Podcasts about Katsura

The Krewe gets an exclusive inside look at Expo 2025 Osaka with Sachiko Yoshimura, the Director General of Public Relations & Promotion! We dive into the massive planning behind the event, Japan's rich history with World Expos, what to expect at the event, best times to travel, & of course... the story behind the viral mascot, Myaku-Myaku! A must-listen for potential Expo-goers!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ Past KOJ Travel Episodes ------Checking Out Miyagi ft. Ryotaro Sakurai (Guest Host, William Woods) (S5E5)Explore Matsue ft. Nicholas McCullough (S4E19)Travel Hiroshima ft. Joy Jarman-Walsh (S4E4)Travel Aomori ft. Kay Allen & Megan DeVille (S3E17)Hungry For Travel ft. Shinichi of TabiEats (S3E15)Henro SZN: Shikoku & the 88 Temple Pilgrimage ft. Todd Wassel (S3E12)Border Closures Couldn't Stop These Visas! ft. Rob Dyer & Allan Richarz (S3E11)Natsu Matsuri Mania: Summer Festivals in Japan (S3E3)Off the Beaten Path: Kansai ft. Rob Dyer [Part 2] (S2E12)Off the Beaten Path: Kansai ft. Rob Dyer [Part 1] (S2E11)Japan Travel Destination: Hokkaido ft. Kay Allen (S2E7)Japanese Theme Parks ft. Chris Nilghe of TDR Explorer (S2E4)Navigating Nippon: Where to Go in Japan? ft. Kay Allen of JNTO (S1E11)Matsue & New Orleans: Sister Cities ft. Dr. Samantha Perez (S1E2)------ About Expo 2025 ------Expo 2025 WebsiteExpo 2025 on IG------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJoin JSNO Today!

Nick is joined by ITV presenter Oli Bell to discuss the latest from around the racing world. With a view to this weekend's Classics, they are joined by Brian Meehan and Kate Harrington to discuss Rashabar and Hotazhell respectively, while Harrringtom also has news of Green Impact's next target. Also today, Wathnan's manager Richard Brown tells Nick about two potential Derby candidates, while the RCA's Kevin Walsh talks about the new Summer Jumps Championship, and Nick and Oli assess GBR's latest marketing effort as they kick off the Going is Good campaign. Plus, Luis Kimmel from GaloppDaily joins with important news from Germany, while Richard Chugg joins the show having joined his family in collecting awards at the TBA National Hunt evening at Doncaster as breedrers of The New Lion and Katsura.

Nick is joined by ITV presenter Oli Bell to discuss the latest from around the racing world. With a view to this weekend's Classics, they are joined by Brian Meehan and Kate Harrington to discuss Rashabar and Hotazhell respectively, while Harrringtom also has news of Green Impact's next target. Also today, Wathnan's manager Richard Brown tells Nick about two potential Derby candidates, while the RCA's Kevin Walsh talks about the new Summer Jumps Championship, and Nick and Oli assess GBR's latest marketing effort as they kick off the Going is Good campaign. Plus, Luis Kimmel from GaloppDaily joins with important news from Germany, while Richard Chugg joins the show having joined his family in collecting awards at the TBA National Hunt evening at Doncaster as breedrers of The New Lion and Katsura.

Season 6 kicks off with laughter, tradition, and international flair! The Krewe sits down with Katsura Sunshine, a Canadian-born rakugo performer bringing Japan's 400-year-old comedic storytelling art to audiences around the world. In this episode, we explore what makes rakugo so unique, how Sunshine became one of the few non-Japanese rakugo-ka, and how this traditional form of entertainment is finding new life on the global stage. Plus, hear about the possibility of a rakugo event in New Orleans this fall!Whether you're a longtime fan of Japanese culture or just curious about this captivating performance style, this episode is the perfect way to kick off Season 6 of the Krewe of Japan Podcast!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ Past KOJ Traditional / Historical Japan Episodes ------The Castles of Japan ft. William de Lange (S5E19)Foreign-Born Samurai: William Adams ft. Nathan Ledbetter (Guest Host, Dr. Samantha Perez) (S5E17)Foreign-Born Samurai: Yasuke ft. Nathan Ledbetter (Guest Host, Dr. Samantha Perez) (S5E16)The Thunderous Sounds of Taiko ft. Takumi Kato (加藤 拓三), World Champion Taiko Drummer (S5E13)Yakuza: Past, Present, Future ft. Jake Adelstein, Author of Tokyo Vice (S5E12)The Real World of Geisha ft. Peter Macintosh (S5E7)Inside Japanese Homes & Architecture ft. Azby Brown (S5E6)Kendo: The Way of the Sword ft. Alexander Bennett, 7th Dan in Kendo (S4E16)The Life of a Sumotori ft. 3-Time Grand Champion Konishiki Yasokichi (S4E10)The Intricate Culture of Kimono ft. Rin of Mainichi Kimono (S4E7)Shamisen: Musical Sounds of Traditional Japan ft. Norm Nakamura of Tokyo Lens (S4E1)Henro SZN: Shikoku & the 88 Temple Pilgrimage ft. Todd Wassel (S3E12)Natsu Matsuri Mania: Summer Festivals in Japan (S3E3)Exploring Enka ft. Jerome White Jr aka ジェロ / Jero (S3E1)The Chrysanthemum Throne ft. Dr. Hiromu Nagahara [Part 2] (S2E18)The Chrysanthemum Throne ft. Dr. Hiromu Nagahara [Part 1] (S2E17)Yokai: The Hauntings of Japan ft. Hiroko Yoda & Matt Alt (S2E5)The Age of Lady Samurai ft. Tomoko Kitagawa (S1E12)Talking Sumo ft. Andrew Freud (S1E8)------ About Katsura Sunshine ------Katsura Sunshine on IGRakugo.lol------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJoin JSNO Today!

LET THEM COOK! Over the last 5 months, the Krewe has been hard at work cooking up a massive Season 6 line-up. While the main course will begin being served on May 16, how about an appetizer? Just like the carb-loaded instant yakisoba, this preview is CHOU CHOU CHOU Gigamax packed with sneak peeks at what's to come in Season 6. Some snippets include:- Laughing & learning about the world of Rakugo with master storyteller Katsura Sunshine- Prepping for Expo 2025 with Sachiko Yoshimura, Director General of Public Relations & Promotion for Expo 2025- Studying Japanese via language schools with Nihongo enthusiast Langston Hill- Bridging New Orleans & Japan through music with Jazz Trombonist Haruka Kikuchi- Kicking off 2 episodes on Japan's soccer footprint domestically & worldwide with journalist Dan Orlowitz- Exploring vegan cuisine in Japan with Leonore Steffan of ItadakiHealthy- Diving into social media's role in establishing perceptions of Japan - Revisiting Matsue with Sister City Exchange participants Katherine Heller & Wade Trosclair- Brewing up some craft beer with Chris Madere of Baird Brewing & Chris Poel of Shiokaze BrewLab- Restoring some abandoned homes with Akiya enthusiast & YouTuber Anton Wormann of Anton in JapanThis is only HALF of what's to come this season... the 2nd half is top secret! So stay tuned for our season 6 premiere on May 16, 2025 and stick around for the rest of the season to find out what else we have in store on Season 6 of Krewe of Japan Podcast!!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJoin JSNO Today!

Glowing ovaries, persistent boxers, and showtune shame! First, Kelley explains the difference between pool and billiards (yes there is a difference) as she covers Masako 'Katsy' Katsura, a champion billiards player who broke the green felt ceiling and became an international star! Then, Emily tells the tale of Hangaku Gozen, a fierce warrior who was determined to defend her homelands against invaders, even if she had to do it by herself. Say a prayer to Robbie Ruben and shove balls up someone's pooper, because we're wining about herstory! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Katsura Sunshine, a Canadian rakugo performer, is set to take the stage for a one-night-only show at the Sydney Comedy Festival. He has performed rakugo across Japan, on Broadway in New York, and in countries around the world — but this will be his first time appearing at a comedy festival. What inspired him to enter this traditional world of storytelling? We spoke to him about his training under master Katsura Bunshi, and what makes rakugo so captivating. - カナダ出身の落語家、桂三輝（サンシャイン）さんが、シドニー・コメディー・フェスティバルで一夜限りの公演を行います。

The Taisho Period began with a political crisis that threatened to upend the stability established by the Meiji Period as the people of Japan took to the streets to express their displeasure by rioting.Support the show My latest novel, "Califia's Crusade," is now available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple Books, Bookshop.org, and many other online platforms!

Continuing our Coppin State 125th Anniversary campus conversations, Title IX Coordinator Katsura Kurita explains the 50-year-old civil rights law, ensuring gender equity in education and sports, and prohibiting sex discrimination in institutions receiving federal funding. She educates Nestor on the prevalence of sexual violence on campuses, with one in four women and one in 12 men experiencing it. And how campuses are handling this important issue. The post Coppin State Title IX coordinator Katsura Kurita explains the law and realities for women on modern college campuses first appeared on Baltimore Positive WNST.

Varför ska man satsa på stora träd vid nyplantering! Vad har lökbaggen på Martina Falks schalottenlök att göra? Och vad ska Malin göra med en frifräsare som vill ta över showen på katsuran?I det här avsnittet språkar Bella och landskapsarkitekten och växtexperten Tomas Lagerström om träd och varför man ska satsa på större exemplar hellre än små spensliga pinnar när det är dags för nysatsning i trädgården. Dessutom svarar Maj-Lis på frågor om allt från insynsskydd och lökbaggar till Malins uppstudsiga katsura och Annika Harryssons lutande äppelträd.Bli medlem i ODLA!s vänner! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this week's episode, Mat's bacon is saved emergency guest TsuTsuDae of the Undisputed Anime Podcast, to talk about the long running Shonen classic, D.Gray-Man by Katsura Hoshino.Join us as we talk about the book's long history, how it balances mature themes with lighthearted moments, and get nostalgic for the bygone era where the local comic book shop dictated what you read... Thanks to Juliano Zucareli for our theme music!Find us on:X: Manga Tak PodBluesky: Manga Tak PodInstagram: Manga Tak Pod

A conversation with Katsura Sunshine – rakugo comedy storyteller bringing some light into our lives and discussing the universality of laughter, his journey through showbiz from Toronto (via a yakitori restaurant in Yokohama) to the Japanese tradition of rakugo, the joy of performing every month in Tokyo and on Broadway, and we even get a fabulous spontaneous excerpt from his repertoire!!

