LIVINGTokyo’s Skytreetower, simplyawesome
TOKYO, Japan:
ROM THE outside, theTokyo Skytree tower inJapan stands almost isolated.
At 634 -metres, it is the world’s
tallest radio transmission tower
dwarfing some of its contemporaries – the 600-metre tower in
Canton, China, the CN Tower inToronto, Canada (553 metres), andeven the world-famous Eiffel
Tower (324 metres) in Paris,France.
At its highest point, the outside
air temperature is 5 degrees
Celsius. The tower was built after
high-rise construction negatively
affected the transmission of radioand television waves across thecity, and opened in 2012.
On the day I visited as a part of agroup of journalists, wide sheetsof slow moving wispy clouds
seemed to hug the area aroundthe tower.
Regardless, by the time we had
got to the 450 meter mark up thetower, the view below was still
spectacular.
Tokyo lay below us like tiny piecesof a jigsaw puzzle or a miniature
toy town set and we were in awe.
To make up for the grey outlook, we were given a treat; fittedwith 3-D visors, we were given a
virtual tour - a chance to experience being ‘outside’ alongside aprofessional window cleaner as heworked on the large windows,
connected by safety pulleys andcables.
The oohs and aahs kept coming
as the our ‘partner’, washed andwiped his way across the large
windows, and yes, we all gripped
our seats, holding on for dear life.
But safety is literally at theheart of the Skytree design.
Representatives say the tower wasbuilt to withstand even a large
earthquake measuring over 5.0
magnitude on the Richter scale, tothe extent that persons are askedF

Photo by Amitabh Sharma
View of Tokyo from Tembo Deck on 350th floor of Tokyo Sky Tree.
to stay inside instead of evacuating should there be an earthquake.
“If there is an earthquake, it
could be one of the safest places in
the world to be when that happens,” Megumi Onuma, the chief
publications officer of the Tobu
Corporation, which built the structure at a cost of more than 1.4 billion yen.
Skytree was designed incorporating a special thick steel column
which runs through the centre ofthe structure up to 400 metres allconnected to specially designed

triangular beams attached to its
concrete walls.
The triangular beams and centre column absorb the energy ofthe force during a quake, andwhile it will sway, the measure
prevents the building from crumbling under its own weight.
Onuma says the technology allows
Skytree to reduce the effects of aquake by almost 50 per cent.
Today, it remains one of the country’s premier tourist attractions,drawing more than four million
visitors annually for what is truly
an awesome experience.

What’s your view? Let us hear from you. Email: theweeklygleaner@gleaneruk.com

Photo Courtesy JTB Media Creation
A panoramic view of the metropolis of Tokyo with the Tokyo Skytree standing tall over the city

THE WEEKLY GLEANERNOVEMBER 16 - 22, 2017 • 9living
Glenda Anderson
Gleaner Reporter
KYOTO, Japan:
ERHAPS IF I hadn’t
stumbled into Tokyo,
Japan, a little after
4:00 p.m. bleary-eyed anddazed from a 13-hourjourney from Dallas, Texas
USA, I would have neverdiscovered one of thecountry’s delightful little
powerhouse of a meal.
Yes, I had eaten my way
across the Pacific Ocean (youknow things are going to be
special when you are given
hot towels midair to clean up
before a meal). But stillwhen I landed at Narita
International, I needed twothings; a warm beverage anda bed to fall into.
I found the bed first, awide flat number looking
something like a double andsingle pushed together, justhigh enough from the floor
not to hurt yourself should
you fall off. Perfect.
The warm I found last,
literally, at the end of mymeal. I spotted the cauldron
first and thought, oh great!
Soup. I love soups. I chargedPDiscoveringthe simple
joys ofmiso soupover, filled her up, settled
and was pleasantly
surprised.
Miso soup, a thin, mild
flavored broth is very
popular as a breakfast item,and its ingredients I’m told
are staples of Japanesekitchens. Miso itself is apaste made from fermented
soy beans, rice koji (cookedrice mixed with a mold tospeed up the fermentation),salt, rice and barley.
It varies from a whitish
color to dark brown,
depending on how long it
has been aged. A cook canadd a variety of ingredients,and most often it will
include cubed tofu (a firm,
mild soybean product) andseaweed.
Delicate, almost like a tea.
But it also has a nuanced
richness, savory from themiso paste and the
traditional Japanese dashi, acomplex flavored broth. Andyes, you may drink straightfrom the bowl.

