Birthplace: Honmoku (Motomachi)
Born: 1964
From the street, the entrance to Rising Sun looks like a tunnel to a time warp. It is! Beyond the Pink Floyd and David Bowie posters lies a staircase that leads down to a room packed with clothing and other accessories from the 1960s and 70s. You will notice the owner almost immediately. He is very tall and dressed rather smartly. He is also guaranteed to be smiling—always smiling. Anyone who smiles this much must be crazy, right? Nope, he’s just that happy.
■ Opened in 2000.
■ Says Iketani, “I was originally working at a company involved with imports, but the main office was in Tokyo. Naturally, I wanted to do something in Yokohama. I liked British music and I also like clothing so I opened this store.” (When we interviewed him he was spinning a vintage record from The Cure)
■ Rare item in his store: a 1960s Harris Tweed Jacket
■ When not working he listens to music. Most of his vinyl record collection contains 1970s rock. He also likes cooking and says he is best at Chinese food.
■ What he likes about Yokohama: It has a culture that is distinct and independent from Tokyo’s. It also “looks smart.”
Words of parting: “Please drop by if you’d like to transform your look.”
Rising Sun
〒231-0002 横浜市中区海岸通1-1海洋会館B1
Naka-ku, Kaigan-dori 1-1 Kaiyo Kaikan B1
Tel: 045-681-1433
営業時間: 日・火 12:00〜19:00, 水-土 12:00〜20:00
休館日:月曜日
Site: www.risingsun-yokohama.com
The Yokohama Museum of Art is now hosting the first large-scale exhibition of Kaneuji Teppei, a young artist who has been highly lauded by many over the last few years.
Sculpture that like a pillar of ice looks as if white resin were going to trickle down at any moment, mural drawings that bear the silhouette of an aerial continent and more. Teppei Kaneuji’s work poses a visual riddle that upsets the boundaries between movement and invariability, between substance and illusion.
Using collage and bricollage techniques, in other words, pasting and assembling a mishmash of objects together, Kaneuji says, “I want to create something you feel you’ve seen before, but don’t understand.” In the process, Kaneuji creates an as-yet-unknown form of plastic art that incorporates familiar objects like magazine clippings, plastic manufactured goods, and wood. These works of art stimulate the viewer with a cross between pleasant childhood memories of being engrossed with a particular game and complex amalgamated images with evocative intellectual associations.
The artist’s first exploration into large-scale animation and an enormous installation piece reaching over 10m in length are the centerpieces of a collection comprising 110 pieces of primarily new work. It all starts with white space. It ends in a world overflowing with objects of vivid color that establish the framework within which this dynamic exhibition space has been created. It’s like stepping into a forest or city full of vitality.
(Text care of Yokohama Museum of Art)
Yokohama Museum of Art
〒220-0012横浜市西区
みなとみらい３−４−１
3-4-1 Minatomirai, Nishi-ku
Yokohama 220-0012
Tel: 045-221-0300
Fax: 045-221-0317
休館日: 施設点検日（不定期）および年末年始
開館時間: 午前10時〜午後10時（展示時間は企画によって異なります）
Hours: 10:00 – 22:00, with occasional holidays. Closed at year’s end. Exhibit times vary.
Site: www.yaf.or.jp/yma
The festival had humble beginnings. Many years ago, famed mime Mitsuhashi Ikuo, who had performed professionally for over ten years in Europe, began to perform outside his circus and performance equipment shop in Noge-cho to attract people (the shop is still open!). From there, it became a regular event, with the number of performers increasing each time. The festival gradually spread from Noge-cho, spilling into the Minato-mirai area. This year, it reaches as far as Bashamichi, Kannai and Isezaki-cho. Jugglers, mimes, comedians, acrobats, dancers, clowns and even some post-modern performers too unusual to categorize will be on the streets between April 25th and 26th. Expect anything, expect everything. Or just leave your expectations at home and come out. You won’t be disappointed. Best of all, it’s free!
Site: Yokohama Daidôgei
I’ve never had a massage of any kind before so I was a little apprehensive about leaping completely into the unknown at a Thai massage parlor. But the staff at Padma were friendly and the aromatic interior with traditional Thai décor immediately put me at ease. There are a number of courses to choose from: traditional Thai massage, oil massage, aroma oil massage, as well as combinations of the three for periods of 60, 90 or 120 minutes (extensions of 30 minutes are possible). They also had foot massages from 30 minutes. I decided to go with the hour-long aroma oil massage, as scent can be an important part of relaxation.