Esta vez nos vamos al lejano oriente para conocer a Aiko Katsura, quien es la directora de High Noon Japón. Ella nos comparte su historia de como conoció High Noon, como llego a convertirse en la directora de High Noon y cuál es el impacto que desea tener en la sociedad japones y sobretodo con los jóvenes japoneses. Acompañenos en este nuevo episodio del Podcast Una vida sin Sombras de High Noon español!   Contactos de Aiko Katsura y High Noon Japon:  WP: +81 80-4193-0823 emial: aiko.katsura@highnoon.org   Pagina web de High Noon Japón: https://www.jp.highnoon.org/ Pagina de Spotify de HN Japón https://open.spotify.com/show/6ftK7d3Ou7j6wrHQspwVcD?si=76f61ec3a24d40d9

Yellow leaves on Katsura, box tree moth persistence and a tiny Redbud in a pot are all covered this week. Plus, how to feed Venus flytrap? Hollyhock from seed, pesky deer flies and more on the Garden Show! Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Canadian born comedian Katsura Sunshine has spent the last 20 years living in Japan. In that time, as an apprentice of storyteller Katsura Bunshi, he has learned the ancient art of Rakugo where performers tell stories that have been passed down from master to pupil for 400 years. Joining him now is fantastic comedian and returning Men Brain hero Luca Cupani who alongside Sunshine brings his own version of these incredible stories to a residency at the Leicester Square Theatre in London. Get bonus content on Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Top Japanese bridal fashion designer Yumi Katsura has died at the age of 94, it was learned Tuesday.

Katsura Sunshine (桂 三輝, Katsura Sanshain) is a Canadian traditional Japanese rakugo comic storyteller, theatre producer, and television personality, currently performing traditional Japanese rakugo on Broadway. To learn more about Katsura Sunshine, check out the following:Katsura Sunshine on BroadwayKatsura Sunshine on YouTubeKatsura Sunshine on FacebookKatsura Sunshine on TwitterDeep in Japan is completely independent and crowd-funded, so if you like what you hear, please give a thought to supporting the show. MUSIC: The intro was my original mashup of Fist of the North Star, a few anime sound bites, some kabuki, a cheap recording of my son's Buzz Lightyear toy, and “Dubstep" from BenSound.The outro was "japanese [sic] jazz when driving on a warm night" taken from tardiobscurus_jp.Got something to say? You can find me at the following:www.facebook.com/groups/deepinjapan/ deep.in.japan.podcast@gmail.comAs always, thanks for listening!

This week we're digging a classic from out of the cellar – our episode exploring the absolute magic of sake that's been crafted to stand the test of time.While still a relatively niche category within sake, more and more producers are leaning into clearly communicating the amount of time – and in what form – their sake spends maturing prior to release, and the wider beverage-loving community is finally taking notice.From a production standpoint, there are tricks of the trade that allow for all variety of flavor and style creation. The one quality that really can't be replicated, however, is the unique and special character born only through the passage of time.We welcome you to take a step back in time with us this week, joining your hosts Marie Nagata, Sebastien Lemoine, and Justin Potts, revisiting this episode originally released back in the spring of 2021. If you're looking to further explore the world of aged sake, I encourage you to check out the special session we hosted on the topic for the Sake Future Summit back in 2020, as well.Thanks for tuning in this week. We'll be back with more Sake On Air for you very soon. Despite a rich and storied history spanning millennia, in certain terms, sake has yet to unequivocally prove its ability to stand the test of time.If you're in some way associated with the sale or service of sake, likely one of the most common questions you get is, “How long can I keep my sake before it starts to go bad?” or, “How long does sake stay good after it's opened?” As a buyer, these are both logical and very important questions. As an industry, having clear and concise answers to those questions is equally important. In order to keep things simple, as well as to help assure an overwhelmingly positive experience for as many sake drinkers as possible, the general message adopted suggests that sake should be consumed within 6-12 months from purchase, refrigerated both prior to and after opening, and then consumed within several days to a week once it's been opened. This is sound advice that's relevant to a great majority of the sake being produced and sold both domestically and internationally.There is, however, a paradigm that exists entirely outside of the above logic; where a greater element of time isn't only a factor, but a necessity.Welcome to the world of matured and aged sake.Often referred to as koshu – literally “old sake” – often translated as “aged sake”, or jukuseishu, commonly translated as “matured sake”, bottles of sake referencing these qualities were crafted taking time into account. That amount of time can be anywhere from a few years to a few decades depending on the style of sake and the intent of the brewer, and in many cases the results are astounding.Yet despite plenty of beautiful examples of aged or matured sake on the market and countless historical texts singing the praises of what time can do to a bottle of sake, a rather perfect storm of circumstances coalesced to nearly erase aged sake culture, production, and consumer appreciation from the collective understanding of sake for about a century.Thankfully, a relatively small, but thoughtful, proactive and coordinated effort from a growing number of sake makers and sellers has been hard at work seeking to rebuild and redefine what time can mean (and cost) when factored into a bottle of sake. Whether it be the collective rebranding efforts of the Toki Sake Association, the Muni line from Kokuryu used in the first ever sake industry auction in 2018, the dedication to long-term aging in ceramic storage vessels by Tsuki no Katsura, or a handful of specialty bars dedicated to the unique and treasured style, awareness surrounding the magic that time can work on a bottle of the right kind of sake is slowly building.This week, Sebastien Lemoine, Marie Nagata and Justin Potts gather to discuss the historical and modern context of matured and aged sake, the formal definitions (or lack thereof) in place,

Host Doug Still introduces you to the charming old katsura tree in Beatrix Farrand's famous garden at Dumbarton Oaks. It might be the oldest katsura in North America, or maybe not, but its origins relate to the burgeoning interest in Japanese trees and plants in the second half of the 19th century when Japan opened up to the world. Listen in, as the tree receives traditional care from Japanese Master Gardener Kurato Fujimoto.

It's Katsura, not Zura. Hurry up and read this episode description already. I'm missing a soap opera rerun I want to watch. Use code "MELANCHOLY" for $5 off your first #TokyoTreat box through our link: https://team.tokyotreat.com/otakumelancholy [Special thanks to Boomslank for sponsoring the episode! You can get 10% off your total order by using our coupon code OTAKUMELANCHOLYPODCAST on their website by going to⁠ www.boomslank.com/otakumelancholypodcast⁠ to have it automatically applied at checkout!] Featured music and works:♪ (no copyright music) lofi type beat 'imperfect' free vlog musicLink :    • (no copyright music) lofi type beat '...   Opening and ending song is "koishii" by Deoxys Beats Cover art is by SinfulScientist

