Check out the NICE bathrooms at this Karaoke joint!
BARBIE GIRL! "You can brush my hair and touch my anywhere!" hehehe
Some of the weird Japanese men that came into out singing box. What does the guy in the suit have a leather purse?
Melissa looking all cute and hostest like!
The history of Kanazawa gold leaf can be traced back to the latter half of the Sengoku period (1428-1573), when Maeda Toshiie, the feudal lord of the Kaga clan governing the southern part of the area now known as Ishikawa Prefecture, sent a document back to the country from a campaign in Korea, explaining how to produce gold leaf. The Shogunate subsequently set up a gilders' guild and controlled the production and sale of gold leaf throughout the country. After the Meiji Restoration in 1868, however, Kanazawa gold leaf workers took the opportunity on the abolition of governmental control to successfully develop both the techniques and extent of production. Being of such a high quality, Kanazawa maintains its position as the number one center for the production of gold leaf in the country.
The leaf is very thin and in the case of gold leaf is between 0.0001 mm and 0.0002 mm thick. For this reason, it is possible to apply the leaf to materials however complicated the pattern might be. What is more, none of the brilliance of the raw gold is lost at all, and the beauty and splendor of the finished products never cease to captivate the heart of the beholder. 
It still has a wide range of craft applications in the fields of textiles, lacquer ware, ceramics and on various types of screens, often applied to paper. It is also used on signs and individual carved characters as well as on the mizuhiki decorations for gifts and on the best art mountings. Large amounts of gold leaf in particular are used on household Buddhist altars and on shrine and temple buildings, too.
The industry is sustained by 200 firms employing 1,000 staff, among whom they are 26 Master Craftsmen.
Yayy - Year of the Dog! :)
Some of the golden art displayed around the shop!
Women's Shoes - A color for every mood.
Shirts & Blouses - Top off your look in new summer styles. Lots of styles, lots of colors. Stock up on your favorites!
Dosojin (or Dousojin) refers to Shinto deities of roads and borders. Also called Sai no Kami or Dorokujin in some areas. These deities reside in stone markers found at village boundaries, in mountain passes, and along country byways. In urban areas today, dosojin stone markers are often placed at street corners and near bridges to protect pedestrians. As the deity of the village border, the dosojin wards off evil spirits and catastrophes, and protects the village from evil outside influences. As deity of the road, the dosojin protects travelers, pilgrims, and those in "transitional" stages. These stone markers may bear only inscriptions, but often they depict human forms, in particular the images of a man and woman -- the latter manifestation is revered as the kami (deity) of marriage and fertility. In some localities, the dosojin is worshiped as the kami of easy childbirth.
Japan's popular Fire Festivals, held around January 15 each year, are known as Dosojin festivals. Shrine decorations, talismans, and other shrine ornaments used during the local New-Year holiday are gathered together and burned in bonfires. They are typically pilled onto bamboo, tree branches, and straw, and set on fire to wish for good health and a rich harvest in the coming year. The practice of burning shrine decorations has many names, including Sai-no-Kami, Sagicho, and Dondo Yaki. According to some, the crackling sound of the burning bamboo tells the listener whether the year will be lucky or not. Children throw their calligraphy into the bonfires -- and if it flies high into the sky, it means they will become good at calligraphy.
The origin of dosojin stone markers is shrouded in the mists of uncertainty, and no exact date can be given. But precedents are ample in the Buddhist world. Here is the tale of one of Japan's most popular and beloved deities, Jizo Bosatsu. In the early centuries following the introduction of Buddhism to India (introduced around 500BC), Jizo became known as the guardian of travelers and pilgrims, and statues of his image could be found along pilgrimage routes and mountain passes in India and Southeast Asia. That tradition is still evident in modern Japan, where one often finds groupings of six Jizo statues standing guard on the high roads or at busy intersections.
