Category Archives: The YomoYama

Checking In: Tohoku Earthquake and Tsunami

 A father and child walk through an area damaged by earthquakes in Sendai. Picture: AP Photo/Kyodo News. “When love is deep, much can be accomplished.” -Shinichi Suzuki We here at Yomoyama are hoping that you are all safe and … Continue reading

Posted in 8. Spring 2011, The YomoYama | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Special Spring Feature: Love in Japan!

Screw Valentine’s Day: everyone knows that spring is the real season of love. We are dedicating a special feature section of the upcoming Spring 2011 issue to love and heartbreak in Japan. Nagano’s dating scene can be tricky for foreigners, and we’d like to hear your stories. Continue reading

Posted in 8. Spring 2011 | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Yomoyama: Winter 2011

Dear Readers, Welcome to the winter issue of The Yomoyama! Herein lies a veritable manifesto of winter living in central Japan. Whether you want to hit the slopes or hibernate under the kotatsu,  there’s something in this issue to help … Continue reading

Posted in 7. Winter 2011, The YomoYama | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Yomoyama Magazine: Fall 2010

Please enjoy the fall 2010 edition of Yomoyama magazine online, chalk full of tips for surviving and thriving in the Nagano fall, alongside creative works that will get you basking in the beauty of the season. We’re incredibly proud of the product that has been produced, and are confident that you’ll enjoy the read. Continue reading

Posted in 6. Fall 2010, The YomoYama | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Fukuro Chan: Eco Manga and New Directions in Enviornmentalism

by Whitney Conti In 2008, Mastumoto based artist Charlie Ward drew an upside down plastic bag with the simple idea that, “if you find rabbits cute, you might feel bad eating one.” He named the wide-eyed plastic bag Fukuro chan … Continue reading

Posted in 4 Smell. April. May. 2010, Manga and Anime, Politics, Pop Culture | Leave a comment

Dave Carlson on making the Matsumoto Based Japan-o-files podcast

I was really excited when I heard that YoMoYaMa Magazine would be doing an issue devoted entirely to SOUND. Yes! All my life I’ve been fascinated with sound. I remember how, as a little kid, I used to love putting … Continue reading

Posted in 5 Sound. JuneJuly. 2010, Arts and Culture, Reflections, The YomoYama | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Nagano Summer Music Festivals

photos and write-ups by Whitney Conti Ueda Joint August 6,7,8: Ueda Castle, Ueda Sandwiched between the Ueda city outdoor skate park and Ueda Castles’ high stone walls, Ueda Joint combines earthtones with skateboards and psychedelic jazz with jam band rock. … Continue reading

Posted in 5 Sound. JuneJuly. 2010, Hakuba, Iiyama, Japan Travel, Kiso, Nagano, Places, Ueda | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Young Love for the New and Old of Japanese Enka Music

It is hard to trace where my love for Japanese Enka first began. I can say that I grew up listening to it my whole life. My early childhood was spent living in Taiwan where Enka at the time was … Continue reading

Posted in 5 Sound. JuneJuly. 2010, Enka Music, Music Japan | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Summer Poetry: “Unfolding” by Justin K. Ellis

Hot summer comes now Like the night after the day Following warm spring. The trees swell with green And pile on the mountains Like the pregnant clouds That swim like fish the streams Of the wide and seamless sky. Soon … Continue reading

Posted in 5 Sound. JuneJuly. 2010, Arts and Culture, Literature, The YomoYama | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Nagano’s Music Scene: Interview with Aya Hasegawa

It’s a Saturday night at Nagano City’s India Live the Sky.  The music between bands stops, and from behind the fog on stage steps a guitar-and-recorder welding 24-year old singer-songwriter named Aya Hasegawa.  Flanked by her lead guitarist, Shingo “Waku” … Continue reading

Posted in 5 Sound. JuneJuly. 2010, Local Musician Features, Music, Music Japan, The YomoYama | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Spring Cleaning Guide for Homemade Natural Products

by Erika Pyle You make sure to recycle your garbage into thirteen different categories every day. Paper towels are not allowed in your home anymore and the thought of driving to the convini four blocks away makes you ill. You … Continue reading

Posted in 4 Smell. April. May. 2010, Arts and Culture, Do it Yourself, Living Local, Sustainability, The YomoYama | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

All Natural Edible Body Wax Recipe:

DYI コーナー by Erin King Does Japan leave you feeling like a huge hairy beast? Body hair got you down? Have no fear, DIY advice is here! Continue reading to discover how you can remove the “hair” from your J-insecurities! … Continue reading

Posted in 4 Smell. April. May. 2010, Do it Yourself, The YomoYama | Leave a comment

The Sixth Scent: How Scents Evoke Memories

by Lauren Koors While walking home from school a few weeks ago, I stopped on a bridge to admire the view. Being a believer in the motto “stop and smell the roses,” the beautiful colors enveloping Mount Asama in the dwindling sunlight … Continue reading

Posted in 4 Smell. April. May. 2010, Reflections, The YomoYama | Leave a comment

Your Olfactory’s Dream Dessert

by Karen Ricks Many years ago, I stumbled across an amazing series of recipes that used herbs and flowers to add an unexpected twist of fragrance and flavor to a variety of desserts.  The site caught my attention, and I … Continue reading