¿Japón avanza hacia un “declive feliz” en el que la gente se resigne a dejar de ser una potencia económica? Eso propone un sociólogo nipón ante la constante caída demográfica. El archipiélago perdió 800 mil habitantes en 2022 por el cóctel del envejecimiento de la población y el aumento de las parejas sin hijos. En una sociedad rígida, las mujeres privilegian la carrera profesional, y existe el fenómeno de los “solteros parásitos”. RFI viajó a Onjuku, un pueblo costero que encierra muchos de los desafíos del gobierno para frenar la espiral. La estación de Shinjuku en el centro de Tokio es una buena imagen de la pujanza de la tercera economía del mundo. En un día laboral, más de 3,5 millones de personas atraviesan la que figura en el Libro Guinness de récords mundiales como la estación más transitada del mundo.Pero desde hace años late la pregunta de hasta cuándo durará el ritmo vertiginoso de esta estación. O de esta capital. O de todo el archipiélago nipón. La incertidumbre se origina en las estadísticas de la población, que año tras año siguen en descenso.Descenso continuoHasta las noticias de televisión anuncian el descenso de la población: “El Ministerio del Interior y Comunicaciones anunció hoy que hasta el pasado 1 de enero la población de Japón sufrió un descenso que por primera vez en casi medio siglo afectó a todas las prefecturas del archipiélago”. El año pasado, Japón perdió más de 800 mil habitantes. Ahora tiene 125,4 millones y el descenso continúa pues nacen menos niños y la población envejece. Desde hace más de una década, las ventas de pañales para adultos en Japón superan las de aquellas para bebé. Este es el indicador más gráfico del envejecimiento del archipiélago japonés, donde las personas de 65 años o más rondan los 36 millones, o casi el 29% de la población.Para algunos sociólogos como el profesor Masahiro Yamada, el descenso de la población ha generado una crisis paulatina que está cambiando radicalmente el país que conocemos como Japón: “No es el tipo de crisis que ocurre de repente. Es más parecido a esa serie de golpes al cuerpo que recibe un boxeador. El poder de Japón se está debilitando poco a poco y su posición económica también decae”, explica.Solteros parásitosEl profesor Yamada, sociólogo de la Universidad de Chuo en Tokio, es un especialista en demografía conocido por identificar a finales del siglo pasado a los hijos que no se casaban por estar hasta los 30 y 40 años con sus padres. Los bautizó con una etiqueta que perdura: los solteros parásitos. “Como en Italia, España, Corea del Sur y China, en Japón los hijos no quieren dejar el hogar pues cuando se casan su nivel de vida baja”, comenta.Hoy el número de matrimonios sigue en descenso y los jóvenes se ven frenados por la contracción de la economía y el esquema tradicional de que el hombre debe ser la cabeza de la familia que provee los recursos del hogar. “La participación de las mujeres en la economía no avanza en Japón, por eso los hombres con bajos ingresos no pueden casarse”, analiza el sociólogo.En las zonas rurales la población cae a un ritmo vertiginoso: “En la prefectura de Akita el número de niños ha disminuido en un 60 por ciento en comparación con hace 20 años”, agrega Yamada.Onjuku ante el éxodo de residentesEn Onjuku, un pueblo costero situado a unos 100 kilómetros al sudeste de Tokio, la playa es recordada como el escenario de un caso único en Japón por sus lazos históricos con el mundo hispanohablante. En estas playas naufragó en 1609 el galeón San Francisco, nave española que viajaba de Filipinas a Acapulco, en la Nueva España de entonces. Los antepasados de Onjuku salvaron la vida de 317 náufragos.“El hecho histórico de 1609 fue un acontecimiento del que siempre hemos estado muy orgullosos ante el mundo”, cuenta a RFI el alcalde de Onjuku, Yoshiharu Ishida. Considera que el relato del galeón San Francisco, que implica a España, México y Filipinas, puede ser un atractivo para aumentar el turismo: “En un futuro queremos vincularlo como uno de nuestros recursos turísticos”.Pero el pueblo sigue perdiendo población cada año. De los 7.074 habitantes actuales, sólo 418 son niños menores de 14 años. “Desde que estoy en el cargo he implementado muchas medidas pequeñas pero no hemos logrado traer residentes”, lamenta el alcalde.Yoshiharu Ishida, que lleva más de una década en el cargo, se ha visto superado por la dinámica irreversible de la caída demografía que afecta a su país: “El número de fallecimientos y el éxodo de residentes es generalizado”.“Incluso dar a luz es difícil”El profesor Yamada considera que un factor decisivo para el éxodo de los pueblos es la brecha de género: “Las mujeres jóvenes de las zonas rurales se van a Tokio y a otros lugares por la falta de oportunidades para desempeñar un papel activo. Y porque en las empresas de las zonas rurales persiste una cultura de discriminación”. “Las mujeres motivadas y con estudios eligen la opción de marcharse a ciudades como Tokio u Osaka”, agrega.Una de estas mujeres es Hiromi Hoshino, especialista de marketing que salió hace casi 20 años de su pueblo, Katsura, un pintoresco puerto pesquero situado al lado de Onjuku. “Nací en la zona rural de la prefectura de Chiba y muchas personas salimos a la gran ciudad. La escuela primaria y la secundaria donde yo iba ya no existen. Eso me entristece mucho”, recuerda.Como profesional de marketing, la señora Hoshino se fija en los anuncios cuando visita a sus padres y sus deducciones son preocupantes: “Hay gran cantidad de anuncios de funerarias y eso me hace pensar en cómo está subiendo el número de fallecimientos. Incluso los crematorios, que es la costumbre funeraria en Japón, tienen lista de espera”, señala.El panorama resume bien la situación del Japón lejos de las grandes ciudades. Hiromi Hoshino explica que “incluso dar a luz es difícil pues no hay hospital, y mi hermano tuvo que llevar a su esposa a un lugar lejano. Japón se está volviendo como una isla remota donde es imposible conseguir servicios médicos de urgencia”.Tasa de fecundidad e inmigraciónEn contraste, Tokio gana población y la señora Hoshino que tiene un niño de tres años contribuye al aumento: “Tuve a mi hijo a los 38 años. Antes de que naciera mi hijo ya estaba pensando en vivir una vida sin hijos”, subraya.La tasa de fecundidad en Japón, el promedio de hijos que una mujer tiene en su vida, es de 1,26, un nivel muy bajo para un país industrializado. Según cuenta Hoshino, “a mi alrededor hay mujeres que decidieron no tener hijos y eligieron su carrera. Japón tiene estilos de vida muy distintos incluso entre mi círculo de amigas”.La inmigración extranjera es una solución que, según nos recuerda el profesor Yamada, se ha propuesto en otras latitudes: “Japón no podrá sobrevivir sin inmigrantes. Las grandes empresas necesitan diversidad, por lo que quieren inmigrantes con un alto nivel profesional”.Sin embargo, dado que el porcentaje de personas que hablan otros idiomas es bajo, comparado a otros países de Asia, aprender japonés es una exigencia que puede no compensar los salarios que ofrecerá una economía menguante. “Me preocupa que tal vez no quieran venir a Japón”, comenta Yamada.El “declive feliz”Por cerca de 30 años, el sociólogo ha sido asesor de sucesivos gobiernos y de políticos japoneses para proponer medidas para frenar la crisis demográfica. Pero sus propuestas no contribuyen a la popularidad y suelen pasar a un plano secundario en la agenda política. “Para los políticos, lo importante son las elecciones del momento. Lo que pase en la sociedad dentro de 30 años siento que les da igual”, estima.El descenso de Japón que prevé Yamada será relativamente indoloro. Por eso ha acuñado una nueva etiqueta que incluirá en su próximo libro: el “declive feliz”. “Por ‘declive feliz' quiero decir que no sólo el gobierno sino también los ciudadanos, en especial los jóvenes, se resignan a que Japón no sea un país central de la economía mundial”, detalla.El profesor considera que resignarse al declive es una tendencia cada vez más generalizada: “Más que la economía, especialmente los jóvenes, se preocupan de cómo disfrutar de la vida en el día a día”. En la ecuación del “declive feliz”, entran el conformismo de la juventud y su apatía política: “Sin importar lo bajo de su salario, los jóvenes no quieren involucrarse en la política. Japón tiene el porcentaje más alto del mundo de jóvenes que no participan en política”, recalca.“Es bastante aterrador”Con el fin de entender mejor la crisis demográfica japonesa en el contexto mundial, el experto en datos Stephen J. Shaw, inglés residente en Tokio, hizo una comparación que lo sorprendió tanto que se embarcó en una investigación por 24 países que plasmó en una serie documental. “Cuando vi las tasas de natalidad vi un descenso que afectaba al mismo tiempo a muchos países de Asia empezando por Japón y a partes de Europa. Hoy si exceptuamos África, todos los países tienen una fertilidad por debajo de la tasa de reemplazo o se acercan a ella. Fue aterrador”, explica.El documental se titula en inglés Birthgap (la brecha de la natalidad) y advierte que el problema está en las puertas de regiones hasta ahora consideradas exentas de caídas demográficas como América Latina. Según Stephen J. Shaw, “está vinculado a la paternidad tardía. Y esto no sólo en los países más industrializados. Filmamos varias semanas por toda América Latina y es bastante aterrador lo rápido que están cayendo las tasas de natalidad allí también”.El caso más grave es Brasil, donde en las dos pasadas décadas los nacimientos fueron insuficientes para reemplazar a los fallecidos. “Japón está mejor preparado para protegerse durante al menos algunas décadas gracias a su riqueza adquirida hasta ahora. Brasil va a tener verdaderos problemas para cuidar de su propia población”, estima el experto. Según él, el caso brasileño será el anticipo de lo que espera a otros países de la zona: “Creo que afectará a muchos países de América Latina de manera más general y mucho más duro que a Japón, Europa etc.”.El “declive feliz” de Japón que vaticina el profesor Yamada incluye una vida de carencias sentimentales subsanadas en el mundo virtual de muchos videojuegos japoneses, como el famoso Pokémon. “Por estar tan desarrollada la cultura de los pasatiempos en Japón, muchas personas prefieren vivir dentro de un videojuego a conseguir un novio o una novia”, dice.El mundo virtual podría además ayudar a sobrellevar la precariedad que se avecina. “Dejarán de intentar tener éxito en el mundo real y, en cambio, lo buscarán con el juego en el mundo virtual”, concluye el sociólogo.

A set by @katsuraa recorded in the @rndmclub on the 21th of July.

