#takada
Drawn for Kenta’s birthday awhile ago! I was experimenting a bit more with my style, heh.
Companion piece to the one I did for Taehyun’s birthday!
Happy birthday, Kenta-chan!
#Happy_KENTA_Day #켄타야_생일축하해
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This is a candy store that is more than twice as old as the US. “Awa Ame” is made from a grain (awa)and sweetens naturally. Mr. Takahashi is the 14th generation proprietor of this shop once frequented by samurai and written up in classic literature. Mr. Takahashi has his shop dressed up for Hina Matsuri (doll festival) which is celebrated on March 3rd. #ame #takada #traditionalSweets #joetsu #japanesecandy #history (at 高橋孫左衛門商店)
https://www.instagram.com/p/BuL0Jg8D3SQ/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=kn8r811ceqc
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The other day I posted about the Goze Museum which is curated by Mr. Zenji Ogawa. His home and kimono shop are 3 doors from the museum, and a place worth visiting for the Machiya (townhouse)architecture as well as for the small Japanese trinkets (“Komono”) which he and his wife have on sale and on display in their beautiful home. Don’t think you’ll have to buy an entire kimono when you visit his store. Just last week some Australian visitors came down from the ski slopes to wander around Joetsu. When they arrived at Mr O’Hara’s shop, they were treated to a “trying on” of kimono, a bit of a cultural experience and photos to show friends. The small trinkets also make wonderful and appreciated gifts for those at home. Mr. Ogawa is a bit of a local historian, and is brushing up his English. Why don’t you stop by for a chat? #joetsu #takada #machiya #japaneseculture #kimono (at きものの小川)
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtLx1Ljjtj7/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=z2aeevqcx2o4
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Have you ever heard of “Goze?”(“go-zay“)
Long before tv or even before radio was common, this performers would travel through town and give singing performances accompanied by the 3-string shamisen. In those days, if a little girl was blind, she had basically 2 career options: to be a masseuse or to be a goze singer.
In Joetsu, groups of goze lived together in a house run by a strict house mother, who trained the women and took care of finances. In some cases, she took on the young girls and raised them for this kind of performing, traveling life. On the road, the goze would sing for rice and lodging. The last living goze house mother in Japan, Sugimoto Kikue, was proclaimed a living cultural artifact in 1970 before she passed away in 1989.
When you visit Joetsu, make sure to visit the Goze Museum, set in a traditional “Machiya”(literally “townhouse”) which is carefully curated by Mr. Ogawa, who is also preserving Japanese culture through the kimono store he runs in a similar traditional structure three doors away. Enjoy the art, dioramas, video and recorded music from this special time in Joetsu history. #joetsu #goze #takada #machiya #art #japan #japanesehistory #shamisen (at きものの小川)
https://www.instagram.com/p/BtGRh6AjpWX/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=1smucc4d2rk7k
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Merry Christmas everyone!
In keeping with the sake theme of last week, I’m posting new photos from another fine brewery in Joetsu. Musashino Brewery has a 100+ year history, now under new ownership. A bit of local history can be seen in the Rakusui-tei “clubhouse” where the founder used to drink sake and discuss brewing techniques with Kinichiro Sakaguchi, the famed microbiologist (and sometime poet).
The new owners are reviving some of the old brands of this classic brewer. Tours available!
#sake #musashino #history #takada #joetsu
https://www.instagram.com/p/Br01gBNjvQx/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=d5t4by5u2tfa
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