Like this post? Help us by sharing it! I know it sounds bizarre, but some of my first impressions of Japan are of vegetables. There’s a scene in Hiyao Miyazaki’s animated classic My Neighbor Totoro in which two little girls, having recently moved out to the country, explore a neighbouring granny’s garden in the early summertime. They chill fresh-picked tomatoes and cucumbers in a running stream, then crunch […]
Culture & History
Salaryman vs. Kawaii
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! When I first started learning Japanese at high school, I was interested only peripherally in Japanese pop culture. This made me stand out from my classmates, who were strides ahead of me already because of their love of Japanese comics, animation, and movies. They could confidently introduce […]
Culture Shock every day in Japan
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! If you’ve spent any time in Japan, you know it can be quite a bewitching place. The delicious food. The quiet shrines. The peaceful gardens. For some, that is enough. Their time in Nippon goes by in a flash and they leave with cherished memories. For others, they […]
Tiny torii of Kyoto
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! As you’re strolling around the narrow streets of Kyoto, you might notice little red torii gates, affixed to the walls or tucked down on the ground. Usually, a torii gate is a sure sign there’s a shrine nearby, but here it’s just a blank wall. What’s up with that? There’s a […]
Survival Japanese skills
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! Over the next few months, we will be looking at various fun ways to learn a bit of Japanese. We will start with some of the basics, go on to useful greetings, phrases and continue from there, adding to this page as we go. We know that […]
Tempura: the quintessential Japanese, Portuguese dish
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! Tempura is a light, crispy, and delectable Japanese classic that you can make at home with just a few ingredients! But first, a quick lesson on its origins. This culinary staple originated in Japan’s famed Edo period. The Tokugawa Shogunate had the country in Sakoku lockdown for, give or take, 220 years. However, Japan wasn’t completely closed off. Among the Portuguese, Dutch and […]
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! Tempura is a light, crispy, and delectable Japanese classic that you can make at home with just a few ingredients! But first, a quick lesson on its origins. This culinary staple originated in Japan’s famed Edo period. The Tokugawa Shogunate had the country in Sakoku lockdown for, give or take, 220 years. However, Japan wasn’t completely closed off. Among the Portuguese, Dutch and […]