Tanenhaus Portfolio

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46 / ACCJ Journal / September 2008

In the spiritual stillness of Tochigi Prefecture’s wilderness creaks the essence of erstwhile Japan. Sculptural trees and moss-covered statues make

nikko a storybook setting of a bygone era — the early-17th century to be exact. That’s when the grandson of Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu rebuilt a sim-ple shrine honoring his grandfather, the final unifier of Japan. The grandiose Tosho-gu Shrine ever since has been the arresting jewel in nikko’s crown.

nikko, which means sunlight in Japanese, lives up to its name year round. There’s no untimely season to visit this popular daytrip from Tokyo, but there is a timely one — autumn. Come early november, a blazing backdrop matches the beauty of nikko’s architecture. Peak koyo season features flaming trees and bushes landscaped around red-lacquered shrines and burgundy temples.

The sun warmed my hands one crisp morning visit. Underneath a blue and white patchwork sky, leaves radiated red, yellow, orange and green. Like theater spotlights, bursts of sunshine illuminated the fall season in its most colorful moment, sharing a stage with World Heritage Sites.

One of the most photographed is Shin-kyo Bridge, which elegantly spans the Daiya River. This sacred vermillion bridge marks the gateway to nikko’s shrines and temples. Legend has it that snakes divinely appeared here to enable priest Shodo Shonin, founder of Buddhism in nikko, to cross the river.

Walking north from Shin-kyo, Rinno-ji is the first temple to greet visitors. Its salient Three Buddha Hall is nikko’s biggest building, housing three gilded Buddha statues. Leaving Rinno-ji through the west gate, a wide path leads to Tosho-gu. On the way, a Five-Storied Pagoda pierces the canopy of cedars. Zodiac images adorn this colorful 36m-high structure that was engineered with prescience in 1819 as being able to withstand earthquakes.

A stone torii marks the entrance to the lavish precincts of Tosho-gu. With more than a dozen buildings drawing upon Shinto, Buddhist and Chinese designs, the mausoleum is monumental in size, yet meticulous in detail. Be prepared to spend time in line admiring the woodcarvings, notably the

nikko’s Autumn Glory

September 2008 / ACCJ Journal / 47

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By Jeffrey Tanenhaus / Classic Journeys

beloved monkeys above the Sacred Stables. These wise primates depict the “hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil” moral tenet of Tendai Buddhism familiar to Japanese of all ages.

More intricate craftsmanship is on display at Yomei-mon (or Higurashino-mon). The Chinese-influenced Gate of Sunlight (or Twilight) is dually named because viewers could spend all day admiring its 500 carvings of animals and spiritual creatures.

West of Tosho-gu stands Taiyuin-Byo. Towering cedars filter sunlight and shield this impeccably designed complex from too many visitors. Here lies the tomb of Tokugawa Iemitsu, the third Tokugawa Shogun who commissioned Tosho-gu for his grand-father Ieyasu. Although intentionally more modest than Tosho-gu, Taiyuin-Byo is just as impressive.

Wind down a day of temple-hopping with a walk parallel to the small rapids of the Daiya River. A leisurely path along the Kanman-ga-fuchi abyss passes through a stone park lined with some 70 weathered statues of Jizo, the guardian deity of children and travelers.

Other trails in nikko national Park reward even the casual hiker. The road from nikko snakes up 30 switchbacks to Lake Chuzenji, one of Japan’s highest lakes with a touristy onsen hot springs. Steps from Chuzenji’s bus stop is Kegon-no-taki, the best known of the area’s 48 waterfalls that plum-mets 97m to a misty meeting with earth. Follow the lake’s north shore (or hop on a bus) to Ryuzu Falls, where vibrant thickets frame silky white rapids gliding over a natural staircase of boulders.

Farther north is spectacular Senjogahara, a marshy plateau of golden grass populated with wild birds. Hiking trails cut through open fields and forests of Japanese elm, birch and crabapple trees. Sacred volcano Mt. nantai presides over the plateau from a distance. Low-hanging clouds shrouding mountainsides add to the magical feeling of walking through a landscape from the pages of national Geographic.

High elevation causes leaves here to turn in early- to mid-October, weeks before than in nikko, which the foliage faithful could save for a

follow-up viewing. For color-changing updates in English, try contacting the Japan national Tourist Organization’s information center in Tokyo at 03-3201-3331.

Getting thereThe most direct and least expensive route to nikko from Tokyo begins at Tobu Asakusa Station. Limited express trains arrive at Tobu nikko Station about two hours later after a transfer at Shimo-Imaichi (¥2,720). Each hour, a few buses to Lake Chuzenji depart from nikko Station (¥1,100, 50 min). Tobu Railways’ Marugoto nikko Free Pass (¥4,400) includes round-trip rapid train service from Tokyo and unlimited travel on nikko-Chuzenji buses over four consecutive days.

