JR West to debut world's fastest bullet train on March 22
West Japan Railway Co. (JR West) announced December 6 it will put into service on March 22 the 500 System next-generation bullet train.The train will travel between Shin-Osaka and Hakata stations on the Sanyo Shinkansen Line at a maximum speed of 300kph, the world record shared with France's TGV for regular train service.The train, called Nozomi, will start service at the same time as the JR Group revises its rail timetables.The 500 System Nozomi will make one return trip per day, running between the two stations in 2 hours and 17 minutes, 15 minutes less than the time required by existingNozomi bullet trains.
The new Nozomi train is scheduled to depart Shin-Osaka Station at 7:53 a.m. and arrive at Hakata Station at 10:10 a.m.It leaves Hakata at 7:21 p.m. and arrives at Shin-Osaka at 9:38 p.m.The train will stop at Okayama, Hiroshima and Kokura stations.
While the 500 System Nozomi is set to connect Shin-Osaka Station and Hakata Station at an average speed of 242.5kph, the train is expected to run between Hiroshima and Kokura stations at an average speed of 261.8kph, setting a new world record for average train speed between neighboring stations.JR West plans to submit an application to have the record listed in the Guinness Book of Records.
The TGV holds the current world record, running between Paris and St.-Pierre-des-Corps at 253kph.
Major marina complex to be built on Sakai
Osaka Prefecture and the City of Kobe received December 9 central government approval for plans to develop Osaka waterfront areas.The two governments worked out their respective plans according to the Osaka Bay Coastal Area Development Law.A total of 16 core facilities in five areas have been designated as projects that qualify for preferential taxation and financial treatment.
Osaka Prefecture has plans for four areas: the northern Sakai coastal area (617 hectares), the Izumiotsu-Takaishi coastal area (146 hectares), Rinku Town and peripheral areas (346 hectares), and the Izumi-Kishiwada hilly area (356 hectares).Kobe plans to develop a new metropolitan subcenter (120 hectares) in the eastern part of the city.
Of particular note is the northern Sakai plan which will use reclaimed land off the coast of the City of Sakai and other land tracts.Planned for the project is the construction of a major marina complex to support international yacht races.Among the other facilities planned for the area are a large stadium for sporting and recreational events, a medical research and training center, and an environmental research facility.Most of these projects will be undertaken as government/private joint ventures.The target years for opening the various facilities are 2005 and 2010.
Western Japan firms increase overseas investment: JEXIM
Direct overseas investment by manufacturers based in the Kansai area and further west is projected to rise 34.2% from a year earlier in fiscal 1996, according to a survey released by the Export-Import Bank of Japan (JEXIM) December 4.Investment by the 88 firms which provided valid responses is expected to total$B!o (B253.2 billion.By region, Asia is seen as the priority, and by industrial sector, electrical machinery and electronics are the leading players.
Asked about mid-term projections through fiscal 1999, 71.7% said they plan to invest overseas, and of those 71.6% plan to increase investment during this period, pointing to a continued upward trend in direct investment abroad.
Some 62.2% of the areas where they plan to increase investment are concentrated in Asia.
China outpaced other countries, placing first as the most attractive area for mid-term (over the next three years or so) and long-term (over the next decade) investment by businesses in western Japan.
The bank sent questionnaires to 208 manufacturers located in western Japan with more than three overseas subsidiaries with 114 firms responding.
Largest underground shopping mall to open in May in Osaka
"Crysta Nagahori" has been chosen as the name of the subterranean shopping mall under construction in Chuo Ward, the City of Osaka and Osaka Nagahori Development Inc. said December 6.Slated for opening in late May 1997, the mall will have a floor space of 81,800 sq. meters, including the parking lot, making it the largest shopping area in Japan, surpassing the 68,468 sq. meter underground Yaesu shopping mall in Tokyo.
Construction of the subterranean mall began in October 1992 with$B!o (B80 billion.It runs for 730 meters under Nagahori-dori Street, which until about 30 years ago was a canal.
The mall has four underground levels that will house a parking lot capable of accommodating 1,030 cars and a shopping zone comprised of some 100 outlets.The mall is also linked via concourse to two subway stations on the Nagahori-Tsurumiryokuchi Line, which started operation December 11.
A total of 260 meters of the arcade are covered by a glass ceiling, allowing for sunlight to enter.The ceiling has been designed to allow an artificial creek, a recreation of Nagahori River, to flow over its surface.
Aquarium Kaiyukan to build fish research base in Kochi Pref.
