Guest House Business in Japan
A Place for Gathering, Beyond All Borders By Ryoji Shimada “The guesthouse is just a means of attaining our objective,” Takuya Kirimura admits. “Traveling makes people feel ‘flat.’ With no precondition or prejudice, people can meet new people just as one human being to another, with no barriers between them.” Kirimura is CFO of Backpackers’ […]
Bicycle Taxi in Tokyo
Boosted as “A new transport system easy on the environment as well as a moving advertising media,” vela-taxis first made their appearance in the German capital of Berlin in 1997. They were seen not only as a simple means of transport, but also as a solution to various issues, including environmental problems and stimulation of […]
Canned-food Bar Trendy in Japan
Bars that offer, in addition to drinks, a menu of canned food items --- referred to as “Can Bars” --- have begun catching on in Tokyo, Osaka and other major cities. The canned items include yakitori (grilled chicken), stewed fish, fruits, rice mixed with vegetables and others. The variety numbers in the hundreds. The prices […]
Truth about Japanese Father
About Poor Japanese Old Dad By Dave McCaughan Fathers have a hard time. Japanese fathers seem to feel they have an especially hard time Over the last eight years, before and after the disaster of 3.11, we have seen consistent patterns among people of all ages when they think of their own lives and their […]
Abdulaziz Turkistani: Ambassador to Japan from The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (until 2015)
"We need to build a strategic partnership." “Oil and desert as far as the eye can see,” a Japanese man in his 50s once replied, after being asked to describe his image of Saudi Arabia. He was surprised to be informed that the desert occupies only one-third of that country’s total land area. A Japanese […]
Bicqlo Store Combines Clothes and Electronics to Boost Consumption
Bicqlo Store Combines Clothes and Electronics By Ryoji Shimada “It’s a wonderful hodgepodge!” raves one sign. “Home appliances evolve, and so do clothes!” says another. With such claims at the store front and eye-catching electronic bulletin boards displaying constantly updated information on products, one’s curiosity would naturally be piqued, and certainly expect to find something […]
Ninja Still Alive: Devoting One’s Life to Ninjutsu Training and Study
Ninja Still Alive: Devoting One’s Life to Ninjutsu Training and Study Ryoji Shimada, staff writer What is your image of ninja? Their image that comes to mind for most people is of someone clad in black clothes, sword strapped to their back, hurling shuriken throwing stars, and running across the surface of water or disappearing […]
Hierarchy in Japanese Companies
Hierarchy in a Japanese company One aspect of Japanese corporate culture that often is difficult for non-Japanese to understand is the importance of hierarchy. The status relationships among various different members of the organization is a key determining factor in how they interact with each other, and how they expect others to interact with them. […]
Japan's Rice Innovation: Prewash Rice (musenmai)
Drycleaning Rice: The Toyo Rice Center process retains flavor and nutrition The idea of washing rice may be alien to Western people who are used to getting rice out of a box. But in fact, from India to Korea, it is a pan-Asian practice. Rice grown and packaged in America go through a cleaning process […]
About Being a Foreigner Working in Japan
Being a Gaijin or Gaikokujin in Japan By D. McCaughan A foreigner living in Japan, like any expatriate experience, soon learns that working here has many behaviors that might seem strange “at home.” Not long ago I was in a meeting when . . . Differences Between Japan and Foreign Countries Of course there are […]