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Sunday, 30 April 2017

Climb Mount Takao and meet Tengu

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Tengu statue at Takao Station Tengu statue on Mount Takao Last Sunday I climbed Mount Takao (Takao-san= 高尾山 ), a beautiful 599m peak...
Friday, 28 April 2017

Crayon Shin-Chan: The Bad Boy of Japanese Manga

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A Tokyo subway train celebrating 25 years of Crayon Shin-Chan Japan is world famous for its cartoons ( manga ) and animated cartoons ( a...
Wednesday, 26 April 2017

Wisteria on the Vine

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Fuji (wisteria) flowering on the vine At this time of the year, with the temperatures climbing and the sun coming out, one of the most p...
Monday, 24 April 2017

Budokan Concerts and Foreign Bands

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The Budokan, with the famous golden "onion" dome on top Last Friday I went to the Budokan (left), one of Japan's most fam...
Saturday, 22 April 2017

What colour is it? Green and blue in Japan

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Kerria Japonica ( yamabuki ) or Japanese yellow rose One of the fun things about learning a foreign language is that you realise that ma...
Thursday, 20 April 2017

Goodbye Cherry Blossoms, Hello Cherries

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Leaves sprouting on the sakura trees Now in Japan, the sakura blossoms are falling fast, covering the streets with a blanket of pink (vi...
Tuesday, 18 April 2017

North Korean Missiles and Korean Residents in Japan

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Korean University Entrance, Kodaira City With tensions rising on the Korean peninsula it was rather unnerving to hear Prime-Minister Abe...
Sunday, 16 April 2017

Banks of Colour - Spring is well and truly here!

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Spring is a very colourful season in Japan; blankets of bright shrubs and flowers catch the eye everywhere, even aside from the sakura an...
Thursday, 13 April 2017

One Bicycle - Four Riders?!?

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April means back to school in Japan, and for many mothers (and a surprisingly few fathers) this means shuttling their children to and from n...
Tuesday, 11 April 2017

Be Careful! It's Dangerous! (Part 2: Suspicious People)

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A previous post discussed the Japanese penchant to display warning signs telling people to be careful ( chūi =注意). Such signs (see below)...
Sunday, 9 April 2017

Noisy Candidates, Quiet Citizens: Elections in Japan

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An election board in Kodaira City Today (April 9th) Kodaira City holds a double election (senkyo=選挙）: one for the mayor plus a by-elec...
Friday, 7 April 2017

Sakura Cherry Blossoms and Global Warming

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The official sample cherry tree at Yasukuni Shrine, Tokyo On Sunday (April 2nd) came the official announcement that Someiyoshino (the ...
Wednesday, 5 April 2017

Revolving Sushi: Japanese Efficiency Personified

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Kaiten or Conveyor Belt Sushi: Remarkably Efficient Conveyor belt or kaiten (revolving) sushi is hardly uncommon outside Japan, but the...
Monday, 3 April 2017

Signs of Spring and Memories of Wada

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The fragrant lotus-like white/purple flowers on the mokuren (Lily Magnolia) tree are everywhere this time of year and for the very season-...
Saturday, 1 April 2017

Pachinko and other Addictions: Escaping Reality?

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The ubiquitous and unique Japanese pachinko parlour Pachinko parlours (パチンコ屋) are everywhere in Japan and at weekends are invariably pac...
Thursday, 30 March 2017

Beef Bowls and Death from Overwork

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G yūdon or " beef-bowl": popular and very cheap fast -foo d The picture on the left shows the popular Japanese fast food kn...
Wednesday, 29 March 2017

Talented Birdlife on the Kodaira Green Road

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A key feature of Kodaira City is the Green Road , a popular 21km tree-lined walking path which rings the city and which for 8km runs along...
Tuesday, 28 March 2017

Japan's most Popular Word Game: Shiritori

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  Shiritori (しりとり＝尻取り）is a popular Japanese word game where two or more players chain words - usually nouns - together.  The literal meaning...
Monday, 27 March 2017

High-tech Toilets and Toilet Slippers

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An electric toilet control panel, common in Japanese homes Japan's high-tech toilets continue to fascinate tourists and electric sea...
Saturday, 25 March 2017

Sushi: Special Occasions Only!

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A selection of home-delivered sushi in a sushi- oke Nothing may seem more Japanese than sushi (寿司), but in everyday Japan sushi is for t...