行って来ます。[I Will Go and Come Back]

Changing Impressions...

Sun, 22 Jan 2012 05:01:40 -0500

As you note, I like to think our photography improves with experience and research. You have had a lot of great photos in the blog - I like the layout in the last post a lot.

Thank you for your efforts this semester.

Changing Impressions of Japan My impressions of Japan, upon...

Sat, 10 Dec 2011 00:33:00 -0500

Changing Impressions of Japan

My impressions of Japan, upon first arriving here, were mostly that of culture shock. I concentrated on the differences I was experiencing, both consciously and subconsciously; and I do admit, it caused me a great deal of stress for the first month I was here. I can’t say what differences exactly were causing me stress, but before coming to Japan, the most of non-Western culture I had experienced was the various China towns I had ever been to; and the one time I traveled to Hawaii in high school and discovered that Hawaii is a popular vacationing spot for Japanese people. But I digress.

Looking back through the photographs I took when I first arrived here, I noticed that I was taking a great deal of photographs of things that seemed strange, or something I had never previously encountered. I don’t believe they are bad photographs, but there is a markable difference in my photography when my focus shifted from the seemingly strange to things that instead interested me artistically and visually. My environment was no longer unfamiliar; I began to familiarize myself with the things I saw daily by examining them, rather than simply thinking, “Well that’s weird.”

The photographs I chose to include in this post are all photographs that I believe exemplify the paradigm shift I experienced; how my photography became much more reflexive than reactive. I also included several photographs of the 紅葉 (kouyou) [leaves changing color] that we all here in Japan recently experienced. The varying colors of the leaves is a very tangible sign of change.

I came into this class thinking that Japan is an interesting country with interesting people and an interesting history—and I still do think the same thing—so I don’t believe it is necessarily my thoughts about Japan that have changed, but certainly the way I view Japanese geography, society, and history has shifted. I am no longer on the outside looking in, I have first hand experience and have been participating in Japanese society for a few months now. I don’t believe I will ever truly have an “insider’s” view (being 外人 (gaijin) [a foreigner] and all), but I feel confident approaching situations and people now with my questions. I have made my every-day life an Anthropological study. After all, we are all Anthropologists and Sociologists, whether we are aware of this fact or not.

Tatami vital for proper futon sleeping...

Fri, 09 Dec 2011 22:12:53 -0500

Yes, I am glad you added the tatami bit at the end because that really makes all the difference. I don’t really see Japanese people sleeping on a futon on a solid floor.

Futon If you come to Japan, there’s a very good chance...

Sun, 04 Dec 2011 00:37:00 -0500

Futon

If you come to Japan, there’s a very good chance you will be sleeping on a futon during some point of your stay. As for the exact origins and invention of the “Japanese futon,” no one can really say; all of the brief histories given on futons I’ve read just claim that they are synonymous with traditional Japanese-style housing and tatami. Also, similar sort of bedding—cotton or wool mattresses placed on either the floor or on a platform—have been used by civilizations at least as old as the Babylonians (around 1700 BC). So basically, futons are really really old, and the original idea for them may not have even come from Japan at all; but the Japanese have certainly perfected the idea.

Most Westerners are of the opinion of: “Well isn’t sleeping on the floor bad for your back?” Not necessarily. Many people claim that having a firmer surface will help straighten out your spine. Whether this is actually true or not is up for speculation. A CBS News report posted a few years ago discusses the results of a study that related back pain to mattress firmness. The study’s results claim that people with back pain preferred softer mattresses since they created lower pressure points along the spine. It also briefly mentioned that people who place boards under their mattresses claim it reduces their mobility when they sleep, there-by causing their backs less physical stress due to movement. It sounds to me like all of this “which is better for you” business boils down to simple personal preference; and tons of sites and blogs debating this point just further reinforces my conviction. If you like firmer mattresses, you will probably enjoy futons. If you like sleeping on a cloud, you may not enjoy them as much.

I have noticed (by being a nosy snoop), that my host father and host mother both sleep on the ground on a futon; my host brother and sisters, however, sleep on platform beds. When I asked them what sort of beds they prefer, my host father and mother both replied that they prefer the traditional sort of futon, and claimed that it was better for their backs. The younger members of my host family said that both western style beds and futon were fine, and they did not really have a preference. The reason why they use platform beds is mostly because their rooms do not have tatami flooring.