Miso soup will vary as you
work your way acrossJapan. In Tokyo, miso souptends to be a darker variety.
Here in historic Kyoto,
Japan’s ancient capital,
culinary tradition dictatesthat miso is of the whitish
variety.
If done the traditional way,
miso paste is made in a twoton handmade cedar barrel
with the cooked ingredientsleft to ferment and cure

Photo by Floyd K.
Takeuchi/Waka Photos
Miso soup with wakame(seaweed) and diced tofu
and vegetables; and greentea.

under one ton of rocks,
which folklore says not evenhurricanes can shift.
Today, though, you don’t
need to have access to a tonof rocks to enjoy miso soup.
It’s available as a freezedried product, or in apacket in powdered form.
Add-ons such as seaweed,
freeze-dried tofu squares,
and others ingredients arealso included in theseconvenient formats. And ineither case, just add hotwater.
Although miso is central
to Japanese life and isserved as a daily item nomatter the meal, its historyis that is of Chinese,brought to Japan by
Buddhist monks.
Since it is made from rice,
it was originally considereda luxury item and only

consumed by royalty, butlater as persons learnt about
its energy-giving, and healthbenefits, it was used by thewider society. It is said thatthe samurai – traditional
Japanese warriors – evenadopted it as a staple part oftheir diet. Today, miso is asimple way to get anutritious, economicallypriced, and easy ‘go-to meal’
meal or comfort food.

What’s your view? Let us hear from you. Email: theweeklygleaner@gleaneruk.com

Enjoy Trelawny’s
Bunkers Hill Xperience
DESPITE A myriad challenges, culture andhistory remain an integral part of life in
Bunkers Hill, Trelawny, thanks to theBunkers Hill Cultural Xperience, an entity
devoted to keeping the history alive andexploiting its tourism potential.
The five-acre property, which houses theBunkers Hill Cultural Xperience, is apeaceful, lush green surrounding, which isenhanced by the colourful trees andshrubbery, near the Tangle River.
The property, which is jointly managed by
the husband and wife team of O’Brian andClover Gordon, was opened in July.
“We are here to uplift the community, andwe want everybody to see the vision so they
can jump on board,” said Clover. “Westrongly believe that Bunkers Hill can be oneof the best community tourist attractions inJamaica.”
The history on display comprises several
bamboo and thatched structures, similar tothe dwellings of the Taino natives, who lived
in the area centuries ago. There are also
several small caves at the site, which wereused by the Tainos and later by the Maroons.
Part of the experience is a guided tour to theneighbouring ruins of the former Dromilly
Great House.
Despite challenges such as the bad roads
leading into the community, the Gordons arecompletely focused on making the attraction,
which offer Jamaica food and drinks, abeautiful waterfall, wedding facilities, and abotanical garden, among other attractions, asuccess.
One of the objectives of the operators is toforge a partnership with the residents ofBunkers Hill and the surrounding
communities to ensure that they, too, canenjoy some of the benefits.
“Ninety per cent of the food and other10 • NOVEMBER 16 - 22, 2017

Kadeem Petgrave (forefront) and Simier Lansend (farright) at Bunker’s Hill, Trelawny, with Boston College
students.

The Falls at Two Hills is situated a few minutes from
Bunkers Hill, Trellawny.
products that we use on the property comefrom the community,” said Gordon.
“We see this as a social enterprise, and wewant the community to have a say in what
we do here. All the staff members that weemploy are from Bunkers Hill, Dromilly, andsurrounding areas.”

THE WEEKLY GLEANER