Japan Living

Free Lego Offer

2011-09-05T21:30:00.001-07:00

Free Lego Offers, I don`t think you will find a better offer than this one! Simply write a lot of Lego set or Lego game reviews for Burns Brick Country, and become a regular contributor.

For the Free Lego Offer to your door in Japan

Lego Reviews can be in Japanese or English.

Japan's 'silent tsunami' severs parental ties, wrecks children's lives

2011-09-01T04:57:00.000-07:00

Tuesday, Aug. 30, 2011

HOTLINE TO NAGATACHO
Japan's 'silent tsunami' severs parental ties, wrecks children's lives

To the next Prime Minister,

I am the cofounder of Children First (childrenfirst.jp), an NPO that focuses on children's issues. Every three minutes another child loses all contact with one of their parents after divorce. Every seven minutes another child is a victim of school bullying. Every 12 minutes another case of child abuse is reported to protective services. Every week at least one child dies as the result of abuse. Read More

Rice shipped from Fukushima Prefecture

2011-08-30T16:54:00.000-07:00

So they have decided to resume rice shipments from Fukushima. Why?

To scare the public? To cause people to horde rice from other prefectures? To kill off the restaurant industry?

No one will want to eat outside their homes for fear of where the rice came from.

They say they tested the rice twice for radioactive cesium.

Moshi Moshi, uh,....Hello!

There are a lot more elements than that, that need to be checked if we are going to put it in our bodies.

What about Strontium 90, or Iodine 131?

Safe to say too, that with governnment decisions like this, no farmer in Japan, whether they be from Hokkaido, Kyushu or Okinawa (far from the reactors), will be selling any farm produce outside of Japan. No one will be buying Japanese produce because of ill-thought out decisions like this.

News Story Follows:

Rice shipped from Fukushima Prefecture

National Aug. 30, 2011

Japan Today —

Rice was shipped from Fukushima Prefecture on Monday for the first time since the March 11 disaster. The rice was tested for radiation and got the all-clear, a spokesman for the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said. Read More

GOD AND THE SENDAI EARTHQUAKE

2011-08-29T05:15:00.000-07:00

GOD AND THE SENDAI EARTHQUAKE
John B. Cobb, Jr.

I was born and spent most of my childhood in Japan. The two cities in which I lived were Hiroshima and Kobe. Both have suffered terrible destruction: an atomic bomb and an earthquake. Now Sendai has experienced an even more violent earthquake. These evils are problems for everyone, but for those who think there is some basis for justice in the world, whether it be Karma or God, there is added a special problem. Does the occurrence of a devastating evil at a particular place mean that those who suffer from such catastrophes in some way deserve their suffering or that it somehow serves a greater good?

Process thought has its own way of responding. We do believe that there is God, and that God cares for all creatures. We understand the question, why does God cause these calamities or at least allow them? But the question has assumptions that we do not share.

Read More

Read about Living in Japan

How to teach English in Japan

The House that Ikumi & Kevin Built

2011-08-29T04:41:00.001-07:00

日本のほっとする家

南足柄市、神奈川

壁紙が薄いアパートに約8年間暮らし、朝の息が見えたりトイレの氷が少しずつ崩れて小さなボールマンが見えたとき
もうたくさんだ！と私は日本に家を建てる決心をしました。
私達はカナディアンハウスが欲しかったのです。少なくともカナディアンスタイルの家が欲しかったのです。
日本の神奈川県に、私達はカナディアンハウスを立てたのです。トイレもバンクーバーから取り寄せました！
私が毎朝見ていた小さくて可愛らしいボールマンはカナダ人だったのです！バンクーバーのリッチモンドにある
素敵な店から来たライト、イケアの家具、そして家の材料はリッチモンドから取り寄せました。床にはオークの木を2×6、
階段用の松の木と桜の木の板、これらはクローバーデイルにあるウェストウッドという会社からです。 Read More

Part 2 is Here

Greenpeace: Fukushima schools unsafe after clean-up

2011-08-29T04:23:00.000-07:00

(Reuters) - Greenpeace said on Monday that schools and surrounding areas located 60 km (38 miles) from Japan's tsunami-hit nuclear power plant were unsafe for children, showing radiation readings as much as 70 times internationally accepted levels.

The environmental group took samples at and near three schools in Fukushima city, well outside the 20 km exclusion zone from Tokyo Electric Power's stricken Fukushima Daiichi nuclear complex in Japan's northeast.

"No parent should have to choose between radiation exposure and education for their child," said Kazue Suzuki, Greenpeace Japan's anti-nuclear project head.