I personally find futons to be just as comfortable as the western style beds here in Japan, if only because the mattresses are not nearly as plush as the pillow top mattress I had become so accustomed to back in the States. I fall under the category of people who prefer sleeping on a cloud, rather than a board, but after about one week of living in Japan, I got used to the firmer sleeping conditions.

As for the pictures I used, I wanted to just give examples of the sort of equipment necessary for futon living, as opposed to using beds. Tatami floors are essential to sleeping on futon if, like me, you prefer softer surfaces to sleep on. If you have tatami floors in your house (dorm, apartment, etc.), you will also need to use socks or bare feet on the tatami surface only, usually removing any slippers you’re wearing before stepping on to the tatami since they are more fragile than carpet or hard wood.

Link Storm

History of Beds:

http://www.platformbeds.com/history_of_beds.html

Temple Slug - Brief History of Futons:

http://www.templeslug.com/futon_history.html

CBS News Report:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2003/11/24/earlyshow/contributors/emilysenay/main585193.shtml

Ask.metafilter, Pros and Cons of…:

http://ask.metafilter.com/43802/What-are-the-pros-and-cons-of-sleeping-on-the-floor

Answers.yahoo, Sleeping on the Floor…:

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070724100118AAwjG7z

Liberta.co.za:

http://liberta.co.za/blog/benefits-of-sleeping-on-the-floor/

AE Chiropractors: Sleeping on the floor…:

http://en.allexperts.com/q/Chiropractors-965/2008/1/Sleeping-floor.htm

Love Hotels ;D This is always a fun one to explain to visiting...

Tue, 29 Nov 2011 00:48:00 -0500

Love Hotels ;D

This is always a fun one to explain to visiting parents of international students in Japan. If the words Love, Chapel, Leisure, Theme or Boutique is in the name or description of the hotel, you may be staying at a love hotel. Even if it isn’t immediately apparent in the name, the gaudy signs will usually give it away. If you can’t read the signs, take a look at some of the decor on or around the building. For a good example, check out the pelican statue, water fall, and over-the-top decor of the hotel in the photos above.

So what is a love hotel exactly?

A love hotel is a hotel where people (usually couples) can rent a room for varying lengths of time: from minutes to entire overnight stays. Love hotels are primarily in the business of privacy. Whatever you decide to do with your rented privacy is, of course, up to you, but I’m sure you can guess what sort of activities most people choose to engage in.

The origin of the love hotel dates back to the Edo Period; in Edo (Tokyo) and Kyoto tea houses—essentially brothels—would use the guise of an inn to mask the true nature of the activities taking place within the establishment’s walls. Secret tunnels or procedures for a discrete entrance and exit from the building were also a part of the service provided for the patrons. These features still exist in most, if not all, modern love hotels. The customers enter from either an underground or covered parking lot, and the entryway is designed so patrons entering or leaving usually never see each other.

Love hotels aren’t a unique Japanese invention, however. The need for privacy is a big issue in most East Asian countries where over-population mixed with housing shortages is common, so these sort of love hotels can also be found in South Korea, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, and Hong Kong. Owning a love hotel is also very profitable. In Japan, the love hotel industry netted a yearly profit nearly four times greater than that of Toyota Motors; estimated at about 4 trillion yen.

As I stated before, the way in which you decide to use the space is completely up to you, and some people have even stayed in them for long periods of time (I’m assuming they had no other options or didn’t know the difference between a love hotel and a regular hotel when booking the room). One man was quoted when asked why he used love hotels that, “I go to love hotels when I’m drunk and don’t feel like going home.” Surprisingly (or perhaps unsurprisingly since they aren’t brothels any more), love hotels’ prices are about the same as a normal hotel in Japan. The only real difference is the over-the-top decor and the mysterious lack of visible hotel personnel. So, be it that you and another person are looking for a nice place to have a good time, or actually need a comfortable place to sleep, a love hotel is a viable option.

If you would rather not touch one of these places with a 10-foot poll, consider yourself educated.

