This Month on Maction Planet – May 2025

I guided every day in May 2025, including two weeks around Japan with the San Franscicso Museum of Craft and Design. Welcome to another bumper edition of This Month on Maction Planet!

Featured image: Chillin’ with Umeha and Satoha. We continue…

I led an evening sake tasting on 1 May, which allowed me to sneak in to the last day (to be precise, the last 20 minutes) of the latest ‘Three Buds’ show, showcasing the work of Tokyo Working Artists (from L to R) Etsuko Nishimura, Kit Nagamura, and Christina Lopp. It was wonderful show – so much so that I couldn’t help but snap up one of Kit’s pieces!

The Yokohama Museum of Art reopening inaugural exhibition, ‘Welcome back, Yokohama’ was fantastic. Just saying!

However busy I am, I always try to meet up with my friends… especially when they are humans of the calibre of world-renowned author of Japan-based faction, Jonelle Patrick. Check out my interview with her from back in September 2017!

I couldn’t stay out too late with Jonelle though, because the alarm went off at 0400 the next morning to take Sandy and Yossi to the tuna auction at the Toyosu Internemdiare Whoelsale Market!

I took guests to Tokyo International Bar Show on 9 May. This is a great show for catching up with drinks fans, makers and ambassadors such as Marcy Sakuma, Global Advocacy & Brand Education Manager for KI NO BI. Marcy is the star of this month’s Kanpai Planet video, which you can check out at the bottom of this post!

Like mother, like son! Wendy and crew were guests of ours on 11 and 12 May. Wendy followed in the footsteps of her son Casey who toured with me exactly a year ago on 11 May 2024!

Jordana messaged me at 20:47 on 14 May, a day after we toured together to meet me know that “Matt just said ‘let Mac plan my life'”. That’s the Maction Planet effect. ‘Nuff said…

My work 13 May was not done once Jordana and Matt and I parted ways… I then had the honour of hosting Tim and Tracy for a Japanese Whisky tasting. We sampled six drams and a highball together including Ghost Series 23c, part of the epic collaboration between Kanosuke, me and Stephen van Eycken which you can watch unfold here!

And then it began… two weeks around Japan with the San Francisco Museum of Craft and Design.

It started with an epic day that concluded with a welcome reception at the foot of the iconic Tokyo Tower.

As you can imagine, everyday was filled with Incredible array of experiences

But we still had time for fun in Harajuku, the classic Tokyo neighbourhood for kids of all ages.

We enjoyed many exhibitions including ‘The Art of the Ramen Bowl’ at 21_21 Design Sight…

Plus lesser known ones such as ‘RINN / 輪 Ireland and Japan: a dialogue on making, place and time’ at Tokyo’s new Irish Embassy building.

On leaving Tokyo, we experienced landscapes like this…

And got to purchase beautiful objects like this from the ateliers of Living National Treasures…

… and we met the people that keep Japan’s traditions and culture alive, like, Aki-chan, the 80-year-old washi paper-making legend!

It wasn’t just me who wanted a photo with Umeha and Satoha!

Tradition always needs to evolve and Akko gave us a live, interactive ikebana performance which was the embodiment of exactly that.

No cross country Maction Planet tour is complete without 8000 sake factoids but this time I had help from Hiro from Matsui Shuzo!

In fact, I found time in Kyoto to host another sake tasting at the Four Seasons Kyoto for a branch of the YPO from India.

And I was reunited with THE pumpkin!

I would like to thank Nora Atkinson, Executive Director of the SFMCD; my partners on this trip, the J-Team: Peter Gillon, who having had a great time on the trip I guided for the Peggy Guggenheim Collection in November 2022 recommended me to Nora; and all the attendees, who wrote a song that they sang for me around a campfire at Ryokan Roka on Naohima on our final evening together. That is truly something I will never forget.

I left Naoshima to begin a 12 day trip around Japan with Tyler and George.

Reunions abound as Tim and Tracy joined us for a baseball tour. Much fun was had, despite the appalling 6-0 trouncing by the Chunichi Dragons.

Here we are still smiling and keeping it real at teamLab Borderless!

The month on Kanpai Planet, join me for an exclusive tasting journey through the complete KI NO BI gin core range! In this special episode, we sit down (well, technically, stand up) with Marcy Sakuma, Global Advocacy & Brand Education Manager for KI NO BI, to explore Japan’s pioneering craft gin that’s redefining botanical spirits with authentic Japanese ingredients. We’ll be comparing three exceptional expressions: KI NO BI, KI NO TEA, and KI NO BI SEI, discovering how this Kyoto-based distillery captures the essence of Japanese botanicals like yuzu and gyokuro tea. Watch to find out more!

Maction Planet runs bespoke Private Tours and Experiences in Tokyo, and beyond. To book yours, or to purchase a gift card, contact us at info@mactionplanet.com

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