Jeffrey Tanenhaus is a

freelance writer and

photographer based

in Buenos Aires.

Kegon-no-taki, a standout among Nikko’s 48 falls.

TOKYO

Nikko

There’s no untimely season to visit this popular daytrip from Tokyo, but there is a timely one — autumn.

70 / ACCJ Journal / January 2008

A row of warehouses along a canal ordinarily wouldn’t inspire a detour from the brightest lights north of Tokyo, much less during an

internationally acclaimed Snow Festival. Yet, there I was on a train leaving the big city, trading neon in Sapporo for candlelight in Otaru.

I arrived in a town stacked with snowballs—in empty flowerpots, on icy steps, at street corners. Bucket-shaped vessels of snow lined sidewalks. Uninformed visitors might speculate that Otaru was gearing up for an epic citywide snowball fight, but the actual purpose of this winter art was more benign. Come nightfall, candles inside thousands of these snowball stacks and packed-powder lanterns twinkle throughout the town.

Otaru’s 10th annual Snow Gleaming Festival, February 8 to 17, illuminates a quiet fishing port, and is worthy of a half-day excursion from Hokkaido’s capital. The event has emerged as a more intimate alternative to Sapporo’s overlapping Snow Festival, February 5 to 11, where as many people as snowflakes crowd around colossal snow and ice sculptures.

The only giant forms in Otaru are its brick-and-stone warehouses dating back to the late-1800s, some since converted to restaurants and shops.

Icicles hanging from snow-laden eaves face a canal glittering with floating flames. Snow lanterns along the promenade, complementing the gas street-lamps, echo the glimmering water.

An alternate route for Snow Gleaming is along the abandoned tracks of the Temiya Line. As puffs of steam escape from lips and nostrils, visitors navi-gate a railbed that has been transformed into an icy art gallery of snow-banked walls. Delicate piles of snowballs in creative configurations surround lit candles. Curators patrolling with blowtorches atten-tively keep wicks burning bright. The interplay of fire and frozen water is dramatic in the darkness.

While both Hokkaido festivals offer creative tributes to Nature, embracing the outdoors in the dead of winter, the simplicity of Otaru’s Yukiakari-no-michi is more in line with traditional Japanese aesthetics.

Nonetheless, Sapporo’s snow sculptures, involving international teams, are striking in their level of professionalism. Snow Gleaming, in contrast, is a grassroots event staged by volunteers from the community and beyond. Rather than corporate names, emotive words like “love” and “melody” are unevenly chiseled into Otaru’s ice. The amateur creations—such as a pig with illuminated eyes,

Sapporo’s Gleaming Sideshow

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January 2008 / ACCJ Journal / 71


snout and hooves—give the effort a homespun warmth. Even the candles are handmade. For me, as my boots crunched on the snow-covered tracks, I felt the small flames dancing in the shadows were more magical than the color-filtered spotlights trained on the behemoths in Sapporo’s Odori Park.

While Sapporo may have no rivals for nightlife north of Tokyo, Otaru can satisfy visitors for the few hours before wicks flicker to life. An empty stomach steered me to Sushi-ya Street for a fill of Otaru’s renowned raw fish, reputed to be among Japan’s finest, with prices to match.

Fishing was once the lifeblood of the local economy, and the modest municipal museum in a former warehouse can get you acquainted with the area’s seafaring history. The “Heritage of Herring” is a telltale exhibit of how Otaru flourished. Monochromatic photographs show netted fish carpeting the piers, much like the current blanket of white powder.

Fishing was not the only industry, though. Artisans also settled here, firing bricks, ceramics and glass in workshops that remain active. The fisher-men’s need for lamps and floats spawned a glass-making industry, and these items became popular souvenirs with travelers. A market for utilitarian glass products evolved into the creation of contem-porary luxury pieces. Collectors can easily fill an afternoon browsing the emporia.

Otaru’s industrial success fueled its rise as an early financial capital, once nicknamed the “Wall Street of the north.” European-style stone-walled banks and shipping company offices from the Meiji Era (1868-1912) are stately reminders of the past. Noteworthy is a former Bank of Japan branch building by designer Tatsuno Kingo, famed for his red-bricked Tokyo Station.

The abandoned railway tracks are symbolic of Otaru’s eventual decline in economic importance. Inaugurated in 1880, the Temiya Line’s steam locomotives ferried coal to Sapporo, along what was the third railroad constructed in Japan and Hokkaido’s first.