Link Storm

Love Hotel Signs:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jsteph/3612710603/

South Korea Love Hotel:

http://www.panoramio.com/photo/13193594

The Japan Times:

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/fb20070826dr.html

My Months in a Love Hotel:

http://www.stripes.com/military-life/my-months-in-a-love-hotel-1.63008

CNN - Love Hotels:

http://articles.cnn.com/2009-07-02/world/japan.love.hotels_1_love-hotels-rooms-private-sauna?_s=PM:WORLD

Cat:

http://icanhascheezburger.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/funny-pictures-cat-has-dictionary.jpg

O HAI LAWL

Sat, 26 Nov 2011 03:06:42 -0500

O HAI LAWL

O-haka post

Mon, 14 Nov 2011 03:52:12 -0500

A great subject explored from interesting angles with lots of helpful links. I really like the first photo.

お墓（O-Haka): Perhaps I’m just a bit more morbid than most...

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 09:03:00 -0500

お墓（O-Haka):

Perhaps I’m just a bit more morbid than most folks, but whenever visiting another country, I always make it a point to visit at least one gravesite. O-Haka, if you haven’t guessed or didn’t already know, is the word for gravesite, or tomb.

Most modern cultures have a some means to memorialize their dead along with an assigned cultural meaning, but the way in which this develops and from thence be handed down to the present varies from culture to culture.

Japan has a long history of memorializing its dead, even before Buddhism was introduced to the country in the 6th century. Before this time, during the Tomb Period (Kofun Period) of Japan’s early history, after the death of important leaders giant key-shaped tombs—or Kofun—were erected. The most famous of all of these is Daisenryo Kofun, said to be the tomb of Emperor Nintoku. In addition to these giant tombs the people of this period constructed small cylindrical statues called Haniwa that are speculated to have been used as grave markers (often in the shape of people, animals, houses, and also simple abstract forms). Markedly, ancestors have been and still are a very important part of Japanese religious culture.

With the introduction of Buddhism to Japan, the tradition of stone masonry and the statuary of Buddhist deities was also adopted. I won’t detail the entire history of Buddhist monument making and grave marking because that would take me days, but if you would like to read more about it, this man has been devoting his life to researching and categorizing just about every manner of Japanese statue; and this section of his site is about grave markers specifically. The tradition of marking the gravesite of a family member with a stone marker in Japan is consequentially an interesting mash-up of Buddhism and Shintoism; much like many of the religious rites and practices in modern Japan. Since ancestors are considered to be “deities” in Shintoism, and typically in Buddhism deities are memorialized with a stone image, it’s only natural that the grave markers here in Japan (funerals typically being associated with Buddhism) are made out of carved stone.

Where you can find these gravesites?

-Everywhere, but the big ones (and old ones) are often located near a Buddhist temple. I found one in my neighborhood once…but I’m pretty sure there aren’t any temples around here.

Where is this particular gravesite that’s pictured?

This giant gravesite is in Kyoto near Kiyomizudera. If you want to get to it, you have to stray off of the giant tourist road that leads up to the temple and take a side street instead. It’s a small foot path off of the south-western side of the temple grounds.

Is it okay to photograph them?

I have been told (jokingly…I hope) that I can be haunted by taking pictures of graves. I was with a couple young Japanese people at the time I was taking these photographs, and they saw nothing wrong with me snapping a few photos. I’m guessing then, as with everything, if respectfully done (i.e. not in the middle of a funeral with the person’s loved ones gathered around), it isn’t frowned upon to photograph graves. I remembered to politely bow and thank the ghost for letting me disturb him/her. Perhaps the older generation would have something else to say on this subject matter, but there were no elders around for me to ask about this at the time. I did find an interesting discussion posted on Flickr regarding this subject matter if you have further interest: here.

I recommend seeing some of these giant and old grave sites at least once. They’re very impressive. In regards to the photographs themselves, I really just wanted to capture that ancient air they seem to evoke so well.

