Impressions about Japan and Japanese People
Source: Dentsu Inc. survey of 9,212 valid respondents, ages 20-59, in the Republic of Korea, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Beijing, Shanghai, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, India, U.K., France, Germany, Russia, USA, Canada and Australia. In July of this year, the Dentsu ad agency released the results of its survey on “Japan Branding,” conducted in 16 foreign countries […]
Making Made-in-Japan Porcelain: Noritake
As 66% of the land in Japan is covered by forest (mori in Japanese), Japan may rightly be called the foremost “forest country” among the world’s developed nations. Indeed, such forests even exist within Japan’s major cities. “Noritake no Mori (Noritake Garden)” is approximately 15 minutes by foot from JR Nagoya station. Covering an extensive […]
Interview with Ambassador: Muhammad Lutfi, ex-Indonesian Ambassador to Japan (now, Indonesian Ambassador to the United States as of September 14, 2020)
“We are at a critical juncture. We can cooperate together.” By Ryoji Shimada, staff writer “I want to be a single-handicap golf player. I want to ski down a ‘black’ (advanced) slope. And most importantly, I want to finish the Tokyo Marathon next year in under four hours,” said a smiling Ambassador Muhammad Lutfi on […]
How to Overcome Frustration over Traffic Congestion in Japan
More people are driving to work or traveling this year to avoid contracting the coronavirus. However, traffic jams are unavoidable. What do you do when you are stuck in a traffic jam? A “Survey of families during traffic congestion” conducted by car audio maker Fujitsu Ten found that when their car is stuck in traffic […]
Reasons for Visiting Fukushima Prefecture: Fukushima is SAFE!
Despite Fukushima Prefecture’s abundant nature, mineral hot springs, tasty foods and other “sightseeing resources,” the number of visitors has declined drastically due to rumors that circulated following the March 11, 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear plant accident. In defiance of this trend, travel agency Club Tourism International has energetically promoted travel to northeast Japan. The […]
Japan’s National Sports Festival: Kokutai --- the World’s Largest?
This year of 2021 marks 109 years since the 1912 Stockholm Olympics, the first games in which a team from Japan participated. With the ending of the Tokyo Olympics 2020, Japan’s own sports season begins. Autumn is the season most closely associated with sports in Japan, to the extent that it is referred to as […]
Japanese Kisetsukan: A Sense of Season Among Japanese People
Japanese Kisetsukan: A Sense of Season By K. Merks As an American living in Japan, one of the first things I noticed about Japanese culture is the attention paid to seasons and seasonal change. I come from central Texas, where the joke is the only seasons are Hot and Less Hot ― hardly inspirational. But […]
Keeping it Clean: the Japanese obsession with cleanliness
Keeping it Clean: the Japanese obsession with cleanliness By D. Robinson Take off your shoes! This custom is probably the first piece of Japanese culture a visitor to Japan learns on, or before, arrival, that along with the ubiquitous bow. Removing footwear before entering homes, some schools and even the occasional office or restaurant is […]
Art Festivals in Tokyo, Japan
Express Yourself: Japan’s Biggest Art Festival “I hope I will be able to take things easy from my wife’s earnings --- that’s my ultimate goal,” Eiji Tamaki, a 34-year-old regular company employee decked out in samurai attire, chuckles half-jokingly. Tamaki runs an online store, Orisian, selling tsumami-zaiku, small flower-shape ornaments made of folded (kimono) fabric, […]