Listening to the i-pod a lot in the car since RADIO-i is no more, and the other stations aren't worth listening to,...it annoys me to listen to poor radio programs! This was playing while I was on the highway Friday morning,... Japanese band Echoes and Zoo,... brilliant song!
Every time I turn on my computer, it goes to the Apple page, and with news of the Beatles going on i-tunes, every day starts off well. I've been a Beatles fan for years, but a few years back overdosed on Beatles, and haven't listened much to them recently. I feel another Beatles attack coming on,.... GOTTA GET YOU INTO MY LIFE.....
Perfect on a cold winters day,... a short break with some Hot Chocolate... I Need more short breaks and more hot chocolate!
Current favourite, .... Autumn only limited edition Sunkist 100% Fruit Mix,...apple, grape, orange and nashi pear mix juice. The grape and the Nashi pear taste stands out the most. Yum Yum!!
On location for my semi-regular spot on Wednesday nights, 7pm CBC TV show "Daigo"... this time it's visiting a number of local No. 1 manufacturing factories,.... hence the silly suit!
Every year for the past 6 years or so, I've done the ringside announcing and event MC for the Fudo Kai full contact Karate tournaments. This year saw a record 2,366 fighters of all ages taking part.
One of the benefits is getting ring side seats,...close to all the action and excitement...
Saturday Nov 13. After a day in armor filming the Okehazama shoot for TV Aichi, it was off to Nagoya's Nippon Gaishi Hall for a test run for the FudoKai Super Fighting Championships.
We do a run thru' every year on the eve prior to the bouts, and usually finish about 11pm....
Back in the studios of FM AICHI for a recording session for my saturday show, Love & Peace...
In May of 1560, Imagawa Yoshimoto decided to make a move on Kyoto, and began a campaign to take the lands between his region in modern day Shizuoka and Kyoto. That meant entering Oda's domain. Having taken the eastern parts, the Imagawa army camped at Dengakuhazama. Oda Nobunaga moved to counter them, by leaving his castle in Kiyosu and moving to the Zensho Temple fort.
The temple-fort site is now a park overlooking the area that was to become the battlefield. Here, Nobunaga had rows of banners set up to make it look as tho his army had camped there.
Instead, during heavy rain and a thunderstorm, he and his troops moved to Kamagatani, the small valley in modern day Midori-Ku near to where the Imagawa troops were stationed.
Passing this rise, which has mostly been swallowed up by a university, kindergarten and car park, the Oda troops descended on an unprepared army. The site where most of the Imagawa men had set up camp is now a supermarket shopping centre The Oda defeated an enemy of almost 10 to 1, and this in turn gave rise to Oda Nobunaga's greatness.
After the battle, Nobunaga ordered the villagers to dig 7 large holes in which to bury the dead. This burial site too has mostly been taken up by modern housing. The site is on the rise above the Midori-Ku battlefield site, leading me to believe that the proper battle site, and therefore the grave of Imagawa Yoshimoto, must be the one at Midori-Ku.
450 years ago this year, the War lord Oda Nobunaga with 2,500 troops attacked and defeated a rival, Imagawa Yoshimoto and his 25,000 troops in the Battle Of Okehazama. Interestingly enough, there are 2 sites claiming to be the battle site, one in Toyoake, the other in Nagoya's Midori-Ku. Both have historical marker stones, and both claim to have the grave of Imagawa. So which one is correct? That was my job to determine on the latest shoot for TV Aichi. Above, the site marker at Toyoake,...
....At the other site in the South East of Nagoya in Midori-Ku, stands this magnificent monument, unveiled just this year, with Oda on the left, and Imagawa on the right.
Nagoya's new planetarium in the Fushimi district is nearing completion, right now it looks like the Death Star has landed,...or a huge Sontaran Spacecraft...
A few seconds to relax and read a bit ... One of the books I bought while in Australia recently, Hey You In The Black T-Shirt...
Australian music promoter, Michael Chugg's autobiography, with an insight into the live scene. Quite an interesting read. I was hoping for more behind the scenes tales, but what was served wasn't bad. Interesting to hear about the goings on of Fleetwood Mac during the 70's....
Also this great view of Tokyo,..you can possibly make out Tokyo Tower almost central picture, slight dash of red amongst the concrete grey...
But Mt Fuji was the flight highlight! Such clear conditions, and from this angle too....
you could make out all the various colors of the rocks, ash and dirt, and together with the snow and blue sky....fantastic!
No matter how many times you see it, or from whatever the angle, Mt. Fuji is beautiful!!
Fri. Nov 6. At the Sydney Airport check in counter, somebody in the line behind me calls out my name. I look up, and it's Jon Cross, a friend from my Adelaide days. Jon and I were members of the Adelaide University Kendo Club between late '89 and '92. Jon was on his way to Tokyo to take his Kendo 6th Dan test! We'd been in touch via the internet a few times, but hadn't seen each other for 18 years! It was great to catch up and to hear that he's doing so well for himself!
Last lunch in Sydney before flying home to Nagoya... stopped at an Italian restaurant facing the Harbour Bridge at Circular Quay...
Sydney's monorail was fascinating! It seemed much more simple and obviously cheaper than digging a subway system, required little space, was pleasantly quiet, seems to be environmentally friendly, inexpensive and almost futuristic too!
Tokyo's monorail was built in 1964 and was very futuristic at the time, but this one seems to be smaller...
It was surprisingly cold for Sydney in November, and after a trip on the ferry I treated myself to a hot chocolate in the city center. Out came 2 jugs, one with melted chocolate, the other with boiled milk....
Fri Nov 5. The Samurai team were free for half a day... Hopped aboard an early ferry from Circular Quay across to the other side of the harbour....
To Australia's famous Luna Park! Luna Park has been operating since the 1930's and is somewhat of an Australian cultural icon. In 1978 or '79 my family went on a camping holiday to Sydney, and on that trip, Mum and Dad took us to Luna Park! I still have memories of that trip today, and going back 31 years later was still as exciting.
Naturally over the years some of the attractions and rides have changed, but there are still pavilions and rides dating from the 1930's....
Showtime favourites! Pop the ping pong ball in the clown's mouth, watch where it lands and win a prize! Haven't seen one of these attractions in years!
Slippery Dip and other old style attractions dating from 1935 and still in use at Luna Park!