Link Storm:

Japanese Buddhism Timeline

http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/history/jap_timeline.htm

Kofun Period History

http://www.t-net.ne.jp/~keally/kofun.html

Kofun Picture

http://www.ocada.jp/tokyo/maruyama/hashihaka.jpg

Nintoku’s Tomb

http://www.osaka-info.jp/en/search/detail/sightseeing_897.html

Haniwa

http://www.britishmuseum.org/explore/highlights/highlight_objects/asia/h/haniwa.aspx

Haniwa Horse

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2010/06/haniwa-horse-may-become-a-new-icon-of-lacmas-japanese-art-collection.html

GODS of Japan

http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/buddhism.shtml

Grave Markers

http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/5-elements-pagoda-gravestone.html

Kiyomizu-dera Information

http://www.kiyomizudera.or.jp/

Ethics of Grave Photography

http://www.flickr.com/groups/gtc/discuss/72157606209247884/

@tofukuji post

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 06:54:33 -0500

Fixed the title issue, and I can’t really fix the formatting of the pictures, you have to click on them to view them in full (they look better that way anyway)

Tofukuji Post

Tue, 08 Nov 2011 06:49:47 -0500

Nice, informative post. I like the links you provide.

Somehow the post title and part of the first photo are cut off. Can you fix this?

Tofukuji Station: The Tofukuji (東福寺) train station on the Keihan...

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 01:11:00 -0400

Tofukuji Station:

The Tofukuji (東福寺) train station on the Keihan line is located in Kyoto. There are two separate platforms in the station, one servicing the Keihan line that runs between Osaka and Kyoto, and the Kyoto Line of the Kintetsu Corporation.

The station is named after Tofuku-ji (with the same spelling in kanji), a Buddhist temple located about 750 meters (about 1/2 mile) from the train station. It is considered to be one of Kyoto’s 5 great Zen temples. Tofuku-ji was built in 1236 during the Kamakura period under Zen Buddhism’s Rinzai sect, the dominant form of Buddhism at the time (strongly associated with the samurai). For more of Tofuku-ji’s history and pretty pictures of the temple’s Zen gardens, click here.

Tofuku-ji is not the only temple located close to the Tofukuji train station; there are 5 other well known temples near-by as well: Hossho-ji, Funda-in (Sesshu-ji), Sokujo-in, Imakumanokannon-ji, and Sennyu-ji.

When I asked people at the station about the station’s significance, most of them looked at me like I was blind or stupid and then pointed to the sign and map denoting the locations of the temples. To a local, it would only make sense that my interest should lie in the tourist attractions of the area, being a foriegner and all. And this does, in fact, speak volumes about the significance of this particular station. Tourism garners a lot of revenue for a community, (sometimes) to the chagrin of the local residents. Kyoto is a tourist destination, and tourism—domestic as well as international—does indeed make up a large part of its economy. During my time at the station I saw bunches of foreigners getting on and off the trains, snapping photos all the while (myself included). Naturally, then, it would make sense for the Keihan corporation to create a station near a large tourist hot-spot in order to garner a profit not only for themselves, but the community.

I included these photos in particular because I find them the most appealing visually. I also tried to view the station in a way perhaps a tourist would not typically view it; I spent a lot of time examining the details of the station and observing the inteactions of light.

Linkstorm:

Keihan Homepage

http://www.keihan.co.jp/

Kintetsu Homepage

http://www.kintetsu.co.jp/

Rinzai

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rinzai_school

Tofuku-ji Info Page

http://www.tofukuji.jp/english.html

Tourism

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1145/is_n9_v31/ai_18738551/

Kyoto Tourism

http://www.japannewsreview.com/society/kansai/20070706page_id=398

Interactive Light Art

http://www.wired.com/video/interactive-art-playing-with-light/45545612001

Comments?

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 00:04:44 -0400

How do I go about leaving a comment for a specific post?

And please change the default language to English.

Asaka’s Portraiture: This is Asaka Kamaya, and I have...

Thu, 13 Oct 2011 08:40:00 -0400

Asaka’s Portraiture:

This is Asaka Kamaya, and I have actually known her for quite some time. I first met Asaka when I was 19 in the United States. I was living in apartments (much like Seminar House 3 here at Kansai Gaidai) that were owned by the University of Colorado, so international students would often be housed there. My previous roommate had moved out mid-year due to some interesting circumstances involving rabbits and one of my other roommates. Since my room had a vacancy, when the exchange students from Kansai arrived in February, I was paired to live with Asaka. It was the most pleasant surprise of my life. I don’t think the staff at Bear Creek (the name of the apartments) even knew I was studying Japanese.

Enough about me.

Asaka is a senior at Kansai Gaidai majoring in English, and is currently studying French. She’s originally from Hiroshima, but at the moment is renting a small apartment near Hirakata-eki. French is actually the only class she is taking this semester because she, like all of the seniors at universities, has started the long arduous task of job hunting. Boo. Super boo.