Read More

Fukushima Robot Operator Writes Tell-All Blog

2011-08-28T19:48:00.000-07:00

Fukushima Robot Operator Writes Tell-All Blog

EXCLUSIVE: THE FUKUSHIMA ROBOT DIARIES

Editor's Note: This is part of IEEE Spectrum's ongoing coverage of Japan's earthquake and nuclear emergency.

An anonymous worker at Japan’s Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant has written dozens of blog posts describing the ups and downs of his experience as one of the lead robot operators at the crippled facility.

His blog provides a window into the complex and dangerous work environment faced by the operators, a small group of young technicians who, like other front-line personnel, must approach areas of high radiation, deploying remote-controlled robots to assist with efforts to further stabilize and shut down the plant’s four troubled reactors. Read More

Read about Living in Japan

Read about Teaching English in Japan

The Immense Cost of Japanese Dams and Dam-Related Landslides and Earthquake

2011-08-27T18:35:00.000-07:00

The Immense Cost of Japanese Dams and Dam-Related Landslides and Earthquakes*

Masano Atsuko

Translated by Aaron Skabelund

It had been three months since the Iwate-Miyagi Nairiku Earthquake struck northern Honshu on 14 June 2008, triggering a huge landslide above Aratozawa Dam. The area hit by a landslide has been further carved by snow and rain, and trees and other vegetation are in disarray. The site looks like the day after a wretched barber had just given it a bad haircut. For the earth, this must be an embarrassing appearance.

According to the National Institute for Land and Infrastructure Management (Kokudou gijitsu sou-kenkyuusho; NILIM), the epicenter of the 7.2 magnitude quake was near Mt. Kurikoma on the border between three prefectures--Miyagi , Iwate, and Akita--and in the close vicinity of 15 dams (one which is still under construction) including Aratozawa to the southeast.

In this landscape carved by rivers, a landslide with an average depth of 55 meters, a width of 810 meters, and a length of 1400 meters slid as far as 140 meters off the side of the mastiff and into the back of the lake formed by the dam.

A few days after the earthquake, Tokyo University Professor Konagai Kazuo appeared on NHK television’s “Close-up Gendai” special, “The Mountain that Disappeared: The Iwate-Miyagi Nairiku Earthquake,” and explained that because ground water near the dam was high and because snowmelt had permeated the ground, the violent shaking of the earthquake had caused the massive landslide. Read More

Time in Japan - a Question from a Canadian Reader

2011-08-27T06:37:00.000-07:00

Time in Japan, Kevin a question for you:

I keep reading in alternative news sources how the radiation leaks are worse than what the government is saying. I've also read that radiation is being detected on the west coast of North America. I know my Japanese friend says he is fed up with the lies and just wants to get out now. Are you concerned about all the radiation?

--S.O., in Canada

Read More

Japanese Government to Monitor Online Discussions About Fukushima

2011-08-27T06:18:00.000-07:00

Japanese Government to Monitor Online Discussions About Fukushima

What do you think of this?

I think the government wants to have a handle on public opinion so they can address the concerns that are going viral. I think that is good overall. I don`t feel scared about it.
Alex Jones and his website is partly about government control and wrong doing. However in this case, the monitoring might be a good thing.

I have less problem with this monitoring and more of a problem with security cameras in public areas, as I feel they could be abused. Plus people can be falsely identified. ie) look like a criminal.

News Story Follows:

KAZUYO NAKAMURA
Asahi Japan Watch
Aug 26, 2011

While the government defends its new monitoring program of online postings concerning the accident at the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant to stem the spread of “inaccurate” information, critics say it harkens back to Big Brother.

The Agency for Natural Resources and Energy said tweets on Twitter and postings to blogs will be monitored for groundless and inaccurate information that could inflame and mislead the public.

The agency said it is trying to “track down inaccurate information and to provide correct ones instead.”

But critics are skeptical about the agency’s motive, especially because the government has been under fire for failing to provide an accurate picture of what has been occurring at the plant and the spread of radioactive contamination.

The cost for the project was earmarked in an extra government budget to finance the rebuilding of northeastern Japan ravaged by the March 11 disaster. Read More

For More on Japan Living

Kevs Twisted Humor

2011-08-25T18:20:00.001-07:00

Kevs Twisted Humor
Welcome to Kevs Twisted Humor!

Who the heck is Kev? And why is he twisted?

I don`t know why I am twisted. It may be growing up near Vancouver. That DDT spraying they did on the fields in Delta decades ago? Having a liar, ....oops, I mean lawyer for a brother.