This snow-covered skeleton of an infrastructure, evoking a departed industry, now hosts a

celebration of artistic roots still thriving. I paused at a heart-shaped stool by an upright piano fashioned from snow. Musical notes were carved into the ice. The keys were frozen, but rumblings of Otaru’s past seemed to resonate into the sparkling night.

The JR Hakodate Line serves Otaru, taking in nice views of the Sea of Japan on its approach. From Sapporo, budget ¥620 and about 40 minutes, disembark at Otaru Station and follow the flames.


freelance writer and

photographer, and a cold-

weather enthusiast.

As puffs of steam escape from lips and nostrils, visitors navigate a railbed that has been transformed into an icy art gallery of snow-

banked walls.

TOKYO

Otaru

58 / ACCJ Journal / April 2008

Nicknamed “Little Edo,” a former castle town lies less than an hour from central Tokyo, but the time warp is more than a century

along its main street. Saitama Prefecture’s Kawagoe retains distinctive period architecture lost from its larger cousin once known as Edo, 20 miles southeast.

Kurazukuri Street is named for its warehouse-style kura buildings that have weathered time and flame. Fire was once a constant threat to cities; yet Kurazukuri’s 20.32cm-thick clay walls coated in plaster emerged as flame-resistant alternatives to the earlier wooden frames reduced to ashes by the Great Kawagoe Fire of 1893.

Charcoal-color façades convey a feeling that the kurazukuri had endured the same trial by fire. However, most were actually constructed by wealthy merchants in the inferno’s aftermath, as residential shops for personal and commercial assets such as grain, textiles and timber.

Kurazukuri are an extinct species in the Tokyo landscape, having succumbed to the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923 and intense World War II bomb-ings. Once numbering more than 200, Kawagoe’s merchant houses have thinned to around 30. About

a dozen, including a former wholesale tobacco shop turned into the Kurazukuri Museum, front Kurazukuri Street. Their design, however, proved not to be fail-safe. A pit in the floor rekindles a fear of fire and the need of a basement vault for valuables. A rickety city fire cart reminds visitors that it was better to bury and flee than to await for outside assistance.

Within sight of the museum, Toki-no-Kane rises 15.8m above black-tiled rooftops. The Bell of Time is the city’s symbol that even graces the sides of some vending machines. The tower’s privileged height served well as a fire lookout post. Despite flames consuming it three times over the past 350 years, the Bell of Time remains the city’s pride. The latest reincarnation dates from just after the Great Fire, and remains the town’s most important timepiece, tolling four times daily.

The atmospheric streets aren’t just a treat for the eyes. Tucked behind the row of kurazukuri lies Kashiya yokocho, an alley famous for its traditional candy shops. After the 1923 earthquake crippled Tokyo, Kawagoe became a major confectionary supplier.

Time Travel to Little Edo

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Kurazukuri — architectural emblems of Kawagoe

Sweet Potato Paradise

April 2008 / ACCJ Journal / 59


Like many places in Japan, Kawagoe claims a gastronomic specialty. Here, in Sweet Potato City, the candy, chips, ice cream, beer, udon and soba noodles incorporate this celebrated ingredient. Tuberous root enthusiasts can pay homage at the world’s only Sweet Potato Museum, or pick up a trowel during potato-digging excursions in September.

Beyond the historic core of sweet scents and sturdy shops, the grounds of religious sites take center stage during sakura season. Weeping cherry trees in the gardens of Kita-in Temple are especially elegant, while hydrangeas, azaleas, maple and plum trees take turns coloring the premises in the later months of the year.

Kita-in is the only place to see the original rooms from Tokyo’s Edo Castle (now the Imperial Palace) that the ruling shogun donated after a temple fire, and before another blaze destroyed the castle. Kita-in also hosts the animated lineup of Gohyaku-rakan — 500 disciples of Buddha whose statues capture the full range of human emotions. Should craving for adventure strike in the middle of the night, legend has it that, among the rows of rakan (careful counting reveals 540), one statue will feel warm. If located and then revisited the next day, its stone face will have morphed into a likeness of its finder.

you can lose the crowd of statues and their

human admirers by walking 15 minutes north, to where a towering torii gate marks the entrance of Hikawa Shrine. Generous shade from zelkova trees — a symbol of Saitama — adds to the sense of sanctuary. Lilting flute music lured me into the shrine dedicated to the god of marriage, where, sure enough, a Shinto wedding was underway.

The bride’s white kimono glowed like a spotlight among the entourage of musician priests, atten-dants and family members.