In regards to the photographs I used to depict Asaka, I decided to use snapshots of her from times we were hanging out rather than a stilted “portrait photograph.” Asaka is not a boring person, she’s always laughing and smiling about something, and is always very interested in what is going on around her. And she loves food. Any time I see her she tells me how much she misses American fast food.

I included the third photograph (taken at a purikura booth) to tie into the issue of women’s body image, what the camera’s role has played in the creation of the modern “standard of female beauty,” and the differences and similarities of this standard in Japan and the United States. After all, purikura operates as an automated photoshop in order to create an ideal version of the user (or at least, the ideal version according to current Japanese teenage trends). How has this tiny box full of lenses and light, the camera, shaped the way we (women) view ourselves?

There is one immense figure-head (recently passed) of modern photography that could be blamed for the view of: thin is in; his name was Cecil Beaton. If you don’t have the patience to read that hefty article, the writers of Cracked.com sum up his contribution to body image succinctly. He was the originator of doctoring celebrity’s photographs in order to make them appear more than human, erasing their flaws and granting them beauty beyond what make-up and creative posing could achieve. More importantly, in the past half of a century the ideal of a woman has shrunk from a size 8-10 (there is some speculation about Marilyn Monroe’s actual dress size) to a size 0-2. I realize that many factors have contributed to this gap in beauty standards; however, there is no denying the crucial role commercial photography played in this.

This issue is important to consider when photographing any woman, and often times, taking a “portrait photograph” may give an even falser sense of the person if they aren’t comfortable in their own skin. Camera-shy, I believe is the term.

American women, I have noticed, are more camera-shy than Japanese women. Why is this?

According to the Washington Post, the reason is cultural in origin. Women in the United States are getting fatter on average, as compared to Japanese women who are becoming thinner. In Japan there is much more pressure from peers and importance placed upon fitting in and staying healthy. In the United States this sort of support system is absent, and instead, children and adults alike, are usually given the message, “Be an individual! This is the land of freedom! Eat whatever you like!” But then are given the opposite message of this. I suppose the freedom to be heavy is, indeed, a personal choice and a luxury in America, but at what cost? The Japanese cultural method of pressure also has it’s flaws (such as the old woman saying she’s too fat at a BMI of 19.5), but at least she didn’t keel over from clogged arteries at 30.

As always, I believe the answer lies somewhere in the middle. In the mean time, however, I thought this was an interesting and important issue to address. Hopefully I stayed enough on topic for this to make sense with the theme of “Portrait of a Japanese Person.” Are we not, in addition to our own characteristics, products of our cultural heritage? Sometimes as a photographer I forget from what walk of life the people on the other side of the lens are coming from, and focus on the immediate and tangible facts instead. A little bit of empathy, and anthropology, can go a long way.

Links:

Media Awareness Network: Beauty and Body Image

http://www.media-awareness.ca/english/issues/stereotyping/women_and_girls/women_beauty.cfm

Scotsman.com: Cecil Beaton

http://www.scotsman.com/news/celebrity_photographer_cecil_beaton_was_the_first_celebrity_snapper_30_years_after_his_death_he_continues_to_influence_fasion_photography_1_473341

Cracked.com: 5 People Who Screwed Things Up For Everybody

http://www.cracked.com/article_19432_5-people-who-screwed-things-up-everybody_p2.html

Popsugar: The Lovely Marilyn

http://the-lovely-marilyn-monroe.popsugar.com/What-Marilyns-REAL-size-Models-today-VS-Marilyn-Monroe-144140

Washington Post

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/03/04/AR2010030401436_2.html?sid=ST2010030700348

Flikr.com: Swimsuit Bikini Model Goddess

http://www.flickr.com/photos/herosjourneymythology45surf/5247524932/

Neighborhood Kuzuha: The first question I am always asked when I...

Fri, 30 Sep 2011 09:45:00 -0400

Neighborhood Kuzuha:

The first question I am always asked when I tell Japanese people where my host family lives is: “Have you been to the Kuzuha Mall???” To which I reply: “They have amazing crepes, *smiley face* :D” Not only is the shopping mall my 13 year old self’s (I believe it’s 4 or 5 floors tall) wet dream [shopping is my sport], but much of Kuzuha is a consumerist bonanza. Along the main roads and around the mall there are at least 5 book/video stores (that I know of), just about any sort of restaurant you could think of, a Babies ‘R Us, Pachinko Parlors, bike shops (local and chain stores), thrift shops, furniture stores, giant grocer’s chains, and things I’m sure I haven’t even discovered yet.

