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July 16, 2024
 

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BILINGUAL

LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 18, 2004
Something meaningful to sink your teeth into
If nothing else, the Japanese are food snobs.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 28, 2004
For Japanese, family names are the worst growing pains
Japanese family relationships have never been simple.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 7, 2004
A woman's happiness is in the home . . . huh?
The term "shufu (main woman of the house, or housewife)" has shifted from derogatory to almost exalted.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Sep 16, 2004
Womanlike, manlike -- beware what you ask for
Elsewhere in the world, social distinctions between men and women erode on a daily basis, but in Japan, they still endure. Women are expected to be "onna-rashii (womanly)," men must go by "otoko-rashii (manly)" codes of conduct, and to hell with political correctness. And you know something? We actually...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 26, 2004
The Showa days: Were they really that good?
True to their inherent sentimentality, the Japanese often get all misty-eyed about times past. Lately the phrase "furuki yoki Showa (the good old Showa days)" has been bandied about. But, one is inclined to ask, were the Showa days really as good as the media would have us believe?
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Aug 5, 2004
Japanese in need of a break from summer break
Here's the real reason why the Japanese summer vacation is so short (for many, it's a matter of four or five days): the natsuyasumi (summer break) is essentially full of stress and if it were any longer, people up and down Japan would likely pop veins en masse.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jul 15, 2004
High-flying names a far cry from good old days
Like people elsewhere in the world, the Japanese have a fondness for the good old days. My great-grandfather's "good old days" were the 1920s, a time when there were public rose gardens in Hongo, with bushes imported directly from Kew Gardens in London. That was a time when rickshaws pulled up alongside...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 24, 2004
By the way, how do I look with this raw fish?
There's sushi, and then there's SUSHI. There's the kind you eat in a noisy, friendly atmosphere with all the prices written out in big black characters and taped to the walls. If you feel the act of reading and choosing is too much, just ask for any one of the various sushi setto (sets), depicted in...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jun 3, 2004
Shall we meet at Sutaba, Tsutaya or the dog's tail?
Doing the machiawase (setting up a meeting place) is one of things that define Japanese relationships, especially relationships in Tokyo.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 13, 2004
Lovable children of Edo -- where have you gone?
Being a Tokyoite doesn't have the same glamorous connotations as being a Parisian or New Yorker, but inside Japan, we've managed to rack up some notoriety. A Tokyo local, or Edokko (Child of Edo, as Tokyo was called before the 1868 Meiji Restoration) as many in the older generations still like to identify...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Apr 15, 2004
One day, Japan's 'losing dogs' will howl in unison
There's a new phrase out there and it's making a lot of people self-conscious. "Makeinu (losing dog)," which once meant nothing more than the literal translation, now indicates that swelling segment of the Japanese population: single people over 30.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Mar 25, 2004
The bento -- a scrumptious expression of love
As the season of hanami (cherry-blossom viewing) comes upon us, it's timely to reflect on the single most important aspect of hanami -- the o-bento (boxed meal). I say this because I grew up in a family in which the creation of the hanami bento was so elaborately planned, heatedly discussed and lovingly...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Feb 26, 2004
Getting underneath the language of skin
"Obsessed" is probably the right word to describe the Japanese's woman's relationship with her hada (skin). From her earliest years, she is exhorted by her elders to look after her skin -- scrub, cleanse, moisturize -- to achieve that tsuru-tsuru (polished) texture and shittori (moist) feel. If a young...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Feb 12, 2004
'Iyashi': relief for tired Japanese salarywomen
It's widely assumed that whatever their station in life, most Japanese women over the age of 24 are tsukarete iru (tired). This has less to do with modern living than something ingrained in the Japanese tradition that tires women out before their time -- namely, the emphasis on shigoto (work). Women...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Jan 22, 2004
The 'shitagidorobo': from criminal to fashion critic
It's not something that's widely advertised, but Japan is home to a massive shitagi-bunka (underwear culture). The most demure and modest of women will often be the owners of a collection that would put Frederick's of Hollywood to abject shame. And it's no secret that lan-pabu ("lingerie pubs," in which...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 25, 2003
Be good to your rice and your rice will be good
"Aaaaah. Nihonjin dana . . . (Ahh, isn't this what being Japanese is all about?)"
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 4, 2003
Learning the finer points of this, that and 'nani'
Like the Japanese economy, the Japanese conversation has dwindled. Our words have lost their luxurious sheen, our sentences have been reduced to short strings of blah. We no longer need the metaphors of Osamu Dazai to convey our emotions, since a handful of familiar phrases have been encoded to cover...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Nov 13, 2003
The indispensable vagueness of 'domo-domo'
It's when I'm away from Japan and forced to speak in another language (in this case English) that I realize just how vague Japanese can get. At home, it's possible to go through a whole day without uttering one coherent sentence built on spontaneous thought and logic.
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 23, 2003
Forget Starbucks, we're doing the ocha thing
Do you have a little time? If so, then "ocha shimasho (Let's do tea, or take a break over something to drink)." This is one of Japan's most favored phrases and oldest customs. A breaking of the ice and shortening of the distance between people, the little ritual of ocha is to the Japanese what mealtimes...
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Oct 2, 2003
When American values get a woman's mind cooking
My brother has plunged into this deep gloom. It's his girlfriend, naturally. He's taken to calling me three times a week, genuinely perplexed and begging me to tell him why the romance is gone. He's my brother and I love him, but honestly, like most Japanese men the guy does not have a clue. I can tell...
Bloodied Trump survives assassination attempt at political rally
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is surrounded and evacuated by Secret Service agents at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Saturday. Trump was rushed off stage at the rally after shots rang out.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
Amid same-sex marriage ban, LGBTQ couples opt for 'photo weddings'
A lesbian couple, consisting of a 35-year-old woman (left) and 40-year-old woman, cover their faces with bouquets as they pose for wedding photos in Yokohama on Nov. 1.
China and Russia conduct joint Pacific military patrol
The Russian corvette Gromkiy enters the Chinese port of Zhanjiang as part of a joint China-Russia naval exercise on Saturday.
How to beat Japan’s summer heat in ways better for the planet
Tenugui towels hang up to dry at a dyeing company in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, on May 8. The durable and versatile tenugui, which many people have in their homes, can be used in many ways to cool one’s body.
After Trump shooting, U.S. presidential race might take a violent turn
United States Secret Service Counter Snipers stand guard on a rooftop during a campaign rally for U.S. President Donald Trump in Avoca, Pennsylvania, in 2020.
No AC this summer? No problem (for me).
Think air conditioning is a requirement for a Tokyo summer? Think again.
She’s paying ¥1 million to help behind the scenes at the Paris Olympics
Mai Tarumi, who previously volunteered at the postponed Tokyo Olympics in 2021, has a travel budget of ¥1 million for her trip to volunteer at the Paris Games.
How to tweak your diet when temperatures spike
Most people think of hydration as a strictly liquid-based concept, but eating foods with high water content is an essential part of making it through a Japanese summer unscathed.

Podcast

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.
Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Longform

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.
The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'
By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals
Exploring Japanese culturevia Tohoku’s festivals

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