Pittsburgh Ginkgo Fest, November 4.

Tree Pittsburgh will present its annual Ginkgo Fest on November 4 in Highland Park.

"Postwar Tokyo: Reality and Imagination through the Camera", October 25 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's Asian Studies Center will host Dr. Shunya Yoshimi and his talk "Postwar Tokyo: Reality and Imagination through the Camera" on October 25. The talk will run from 3:00 to 4:30 pm in 630 William Pitt Union (map), and is free and open to the public.

"Indonesia-Korea Earthquake Dialogue," October 27 at Pitt.

The University of Pittsburgh's Graduate School of Public and International Affairs will host an "Indonesia-Korea Earthquake Dialogue" on October 27.

The Global Earthquakes Group: Response, Recovery, and Resilience (GERRR) will have an event, "Indonesia-Korea Earthquake Dialogue" at 12:00p.m., Friday, October 27 in Posvar Hall, room 3800. The group is funded by GSPIA’s Fund for Student Initiatives and hosting a series of dialogues in order to provide GSPIA students and the public the opportunity to participate in conversations with experts on the character of seismic risk, as well as earthquakes that occurred in Ecuador, Indonesia, Italy, Korea, and Nepal within the past two years. Dr. Taieb Znati (Chair of Department of Computer Science, School of Computing and Information, University of Pittsburgh) and YoonAh Shin(Graduate Student Researcher at GSPIA's Center for Disaster Management) will talk about Hazard SEES Project in Padang, Indonesia and Ji Sun Ryu (Director of Disaster Recovery Support Division, the Ministry of Interior and Safety, South Korea) will discuss governmental responses in Kyeongju Earthquakes, South Korea.

The event runs from 12:00 to 1:30 pm in 3800 Posvar Hall (map) and is free and open to the public. The event listing notes that Korean and Indonesian food will be provided.

2004 Thai horror film Shutter (ชัตเตอร์ กดติดวิญญาณ) at Butler Maridon's Museum, October 27.

The 2004 Thai horror film Shutter (ชัตเตอร์ กดติดวิญญาณ) will play at the Maridon Museum in Butler on October 27, the second of three installment's in the museum's Thai Film Series. The Tribeca Film Festival provides a summary:

There's a ghost in the machine and she's looking for blood in this nastily entertaining supernatural thriller from Thailand. It was the biggest Thai box office hit of 2004 and the country's response to the current Asian horror renaissance. The photographer and playboy Ton and his girlfriend Jane accidentally run over a woman on their way home one night; even worse, they drive off without stopping. Their guilt forces them to return a few days later, but there's no record of the accident, nor report of a body. There is one problem though; all of Ton's recent photos have been smeared with a strange light and an odd smudge, one that when enlarged looks strangely like a woman's face. Who this woman is, and what she's after, are questions that grow more urgent as Ton's friends begin dying, and as his playboy past begins to unravel.

The movie starts at 6:00 pm and is free and open to the public, though reservations are required to be made by phone: 724-282-0123. It will be presented by Slippery Rock University professor William Covey.

The Maridon Museum is an Asian art museum at 322 N. McKean St. in downtown Butler (map) that runs film series periodically throughout the year, in addition to art classes, book club meetings, and its regular exhibits.

Cremation Ceremony of King Bhumibol, October 26 at Carnegie Mellon University.

SIAM - CMU Thai Students Association will host a ceremony marking the cremation of the late King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand on October 26.

His Majesty the beloved King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand passed away on October 13, 2016. His Majesty has worked tirelessly on several projects all over the kingdom throughout his life for the betterment of his people. His countless accomplishments and teachings will forever be remembered.

The cremation of the Late King is happening on October 26, 2017 in Thailand. SIAM will be hosting an event on CMU campus for those of us away from home but would like to pay respect to the King. Please dress respectfully to the event.

The exhibition will be open from 5:30 to 8:00pm. There will be a presentation about the cremation ceremony at 6:00pm presented by SIAM Thai members.

The event will be held in the Connan Room of the Jared L. Cohon University Center (map) from 5:30 pm.

Nine decades of Chinese food in Squirrel Hill.

Advertisement in the June 29, 1934 Jewish Criterion.

