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Nov

The Harmony of Hope: Tsunami Violins

by Janine Boylan on November 18, 2013

Tsunami violins illustrate cross-cultural contributions on the path to healing (Design by Muneyuki Nakazawa)

Muneyuki Nakazawa’s tsunami violins,
each with a solitary pine tree painted on its back.
Image courtesy of Classic for Japan Foundation

Healing with Cross-Cultural Contributions

If music is healing, then it follows that violins can also bring healing.

Master luthier Muneyuki Nakazawa has constructed two violins with the goal of bringing harmony and healing to a devastated Japanese community.

Moving from Disaster

After the 8.9 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami in March of 2011, Nakazawa felt that he needed to do something for his community.

He visited the ruined shores of the city of Rikuzentakata, Japan, strewn with broken trees that had been ripped from the ground. Read more...

Janine Boylan 2 Comments

Clever Ideas/Japan/On the World Stage/The World's Music

Nov

Aha Moment Maker: Inspired by a Wooly Gift

by Your friends at OIC on November 16, 2013

TEMUCO, CHILE, 1913—A young Pablo Neruda was playing in his backyard when a small boy’s hand suddenly poked through a hole in the wooden fence and deposited a well-worn toy sheep. Neruda was instantly moved, and reciprocated the gesture with his treasured pine cone. He never saw the boy, or even the boy’s hand again, but cherished the toy lamb until it was lost in a fire.

When the famous Chilean poet and activist later recounted the incident in numerous interviews, he credited the mysterious exchange with inspiring his world view of unity and connectedness, and also stated that it was responsible for “giving my poetry light.” Read more...

Your friends at OIC Comments

Your Own Aha Moments

Nov

The Cat Café: A Purrfect Paris Place to Pause

by Meredith Mullins on November 14, 2013

Boy in blue shirt patting cat: Living a Happier Life at the Cat Cafe in Paris (Photo © Meredith Mullins)

The Cat Café: A place to have a pet of your own for an afternoon (Meet Marguerite)

Living a Happier Life . . . with Furry Friends

If you build it, they will come.

If the “they” are cat lovers—and the “it” is a cozy place to hang out with 12 lovable cats—the truth is they will come . . . in droves.

Meet Le Café des Chats in Paris, the new hottest ticket in town. Yes, Paris is known for trendy gourmet destinations. But, here, in this furs-rate stone-walled restaurant, it’s not so much about the food. (Although the organic salads and homemade quiches and desserts are great.)

Here, it’s about the ambiance—Djenko, Khaleessi, Pattenrond, Rosa, Berlioz, Saha, Lovely, Pepite, Idylle, Oreo, Habby, and Marguerite—and the ability of visitors to feel at home in the company of these friendly felines (and vice versa). Read more...

Meredith Mullins 13 Comments

Clever Ideas/France (Paris)

World Views: