Origin of Shiga prefectural name
SHIGA – Nourished Felicitations 滋賀県 If there are multiple theories for the origin of the prefectural name, it means nobody knows for sure what the origin or the exact meaning…
Dragons in Japan
Wishing you the best in 2024, the Year of the Dragon. My heart goes out to people in Ishikawa (especially Noto Peninsula) and Toyama Prefectures starting off the new year…
Tour Enryakuji Temple’s massive renovations
Next to Kyoto, Enryakuji Temple (延暦寺) on Mt. Hiei (Hiei-zan 比叡山) in Otsu, Shiga Prefecture is now offering a rare look at its massive, 10-year renovation of its main temple…
Otsu Matsuri
Video link: http://youtu.be/52tjGe470eA Here’s my video of Otsu Matsuri filmed last year on Oct. 12-13, 2013. Finally got it done and in time for this year’s festival on Oct. 11-12,…
Pharrell Williams HAPPY – Matsuri Version
Pharrell Williams scored a huge hit with his song Happy last autumn. It has since become a worldwide phenomenon with people in cities around the world making street dance videos…
Video of Japan’s largest lake
If you like lakes (especially very old ones), fish, plankton, endemic species, or fermented fish, this video is for you. It’s shows Lake Biwa and the Lake Biwa Museum. It’s…
Hikone Castle video
Hikone Castle in Hikone, Shiga Prefecture (next to Kyoto) is one of four Japanese castles designated as a National Treasure. I tried to make the video as short as possible,…
Giant kite festival
My video of the Higashi-Omi Giant Kite Festival (東近江大凧まつり Higashi-Omi Odako Matsuri) held on Sunday, May 26, 2013 in Shiga Prefecture next to Kyoto. Another one of my ongoing video…
Movie: Katen no Shiro
Released in Japan on Sept. 12, 2009, this movie is about Okabe Mataemon, a Nagoya (Atsuta)-based master carpenter who in 1576 was ordered by Japan’s leading warlord Oda Nobunaga to…
NHK Taiga Drama
I’m currently watching and enjoying NHK’s Taiga Drama called “Komyo ga Tsuji,” (功名が辻) a year-long period drama set during the turn of the 17th century. It features a footsoldier samurai…