Tokyo's ode to nature

Tokyo’s famed Rikugien Gardens transports visitors to another realm where nature reigns.

Summer spectacular

Members of Emeryville Taiko -- Matthew Kertesz, left, of Berkeley, and Mina Kami, of Emeryville -- perform, top photo, on traditional Japanese taiko (drums) Sunday during the Concord Diablo Japanese American Club's 54th annual Summer Festival at the Diablo Japanese American Cultural Center in Concord.

Green Scene: A Japanese garden's natural serenity

The objective of a Japanese garden is to establish a space that creates a mood of serenity and symbolism inspired by nature, designed in a very controlled fashion. Typically this includes the use of rocks, gravel, water, statuary, bridges, wood and some plants that appear to be hundreds of years old. In a traditional Japanese garden, elements are representational of nature in human proportions ...

A UNIQUE URBAN MESS

My favourite recent story about the Bay Area and San Francisco has little to do with this location. An NRI couple, old friends from Calcutta, were being visited by some Japanese acquaintances and they took their kids into the back garden.

Best entertainment bets for Aug. 13-19

"Wicked," the musical about what happened in Oz before Dorothy arrived, was a monster hit when it played the Twin Cities in 2006 and 2008. And this run also should be popular and more accessible.