After taking a shower in their facilities, I wrapped a towel around me and lay down on a heated bed. The masseuse placed a sheet over me and then removed the towel. She started with my legs and eventually worked to my arms, neck and back. The techniques of this particular massage included stroking, kneeding and light palm pressure with aromatic oil. I was relieved it wasn’t an extremely vigorous massage (the kind that can sometimes hurt) and I even fell asleep at one point! As someone who works at a computer all day, it was a divine hour.
Next time, I think I’ll try the more traditional Thai massage which involves yoga-like stretching with the help of the masseuse. It is a little more rigorous, but apparently more energizing.
Padma
〒231-0868 横浜市中区石川町2-64
プラザセレス石川 1F
Naka-ku, Ishikawacho 2-64 1F
Tel: 045-342-8080
営業時間:午前11:00〜23:00まで
Hours: 11:00 – 23:00
Thai (60 min~): 6,000~
Oil (60 min~): 9,000~
Aroma Oil (60 min~): 10,000~
Combo (60 min~): 10,000~
Feet (30 min~): 4,000~
Site: www.padma-motomachi.com
For visitors as well as longtime residents and natives of Yokohama, this museum can be an enlightening and enjoyable stroll through history. Yokohama has been twice reborn and these exhibits allow visitors to better appreciate the city’s character and appeal.
Housed in a charming brick building, the museum mainly showcases artifacts of an older Yokohama, including antique typewriters, 19th century gaslights and fire hydrants. The most remarkable exhibits are the photographs and maps documenting Yokohama’s several radical makeovers. Through these materials, guests can develop a deeper understanding of the lasting impact of the Great Kanto Earthquake (1923) and the American air raids of 1945. Among the more interesting materials is an American Air Force map that shows which blocks had been bombed.
Another exhibit illustrates the everyday lives of Yokohama’s citizens. Surprisingly, many of the familiar urban playgrounds such as Isezaki-cho and Noge-cho have held the same roles for decades. Nostalgic photographs documenting the development, expansion, and destruction of public transport in Yokohama are also on display. Check out the videos and interactive ‘before and after’ photo exhibits. Alas, the English translations are sparse, but the museum is visually stimulating enough to make the visit worth it.
The 2nd and 3rd floor of the building contain the Museum of Eurasian Cultures, which would interest those with a passion for Asian scholarship (especially from Western perspectives). The library on the second floor includes books in several languages that could entertain any history buff for hours. The gift shop on the first floor has handicrafts and books relating to western Asia.
Museum of Urban Development & City Museum of Eurasian Culture
〒231-0021 横浜市中区日本大通3
Naka-ku, 12 Nihon-odori
開館時間:9:30～17:00（入館は16:30まで）
休館日:月曜日
入館料:大人２００円、 小中学生１００円
Tel: 045-663-2424
Hours: 9:30 – 17:00 (admission until 16:30), closed Mon
Fees: adults, 200 yen; primary & junior high school students, 100 yen.
Sites: www.tohatsu.city.yokohama.jp | www.eurasia.city.yokohama.jp
Conveniently located, relaxing and, most importantly, delicious—Hama Café definitely deserves a visit if you are in the area. Its high ceilings and cheerful décor are refreshing and the staff is young and friendly. The menu is not very big, but the food is light and almost certain to please. Their flagship meal is the daily pasta, though we couldn’t resist the Hawaiian loco moco either. Perhaps a bigger draw is their ample dessert menu, with an array of cakes, parfaits and other sweets. For drinks, there is coffee, tea, cocktails and wine from France and Italy. Menu items are all under 1000 yen! It’s possible to have a party for groups of four to sixteen people and if you have more than ten, you can rent the place out.
(small dogs are OK!)
Hama Cafe
〒231-0002 横浜市中区海岸通1-1
Naka-ku, Kaigan-dori 1-1
Tel/Fax: 045-650-6225
Hours: Mon-Fri 11 – 23:00, Sun 11 – 22:00, closed 1st & 3rd Mon
Cafe Time: 11:00 – 18:00
Bar Time: 18:00 – 23:00 (Sun, 18:00 – 22:00)
営業時間：月〜土 : 11：00〜23：00, 日: 11：00〜22：00, 休日： 第１・３月曜日
カフェ・タイム： 11：00〜18：00
バー・タイム： 18：00〜23：00 (日曜22：00)
Site: www.u-earth.jp/hamacafe