In regards to the photos, I really enjoy taking pictures at night, especially in a place like Kuzuha where the city lights are dazzling. The 2nd and 3rd pictures I took up near a graveyard that overlooks “downtown” Kuzuha in the residential area. It took me nearly an hour to find a spot where the view was clear and not blocked by massive houses. The 4th picture is a street shot of the tall building on the right in photo #3.

Kuzuha isn’t all giant buildings and flashing lights, though; it’s just the first thing anyone notices about the neighborhood. As I mentioned before, there’s a residential area with big houses, schools, lots and lots of hills, and small shops. Just a few blocks away from the busy main streets there’s a woman who teaches piano lessons out of her house, hand-painted signs from the elementary school’s PTA, and a small tobacco shop.

I have noticed this dichotomy between the urban and the suburban existing side by side not just in Kuzuha, but all over the Osaka region. Perhaps to me, as an American, the line between suburbia and urban areas has always been a clear distinction, so my taking notice of this blending is more strange than the blending itself actually is. Yuppies aren’t the only people living in suburbs here…considering that most of Japan is just a gimantic (yes, I made that word up) suburb.

My conclusion: I like living in Kuzuha. It’s entertaining, but peaceful.

Links:

Chicagonow.com:

http://www.chicagonow.com/high-gloss-and-sauce/2011/04/shopping-is-a-sport-like-professional-boozing/

Derp.memebase.com:

http://derp.memebase.com/2011/02/04/hurr-durr-derp-face-i-haz-a-pacifihurr/

Youtube.com:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItX8M55-65g&feature=fvst

Cracked.com:

http://www.cracked.com/funny-8076-yuppies/

Early Impressions of Japan: (Please, click on the photos to view...

Wed, 14 Sep 2011 09:42:00 -0400

Early Impressions of Japan:

(Please, click on the photos to view them in full)

One of the very first things I observed upon my arrival in Japan is its distinct blending of old and new. In America, there isn’t an equivalent—the country being so young by world standards. In Japan, buildings hundred of years old and newly fabricated complexes coincide, like complimentary colors. America certainly has “old” parts of towns, however none (or very few) of those old buildings are distinctly American in style. The architecture is borrowed from other great architectural movements started in other countries.

This photo is one of my favorite photos that I took within the first few days of my arrival in Japan. I was thinking to myself, “If only those power lines and industrial looking buildings and that car next to the house weren’t in the picture…” Upon further consideration, though, I quite like this picture. It captures that interesting, and yet distinctly Japanese, mix of old and new. A traditional Japanese house seemingly floating in a green field of rice is undaunted by the industrial and technological invasions in the second millennia. A habit of keeping tradition along with a passionate obsession for the future (such as robots and space-time travel) is markably one of my first impressions of Japan.

I chose the second photo simply because of its oddness. I have found many unexplainable things here in Japan so far, and that seems to be just another part of daily life here. The odd and strange (or what may seem odd and strange to a foreigner) is more common. I suppose what I mean is, peculiarity is an appreciated trait in a land known for its homogeneity. Although there is great diversity within the American people, much of its population strives to “fit in” and “find their place in the American dream.” In Japan, however, things that stand out aren’t shunned or ignored, but rather displayed and discussed. Why was there a horse in the middle of the train station? I honestly have no idea, but I like that there was no explainable reason (that I knew of).

Links:

Tudor Architecture Informational Site:

http://www.the-tudors.org.uk/tudor-architecture.htm

Tea Ceremony Video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7tt7NBIVeMY&feature=related

Japanese Nurse Robot:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7tYwnqot6M

Voices of a Distant Star Clip:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8U8EXQgNYRg

Brain Pickings:

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2011/07/06/fuzz-and-fur-japanese-mascots/

American Dream Picture:

Taken from a blog discussing the American Dream and immigrants

http://definitelyfilipino.com/blog/2011/04/21/how-badly-do-you-want-%E2%80%9Cthe-american-dream%E2%80%9D/