IJT Japan NewsIn Japanese culture presentation is everything. And this extends not only to exquisite layers of kimono and delicately wrapped gifts for example, but packaging: heavily packaged goods, individually wrapped fruit and thousands upon thousands of plastic bags. Here’s an example. I went to buy lunch in a convenience store: a carton of juice, an onigiri [...]
Filed under: Culture, Travel Advice | Tagged: 'bags in Japan', 'green travel', 'Shopping in Japan', Japan | 2 Comments »
The tap water in Japan is safe to drink. So refill your water bottle in the hotel room and carry it with you. Although there are vending machines everywhere (and I mean everywhere: one machine per 23 people in Japan!) you don’t want to get through hundreds of plastic bottles during your holiday. If you [...]
Filed under: Travel Advice | Tagged: 'green travel', Japan, Water | 1 Comment »
In the UK we think having strawberries in the supermarket all year round is a basic human right. This is not very green: think food miles, pesticides and heated greenhouses. Japan, on the other hand, really excels at seasonal, local food. In Japan the changing of seasons is celebrated throughout the culture, reflected in art [...]
Filed under: Culture, Sightseeing, Travel Advice | Tagged: 'green travel', 'Japanese speciality', Eating, Food, Japan, japanese food | 1 Comment »
Public transport in Japan is clean, punctual and the fastest way to travel. And we all know that public transport beats cars on the green front. Why would you travel by any other means? Inside a local line train With a public transport network as good as Japan’s, it is silly not to use it [...]
Filed under: Opinion, Sightseeing, Travel Advice | Tagged: 'green travel', 'japan trains', Japan, Trains | 1 Comment »
The summer months in Japan are hot. And sticky. And quite uncomfortable. Especially if you come from the UK, where our current July weather is a miserable, grey 15 degrees Celsius. Fortunately almost all hotels and ryokan have air conditioning units in the guest rooms. But please resist the temptation to leave the a/c on [...]
Filed under: Culture, Travel Advice | Tagged: 'Cool Japan', 'green travel'. 'Japanese air con', Jpaan | 1 Comment »
Westerners have written lots about the wonders of the Japanese toilet. But keep an eye out for toilets like this: These toilets have a tap above the cistern, so you can wash your hands as your flush. Genius water saving measures from the Japanese Japanese toilets often seem to be a little highlight of InsideJapan [...]
Filed under: Culture | Tagged: 'Green travelling', 'Japanese toilets', Japan | 4 Comments »
On my recent trip to southern Japan I had the pleasure of visiting Suizenji Park. Located in Kumamoto, a green and verdant city in western Kyushu, I found Suizenji to be a real gem of a place that I wholeheartedly recommend a visit to. Built by the Hosakawa family in the 17th century, it reproduces [...]
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箸 hashi = chopsticks 割り箸 waribashi = disposable chopsticks Packets and packets of disposable chopsticks Here’s a shocking statistic: Japan gets through 24 billion pairs of disposable chopsticks (waribashi) a year. That’s 185 pairs per person. This amounts to A LOT of wood, causing huge deforestation problems, mostly in neighbouring countries such as China.
Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Travel Advice, Uncategorized | Tagged: 'eating in Japan', chopsticks, Japan | 3 Comments »
