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Linda Inoki
For Linda Inoki's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
LIFE
Mar 25, 2012
Tracing the trees in a long national love affair
When five shell-pink buds open together on a particular tree in the precincts of Yasukuni Shrine in central Tokyo, the city explodes with the joy of spring. The cherry-blossom season has officially begun!
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Dec 17, 2008
Ichigo (Strawberry)
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Dec 3, 2008
Hiiragi-nanten (Mahonia)
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Nov 19, 2008
Isogiku ("Silver and gold" chrysanthemum)
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Nov 5, 2008
Shibugaki (Persimmon)
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Oct 15, 2008
Akebi (Chocolate vine)
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Oct 1, 2008
Balloon vine
Whither does he make his way?Only where the autumn winds blow The little pilgrim!
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Sep 17, 2008
Fig
Across the sea a land there is,Where, if fate will, men may have bliss, For it is fair as any land: There hath the reaper a full hand, While in the orchard hangs aloft The purple fig, a-growing soft.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Sep 3, 2008
Blackberry
He roves, half-indolent and self-employed, To rob the little birds, Of hips and pendant haws, And sloes, dim-covered as with dewy veils And rambling bramble-berries, pulpy and sweet,Arching their prickly trails Half o'er the narrow lane.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Aug 20, 2008
Calabash or Gourd
The neighborhood was a poor one, chiefly of small houses. Some were leaning precariously and there were "evening faces" at the sagging eaves.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Aug 6, 2008
Sunflower
Ah Sunflower, weary of time, Who countest the steps of the sun; Seeking after that sweet golden climeWhere the traveller's journey is done;Where the Youth pined away with desire,And the pale virgin shrouded in snow, Arise from their graves, and aspire Where my Sunflower wishes to go!
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Jul 16, 2008
Flax
It was the schooner Hesperus, That sailed the wint'ry sea; And the skipper had taken his little daughter, To bear him company.Blue were her eyes as the fairy-flax,Her cheeks like the dawn of day, And her bosom white as the hawthorn buds That ope in the month of May.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Jul 2, 2008
Evening primrose
Although I am sure That he will not be coming, In the evening light When the locusts shrilly callI go to the door and wait.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Jun 18, 2008
Spiderwort
In the dew of little things, the heart finds its morning and is refreshed.
ENVIRONMENT / IN BLOOM
Jun 4, 2008
Lavender
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Oct 31, 2007
Tokyo's botanical beauty
A FLOWER LOVER'S GUIDE TO TOKYO: 40 Walks for All Seasons, by Sumiko Enbutsu (Kodansha International, ¥2,200)
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / GARDEN PATHS
Jul 24, 2004
Down by the watersides
In the heat of summer we are naturally drawn to water, and for centuries water has been a vital element in Oriental gardens. In the ninth century, the Chinese poet Po-Chu-i (known as Hakurakuten in Japan) wrote about a small pond in his garden, and his words still evoke the timeless pleasures of the waterside:
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / GARDEN PATHS
Dec 25, 2003
A romantic gem in Tokyo's heart
Japanese gardens were designed for poetry, music and romance; think of all those lovers in "The Tale of Genji" trailing through dew-drenched gardens to trysts with ladies of their dreams.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / GARDEN PATHS
Nov 27, 2003
Beauty out of a beast
In a megalopolis like Tokyo you are more likely to see gardens disappearing than otherwise. But here is an encouraging story about one that sprang up from almost nowhere and is now full of life.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / GARDEN PATHS
Oct 23, 2003
A garden of poetry in the city's heart
Long ago, Japanese aristocrats used to debate about which was the finest season, spring or autumn. Generally, poetic souls favored autumn, which -- with its crying insects, fragile flowers and falling leaves -- epitomized the fleeting nature of life.

Longform

A statue of "Dragon Ball" character Goku stands outside the offices of Bandai Namco in Tokyo. The figure is now as recognizable as such characters as Mickey Mouse and Spider-Man.
Akira Toriyama's gift to the world