ANA inaugural flight to Haneda Airport

After 32 years, Haneda Airport is now able to commission international services from LAX. The airport had a ceremony commemorating the event, and celebrated its maiden roundtrip. The aircraft departed from Los Angeles on this newly added route late-night at 12:55 AM, and arrived in Haneda at 5 AM the next morning, Tokyo time. It then departed late-night from Haneda at 12:05 AM and landed back in Los Angeles at 5:55 PM, Los Angeles time. Haneda Airport’s International Terminal opened on October 21st, and will further strengthen USA-Japan aviation ties. What used to be limited to government-approved flights is now a new freedom for airliners, with ANA leading the way. These late-night departures ensure comfortable arrival times at the destination. Compared to Narita International Airport, Haneda is more convenient because it is closer to metropolitan Tokyo. ANA has also added new routes to Honolulu, Singapore, Bangkok, and Taipei. Soaring through the sky is now just that much better.

TOYOTA USA auto museum reopen

November 2nd, Toyota held a ceremony for their new location of the Toyota USA Automobile Museum. This museum, along with three other of Toyota’s buildings, was integrated into one large property in order to reduce costs. The property, about 45,000 square feet, includes and exhibition of more than one hundred models chronicling Toyota’s history. From Toyota’s very first introductory model in America, the “Crown”, built in 1958, to a large array of sport, truck and economy cars, Toyota outlines its full history all in the same exhibition hall. They even celebrate the use of their vehicles in movies, from their SR5 truck in “Back to the Future”, to Lexus’ futuristic concept model in “Minority Report”. Toyota successfully integrated themselves into American culture. The museum is open to the general public by reservation.

Aurora Foundation benefit concert

On October 30th, singer and songwriter Kei Ogura appeared in concert at the El Camino Garage in Torrance. Kei booked the venue with 2000 fans, fascinating them with all 15 of his self-written and composed songs in his newest album, “Cyclamen Kahori”. Ticket sales from this concert will be donated to the Aurora Foundation, a nonprofit organization that provides training programs for those involved in Japanese language education. This is 12th event to date. They are also planning to offer these proceeds as a $3000 scholarship as well as an prepaid flight to Japan.

Suika kindergarden concert

The children of Suika Kindergarten in Torrance are jumping for joy in a new concert produced by picture-book author Hirotaka Nakagawa and his team. 300 people participated in total at this event, which included the producers, guardians, and the kindergarteners themselves. The kids sang along to Hirotaka’s self-composed “Children of the World”, from his well-known album, “Open Sesame!” These five partners have produced concerts all over Japan. These events have become so popular that at one time, 1000 parents and children gathered at the Osaka Hall last year to sing along. So they decided to cross the Pacific Ocean to play for children in Los Angeles. The team is now planning to produce events in Korea and France, and hope to see more smiling faces all around the world.