Having a skin doctor (who would experiment on,...oops treat his children),for a father, and a comedian/housewife for a mother.

My other brother is a very funny doctor. I mean that in a good sense.

It could have been that pop I drank. (Soda) for the Americans.

Kevs Twisted Humor - A Little Kev History

All about Japanese Origami

2011-08-25T06:14:00.001-07:00

The art of paper folding, commonly known as origami, started in the 17th century AD and was later on popularized outside Japan in the mid 1900s. Some historians and scholars would say that just like much of Japanese culture and tradition, origami originated from China. The word origami came from the Japanese word “Ori” which means folding and “Kame” which means paper.

Read More

Japanese Instruments

2011-08-25T05:36:00.001-07:00

Japanese Instruments

Japanese Instruments, what you may not know

by Lyanne Thomas

Traditional Japanese musical instruments are comprised of a wide range of string, wind (mostly flutes) and percussion instruments. Let me mention the most common Japanese musical instruments:

Percussion Instruments

Drums: Taiko, literally known as great or big drums. There are many big drums in Japan and most of these great instruments have 2 membranes that are either nailed or laced and are struck with sticks. Most of these big drums such as the Odaiko are usually used during Japanese festivities and celebrations. A famous taiko perfomance group known as Kodo hosts an annual earth celebration. The Earth celebration is a festival of taiko drumming where people from around the world come to Japan to witness the celebration. Read More

My Trials and Tribulations of Starting the Tokyo Comedy Club

2011-08-25T02:18:00.000-07:00

Pictured: Some of the funny English you see in Japan, this time at Boozer House in Odawara

An article came out in Japan Zine, acknowledging me as one of the co-founders of the Tokyo Comedy Store. I just want to say thank you to the Tokyo Comedy Store for doing that!
--Kevin R Burns

Kevs Twisted Humor
These days I ply my comedy trade at my website, Kevs Twisted Humor.
Check it out!

One of the great things about being an expatriate in Japan is that there are so many unique opportunities for us here. If you are willing to take the time to go to the audition or job interview, you have a shot at many interesting jobs. As well, if there is something you want to do, but this organization or club doesn`t yet exist, if you start it, they will come. So often there are others like you, waiting for someone to start a club or group they are interested in.

I have lived here a long time, I`m a good organizer, so I have started many groups over the years. One of them was the Tokyo Comedy Club, which is now known as The Tokyo Comedy Store. I still have a little pride in knowing that I started the whole thing! Maybe someone would have done it eventually, but I did it! Read More

Cute Japanese Girl Warning!

2011-08-24T18:42:00.000-07:00

"Many otherwise perfectly good international relationships have ended instantly, when the Japanese partner opened up and started to eat the squid jerky! If you have never smelt squid jerky, it beats natto hands down, natto is for wimps. Squid jerky can be used by butt cleavage showing car mechanics as a paint solvent at car repair shops, it will singe your nostrils, and coat them with a fishy smell that will last for days."

--Kevin R Burns (the Japan Guy not the MMA guy, this websites guy!)

Read More:

Japanese Body Art

2011-08-21T19:43:00.000-07:00

Japanese Body Art - This art also known as Irezumi or horimono, otherwise known as Japanese tattoo art or body art has a very long history.

It is said that the early Japanese people or Ainu decorated their body with paint and used facial tattoos. This was done by the Ainu people for social and decorative purposes, however scholars also believed that these tattoos were not only to represent one`s social status but claimed that it had some spiritual purpose.

Read More:

Former U.S. envoy critical of Japan's nuclear crisis response

2011-08-20T01:04:00.001-07:00

Kevin Maher, a former State Department official, says the U.S. worried about Prime Minister Naoto Kan's lack of leadership after the earthquake and tsunami led to a nuclear crisis.

By John M. Glionna, Los Angeles Times

August 20, 2011
Reporting from Seoul—
Relations between the United States and Japan, already strained over the delayed relocation of an American military base on Okinawa, received no help this week when a retired U.S. envoy publicly criticized Tokyo's initial response in March to the nation's nuclear crisis.

Comments by Kevin Maher, a former director of the State Department's Japan Office, shed light on Washington's mind-set during the early days of the crisis at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant.

Speaking to reporters in Tokyo, Maher said U.S. officials worried about the lack of leadership shown by Prime Minister Naoto Kan's government after the March 11 earthquake and tsunami led to partial reactor meltdowns at the coastal plant.

At one point, Maher said, the Obama administration considered a worst-case scenario of evacuating tens of thousands of U.S. citizens from the Tokyo metropolitan area.

