Japan Remembers March 11th Tohoku Earthquake

Image from 7News

Today, March 11th marks the first anniversary of the horrific earthquake and tsunami that devastated the coastline of north-eastern Japan. The Japanese government will hold a memorial service at the National Theatre, which faces the Imperial Palace grounds in Tokyo to mourn the disaster. At 2.46pm trains will stop, shoppers will stand still and people throughout Japan will fall silent to mark the exact moment when the 9.0 magnitude quake set off a catastrophic chain of events.

Lady Gaga Promotes Japan

Japan has recruited Lady Gaga to promote and spread the word that much of Japan is safe for visitors. Japan is still recovering from March’s devastating earthquake and tsunami, but has now stepped up efforts to draw foreign travellers back to Japan. The Japan National Tourism Organisation (JNTO) efforts include online videos of race car drivers, ice skaters and other celebrities like Lady Gaga urging travellers to visit the country. In an online video shot before a benefit concert in Tokyo in June, Lady Gaga says “I can’t say enough to people all over the world that the majority of Japan … is very safe”.

The northern summer months are vital to Japan’s foreign tourism industry with the nation traditionally reporting some of its highest tourist numbers in July and August. As part of its effort to lure visitors before the northern summer ends, the JNTO recently posted online the radiation levels for down town Tokyo that the tourism group says are lower than in tourist destinations such as New York, Singapore and Hong Kong.

The JNTO has been focusing its efforts on showing people that Japan is safe for travel and that it’s business as usual in Tokyo and most other major cities in Japan.

You can read more here about Is it Safe to Travel to Japan

Lady Gaga Promotes Japan as a Safe Destination

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Bid

Tokyo on Saturday formally announced its bid to host the 2020 Olympics. Japan’s Olympic Committee sees the bid as a symbol of Japan’s determination to recover from the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Tokyo, which hosted Asia’s first Olympics in 1964, lost out to Rio de Janeiro in the race to host the 2016 Olympics. The 1964 Tokyo Olympics was where Japan was able to show the world how much Japan had recovered from the disaster of the second World War. The Olympic Committee wants to make the 2020 games a similar symbol of recovery from the major disasters Japan has recently suffered.

What do you think? Is this games bid a vital component to Japan road to recovery?

The Real Ninja, Amazing Facts about the Ninja

Virtual Dinner in Tokyo’s A.R.T Gallery

Australian artist SHAN is hosting a virtual dinner party in Tokyo’s A.R.T Gallery, with the aim of exploring possibilities for Japan’s future in light of the recent devastating earthquake and tsunami. Twenty Japanese guests will sit down to a three-course dinner prepared by Maggie Beer as we look on through a live internet feed. Though we won’t be able to taste the food at the party, we can join in on the conversation; a live Twitter feed will allow participants to ask the guests questions. The guests will range from Governor Ishihara, the Governor of Tokyo to Ms. Rio, a night club dancer. You can view the full Guest List at the link below.

The live event will take place on Sunday July 17th at 6pm AET, at shan.net.au

Image from shan.net.au

Other ways you can help the disaster relief effort in Japan

Songs for Japan

2:46: Aftershocks: Stories from the Japan Earthquake