The Music and Community of Sado Island’s Earth Celebration Festival

Sado Island’s Earth Celebration, one of Japan’s most anticipated music festivals, welcomes musicians, artists and spectators from around Japan and the world every August. In 2019, the event brought around 35,000 attendees to the island.

This year will mark the festival’s 36th anniversary, and festivalgoers will be spoiled for choice with a myriad of activities and performances planned to take place from August 18 to 20, 2023.

Photo by Kota Yoshida

The Beat of Sado Island

While Earth Celebration is a music festival at its core, the event also features outdoor activities, markets and cultural events inspired by Sado Island. The Kodo Taiko Performing Arts Ensemble and Sado city hosted the event, which started as an initiative to showcase and share the unique local culture of this region of Niigata Prefecture. In the fall 1983 edition of “Kodo,” the taiko group’s newsletter, founding member and spiritual pillar Toshio Kawauchi discussed

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6 Kagurazaka Coffee Shops Worth Checking Out

Known for geisha and French restaurants, Kagurazaka is one of Tokyo’s most charming and refined areas. It has stayed true to itself throughout the decades, slowly incorporating novelty without overdoing it. That’s why, in our recommendations for where to sip the best Kagurazaka coffee, there’s a century-old place, a French patisserie, a shrine and a Thai coffeeshop. Together, this variety makes Kagurazaka special.

Canal Cafe

This is an iconic establishment at the foot of hilly Kagurazaka that has been around for more than 100 years. As the name suggests, this café is on the canal, right by JR Iidabashi Station. Whether you’re inside or outside, you can watch the trains stream by, the boats lulling in the water and the office buildings rising behind and lighting up in the evening. During spring, Canal Cafe is also a wonderful cherry blossom viewing spot, with the caveat of long lines and big

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Canada travel: 13 more countries eligible for visa-less visits

Canada is expanding the list of countries whose residents are eligible to visit this country without a travel visa.

People traveling by air from Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Costa Rica, Morocco, Panama, Philippines, St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Seychelles, Thailand, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay can now do so for up to six months without a visa, according to a release by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.

“This exciting development means that more individuals from around the world can now embark on unforgettable adventures, explore our diverse landscapes, reunite with family and friends, and immerse themselves in our vibrant culture without the hurdle of visa requirements,” said Immigration Minister Sean Fraser in a statement issued Tuesday. “This expansion not only enhances convenience for travelers, it will also increase travel, tourism and economic benefits, as well as strengthen global bonds with these 13 countries.”

The

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19 Things To Do in Tokyo This Week: June 26–July 2

This week is your last chance to catch spring-inspired afternoon tea campaigns and special exhibitions. On the weekend, kick off the month of July with live music events organized by More Than Music. This and more things to do in Tokyo this week, all listed below.

Community Events

1.
Omotenashi Selection Awardees at Shishokuya

Shishokuya is a new specialty shop where you can sample food and drink items from all over Japan for free before purchasing. It’s a rare experience and it can be exciting to get to know the unique products by actually tasting them.

date & time UNTIL Jun 30, 2023・11:00-19:00
Price Food and drink sampling is free
Location

試食専門店 試食屋

Live Events

2.
MTM Presents: Till Death Do Us Part vol.2

A live music event organized by More Than Music for all rock lovers, the special guest this time is Yeti Valhalla, who headlined the annual

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This $16 Fanny Pack With 32,000+ 5-star Ratings Has a Genius Feature That Prevents Pickpocketing

Dotdash Meredith and Yahoo Inc. may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below.

The Amazon best-seller gets this travel writer’s stamp of approval.

<p>Travel + Leisure / Reese Herrington</p>

Travel + Leisure / Reese Herrington

I haven’t always been a fan of belt bags. Several years ago, this travel writer would have roasted my friends and family if they wore a fanny pack. However, these days, I don’t leave home without wearing my valuables around my waist. Why am I suddenly a fan of fanny packs?