"There was nobody in charge," Maher said Thursday at a speech at the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan. "Nobody in the Japanese political system was willing to say, 'I'm going to take responsibility and make decisions.' " Read More

Living in Japan

2011-08-19T18:53:00.000-07:00

What is a Japanese apartment like?

To make living in Japan fun and not unbearable, you need a decent if not a nice place to live. Where you live of course, makes a huge difference in how you feel about wherever you live, but especially in a foreign country like Japan. Your Japanese apartment should be as much of an oasis as you can make it.

A Japanese apartment is different from what you can expect back home. The amenities are few if any. You will need to furnish it from the top down, including the light fixtures!

Read More

Japan Update - News on Japan

2011-08-19T18:42:00.000-07:00

Japan Update, today`s news from Japan

Tell us your stories about living in Japan, or about the news from Japan below!

A former resident of Japan states this on the Disaster in Tohoku:

“There is always a lot of hype and misreporting in these situations. There is only a need for people to move from affected areas, not the whole country. The same thing happened when I lived in Indonesia and the bombings happened in Bali. There was so much misinformation, misreporting and blatant lies just to milk more from the pain of those suffering. The media can be so heartless while appearing to be caring…there has been quite a disparity between some reports here and what I’ve heard from people who are there. Why can’t the plain truth be told? Crazy, eh.”-JP

Read Today`s News from Japan

Han`s Rosling on History

2011-08-19T18:39:00.001-07:00

Kurt K. Billie In Trouble with the Law Again

2011-08-19T08:54:00.000-07:00

This time Billie has been arrested in the USA.

Billie was tried and convicted in a Japanese court after being found guilty of burning seven restaurants and bars on Okinawa in two separate arson attacks in January 2001 when he was a 24-year-old Marine lance corporal stationed at Camp Hansen.

Read More

Walking around Yokohama recollecting the big quake

2011-08-18T21:03:00.000-07:00

The last time I was in Yokohama was back on March 11th when the big quake hit and I had walked this same way to Landmark Tower. I remember the huge after shocks while I was walking and the crowds of people that were slowly making their way from Sakuragicho Station to Yokohama Station. So today, I was a little bit wary of hanging around too long inside the shopping mall, although of course it was my paranoia taking over me. The ironic thing back on March 11th I was also out in this area shopping for a hat. This time I was shopping for slacks so I came out of this day’s Yokohama experience safe.

Read More of this Blog

Two Looks at Beautiful Nagasaki

2011-08-17T18:42:00.000-07:00

Nagasaki is located on Japan`s southern isle Kyushu, a paradise that boasts green fields, forested mountain sides and beautiful beaches.

The famous city of Nagasaki is the capital and likewise the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture. The city is not only historical but attractive with some tourist attractions captivating the hearts of many foreigners such as:

Read More

Richard Schwartz says:

"All of Kyushu Island too is semi-tropical, lush green, and has beautiful beaches. Nagasaki is one of Japan`s most beautiful, interesting and of course, historic cities.

The people of Kyushu are more easy going than their counterparts in Honshu, Kyushu people brag. All in all it is a nice place to visit or live in, so I recommend travel in Japan-Nagasaki!"

Lee Urges Japan to teach correct history

2011-08-16T21:57:00.000-07:00

I have always said this was important. If you don`t know your history well, you do not know yourselves. Japanese authorities are hurting the children of Japan.

News Story Follows:

President Lee Myung-bak said Monday Japan should teach its future generations a correct history amid heightened tensions between the two countries over Tokyo's attempts to renew its territorial claims to South Korea's easternmost island of Dokdo.

"Japan has a responsibility to teach its future generations a correct history," Lee said during his speech on Liberation Day, marking the end of Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.

Japan's attempt to lay claims to Dokdo has long been a thorn in relations between the two countries. South Koreans see those claims as a sign that Japan has not fully repented for its colonial rule of Korea.

South Korea has rejected Japan's claims over Dokdo as nonsense because the country regained independence from the colonial rule and reclaimed sovereignty over its territory, including Dokdo and many other islands around the Korean Peninsula. Read More

The Drug Problem in Thailand

2011-08-15T02:20:00.000-07:00

Provinces of Thailand, sandwiched between the converging frontiers of Laos, Burma, and Thailand is an area known to the world as the Golden Triangle. Populated by hilltribes, the region has enjoyed the dubious distinction of being one of the world`s major opium growing centers. Politics and economics have contributed to this status. The hilltribes, with few alternatives to the easily grown opium poppy, have traditionally practised slash and burn agriculture, planting their opium fields in the soils of the northern hills.

