Yesterday the whole team was in Nara (30 minutes by train from Kyoto) to meet with the writer Pico Iyer -- we've turned to him several times on the show for his keen, beautifully expressed observations of life in various corners of the world. Pico first came to Japan 20 ...

We're in Kyoto tonight after a wonderful interview with Pico Iyer in nearby Nara. (More on that to come.) In our 12 hours here, we got great tape, saw beautiful night-lit temples, and ate delicious sushi at a genuine local joint. Our accommodations, however, leave something to be desired. ...

On the streets of Shibuya today: drum circles, drumming lessons, and breakdancing. We met a young radio reporter (Pejk spotted his DAT recorder) and he told us it's the third annual Shibuya music festival, called Shibu-on.

Some video highlights: first, breakdancing unplugged - to hand drums, pan flute and didgeridoo. ...

It's high season in Kyoto -- this weekend, the autumn colors are at their brightest and it seems like the whole country plus several others have converged on the city to take a look.  Luckily, there are dozens of temples (probably a dozen 'major' ones alone) with gorgeous landscapes and ...

We (Americans) love to talk about how Japanese design - sushi, origami, bonsai trees - is amazing for its beauty and detail.  And yes, those things are there. But as I've been walking the streets of Tokyo, a few things have caught my eye that are much more utilitarian.

When ...

The first view of Mount Fuji is like a blow to your stomach, utterly breathtaking. Towering Godzilla-like over everything it is perfect, like a children's drawing. Did someone just say all cliches are true? I arrived yesterday to the Solar Cafe and Emiko, the inn keeper made a wonderful dinner ...

Kyoto may be the 1200-year-old home of Japanese classical arts, but you wouldn't know it when you first get here.

Built in 1997 by Hiroshi Hara, Kyoto Station is a stunning living monument to modern Japan.  A hub for multiple regional and local train lines, it's also home to great ...

Today I joined Lisa Katayama for her interview with Erina Matsui, a 24-year-old artist who's already gotten the attention of Takashi Murakami and other art world big-wigs. Erina paints playful and surrealistic self-portraits, which she says should make people laugh. So as we walked into the Yamamoto Gendai ...

The motto of a fictional character of mine was All Cliches Are True. As I was reminded twice, spectacularly, during my first full day in Tokyo.

While the girls were hanging out in Golden Gai last night, I was picked up by William Elliott and Kazui Kawamura, the English translators of the poet Shuntaro Tanikawa and taken to an undisclosed location to meet the poet himself. I had met Tanikawa in Copenhagen 10 years ...

While Pejk and Jenny wandered the peaceful Yoyogi park, I hit the streets of Shibuya with our our freelance reporter Lisa Katayama. Lisa is working on a piece about a new generation of Japanese female artists who are playing with female archetypes - like the schoolgirl - in all kinds ...

For Tokyo's size, density, and sprawl (those last 2 things might sound contradictory, but here they're not), it has tons of parks -- big parks, that are astounding both in how carefully they're kept, and in their ability to block out the bustling city around them. Take Yoyogi Park in ...

After 14 hours on the plane (and nearly 2 hours on the "Limo Bus"), 360 Team Japan is officially in Tokyo. We're staying in the heart of Shibuya, the hip and happening "ground zero for youth culture." (so says LP, and we're happy to confirm!) Neon, crowds, aesthetic delights overwhelm ...

10. “Chemi Bebia” (My Grandmother) - 1929 
Directed by Kote Mikaberidze
An eccentric Georgian silent film from the wild 1920s, a time of modernism in Tbilisi, repackaged by American composer Beth Custer, who has released it in DVD format with her own musical track.

9. “Dakarguli Samotkhe” (Paradise Lost) - ...

Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada, Jr. is once again denying any wrongdoing, after state and federal authorities raided his government-funded health clinic in the Bronx yesterday.

Entries will express, in 300 words or less, why Corey Dargel should write a love song for the contestant. Entries will be judged based on wit, originality, and emotional depth. Judging will be done by the staff of Studio 360. The judges' decision will be final. The winner will be selected by March 18, 2007. Winner will be notified by telephone or email. If the winner is unable to redeem the prize, the unclaimed prize will go to the first runner-up and subsequent runner-ups until prize is awarded. Winner must provide his or her social security number.

I.

Send legal briefs, failed attempts at love
letters and other confidential documents
through a shredder,

soak over night in a warm bath,

scoop handful of wet paper 
into kitchen blender add 
boiled daffodil stems,

mashed into a pulp, then blend 
black tea leaves, garlic 
or onion skin,

translucent ...