It helps that they came back in style a few years ago. But my biggest reason is that fanny packs are practical — and after a pickpocketing incident in Paris, I’m convinced they’re the best way to keep my valuables safe (not to mention keeping my hands free for toting bags, texting, carrying espressos , etc.) While the first fanny pack I got this year was

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Wajima City: A Home to Festivals of Fire and Light

Located in the picturesque Ishikawa Prefecture, the Noto Peninsula’s Wajima city is famed for its history, natural beauty, and a charming market culture that today draws in tourists from Japan and abroad. Nestled against the Sea of ​​Japan, Wajima is also known for typically milder summers than Tokyo, making it a great place to enjoy the warmer months without being overwhelmed.

Originally founded during the Middle Ages around a temple that served as the head of the Soto Sect of Buddhism, today known as Sojiji, Wajima continues to maintain close ties with its storied history, while also offering an impressive number of things to see and do for those who visit.

Shiroyone Senmaida rice terraces

Nature and Traditions

One of Wajima’s most stunning and famous scenes is Shiroyone Senmaida. A terrace of rice fields, of which there is precisely 1004, Shiroyone Senmaida is an incredible location overlooking the Sea

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Jamie West pushes for an increase in Northern Health Travel Grant

Sudbury MPP told the Ontario Legislature that the mileage rates and hotel allowances are not sufficient to cover travel costs

Sudbury MPP Jamie West is pushing the Ontario government to make the Northern Health Travel Grant more accessible for financially strapped patients who may not be able to afford the up-front costs for medical travel.

Speaking at Queen’s Park Thursday during the final Question Period for the current sitting of the Legislature, West said many Northerners need to travel to Southern Ontario to receive specialized medical treatment that might not be available to them at home.

In order to qualify for the medical travel grant, a Northern Ontario patient must fill out a form to determine if they qualify for financial assistance. Patients must fill out a new and separate application form for each trip they take. Under the current system, patients must pay for trips and accommodation on their

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The Destruction of Japan’s Spiritual Home of Rugby

The first time I watched a game of rugby at Chichibunomiya Stadium, I was immediately taken back. Not by the narrow loss the Tokyo Sunwolves sustained that day — such was the quotidian condition of their short tenure in Super Rugby — but by how much the stadium felt like a thread in the greater fabric of Tokyo.

Constructed in 1947, and later named in memory of Japan’s “Sporting Prince,” Yasuhito, Prince Chichibu, the stadium is bound by the skyscrapers of Aoyama on one side and a famous avenue of centenarian gingko trees on the other. In a metropolis where every inch of real estate comes at a premium, it feels apt to be sandwiched between sacred green space and the towering symbols of modernity.

Chichibunomiya is characterized more by this setting than by any inherent aesthetic, or even utilitarian, values. It’s creaking under its 76-year-old weight, lacking in modern

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I-95 Lanes Collapse in Philadelphia, Causing Travel Delays That Will Last Months: ‘Complete Devastation’

“I found myself thanking the Lord that no motorists who were on I-95 were injured or died,” said the Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro

<p>City of Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management via Getty Images</p> I-95 collapsed

City of Philadelphia Office of Emergency Management via Getty Images

I-95 collapsed

A section of Interstate 95 lanes collapsed in Philadelphia after a truck carrying a “petroleum-based product” caught fire under the highway, according to state officials.

On Sunday around 6:20 am, a vehicle fire underneath the northbound lanes of I-95 caused a section of the roadway to collapse, and heavily damaged the southbound structure. The interstate is now closed in both directions.

At a press conference Sunday evening, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro said one vehicle is still trapped underneath but no injuries or fatalities have been reported.

Shapiro, 49, said he’d toured the accident from above and saw “just complete devastation.”

“This incident will cause significant disruption, not only to residents and businesses in the area,

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Canadians spend more on travel than pre-pandemic

Canadians are continuing to spend more money on travel as the industry rebounds slowly from pandemic disruptions, according to RBC Economics — but many are opting for closer destinations, with travel to the US on the rise.

Spending on travel has increased almost 30 per cent above pre-pandemic levels, according to an RBC Proof Point report published at the end of May.

In January 2022, Canadians were spending roughly 60 per cent less on travel than they did before the pandemic began. But that number soon shot up, and has remained high.

Between January and April 2023, more than 10 million Canadians took trips abroad, which is a seven per cent increase compared to the same period in 2019.

Last summer, hotels and tours were much more expensive than they were in 2019, with flights more than 30 per cent more expensive and rental cars priced 50 per cent higher.

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