Haruka Honda (Harajuku)
Posts : 1 Join date : 2016-12-30 Location : Harajuku, Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan.
| Subject: 出る杭は打たれる {Harajuku Application} Mon Jan 22, 2018 3:18 pm | |
| 原宿へようこそ! Name: Haruka Honda. (本田 春花)Representative of: Harajuku (原宿).Gender: Male.Age: Historical, approximately 428. Human, he appears to be in his very late teens (18-19). Brief personality: Being the representation of Harajuku as it is today, Haruka's personality is very out-going, chipper and quirky. He appears to be a very bold, unafraid individual who always values being himself rather than sticking to any sort of standards, he even acts proudly in regards to it. He feels very protective concerning the different subcultures that develop in his district. He's not afraid to fiercely protect himself of anything remotely judgemental and is quite "street smart". He's known to be a very creative boy as well, mainly because sometimes he makes some of the clothes and charms that he wears himself. Even if it appears that he may have very harsh edges, deep down he's very soft, gentle and caring with those he holds dear. He's quite the big softie and doesn't mean any harm (unless when he does, of course, that's when things can get dangerous).
Brief physical description: Haruka is a young-looking Japanese boy that, at first glance, is clearly a big J-Fashion junkie. He stands at the height of 1.55 metres and has a rather lean, petite body type. Being a rather classy ōuji, he dresses in victorian-esque era clothes. Usually with the combination of stockings, shoes, vest, shirt and bloomers. Never forgetting a cutesy bow tied around his neck. He always makes sure to mix and match in spite of having a very unique set of looks already. It's pretty rare to see him wearing the same thing for two consecutive days. He also dotes on the use of makeup and makes sure to take care of his skin very well, resulting in a smooth, unblemished complexion. He's slightly pale and sort of delicate looking. His natural eye color is a very dark brown and his natural hair color is jet black, but because of his fashion tendencies, he wears contact lenses to change his eye color as he pleases and has dyed his hair a bluish grey.- Picture of Haruka:
Brief history: Harajuku (原宿) is a district in Shibuya, Tokyo, Japan.
Harajuku is the common name given to a geographic area spreading from Harajuku Station to Omotesando, corresponding on official maps of Shibuya ward as Jingūmae 1 chōme to 4 chōme. In popular reference, Harajuku also encompasses many smaller backstreets such as Takeshita Street and Cat Street spreading from Sendagaya in the north to Shibuya in the south.
Harajuku is known internationally as a center of Japanese youth culture and fashion. Shopping and dining options include many small, youth-oriented, independent boutiques and cafés, but the neighborhood also attracts many larger international chain stores with high-end luxury merchandisers extensively represented along Omotesando.
Harajuku Station on the JR East Yamanote Line and Meiji-jingumae 'Harajuku' Station served by the Tokyo Metro Chiyoda Line and Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin Line also act as gateways to local attractions such as the Meiji Shrine, Yoyogi Park and Yoyogi National Gymnasium, making Harajuku and its environs one of the most popular destinations in Tokyo for both domestic and international tourists.
- Pre-Edo Period:
In the pre-Edo period, the area that came to be known as Harajuku was a small post town on the Kamakura Highway. It was said that in the Gosannen War, Minamoto no Yoshiie mustered his soldiers in this area and the hill here is called Seizoroi-saka (current Jingūmae 2 chōme). It is said that as the Igagoe reward for delivering Ieyasu Tokugawa safely from Sakai to Mikawa in the 1582 Honno-ji Incident, Onden-mura (隠田村) together with Harajuku-mura (原宿村) were given to the Iga ninja in 1590.
In the Edo period, an Iga clan residence was put in Harajuku to defend Edo, due to its strategic location south of the Koshu Road. Other than the mansion of the Hiroshima Domain feudal lord Asano (current Jingūmae 4 and 5 chōme), there were many mansions of shogunate retainers. The livelihood of the farmers consisted mainly of rice cleaning and flour milling with the watermill at the Shibuya River. However, due to the poor quality of the land, production never succeeded and the villages never prospered. It is said that local farmers often performed rain-making invocations at local shrines in an attempt to improve their fortunes. There are also the tales Oyama-Afuri Shrine of Tanzawa and Worship on the day trip to Mt Haruna remaining.
- Meiji Restoration to the end of the Second World War (1868 - 1945):
At the start of the Meiji period in 1868, the land around Harajuku Village was owned by the shogunate. In November of the same year, the towns and villages of Shibuya Ward, including Harajuku Village, were placed under the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Prefecture.
In 1906, Harajuku Station was opened as a part of the expansion of the Yamanote Line. In 1919, with the establishment of Meiji Shrine, Omotesando was widened and reordered as a formal approach route.
In 1940, the Tōgō Shrine was built and consecrated in honor of Imperial Japanese Navy Marshal-Admiral Marquis Tōgō Heihachirō.
In the final period of the Pacific War in 1945, much of the area was burned to the ground during the Great Tokyo Air Raid.
- 1945 to 1975:
During the postwar occupation, military housing in the area named Washington Heights was constructed on land now occupied by Yoyogi Park and the Yoyogi National Gymnasium. Shops that appealed to the US soldiers and their families, such as Kiddyland, Oriental Bazaar, and the Fuji Tori, opened along Omotesando during this period.
In 1964, swimming, diving and basketball events for the Tokyo Olympics were held in the neighbouring Yoyogi National Gymnasium.
In 1965, the name of the area in the Japanese address system was officially changed from Harajuku to Jingumae. The name Harajuku has persisted due to the earlier naming of the nearby JR East Harajuku Station. Prior to 1965, Onden, referred to the low-lying area close to Meiji Street and the Shibuya River while "Harajuku" referred to the northern end of Omotesando, the plateau around Aoyama, currently known as Jingu-mae block 2, a large area of Jingu-mae block 3, and the plateau extending behind Togo Shrine in Jingu-mae block 1. The area from Harajuku station to the area surrounding Takeshita Street was called "Takeshita-cho".
- 1970s and 1980s:
Coming into the 1970s, fashion-obsessed youth culture experienced a transition from Shinjuku to Harajuku, then to Shibuya. Palais France, a building that sold fashion clothing and accessories, furniture, and other goods, was constructed on Meiji Street near the exit of Takeshita Street. In 1978, the fashion building Laforet Harajuku was opened, and Harajuku came to be widely known as the centre for fashion retail.
In the 1980s, Takeshita Street became known for teenage street dancing groups called takenoko-zoku.
From 1977, a Sundays only pedestrian precinct was established by closing local roads. This produced a surge in people gathering close to entrances of Yoyogi Park to watch Rock 'n' Rollers and start-up bands performing impromptu open air gigs. In the peak period, crowds of up to 10,000 people would gather. In 1998, the Sundays only pedestrian paradise was abolished.
- 1990s to present.:
In the 1990s and 2000s, with the rise of fast fashion, there was an influx of international fashion brand flagship store openings including Gap Inc., Forever 21, Uniqlo, Topshop and H&M. At the same time, new independent fashion trend shops spread into the previously residential areas of Jingumae 3 and 4 chome, with this area becoming known as Ura-Harajuku. (The "Harajuku Backstreets").
In 2006, Omotesando Hills opened replacing the former Dojunkai apartments on Omotesando.
In 2008, the Tokyo Metro Fukutoshin Line opened providing an alternative metro access linking Harajuku to Shibuya and Ikebukuro.
Religious affiliation: Was once following Shintoism. Due to Western influences, he became agnostic.
Any special powers or abilities: An amazingly stunning fashion sense. |
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