My First Day In Japan

Hello, my name is Ryan, the author of this blog. I have lived in Kobe, Japan for almost 10 years now. I remember the first time I ever came to Japan. I landed at Osaka International Airport on August 15th, 1999. The first thing I remember is how the humidity hit me like a ton of bricks. I was tired from the long flight from San Francisco, I didn’t know anything about Japan and the person who was supposed to pick me up at the airport was nowhere to be found. The humidity wore on me quickly and compounded my fatigue. I frantically called my penpal that I was coming to visit. She was running late.

For about the hour that I waited for her, I felt the most vulnerable I had ever felt in my life. Finally she came to save me from this new world that I didn’t know or understand. We then drove from Kansai International Airport into the heart of Osaka. I was amazed on the drive to the heart of Osaka how buildings were so tall and narrow and stacked right up against each other. There were flashing colored neon signs on top of buildings and hotels and what seemed like an endless sea of metropolis. I remember thinking, “This place looks a lot like Gotham City from the movie Batman.”

We finally got to my penpal’s house. It was a very tiny apartment with 3 tiny rooms and a tiny, narrow hallway connecting them (A few years later I realized that it was actually a pretty spacious apartment compared to most other apartments. Nothing will ever beat the super mini-sized apartment I had in Tokyo, which only had enough floor space to lay down a single sized futon, but I’ll save that story for another day).

 

One thing that struck me as unique was the sliding wooden door that separated the kitchen from one of the bedrooms. It looked very similar to the picture on the left. I guess it was when I saw this that I truley felt like I was in Japan. I have a shoji door in my current home as well. One thing, I will say, however, is that these doors are not so great for keeping in heat. That can be a disadvantage in the winter. The heat loss is not dramatic, but probably less than that of a Western style door. On the other hand, this can be a good attribute as well. In the summer, here in Japan, it is extremely hot and most houses don’t have central air conditioning. Most people use a unit air conditioner that only cools one room. The shoji door is great in the summer because it keeps your room cool instead of trapping in heat.

I will talk about day two of my adventure to Japan in my next blog entry. If anyone has any questions about Japan don’t hesitate to ask me!

 Contemporary Japanese Shoji Sliding Door Kit (single sided)

Technorati Profile

 

 

Technorati Tags: japan, shoji doors

Intoduction To The Art Form Of Japanese Lamps and Lanterns

Bonbori (雪洞)is the ancient Japanese art form of making wood and paper lanterns.  Japanese lamps were originally made with washi rice paper and lighted with candles or oil. With low wattage bulbs, Japanese Lamps emit a warm, soothing and gentle light and are used in a variety of settings from cultural ceremonies to artistic display to home decorating. 

Japanese lamps are hand-crafted using a variety of hardwoods and fine Asian papers.  Natural oils are used to enhance the color and grain of the wood.  Traditional Japanese and original contemporary styles are combined to create unique designs.  Japanese lamps express opposing forces as many kinds of oriental art do: simplicity with elegance; subtleness with daring; serenity with complexity; delicateness with stability.  Japanese lamps create soothing, meditative environments with their warm, soft and adjustable light diffused through delicate papers using nature’s simple shapes and complex patterns in the wood design.

The cover of a Japanese lamp may have some images etched into it that produce a stunning effect when the lamp is turned on. Suddenly your room is filled with the images of unknown animals and mysteriously beautiful figures. The Japanese have always known how to turn daily routine and dull surrounding into a magical world and their home decoration style is a proof of their unique skill.

 

Asian Design - 18″ Kharbarosk Japanese Style Wood & Rice Electric Lantern Oriental Lamp

Technorati Tags: Japanese lamps