MOSHIMOSHI NIPPON Ep. 02

1.NIPPON ABC: "W" Wagashi

Featuring creative works and projects of young artisans inspired by Japanese traditional culture.

The keyword of the day is W for Wagashi! Traditional Japanese sweets, known as wagashi, have evolved by getting inspired by other cultures over the years. Japanese learned good things about imported overseas desserts by celebrating them as a new kind of food, not just as sweets, and came up with their own versions that are far more advanced to be simply called a copy. Wagashi is not only tasteful but also appealing to eyes as its appearance reflects the passion of the patisserie. A group named "wagashi asobi" (literally meaning, "play with wagashi") appreciates the tradition, and continues to create a new wagashi that reflects the modern world by thinking outside the box.

2.NIPPON MY FAVORITES: Joel-LEGENDRE-KOIZUMI from France

Foreign correspondents introduce their favorite places, pastimes and other exciting information on Japan. Also features their insight on the charm and appeal of Japan, its similar points and differences from their home countries.

Joel, a French journalist who works at Europe’s biggest media group RTL, talks about his favorites! He likes echinus, tofu and Kabuki. In this segment, he talks about his experience at a traditional tofu store.

3.ICHIYA’S POP EYE: Toy

Japan’s trending sub-culture introduced by Ichiya Nakamura, a key person in promoting Japanese pop-culture to the world.

In this segment, he talks about his views on Japanese pop culture and spreads it to the world. The theme of today’s episode is "Toys". The pop culture professor talks about Japanese toys, which have been fascinating both children and adults for generations.