Tag - japan-lite

 
Menu
Search
 
July 17, 2024
 

Today's print edition

Home Delivery
Subscribe for more access

JAPAN LITE

Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Apr 8, 2006
In America, a smile gets you everywhere
A couple of weeks ago in this column, I gave some tips for foreigners visiting Japan. One reader suggested that in my next column, I give some tips for Japanese visiting the United States. So here goes: Amy's rigorous guide to what NOT to do when visiting the U.S.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Apr 1, 2006
Victim's best friend: savvy 'avy' dogs
I have just skied down a chute and am buried under more than a meter of snow. I have a two-way radio on and an avalanche rescue beacon. After 20 minutes of deathlike silence, I can finally hear a dog barking in the distance. I've done a lot of back-country skiing in my life, but this is the first time...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Mar 18, 2006
O-Higan: a time for prayer and Elvis
Today begins o-Higan, the week of the spring equinox, which is a national holiday in Japan. It is also traditionally a time to visit grave sites. However, unlike Bon, when everyone and their dog returns to their ancestral home to visit family graves, Higan is practiced mostly by those living near the...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Mar 11, 2006
No more nude surfing in Bali
A few weeks ago, while surfing on the Bukit, Bali's southernmost peninsula, where the population is small and the waves big, I paddled my board out among a group of three young Japanese surfers who were obviously on vacation. They chatted among themselves, not really giving me much notice, when suddenly...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Mar 4, 2006
A meeting with a (full) Komodo dragon
Celebrity profile Name: Komodo dragon Breed: Varanus komodoensis, the largest monitor lizard Favorite food: Homo sapiens "Charm point": none
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 25, 2006
That's no kanji, that's just a hairball
So, how's your kanji study coming along? What? You've been slacking off? Well, me too. And I have a good reason: hairballs. Any Westerner who has studied Japanese kanji has had hairballs: those things that result when you start to write a kanji, usually one you've written a thousand times before, but...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 18, 2006
New Year's resolution: self-mutilation, a trance and some milk
How's your New Year's resolution progressing? What? You've already forgotten about it! What happened -- not enough determination? Well, I suggest you not tell the Hindu people in Malaysia about how you broke your New Year's resolution. Because unless your resolution involved sticking hooks into your...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 11, 2006
Japan: A nation in the naked flesh
Recently at the local "sento" (public bath), as I was changing back into my clothes, an old woman said to me, "Oh, what nice underwear you have!" Usually, when people start talking about my underwear, I either ignore them or feign not understanding Japanese. But as she spoke in that fashion of an old...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Feb 4, 2006
The year 2006 -- going to the dogs
Jan. 29 was the Chinese Lunar New Year, the official beginning of the year of the dog according to the Chinese calendar. I did some dog-on-the-street interviews to find out what we can expect this year under the helm of the dogs.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 28, 2006
The rah-rah radish, part II
On Shiraishi Island, the radish rah-rah starts in December, when you see "o-baa-chans" pushing wheelbarrows full of daikon. The esteemed radish is wheeled around -- entire radish families are given rides. In December and January, they are pulled out of gardens and transported to houses. If you look closely,...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 21, 2006
The rah-rah radish, part I
The cold winter months on Shiraishi Island are dedicated to the daikon, a long, white tapered radish that looks more like a weapon than a vegetable. The kanji for "daikon" literally mean "big root," but I suspect this is a typo for "big brute." At 7 to 12 cm in diameter and 30 to 40 cm long, the radish...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 14, 2006
Houses with faux fur lining
It's that time of year for me to give "gaijin" instructions on how to survive the subzero temperatures in Japan. Those inside your house, that is.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Jan 7, 2006
Kagura theater: talking with gods
Every four years on our island, we have a New Year's kagura performance. You don't just sit back and watch kagura; you become a part of it whether you intend to or not. All the other events on the island over the past four years seemed like mere practice sessions compared to kagura.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 31, 2005
The year of the dog -- bow-wouch!
It's the year of the dog! Wow! Bow-wow! According to the Koyomi calendar, if you were born in the year of the dog (1922, 1934, 1946, 1958, 1970, 1982, 1994 or 2006), you possess a sense of duty and obligation. You are fastidious, diligent and make a peaceful, harmonious atmosphere. That's the good part....
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 24, 2005
Christmas dinner -- Japanese style
Christmas in Japan has always left a little to be desired, but you can't blame the Japanese for this -- they're merely importing the parts they like. And why not? They are quite sure God understands this. I imagine the first Japanese importer went abroad to some place like the U.S., held up a Wal-Mart...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 17, 2005
Nine lives: meditating cats in paradise
Celebrity cat profile
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 10, 2005
Australian home stays: yummy bikkies!
On Tuesdays, I teach a class of high school students who just returned from a monthlong home stay in Australia.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Dec 3, 2005
Divine intervention for shrine epiphany
People always ask, "Amy, what do you do all day long on that island?" I assure them there is never a dull moment. A constant stream of visitors, mostly foreign, come to Shiraishi Island throughout the year. Some come out of curiosity, others to escape the city or catch a glimpse of old Japan. Some want...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 26, 2005
Gate ceremony: Pomp or circumstance?
"Please come to the opening ceremony for the gate," said the Buddhist priest. I'd never seen a ceremony for a gate before, so my first thought was, "What should I wear?" My second thought was, "I won't even be here for it, so I could probably go naked and no one would notice." I thanked the priest for...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE
Nov 19, 2005
Autumn colors: purple, pink
It is said that on Shiraishi Island we don't have much "koyo," or autumn colors. But this is always said by people who don't know the island very well, and who only see the pine trees and evergreens that make up 98 percent of the vegetation on the island.
Who needs AI when you have Hatsune Miku?
Over the first six months of 2024, a handful of songs using Vocaloid singer Hatsune Miku’s voice have enjoyed widespread attention, underlining a global interest in the character and the technology she represents.
Yen’s woes seem too big for even a BOJ hike this month to solve
The Bank of Japan headquarters in Tokyo
China’s economic growth comes in worse than expected
Pedestrians in the Wangfujing shopping area in Beijing on July 11, 2024. China's economic growth in the second quarter was lower than forecast, adding pressure on Chinese leaders to lift confidence at the Chinese Communist Party's third plenum this week.
Kansai airports to increase takeoff and landing slots ahead of Osaka Expo
Kansai International Airport in Izumisano, Osaka Prefecture. The upper limit on the number of takeoff and landing slots at the airport as well as Kobe Airport in Hyogo Prefecture will be raised in spring next year ahead of the 2025 World Exposition in Osaka.
Shooter came within inches of killing Trump, but left few clues as to why
An aerial view shows the stage where Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump had been standing during an assassination attempt the day before, and the roof of a nearby building where a gunman was shot dead by law enforcement, in Butler, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
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.
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.

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

Festival overcomes a nuclear accident and COVID
Festival overcomes a nuclear accident and COVID

SPECIAL SUPPLEMENTS note

Read more

SUPPLEMENTS BINDER