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We meet at our office/garage in Akihabara. It is only a 3-minute walk from JR Akihabara train station. We will give you detailed directions after you book a tour. You can access Akihabara easily by JR Yamanote Line, Keihin-Tohoku Line, or Sobu Line. Akihabara is a world-famous district in central Tokyo with hundreds of electric and anime-goods shops - it is a good place to spend time after the tour finishes.

Directions to Our Office/Garage

Take the JR Line (Yamanote Line, Keihin-Tohoku Line, or Sobu Line) and get off at Akihabara. Follow directions for Central Gate (???).

Exit the station via the Central Gate. After going through a ticket gate, turn LEFT and exit the station building.

Once outside the building, turn RIGHT and cross the street towards Yodobashi-Akiba building. After crossing the street, turn LEFT (facing Yodobashi-Akiba building) and continue for about 120 meters.

At the first corner after an intersection with traffic lights, make a RIGHT turn onto a small street. On the corner, there is a construction site surrounded by white walls.

Turn LEFT at the first corner. There is a Japanese restaurant on the corner. Our office is about 60 meters ahead on your right-hand side. It is located on the first (ground) floor of a 12-storied red brick color apartment building. The closest land mark is the AKIHBARA BAY HOTEL which is located in the next building to ours.

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Hamilton Loomis to Lead Harmonica Workshop at Galveston College

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Hamilton Loomis to Lead Harmonica Workshop at Galveston College

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Blues extraordinaire and island native Hamilton Loomis is returning home this spring to conduct a two-day blues harmonica workshop at Galveston College, and he wants you in on the action.

“It’s just for fun, there’s no red pens and you don’t get a grade,” Loomis said of the workshop on April 24-25 at the college, 4015 Ave. Q. “The great thing about the harmonica is that it’s user-friendly.''

“Ultimately, what I want them to get out of it is not only just picking up a new instrument, but to have an understanding of its context in pop music and blues in general, and the history of the instrument,” he said.

Indeed, Loomis’ love of The Blues has taken him on the ride of his life. At age 14, he was writing, arranging and performing his own music. He found himself in the sights of blues icons Bo Diddley, Johnny Copeland, Albert Collins and Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, who took him under their wing.

“Growing up in Galveston, I dreamed of playing The Balinese Room which was part of Galveston’s history,” he said.

Operated by Sicilian immigrant barbers-turned-bootleggers Sam and Rosario Maceo, the Balinese Room was an elite spot in the 1940s and 1950s (Galveston's open era), featuring entertainment by Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope, Peggy Lee and The Marx Brothers.

The venue, which extended over the Gulf of Mexico at 2107 Seawall Blvd., was destroyed by Hurricane Ike on Sept. 13, 2008. Indeed, The Balinese Room was a pop culture icon; ZZ Top even wrote and performed a song about the club called, “Balinese.”

Loomis said that one of the highlights of his career was performing at the historic nightclub. In fact, he played there almost a dozen times before its demise.

“Growing up in Galveston as a young musician you dream of playing there, and when it becomes a reality it’s so satisfying, and at the same time very humbling and gratifying,” Loomis said. “I feel totally honored to have been able to a part of that history and to share that history.”

Loomis is doing his part to keep The Blues going strong, and the harmonica workshop at Galveston College is a big step in that direction. It’s a great chance for music lovers 12 and up to get some hands-on training from one of the best.

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We planned our tours for years. However we experienced the big earthquake in 2011 and had to postpone the plan. Now we are very glad to introduce our tours to you.

Based on our guide experience, we chose a lot of nice places that you cannot visit on big group bus tours. Since we are local professional guides, we always give you updated information.

All our guides passed national guide test and hold the national guide certificate. We are acknowledged by Japan Tourism Agency and the quality of service is ensured by the government. Sadly, there are some illegal guides who try to prey on tourists. Please ask your guide to show their guide certificate every time you join a tour. Please check Japan Tourism Agency site for detail.

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We’ve talked about the post-post-crisis era as one that is neither risk-off (a period like the financial crisis, when investors shun riskier assets) nor risk-on (a period like the post-crisis period, which we define from March 2009 through November 2014, when investors embrace riskier assets). In a post-post-crisis landscape, markets have a mixed outlook, in which growth is uneven and interest rates remain low.

The Taper Tantrum vs. the Recent Rise in Yields

In 2013, the “Taper Tantrum” occurred when the market learned that the US Federal Reserve planned to wind down its quantitative easing program — signaling the end of monetary policy easing and the beginning of a shift toward monetary policy tightening. Consequently, Treasury yields rose 100 basis points over two months. The move higher in yields seemed like a reasonable reaction to such signaling.

The recent move in interest rates also makes sense. The market is taking several things into consideration:

1. Uncertainty about the leadership of the Fed. Janet Yellen’s term as chair is due to end in February 2018. Given the Fed’s dovish policy during her tenure, the market is fearful that Trump will appoint a more hawkish leader who is more eager to raise interest rates and reset the tone.

2. Looser fiscal policy. Trump has championed both lower taxes and higher infrastructure spending. These policies, if implemented, would likely boost gross domestic product and increase the federal budget deficit.

3. Higher inflation prospects. Looser fiscal policy should be a tailwind for inflation. In addition, any protectionist policies, such as amending the North American Free Trade Agreement or implementing tariffs, could cause prices to move higher.

Bond Fundamentals Moving Forward

On one hand, lower taxes, fiscal stimulus and deregulation are all positive factors for riskier assets like stocks (and by extension negative for safer assets like Treasuries). But there are still many uncertainties and other factors that provide reasons to be constructive on fixed income:

1. Uncertain geopolitical backdrop. China is currently growing at a reasonably healthy pace, but that has been aided by a rapid expansion in credit.

2. Uncertain U.S. government policy. To paraphrase Aristotle, the market abhors a vacuum. Following the election, many aspects of government policy are in flux, from spending plans to foreign relations.

3. Risk that fiscal stimulus plans miss their target. The nonpartisan Tax Policy Center’s analysis of Trump’s income tax plan finds that, while high-income taxpayers would enjoy most of his proposed tax savings, middle-income families would receive an average tax cut of $1,000.

4. Risk of a trade war harming growth. If Trump were to follow through on his proposals to increase tariffs on foreign goods, his actions could spiral into a trade war. This would be negative for U.S. GDP growth.

5. Risk of restrictions on immigration hurting economic growth. One little-known fact is that the growth in GDP per capita has trailed total GDP growth by 40% since the financial crisis.

6. Risk of a shock hitting the economy. External shocks are, by nature, difficult to predict but can have wide-ranging effects.

7. Large number of buyers of U.S. government debt. U.S. and foreign pension funds and insurers use Treasuries as an important component of their portfolios, and this shows no sign of changing.

What This Means for Investors

Although it seems very likely to us that the Fed will raise rates gradually in years to come, expected risk-adjusted returns for investing in bonds remain appealing. Recent volatility in the municipal bond market is beginning to present more opportunities for munis*, while healthier realized inflation makes us continue to be supportive of Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities.