Japan Video Topics 2009/03
Ajisai – Hydrangeas in Hakone (3'41")
The hydrangea is a flower native to Japan, where it is called ajisai. This delicately colored flower blooms everywhere during the rainy season, but one of the finest places to see it in all its many varieties is the beautiful mountain and hot spring resort of Hakone, one hour from Tokyo by train. The tracks of Hakone's nine-kilometer long switchback railway are lined with over 10,000 blossoms, the varieties changing as the train climbs higher up the mountain, and special sections are even illuminated at night.
Lettuce from a Factory (3'24")
Agriculture today faces problems from abnormal weather to chemical overuse that cause concern about the safety and reliable supply of our daily vegetables. One promising solution is the “plant factory,” where food is grown indoors in a computer-controlled environment. Vertical stacked growing beds produce far greater amounts of crops than regular farms of the same area, while pest-free sealed environments simplify organic cultivation. New technologies are making factory-grown cultivation safer, more nutritious and more efficient than conventional farming.
Mizuhiki - The Art of Tying Paper Cords (3'18")
A custom that's long been part of daily life in Japan is to present gifts or offerings in an envelope decorated with a complex knot of colored cords. The 1,000-year old custom of mizuhiki symbolizes the wish that the ties binding giver to receiver will never break. Today, in addition to the traditional use, people also use mizuhiki to tie many other things, such as birthday cards, companies are developing new products using mizuhiki cords and artists are adapting the old materials and techniques to create art objects.
New Life for Old Facilities (3'36")
In recent years, local communities all over Japan have been discovering the cultural and social benefits to be obtained by converting old facilities, buildings and infrastructure to serve new purposes rather than simply demolishing them after their service life is over. We see an old power station that has been converted to a flourishing art museum, a discontinued railway that is now a popular cycle trail, and a primary school reborn as a toy museum.
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