Read More

Mask making in Thailand

2011-08-14T04:43:00.000-07:00

Photo Gallery: Mask making in Thailand

Traditional khon mask making is a dying art in Thailand.

Prateep Rodpai, one of Thailand's last traditional Khon mask makers works in his outdoor studio in Angthong, Thailand. The paper mache Khon masks, are part of the ornate glittering costumes used in the stylized classical Thai dance form known as Khon. Prateep sells his handmade masks for $50-120 US, it can take around 10 days to make one. The Khon tradition was originally imported from India around the 10th century. The painted Khon masks are essential to conveying the characters and moods of a Khon performance. See the Masks

Read about teaching, Living and Touring Thailand

Bangkok`s Parks

2011-08-14T03:05:00.000-07:00

Pictured: Krabi, Thailand

Bangkok`s Parks

I love working in Japan and earning such a strong income in a very strong currency, then traveling to Thailand and spending it on the beach or in Bangkok. What a life!

Bangkok with its many markets, interesting old neighborhoods, temples and waterways, is sadly lacking in public parks and gardens, although the Thais are great lovers of flowers and plants.Thailand is after all one of the world`s largest exporters or orchids and has developed several species unique to the kingdom.Visitors interested in plants native to Thailand and exhibits from abroad will find no better place than the new Rama IX Park on the outskirts of Bangkok.

Read More

Tips for Effective Resume Writing

2011-08-09T03:39:00.000-07:00

Tips Effective Resume Writing, you have about 30 seconds to a minute to make an impression on the personnel manager. Make the first impression a great one!

Have a great looking resume. Either make it yourself or have a professional service type one up for you. Make it look professional as schools, institutions and universities here are trying to hire professional people.

Read More

The Real Feel Termperature of your Japanese City

2011-08-09T03:38:00.000-07:00

This site gives you the real feel temperature. You can search your city by entering it in the top left hand corner of the site. International city names are okay.

http://www.accuweather.com/default.aspx
AccuWeather.com - Global Weather - Your Local Forecast
www.accuweather.com
World weather from AccuWeather.com including local weather forecast for international cities and global weather information.

Once settled in, chances are you'll have to pay to stay

2011-08-05T21:19:00.000-07:00

HOME TRUTHS
Once settled in, chances are you'll have to pay to stay
In Japan, property rental renewal fees can cost around one month's rent per year. The question is: What is it tenants are paying for?

By PHILIP BRASOR and MASAKO TSUBUKU

In 1946, Japan was in ruins. The housing shortage was severe and inflation was high, so the government issued a directive to freeze rental fees. To make up for the perceived loss of income, property owners came up with supplemental fees — renewal fees, called koshinryō, and "gift money" or reikin, a mandatory gratuity that new renters paid to landlords for the privilege of moving in.

Though the purpose of these fees may have been obvious at the time, they became arbitrary once owners were allowed to set rents freely again. Yet many landlords continued to demand them simply because they could, and they still can. Read More

Star of New Brunswick and a Former Chunichi Dragon hangs up his glove

2011-08-03T20:24:00.000-07:00

Matt Stairs retires from MLB

Stairs was given permission by the Montreal Expos to play in Japan, where he suited up
for Nagoya`s profession baseball team the Chunichi Dragons. After his stint in Japan,
he returned to the Expos.

CBC News Follows:

Matt Stairs is retiring from Major League Baseball after almost two decades. Matt Stairs is retiring from Major League Baseball after almost two decades. (Chris Carlson/Associated Press)

Matt Stairs, New Brunswick's biggest baseball star, is ready to retire after almost two decades playing in Major League Baseball.

Stairs, 43, hasn't made the official announcement yet but he told CBC News in an interview on Wednesday that his playing days are now done.

"I'm not sad. I had a great career, a long career," Stairs said.

"And it's one of those things where I can walk away today and not be sad about it."

Read More

To Japan or Not

2011-07-30T01:13:00.000-07:00

THE earthquake and tsunami that hit northeastern Japan on March 11, and the nuclear crisis that followed, have had an impact on nearly every corner of the economy, perhaps none more directly than the tourist industry. The number of foreign visitors has plunged 50 percent since the triple disasters, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization.

But four months on, travelers are trickling back. Most are business travelers, adventure seekers and bargain hunters, a type of visitor not often associated with Japan, where a sushi dinner can wipe out a week’s savings.

The view of Japan as a high-priced playground is what kept Erin Conroy and Jenny McMeans, friends from New York City, from visiting. But this spring, they found round-trip tickets to Tokyo on airfarewatchdog.com for just $600, about half what they normally cost, and booked a room in a hostel for 2,600 yen (about $33 at 79 yen to the dollar) a night. Suddenly, Japan was affordable, even with the yen near record highs against the dollar.

