Biscuit with mousies (september 7th 2006)

(On the occassion of the birth of the new imperial prince, the Dutch traditionaly celebrate a newborn with biscuits covered with pink and white sugar sprinkles "mousies")
Of course we ran directly to the neighbours to congratulate. A television crew was just leaving so who knows the emperor might appreciate a little chat over a cup of fine green tea. Anyway a nice incentive to show to you something special in the heart of Tokyo.
The emperor is considered the child of the Sun Godess and represents the godly and spiritual power. Besides the imperial power we find the managing power of politics, bureaucracy and industry. In Shogun times the military were in charge. The Shogun was the generalissimo and had more power than the emperor. The actual power is most of the times somewhere between the powers as mentioned.
Today the industry and the bureaucracy mainly are in charge. The power of democracy (politics) is limited, in the nineties Japan wore out 12 prime ministers in 10 years. According to my professor Japan is de facto a socialist country with excellent management. Hilarious moments when president Bush made a remark on the war in Iraq stating "by bombing a country a nutritious soil for growing democracy is created, see the example of Japan".
The emperor's power is actually very limited but the idea 'godly' is confusing for many people. I checked with my professor. The emperor had limited powers indeed, also during WWII. Nevertheless it might be the case that Japan just doesn't want the emperor to be held responsible. The imperial family still has a very high status. Recently books are published telling that emperor Hirohito did know what was going on and failed to use his powers to change the course of events. Saying that having such a debate in Japan is very exceptional is an understatement.
Exceptional though is that in this survey of powers one group is missing: the people. Prime minister Koizumi tried to incorporate the people in the balance of powers. Koizumi is resigning.












All buildings in the view of the imperial palace are kept clean of advertising. Beautiful.


And this is Tokyo in optima forma. Beautiful spots with lush greenery and quietness, but also bustling streets with skyscrapers. Seamless next to each other. This theme is found thoughout Japan, in everything. Super high rise neighboring traditional wooden houses. Ultra modern with a profound respect to nature. An almost hysterical dealing with electronic gadgets next to the ambition to experience nothingness (Zen). Being impressed by fragility. Thriving for the perfect, while in art the beauty of the imperfect is key. Japan is ... and also ...