authorrachelleng2

ArtBar
アートバー

Went to the ArtBar studio in Daikanyama recently for a painting session on “Greek Islands: Santorini”! Painting themes change every session~ The philosophy of “Paint & Sip” is brought to Tokyo from New York and emphasizes having fun painting while sipping wine. Free flow wine, soft drinks, and snacks are included in the lesson fee! (Although you are allowed to bring your own wine as well, which is what I did~) I have not painted for a very long time since art class in school and was a little worried I wouldn’t be able to complete a full painting in 2 hours, but it turned out alright (or so I think – check out the photos)!

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Ohanami 2018: Kimono experience & Chidorigafuchi Boat お花見2018:
着物体験と千鳥ヶ淵のボート

Some of you might have heard of Japan’s ohanami (お花見, ‘flower viewing’) season before. Basically, hanami refers to the Japanese traditional custom of enjoying the transient beauty of flowers, primarily sakura (cherry blossoms). Unique to Japan, ‘hanami’ season is so much more than simply viewing flowers, it really becomes a huge, lively event for gatherings, outdoor parties, picnics, drinking, and marks the arrival of Spring. From the end of March to early May, cherry trees bloom all over Japan (except for the island of Okinawa, where they bloom in February). Hanami customs in modern Japan mainly involves going to a park for an outdoor picnic beneath the sakura trees during daytime or at night (called yozakura (夜桜, “night sakura”). As the blossoms only last a week or two, there is a certain beauty to taking a moment (or several days) to appreciate their transient beauty amidst a hectic schedule (usually, the peak of hanami takes place during the end of March to early April in Tokyo, which coincides exactly with the change of fiscal years in Japan).

お花見は、主に桜の花を鑑賞し、春の訪れを喜ぶ日本古来の風習ですね。その花は春の一時期にある地域で一斉に咲き競い、わずか2週間足らずで散るため、日本人の季節感を形成する重要な風物となっていますね。可憐な花の美しさが開花期間の短さ、散り際の潔さによりいっそう印象づけられ、しばしば人の命の儚さになぞらえると思います。そのためか古来より、桜は人を狂わせるといわれることもあるらしいですよね。

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Aoki Sake Brewery Tour
青木酒造酒蔵見学

Recently had the opportunity to attend an exclusive brewery tour at Aoki Sake Brewery (http://aokishuzou.co.jp/), a small Brewery in Ibaraki Prefecture about an hour away from Tokyo. Ms. Chisa Aoki, the 9th generation family member continuing the brewery business gave us the tour of the premises and brewery process. (FYI, the Japan Sake and Sochu Makers Association has a great step-by-step explanation of the basic sake brewing process.) It was fascinating to see the actual process from start with milling and steaming the rice to finish with bottling!

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International Space Exploration Forum (Part 2)
国際宇宙探査フォーラム

My previous post 「国際宇宙探査フォーラム International Space Exploration Forum (Part 1)」was on my experience as a Y-ISEF participant learning about the space industry and working with other talented young professionals to present our ideas in the Ideathon. In this post, I wish to share my experience as a Questioner for S-ISEF (ISEF for high school Students; http://s-isef.jpn.org/) and representing Singapore on the Y-ISEF Reception stage.

前のブログは「国際宇宙探査フォーラム International Space Exploration Forum (Part 1)」で、Y-ISEFの参加者としての経験について書きました。でも、私はISEFの色んなイベントの参加者であることに加えて、スピーカーや質問者としても関わっていました。Y-ISEFが終わった後、次世代を担う高校生を対象としたサイドイベント「S-ISEF」(ISEF for Students)にも「質問者」として誘っていただきました。

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International Space Exploration Forum (Part 1)
国際宇宙探査フォーラム

Last month, the 2nd International Space Exploration Forum (ISEF2) was held in Tokyo, sponsored by Japan’s Cabinet Office, MEXT, METI, and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). The event was a gathering of high-level governmental representatives to examine how space exploration expands the horizons of humanity and how it challenges us to gain and share the knowledge, experiences, and benefits as common assets for all humankind.

文部科学省及び国立研究開発法人宇宙航空研究開発機構(JAXA)は、2018年3月に東京都内で第2回国際宇宙探査フォーラム(ISEF2)を開催しました。国際宇宙探査フォーラム(ISEF)は、宇宙探査における国際協力の促進を目的とした閣僚級を含む政府レベルでの対話・意見交換の会議です。そして、私は次世代を担う若手を対象としたサイドイベント「Y-ISEF」(ISEF for Young Professionals)に誘われて、4日間のイベントに参加致しました。本サイドイベントでは、国内外の18歳以上から35歳程度までの学生や多様な分野で活躍するヤングプロフェッショナル約80名を幅広く募り、世界をリードする起業家や各国の政策決定者等と今後の宇宙探査について議論し交流する場を提供しました。

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Saturday Outing in Tokyo
東京の土曜日の行楽

Do you like concerts? Since young, I have often attended music concerts from philharmonic and opera to contemporary and jazz, and still very much appreciate being in a concert hall surrounded by music… I was surprised to learn that Tokyo actually has many concerts for reasonable/free tickets! Was invited to a Two Piano Concert in Bunkyo-Ku the other day; it was a beautiful performance (click here to watch a video).

皆様、コンサートに行かれますか?私はコンサートが大好きですよ。特に、フィルハーモニーやオペラやジャズが好きです。子供の頃からよく音楽を聴きましたので、今までもそれが好きです。

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