Pittsburgh's Chinese food scene has gotten a lot of attention and acclaim in recent years, specifically newer restaurants in Squirrel Hill—see this piece in Saveur and this write-up from Eater, for example—but Chinese restaurants have been in the neighborhood for almost a century. The Canton Tea Garden opened on June 30, 1934 at 2018 Murray Ave., where it stayed through the 1930s and 1940s. Like its contemporaries, it advertised Americanized dishes for local tastes. The December 14, 1934 installment of "Sue's Shopping Pursuit" profiles the restaurant:

If it is true that in China people never heard of Chop Suey, all we can say is "they don't know what they are missing." Once you have eaten it at the CANTON TEA GARDEN you'll have no trouble in agreeing with us. And at the same place—2018 Murray Avenue, by the way—there are all sorts of other Chinese dishes too.

But we have saved the best thing about the Canton Tea Garden for last. On some of these cold winter nights haven't you often had a yen (parton our mixture of Japanese with Chinese!) for some good Chinese food—yet you hated to go out to get it? Well, all you need to do next time you feel that way is to phone Hazel 1213, no matter when it is, or where you are—you can order what you want.

Via Dr. Young Suh Kim.

On December 9, 1950 it reopened at 2205 Murray Ave., as seen in the photograph above taken by a Korean graduate student in the late-1950s. The outline of the sign's lettering can still be seen on the present-day Squirrel Hill Shoe Repair.


"Tea G" faintly visible at the Squirrel Hill Shoe Repair.

Pittsburgh firm hiring for Japanese-Fluent Document Review Attorney position.

Special Counsel, a national legal staffing and recruiting company, just posted an opening for a Japanese-Fluent Document Review Attorney in Pittsburgh.

Special Counsel is working with several clients who have future needs for Japanese-fluent barred document review attorneys in Pittsburgh, PA! We are expecting these projects to move quickly.

2016 Japanese animated movie A Silent Voice (聲の形) in Pittsburgh, October 22.

The 2016 Japanese animated movie A Silent Voice (聲の形) will play at the Hollywood Theater in Dormont on October 22. A synopsis of the film, opening in the US on October 20, from the distributor:

A deaf elementary school girl, Shoko Nishimiya, upon transferring, meets a boy named Shoya Ishida in her new class. Shoya, who is not deaf, leads the class in bullying Shoko, because she is deaf. As the bullying continues, the class starts to bully Shoya for bullying Shoko. After graduating from elementary school, Shoko and Shoya do not speak to each other… until later, when Shoya, tormented over his past, decides he must see Shoko once more. Shoya wants to make amends for what he did in elementary school and be Shoko’s friend.

The movie will play at 2:00 pm and tickets are available online for $15. The theater is located at 1449 Potomac Ave. in Dormont (map), and is accessible by Pittsburgh's subway/LRT at a block south of Potomac Station.

Umami named Best Japanese Restaurant in 2017 Pittsburgh City-Paper Readers' Poll.

via @UmamiPgh.

Umami was voted Best Japanese Restaurant in the 2017 Pittsburgh City-Paper Readers' Poll, which announced its results this morning. Umami, which opened in Lawrenceville in April 2016,

offers contemporary Japanese fare that is as pleasing to the eye as it is to the tastebuds. Menu categories include robatayaki — skewered foods grilled over charcoal — and yatai, which encompasses items served at street-food stands.

Nakama was voted Best Sushi, and had been a perennial winner of Best Japanese, garnering the most votes in 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013, 2015, 2015, and 2016.

Other relevant winners to this site are Sesame Inn again being named Best Chinese Restaurant, Nicky's Thai Kitchen voted Best Thai, and Pusadee's Garden Thai voted Best Outdoor Dining.

Ariba hiring bilingual Chinese-English Procurement Operations Specialist for overnight position.

Pittsburgh-based Ariba is again hiring a bilingual Chinese-English Procurement Operations Specialist for an 8:00 pm to 5:00 am shift. An excerpt from the job posting:

The Customer Support Specialist is the face and voice of Ariba to our customers, building relationships in each interaction. Specialists help our customers maximize the benefits of Ariba solutions to facilitate a global exchange of goods and services in the world’s largest business to business trading community. They use their expertise and collaborate with team members and customers across the globe to provide detailed solutions that exceed expectations.