Posted in 4 Smell. April. May. 2010, Arts and Culture, Recipes, The YomoYama | Leave a comment

A Brazilian Portrait of Life in Japan

All the Colors of My Japan by Nixon Ribeiro My Japan has always been marked by different colors: while they are most often colorful, sometimes they are gray and without much joy. But I like Japan and I feel good … Continue reading

Posted in 4 Smell. April. May. 2010, Arts and Culture, Living Local, Reflections, The YomoYama | Leave a comment

U.S. for Okinawa Report

From April 1st to April 4th US for OKINAWA, a Tokyo-based peace action network, organized a study program to Okinawa’s main island. The goal was simple: to experience what is really happening in regards to the U.S. military’s Futenma Air … Continue reading

Posted in 4 Smell. April. May. 2010, News, Okinawa, Politics, The YomoYama | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Tokyo’s Cat Cafes

Cattery Will Get You Nowhere by Michael Richey When some friends asked me and my wife if we wanted to go to a cat cafe, I did as I should have and shrugged a “Sure,” as my wife jumped up … Continue reading

Posted in 4 Smell. April. May. 2010, The YomoYama, Tokyo | Tagged | 3 Comments

The Pets and Posers of Urbanism

Pets are wonderful things. There is certain innocence about pets; they are like children, yet slightly more responsible.  They possess an honesty that human beings lose as we allow life to damage us into an affected fortress of “sophistication”. Humans … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Op Eds, Tokyo | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Third-World Petting Zoos: The Catch-22 of Orphanage Funding

Children need guardians. Orphans are children without guardians. Orphanages provide guardianship. Orphanages, therefore, are the solution. . . right? Wrong. From UNESCO to grassroots NGOs, sources assert that funding orphanages actually creates “orphans”. How can this be? And if the … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Reflections, Travel | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Japan Railways Installs Blue UV Lights To Lessen Suicide Attempts

The facts about suicide in Japan are staggering.  Almost 100 people kill themselves every day, totaling more than 30,000 people each year.  This number is twice as high as the United States and three times as high as the UK, … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, News | Tagged | Leave a comment

Anticipating Alice: Tim Burton’s Trip into Wonderland

You’ve Got A Very Important Date! By William Habbington and Charity Elford She is predicting… I’m kicking and screaming with anticipation for what promises to be a lavishly dark treatment of “Alice in Wonderland” by director Tim Burton. The hallucinatory, … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Arts and Culture | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Calling All Tech Geeks and Bookworms: The Kindle

by May Vang The popular electronic book reading device, or ereader, is the latest technology aimed at making life a little easier and more eco-friendly. I’ve been researching investing in an ereader. Here are my pros and cons for the … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Arts and Culture | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Perfect Apre Ski Dessert: Blueberry Rice Pudding

Text and Photo by Linda Monique Winter Recipe: BLUEBERRY RICE PUDDING One of my favorite ‘what to do with this rice’ recipes, that is so simple and easy to make. If you don’t like blueberries, try using strawberries, mango or … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Recipes | Tagged | Leave a comment

5 Foodie Musts in Hakuba

by Linda Monique 1. The Donburi at Kikyouya highlights owner and chef, Masuo Ohta’s 27 years of mastering the art of sushi. 1. Experience the freshest and most mouth-watering sashimi at Kikyouya You only need to look at the decade … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Hakuba, Nightlife | Tagged | Leave a comment

Local Profile: Professional Snowboarder Kinuyo Masumoto

Kinuyo Masumoto warmly says to call her “Ki-chan.”  She is unassuming, in both manner and stature.  Her explanations are simple, with unconscious modesty. Her actions speak for themselves. At eighteen, Ki-chan strapped on her first board.  In only two years … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Outdoors, Snow and Ice | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Prospects for Japan’s future

By Tomoko Fujimoto A new year for 2010 has opened.  The newspaper is filled with prospects for Japan’s future by experts.  I challenge myself  to translate their comments, interweaving my humble opinion. Today’s world is too chaotic for even specialists to … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, News, Op Eds, Reflections | Leave a comment

She Sat

by Nina Kojidi She sat, a half eaten bagel in one hand, cream cheese oozing out of the side, and a styrofoam cup filled with hot black coffee in the other. She watched the cars drive by, the people dancing … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Prose | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Sun

by Justin K. Ellis I woke up in the morning before the light had broke And looked upon the darkened land before the world awoke Those trees that russelled softly and russelled with new day Were silent in the agèd … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Literature | Tagged | Leave a comment

Letter From My Local Kappa

Love poem from my local kappa : I know we’ve eaten a limb, or a few One time, or a few. Not in a preachy way, But I can’t say, you haven’t done worse. Or, That you wouldn’t do the … Continue reading

Posted in 3 Sight. Feb.Mar. 2010, Literature | Tagged | Leave a comment

The Asian Gaelic Games

By John Scanlon There is an annual event held every year in Asia. It is called the Asian Gaelic Games and it is truly a sight to behold.  Now, you are probably wondering–Asian Games, Gaelic, Irish, Asian people?  Well, all … Continue reading

Posted in 1 Out. Oct. Nov. 2009, Sports, Travel | Tagged , | Leave a comment