Last time we spoke about the situation after the disastrous losses at Pyongyang and the Yalu River as well as the battle for Port Arthur. Coming off their tremendous success at Pyongyang and the battle of Yalu, the Japanese performed an offensive fording the Yalu and easily defeating the Qing forces at Jiuliancheng. After this the Japanese began to advance into the Liaodong Peninsula. One by one, each town saw Qing forces fleeing while giving little battle. Eventually the Japanese seized Jinzhou and Dalian. With bases of operations in hand they then could attack the formidable fortress of Port Arthur. As the Japanese advanced into the Port Arthur region, they came across mutilated corpses of their comrades driving a fiery need for vengeance into their hearts. The Japanese would take Port Arthur with absolute ease as the Qing yet again fled the scene, but this time the victory was met with a disastrous massacre.   #53 The First Sino-Japanese War of 1898-1895 Part 5: The Battle of Weihaiwei   Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. The massacre at Port Arthur was disastrous for Japan's public image. Thomas Cowan of the London Times went to Hiroshima on his way home after witnessing the massacre and met with Foreign Minister Mutsu Munemitsu to tell him what he saw personally. Upon hearing the story, Mutsu told him “that an investigation would be made and that he showed no disposition to interfere with the correspondents duty and the reports were telegraphed on December 1st”. On December 16th the Japanese foreign ministry issued a formal statement to the foreign press on the matter  "The Japanese Government desires no concealment of the events at Port Arthur. On the contrary, it is investigating rigidly for the purpose of fixing the exact responsibility and is taking measures essential to the reputation of the empire. Japanese troops transported with rage at the mutilation of their comrades by the enemy, broke through all restraints and exasperated by the wholesale attempts [by Chinese soldiers] at escape disguised at citizens, they inflicted vengeance without discrimination. While the Japanese government "deplores" the excessive violence, it protested "exaggerations" in the press reports and insisted that "the victims, almost without exception, were soldiers wearing the stolen clothes of citizens." Three days later the London Times reported “that most foreign reporters agree that the excesses were committed, but say that they were excusable, and that they have had their parallels in the best European armies. The Japanese military promised they would also launch an inquiry into the matter, but no one ended up being punished. Luckily for Japan the west would later on become obsessed over the peace terms and their attention was less focused on the Port Arthur Massacre.  Meanwhile the Qing government was trying to deny there even was a defeat at Port Arthur, let alone a massacre. The Shanghai China Gazette had this to say "The most strenuous efforts have been made by the Chinese officials to conceal the fact that the great stronghold has passed out of their hands, and is now a de facto Japanese naval yard. Telegraphic notices have been sent...all over the empire by the officials saying that a wicked report has been set on foot by the enemy that they have captured Port Arthur, but it was utterly untrue, the place being garrisoned by 30,000 brave Chinese soldiers who would never give it up to the Japanese. Official telegrams to this effect were published to-day in all the native papers, and thousands of Chinese will thereby be kept in blissful ignorance of the terrible position in which China stands to-day. Ostrich-like, most of the Chinese prefer not to believe the unpleasant truth and rather listen to the barefaced mendacity of their wretched rulers. But the stupidity of the latter gentry, who have brought the country to its present desperate plight, is only emphasized by this false manoeuvre." A month later the same China Gazette asserted this "By many it is not yet known or admitted that Port Arthur has been taken and is held by the Japanese - even of the 'well-informed' officials. The same is said to be true in Peking." Of course the Qing court had good reason to try and conceal the defeat at Port Arthur. The mandate of heaven was under attack, the Japanese were pouring into the Manchu homelands of Manchuria. Internal rebellions could spring up at any moment, everything seemed to be hanging from a thread. After the defeats at Pyongyang and Yalu, Emperor Guangxu demanded to take personal control over the prosecution of war in Korea. He even wanted to leave the throne under Empress Dowager Cixi so he could concentrate on the frontlines, but his advisers pretty much put their foot down on that one. The Manchu leadership needed to maintain their control over national security….and luckily for them and unluckily for Li Hongzhang they had a scapegoat for the disasters.  In October of 1894, just before losing at Port Arthur, Prince Gong had been reinstated. A decade earlier he had been demoted because of the disastrous losses during the Sino-French War, but in reality Cixi just considered him a rival. He was appointed high commissioner of the Peking Field forces, co-president with Prince Qing of the Admiralty, the Zongli Yamen and of War Operations. Yes the age old tradition of tossing a ton of titles on a single person. The Qing government even created for him a small general headquarters. Prince Gong was the 6th song of the Daoguang Emperor, uncle in law of Cixi and alongside Li Hongzhang, one of China's top experts on foreign affairs. The foreign community respected him ever since the second opium war. Prince Qing had been the head of the Zongli Yamen since 1887. Thus two Manchu princes, Gong and Qing were in control of the capital's defense. Gong and Li Hongzhang were sharing responsibilities for the war, but Gong was specifically only responsible for the defense of the capital while Li Hongzhang retained responsibility for prosecuting the war against Japan.  After the fall of Port Arthur, Li Hongzhang went to the Qing court seeking punishment and within 24 hours he was deprived of all his titles, honours and office, ompf. And when all was said and done…he remained at his post. As the New York Times headlines stated at the time "Viceroy Li Hung Chang Has Lost the Rest of His Wardrobe." The foreign press had learnt much about China's practice of degrading and punishing officials, while simultaneously not actually implementing any policy change. Li Hongzhang would retain his post throughout the war, regardless of the titles and honours, he really was a scapegoat. And its not like he was not aware of this, upon receiving his punishments he began to toss mud at the Qing officials, blaming them for resisting railroad construction plans as now they were direly needed to deploy troops. He would also go on the record to complain naval funds had not been so forthcoming. Basically it was a big old Li Hongzhang “I told you so moment”. Colonel Maurice of the British Royal Artillery was very blunt when stating “Li Hongzhang is being treated as a scapegoat. He is the only man in China who has advocated European methods, and he is now being punished on account of the failure of the old Conservatives who refused to follow his advice." Back to the frontlines, upon taking Port Arthur, the Japanese did not rest long to continue their sweep towards Beijing. But the next important target was the naval base at Weihaiwei. There was also suggestions amongst the Japanese military leadership to perform a winter campaign in Manchuria as a diversion. The thought process being, to hit the Manchu homeland to divert many of their land forces away from the shores of Bohai and Shandong. The Qing had divided their forces in Manchuria into three armies forming a line between the coastline at Gaiping all the way to Liaoyang. The northmost army was stationed at Liaoyang. They were to defend the road to Mukden from the east via the Motian Pass and the south via Haicheng. If you pull up a map, you will notice the Motian Pass forms this bottleneck between Fenhuangcheng and Liaoyang. The second army took up a position at the port city of Niuzhuang and walled city of Haicheng. Lastly the third army commanded by General Song Qing was positioned at Gaiping. Now back at the end of October, Marshal Yamagata was pursuing Qing forces and his 5th division seized Fenghuangcheng unopposed. Their next objective was Haicheng, taking this would enable the 1st IJA in eastern Manchuria and 2nd IJA advancing up the Liaodong Peninsula to link up communications. It would also cut off the Qing in 3 directions, leaving them only a westward retreat. After Fenghuangcheng fell, General Song ordered 10,000 of his forces to advance to the Motian Pass threatening the rear lines of the Japanese marching upon Haicheng. This prompted General Nozu Michitsura to move his 10th brigade to Motian pass to prevent the Qing from concentrating there. He was successful at repelling the Qing forces gathering there and by late november the Qing were routing. From there the Japanese were forced to pull back to Fenghuangcheng to resupply, but in that time period the Qing began to reconcentrate at the Motian Pass. Then the Qing launched an offensive at Fenghuangcheng, but were served two terrible defeats on December 9th and 14th. While this was going on the 5th brigade under General Katsura Taro was pursuing a Qing Army led by General Ma, around 6000 men strong who looked like they were going to attack Port Arthur. Katsura pursued Ma's forces to Haicheng where he not only defeated them, he also seized the city by December 13th.  The seizure of Haicheng had ruined General Song's plans, now the Qing line of defense was cut in two by a Japanese army. General Song was forced to re-establish a new defensive line. On the 18th of december he ordered 10,000 of his forces to storm the town of Niuzhuang, but they were intercepted along the way by the IJA 5th brigade. They were forced to withdraw, suffering 500 casualties vs 440 for the Japanese. The next day, the Japanese attacked the retreating Qing forces around Ganwangzhai a town just southwest of Haicheng. The Qing put up a stiff resistance, but were forced to give ground. This prevented General Song's army from reaching the road to Liaoyang to connect with the other Qing armies to the north. The Qing would try four times to retake Haicheng during January and February to no avail. Then on January 10th, the 2nd IJA launched a three-pronged attack upon the walled city of Gaiping. The cities 5000 strong garrison fought for their lives, they had prepared for the attack by causing the water in the nearby streamers next to the city to freeze on an incline, making it difficult for the Japanese to cross. While this tactic would have been high effective centuries ago, with modern artillery it was undercut gravely. The Qing would have 1200 casualties defending Gaiping while inflicting 307 upon the Japanese. 10,000 Qing reinforcements were arriving at the scene from Yingkou whereupon they found the retreating garrison and this tossed everything into a panic. But to the relief of General Song, the Japanese temporarily halted their advance, due to overstretching their logistical lines. Now the Japanese had an enormous supply route going all the way from Jiuliancheng to Haicheng and Gaiping.  General Song Qing would not give up and launched a major counteroffensive to retake Gaiping and Haicheng. 20,000 Qing forces stormed into the region and were beaten back mostly by the 5th Brigade. General Song's men received 300 casualties for their efforts while inflicting only 41 upon the Japanese. Undeterred, General Song tossed two more offensives between January 17th to the 21st of February. The offensives greatly strained his men and just when their logistical supply lines were beginning to suffer, General Nozu prepared his counter offensive. On the 16th of February as 15,000 Qing soldiers attacked Haicheng in 3 columns led by Generals Zhang Xun, I K'o T'ang and Xu, they would also be aided by bandit forces the next day. On the 21st the Qing bombarded Haicheng with artillery, while they received reinforcements in the form of 10,000 men under Governor Wu Dacheng from Shanhaiguan. Meanwhile the Japanese were also reinforced by elements of the 1st division. On the 21st, the 1st division led by General Yamaji assaulted a large hill named Taping-shan being defended by forces led by General Ma Yukun. By the 24th General Yamaji seized the hill forcing the Qing to take up new positions in nearby villages, and soon Yamaji unleashed artillery from the hilltop upon them. The Qing had to withdraw from the area after receiving 800 casualties. The fighting was extremely rough for the hill, not to mention the winter conditions costing the Japanese 250 casualties from combat and another 1500 cases of frostbite.  On the 28th, General Nozu Michitsure unleashed his counterattack aimed at Niuzhuang and Liaoyang. He began with a large artillery bombardment, then sent his forces in a wide front offensive. The Qing defenders were driven into a rout, many retreating north towards Jinzhou, offering only rear guard actions as they did. Lt General Katsura Taro pursued some of the retreating Qing all the way to the walls of Liaoyang, reaching it by March 3rd while the main bulk, the 3rd and 5th divisions under General Nozu advanced upon Niuzhuang and Liaoyang eventually by the 4th of March. During the rout the Qing had taken another 400 casualties, while inflicting 124 upon the Japanese. General Song then tosses 2500 men led by General Xu at Haicheng yet again only to be repelled by the IJA 1st division.  On March 3rd, the 3rd and 5th IJA divisions began their assault of Niuzhuang by first softening the city up with an artillery barrage for 2 hours. The artillery barrage did more than soften up the city, all the Qing defenders abandon their wall positions and move into the interior. The Japanese 5th division enters the city with zero resistance to find 2000 of the 5000 Huai army troops defending Niuzhuang are fleeing. Those who stay fight fiercely against the 6000 men of the 5th IJA division, but in the end they are forced to abandon Niuzhuang after 1900 deaths. 