The procession retreated to private quarters, leaving me alone to wander the grounds freshly sanctified. I followed a path to the Shingashi River, which runs behind the temple. In late-March, cherry trees form a pinkish-white canopy over the stream, a soft contrast to the blackened kurazukuri. Daylight was fading now, and lanterns strung through the trees glowed among the delicate petals. The Bell of Time struck six — and the spirit of Edo resonated.

Getting thereFrequent trains to Kawagoe Station make this satel-lite of Tokyo easily accessible. From Ikebukuro, the Tobu Tojo Line, an extension of the yurakucho Line, takes only 32 minutes (¥450). The Seibu Shinjuku Line rapid express trains (52 minutes, ¥480 from Seibu Shinjuku Station) serve Hon-Kawagoe Station, slightly closer to the attractions.


freelance

writer and

photographer

based in

Buenos Aires.

Illuminated cherry blossoms line the Shingashi River. Rakan are expressive statues.

Weeping cherry trees in the gardens of Kita-in Temple are especially elegant, while hydrangeas, azaleas, maple and plum trees take turns

coloring the premises in the later months of the year.

TOKYO

Kawagoe

By Jeffrey Tanenhaus

he Japanese obsession with nonsensical

English goes far beyond those cutely

wrongheaded phrases you see on t-shirts.

Even the domestic auto industry, which ranks

among the world’s finest, is guilty. Native

speakers must wonder if marketing departments

consulted a random word generator instead of an

English dictionary. For Asian consumers,

however, style trumps substance. The sound of

the word is what matters, not its literal

definition. A vehicle can roll off the assembly

line branded as Brawny (Mazda), Sunny

(Nissan) or even Prairie Joy (Nissan) and remain

desirable. Below are the top 5 bizarre-sounding

models cruising the roads of Japan, and not

heading to an English-speaking showroom near

you – at least not without an alias.

1. Daihatsu NakedFun Fact:

Weighs 810 kg (without shoes and socks).

Looks Like…

Design team should head back to drawing board.

Corporate Marketing Ploy:

Driving is better in the buff.

What We Like About It:

Sexy, uncensored chassis.

2. Mitsubishi GutsFun Fact:

90% recyclability rate.

Looks Like…

Just another top-heavy Japanese truck.


Less wimp, more Guts for you macho truckers.


Temptation to run red light, lean on horn and

yell “no Guts, no glory” at pedestrians caught in

crosswalk.

3. Mazda Bongo BrawnyFun Fact:

Bongo series in production for 40 years.

Looks Like…

Refrigerator on wheels.


Go bongo in our brawny, baby.


Function over form: roomy interior has excellent

load capacity for whatever you pleasure.

4. Daihatsu Midget IIFun Fact:

Seats one full-size person or II midgets.

Looks Like…

The runt of a pickup truck litter.


Small enough to park inside a studio.


Detached bug-eye headlights are trendy

throwback to Model T.

5. Toyota NoahFun Fact:

Available in “light rose mica metallic.”

Looks Like…

One big-ass ark turned mini-van.


Modern luxury meets biblical strength.


Capacity to transport four pairs of humans in

event of catastrophic typhoon flooding.

T

JEFFREY A. TANENHAUSWWW.JTANENHAUS.COM

[email protected]

effrey Tanenhaus is a freelance writer, editor and photographer. His work includes

travel destinations, restaurant reviews, architectural features and humor pieces that

have been published in Time Out New York, Time Out Buenos Aires, The Japan

Times, Asahi Weekly and The Jerusalem Post, among others.

Jeffrey is looking to parlay his communication skills – developed through journalism and

living abroad – into further stimulating and creative freelance assignments. Worldly

curiosity accounts for Jeffrey’s first-hand knowledge of 45 countries and three languages.

He most recently spent seven months in Buenos Aires studying Spanish and Argentine

literature and film at the prestigious University of Buenos Aires.

South America’s mellow rhythms were a shock coming from hyperkinetic Tokyo where

he taught English for two years. Landing in the world’s largest city alone, illiterate and

unemployed, Jeffrey assembled a new life from scratch.

Communication barriers inspired him to blog about eye-opening cultural differences and

humorous episodes in the classroom with the rowdiest, lowest-achieving junior high

school students in the megalopolis. Paid freelance assignments followed from Japan’s

leading English-language publications.

The sudden flight to the Far East was a result of pent-up wanderlust after two years as a

high-level paralegal at Flemming Zulack Williamson Zauderer LLP where he was rehired

after a summer internship in college. He worked with medical experts across the nation

who produced reports crucial to the asbestos products liability litigation. Jeffrey also

engineered an advertising campaign to solicit clients for the launch of new litigation

services by designing the ad copy and negotiating with representatives of New York and

Florida newspapers and radio stations.

