IJT Japan NewsThe Japanese are great at teamwork. No one goes home until the boss leaves the office; the team is more important than the maverick individual on the baseball field and so on. I think the Japanese are also great at making every day things a bit special; anyone seen those roadworks barriers that are in [...]
Filed under: Culture, Opinion | Tagged: 'extreme sports', 'Japan style', 'walking' | 3 Comments »
I always knew something was wrong with me. During childhood already, classmates would laugh at me because my pastimes were somewhat different from a “normal” boy. When I reached teenage years, mom and dad couldn’t deny anymore when they saw the sort of friends I used to bring back home. I traveled the world and the seven [...]
Filed under: Culture, Events, Opinion | Tagged: anime, Japan, japanese geek, otaku, tokyo game show | 4 Comments »
The latest member of our Japan team to write something for the blog is Akiko san. One of our newest members in the Japan office, Akiko is a keen traveller. The Japanese people are always keen to buy gifts (Omiyage) for friends and loved ones when they head off somewhere on their holidays. Akiko is [...]
Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Travel Advice | Tagged: 'Don Quiote', 'Japanese souvenirs', 'Tokyu Hands', Japan, Shopping, souvenir | 4 Comments »
The Japanese people were delivered a sporting achievement to fill their hearts with pride and joy in the early hours of Monday morning. After all of the troubles and woes of the past months, it offered a much needed release and allowed expression of sheer elation, as the women’s national team triumphed at the football [...]
Filed under: Culture, Events, Opinion | Tagged: 'Japan v USA', 'Japanese womens world cup team', 'Womens World Cup final 2011', Japan, Nadeshiko | 2 Comments »
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 »
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 »
I recently completed seven days volunteer work with the Japan-based non-profit organization Peace Boat. I was part of an international group of 6 volunteers – British, Japanese, Irish and Vietnamese. Complete strangers at the start, the nature of our work and life in Ishinomaki brought us together. We barely lost sight of each other all week. Our day [...]
Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Travel Advice | Tagged: earthquake, hedoro, ishinomaki, miyagi prefecture, peace boat, tsunami, volunteering | 11 Comments »
From the moment I first set foot in Japan everything about this country fascinated and enchanted me. It was like no place I had ever been before and like nowhere I have been since. 10 years later, I am living in Tokyo and have travelled up and down the country so many times that I [...]
Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Sightseeing | Tagged: 'Women in Japan', Geisha, Japanese culture, Kyoto, Maiko | 2 Comments »
InsideJapan Tours tour leaders have travelled the length and breadth of Japan and love it – That’s why they do it. One of the best things about being a tour leader in Japan is having the opportunity to show other people this stunning country along with introducing this unique and beautiful culture. Tour leader Steve [...]
Filed under: Culture, Opinion, Sightseeing | Tagged: 'beautiful Japan'., 'Japan tour', 'Japan travel', InsideJapan Tours, Japan, Miyajima, Mt. Fuji | 1 Comment »
I’ve been working at InsideJapan Tours’ Nagoya office (west Japan) for the last month. As enjoyable as that is, I’ve been eagerly waiting to get back to Tokyo to start my next tour leading stint. I hadn’t been to Tokyo for a number of weeks so I was keen to visit some old friends and haunts. And, [...]
Filed under: Opinion | 5 Comments »