633 Qing defenders are taken prisoner. The Japanese were forced to destroy nearly all the buildings in the city using artillery to smoke out Qing defenders and this goes on well into the night. By 11pm, the Qing have all departed the city. While the battle over Niuzhuang was occurring, the 1st and 3rd divisions began an attack against Yingkou. General Song under threat of encirclement was forced to withdraw from Yingkou over to Tianzhuangtai. By March 7th, the battle for Yingkou becomes nothing more than sporadic resistance, but the port city falls with relative ease. At port in Yingkou the Japanese seized the gunboat Mei Yuan and two transports that were icebound. General Song rallied around 11,000 men at Tianzhuangtai to continue launching counter offensives, but General Nozu kept up the pace to hinder the Qing from recuperating. The 5th Brigade was left to garrison Niuzhuang and Yingkou as the rest of the Japanese advanced upon Tianzhuangtai. The Qing were taken off balance by this and tried to put up a defense, but were utterly defeated resulting in 2000 casualties and lost their entire artillery force which was captured by the Japanese. The Japanese loses were reported to be unbelievably low at 16 deaths and 144 wounded. As a result of this last defeat, General Song's army ceased to exist as a real force. Full scale combat in Manchuria pretty much ended with the seizure of Tianzhuangtai, though minor skirmishes would occur in hill areas with pockets of Qing resistance. The victory over Yingkou gave the Japanese complete control over the southeastern portion of Manchuria, and when April came around, Yingkou's harbor would be ice free allowing for further supply lines via the sea. The Japanese had thus acquired a base of operations to perform offensives within Zhili and thus the road to Beijing was open. The offensive against Beijing would see the 1st and 3rd divisions of the 1st IJA marching towards Shanhaiguan, while the 5th division would garrison parts of Manchuria and the 2nd and 6th divisions would be held in reserve around Dalian. At this point Emperor Guangxu began shuffling officials. Li Hongzhang was relieved of his command in the field, and this was handed over to a 6 man strong committee of defense headed by Prince Chun. Alongside this, Li Hongzhangs viceroyship over Zhili, something he had held for quarter of a century, was handed over to Liu Kunyi. Liu Kunyi tried to pretend he was too ill to take the appointment and would remain in Beijing through January of 1895, continuously trying to weasel out of the new post. Rumors began to emerge that Liu Kunyi was an opium addict, which was not unheard of, Generals like Ye Zhichao and Wei Rugui were known opium addicts. Despite his attempts to thwart it, Liu Kunyi now commanded the Xiang Army, composed of large numbers of Hunanese and Hubei forces. By December 28th, Liu Kunyi was made commander in chief of the imperial armies within and without the Great Wall, including the territories of Zhili, Shandong and Manchuria. The defense committee had organized 50,000 men for the defense of Zhili, stationing them around Shanhaiguan, with another 55,000 around Beijing. This meant Liu Kunyi had a whopping 105,000 men under his commander with 80,000 of the provincial forces within the theater of operations. General Song Qing meanwhile still held command over 35,000 men in Manchuria alongside another General who was commanded 10,000 at Liaoyang.  As all of the shuffling was going on for the Qing, the Japanese did not simply lay idle. Their primary objective remained Weihaiwei and in January of 1895 as their forces were marching through Manchuria slowly towards Beijing, they split up the 2nd IJA. In the third week of January the entire 2nd division and most of the 6th were handed over to Marshal Oyama who redeployed them across the Yellow Sea to Shandong Province in preparation for an assault upon Weihaiwei. Now when the Japanese attacked Port Arthur, they did so intended to take her naval facilities intact so they could use them, but for Weihaiwei the goal would be much different. The Japanese intended to destroy the Beiyang fleet within her port, so that the seaways would no longer be under any threat, thus allowing Japan to move troops at will, though by this point they had basically already achieved this.  The advance upon Weihaiwei began with a diversionary bombardment of the outlying town of Dengzhou on January 18th. Dengzhou was roughly 100 miles west of Weihaiwei and its defense consisted of four 210mm guns and six 150mm guns. The purpose of the diversionary attack was to turn the Qing attention westward, while the Japanese landed forces 30 miles east of Weihaiwei at the easternmost tip of the Shandong Peninsula known as Rongcheng. Japanese forces departed Dalian on January 19th and 22nd, landing between the 20-23rd. Dengzhou was bombarded by the cruisers Naniwa, Akitsushima and Yoshino as the 2nd IJA forces led by General Oyama Iwao landed at Rongcheng. His 2nd IJA consisted of the 6th division under General Kuroki Tamemoto and the 2nd division under Lt General Sakuma Samata. The 2nd IJA divided into two columns marching west towards Weihaiwei, one over a coastal rode, the other around 4 miles further inland. The Japanese ushered in the Chinese New Year by timing the invasion of Weihaiwei on January 29th. It was the most important holiday to the Chinese and perhaps the Japanese chose it specifically to not only surprise the Chinese but also hammer in a message “that the old days were finished: Wake up and Modernize or suffer dire consequences” Once in the vicinity of Weihaiwei the Japanese performed a three-pronged attack upon the landward fortifications south and east of the town. Weihaiwei had three categories of defenses; those on two harbor islands, those on the mainland overlooking the northwestern entrance to the harbor and those on the mainland overlooking the southeastern entrance to the harbor. These fortifications were equipped with the best artillery available: a total of 161 guns, between 7-24cms worth, mostly of Krupp and Armstrong design; the northern forts had 43 guns; Liugongdao island had 61 guns; Ridao island had 8 guns; the southern forts had 49 guns and the harbor itself held 15 Beiyang warships, 13 torpedo boats and 248 sea mines and booms. Nearly 11,000 Qing defended the city, with another 4000 or so on their way from Tianjin, but they would not make it in time. The troops were led by Admiral Ding Ruchang and Commander of the Dingyuan Liu Buchan. The two Beiyang commanders had little faith in the Qing soldiers under their disposal, and only really trusted the sailors of the Beiyang fleet. The IJN combined fleet had dispatched a naval patrol outside Weihaiwei's harbor threatening any ships that tried to escape with torpedo attacks, leaving the entire Beiyang fleet bottled up. The weather conditions hit as low as -6, with severe blizzards, thus terrible for the incoming Japanese, but a typical summer for Canadians, haha. The most outlying forts were hit first by Japanese artillery. This resulted in a 9 hour long fight until the Qing defenders abandoned the forts, leaving them all nearly intact. During the storming of the outlying forts, Major General Odera Yasuzumi leading the 11th infantry regiment, was hit by shrapnel from a shell fired from the Jiyuan. Odera would die from his wounds and became the only Japanese general to die in combat during the war and the highest ranking Japanese death of the war. He would be posthumously promoted to 3rd Court Rank and his son was ennobled with the title of “Danshaku / Baron”. With the outlying forts seized, the Japanese began turning them upon Weihaiwei itself battering it before the men stormed Weihaiwei on February 2nd.  To probably no surprise of any of you listeners by now, the Japanese entered the city to find the garrison had fled the night before. It turned out when the siege began, the Chinese hospital staff were the first to flee, leaving some foreigners to try and take over medical services. Admiral Ding Ruchang only succeeded in having a few of the forts surrounding the harbor destroyed before the Japanese simply grabbed them. Now the very guns that were meant to protect the Beiyang fleet trapped within the harbor were unleashed upon them. To make matters worse on the night of February the 3rd the Japanese tried to remove the booms blocking the entrance to the harbor but were unable to. The following night they tried again and this time were successful allowing two squadrons of torpedo boats to enter the harbor. Two IJN torpedo boats began opened fire to cause a distraction as others snuck in to try and torpedo the Dingyuan. The Dingyuan received crippling damage as 3 other Qing warships were sunk. The following night a squadron of IJN torpedo boats made repeated attacks upon the largest Qing warships at anchor, disabling two and a transport. By February the 7th the IJA and IJN were launching combined bombardment attacks upon the Beiyang Fleet. In response the Qing torpedo boats not already disabled tried to make a break for it, unsuccessfully running into a IJN blockade. Out of 13 ships, 6 were destroyed and 7 were captured intact by the Japanese. As defeat was certain, Admiral Ito Sukeyuki tried to make an appeal to Admiral Ding Ruchang, who happened to be his personal friend. He wrote a letter urging his old friend to come back with him to Japan. He advised ding to prevent any further loss of life by capitulating and to accept political asylum in Japan until the war's end and that he assured him, he would return to his native land and could secure China's future by setting new policies. "It is not the fault of one man that has brought China into the position she now occupies. The blame rests with the errors of the Government that has long administered her affairs. She selects her servants by competitive examination, and literary attainments are the test" In the modern age China owes her preservation and her integrity to-day wholly to the fact that she then [thirty years ago] broke away from the old and attached herself to the new." Now Ding despite being the Admiral of the Beiyang Fleet, in a typical Qing fashion was greatly out of his element. He had formerly been a cavalry officers, he actually held little naval training at all, he was not even very popular amongst the sailors. He was a man of Anhui province, but most naval officers hailed from Fujian. As was typical, the Qing dynasty favored loyalties rather than military experience, thus led Ding to where he was. He resisted capitulation until the very end and had actually tried to die in action multiple times by standing on deck when bombardments were occurring. According to a foreign advisor "Ding declared at first that capitulation was impossible; but later he said he could arrange it by committing suicide, and so save the lives of many." Depending on the sources you read, he chose to kill himself, or his sailors actually proded him with knives to do so. Admiral Ding Ruchang killed himself via opium overdose, followed by Admiral Liu Buchan and Captain Yang Yonglin who shot himself as the Japanese boarded the Dingyuan. Ding had no choice but to kill himself as Emperor Guangxu had already degraded him the prior summer for not preventing the IJN from entering Bohai. After the fall of Port Arthur the emperor degraded him again and tried to bring him to the Board of Punishment where he would have been beheaded, had it not been for Li Hongzhang intervening on his behalf. Before killing himself Ding wrote back to Ito "I am thankful for the admiral's friendship, but I cannot forsake my duties to the state. The only thing now remaining for me to do is to die." Liu Buchan before doing the same had ordered the scuttling of as many of the Beiyang warships as possible with explosives. Command of the Beiyang fleet fell onto the Scottish born Vice Admiral John McClure who wrote a letter of surrender in Admiral Ding's name on the morning of February 12th. Per the terms of the letter; the remaining ships, forts and stores were surrendered to the Japanese at the request all the Qing troops, civilians and foreign advisors would be allowed to depart unmolested.  Dings suicide wiped away the stain of defeat and made him a tragic war hero to both China and Japan. The Japanese admired his final act since it fit within their bushido code. Admiral Ding alongside the other commanders who committed suicide were honored by the Japanese. They accorded them full military honors and granted their men extraordinary leniency. An American professor who taught English in Japan shortly after the war wrote of the event, explaining its significance to western audiences. "What would have been the feelings of the North for Robert E. Lee if, at Appomattox [when the South capitulated to the North at the end of the American Civil War], rather than share the fate of the gallant men he had surrendered, he had committed suicide from a sense of devoted patriotism? Instead of admiring him for the unsullied hero and knightly character that he was, North and South alike would have despised him. And yet nine out often of my Japanese schoolboys wrote of the suicide of Admiral Ting [Ding] as the noblest thing of which they had ever heard." The letter of capitulation would be the first one handed over to the Japanese without the use of the term Woren. Later on when the war was officially over, the Qing soldiers and officers signed promises not to take further part in the war and were set free by the Japanese. The officers were provided safe passage aboard the gunboat Kangji, which carried the bodies of Ding Ruchang and the other dead captains. The IJN went out of their way to fly flags at half mast and the flagship fired a long salute as the boat bearing Ding's body left port. The fall of Port Arthur had been Empress Dowager's birthday present from Japan. Li Hongzhangs had come on Februray 12th, with the fall of Weihaiwei and 3 days short of his 72nd birthday. Back in Beijing, upon hearing the news of Weihaiwei's fall, Emperor Guangxu in a fit of rage authorized the governor of Shandong province to behead all fugitives without requiring to report back to the capital. The New York Times said of the event "Emulating Alice's Wonderland Queen, China's Emperor Says of Wei-Hai-Wei Defenders, 'Off with Their Heads.'" Some of the Qing leadership began advising the court they should hire foreign mercenaries or even engage Chinese fishermen to attack the Japanese home islands. For men like these, the modern era had still not dawned. In reality, China should have offered peace negotiations after losing Port Arthur, but for many members of the Qing elite this was unthinkable. As allegedly murmured by some “Dwarves could not possibly bring China to her knees”.  On the eve of the offensive against Weihaiwei, Governor Wu Dacheng who now held the titles of assistant imperial commissioner of defense; president of the board of war; vice president of the court of congress; governor of Hunan and officer of the premier button made an official proclamation to the Japanese. It was he, who offered surrender. In his own words "I of a charitable state of mind, and so could not bear to see Japanese troops going to destruction before my fresh battalions in this severe cold." Meanwhile the Japanese publicly reported their objectives of war not yet attained and that the diet was prepared to grant whatever amounts were necessary for military expenses required to finish them. I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. The Japanese had defeated countless Qing armies in Manchuria and now had neutralized China's last great naval port of Weihaiwei. Would the Qing court bend the knee to the Japanese, or continue the fight?  

