INTERVIEWS | My Eyes Tokyo

Finding similarities makes you comfortable.

September 22 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Jagmohan Chandrani (India) President of a trading company (He’s been in Japan since ’78) His long, long beard catches your eyes. Jagmohan Chandrani is a very, very gentle person. He talks slowly and gently and always brings smiles with his face. He has been running his business in relation to his home, India, for a long time. Such as Indian cuisine restaurants, a tea shop and organizing the Indian community of Edogawa region, east-end of Tokyo. His activities became well-known among Japanese through TV, newspapers and magazines. *Interview at Japan Business

Spice Magic Calcutta

September 22 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Indian restaurant (Nishi-kasai) (Left) Kita guchi/Home Store (Right) Minami guchi/Branch Store There are many Indian restaurants in Tokyo. Indian cuisine is very popular here in Japan. We think curry and rice has been loved by many Japanese for almost 100 years… That’s the reason, we guess. But the restaurant chain called “Spice Magic Calcutta” serves “real” Indian dishes because restaurants are in “Little India” of Tokyo. Nishi-kasai, a town where many people from India live. The restaurants are loved by those who miss their food culture. Holiday Special

Japan is very safe. But you have to sacrifice yourself to be in a safe society.

September 02 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Dan Zuckerman (Israel) Israeli restaurant “David’s Deli” manager *At that time Today’s talk is with Dan Zuckerman, a manager of “David’s Deli”. Dan is from Tel Aviv, Israel and he is enjoying his daily life in Japan now. But he has faced difficulties, especially in communication with Japanese. He says Japanese has a unique way of communication. *Interview at David’s Deli (Shirokane-takanawa) Click here and get to know more about his restaurant! I fell in love with Japan. I came here for the first time in 1985. I was traveling India,

David’s Deli

September 02 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Israeli restaurant (Shirokane-Takanawa) Today we introduce you to a calm Israeli restaurant “David’s Deli”. We visited this restaurant and believed Jewish cuisine is becoming popular among us. Many Japanese were enjoying Jewish recipes there. We interviewed Dan Zuckerman, manager of Devid Deli. 日本語 (Left) Pita (Right) Shredded meat hummus (Left) Shakshuka (Right) Combination salad When did you start working at this restaurant? A year ago. Before that, what did you do? I had my own business. Making and delivering sandwiches and soup to offices. Sandwich delivery business. I was

If you’re trying to change something out of you, you spend your whole life on it. So it’s easier to change yourself.

August 20 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Shoko Matsuda Export sales manager of a vegetable company (She’s been in the US since 2000) She looks very funny, doesn’t she? Shoko Matsuda is originally from Osaka Prefecture, western Japan. Generally speaking, Osaka people try to outdo each other with how much they can make others laugh. She went across the ocean and joined the vegetable trading company in Salinas, California as an intern about 7 years ago. Since then, she has been working as a “bridge” between Japan and the US. What has she seen and what has she

I will sing Japanese songs in Japanese someday, like the “Last Samurai”.

August 08 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Luis Carlos Severich (Bolivia) Singer/Guitarist (Folklore & Latin music) (He’s been in Japan since ’83) Today’s guest is Luis Carlos Severich from Bolivia, a guitarist and singer of mainly Latin music. He’s been here in Japan for about 25 years and and taught us his culture and music for a long time with his groups, such as “Los Tres Amigos”. He was a young folklore superstar who used to win the Golden Disc in Argentina. Why did he come to Japan? What did he see when he stepped in the heart of Tokyo? *Interview at Nishi-ikebukuro

I’m not Japanese. I’m not French. I’m myself.

July 12 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Maia (Japan/France) Musician (Born in Tokyo and raised in Paris) We enjoyed talking with Maia, a musician who has both a French and Japanese cultural background. She sings and plays many kinds of instruments, such as flute, sax, pandeiro (Brazilian tambourine) and so on. Maia has been really familiar with many kinds of music since she was a child. It’s because of her unique environment. Actually her music life started at age 6, when she started to play the piano. But not only that. You’ll see how her surroundings are and

What people feel in Africa, what other people feel in other countries… they are all the same. We are all the same human beings.

June 13 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Latyr Sy (Senegal) African percussionist (He’s been in Japan since ’93) We’re bringing the interview with Latyr Sy, a great percussion player from Senegal. He performed in Nelson Mandela Concert, 2002 World Cup Soccer and welcome ceremonies of President Mitterrand and other VIP. Also Latyr played African drums with Japanese traditional entertainment performances. We hope you could learn his unique point of view on Japan, which has been cultivated by his philosophy of life and music. *Interview at Inokashira Park (Musashino-shi, Tokyo) *Edited by Daniel Penso 校正協力：ダニエル・ペンソ日本語 Born on a

Japanese are said to be healthy in everything. But actually a lot of people are still smoking.

May 14 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: itokuhashi@myeyestokyo.com Larry Yamamoto (Canada) Translator/Proofreader/English conversation instructor (He’s been in Japan since ’89) Look at the picture above. Nice smile! Larry Yamamoto is a happy and funny guy from Toronto, Canada. Japan is his roots and he has been exploring his ethnical background in Japan since he came here. However, he doesn’t seem to be too much serious, just enjoying his daily life with smiling and joking. *Interview in Tama Plaza, Yokohama Japan has been my roots. I came to Japan on the JET programme (Japan Exchange and Teaching programme). I

I felt I was not accepted by either Japanese society or by mainstream American society.

April 30 2007

Interviewed & written by Isao Tokuhashi Mail to: info@myeyestokyo.com Yuri Kageyama Tokyo Correspondent for The Associated Press (Born in Japan and educated in the U.S.) Today’s interviewee is very, very experienced journalist. Ms. Yuri Kageyama is a Tokyo correspondent for The Associated Press, or AP, a world-famous news agency. She has grown up in a bicultural environment, Japan and the U.S. She’s been transmitting what’s happening in Japan to rest of the world for a long time. *Interview in Kichijoji *Photos by Mari Sakamoto 日本語 “You’re not an assistant. You’re a reporter.” I have been with The AP

Interviews with Tokyo People Achieving Dreams