KIPS 2011

Kyoto International Photo Showcase 2011

日本語 Updated: Our group photo exhibition in Kyoto went very well. It was great meeting people and explaining about our pictures and work. Thank you to all who came to… Read more

B-class food festival in Shiga

Shiga’s 1st B-grade (B-kyu) Gourmet Battle (第1回 滋賀B級グルメバトル) was held in Otsu on July 30-31, 2011 on the Hama-Otsu lakefront from 3 pm to 9 pm. B-grade or B-class gourmet (B-kyu… Read more

Fewer JR train runs in Shiga

From April 2011, JR trains in Shiga and the Kansai area will be running less frequently. West Japan Railway Co. announced that factories in Tohoku and Ibaraki Prefecture which make… Read more

Earthquake hotline for foreigners

An NPO in Otsu called National Managerial Council for Multicultural Information & Assistance (Tabunka Kyosei Manager Zenkoku Kyogikai 多文化共生マネージャー全国協議会) has set up a telephone hotline for foreigners in Japan wanting… Read more

Shiga Lakestars Head Coach Ishibashi fired

Ishibashi Takatoshi (石橋貴俊) has been fired as the head coach of the Shiga Lakestars, one of the bj league’s pro basketball teams in the Western Conference. The team announced the… Read more

Sumo wrestler Nionoumi from Shiga

The January 2011 Hatsu Basho grand sumo tournament saw a newly-promoted Juryo wrestler named Nionoumi (鳰の湖). Nionoumi is from Otsu, Shiga Prefecture. His ring name (shikona) means Lake of the… Read more

Guesthouse AN, Otsu

I recently visited Guesthouse AN in Otsu which opened as a backpackers’ hostel in Nov. 2010. I was invited by the proprietors Mr. and Mrs. Shuji Fujisawa. I had been… Read more

Biwako Basho sumo held in Otsu

Only two years after the Maibara Basho sumo exhibition tournament was held in Oct. 2008, grand sumo came to Shiga again during Oct. 24-25, 2010. It was to mark the… Read more