Read More

Left behind parents waiting

2011-07-26T17:48:00.001-07:00

Left-behind parents waiting

By PAUL TOLAND
Special to The Japan Times

WASHINGTON — Ever since Christopher Savoie was arrested in 2009 after a failed attempt to retrieve his abducted children, Japan has been overwhelmed by international pressure to resolve its ever-increasing number of abduction cases. After years of demarches and public pleas by foreign governments, Japan has finally announced its intention to sign the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.

For the 85 other governments that have signed onto to this treaty, it represents a guideline for returning children who have been abducted abroad, and it represents a promise that a foreign court will not simply usurp custody orders and "steal" jurisdiction away from a child's habitual residence.

While the rest of the world has greeted Japan's announcement with cautious optimism, left-behind parents who have been victimized by this human rights tragedy have followed the government's discussions closely, and with growing concern. Watching the parliamentary debates that have been taking place in the Japanese Diet, it is difficult to believe that Japan intends to abide by the Hague treaty in good faith.

To date, most debate within the Japanese Diet has revolved around creating "exceptions" under which Japan would not have to return abducted children. These telling debates are in obvious opposition to the spirit of the Hague treaty in which signatories purport to want to return a child to his or her home following an abduction. Read More

The truth about Hiroshima

2011-07-19T07:02:00.000-07:00

The truth about Hiroshima

I had terrible nightmares of Atomic weapons growing up as a child of the cold war and I avoided studying World War 2 in high school history as it troubled me. As a result, I never understood how or why Japan came to be an enemy in a war that was against the Nazis in Germany.

I learned, in visiting the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, that before the Atomic bombing, Japan was at war with China and was spending 80% of its national economy on military spending. The people of Japan were forced into working to support the war. Children as young as 13 (boys and girls) worked in manufacturing, school children were given military training disguised as exercise, to have them ready for deployment. Clothing and Food items were rationed severely, with families given coupons and dressed in uniforms. The people of Japan were suffering under the control of their own government, who was even trying to enforce Mind Control to curb any anti-war intentions.

Read More

Sumo Wrestling

2011-07-19T06:33:00.000-07:00

Read More about Life in Japan at our Homepage

Sumo Wrestling - The Ancient Sport From Japan

By Nancy McDonough

Wearing nothing but a mawashi (loincloth), two larger-than-life opponents face each other in a dohyo (wrestling ring) to push, wrestle or throw each other out of the ring. This is the basic definition of sumo wrestling but, like any other centuries old Japanese tradition, the "why" and the "how" is more important than the "what".

Sumo has been performed the same way since the Edo Period (early 1600's) and still retains the rituals and techniques developed in those early years. The rikishi (wrestlers) even wear their hair in a topknot - the hairstyle typical of samurai in the Edo period. the umpires and referee wear elaborate kimono-style garb that depicts their experience ranking. Before each bout, both wrestlers toss salt into the ring because the dohyo is a sacred place. After each day's match, a lower ranked wrestler closes the event by performing the yumitori-shiki (bow dance).

Sumo wrestling bouts are fast - some lasting only a few seconds - and very intense, with a series of three "stare down" practice starts that the wrestlers use to intimidate their opponent. These trained athletes weigh in at 300-400 pounds, but follow a stringent regiment of training and nutrition that creates an athlete of great strength. Wrestlers grapple at each other with their bare hands and employ a range of moves that require precision, timing, and balance to succeed.

Every year, six basho (tournaments) are held in four different cities in Japan, each lasting 15 days. A wrestler's ranking changes depending on his performance in the tournament, with the top ranking, called yokozuna, bestowed on only one or two wresters at a time.

For centuries sumo wrestlers were exclusively of Japanese birth. In the last two decades, foreign wrestlers have begun to compete in greater numbers and have earned top rankings. Currently there are 60 non-Japanese professional sumo wrestlers out of a total of 700. China, Russia and several other Eastern European countries have made an impressive showing recently, but in the 1990's two American wrestlers -- Konishiki and Akebono (both from Hawaii)-- were the first to reach the yokozuna rank.

