The Hub – Issue 8

Celebration time! In a milestone achievement Sushi Hub has opened its 100^th Sushi Hub store despite the trials and tribulations of the past twelve months of COVID-19 uncertainty.

And Japan will have cause to celebrate too when the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics, the Games of the XXXII Olympiad, get under way 23 July – 8 August 2021. If we thought Sydney 2000 Olympics set the benchmark as the Green Games, they pale in comparison to Japan’s environmentally sustainable efforts. From renewable energy usage, clothes and uniforms made from recycled plastic to recycled gold, silver and bronze medals made from electronic components, we take a peek at what to expect.  Even the official mascots Miraitowa and Someity are special in their own way – as well as raising the bar in the mascot cuteness stakes.

And nobody does cute like Japan. There is even a word for this culture of cute – kawaii.  It is everywhere in Japan, permeating every aspect of Japanese life. Banks, government departments, construction sites and even commercial airlines use kawaii imagery to increase their appeal. We take a look at how it began and who are the major players of kawaii cutedom.

We get on the Japanese green tea wagon and look at what makes it so special; from how it’s grown and made, to the rituals of the tea ceremony, the alchemy of matcha and its health benefits. Integral to Japanese culture and history, green tea is the most popular beverage in the country, even having a whole day dedicated to its celebration.

And with all that drinking of green tea you’d expect a high rate of broken tea sets. Well, the Japanese have that sorted too. We take you on a journey of kintsugi , the centuries-old Japanese art of repairing broken pottery. The kintsugi technique actually beautifies the break, and draws attention to the mend with a seam of gold. Kintsugi repaired pottery can be found in museums and galleries as valuable antiques and cultural treasures.