https://www.instagram.com/p/CsFyBjeS6WQ/ = This program is recorded in my Discord group "NihonGO Japanese Language School", we offer group lessons for free, almost every day! Feel free to join the server and our lesson anytime ;) "NihonGO Japanese Language School" https://disboard.org/server/825164125767467068 === #nihongopodcast #japanese #日本語 #giapponese #日文 #日语 #일본어 #ญี่ปุ่น #japonais #japonés #japonês #nihongo #hiragana #katakana #studyjapanese #learnjapanese #japanesephrases #japantrip #japantravel #jlpt #日本語能力試験 #kanji #japaneselanguage #japanesepodcast #にほんご #ひらがな #カタカナ #japan

!!!Premio doble!!! !Dos waifus en entrevista: Katsura Idol y Aceitunita!

Meet the charming old katsura tree in Beatrix Farrand's famous garden at Dumbarton Oaks. It might be the oldest katsura in North America, or maybe not, but its origins relate to the burgeoning interest in Japanese trees and plants in the second half of the 19th century when Japan opened up to the world. Listen in, as the tree receives some traditional care from Japanese Master Gardener Kurato Fujimoto.GuestsRon HendersonFounding PrincipalLirio Landscape ArchitectureProfessor of Landscape Architecture + UrbanismIllinois Institute of TechnologyKurato FujimotoMaster GardenerKenroku-en GardenJohann (Hans) FriedlMasters Student of Landscape Architecture and UrbanismIllinois Institute of Technologywww.linkedin.com/in/johann-friedlJonathan KavalierDirector of Gardens and GroundsDumbarton OaksAbner AldarondoHumanities FellowDumbarton OaksConsulting EditorDavid Still IITheme MusicDiccon Lee, www.deeleetree.comArtworkDahn Hiuni, www.dahnhiuni.com/homeWebsitethisoldtree.showTranscripts available.Follow onFacebook or Instagram We want to hear about the favorite tree in your life! To submit a ~3 or 4 minute audio story for consideration for an upcoming episode of "Tree Story Shorts" on This Old Tree, record the story on your phone's voice memo app and email to:doug@thisoldtree.netThis episode was written in part at LitArts RI, a community organization and co-working space that supports Rhode Island's creators. litartsri.org

・Katsura Sunshine【Twitter】https://twitter.com/katsurasunshine【webpage】https://www.rakugo.lol/【Youtube】https://www.youtube.com/@KatsuraSunshineRakugo Youtube, Twitter OPEN!! Check the link below

・Katsura Sunshine【Twitter】https://twitter.com/katsurasunshine【webpage】https://www.rakugo.lol/【Youtube】https://www.youtube.com/@KatsuraSunshineRakugo Youtube, Twitter OPEN!! Check the link below

Neste episódio, Maitos e Júnior Massa Bruta falam sobre Katsura Akira, um mangá feito em colaboração de Katsura Masakazu e Toriyama Akira! Essa dupla trouxe várias coisas boas nessas histórias? Ou eles não dão muito certo juntos? Essas perguntas serão respondidas no podcast! Obs: este programa tem Spoilers, então, por favor, leia o mangá antes de ouvir o episódio! Você foi avisado!

This episode I sit down with Katsura Sunshine, the only Western Rakugo Master Storyteller in the world and only the 2nd in the history of traditional Japanese Rakugo. He shares his fascinating journey from Canadian playwright and musical producer to Master Japanese Rakugo Storyteller.  We dive into the details of his three-year apprenticeship, the hardships and rewards. How he became an international Rakugo ambassador not only on Off-Broadway but around the world. Toward the end of the podcast we even get to hear a short traditional Rakugo story translated into English. Other topics we discuss: The genius story behind why his Master made him bleach his hair blondWhy he does not localize the traditional Rakugo stories when presenting in EnglishHow he got his first big break to internationalize RakugoThe differences between stand-up comedy and RakugoIndentured servitude for three years and menial jobs is part of the apprenticeshipThe real meaning and purpose behind the apprenticeshipHow he convinced his Master to take him as an apprenticeNew Yorkers reaction when seeing him in kimono in publicRakugo stories are very family friendly, but there is an "adult" version as wellKatsura Shinshine's Website: https://www.rakugo.lolMore Now and Zen episodes: https://www.nowandzen.jp/Dream Drive: https://www.dreamdrive.lifegugu Sleep Company: https://gugu.jp

With Autumn colour all around, Gardeners' Corner with David Maxwell celebrates the wonder of trees. At CAFRE's Greenmount campus, the first of the Hiroshima survivor trees grown by staff and students is planted out. In County Laois, David is back at Gash Gardens where Mary Keenan has an impressive Katsura tree, also known as the candyfloss tree because of the smell given off by its dying leaves. In County Antrim, Duneane Primary have a school garden full of trees but its autumn containers the pupils are planting to keep up their reputation as a ‘Best Kept' school and Tony Kirkham will reveal his tree of the month. Also on the programme, Claire McNally will be live in studio with David to answer questions from the Gardeners' Corner mailbox. Email gardenerscorner@bbc.co.uk

Author: Komachi Katsura Age rating: Mature Available to read on: Yaoi Cat: https://yaoi.cat/stories/the-vampire-and-the-virgin-rose MANGA CLUB: https://www.manga.club/book/title/MEDIBANGEN00338/ Book Walker:https://global.bookwalker.jp/de393c6dda-784a-4da4-85a8-217dc5af0190/?acode=Vus4KMM5 I absolutely enjoyed this story. The drawing is beautifully drawn. It is a well-crafted manga. I liked some of the pages, with no dialogue or gestures, just showing pure emotion of the character. It also has a sensual feel, a sensual love scene and I love how the character's eyes are drawn sensual. The Vampire And The Virgin Rose was a decent love story between a human student and a full-blood vampire. BL vampire story is a sub-genre I always would read.