Nancy McDonough was for many years an English teacher in Japan. She is fluent in Japanese and travels to Japan yearly. She founded her retail kimono company in 1992. Nancy currently manages her kimono retail company Kyoto Kimono and her blog is here, Kyoto Kimono Mania.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Nancy_McDonough

http://EzineArticles.com/?Sumo-Wrestling---The-Ancient-Sport-From-Japan&id=4435941

Japans Nigerians pay price for prosperity

2011-07-18T16:33:00.000-07:00

Japan's Nigerians pay price for prosperity
Facing apathy within and racism without, a disunited community struggles to thrive on society's periphery

By DREUX RICHARD
Special to The Japan Times

The Nigerian Union in Japan is the central civic organization for immigrants from Africa's most populous nation. It has foundered twice in 21 years and its current incarnation is less than a year old. Its mixed history is a reflection of the social and economic turmoil Japan's Nigerian community has endured over the past two decades.

Members have been factory laborers, globe-trotting entrepreneurs and nightlife industry pioneers. They've also been blamed for some of Tokyo's most publicized crime problems, notably a series of drink-spiking and bill-padding incidents that led the U.S. Embassy to issue a warning in 2009 against visiting Roppongi. With the exception of those incidents, their history has hardly been written about. Read More

Hope for Japan`s Wpmen`s Soccer Team in World Cup

2011-07-14T04:57:00.000-07:00

TOKYO (AFP) – Women's football fever has gripped Japan, diverting fans from summer staples sumo and baseball, after their "Nadeshiko" side beat Sweden 3-1 to book a place in Sunday's World Cup final against the USA.

"I really want them to win, so that the victory will encourage not only Tohoku, but also the entire country," said 38-year-old businessman Seiji Eizumi, referring to the region hit by the March 11 quake and tsunami.

Read More

More News about Japan

What are the differences between Japanese and Western Education?

2011-07-12T06:02:00.001-07:00

What are the differences between Japanese and Western Education?

by Kevin R Burns

Japan has been one of the most successful nations on earth. So have most of the Western countries. By many measures, Japan and the Western nations are world leaders.

What then are some of the positives and negatives of their respective educational systems?

Read More

Japan Forced School Children To Clean Radioactive Dirt From Swimming Pools

2011-07-12T05:27:00.000-07:00

Japan schools forced students to clean radioactive dirt from swimming pools in locations designated as hot spots with radiation levels 4 times Chernobyl evacuation limits.

In another propaganda show meant to convince the public there is no threat from radiation in Japan, local schools forced children to clean radioactive dirt from the bottom of the schools swimming pools.

One PTA member who didn’t trust the assertions from the school and the government kept a sample of the dirt collected from the pool and decided to have it tested for radiation.

According to a the Mainichi Daily News (Japanese), that sample was found to contain 17,020 becquerels per kilogram of radioactive cesium. Read More

With Japan at a crossroads, it's instructive to recall the Hidaka affair

2011-07-10T01:46:00.001-07:00

COUNTERPOINT
With Japan at a crossroads, it's instructive to recall the Hidaka affair

By ROGER PULVERS
Special to The Japan Times

Exactly 30 years ago this month, I had an encounter with a man who became innocently involved in an international incident. That incident may be all but forgotten now, but it's worth recalling here because it highlights the struggle of an individual of conscience to have the truth revealed.

Indeed, we in Japan are currently involved with the very same issues of personal responsibility and collective falsehood.

If we remain silent in the face of injustice or criminal negligence, if we allow unelected bureaucrats and business executives to ride roughshod over our personal welfare — as we are witnessing with regard to the ongoing nuclear disaster in Fukushima — the entire nation's future could be put at risk by recklessness and prevarication. Read More

Japan vs The West

2011-07-08T19:06:00.000-07:00

What are the differences between Japanese and Western Education?

Japan has been one of the most successful nations on earth. So have most of the Western countries. By many measures, Japan and the Western nations are world leaders.

What then are some of the positives and negatives of their respective educational systems?

Read More

Scream!

2011-07-08T17:48:00.000-07:00

Japanese amusement park unveils world’s steepest roller coaster

Gut-churning ride at Fuji-Q Highland amusement park in Fujiyoshida cost about $37 million to build and opens to the public July 16, 2011.

See Photos

Want to eat a Japanese Poop Burger?

2011-07-08T17:09:00.000-07:00

Mitsuyuki Ikeda Wants You to Eat His Burger Patties Made from Human Waste

I know the world’s population is increasing by the thousands every second as we speak, and the time will eventually come that the world’s resources will no longer be able to provide for the needs of all the human beings on the planet.

Because of such impending phenomenon, scientists all over the world have worked long and hard to develop hybrid corn and crops that grow bigger and faster. Researchers are also working double-time to come up with innovations in recycling and finding further uses for our waste so that we don’t run out of natural resources too soon. Read More

Oh Canada! Canadians Resident in Japan

2011-07-07T21:34:00.000-07:00

CRA Magazine is Canada`s first E-Magazine designed specifically for Canadians who are presently living abroad, who have done so in the past or who are contemplating an out-of-country sojourn in the future.

