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Hiroshi66
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Location: Northridge, California
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Re: J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
You're welcome, Nchristi!  Yeah, I also thought the footage of the volcano eruption was really interesting. My friend is from Kagoshima, and he was telling me that Sakurajima is a pretty active volcano, and there are minor eruptions almost every year. He said that since the volcano is on an island away from the city of Kagoshima, there's usually no major damage. On the other hand, there's always a lot of ash falling on the city!
I like some of those clips BBC posts on their website. This morning, there was an interesting one called "Baby Monkey throws tantrum", LOL! 
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3/11/2009, 8:40 am
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brad6
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Re: J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
You know I am really not sure..but I think that at the time of the dispersal of the Tokagawa and the Ooku..it was Strauss time and in Vienna they were swirling around in the newfangled Viennese waltz.
Thinking about this makes me feel that Atsu was not very far away from us, and yet it would be almost unknown to the Western world except for the statesman and military people of that time.
Peg
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3/16/2009, 2:20 pm
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NChan
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Nijo Castle
This Spring break I went to Nara and Kyoto for a sightseeing. One of the historical places I visited was the Nijo Castle. The castle was built in 1603 as the official Kyoto residence of the first Tokugawa Shogun, Ieyasu. It was completed in 1626 by the 3rd Tokugawa Shogun, Iemetsu. Yoshinobu, the 15th Tokugawa Shogun, held office there. It was in this castle that he summoned important feudal lords from Japan's 40 provinces and announced the return of sovereignty to the Emperor in 1867. This also made the castle became the property of the Imperial family. The meeting was held in the Main Hall of the Ninomaru Palace. I reviewed the episode where Yoshinobu was at Nijo castle, the paintings on the walls were similar to the original ones in Ninomaru palace, however, it was hard to see in the drama if there were beautiful wood carvings above the sliding doors. Also I noticed that in the drama, the hallway floor where Tatewaki and the feudal lords had walked on were tatami mats, but in the original Ninomaru Palace it's a wooden floor and it would squeak when one walks on it. The squeaking sound was invented to warn the residents of invaders. The corridor design is called a "nightingale floor".
I also went to the Imperial Palace. I wanted to see Princess Kazunomiya's home, however I was a little early. The palace is open to the public twice in one year and only for a week. This Spring is from April 23 -29 and another one on Autumn.
Here are some photos I took.
http://www.rockyou.com/show_my_gallery.php?source=ppsl&instanceid=135655934
Taking pictures inside the Ninomaru Palace was not allowed.
Last edited by NChan, 4/7/2009, 3:53 pm
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4/7/2009, 2:38 pm
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NChan
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Princes Kazunomiya
I was browsing the Internet to look for some information about the Imperial Palace and I found this article about Princess Kazunomiya.
“Kazunomiya also took her appearance very seriously. She owned countless articles of clothing and was a slave to her hair. As an imperial princess, Kazunomiya always made sure to give a good presentation of herself.”
I think this explains why Princess Kazunomiya in Atsuhime always had a mirror with her when she came to Ooku. Tha attendants had mistaken it as a weapon, stirring a turmoil.
Women of Royalty
Princess Kazunomiya
Imperial Princess
Princess Seikan'in-no-miya or Seikan'in no Miya, known as Kazunomiya, was born in 1846, the eighth daughter of Emperor Ninko, the 120th Ruler of Japan. Her mother is not known, but it was probably a woman named Masako, who as the mother of Kazunomiya's older brother Komei, Ninko's 4th son. Her father died that same year, 1846, and Komei became the 121st Ruler at the age of 15. Ninko had been born Ayahito in 1800 to Emperor Kokaku and his wife Yasuko. When he was 9 he was named Crown Prince and he became the 120th Ruler upon the death of his father in 1817.
