I started watching the American TV show New Girl this week and while I really enjoy the characters, zany antics, and comical situations (you should probably check it out if you haven’t, it’s a good show) it also made me think about how co-ed roommates are viewed in today’s society. In the show New Girl, [...]
Every Sunday we gather the week’s weird and interesting Japanese news and present it to you in our Sunday News column. It might not always be hard-hitting news, but we hope that it still informs and entertains you. Enjoy! Bonus Wallpapers! 1280×800 2560×1440
When we visited Japan earlier this year, we visited the famous Jigokudani Monkey Park (which you can read more about here), a place where Japanese macaques bathe in natural hot springs. I thought it was pretty funny that the monkeys were so spoiled in such a human way; the monkeys bathe in the same kind [...]
One of Japan’s biggest cultural exports is its martial arts: karate, judo, aikido, kendo. Back before anime got really big, Japanese martial arts was one of the big draws that got Westerners saying “I wanna move to Japan!” Beyond the romantic notions of Japanese martial arts as some kind of path to enlightenment or self-realization, [...]
You can read about Japan for years and learn a lot about the country; but there’s something missing if you can’t hear and see those same things. That’s why I love documentaries about Japan so much. They give you a look into some of the most interesting things happening in Japan without having to buy [...]
You’ll see me write a lot about how Japan is a much more diverse country than people give it credit for, but people don’t always belive me. There are actually huge cultural differences between different parts of Japan, from the small things (like standing on different sides of the escalator) to bigger things—like bullfighting. Japanese [...]
While many of you non-American countries will scoff at the idea of it being difficult to procure alcohol underage, Americans will know how difficult it is to get away with this sort of thing. Many American stores and restaurants have a “if they look under 35, card them” policy. Still others have a “always card, [...]
