When uninitiated people think of Japan they generally think of the centuries old history and rich culture however these things have nothing to do with the daily experience of life in Tokyo. Well my life anyway. Having lived in a guest house in Maruyamacho, the 'dirty' part of Shibuya I have seen and heard a lot of things. Being a young, blonde, white woman in Tokyo you can get yourself into some very strange situations, very easily. It's not that I purposely go out of my way to get into these situations I guess I'm just a general freak magnet.

While living in the 'dirty' part of Shibuya last time I regularly walked through pink town to get to the station in the morning. One such morning I was approached by a reasonably normal looking Japanese man w... Read More

When you decided to live in a foreign land for good, you understood that you had to learn its language and culture. You knew that homesickness would surely linger in your lonesome moments．You had feared of what will be your life in that land. You were worried to be alone and forsaken by your only companion upon whom you depend so much. You had no idea how the people would treat you. You were not confident that you could adjust to the new atmosphere. However, you managed to pretend to become strong and held on to your decision.

When you first stepped on Japan’s ground, you felt a mix of excitement and fear. Excitement for doing new things and fear of being treated as an alien. At first, you were introduced to many acquaintances, brought to many beautiful places and exposed to ... Read More

I have learned some things about Japanese culture that really surprised me because they are completely different from my culture.

Food

Unlike in my country, slurping while eating is considered good table manners in Japan. In fact, it signifies that you have a strong personality. But if you don’t do the slurping they will consider you weak and shy. The slurping is also their way of telling that the food is delicious.

Bathing

There are many ‘onsen’ or hot springs around Japan. Japanese like to soak in a hot spring all naked, without any piece of clothing. They put a small towel on top of their head which can be used to cover their genitals when getting out of the water. Commonly, public hot springs ar... Read More

The progress of one’s country depends on its culture. In my 7 months of stay in Japan, I have already witnessed some very impressive things about Japanese culture:

Business:

In business, when Japanese meet for the first time in business meeting, they usually give each other a ‘meishi’ or business card. The card tells your name, your job title, the organization you work for, your address and telephone, etc. By looking at the card, they will know who must use more polite words. Do not put it in your bag or keep it as soon as you received it, and if there is table you have to put it on the table in front of you.

After work, they usually say “Otsukaresamadeshita”, and bow to each other many times. While I was at... Read More

New to the island of Okinawa in April, I began the search for a home just a few days after arriving. My husband joined me in the quest to locate an apartment or home which would suit our needs and of course with the three most important aspects: location location location. While it is not always or often easy to find a home in the ideal location we knew that we were open to various options and having neither children, pets nor a desire for a large yard or garden, we could possibly have more choices.

Our first action item was to contact a number of agencies and in Okinawa - being largely influenced by the military - we had no problem finding both English speaking and those providing services specifically to U.S. citizens. We managed to set up numerous meetings with ... Read More

Have you ever heard or read something and unintentionally tucked it away in your memory only to have it pop up out of nowhere precisely when you need it?

This happened to me last year, when Tokyo was in its ‘sweltering humidity’ phase of summer. So as we again approach this time of year, and begin to carry our coats to work, a story comes to mind.

I had read in a local magazine that the Yamanote Line (the circular line that rings metropolitan Tokyo) would be shaving its circuit time by a few minutes, from about an hour and one minute to about fifty-eight minutes. Perhaps the one-hour figure lodged itself in my brain.

One hot and sticky day when I had a job near Shinagawa Station on that line, I accidentally left my coat on the overhead rack. I thought... Read More

I have a cousin in-law’s wedding coming up fast, and need a suit as I did not bring one with me. The daily junk mail has me worried as the local men’s wear stores are behind the times and I like my suits baggy. All I have seen for the last few weeks is overpriced tight suits for old men and the cut of the suit is not my style at all.

Tonami City, Toyama: Does not have a huge range of fashion at its fingertips when it comes to variety, so I get dragged reluctantly to a wedding palace. In Japan it is common to be making weekly payment while your daughter is in school so you can afford a wedding when she finds Mr. Right. As we got married back in Australia, my wife’s mum wants to cash out and decided we could just hire something from the wedding palace to wear.

<... Read More

I feel like I'm trapped inside a video game, early 90's Excite Bike style, but I'm in a car. The car is a K-car, which is more like a box on wheels (hence early 90's). Because I can't read anything written on the buildings, all my navigational skills are based on shapes and colors. I turn left after a happy looking tomato, right after the yellow box, and so on and so on.

