Guilty: A Drama in Review

Yoi Ban (Good Evening),

In this posting I will be reviewing 2010's drama Guilty: Akuma to Keiyakushita Onna (the women who made a pact with the devil). This Japanese drama centers around a woman named Nogami Meiko (played by Kanno Miho) (trivia: most Asians last names appear before their first names!), who has been falsely tried and found guilty of killing her nephew and brother-in-law. The series focus on Nogami's plans to exacted revenge against those who have done her wrong. You can check out the entire series (11 episodes total) at http://www.mydramalist.com//front/dramalist-ajax.php?dramaid=356

{spoiler Alert}

I found that this series was unique in that the main character was had already severed her time and seems to be living a peaceful/accepting lifestyle as a Pet Groomer ( I want this job, jk). There are so many characters that play into the various twist and turns throughout the series that by the time you get to the end you are never expecting the true person behind the plot to be the boss/friend of Nogami!


I hoped you have enjoyed this drama review ( there are sooooooo many dramas! If you have any suggestions post a comment and I'll let you know how I felt in the next Drama in Review posting.)


Until next time's Anime review, Yoi Yoru (Good Night)

Perfume

Ohayō (Good Morning),

If you read the posting "Work Hard, Play Harder" you will be pleased that I have finally gotten around to doing a Music Review ( and eventually and Drama Review) for the Japanese girl group Perfume.

The music of Perfume is something that I  not seen in the U.S. market before. If I were to compare them to any previously successful girl group (state side) it would be Destiny's Child.

Perfume's sound is a mix of  traditional Japanese folk music, house and techno beats, futuristic bacground and catchy pop lyrics. Here is a sample of the groups sound and style:

"Voice" by Perfume

Along with having a distintive sound the girls style is unquirely Perfume. The concepts for their videos are nothing I have seen in not only the U.S. but other countries such as South Korea (who's music I enjoy as well). Four words I'll use to their group style is corky,cute,colorful and cynchronized ( I know it's spelled with a S . . . but for this purpose please ignore)!

Another reason to add Perfume to playlist would be that they are acomplished concert masters (yes, coin this pharse)! They've had sold out concerts in venues such as the Tokyo Dome ( which is not an easy feat.) Check out this clip:

Thank You Speech

And just in case your not convinced that their the greatest girl group ever the real deal in Japan here is are sample clip of their performance (see the sweat drop?):

Edge(Mix) Performance by Perfume

I hoped you enjoyed this latest additon of The Nippon Student, till next time bye! 

Word of the Day

Konnichi ha (or Kon'nichiwa),

If you haven't noticed The Nippon Student has an official Twitter page!  There you can find new vocabulary in the "Word of the Day" post @nipponstudent . During the week, once a day new words will be submitted along with any updates, so if your not following why not join!

Indo-chan インドちゃん

As you read my blog you are probably wondering "who is this person?" and "why is she so obsessed with Japanese?", well I can sum that up in a couple of paragraphs.

I am India. I live on the East Coast of the United States, where I attend a four year University. I plan to graduate within the next year.  There is very little I can tell you about my life that would seem exciting or fun (I live in the library most of the time), but I'll try.

I have lived in the same area (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) for the majority of my life. I moved to the state capital Harrisburg during my sophomore year of high school and continued there until I went to community college. I stayed there for a year before moving to suburban Philadelphia.

In the time that I went to community college in Harrisburg, I learned so much about myself than I would have if I would've attended another college (specifically a smaller one). During that time I was rooming in the city's International House. Two of my roommates were from Georgia (the country) while the other was from South Korea. In that time I realized just how closed off to other cultures I had been. See before then I had believed that I was culturally accepting of everyone, I realized this wasn't true once I was living within the International House.

Since this time I have gain a better understanding and less prejudices. 

With this new understanding, it allowed me to think in broader terms of what is globally and intercultural the same and different in the world. To me there seem to be little difference in how individuals deal and feel about life in general (yes, I know there are always expectations!).

As these new feelings I decided that my life would be filled with food and travel (a common dream)! So with this I decided to study a language in order to fulfill my dreams of adventure and stuffing my face culinary appreciation!   

The main reason I picked Japanese as an language to study was because in a way I was rebelling. My rebellion was against the traditional languages offered in high school and University settings such as Spanish, French or German ... they just all seems boring and over statured with people who did not plan to use the skills in any future setting, that was something I wanted to avoid.

So in all this is who Indo- chan is. End of Story.

"Ganbaro Nippon" Tokyo Tower

It has officially been one month since the devastating Earthquake hit Japn, causing a major Tsunmi to completely damage the city of Sendai in Northeastern Japan. According to Tokyo Hive, to help lift the spirits of fellow Japanese Tokyo Tower has revealed the "Ganbaro Nippon" sign. "Ganbaro Nippon" meaning "Let's Do Our Best, Japan" will be featured from April 11th - April 16th. To read more about Tokyo Tower follow this link: http://www.tokyohive.com/2011/04/tokyo-tower-has-a-new-illuminated-message-ganbaro-nippon/

If you would like to continue to support the efforts ongoing in Japn, please read my first post untitled "The Nippon Student". There you will find websites like the Red Cross were donations can be made.

Thanks for reading!

Cherry Blossoms

According to Sign On San Diego "Tokyo's Cherry Blossoms Officially in Bloom". In Japanese tradition it symbolize multiple things however, one definition is the "nature of life". "The annual rite of spring in Japan goes back hundreds of years and involves sitting under "sakura" trees and taking in the fluffy pink flowers, which drop off about a week after they appear.” Sign on San Diego, reports.

And luckily for U.S. the Cherry blossoms are available throughout the states. Almost a hundred years ago, the U.S. was gifted  3,000 Cherry Trees from the Japanese Government showing good will. The trees now line the Tidal Basin located in Washington D.C. The annual festival begins in mid-March to beginning April which is known as the National Cherry Blossom Festival. Although the festival is based out of D.C. there are other U.S. cities throughout the country such as the Subaru Cherry Blossom Festival of Greater Philadelphia in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; International Cherry Blossom Festival in Macon, Georgia; Cherry Blossom Festival of Southern California Little Tokyo District in Los Angeles, CA; and Cherry Blossom at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden in Brooklyn, NY.

If you are interested in attending any of these events please use these links to gain additional information:

Washington D.C. - http://www.nationalcherryblossomfestival.org/
Philadelphia, PA -  http://jasgp.org/cherryblossomfestival/
Macon, GA -   http://www.cherryblossom.com/
Brooklyn  -  http://www.bbg.org/discover/cherries
Los Angeles -  http://cherryblossomfestivalsocal.org/

and to read the entire article from Sign On San Diego  go to this link- http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2011/mar/27/tokyos-cherry-blossoms-officially-in-bloom/