Answers to all your garden questions - climbing roses, non-flowering Hydrangea, early defoliation of Katsura trees, pruning cedar hedges and how to control crabgrass. Listen live every Saturday at 9am on Zoomer Radio

Katsura Sunshine (桂 三輝, Katsura Sanshain) is a Canadian traditional Japanese rakugo comic storyteller, theatre producer, and television personality, currently performing traditional Japanese rakugo on Broadway. To learn more about Katsura Sunshine, check out the following: Katsura Sunshine on BroadwayKatsura Sunshine on YouTubeKatsura Sunshine on FacebookKatsura Sunshine on TwitterPLEASE SUPPORT THE SHOW: The Deep in Japan Podcast is completely independent and crowd-funded, so if you like what you hear, please give a thought to supporting the show at https://www.patreon.com/deepinjapanTHE MUSIC - The intro was my own original mashup of Fist of the North Star, a few anime sound bites, some kabuki, a cheap recording of my son's Buzz Lightyear toy, and “Dubstep" from BenSound. The outro was "japanese [sic] jazz when driving on a warm night" taken from tardiobscurus_jp on the YouToobz. Got something to say? You can find me at the following:www.facebook.com/groups/deepinjapan/ deep.in.japan.podcast@gmail.comAs always, thanks for listening!Support the show

Featuring the first appearance of writer, Trylon volunteer, Horrorthon body counter, and comms specialist Michael Popham (https://twitter.com/mpopham)! A direct sequel to the movie where Godzilla rips Mechagodzilla's head off, TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA is a movie (written by newcomer Yukiko Takayama!) where Godzilla rips Mechagodzilla's head off… and there's a dinosaur… being controlled by aliens… who've teamed up with a disgraced scientist… whose daughter is a cyborg… that controls another Mechagodzilla. It's a pretty stacked movie! It's also the lowest-grossing Godzilla ever and it marked the end of Godzilla's Shōwa era before a nine-year hiatus. Somewhere in that milieu, there's a strangely human, tender core to the story, anchored largely by Katsura Mafune (Tomoko Ai), the mad scientist's daughter-turned-cyborg whose position in the plot. We talk about her many motivations and how her character – dutiful to her father's cause, finding love in her enemies, possessed by her extraterrestrial overlords – reflects both the humanity in the movie's monsters and the monstrosities of its humans. Links: Follow Michael on Twitter: https://twitter.com/mpopham Michael's blog memorializing Horror Incorporated, a 1970s late-night creature-feature series from MSP: https://horrorincorporatedproject.wordpress.com/ - Buy tickets to EDDIE MURPHY (June 2022 at the Trylon): https://www.trylon.org/films/category/eddie-murphy/ - “NIC CAGE, NATIONAL TREASURE” (June - Aug 2022 at the Trylon): https://www.trylon.org/films/category/national-treasure/ - “GENE TIERNEY” (July 2022 at the Trylon): https://www.trylon.org/films/category/gene-tierney/ - “YAPHET KOTTO” (Aug 2022 at the Trylon): https://www.trylon.org/films/category/yaphet-kotto/ Follow us on Twitter at https://twitter.com/trylovepodcast and email us at trylovepodcast@gmail.com to get in touch! Buy tickets and support the Trylon at https://www.trylon.org/. Theme: "Raindrops" by Huma-Huma/"No Smoking" PSA by John Waters. Closing song: Main theme by Akira Ifukube from the TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA soundtrack. Timestamps 0:00 - Episode 176: TERROR OF MECHAGODZILLA (1975) with Michael Popham 4:19 - The Patented Aaron Grossman Summary 7:04 - Movie good? (Movie good.) 15:45 - Balancing the human and the alien 31:56 - Katsura as nexus between them 46:37 - The Junk Drawer (kaiju insurance, a sense of scale & more) 53:13 - Cody's Noteys: Godzilla or Not-zilla (tagline trivia)

Join us for this short spring break special where Jordan tells the amazing story of pool prodigy Masako Katsura. We also have a big announcement you won't want to miss! Happy listening!

Katsura Sunshine on the sit down comedy of rakugo, the traditional Japanese art of comic storytelling; Caitriona Frost on whatever good things a musician might have learnt in these past two years, and Jennifer Walshe on the promises of cloned Insta-pets.

Katsura Sunshine on the codes and the gags of Rakugo, traditional Japanese comedy storytelling.

Katsura Sunshine, the Canadian immigrant to Japan who currently has Rakugo traditional Japanese storytelling shows running both on Broadway and in the West End.

S2 Episode 14 – Arashiyama Pour ce quatorzième épisode, nous vous emmenons arpenter le quartier d'Arashiyama, au Nord de Kyoto. Comme à notre habitude, nous allons vous présenter un parcours qui est loin d'être classique autour de cette destination désormais bien connue. Après avoir rejoint la gare de Saga-Arashiyama, nous commencerons la balade sur les rives de la rivière Katsura, avant d'affronter la foule dans la célèbre bambouseraie et le temple Tenryu-ji tout proche. Si ces premiers sites méritent d'être visités, ils ne retranscrivent plus l'âme originelle de Arashiyama, celle d'un quartier périphérique où il faut bon vivre, construit à flanc de colline en plein coeur de la nature et de temples bouddhistes.  Pour découvrir cette zone plus intimiste, il faut marcher au-delà de la bambouseraie. Après quelques patates douces grillées avalées pour se redonner de la force, on plonge alors dans des ruelles authentiques, loin des spots instagrammables envahis de visiteurs (trop) bruyants et de (trop) nombreuses perches à selfies. Pour prendre le poul de Arashiyama, il faut d'abord s'arrêter dans la superbe villa Okochi sanso, un havre de paix où on s'arrêtera déguster un bon matcha avant de découvrir ses 2 hectares de jardins zen et de pins sculptés. La suite de la randonnée ne sera qu'une succession d'autres beautés : les jardins de mousses du templs Giou-ji, les milliers de statues des temples Adashino nenbutsu-ji et Otagi nenbutsu-ji, les belles demeures luxueuses des alentours datant de l'ère Edo et Meiji. Clou du spectacle, on vous dévoilera l'adresse d'une petite bambouseraie garantie 100% sans touristes (sauf vous !) Notre petit doigt nous dit que vous ne verrez plus Kyoto de la même manière après avoir arpenté le Nord de Arashiyama en suivant nos traces ! Bonne écoute et bon voyage ! Quelques ressources : La carte qui regroupe toutes les adresses évoquées dans l'épisode. L'article d'Olivier : Explorez Arashiyama Nord  ************************************ Chapitrage : 00:46 message d'intro 02:19 les accès pour rejoindre Arashiyama 04:51 la forêt de kimonos 07:21 le pont Togetsukyo 09:09 la street food à Arashiyama 09:50 la grande bambouseraie 11:25 le sanctuaire Nonomiya 13:16 le temple Tenryu-ji 14:56 quelques conseils pour trouver des lieux confidentiels 15:43 la villa Okochi sanso 18:46 le temple des mousses Giou-ji 21:00 la rue typique de Saga Toriimoto 22:41 les temples Adashino nenbutsu-ji et Otagi nenbutsu-ji 25:14 le coup de coeur de Laureline 27:05 le coup de coeur d'Olivier 28:16 le mot de la fin ************************************  Le coup de coeur de Laureline : chaîne Youtube de Eloa Japan vibes  Le coup de coeur d'Olivier : livre Fables et légendes japonaises, Ippei Otsuka, éditions Ynnis  *************************************  Nous remercions Yannick de La Feuille - production sonore & sound design qui a créé notre générique et nos jingles, ainsi que pour son aide précieuse au cours des premiers enregistrements, montages et leur mise en place. Suivez-nous en images sur le compte Instagram du podcast : @podcast.tabibito    

Being half bird and half fish, Staraku has never fit in. But when she leaves her home in search of a place to belong, a mysterious crystal island and a strange new guide show her that what makes her different makes her more powerful than she ever imagined. When Staraku learns her island is on the brink of destruction, she must make a choice. Will she let the birds and fish who rejected her fend for themselves? Or will she use her new power to try to save them and bridge an impossible divide?This episode of Big Blend Radio features Dr. Katsura Suzuki, author of the children's book THE BIRDFISH & THE SECRET OF CRYSTAL ISLAND. Written for kids between the ages of 8-11 who feel like they don't quite fit in, ‘Birdfish' encourages a celebration of differences, self-acceptance, and harmony for communities that are divided. More: http://www.drkatsurasuzuki.com/

This week we have a rather special story to tell, as we're joined by Katsura Sunshine, the second non-Japanese master Rakugo-ka in the history of the craft.The nuanced, playful, dramatic, and at sometimes outright hilarious art of Rakugo storytelling carries over 400 years of historical and cultural significance, passing down universal messages and timeless life lessons that have helped shape how Japan enjoys and appreciates its stories.While sharing in a bit of sake, Katsura Sunshine opens up to us about his ongoing life journey through the largely untrodden (outside Japan) world of Rakugo and his steadfast dedication to endlessly honing his craft while bringing honest and faithful depictions of the artform's beloved stories to international audiences, whether it be Off Broadway, or on YouTube. At Sake on Air, after having been away from our regular home at the JSS Sake & Shochu Information Center amidst a turbulent and challenging year, our guest brought a much needed bit of Sunshine to our short-lived return to our sake sanctuary. While this week's show isn't entirely sake (or shochu) specific, together with our very special guest, your regular hosts Chris Hughes and Sebastien Lemoine explore the shared qualities of both the sake and rakugo experience, while being treated to a few performances – and resulting laughter – along the way. Sunshine's next show is on the 7th of August at the Yoshimoto Yurakucho Theatre, tickets are ¥1,500 in advance or ¥1,800 at the door. Doors open at 12:30 and the performance will begin at 13:00. Tickets can be purchased at https://yoshimoto.funity.jp/search/?kaien_date_type=2021%2F08%2F07&kaijyo_code=999230&kaien_time=13:00 If you enjoyed this week's (or any week's) episode of Sake On Air, you can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on whatever service delivers you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp with any thoughts about this week's show, and feel free to follow us on  Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook. Everything from Sake Future Summit 2020, as well as a number of other recordings, are all archived over on our YouTube channel, as well.We'll be back in two weeks' time with more Sake on Air.Until then,Kampai! Sake On Air is made possible with the generous support of the Japan Sake & Shochu Makers Association and is broadcast from the Japan Sake & Shochu Information Center in Tokyo. The show is a co-production between Export Japan and Potts.K Productions, with audio production by Frank Walter.

