after the first, second impression always is perfect one! -.-

When a foreign arrives in Japan, He always get general first impression about this country; Super High Tech and in the same time super traditional and conservative. After he settled his life here and become part of this society he can finally get the real Japan. In my case, my impression hadn't chance or better, I just proved and lived what my first impression said and also add many more characteristcs on it.

I was had the dream to come to live in Japan, live with japanese, learn with them, learn about them, observed their way of life, their cultures their believes, I don't know the reason of my fascination for its nation, but I always knew that here won't a commun european or american life or a muslin or african lifes, I knew I would find something new, something unesxpected, something different, something super advance...but not exaclay what. I was expecting the super tecnologic fashionable nation, with a huge history behind it as the background of the picture made inside my mind. I just don't prove everything I expected but I get to see how Japan are a nation thats "want to be" another thing. Its weird how this fascinated country are "kind of" not proud of what it is, always trying to become another nation, always adopting other's styles, other's culture, other's realigions; instead making their own and original stronger and prevalecent. In my view, Japan is a contradicted country. Almost everything they say they would to believe, is exaclay the opposite what you find around or you just find the "contra-shock", the opposities next to each other. Here people are afraid to show their real person inside their mind and body and many consequencies of this Oppression are visiable in here.
I can say, after life in many different countries and cultures as I lived, that expierence here was, if not the best one of the best, but I don't know if I would settle here to live the rest of my life, I will sure come back to visit or to live to but with duration already determinated. The things you learn here, you wouldn't learn anywhere also, but I think people here arent completely true and "health" I think we should extract this experience with the others with care and finds ourselfs the perfect place to match which of ourselfs and be what we real are.

Japanese are the real Politicians -.-

When you think about politics, the first thing that comes into your mind is government, right?! But Politics isn't just governmental issues, it is something much bigger, is something that you live with; you deal 24/7. Every Human being is a politician, but in differents ways...

In Japan, in my opnion, people are very politic, they need to be in one way or in another, to "survive" in their society. Japanese society are really stricted , racism, conservative, traditional and prejuce. The Japanese people can't be theimselfs for completely, they always need care about what their image in the society; They always need to measure their actions, control their emotions, their feelings, their desires, their look, their personalities so people wouldn't jugde them bad.

Here, people need to be politicians when they are in public, or with their friends or in their jobs, in their schools and also in their home and with their families. But why is this happens here?! For many reasons, but the cultural is the most strong factor of these happening. Their expectation from the other are to high and the presure are too big and also because the society here isn't that liberal as in other countries, the traditions here are really strong and still alive.

Sumo vs. Baseball

In Japan there are two big fascination; Sumo & Basaball. These are the two most famous sports around here. The interesting part of comparing them are the big contrast in their origins and their traditions.

In one hand, we have quite simply drawn, sumo pits two colossal men in a circular ring, the objective being to topple your opponent or expel him from the ring. What is the fascination with sumo? Understandably enough it's not the most approachable of sports; for one it is only practised professionally in Japan.Yet it is a tradition spanning back some 1,500 years; it's miraculous enough that such a niche sport is still practised with the same customary practices in the modern day. Everything from their hairstyle to their battle dressings, their communal training and feeding methods, these are men bred to the traditions of the past centuries in a highly industrialized country fit with all the conveniences of modern society. The simple fact of its survival and vibrance is cause for interest in itself.

It's true it takes some time for a bout to establish itself, and each bout can hardly last a few seconds to a minute, yet it's not the length of the contest that measures superiority, it's the craft.

Some people just find enjoyment in seeing abnormally large men colliding. If you're able to watch you can see the absolute joy of some spectators as their wrestlers labour their way to and from the ring.

