Tokyo Opera City

 Tokyo Opera City is located in Shinjuku Tokyo. The huge monument in front of the building looked stunning.

There are food market including restaurants, cafes, etc, on B1,3rd and 33th floor. It's office space between 4th to 32th. Opera house is on the 1st and 2nd floor.

 Today, I attended a seminar at Apple's hall on 32th floor. A dental software company "Planet", cooperated with Apple, made an announcement of its new software.
 I have to catch up the technology and use this type of gizmo in order to make a lucid explanation to my patients and  provide efficiency in the system of the dental office. Unfortunately, I'm not a computer geek and am a Windows user. I sometimes have to ask younger staff about manipulation of Apple. The young dental hygienists all have i-phones and i-pads!

Ise Shinto Grand Shrine

 I was brought up in a Christian family, Protestant. But, I occasionally feel relieved when I see a Shinto shrine. Probably because of education in Japan? The grandness and beauty of Ise Grand Shrine made me feel "Before coming here, I was in a rut and was running low. Oh,dear! My mind, damaged by stress in daily life, is now on the mend."
  Ise Grand Shrine has been rebuilt every 20 years to keep in good condition and it costs the earth. This year is just for the transition.
 My holiday in Ise was just the ticket because I felt back on my feet and refreshed.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ise_Grand_Shrine

Kashikojima Hojoen Japanese Inn

 Kashikojima Hojoen is a Japanese Inn, locates in Mie prefecture, 2 hours from Nagoya station by super express. Views are spectacular, but the most enjoyable moment may be dinner. I believe every foodie will be impressed.

 

http://www.hojoen.com/english/index.html

Occlusion seminar in the weekend

 Last weekend was my debut as an instructor in a dental occulusion seminar, which was held near Tokyo station.To be all set as an instructor of the seminar, I reviewed my notebook of past lectures. It was fine weekend and good for recreation. Should I blow off  my responsibility and go for a leisure? I blew off the temptation.
 Some occlusion theories are frumpy and filled with a real Catch-22. You can get the 411 on the renovated occlusion theory proposed by Dr.Haruhiko Abe. Dr.Abe approached occlusion theory proactively and swam upstream. How to fix plaster models of jaws in an articulator to visualize an ideal occlusal plane is low-hanging fruit, if you use devices which Dr.Abe invented. The apparatuses are artisan. Some evil-minded dentists imitate and make bogus and tacky devices. They sell them illegally! I believe they will become bottom feeders in the end. They are dead wood.
  The seminar was held in a small pop-up room due to under construction of the building we had used before. But, attendees were eager. Dr.Abe talks turkey. I like the seminar's vibe.

the charm in making full dentures

* Dental implant information and technique has widely spread through various seminars held in all over the world and dental implant is one of hot topics in dentistry. However, about 20 years ago, the most popular theme of dental seminars was full denture.
 How do we make dentures with which patients can use comfortably? There are no natural teeth in full denture’s cases’ patients. Therefore, how to provide ideal relation between upper and lower jaw and the effective occlusion composed of artificial teeth, where should artificial teeth locate in a denture, where should a denture cover in the jaw (the border of the denture) are the problems. Many dentists in those days rushed for such seminars. In fact, I had not been good at making full dentures for several years since I graduated from Tokyo medical and dental university.
 While miscellaneous theories and methods were introduced, I attended various seminars and sometimes was confused with wide difference among theories. It took time until I got knack and had confidence in making dentures. Because of my mentor who patiently taught me and my patients who contributed to my experience, now, I feel interested in making dentures with almost no stress, even excited!
 Since last month, I have been designated as an instructor of the occlusion seminar where my mentor demonstrates steps using a real patient. Whether patients accept dentures in their mouth mainly depends on dentist’s diagnosing ability and skills. When a patient can’t use his or her denture because of poor skills of his or her dentist, he or she can give up and go to another dentist unlike a patient who was treated with dental implants. In that sense, making comfortable full dentures is one of the most challenging fields in dentistry. I think I have improved my skills, but want to be more advanced in technique, to elicit smile from my patient.

English pronunciation lesson in Shinjuku Tokyo

 On April 4th, I attended the English pronunciation class held in Shinjuku Tokyo.

 One of the elements which prevents Japanese from improving English is the difference between Japanese and English pronunciation. It is said that Japanese feels challenging in distinguishing R and L sound. However, Kiyoshi Matsuzawa, the leader of the class, says S sound is the most difficult to pronounce properly for Japanese. In general, S sound of Japanese is too weak, so we Japanese should be more conscious of stronger and clearer S sound in speaking English.

  The goal of the class is getting natural pronunciation which doesn't make natives feel stress. Mr.Matsuzawa says English learning is like a sport. We should care about the position of tongue and the way we breathe, at first, so that we can master the natural English sounds. Practice makes perfect. That reminds me of the saying by Tommy Lasorda " Practice, practice and practice"

Shima Kanko (sightseeing) Hotel in Mie-prefecture Japan

Last week, I stayed at Shima Kanko Hotel with my family. It is one of the most famous hotels in Japan. The place is the stage of a novel " Brilliant family" by Toyoko Yamazaki, describing the world of finance. Decayed moral in banking culture. It's a popular business novel in Japan.

We enjoyed abalone steak which can be tried only in this place. I don't like shellfishes basically, however the tast of the abalone steak was gorgeous, beyond my imagination. The view from our room was spectacular and you can enjoy the beauty of complicated coastline. Shima is located in Mie-prefecture, 90 minutes by train from Nagoya.

 

sun set view from the hotel

You can see laver culture rafts.