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 Kris Kosaka

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Kris Kosaka
Kris Kosaka, a resident of Japan since 1996, contributes regularly to The Japan Times. She is a lecturer at Meiji Gakuin University in the Faculty of International Studies.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jun 30, 2009
The slippery slope of shogakko
Although July's stickiness unglues most minds from study, it is at this time of year that mothers in Japan turn their thoughts toward school. Enrolling children in summer cram programs, visiting potential private schools, researching every possible option — all are occupations to fill the barefoot...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Jun 20, 2009
Key ingredient in Japanese cuisine found in the mind
It started with a bowl of udon. Elizabeth Andoh, recognized expert on washoku and contributor to Gourmet magazine for over 30 years, cannot really discern a logical path to her success in the Japanese Epicurean kitchen.
LIFE / Style & Design
Jun 18, 2009
Forget the suicide stereotype
Now that spring has dissolved into the sticky humidity of rainy season, now that go gatsu byo — "May sickness" — has melted away along with the memory of the cherry blossoms, perhaps it is time to wash away one of the most pervasive stereotypes of Japan, its dubious status as a "suicide nation."...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
May 9, 2009
Educator wants credit given where credit is due
Dr. Kazuyuki Matsuo has a dream. He dreams of a different kind of education in Japan, where students receive credit for real-life experience, be it helping Indonesians rebuild primary schools, or digging wells in Tanzania. Matsuo dreams of a system where students are allowed to find their own places,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Apr 25, 2009
Environmentalist David Suzuki has words of warning for ancestral homeland
Long before baseball's Ichiro moved to the northwest coast of the United States of America, another Suzuki had made a name for himself higher up, across the border in British Columbia, Canada. Dr. David Suzuki, environmentalist, scientist, TV producer and writer, was voted, in a nationwide poll in 2004,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives
Apr 4, 2009
Nihonshu evangelist preaches heady mix of culture, taste
John Gauntner appreciates a great destination, but for him, it's really about the journey. With five books published on sake, and as the only non-Japanese to be recognized as a kikizake meijin (accomplished sake taster) for accuracy in sake tasting, Gauntner is widely considered the leading English-speaking...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Mar 31, 2009
Women, know your place
Every time I open a newspaper or click on the Internet, yet another article appears bemoaning the same tired trend in Japanese society: the falling birthrate. Citing everything from sexless marriages to inequality in the workplace for women, these articles all skirt the real problem — Japanese...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 7, 2009
Tradition, family serve up a hearty fare
T he band members are dressed in traditional German costumes, and your smiling hostess leads you out in a traditional dance. A modest buffet serves up a bounty of simple, home-cooked German fare: cabbage and sauerkraut, potatoes and sausage. And don't forget the German beer. Just say "Mahlzeit," and...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Feb 21, 2009
Living life like a fairy tale
It's 5:40 a.m. Dawn has yet to peek over the mountains, and the forest surrounding Shonenji temple in Takachiho-cho still waits for morning.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Jan 27, 2009
Half, bi or double? One family's trouble
It may not matter for inanimate objects, incapable of altering their own sweet smell, but for humans a name becomes part of our identity. My voice rises slightly as I warm to my argument: It may not be a tangible part of a person, like a hand or foot, but what others call us — and how we name ourselves...

Longform

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