Now in the other hand, Baseball is the most popular team sport in Japan, with high school, university, and professional games stirring the public and dominating the media during the spring and summer months.
Baseball was first played in Japan in 1873 at Kaisei Gakko, under the instruction of an American teacher, Horace Wilson. Around 1880 the first Japanese baseball team was organized at the Shimbashi Athletic Club, and several college teams were formed in Tokyo. During the period 1890 to 1902, a team from the First Higher School in Tokyo played and often defeated a team made up of American residents in Yokohama; the publicity for these games helped make baseball one of the most popular Western sports in Japan.

Watching a Japanese Baseball game is a completely unique expirience. Is fascinated how this passion in the japanese's heart had growth about this american sport. People cheering with their lifes, and it is even more interesting to noted how can a young sport, comparing with the sumo age, can had reach such a huge supporters in soo few time; and the most traditional sport in the country had lost soo many spectors long the years.

...Japanese Feminity desire...

The World can have passe for so many devolepment and revolution but, men still are in the command. The machism in the world is still prevalent; finding a woman in the comand, is almost impossible; the womens who are who has the power is countable in one hand, for example; how many women have you seem in the highest role in a company? in commanding a nation? or in the top job?
In the modern society, the men still are the leaders, even after a long journy of feminism revolution, fighting for their rights and their places in the society, they still are not equal with men.
Japan is still considerated a masculine society. I would compare it with the muslin society in same facts as, for example inside the families; In japan men is always the of the family, will not find as in america, in same case, that the woman is the front of the family, or also for example, the men are always the first to be served in the table, they always say the last word, or if are a woman and are travelling alone, many places, they don't accept you to stay there if are alone because it would be really not well seeing, those facts are similar with muslim traditions; but if you hear their reason (japanese and muslim) for it, its easy to understand their point, they kind of "want to protect their women", whose is more fragile than them, Many people would see it as an arrogant or ambition thought.
Although, it is really contractiory how the new generation are acting about this fact. The new generation may have change a little bit about the concept of masculinity. For the youngh male generation Feminity is more desirable trait among males in Japn than in most western countries. They are, kind of, looking for being more "feminine" as possible, its mean, for what they others society would be conciderated a female behavior, they don't see it like that, for example, vanity, kindness or sensuality. Also what in other western countries are still not well seeing here is already normal as metrosexuality

Why Japaneses belive in many different religions.. -.-

Japanese Horror Films is a great way to shows the japanese beliefs. They are the same and different at the same time. For starters both of them are related to their religion but the way both worlds portray horror is different because of again, religion. The Japanese’ interest in horror is probably linked to the two great religions in Japan which are Buddhism and Shintoism. Buddhism came to Japan around 500 AD by Korean scholars from China. Shintoism on the other hand is an original to the country. Because both religions are interrelated and have some similar beliefs, a lot of Japanese practice both. The main theme of Buddhism is the idea of rebirth and incarnation. As human beings, it is said that there is a never ending cycle of death and rebirth. Shintoism on the other hand, although it doesn’t focus much on life after death, it focuses on spirits and it is taught that any dead person can be prayed to which suggests that each person has a reikon or a soul that can be stuck among living things when that person doesn't die peacefully (e.g. filled with anger, resent or excess emotion). In other words, in Shintoism it is believed that spirits live with human beings. It was also said that in the creation myth of Shinto, there is such a thing called land of the dead or Yomi but with the adaptation of Buddhist teachings, it was combined with the idea of Buddhist’ multiple hells. What is the connection to Japanese horror then? The prevalence of spirits in Japanese horror shows its relation with the beliefs and culture of the Japanese. J-Horror is not there to explain such a complex religion. It is mostly to explain to people that the way the universe works is beyond human understanding.
Western films are linked with the idea of Monotheism. Most Westerners are Christians and so they all have a common understanding that the mortal enemy is the devil which have been often portrayed as a non human looking creature or a human creature but possesse.
Although the western films and the japanese films are really distinct in that point, Japanese beliefs still has lots of influences of Christianism.
To conclude, we can realize that japanese aren't really religious in comparation with other eastern nations; "their" main realigion is a mix of many different religions existent in this world, because of that fact is there the famous dictation " Born in the Shintoism, Married in the Christianism and die in the Buddhism ".

