カテゴリー
[US] 15. Overtime in Japan
One aspect of the Japanese work environment that is interesting to me is the constant need to do overtime work. Now, I know not all companies in Japan have overtime standards, but there are many that…
[US] 14. Climbing Mount Fuji
One of the most significant memories I have about Japan is having the opportunity to climb Mount Fuji in August 2015. It was on my wishlist for the longest time and I was able to scale the mountain wi…
[US] 13. Sports in Japan
One of the more interesting aspects about living in Japan is the sporting culture. I was surprised to see that not only are traditional “sports” popular (such as sumo, kendo, and karate), but more tea…
[US] 12. Language
One of the more interesting aspects about Japan is its language. The mix of kanji , hiragana , and katakana is something that fascinates me. In the english language, we have a set of 26 characters tha…
[US] 11. Philosophy
One of my hobbies is studying philosophy . Since I was a child, I was always interested in the world around me. Philosophy was something that could help me find the answers I needed. Reading works by…
[US] 10. Public baths in Japan
One thing I read about before coming to Japan was the culture of the public bath. Being from America, it seems almost unheard of to be in a bathing area with a stranger. Although we have locker rooms…
[US] 9. Pets in Japan
I have noticed that many people have pets in Japan. The most common pet I see is the Shiba Inu . I can understand why, since they look really cool. My little sister really likes those dogs. Her favori…
[US] 8. Books in Japan
Since living here, I have had the pleasure of visiting many bookstores. From Maruzen to Kinokuniya , there are countless number of stores that shelves thousands of books. Although most are in Japanese…
[US] 7. Learning a New Language
Many people have this idea that it is difficult to learn a new language. While I agree that it will take some time to learn, I don’t think it is necessarily “difficult”. For example, I have two foreig…
[US] 6. School in Japan
School in Japan is interesting. When I used to teach children and junior high school students, I remember how tired many of the students were when they came to class. Each and every one of them were l…
[US] 5. Americans interested in Japanese culture: What it means to be “Otaku”
Growing up, I read many books on Japanese culture and history. I was fascinated at how different it was from reading American history, and how much Japan contributed to the world as a whole. Being a c…
[US] 4. Transportation in Japan
This is a topic that I really like. Having lived in Texas for most of my life, having a car is essential if you want to get anywhere. I had to drive to job interviews, special events, to high school,…