Kazunomiya grew up in the Imperial Court in Kyoto, where her brother, Emperor Komei, held court. Kazunomiya was a great lover of the arts. She danced and sang, but most importantly, she was a poet. Kazunomiya would spend hours composing poems and wakas. Historians today who have analyzed her wakas have found that she used this pastime to write down her life, told in poetic form, and her history. Kazunomiya also took her appearance very seriously. She owned countless articles of clothing and was a slave to her hair. As an imperial princess, Kazunomiya always made sure to give a good presentation of herself. She was an extraordinary child with her artistic talents. As a young girl, Kazunomiya was betrothed to the prince Arisugawa Taruhito, who also held the titles of governor and general. But all of that was about to change.
Read more:
http://royalwomen.tripod.com/id9.html
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4/7/2009, 3:19 pm
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Hiroshi66
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Re: J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
Thanks so much for posting the information on Princess Kazunomiya and those great photos of Nijo Castle, NChan! What a fascinating experience it must have been to walk around some of the locations we actually saw historical events take place in while we were watching Atsuhime. Hopefully, next time you go, you'll also be able to see Princess Kazunomiya's home in the Kyoto Imperial Palace.
I was reading about Shogun Yoshinobu, and I found it interesting that he was the only Tokugawa shogun who never stepped foot into Edo Castle during the entire period of his rule. Instead, he stayed away from Edo completely and administered the country from the Kyoto Nijo Castle. Like you mentioned, Nijo Castle was also where Yoshinobu relinquished power back to the Emperor in 1867.
Now it makes sense why Kazunomiya always carried a mirror around! I think I remember that episode -- Tenshoin and Takiyama were suspicious that Kazunomiya was concealing a dagger so she could harm Iemochi. But it turned out only to be a mirror. Kazunomiya (like Atsu) had a very difficult life. She lost her parents at a young age (her father died when she was but a few months old, and we saw her mother die in the Ooku when Kazunomiya was still 19 years old.) It must have been a lonely life, as well. I read that she never could get adjusted to live in Edo and only moved back to Tokyo because her nephew, Emperor Meiji, moved the Imperial Palace there and asked her to move to the new capital.
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4/8/2009, 6:57 am
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NChan
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Re: J-Drama: 篤姫 (Atsu-hime)
Hiroshi66, you're welcome! Everything in Nara & Kyoto was simply wonderful and amazing!!! Most of the historical sights (now world & national heritage) were one way or another connected or related to the Imperial and Tokugawa family. Glad to know about the family and the history a little bit, it made the experience and the feeling different and special when I was exploring the place that they have been in, seeing their work and the things they have valued. I could appreciate every detail of it. Thanks to Atsuhime, I came to love history and even became so engrossed with it which is good for me.
I will surely visit the Imperial Palace again. It's 8 hours away by car from where I am. Ido Castle is only 5 hours and Kasuga Mountain Castle (home of warlord Uesugi Kenshin - Taiga drama, Tenchijin) is 2 hours so I am also thinking about them. Gambarimasu.
Anyway, I have also wondered why Yoshinobu chose to stay in Kyoto and not in Ido during his rule. I assumed maybe it's because of Lady Tenshuin. He didn't like her very much in the drama, Atsuhime.
Also, here's more about Princess Kazunomiya, I found this interesting. It's from the book Royal Diaries: Kazunomiya: Prisoner of Heaven Japan , 1858 by Kathryn Lasky. Has anyone read this book?
For more than twenty years Japan had been isolated under its Chained-in Country policy. Foreigners were not to be trusted and virtually all foreign trade was prohibited. In 1846, Princess Kazunomiya was born into this world of international isolation. As the princess matures, her own sense of being isolated in the cloistered world of Japanese royalty mirrors her country’s Chained-in policy. Kazunomiya’s diary tells her story of royal intrigue, arranged marriages, and family loyalty set in a world of ceremony where beauty and literature are celebrated.
Read more:
http://www.scholastic.com/dearamerica/parentteacher/guides/royaldiaries/Kazunomiya.htm
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4/10/2009, 8:00 am
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