But besides getting around town, I've also found that recognizing shape and color is a great way to form meaningful relationships. I first started thinking this during the hanabi (fireworks festival) last weekend. I was sitting on the English-speaking tarp, watching the crazy amount of fireworks the city had cooked up, and realized that it was great for everyone to be able to appreciate the exact sam... Read More

If there's one thing that will never change for me, it’s my choice of Beer. I've been living in Japan for 2 years now, am used to canned beer, and have developed quite a palette for Kirin and Sapporo....Asahi doesn't even find its way into my fridge. But as much as I have almost convinced myself that Japanese beer is actually good, I will always stay true to my roots and continue in my search to find a better beer than my beloved Home Bevvie; Coopers Pale Ale, born and bred in South Australia.

For any of those out there that, like me, miss dearly a cold pint of pale or that special treat of a long neck on the way home from work, I will share with you my new found secret...it's here, in Japan, and it’s bloody well priced!

Costco, my friends, the international supe... Read More

I’m from Hawaii where we have no trains, so mastering the sprawl and complexity of the Tokyo train system was not unlike deciphering the DaVinci Code. Such basic concepts as local and express trains, inbound and outbound platforms, ticket purchasing or multi-line transferring were as foreign to me as kanji.

But as my basic understanding solidified, another layer of ‘logistical logic’ appeared. What is the latest time I can leave my apartment to make the fastest train to get to work on time? Which door of which car will place me directly in front of the escalator? How early (or slow) a train do I need to board to get a seat? I’m sure you too have accumulated a lexicon of similar stratagem.

Mastering these, a whole new vista dawned: The Etiquette of Passen... Read More

I must agree with a fellow contributor that Japan has some of the most technologically advanced toilets in the world. Nevertheless, Japan has a two-tiered system. The more common type is the luxurious toilet-bidets with music (to mask unpleasant sounds), heated seats, temperature settings for the water, automatic flushing, etc... These toilets are common in most hotels, department stores, and private homes.

The other type of toilet is the dreaded squat toilet. This style is still very common in public washrooms (such as parks, temples, and train stations). All the ferries I took used them, many bars use them, and even my English conversation school had one! Suffice it to say, I was disappointed to learn that I had a squat toilet in my apartment.

For a man,... Read More

Something that took a long time to get used to in Japan was the complex garbage and recycling system. Everywhere in Japan was different, but where I lived, I had 7 different days: burnable, glass AND metal, plastic, paper, landfill, mercury, and bulk garbage.

If you put plastic bottles in your burnable garbage (which has to be in a clear or semi-clear bag) the garbage collector will put a sticker on it. Now, the next problem, is getting someone to translate the sticker… so I have to bring my smelly garbage to work, and have a Japanese co-worker tell me, “oh you need to take this bottle out, and put it in with plastics”. It was so annoying. Once you get really good at separating your garbage, don’t think it won’t happen. It even happens to my Japanese... Read More

There was plenty o’ kicking on the screen. But for those of us in the audience, there would be no such tomfoolery.

My first ever movie theatre experience in Japan was well…orderly. Apparently, booking your tickets on-line the previous day is the proper way to begin the experience. Even 24 hours ahead, we had a difficult time finding good seats for two for the following Sunday afternoon. (All seating is assigned. And F.Y.I., finding any decent Saturday night seating at this point in time is borderline insanity.) At the 10minutes-from-Shinjuku theatre we decided on, it was necessary to then claim and purchase the tickets on-site at exactly one hour before the show. The theatre is on the 9th floor of a department store; I wonder if this is a way to boost sal... Read More

My wife and I have decided to visit Tokyo as we have just landed in Osaka, on the way back from Australia. After weighing up costs, time spent and other factors she recommends the best way to get to Osaka fast is Shinkansen. There is no argument from me as I have been waiting to try out one of the Bullet Trains and today is the day it happens.

Unfortunately in our area being Tonami City in Toyama Prefecture, most trains are very slow and there is no Shinkansen service available so I will take this opportunity to see what it is like to travel close to 300kph. The cost of the tickets seem cost effective considering we will go from Osaka to Tokyo in around three hours via the Shinkansen and I am excited to say the least.

Here it comes and in the flesh, the Shink... Read More

Where else in the world would you see Rockabillies, bagpipe-players, girls dressed as ‘Little Bo Beep’ and J-Pop bands all in an afternoon?

This is my take on Tokyo ? eclectic at the least, crazy at best. And I’ve only been in Tokyo for 8 days! So far I have explored the streets of Harajuku, the bright lights of Shinjuku, the shopping of Shibuya and the 6 floors of Don Quijote (you really can find ANYTHING you need there!)

I’ve had hot coffee from a can, tea from a can, soup from a can, traveled the subway in rush hour, bought a bicycle (a must in Tokyo), strolled Omotesando and been cleansed at the Meiji Jingu shrine. I’ve tackled the underground maze of endless stairs and escalators at Roppongi subway station, I’ve basked in the beauty o... Read More