WDW Radio # 639 - Live Review of Katsura Grill in Japan in EPCOT I invite you to please join me at possibly my favorite location in all of Walt Disney World, as we gather around a table in the outdoor, upper level seating area at Katsura Grill in the Japan pavilion in EPCOT. I normally come for the atmosphere, but this week, come with me for the food, as we do an extensive and intensive live dining review, and find out where this quick service location ranks among Walt Disney World's best.  ---------------------------------- WDWRadio.com - Visit the site and blog! WDWRadio.com/Clubhouse - Join the community and conversation on Facebook WDWRadioNATION - Get monthly rewards, and help support the show WDWRadioLIVE.com - Watch and chat Wednesdays at 7:30pm ET on Facebook LIVE WDWRadio.com/Events - WDW Radio Disney meets, events, cruises, and more! WDWRadio.com/Shirts - Disney, Marvel, Star Wars, logo gear and more! WDWRadio.com/Podcasts - Show notes, past episodes, links, and photos 407-900-9391 - Call the voicemail with a question, comment or "Hello!" from the parks THANK YOU for your support by voting WDW Radio Best Travel Podcast for 9 consecutive years! Sit back, relax, and enjoy this week's episode of the WDW Radio show. Thanks for listening! Be sure to tune in next week! - Lou Mongello ---------------------------------- LouMongello.com - Let me help you turn what you love into what you do with one-on-one mentoring, mastermind groups, and my Momentum Workshop in Walt Disney World. I can also speak at your event, conference, business, or school. ---------------------------------- LET'S CONNECT! Facebook.com/WDWRadio WDWRadio.com/Community Instagram.com/LouMongello Twitter.com/LouMongello YouTube.com/WDWRadio Pinterest.com/LouMongello LinkedIn.com/in/LouMongello

Despite a rich and storied history spanning millennia, in certain terms, sake has yet to unequivocally prove its ability to stand the test of time.If you're in some way associated with the sale or service of sake, likely one of the most common questions you get is, “How long can I keep my sake before it starts to go bad?” or, “How long does sake stay good after it's opened?” As a buyer, these are both logical and very important questions. As an industry, having clear and concise answers to those questions is equally important. In order to keep things simple, as well as to help assure an overwhelmingly positive experience for as many sake drinkers as possible, the general message adopted suggests that sake should be consumed within 6-12 months from purchase, refrigerated both prior to and after opening, and then consumed within several days to a week once it's been opened. This is sound advice that's relevant to a great majority of the sake being produced and sold both domestically and internationally.There is, however, a paradigm that exists entirely outside of the above logic; where a greater element of time isn't only a factor, but a necessity.Welcome to the world of matured and aged sake.Often referred to as koshu – literally “old sake” – often translated as “aged sake”, or jukuseishu, commonly translated as “matured sake”, bottles of sake referencing these qualities were crafted taking time into account. That amount of time can be anywhere from a few years to a few decades depending on the style of sake and the intent of the brewer, and in many cases the results are astounding.Yet despite plenty of beautiful examples of aged or matured sake on the market and countless historical texts singing the praises of what time can do to a bottle of sake, a rather perfect storm of circumstances coalesced to nearly erase aged sake culture, production, and consumer appreciation from the collective understanding of sake for about a century.Thankfully, a relatively small, but thoughtful, proactive and coordinated effort from a growing number of sake makers and sellers has been hard at work seeking to rebuild and redefine what time can mean (and cost) when factored into a bottle of sake. Whether it be the collective rebranding efforts of the Toki Sake Association, the Muni line from Kokuryu used in the first ever sake industry auction in 2018, the dedication to long-term aging in ceramic storage vessels by Tsuki no Katsura, or a handful of specialty bars dedicated to the unique and treasured style, awareness surrounding the magic that time can work on a bottle of the right kind of sake is slowly building.This week, Sebastien Lemoine, Marie Nagata and Justin Potts gather to discuss the historical and modern context of matured and aged sake, the formal definitions (or lack thereof) in place, the typical qualities that time imparts on a bottle of sake, what maturing sake could mean from a service standpoint, and more.For those of you that missed our special interview on the topic for Sake Future Summit 2020, Aged Sake and the Test of Time, that's a great primer (or follow-up) to this episode. Prior to this episode Sebastien actually sat down with Nobuhiro Ueno, while Justin paid a visit to Tokubee Masuda of Tsuki no Katsura, to help us get a bit more insight into this fascinating sake category. Those interviews will see the light of day in some form a bit further down the road, but for now, we hope you'll pour yourself a glass of sake and settle in with us for an exploration into the one thing that proves nearly impossible to attach a price tag to no matter what the context: time. Thanks for once again tuning in to Sake On Air. You can help new listeners discover the show by leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on any of your favorite services that deliver you all of your podcasting needs. Contact us at questions@sakeonair.staba.jp with any thoughts or feelings, or go ahead and follow us on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.

Look who drove all the way to Utah to talk Godzilla? Ladies and gentlement, put your hands together for Jason Poor! Here's his theory, for your enjoyment: This is a long and ludicrous theory. It takes a lot of liberties, but I love the idea of all of his characters being the same man, so I decided to put something together. I did some research in Godzilla wikis and rewatched some of the movies to get a storyline together. I also thought about this way too much. Enjoy! I'd be curious to hear anyone else's thoughts. It should be noted that I did not include non-Godzilla movies, as I haven't seen most of them and can't make a definite determination of where they would fit in. A brilliant young oceanographer with an interest in paleontology, Dr. Sarizawa was in his early twenties when he discovered the existence of a marine dinosaur. He had recently returned from World War 2 with a devastating eye injury, and found himself bitter at humanity for the devastation man could cause. He hoped that the discovery of Titanosaurus would catapult him back into academic circles and bring him some clarity, but when he suggested he could control the creature the other scientists only laughed and ridiculed him. Feeling betrayed, Dr. Sarizawa moved to Tokyo, where he met and befriended fellow paleontologist Dr. Yamane. He even became engaged to Yamane's daughter, Emiko. But his true passion remained learning the secrets to controlling Titanosaurus. When he was approached by the terrorist group Red Bamboo to assist with the building of their base on Lechti Island, he knew he would be able to continue his studies in earnest. In the meantime, his experiments led him to the accidental creation of a superweapon, the Oxygen Destroyer. At first the device scared him, but after Godzilla appeared and attacked Tokyo he knew he had his chance. He phoned Red Bamboo and told them to be ready. Under the guise of a noble underwater sacrifice, Sarizawa set off the Oxygen Destroyer and in the ensuing chaos boarded a Red Bamboo submarine and made his escape. Red Bamboo gave him the name Ryuui and brought him to Lechti Island. There he found room to work on both his pet projects and solve problems for his new employers. Immediately upon arriving on the island he set to work a plan to keep Ebirah at bay from incoming Red Bamboo ships. With the organization able to move freely again in the pacific, he was sent many times on intelligence gathering missions to mainland Japan, usually as the scientist Kashiwagi. This put him in position to weigh in when Rodan, Mothra, King Kong, Varan appeared. When the identity became too high-profile, he retired it to take the role of a Police Chief in order to report to Red Bamboo on Japan's security. This post put him right in the path of Ghidorah's destructive debut. In order to play these roles, Sarizawa received plastic surgery at the hands of Red Bamboo scientists and was fitted with a glass eye. The years of Kaiju attacks took its toll on Sarizawa. Eventually he returned to Lechti Island. Being “home” allowed him to remove the troublesome glass eye, but Red Bamboo had a different vision for the tortured scientist. They pressed him into their security service as a Guard Captain. Here's where things get weird. Well, weirder. If all of Hirata's characters are the same person then he has to have a daughter during this time. Due to the influx of Infant Islanders on Lechti Island, I submit that Sarizawa met one of these and began a forbidden romance. She became pregnant, whereupon he secured her release, or smuggled her to Japan. There she gave birth to a daughter and named her Katsura. I also think that it's highly convenient that Godzilla appears asleep on Lechti Island waiting for reanimation. This is my second theory: because Godzilla had provided a way out for Sarizawa in the past, he thought he could use the monster as an escape plan from the Red Bamboo. Because the compound of the yellow berries was similar to the red ones from Pharo Island, and because he was familiar with that case, Sarizawa concocted a serum that he somehow managed to administer to Godzilla and render him unconscious. From there, he would be able to use a radio-controlled Titanosaurus to deliver the sleeping Godzilla to a cave on Lechti Island, where Sarizawa could awaken him at will. Unfortunately for him, when the Yahlen sank of the coast of the island, the survivors awakened Godzilla ahead of schedule, leading to the destruction of the Red Bamboo base. Sarizawa made to escape with the leaders of his organization, but the Ebirah-repellant had been replaced with a non-functioning serum and the giant lobster destroyed their ship. A Red Bamboo submarine operating in the area picked them up and delivered the survivors to the mainland. Though a few survived, the organization had been destroyed and the remnants disbanded. By now Sarizawa was well-practiced in assuming identities and took the name Fujisaki, a scientist. He settled into his new life and, after his wife passed, began to raise his daughter on his own. However, when the UN created a team of oceanographers and meteorologists to study pacific weather patterns, he jumped at the chance to be close to Titanosaurus again. The group set up their experiment on Sollgel Island. Sarizawa volunteers to operate the radios, secretly searching for any sign of his dinosaur. In a story now as old as, I imagine, this theory, Godzilla soon intervened in the experiment and the ensuing chaos destroyed the research station. The survivors found themselves on a raft in the ocean with a submarine bearing down on them. Sarizawa recognized the conn tower as his compatriots in Red Bamboo, but when he got on board he found instead a cadre of Black Hole Planet 3 Aliens. The Aliens killed the others, but recognizing Sarizawa as the most brilliant and with the most experience with Godzilla, they spared him and provided him with a new life in Japan. As Dr. Miyajima. Sarizawa was supposed to be in their employ, but he found the methods of his new masters distasteful and purposely sabotaged their operations. Soon Godzilla destroyed Mechagodzilla, the Black Hole Planet 3 aliens were defeated, and Sarizawa sought to disappear into anonymity. He took his final identity, Dr. Shinzo Mafune. His full life had made him tired and distrusting. He stopped going into public and his resentment of the scientific community grew. He blamed them for the tumultuous events of his past. Unbeknownst to him, the Black Hole Planet 3 Aliens had returned and were monitoring him. When a tragic accident during one of his Titanosaurus experiments claimed the life of his daughter Katsura, the aliens saw their chance and swept in to save her life with advanced cybernetics. Indebted to them, Sarizawa now saw no alternative but to go along with their plans. Soon he began to warm to the idea of taking revenge on the scientific community. His plans however soon attracted the eye of INTERPOL agents. Saraizawa was fatally wounded in a firefight between the agents and the aliens, and died alongside his beloved daughter.