Japan’s latest shining baseball star, fun space-saving innovations, and Japan is wasted on the Japanese
Japan takes its baseball seriously, and right now the whole country is closely watching Daisuke Matsuzaka as he starts his ...
Tag: cars
Elections in Japan, a run-down of what politics are like here, and using Japanese “honorific” markers for fun and profit
It's my least favorite time of year in Japan right now: election season, when dozens of politicians drive around in ...
A magic Japanese phrase for you, home ownership Japan-style, and Japan as “producer heaven”
Last time I mentioned the magic words that may be responsible for much of the wa or harmony that Japan ...
Japan as the land of the middle class, thoghts on Japan and Krispy Kreme, and fun Japanese things you can put on your car
Japan is nothing if not the land of contradictions. On the one hand, society has been organized in a vertical ...
Japan as the land of safety, small conveniences of living in Japan, and the reason for that wacky “Engrish”
I've written before about how Japan is a very safe place -- so safe it might just kill you with ...
The reality of “learning Japanese,” Japan’s special relationship with garbage, and the history of the Japanese Postal Mark
One thing I've heard from foreigners who have recently come to Japan -- and which I've probably uttered myself a ...
Shrinking the Earth and watching Football, all about the word “sumimasen” and the four islands of Japan
That old planet Earth, she just keeps on getting smaller and smaller, and it's a lot of fun to sit ...
How the iTunes Japan store reflect Japan’s oddities, my mother-in-law and our old sofa, and understanding Japan through Big Macs
Slate.com ran an article yesterday on Apple's Japanese iTunes Music Store and how frustrating it was that fans of J-POP ...
Coming of Age Day in Japan, on Japanese puns used in TV commercials, and right wing politics at work in Japan
Today is a holiday in Japan, Seijin-no-hi, or Coming of Age Day. Venture into any Japanese city right now and ...
Learning about how your brain works through Japanese, looking back on Japan since 1991, and services gaijin render to Japan
One thing I like about learning another language is the understanding you get of how your own brain works, not ...
The start of Japan’s important Holiday Season, a local battle over a Ferris Wheel, and understanding Japanese humility through baseball players
Now that Christmas is past, Japan is getting ready for its own big season, Oshogatsu or New Year's Day, by ...
How Japan’s writing system works, a summary of the past few years in kanji, and Japanese learning to deal with “hen na gaijin”
Kanji (KAHN-gee), the Chinese characters that the Japanese use to express most words in writing, is fascinating to Westerners because ...
American uniqueness vs. Japanese uniformity, a new debate on “beautiful Japan” and the little joys of living in Japan
Just as Americans are accustomed to thinking of our country as a union of semi-soverign states, each with its own ...
The Three Great Views of Japan, howling winds and volcanoes in my prefecture, and my wife’s strange link to Monty Python
Quick, do you know how many Great Lakes there are on North America? The answer is five. The reason I ...
Language learning and the “Han Solo Factor,” example of silly English in product names, and more
As a student of a foreign language, I know that there's no "magic" way to learn, and even if you ...
Politicial life after Koizumi, being at peace with taking your shoes off, and why Taro can’t code
The post-Koizumi era will soon be on us, now that Chief Cabinet Secretary Shinzo Abe has officially been elected leader ...
Thuoghts on “car culture” in Japan, the basics of how kanji work, and autumn = school sports day
Although Japan is a lot smaller than the U.S. -- it's about the same land area as Nebraska, but spread ...
A new social problem for Japanese, famous English phrases including “Boys, Be Ambitious,” and the Japanese obsession with design
Among the many problems modern Japan faces is katsuji-banare (ka-TSU-jee bah-NAH-ray), or a growing detachment from printed characters. Japan publishes ...
Culture shock related to cars, subtleties of language, and all about Japanese pocket tissue
When I first got to Japan, I had plenty of culture shock related to auto- mobiles. Cars are very important ...
Comparing cars in Japan and America, culture shock I get in my home country, and Americans don’t like to say “goodbye”
Japan and the U.S. are very different places, and the cars that people choose to drive are different, too. In ...
Back in Japan with culture shock, all about Japanese dialects, perceptions between countries and A-Kon wrap up
Well, I'm back in Japan now, the land of sushi and small cars and very cute things. No matter how ...
Election comparisons in Japan and California, Marie Antoinette’s anime connection, and wow, a dollar buys so much!
It certainly is nice to be back home in San Diego for a brief vacation in between anime conventions, and ...
The link between North Korea and Japan, Japan’s many seasons, and imitation being the sincerest form of flattery
The major link between North Korea and Japan is a cruise ship called the Mangyonbon-go, which makes regular trips between ...
Modern Japanese problems and “Amakudari,” politeness in Japan, and when to show reflection for something
First of all, the J-List website was down for a few hours on Friday night due to a server glitch, ...