Globalization in Japan -.-

The world have changed completely after the globalization. But what is globalization? Well, we can define this word many different ways, the the most correctelly is that the acessibility of the information of everywhere from everywhere; or also the exchange of cultural habites and information around the world.
In one hand the globalization was a great happening, because now everyone can have acess to everything in this world. But in the other hand, people are giving up from their on cultural habits, traditions, changing their behaviors and their lifes to become something that they weren't born to live.
Japan is a great example of it. Japan has one of the gretest cultures and with really strong traditions and people here are giving it up to try to become people that they aren't. One good example of it is their obsession for american habits and life style. Their lifes are the whole time tring to become one of them, since they way they dress, their houses, the way they eat, where they hang out and theway they act until they way they look; everyday the facial plastics for oriental people are becoming more and more commum, changing they way the look to became more ocidental.
With the globalization we should had just improve and add knowledge and not gave up or forget our own traditions and belives as the way it is happening. It is such a pitty that something that was created for a good purpuse has such demaged consequencies like the way the globalization in many countries had.

.Photographer of Japan.

For West people, Japan is a really interesting place to photograph. First of all, because of the huge difference beteween their culture, belives, realigian, costums and way to live from ours.

Japan is a great nation which has a great history behind it like no other place and we still can find the effects and marks of this great history in here.

In my opnian the beuty here, isn't just the amazing architeture or the gorgeous landscapes or either the fantastic history; the beauty of japan is the diference between the other nations. The distiction, Japan is simply unique in all aspects.

As we can see from these phographers, is a fusion of the new and the old. They used the old pictures from differents places from Japan with some visual efects from nowdays. We also can see tradicional photos, from important people or we can realize that the photos are from another century by the aspects of the pictures, for example; clothes, architeture, poses, colors, atictivits etc..

Now in the other photos, from nowdays, we can watch the huge and amzing transformation and change. How and what the people became, and how is their lifes centuries later but still keeping the same costums and traditions; but we also can see how the east costums andthe fiction lifes influeced the new generations even though the strongh and straight traditions in here.



FONTS:
http://www.japanesestreets.com/photos/categories.php?cat_id=214
http://oldphotosjapan.com/en//?pg=4

Japanese POP

Japan can be considereted a style country. It's not a normal country that people just live normal and the people's style don't stand out like japanese people do.

Japan is a nation with many diffrents styles and life styles. Every day a new style is created in Japan, and all the japanese styles always influence other cultures and countries style too. Japan is a kind of referent point in many aspects.

One of the most famous and followed style by the japanese is the POP, there are a huge young folk who follow this POP style. They consider the pop more as a way of life. Every aspect of their daily life is influenced by japanese pop. The way they dress, what they eat, what they do in their space time, where they "hang out" and also how they talk.

This huge POP wave came because the influence of the popular media. The Media in Japan is the biggest influence way to people, for what they show the people and how they enfasase it too.

Every step you do in here you face with a sinal of a pop influence in here. Everything has a little detail of pop in it. It is so amazing to see how a young style can became a way of life and make some many people follow it soo intense as the way that japanese follow it.

Fonts:

http://japanpop.jp/english/index.html
en.citizendium.org
http://www.protoculture.ca/eZine/illos/0834803801.jpg
www.asian-central.com/.../14/2-purikura-photos/

Japanese People -.-

The world Are compose for many differents tribes of people. Which tribe have their own languange, their own aspect, their own culture, their own belives, their own laws and rules, their own life style. To diferenciete them from which other we nominated them in many diffrents ways, for example, by their looking, by their realigion or their continenties...

We can find every kind of people, from everywhere in the world, all the relligion, all nations and all these in a small group of islands called Japan. But the natives from these island are called japanese, but Japanese people have their own characters, their own languange, their own relligion, their own life style, their own culture, that many other nations copied from Japan. Life in Japan can be really easy if you follow all the rules. People here will be always helping you, always being really respectfull and polite, and really kind if you are mutual, otherwise it would be a really hard time, everyone here think highly for the well being of their population and envioriment, the preserve for their future, what in many others countries these facts do not happen.

