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Photo Location	Torrance, カリフォルニア州, アメリカ合衆国
Photo Date	1999/11/30
Device	Unkown
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Web Access No.627621

Los Angeles Little Tokyo Video Guide in Japanese

Los Angeles' Little Tokyo is the home of our hearts

My name is Japan Transportation Service Nishi, a Los Angeles sightseeing transportation hire company.
Today, I would like to show you around Little Tokyo, Los Angeles.
Thank you for your cooperation.

Little Tokyo in Los Angeles is the home of our hearts," the mural reads.
It is very emotional for me as well.
I lived in Little Tokyo in 1983 and worked in a Japanese restaurant.
I was paid $ 3 per hour at the time, but I got tips and meals were free for lunch and dinner.
At that time $ 1 was about 240 yen, so I was happy to save money. I returned to Japan in 1984, joined a travel agency in Japan, and was transferred to the Los Angeles branch in 1986. The office of the travel agency was located in Little Tokyo, so I worked in Little Tokyo until 1989 when the office moved. Little Tokyo was the start of my two stints in Los Angeles.
Since I have lived in the US longer than in Japan,
Little Tokyo is my spiritual home in the US.

Little Tokyo began in 1886 when a Japanese fisherman named Hamanosuke Shigeta, aka Charles ・ Kame, opened a Japanese restaurant and Japanese immigrants settled in the area.

1978 "Japanese ・ Village ・ Plaza" was completed.
The center of Little Tokyo is this Nihonmura Plaza.
You will see a sign saying "Nihonmura Plaza".
Japanese restaurants, izakayas, kaiten-yaki, sundries, and many other things are sold here.
There are Niijiya, a Japanese supermarket, and Yamazaki Bakery, a Japanese Yamazaki bread shop.
I have been a customer of theirs since 1986 when I worked for a travel agency. I have always loved curry bread.
Kura Sushi is very popular. There are many Kura Sushi restaurants in Los Angeles.
It is more expensive than in Japan. Nigiri tuna costs more than $ 3.
There used to be a Japanese cafe, I don't remember the name, where the kurazushi used to be, and the Friday special shumai chashu was delicious.

Japanese restaurants in Los Angeles are very popular and prosperous among Americans.
There used to be quite a few high quality Japanese restaurants in Little Tokyo that focused on Japanese tastes, but I don't think there are any anymore. Not only restaurants, but businesses that cater only to Japanese people are no longer viable. The decline in the number of Japanese people is a factor, but the Japanese community in Los Angeles is aging and losing its vitality. In the past, there were quite a few Japanese restaurants and exclusive clubs available for business entertainment. I pray that one day the Japanese economy will recover again and Little Tokyo will return to the vitality of the Japanese community.

The father of Janie Kitagawa, founder of the Johnny's Office, was a priest at the Little Tokyo Koyasan Shingonshu U.S.A. branch.
Janie Kitagawa is the second son and was born in the city of Los Angeles and is of Japanese descent. The Kitagawa family returned to Japan and when World War II broke out, they were evacuated to Nachikatsuura-cho, Wakayama Prefecture. After Japan's defeat, they returned to Los Angeles and entered a local high school
graduating from Los Angeles ・ City ・ College.