People
January 15th, 2012
Interview: Reiko Ota, Instructor at Black Swan Yoga of Austin, Texas
I was able to meet Reiko while she was making a short return trip to Tokyo, and I took the opportunity to ask about her lifestyle in Texas, about the studio where she teaches, the Cherry Blossom Retreat ’12 event that Black Swan Yoga is planning in Japan and many other topics.
December 15th, 2011
Interview: Kranti – Teaching Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga in Japan
I had interviewed Kranti in June 2010 about the yoga DVD he had produced, and was grateful for the opportunity to meet him again in September 2011 and learn more about his lifestyle and teaching Ashtanga Yoga in Japan.
November 30th, 2011
Interview: Kino MacGregor – Yoga & Travel in Japan & Asia
I had interviewed Kino in April 2010, and was grateful for the opportunity to meet her again and learn more about her travels and teaching.
November 15th, 2011
Interview: Victor Chng – Yin Yoga Theory & Training
Since 2005, Victor has been teaching Yin Yoga all over Asia and trained over 600 teachers in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Japan, Hong Kong and China. I interviewed Victor in July 2011, and was grateful for the opportunity to meet him again and learn more about the theory behind Yin Yoga and his yoga retreats held in exotic locations around Asia.
October 31st, 2011
Interview: Jules Febre of Jivamukti Yoga NYC Talks about Vegan Lifestyle & Yoga Community in Japan
Jules is an internationally recognized yoga teacher who travels throughout the world regularly giving classes, workshops and participating in events. I first interviewed Jules in February 2010 to learn more about his teaching of hip Hop asana in Japan. He came back again in September for another Japan tour and I had the good fortune to catch up with him in Shibuya to talk about his views of what it’s like to be vegan in Japan and how he sees Japan’s yoga community having developed over the years.
October 15th, 2011
Interview: Neti-Neti Yoga Shop’s Takumi Hasegawa – Eco-friendly Yoga Wear in Japan
Takumi Hasegawa is the owner of Neti Neti, an online store specializing in eco-friendly yoga wear and yoga related goods. Based in Kobe, he was visiting for the Yoga Festa and stopped by our Shibuya studio to talk about the philosophy and inspiration behind his company’s business, and environmentally friendly products such as yoga wear by Canadian brand, Eco Gear.
September 30th, 2011
Interview: Jason Crandell – Teaching Yoga in Japan
Jason teaches extensively at conferences in the United States and internationally. I was lucky to have an opportunity to catch him in between workshops in Tokyo as part of his 2011 Japan tour. In this interview, I ask him about this impressions and experiences teaching yoga in Japan.
September 15th, 2011
Interview: Jesse Lee Parker – Teaching Tao Yoga in Japan
Jesse recently established the Tao Healing Space in Tokyo’s Shimokitazawa district, which is has a number of yoga studios and is popular with artists and people interested in alternative lifestyles. I stopped by to chat with Jesse and learn more about his courses. He also introduced me to Tibetan healing sound bowls and spoke about healthy living from the Taoist context.
August 30th, 2011
Interview: Mimi Horiuchi – NLP and Yoga
In this interview, Mimi Horiuchi talks about how her unique blend of yoga therapy, NLP and coaching brings healing and relaxation to mind and body. Having trained both abroad and in Japan, Mimi brings an international perspective to her teaching. Believing in the healing power of nature, Mimi runs yoga retreats in exotic locations such as Okinawa. She also told us about her future plans to run special teacher training courses that will empower others to teach this highly effective combination of practices.
August 15th, 2011
Interview: Waka Yogi – Swimming and Yoga
Waka Yogi is a hot yoga instructor and former competitive swimmer from Osaka. In this interview, Waka explains the benefits of hot yoga for the mind and body. She also explains how swimming and yoga have many commonalities and, when practiced together, unite their strengths, making for a more balanced exercise regimen.
Interpreting for Yoga Workshops and Teacher Training Courses
One evening in the latter half of April, thanks to one of my yoga instructors, I set out for Tokyo Midtown with the inventor of Yogic Arts, Duncan Wong. He teaches a moon viewing yoga class through park yoga, so I went along as his interpreter. Despite being warm during the day though mainly cloudy, when the sun went down the wind gained strength, and it became cold. When we arrived at the meeting place in this environment, everyone was already there warming up on mats on the lawn.
How to get escape the emotional roller coaster by keeping calm. (Part 1)
As we all know, it isn’t easy to keep our emotions and feelings under control and treating good / bad and every situation the same by accepting it in one state of mind. It requires lots of practice to gain Mind Control.
Vegans Get Vocal in Japan: Anti-Fur Demonstration in Tokyo
The Animal Rights Center (ARC) organizes an annual anti-fur march in Autumn, a time when many shops in Tokyo are stocking fur products on store shelves. This year’s was held on on October 23, 2011. Around 300 participants marched with banners and placards in hand through major commercial centers, Shibuya and Omotesando.
HelloYoga.com Party #04
On November 12, 2011 HelloYoga.com and Be Yoga Japan collaborated to produce an informal, simple and fun gathering for Tokyo’s yoga community, called the “Bare Foot Yoga Party”. Everybody enjoyed trying many new and fun experiences for the mind, body and soul in one night! 50% of entry ticket proceeds will be donated to the Tyler Foundation, a charity which supports children with cancer in Japan and their families.