Osaka Waterfront Development Co., the operator of Osaka Aquarium Kaiyukan, announced December 10 plans to build a base for the research, collection and farming of fish in Iburi Port, Tosashimizu, Kochi Prefecture.Construction will start in March, with opening slated for July 1997.Before its opening until the present, Kaiyukan has collected fish in the port and used local fish preserves to research fish which are displayed for viewing purposes.
The whale shark "Kai-kun," the most popular fish at Kaiyukan, was moved from the port.The aquarium will build a permanent research base in the port to improve the system for raising fish and present a greater variety for public viewing.
The research base will be built on a 1,650 sq. meter site and include an administration building, a major fish tank (20 meters in diameter and 5 meters in depth), as well as several smaller tanks.These facilities will be used to grow fish such as whale sharks and ocean sunfish, whose life cycle still remains largely unknown.
Kaiyukan officials intend to transform the base into a marine biological research center in the future in collaboration with universities.
Hyogo Pref., Kobe to hold memorial services for quake victims
Hyogo Prefecture announced December 10 it will hold a memorial service for the victims of the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake on January 17, 1997, the second anniversary of the temblor, at Hyogo House in Chuo Ward, Kobe.Expected to participate in the service are about 500 people, as invitations are being extended to representatives of those who lost relatives, members of the Imperial Family, central government officials and other concerned parties.
The service will run from 11:55 a.m. until 1 p.m.After the latest list of victims' names is presented, all in attendance will offer silent prayers at noon.Then representatives of the bereaved families will read memorial writings and flowers will be presented.
The City of Kobe will also hold a service in memory of the quake victims at Kobe Port Island Hall in Chuo Ward from 10:30 a.m. the same day.In addition, the municipal government will organize a series of nine projects centering on January 17 to mark the second anniversary of the disaster.
Kansai in Focus: Annual Kaomise at Kyoto's Minamiza brings top Kabuki stars together
Kyoto is the birthplace of Kabuki, one of Japan's representative classical theater arts.The Minamiza Theater, located on the eastern side of Shijo Ohashi Bridge in present-day Kyoto's Higashiyama Ward, has been presenting Kabuki performances for well over 300 years.Throughout this long history, special year-end performances called Kaomise have been staged each year without fail, and this year is no exception.This gala event, which brings together Kabuki stars from both Kansai and Kanto, is being held this year in November and December, with the final performance scheduled for December 25.Before the start of the Kaomise season, a giant wooden board called maneki kanban, on which are written the stage names of all the performers in a unique calligraphy style, is prominently displayed above the main entrance of the theater.The Minamiza's Kaomise is a time-honored tradition in the ancient capital, and for the people of Kyoto, the appearance of this board is the harbinger of another year drawing to a close.
Kabuki's origins are attributed to a woman known as Izumo no Okuni.She performed with her theatrical troupe on the Shijo-Gawara dry bed of Kamogawa River, right by the present Minamiza, in 1603.Her performances, combining dance, music and dramatic sketches, grew tremendously popular and came to be known as Okuni Kabuki.Very little is known of Okuni's life, but she is remembered with a monument in front of the Minamiza, which marks the spot as the birthplace of Okuni Kabuki.The success of Okuni Kabuki led to the flowering of Onna Kabuki, which was performed exclusively by women.During the period from 1615 to 1623, the magistrate of the Tokugawa Shogunate in Kyoto granted seven licenses to theatrical companies in the Shijo-Gawara area.The Minamiza was one of these.Although women's Kabuki was eventually banned by the authorities for "corrupting public morals," Kabuki as an art form remained.The seven original theaters closed one after another, however, and by 1893, the Minamiza was the only one still in operation.It was taken over by the forerunner of today's Shochiku Co. in 1906, and has thrived ever since.
During the Tokugawa period, all the theaters would sign one-year agreements with actors every October for performances to be held the following year.These actors were then presented en masse to the public in special performances held in November.This event came to be known as Kaomise, which literally means "showing of the faces," and the Minamiza has also followed this tradition through the ages.Although in modern times the Kaomise performances are generally held in December, they sometimes begin in November to mark a special occasion.Renowned Kabuki stage names are passed on from generation to generation if young actors are found deserving.And this year, the handing down of the name of Onoe Kikunosuke for the fifth time provided the auspicious reason for a two-month Kaomise season.Since Shochiku took over the Minamiza, the company has been the chief presenter of Kabuki for the Japanese public in both Kansai and Kanto.Consequently, the Minamiza's Kaomise production always promises a "grand joint Kabuki performance of East and West."East and West refers to Kanto and Kansai, which have evolved different styles and laid the basis for two groups of performers.The Minamiza's Kaomise brings them all together in a festive event, which heralds the end of one year and the start of another.