Japanese Me

“The” with a long e. Tomorrow I’ll get my 外国人登録証明書 (gaikokujin tourokushoumeisho) or Certificate of Alien Registration.  It’s an ID card with my photo that I’ll always have with me.  Don’t leave the house without it! What has me most excited is that I’ll finally be able to get a bank account and cell phone.  [...]

Read the full story

One of the many great things about being in Japan is that there is a ton of authentic reading material in front of me every day–advertisements flashing by on the tv, signs in the supermarket, fliers in my mailbox.  I’ve been flipping through magazines at the bookstore, trying to find something at my level that [...]

Read the full story

Another thing I never thought I’d see… and I kind of wish I hadn’t. Whale meat at my local supermarket.  It costs 498 yen for 100 grams, or roughly $5 for 3.5 ounces. We didn’t buy any. ~ For the interested:  the meat is from a Minke whale.

Read the full story

This week I’m training for my new job–Assistant Language Teacher or ALT.  It can vary greatly from grade to grade and school to school, but basically I’ll be teaching English with the help of a native Japanese teacher.  I’m slated to work in elementary schools but don’t know any particulars beyond that yet. Training is [...]

Read the full story

In Kawasaki I found the one thing I thought I was safe from.  The one thing I was sure, dead sure, wouldn’t follow me to Japan. How wrong I was.  Look, they even have the line. The amazing thing–they bring you a free doughnut to eat while you wait. The line is a clever tactic.  [...]

Read the full story

The other day Ken and I made a trip to Kawasaki Station in Kawasaki ward, Kawasaki city (I wish I were making that up).  It’s about a 40 minute walk from here though we used the train (10 minutes) to get back.  We weren’t sure what were going to find.  The station turns out to [...]

Read the full story

Cuteness is culturally accepted in Japan way more than back in the States.  A 30-something woman can have a cartoon character on her bento (i.e. lunch) box and no one thinks anything of it.  I mean, just look at this bag I got from Mister Donut: Awww.  Many things cute are sweetened even more with [...]

Read the full story

When there’s a particularly large intersection there’s two main ways Japanese urban planners deal with it.  One is to create a scramble or “all cross” intersection, where traffic is stopped and pedestrians have free rein for a certain amount of time.  In Shibuya there’s a famous scramble intersection: The other way overcome a tough crossing [...]

Read the full story

I love Japan but it irks me sometimes.  Allow me to vent, starting with this story: Near the end of last year I was diagnosed with borderline high cholesterol.  This was a shock for me–yes, it runs in my family, but I eat decently and walk a bunch.  Time to walk and exercise some more, [...]

Read the full story

On my third day here I found a mook (a cross between a magazine and a book) filled with basic Japanese recipes that you can do in one pan.  It has great pictures and simple versions of recipes everyone should know.  I decided to start with one of the most basic: Fried rice.  This is [...]

Read the full story