The stability of corporate life followed a perilous escape from tropical sands at the largest

resort in the South Pacific. Although hired as a land and sea sports instructor, Jeffrey’s

role unexpectedly expanded into crisis management when a super-typhoon packing winds

of 160 mph slammed into Guam, shredding the hotel tower in which he and guests were

trapped for six hours.

Inspiration for launching himself to a far-flung island came from a senior thesis on

destination marketing in the Caribbean. “The Paradoxical Packaging of Paradise”

examined promotional literature from three islands to evaluate how each distinguished

itself. The study uniquely showed how national histories stained with the atrocities of the

slave trade can be re-imaged into paradises for foreign consumption. His findings earned

the thesis high honors.

J

Jeffrey graduated Cum Laude from Dartmouth College where he double majored in

geography and government, which he also studied in Prague and London. When on

campus, he wrote prolifically for the nation’s oldest college newspaper, The Dartmouth.

His more than 140 stories included interviews with distinguished visitors like Presidential

candidates of election 2000. He was then tapped as editor to turn around the paper’s

floundering Arts & Entertainment section.

Interest in public relations arose from a stimulating marketing internship with the 1998

Goodwill Games, an Olympic-style competition sponsored by Turner Sports. As the

youngest member of the mobile marketing team, his rewarding connections with New

Yorkers on the street enabled him to operate on the front lines of a PR machine with

sustained enthusiasm.

In his spare time, Jeffrey enjoys Argentine literature and Buddhist philosophy, and

religiously follows the Utah Jazz, Toronto Blue Jays and Tokyo’s Yakult Swallows. He

can also be found pointing out local landmarks from the top of double-decker tour buses

looping around Manhattan.

JEFFREY A. TANENHAUSWWW.JTANENHAUS.COM

[email protected]

SUMMARY

• Writer and photographer with professional experience in Japan, Argentina and the U.S.

• Non-native fluency in Spanish • Conversational Japanese • 45 countries visited

• 100-page thesis researching destination marketing of Caribbean islands

• Dartmouth College B.A. Cum Laude with high honors in geography

WORK EXPERIENCE

WRITER AND PHOTOJOURNALIST Aug. 2005 - present

• Freelance contributor to magazines and newspapers in the U.S., Japan, Argentina and Israel,

including Time Out New York, Time Out Buenos Aires, The Japan Times and The Jerusalem Post

• Professional photographer specializing in travel-related writing and camera work

• Designed own website to promote published articles and photos at www.jtanenhaus.com

• Chronicled Japanese experiences inside and outside of the classroom through personal blog

ENGLISH TEACHER, Junior and Senior High Schools, Tokyo Apr. 2005 - Apr. 2007

• Devised and implemented lesson plans and interactive games to reinforce curriculum

PARALEGAL, Flemming Zulack Williamson Zauderer LLP, New York Jan. 2003 - Jan. 2005

• Created advertising campaign for launch of new litigation services

• Represented firm at citywide asbestos group meetings

SPORTS INSTRUCTOR, Pacific Islands Club, Guam Sept. - Dec. 2002

INTERN, The White House Office of Presidential Personnel, Washington, DC Jun. - Aug. 1999

• Drafted memoranda to the President seeking his approval of political appointments

• Compiled biographical information and prepared press releases

MARKETING INTERN, The Goodwill Games, New York Jul. - Aug. 1998

• Promoted major international sporting event through mobile field marketing

EDUCATION

DARTMOUTH COLLEGE, Hanover, NH, Class of 2002

• B.A. Cum Laude with high honors in geography

• Double major in sociopolitical geography and government (international relations)

• Honors thesis: The Paradoxical Packaging of Paradise: destination marketing of 3 Caribbean islands• Semester abroad at London School of Economics researching political science in the UK• Semester abroad at Charles University in Prague studying geopolitical landscape of Czech Republic

• Arts & Entertainment Editor and Staff Writer of 140 articles for The Dartmouth daily newspaper

UNIVERSITY OF BUENOS AIRES, Argentina Oct. 2007 - May 2008

• Courses in advanced Spanish and Argentine literature and film

The Paradoxical Packaging of Paradise

Destination marketing and the re-imaging of history

on three Caribbean islands through state-sponsored tourist brochures

By Jeffrey A. Tanenhaus

Curaçao Puerto Rico Saint Kitts & Nevis

Honors Thesis, Department of Geography

Dartmouth College Susanne Freidberg, Advisor

Spring 2002

�

TOKYO TANENHAUS

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