– A guide to Japanese school uniforms One of the negative aspects to an extended stay in Japan is the normalisation of Japanese life that would draw the stares and cameras of many a foreign tourist. Never is this more evident than in the casual acceptance of students dressed in some of the most distinctive…
In amongst the faux snow and strains of, “I’mmmmmm dreammingggg of a whiteeeeee Christmassssss”, you may have also seen in your department stores and supermarkets ornate square boxes filled with products in every colour, begging to be bought at obscene prices. A far cry from roast turkey (northern hemisphere) or seafood (southern), this is osechi…
When I moved to Japan last summer I remember spotting a woman dressed in a kimono on the train and thinking to myself “I’ve spotted my first geisha! But why isn’t she wearing her makeup?†Later I was informed of my rookie mistake. In fact, she was no geisha, but rather an ordinary Japanese woman…
So you think the exciting title is going to be ruined by something boring and museumy? Think again! Last weekend three friends and I trekked all the way to Mie to discover the secrets of stealth at the Iga-Ueno Ninja museum. First you have to take the ninja themed two car train from Iga-ueno (a…
You see them walking down the street on the way to a wedding. You see them wrapped around white-faced maiko as they flutter past you in Gion. You see them at summer festivals and accompanying the click-clack of wooden geta along the riverfront of Kinosakionsen. The Japanese kimono. There is nothing else like it. For…
The lights are dim. Drinks litter the table. People are laughing and talking somewhere in the dark. Suddenly, the TV screen changes and music swells – it’s the opening of  “My Heart Will Go On.†Someone hands me a microphone. “Ganbatte!†excited voices shout, chuckling, waiting. Ugh. We’ve all been there. Karaoke is an integral…
Golden week is coming up. For many of us, that means travel – whether it be to places in Japan we haven’t been before, or to a new destination abroad – there seems to be no better time to travel than in the long, warm spring holiday. Despite the cost that is. As all of…
As winter slowly passes and spring edges closer to the hills and valleys of Japan, Valentine’s Day has already come and gone. Perhaps some of us had cause to notice, perhaps some of us didn’t. While Valentine’s Day has never been a holiday of much consequence to me personally, I did find myself very curious…
Steam rises, obscuring the snowy mountain scene outside the window. Serene pools ripple gently. You let the heat soak into your skin, through your muscles, down to the bone. It ensconces you, slowly coaxing all of the tightness in your shoulders and back into release. You sigh, giving in to the calm of the onsen….