A Kabuki Experience: The Significant Reunion (Part 1)

My first time going to a Kabuki (歌舞伎) show and the significant reunion was in 2015. I stood in a striped black and white shirt and a black vest finished with a black skirt in the Ginza (銀座) district in Tokyo (東京) in front of the theater, Kabuki-za (歌舞伎座), holding onto the strap of my purse and my phone waiting nervously, hoping I’d be easy to spot. My eyes darted around, trying to find someone I knew in a sea of faces.

Travels: Miyajima

Today, I’m sharing with you all my experience at Itsukushima (厳島), more popularly referred to as “Miyajima” (宮島) or “Shrine Island”, located southwest of the city of Hiroshima (広島). As one of the “Nihon Sankei” (日本三景), or “Three Views of Japan” coined by the scholar Hayashi Gaho (1618-1688), scholars consider it one of the most scenic and beautiful sites in all of Japan… and that’s an understatement!

The Beginning of a New Era

Today is indeed a unique day in the history of the world, more specifically in the country of Japan. Yesterday marked the end of a literal era, the Heisei Era (meaning “peace everywhere”), of Japan. Now with the Crown Prince’s ascension comes the beginning of a new era, known to the world as the Reiwa Era (令和) with a translated meaning of most closely the phrase “beautiful harmony”.