Western model vs Old fashion lifestyle
Traditions trying to fit the western lifestyle
Non equal roles
Although the japanese people try hard to hold onto their culture, the young generation are beginning to deviate to a more western culture. You can see this with the popularity of McDonalds, and Japanese versions of western music. Clothing is also another good example, and this extends to all generations not just young. Japanese people have been wearing the western style of clothing for centuries, but you can still see Japanese people dressed in traditional kimono.
The family structure in Japan is also changing. Traditionally the Mother was very dominated, and did what the Father wanted. And there were no job opportunities for females. It is starting to change now so that females are becoming more equal to men. Though they have a long way to go.

The Shibuya Neighborhood - Tokyo

Neighborhood is the continuetion of every home. Which neighborhood has its own life, own style, own people. Neighborhood is a kind of a small city, that just goes fews streets around your home.

In many contries people lifes are just inside their neighborhoods, they do the grocery there, they work around there, their friends live all in the same area, their kids study in the school in the neighborhood. This often happens in metropolitan cities, because of the dificulty of transportation or because of the huge car traffic or also because of safety reasons, but almost always because it is much more convinient have your whole life set in just one place.

This week, I had the great opportunity to experience the real japanese neighborhood life style inside Tokyo city. The Shibuya area is one of the most alive and exciting areas of Tokyo and also the most famous one. But inside this "crazy" neighborhood are many japanese family lifes. As what can be noted,　the people there are weath family, almost all of those family lives in "big" houses, what is rare in tokyo area because is really expensive, and have importated cars in their garages. Another thing that we can noted is that many members of the same family live around each others, same neighbors other in the street above, and their childrens always go to the same schools, they are friends of their next door neighbor and they also know the post office man, thats is always the same guy that does the deliveries, people who live in that area, lived in the same area since their childhood.

Living in Shibuya residencial area, doesnt seens like you are living in Tokyo and neitheir that your are living in the known Shibuya crazy center. Life there is really quiet, peacefull, easy, because you have everything around there, and you can have a really heath life there.

- First Impression of Japan -

The first impression from a foreign place is never the real one. We always arrive somewhere with some expectations, sometimes better than it is sometimes worse, but we just know after experiencing that.

For instance a foreigner who just moved to an oriental place, the culture shock, probably will be bigger than if he had just moved from some place which the culture is more similar as his culture, but at the same time he already knows that would be bigger shock, and so he would be expecting more differences from his country, but anyway he is not free from, maybe, get the first impressions wrong. Japan is for sure, one of the most interesting countries in the whole planet. The most fascinating culture, with the uncomprehended language and with the most traditional costoms, with the highest technology, and has made the adaptation here be really amusing and at the same time really hard.

The japanese people are really contradictory. They are always thinking highly of their “body” health and their preservation, like the way they use face mask to protect them from the pollution or against other sickness. They never think about their mental health. Wherever you go, you can see all the Japanese connected and obsessed about their electronic machines, for example their cellphones. They are always so connected with the unreal world, the visual pollution twenty four hours per day; in the subways, in the waiting lines, in the restaurants, in the amusement parks, in their ceremonies and in their schools. How healthy can they be, being like that?

They are also really contradictory because when you see a really advanced place, with the highest technology in the world, and people still live in so many traditional, rigid and old fashioned customs it is a huge shock. When you catch in the streets geishas with their traditional clothes with their high technology cellphones or you find a typical shop of traditional Japanese products handmade, with the owner on the cashier in the middle of a big commercial center with lots of eletronics billabongs and visual advertisements.

When we have chosen to live in a country like Japan, with such different customs , there are no doubts that we are going to gain so much life expirience and apprenticeship that we are going to take for the rest of our lives but we also need to be open minded since the real beginning, we need to be brave and we need to be bold.