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I’ve been in Japan for almost 4 years without once going back. I want to go home. I want to have conversations with almost everybody I speak to in English rather than a minority of people. I want to be able to understand what the people at the next table, on the TV or my [...]
Saw this on Tonari no Shibafu‘s blog and thought I’d put mine up.
The newest building on the block in Osaka is Namba Hips. This is an amusement arcade centre with restaurants and pachinko. What makes it stand out apart from its unique shape is the freefall ride starting at 74 metres above ground level. One ride costs 1000 yen or about 5 dollars. Below is a TV [...]
Hello and a Happy 2008 to you all. I’m back from an extended holiday in Oita in Kyushu. We were supposed to stay in a cottage in the middle of nowhere but got caught in a snowstorm with balding city tyres on our car and called out JAF (the Japanese Automobile Federation) to put chains [...]
I’ve spent almost four years in Japan. Couple that with the year I spent in France and Germany and the three years in the wilderness in Wales and it totals 7 out of my 9 years of adulthood in a foreign country. With that in mind it’s time to go home. Real home. I had [...]
Yoroshiku onegaishimasu is the king of all Japanese words. Having many meanings from Nice to meet you, please do this favour for me or please don’t kill me. It has incredible power. Especially when talking with Japanese colleagues. For example, “Please could you fill out this form for me [deep breath] yoroshiku onegaishimasu.” A little [...]
I went to see J-Pop Band Sukima Switch with Reiko’s sister yesterday in their arena tour. It was my first time at a Japanese group’s gig in Japan and I enjoyed it. The actions of the fans were notable. For the up-tempo songs, every person would clap one particular way for the verses, when it [...]
In my Japanese lesson we went through the story of Taro and the turtle. In it Taro helps a turtle being bullied by children and in return the turtle takes him down to the bottom of a lake where he meets a beautiful princess. He stays with her for a bit being really happy but [...]
I’m reading an excellent book called Hitching Rides with Buddha by Will Ferguson. It’s about a Canadian who follows the Cherry Blossom Front in Japan by hitchhiking rides with Japanese. In this way he gets a unique perspective on Japan from the conversations he has with his rides. For example: Japaneseman – Japan has 4 [...]
Japan has a women’s volleyball team strong enough that it ranks in the top 10 of the world. Because of this it stages tournament after tournament at great expense in Japan and transmits them live during primetime evening hours? In the last year, Japan has held numerous volleyball tournaments and failed in each one. This [...]