Through Izu

Starting from Tokyo we journey to the popular towns of Yokohama, Kamakura and Hakone. Our final destination will be Izu-Oshima, a volcanic island under the administration of Tokyo. Izu-Oshima is located about 100 kilometers south of the metropolitan Tokyo. The island is a popular tourist destination, especially for those in Tokyo seeking a cycle ride. At the heart of Izu-Oshima is the Mount Mihara (758m), an active volcano which is the source of several interesting sites and various hot springs on the island. Izu-Oshima is also known for its Tsubaki, camellia flowers, which can be spotted almost everywhere from around January through March.

There's no better way to see the world than bicycle touring. We head for the Izu Peninsula to enjoy relaxing onsen hot springs, breathtaking views of Mt. Fuji and the blossoming charms of spring.

Trailblazing instrumental synth pop experiments created to soundtrack Japan’s booming 1980s cartoon and comic industries. The brightly futuristic instrumentals on this collection reflect the mindset of composers and musicians who believed in a technological future where everything was possible. In the late 1980s Japan experienced a brief but heady period where societal changes combined with new-found wealth to open up a world of possibilities. A huge influx of cash - artificially created by slashed interest rates after an agreement with the US to weaken the dollar relative to the yen - resulted in the inflation of real estate and stock market at a rapid pace. While the economic bubble it created was unprecedented and impossible to sustain, for a while money was in plentiful supply.The musical genre City Pop reflected the aspirations of the country’s booming leisure class. Video games flourished with Nintendo's 1983 launch of their Family Computer (or FamiCom). Studio Ghibli was founded 1985 to later became one of the most famous and respected animation studios in the world, and Anime and Manga were established as major forms of entertainment for all generations of the Japanese public.

From Beginner to Pro

Renara's album "Gratitude" is a collection of 10 compositions and one studio improvisation which express deep gratitude to the people and places which have profoundly influenced her life and work - from her parents and spiritual mentors to the city of Paris where she has lived for over twenty years. This is music without language or borders, inspired by Life and expressed through the hands of a musician with full mastery over her instrument, the grand piano.

An Imperial Japanese Army regiment surrenders to British forces in Burma at the close of World War II and finds harmony through song. A private, thought to be dead, disguises himself as a Buddhist monk and stumbles upon spiritual enlightenment. Magnificently shot in hushed black and white, Kon Ichikawa’s The Burmese Harp is an eloquent meditation on beauty coexisting with death and remains one of Japanese cinema’s most overwhelming antiwar statements, both tender and brutal in its grappling with Japan’s wartime legacy.