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November 23, 2024
 

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Louise George Kittaka

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Louise George Kittaka
Originally from New Zealand, Louise George Kittaka is a bilingual writer based in Tokyo. She contributes to a wide range of news and information media, as well as Japan’s educational publishing sector. When she isn’t at her computer, Louise loves exploring waterfalls, going to cake buffets and collecting anything related to the Aliens movie franchise.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
May 13, 2018
Readers reach out to lost friends and family in Japan
Another of our occasional 'in search of' columns featuring people hoping for a blast from their pasts, along with an update on efforts to help children and parents in international abduction cases.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Apr 25, 2018
A primer on navigating your ID landscape
A number of changes to Japanese ID registration systems have been implemented in recent years, some of them for everyone in Japan and others pertinent only to foreign nationals. The ins and outs can be a bit confusing, particularly for those who have been used to living under the old systems for many...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Deep Dive
Apr 19, 2018
Dual citizenship in Japan: A 'don’t ask, don’t tell' policy leaves many in the dark
Do you have to renounce citizenship? Do you switch passports at the airport? Has anyone ever been punished? Dual nationals tell their stories.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Apr 15, 2018
Advice on HIV tests, Japanese pensions, rugby and reuniting with kids
Lifelines works through a selection of topics that have come our way recently.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Apr 7, 2018
With free-range, Japan shows signs of a slow improvement
Hiragai (u5e73u98fcu3044), or free-range husbandry, where the animals can move around freely outdoors for at least part of the day, is still a somewhat foreign concept in Japan.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Apr 4, 2018
In Japan, who do you think you are? Fun and games with foreign names in katakana
Katakana renderings of non-Japanese names can cause a raft of problems if spelling issues are allowed to fester.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Feb 21, 2018
What Trump's tax reforms mean for Americans in Japan
Changes under the U.S. Republican administration are likely to affect the bottom line for individuals and companies here alike.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jan 21, 2018
Teething troubles in tapping into Japan pensions from abroad
While the easing of eligibility rules is welcome news, reading about it is one thing and actually tapping into the system is another.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Jan 6, 2018
'Lady First': Lea O'Harra examines gender roles in a murder mystery
Women have made significant inroads towards infiltrating Japan's patriarchal society, but their progress is still stymied by traditional views. With a long career as a university lecturer in Shikoku, Lea O'Harra draws on her own experiences to examine gender roles in provincial Japan in this, her third...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Nov 29, 2017
Students benefit from homestays without going overseas
Traveling overseas for a homestay to brush up their English or try life in another culture has become almost de rigueur for Japanese students, with many going as teenagers through their schools or as a private arrangement. However, the costs involved mean such an experience is often beyond the reach...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Oct 25, 2017
PanCAN Japan makes strides against pancreatic cancer
PanCAn Japan supports research projects and advocates for new medical techniques to improve both treatment for pancreatic cancer patients and early detection of the disease.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Oct 18, 2017
Ushering in a new, kinder era for Japan's zoos
Lack of legal regulation means the worst facilities continue to taint Japan's image abroad.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Oct 15, 2017
Shine On! works its animal magic on kids facing tough times
Shine On! Kids offers support and encouragement to very ill children and their families around Japan.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Oct 8, 2017
A mission to capture the full range of half-Japanese experience — in 192 photos
Tetsuro Miyazaki has the ambitious plan of photographing half-Japanese individuals with one parent from every nation in the world.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHY DID YOU LEAVE JAPAN?
Sep 23, 2017
Conductor Tonio Shiga: Overcoming communication struggles with a baton
As a conductor for the City Theater of Bremerhaven in the north of Germany, Tonio Shiga is used to being at the center of the action whenever he leads a musical performance with his orchestra. He is equally at home, however, sitting behind a piano and accompanying the theater's performers for a rehearsal...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Sep 17, 2017
Finally, non-Japanese residents can draw pensions after 10 years of paying in
Foreign residents can now receive a Japanese old-age pension if they have paid in for a total of at least 10 years, rather than 25 years, as was the case.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Sep 9, 2017
'The Expat's Guide to Growing Old in Japan: What You Need to Know': a review
If you'r e Japan resident and retirement is now closer than your college graduation, you probably need this book.
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Aug 20, 2017
On inheritance tax, net banking and retiring in Japan
This week, Lifelines plays catch-up with some useful tips that have come in from readers over the past few months. However, we start off with a follow-up question from reader S.S. in response to last month's column on recent changes in Japan's inheritance tax laws (bit.ly/jtinheritax) It seems S.S. spends...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jul 23, 2017
Gift and inheritance tax reforms leave more of Japan's foreign residents liable
A reader writes to Lifelines about Japan's recently introduced inheritance tax law, which he calls 'one of the most punitive in the world.'
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Jul 16, 2017
House sitting in Japan — still mostly an expatriate affair
A reader writes in about the possibility of coming to Japan as a house sitter.
Japan approves ¥21.9 trillion stimulus plan
The policy chiefs of the Democratic Party for the People, Liberal Democratic Party and Komeito — Makoto Hamaguchi (left), Itsunori Onodera (center) and Mitsunari Okamoto — shake hands after reaching an agreement on an economic stimulus package on Wednesday.
Tokyo Metro’s overseas efforts begin in earnest with London deal
Tokyo Metro will soon have a role in the running of London's Elizabeth Line, a major train route serving the U.K.’s capital city and environs.
Saitama court bans demonstrations over anti-Kurd hate speech
Kurdish people in Japan in 2015. A court injunction has banned acts that defame the Japan Kurdish Cultural Association and are disrespectful, such as putting up banner flags or handing out fliers with hate speech like “Refugees should go back to their home countries.”
China reinstates visa-free travel for Japanese nationals
Beijing Daxing International Airport
U.S. aircraft carrier returns to Japan carrying navy’s ‘most capable fighter’
U.S. 7th Fleet Commander Vice Adm. Fred Kacher speaks to reporters shortly after the arrival of aircraft carrier USS George Washington at Yokosuka naval base in Kanagawa Prefecture on Friday.
Shohei Ohtani wins National League MVP award
Shohei Ohtani celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Padres during the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles last month.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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