Katana means sword in Japanese, and is also used for a specific type of Japanese longsword started to be used after the 1400s. This sword is a single edge, with a curved shape, and were use by the samurai, usually paired with another sword, similar but shorter called wakisashi. The forging of this blade took a lot of work and 3 people, the smith who forged the rough shape, a second smith to fold the metal and a specialist polisher to finish it.
The word Samurai derives from the archaic Japanese verb 'samorau', which means 'to serve', and was the term for the military nobility in pre-industrial Japan. Most samurai were bound by a strict code of honor and were expected to set an example for those below them, and even though there is a romanticized characterizations of samurai behavior such as the writing of Bushido, like the shocking yet notable seppuku, where the disgraced samurai regained his honor by passing into death (suicide), studies of Kobudo and traditional Budo shows that samurai were as practical on the battlefield as any other warrior.
Ukiyo-e is a type of Japanese woodblock prints and paintings, produced between the 17th and the 20th centuries, which feature landscapes, theaters, pleasure quarters, etc. and is the main artistic genre of woodblock printing in Japan. This art form rose to popularity in the metropolitan culture of Edo (Tokyo), during the second half of the 17th century, starting with the single color works of Hishikawa Moronobu, around the 1670s. At the beginning, only India ink was used, but then some prints were manually colored with a brush, and in the 18th century, Suzuki Harunobu developed the technique of polychrome printing to produce nishiki-e.
Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement, based on creating harmony with linear construction, color and rhythm. This art is very different from the western way of flower arrangement, which is mostly based on the quantity and the colors of the flowers; ikebana is all about the linear aspects, trying to imitate nature instead of copying it, basing the structure on 3 main points that symbolize heaven, earth, and humankind. It is common to see ikebana with only foliage and no flowers, or maybe a single flower with no foliage but with rocks, but paying a little bit of attention, we'll see the perfect harmony between the flower's color, the rock's shapes and color and the vase's color.
Kanazawa is a historical city in the Ishikawa prefecture, Japan, and it is the best-preserved major Edo-period city in the country. This city has the mark of Samurai, merchants, the Geisha, and the lords. The Kenroku-en Garden, considered one of the top 3 gardens in Japan; The Ninja Temple, which actually was not home to ninja, but got the name for its trapped doors and hidden rooms; The Old Merchant House, a shop that was instrumental for maintaining the elegance of the flower arrangements, the haiku and the tea ceremony, are just a few examples of what you can do in this amazing city.
The Japanese tea ceremony is a traditional ritual influenced by Zen Buddhism, where powdered green tea, or matcha, is ceremonially prepared by a skilled practitioner and served to a small group of guests in a tranquil setting. A tea practitioner, must be familiar with the production and types of tea, with kimono, calligraphy, flower arranging, ceramics, incense and a wide range of other disciplines and traditional arts, in addition to his or her school's tea practices, making the study of the tea ceremony to take many years and often lasting a lifetime. Even to participate as a guest in a formal tea ceremony requires knowledge of the prescribed gestures and phrases expected of guests, the proper way to take tea and sweets, and general deportment in the tea room.
Origami means to fold paper, and it is the art of, obviously, fold paper :) Origami uses a small number of different folds, but when they are combined in different ways, you can create complex designs. Everything begins with a square sheet of paper, which may have different colors on each side. This traditional Japanese art, has been practiced since 1603, and in the present days, it has started new mathematical theories about folding paper (yes, math about folding paper XD) and Technical Origami, known as Origami Sekkei.
Special origami paper, "kami", is sold in prepackaged squares of various sizes ranging from 2.5 cm to 25 cm or more. It is commonly colored on one side and white on the other; also, dual colored and patterned versions exist and can be used effectively for color-changed models. Origami paper weighs slightly less than copy paper, making it suitable for a wider range of models.
When my sister was a little girl, my grandfather made a trip to Japan and like he used to do, he brought us lots of presents, but there was one that had my sister stunned (it still does.)
He brought her a Kimono! but not just any one... a golden one with roses an dragons, with a big lace and OMG... so so so so soft, she told me she felts like as been touched by clouds.
Then my grandfather tolds us that for over 1500 years the Kimonos were part of the japanese culture and couture.
He showed us some pictures and I could see the grace, glamour, mistery that those women carry when they were all gawned up.
She stills have hers in the closet, of course it doesn't fit her anymore, but some day, when she or me have a kid we will pass it over to her, that's the impression that simple but extraordinaire outfit left in us, heritage sent.
My personal info:
Name : Mary Kate Campbell
Nick: Sakura
Age: 17
Born in: Windy city, Chicago
Hobbies: Manga, Anime, Japanese Culture
