Japanese students are easily overworked because they do more than just attend 50 to 60 more days of school each year than their American counterparts. Participation in after-school activities is virtually required—it’s an unwritten rule in a society that stresses…
This week we’re taking a look at the Japanese school life. Look for Parts 2 and 3 later this week! So you’ve finished all your back-to-school shopping and just entered a new grade at school. The flowers are blooming and…
This week was the festival of Obon throughout Japan. Obon, a Buddhist holiday, is a time for bonding with one’s ancestors and deceased family members. The Japanese pray for the ancestors’ happy lives as spirits and acknowledge that they themselves…
So far we’ve covered a number of Japan’s most populated cities in this blog. For example, Tokyo, Japan’s most populated city, is home to about 13.01 million residents in only about 845 square miles of space. (That’s about 15,144 people…
If you’re familiar with geisha culture–and not the Western stereotype that a geisha is a Japanese prostitute–you know that formally entertaining a guest is an integral part of Japanese culture. There’s a proper Japanese way to interact with guests and…
This week we’ll take another look at a famous Japanese ghost story. Look over last week’s entry and compare the two–you’ll find some similarities. This week is the tale of Banchou Sarayashiki, another ghost story with its origins in a…
Summer is the season of Obon in Japan, so it’s high time for another look at a traditional Japanese ghost story. This time we’ll take a look at Botan Dourou and the two most common versions of the tale. Also…
If you enjoy Japanese food, you owe it to yourself to learn about Japanese table manners. Not only does the knowledge of this aspect of Japanese culture broaden your mind, but if you ever find yourself eating in Japan or…
Bloody Mary, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow… How many ghost stories from Western culture can you name? In Japan, where cultural beliefs born from the Shinto religion dictate that everyone and every thing–even inanimate objects–have spirits, there are quite a…
Knock on wood, don’t open an umbrella indoors… All cultures have superstitions and the Japanese are no exception. If you spend time in Japan or even if you just watch Japanese TV shows and movies, you may notice a few…