IJT Japan NewsJust flicking through the channels last night, I came across the strangely familiar sight of naked Japanese men in nappy-like white loin cloths getting drunk and dancing through the streets. This isn’t an R-rated post, it was just one of the many many Japanese festivals which take place all over Japan throughout the year, allowing [...]
Filed under: Culture | Tagged: Festivals, matsuri | Leave a Comment »
I remember when the very first Tamagotchi came out in 1996. They were all the rage for a while, then like other fads (think rubiks cubes), they are now gathering dust in the back of wardrobes. However, they did not fade away, like many people think. They have continued to be hugely popular in Japan, [...]
Filed under: Culture | Tagged: electronics, Japanese fads, Video Games | Leave a Comment »
You know how it is; you go to certain town city on a pretty regular basis. However you find yourself getting stuck into a rut of going to the same places each time – favourite parts of town, the regular bars, the usual restaurants. That’s kind of how I felt about Tokyo, so yesterday afternoon [...]
Filed under: Culture, Restaurants, Sightseeing | Tagged: Food, Monja, tokyo, Tsukishima | 6 Comments »
I was listening to Radio One this morning and Scott Mills was talking about toilets in Japan. I don’t think he did the toilets justice to be honest. The modern Japanese toilets are brilliant and a life saver if you have ever lived in the mountains of Japan through the long winter months. Most houses [...]
Filed under: Opinion | Tagged: Japanese toilet | 2 Comments »
5/ “Harajuku girls you got that wicked style” – Sundays in Harajuku No one has done more to publicise the strange underworld of Japanese youth fashions and culture than Miss Gwen Stefani. After years of international success with her band No Doubt, Gwenni Gwen Gwen decided to say goodbye to the guys in the band [...]
Filed under: Culture, Sightseeing | 1 Comment »
I think it goes without saying that the meaning of life isn’t the easiest thing to pin down. People from all corners of the earth have looked to religion and poetry, abstinence and indulgence, and nearly everything in between in the hopes of finding the answers to those questions that puzzle us all. The people [...]
Filed under: Culture | Tagged: Calligraphy, Japanese arts, Shodo | Leave a Comment »
I went to an event at the Japanese Embassy on Thursday celebrating a selection of World Heritage Photo’s taken by renowned photographer Miyoshi Kazuyoshi. I jumped on the train from Bristol to London to get there in good time for the opening and was looking forward to meeting a few people, seeing some good photo’s [...]
Filed under: Events | Tagged: Japanese Embassy, Miyoshi Kazuyoshi, World Heritage | Leave a Comment »
After finishing up my Spring tour leading stint, I was lucky enough to be able to fly back to the UK from Kansai Airport. My final tour, Hidden Japan, finished in Kyoto, and from there it is only a 90 minute train ride to the airport.It was special for me because in February 2003, I [...]
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tagged: airlines, airport, Kansai, Osaka | Leave a Comment »
The Metropolitan Government has announced that the 3rd Tokyo Marathon will be held on 28th February 2010. Our very own Harry Sargant kindly checked out the course in 2008 running a very respectable time of 3h27 and raising £1,216 for charity at the same time. The course is mainly flat and starts amidst the skyscrapers [...]
Filed under: Events | Tagged: harry sargant, marathon, tokyo | Leave a Comment »
It is the hardest question to be asked about Japan: “What do I have to see”? Given that every time I visit I find new ‘not to be missed’ places and experiences it is almost impossible to provide anything approaching an adequate answer. However, just to see if I could, I thought I would write [...]
Filed under: Opinion, Sightseeing | Tagged: 10 best things, Mt. Fuji, onsen, ramen, sento, sushi | 2 Comments »
