This photo was taken in 2007 at シャルマンバルール in Kumamoto, Japan. The piano player was quite good and we sang a few songs together. The piano is thought to have been invented around 1700. The word is a shortened form of the Italian word for the instrument, pianoforte.
This photo was taken in 2007 in Aso, Japan. The sun is 150,000,000 kilometers, or 93,206,000 miles from Earth. The sun was formed about 4.6 billion years ago when a hydrogen molecular cloud collapsed. The Sun does not have enough mass to explode as a supernova. Instead, in about 5 billion years, it will enter a red giant phase, its outer layers expanding as the hydrogen fuel in the core is consumed and the core contracts and heats up. We will all die. Fortunately, if you're reading this, you have no real chance of being alive in 5 billion years. But, still sad.
This photo was taken in 2007 in Fukuoka, Japan. These pigeons were so tame they would eat crackers out of my hand. Pigeons are some of the most amazing navigators in the animal kingdom. A champion racing pigeon can be released 400-600 miles from it's home and return within a day. Studies have been conducted to find out how the pigeon is able to navigate so well, but a solid answer has not presented itself. During one such study, the pigeons were observed following freeways and even changing directions at major junctions. Other theories are that pigeons use the Earth's magnetic field, the sun, or low frequency seismic waves. Whatever the answer, pigeons are fantastic animals.
This photo was taken in 2007 in Kumamoto, Japan. Despite more than half of Japanese people claiming no religion, religion plays a large part of many people's lives in Japan. While the overwhelming majority of religious Japanese adhere to Shinto, Buddhism, or a mixture of the two, Christianity has a small following in Kyushu where the first Europeans landed in 1542. The Kyushu daimyo(lords) welcomed trade with the Europeans and tolerated their proselytizing. However, when Francis Xavier tried to spread Christianity to the capital, it resulted in the ruling general, Toyotomi Hideyoshi issuing a ban on Christianity and executing 26 Franciscan missionaries in Nagasaki. The ban stood from 1597 to 1873 when the Meiji restoration gave the Japanese freedom of religion. Today Christianity is practiced by between 600,000 and 1,000,000 Japanese.
This photo was taken in 2007 at the Fukuoka Yahoo! Dome in Fukuoka, Japan. The Fukuoka Dome was built in 1993 and has a seating capacity of 35,695. Frank Sinatra played his last public concert there in 1994. The stadium is the home of the Nippon Baseball League's Fukuoka Softbank Hawks. The Hawks won the Pacific League in 2010, but fell in the Pacific League Final Stage to the Chiba Lotte Marines in 6 games despite holding a 2-1 series lead after 3 games. The Hawks haven't won the Japan Series title since 2003, but have a strong team heading into 2011.
This photo was taken in 2007 at Bar Xaymaca in Fukuoka, Japan. Bar Xaymaca is a reggae bar located in the Tenjin district of Fukuoka. The name Jamaica is derived from Xaymaca, an Arawak word meaning "land of wood and water." The bartender pictured here learned English from the bar's owner, who is Jamaican, so despite being Japanese, he had a Jamaican accent.
This photo was taken in 2007 in my co-worker's backyard in Kumamoto, Japan. In Japan these spiders are called Joro-gumo, literally 'harlot spider.' The name comes from an old story from the Edo period about a woman who lures men into her home, then turns into a spider and eats them. In western countries this spider is called Nephila clavata and is a member of the golden orb-web spider group. The web of the female Joro-gumo can reach one meter in length. After mating, the female spins her egg sack, which can contain between 500-1500 eggs, and attaches it to a tree.
This photo was taken in 2007 in Kyoto, Japan. Kyoto was the capital of Imperial Japan and was so from 794 until 1868. Upon becoming the capital in 794, Kyoto became home to the Geisha. Also known as Geigi or Geiko, Geisha were originally skilled dancers called Oiran who also provided sex to their patrons. In the 1700's, many Geisha stopped dealing in sex and became exclusively entertainers; mostly actresses, dancers, and musicians. While some Geisha still offered prostitution, Geisha was seen as a respectable and desirable occupation for women. The women in this picture are Japanese tourists who have paid to be dressed and made up as Geisha.
This picture was taken in 2007 at Shin-Yabakei near Nakatsu, Japan. Nakatsu is in Oita prefecture about 60 km from Oita City. The surrounding mountains are known for their beautiful trees which change to all shades of yellow, orange, and red during autumn. Oita prefecture is also home to some of Japan's, and the world's, finest hot springs with Beppu being a particular place of interest. The combination of stunning scenery and friendly people make Oita prefecture a wonderful place to visit while in Japan.
This photo was taken in 2007 along the Naka River in Fukuoka, Japan. Fukuoka is home to over 90 love hotels, most of which are located in the Hakata and Tenjin districts. Love Hotels are places where Japanese couples go to get privacy and be intimate. Privacy in the Japanese home can be difficult since many Japanese men, women, and couples live with their parents. The reason for this is the closeness of the Japanese family. Japanese children are expected to care for the parents when they become elderly and having them in the home is the easiest way to provide care. Of course, this is not true for all people, but it is not uncommon to have a family of 3 generations under the same roof.
This photo was taken in 2006 at Mt. Aso in Aso, Japan. Cattle roam free around the foothills and mountains of Mt. Aso, which is the largest active volcano in Japan. The central cone group of Aso is made up of five peaks: Mt. Neko, Mt. Taka, Mt. Naka, Mt. Eboshi, and Mt. Kishima. Mt. Naka has the only active crater among the five, but hasn't erupted since 1991.
This photo was taken in 2007 in Kumamoto, Japan. My student, Kunio, took me and Gen, my co-worker, out to a French Restaurant and I had Dom Perignon for the first time in my life. They served it in etched glasses. Dom Perignon is named after a Benedictine monk and was only produced in 36 of the last 81 years. A bottle of Dom Perignon costs around 110 USD for a 2000 vintage. The same amount of money would buy forty 40 ounce bottles of Miller High Life.
This photo was taken in 2007 in Fukuoka, Japan. Fukuoka Airport was established in 1943 for the Imperial Japanese Air Force. After World War II, the U.S. used Fukuoka Airport as Itazuke Air Base. The U.S. Air Force was stationed in Itazake until 1972. Fukuoka Airport is the fourth busiest airport in Japan behind Haneda(Tokyo), Narita(Tokyo), and Itami(Osaka). International flights from Fukuoka are available to South Korea, China, Vietnam, Taiwan, Philippines, Thailand, and Singapore.
This photo was taken by Cris Cordio in 2007. On the western outskirts of Kyoto, Japan lies Mount Arashiyama which contains Sagano Bamboo Forest. In the 1870s when Thomas Edison was searching for a high quality bamboo as a material for filament in his early light bulb, the governor of Kyoto recommended two sources of bamboo, one of which was Sagano bamboo. Bamboo has a higher tensile strength than many alloys of steel and can withstand earthquakes with magnitudes as high as 9.0.
This photo was taken in downtown Fukuoka, Japan near the Hakata district in 2007. Fukuoka is a fascinating city of 2.5 million people. This temple is nestled into downtown seamlessly despite being surrounded by large buildings. Old meeting new is a particularly interesting part of enigmatic Japan as a thousand years of culture and tradition meshes with the hustle and bustle of modern times.
