they left the nest.  At night, the five fledglings and their parents rest and sleep under the eaves of the house.  It is believed that having a swallow nesting in a house brings good luck in Japan.

Barn Swallows, Nagasaka, Yamanashi, 6/26/2017

Three weeks ago, in the evening, a kitten was crying in the shade somewhere.  It was a three weeks-to-one-month-old kitten.  A pretty one, black and white, but it was oiled and the left side was covered with silicone glue.  The condition was nasty, apparently abused.  I worried about not only her physical damage, but also her psychological damage.  However, she ate well and played well, so she recovered very quickly.  Today, there was an adoption event for needed cats and dogs organized by the local animal-rescue association.  Although my little one did not like the location and the atmosphere and she was so nervous, but she caught attention instantly from several people.  Two families showed interest in adoption.  I chose the family in the next town.  I hope that she will make a new life there with full of love and care.

A Kitten, Nagasaka, Yamanashi, 6/18/2017

A short Aokigahara Woodland-Trail walk in the village of Narusawa in Yamanashi Prefecture was conducted for an Australian couple (Refer to GALLERY and previous posts).  It was a little cloudy in the morning, but it became fine around noon.  It was an almost perfect day for a woodland walk.  We met a large group of school children in the wood.  They were very energetic and all of them greeted us.  We walked to the Wild Bird’s Forest Park and to the Ryugu Lava Cave.  In the middle of the trail, rather large colonies of chlorophyll-less saprophyte, Monotropastrum humile were observed.

Aokigahara Woodland, Narusawa-village, Yamanashi, 6/06/2017

A workshop for the duty to be assigned at the Mount Fuji 5th Way-point Management Center was conducted at the Fujisan (Mount Fuji) World Heritage Center in the town of Fujikawaguchiko (https://www.fujisan-whc.jp/en/).  Every year, there are a great number of cases that the climbers and visitors need medical attention.  In this workshop, the participants learned how to assist the nurse at the First Aid Room in English practicing the case which had actually happened in the previous years.  Native English speakers took the roles of the patients.  Most likely scenarios using the basic medical terms which dealt with the medical symptoms and physical conditions were discussed.  Since there are a lot of Chinese-speaking visitors, the point and speak in Chinese was practiced in the last session.

The second factory tour was conducted at Ishitomo Co., Ltd. (http://www.ishitomo.co.jp/).  Ishitomo applies the in-house integrated production system.  All the production procedures from the designing to the final production are conducted in Ishitomo.  This policy materializes the flexible production depending upon the clients’ needs.  Also, in Ishitomo, each craftsman is responsible for all the production processes from the initial molding through the final polishing.  Ishitomo sets the standard of quality control extremely high.  In this way, Ishitomo can maintain the superb quality of its products.  Furthermore, the company accepts OEM and ODM requests, making it more attractive for its clientele. Ishitomo Co., Ltd. and Lucky Co., Ltd. are going to participate in the JUNE Hong Kong Jewellery & Gem Fair at the Hong Kong Convention & Exhibition Center during 22-25 June 2017.

Jewelry making processes, Ishitomo Co. Ltd., Kofu, Yamanashi, 6/02/2017

A jewelry factory tour was conducted at Lucky Co., Ltd. (https://www.j-lucky.co.jp/).  Kofu is one of the jewelry cities.  Approximately one third of the jewelry products sold in Japan are manufactured in the Kofu area.  In this factory tour, you can experience a jewelry-making process.

Demonstration of a 3D printer and some of the jewelry making processes, Lucky Co. Ltd., Kofu-city, Yamanashi, 5/31/2017

I climbed Mount Fuji from the 5th Way-point of the Yoshida route.  Although it was a business day, I expected a lot of climbers.  But there was no one.  Soon after I started climbing up the trail, a Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) showed up to greet me, so I waved to him.  The weather was partly sunny.  Over the 7th Way-point, part of the trail was covered with snow.  Some parts were extremely difficult to cross.  Looking down from the slope, the clouds were magnificent and beautiful.  At some point, I caught up with three Finnish climbers.  Since the trail was treacherous, I decided to climb with them.  Because of the snow, it took a lot more than I anticipated.  Yet, we reached the Kusushidake Peak (3,710m).  The top of Mount Fuji was extremely windy and cold.  The crater was clearly seen but the trail to the highest point of Mount Fuji, Kengadake Peak (3775.6m), was covered with snow, and it was getting late.  So, we did not go there.  We took the Yoshida descending route; however, the downhill was all the way covered with snow.  We had to traverse the slope to return to the ascending route.  It was dangerous.  Some part under the snow was icy, so it was slippery.  Yet, some part was soft, so we easily got stuck in the snow.  It was a long day.  I was relieved when I had arrived at the parking lot.  (Concerning Mount Fuji, refer to GALLERY; https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Fuji) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_serow)

Welcoming Japanese serow (Capricornis crispus) and the views from Mount Fuji, Narusawa-village and Fujiyoshida-city, Yamanashi, 5/24/2017

A live jazz concert was held at the Koryuji Temple in the town of Mukawa, the city of Hokuto in Yamanashi Prefecture (https://www.yamaderadejazz.com/).  This was the fourth event conducted at the same location starting from 2014, attracting more than three hundred people every year.  The Koryuji Temple belongs to the Soto School of Zen Buddhism (Refer to GALLERY).  The chief priest of the temple likes the jazz music and he himself plays the drums.

The concert consisted of three parts.  The first part was performed by the members of the Waseda University New Orleans Jazz Club.  Classic New Orleans standards including “Bourbon Street” and “When the Saints Go Marching In” were presented.  The second part was performed by the Yamadera Knights Quartet consisting of Naoki Nishi (piano), Benisuke Sakai (bass), Hitoshi Hamada (vibraphone), Tatsuya Sato (tenor saxophone), and Nobuyuki Komatsu (drums).  Several pieces including Nishi’s and Hamada’s were presented.  In the third part, vocalist Kimiko Ito joined the Quartet and presented several classical standards including “My Favorite Things” by John Coltrane which was performed in Tsugaru-direct and English versions.  The Tsugaru-direct pieces sung by Kimiko were very amusing and warm.  Kimiko also sung a piece from her new-releasing CD: Ai San-san (radiant love) originally presented by a Japanese-legend singer Hibari Misora.  The concert was highly successful.

Koryuji Temple and the Yamadera Knight Quartet with Kimoko Ito at ease, Mukawa-town, Hokuto-city, Yamanashi, 5/21/2017

I had to visit the American Embassy in Tokyo.  After finishing the business, I visited the Tokyo Metropolitan Edo-Tokyo Museum (https://www.rekibun.or.jp/en/museum/m02/) and then the Kokugikan Sumo Hall (https://www.sumo.or.jp/En/).  The May Grand Sumo tournament started on May 14, 2017.  Although it was Monday, today’s tickets were sold out (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ry%C5%8Dgoku_Kokugikan; https://kokugikan.sumo.or.jp/).

Kokugikan Sumo Hall, Ryogoku, Sumida-ward, Tokyo, 5/15/2017