Our magazine is distributed electronically free of charge to subscribers in 142 countries around the world. In addition to sound and timely advice in the investment and tax arenas, CRA E-Magazine covers everything from offshore employment, vacation/travel and international real estate information to country profiles, medical/insurance matters and education options for your children.

Read More

Japan Living Forum at Yahoo Groups

2011-07-07T21:29:00.000-07:00

Celebrating 10 Years of News, Discussion, Debate and Information about Japan

(Pictured, Tokyo Disneyland by Richard Baladad)

This is the official forum for Japan Living Magazine.
"Learn about living and working in Japan from those that do!"

Visit our Yahoo Groups Forum

Visit our Homepage

Optimism for Tohoku and Japan

2011-07-01T17:05:00.001-07:00

Optimism for Tohoku and Japan: Good ideas from ACCJ

Events Jul. 01, 2011 - 05:10AM JST ( 0 )

When: July 8
Place: Tokyo American Club, New York Ballroom

TOKYO —

The ACCJ Tohoku Earthquake Information Facilitation Project was created to facilitate discussion regarding a diverse set of people with experiences and ideas for rebuilding Tohoku following the devastating March 11 earthquake and tsunami. A core group of dedicated and
influential people have gathered together and focused on ideas in five key areas.
Come hear ACCJ leaders present the results of their efforts in an interactive panel format and join in brainstorming about where we go from here. We will ensure lively discussion with commentary and reactions from Hiroshi Mikitani, chairman and CEO of Rakuten, Inc., and other special guests.

JIGG Kanagawa Boardgames Club

2011-06-27T16:38:00.000-07:00

Gaming unplugged for almost 20 years.

If you enjoy boardgames and other games, join JIGG. Membership is free and there are branches of our club all over Japan. The JIGG Kanagawa group is very active, and we are a great group of people. We tend to hold game days in each others homes. You can host if you want to, but don`t have to. Some people enjoy hosting and others don`t.

Learn more at Facebook.

You Need your Hobbies in Japan

2011-06-26T05:42:00.000-07:00

You have left your home and your family. You have no friends.You need your - hobby link Japan! Your apartment closes in on you and the cockroaches are huge, black, and they fly; your boss is a jerk who cuts up goldfish to feed to his piranhas. You need to get your mind off things. You need a hobby!

Some of the greatest people I have ever met in Japan have been the friends I have made through playing games. I enjoy historical simulation games, usually called wargames. These are games about history or military history, that are played on a board or a table.

Read More

Novelist Murakami slams nuclear policy

2011-06-24T20:39:00.000-07:00

Novelist Murakami slams nuclear policy

Kyodo

BARCELONA, Spain — Novelist Haruki Murakami criticized his country's pursuit of nuclear energy Thursday during his acceptance speech at the 2011 International Catalunya Prize ceremony in Barcelona, describing the ongoing crisis at the quake-crippled Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant as "a mistake committed by our very own hands."

Murakami said Japan, as the only nation to have experienced the devastation and suffering from radiation through World War II atomic bombings, should have continued saying "no" to nuclear power.

Murakami, the first Japanese to receive the prize given annually by the autonomous Catalan government, said the €80,000 (approximately ¥9.3 million) prize money would be donated to the victims of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami as well as those affected by the nuclear crisis.

Naoto Kan

2011-06-24T20:29:00.000-07:00

WHEN EAST MARRIES WEST

When every card's a joker

By THOMAS DILLON

Special to The Japan Times

Once — a dozen years or so ago — I yawned my way past a politician giving a "stump" speech to the early morning commuters at my station. In fact, I had to side-step him on the narrow walkway.

Only then did I notice who he was: Naoto Kan — the current prime minister.

Of course he wasn't prime minister then. But he was still one of the brighter lights of Japanese politics, with his star clearly on the rise. So I did a double take on the walkway. How about that? Me and Naoto Kan, face-to-face! And I thought, "Naoto Kan! One day he might be prime minister!"

Your Aparment in Japan

2011-06-23T06:19:00.000-07:00

Boy do things get dusty faster here in Japan than back home. With so many people living in a small space (more houses or residences per acre), your apartment gets dirty much more quickly.
Today for example, I woke up, and thought I was in a cowboy western, as I saw little dustball, tumbleweeds blowing by my futon (I had the electric fan on).

Read More

原子力発電所　放射性降下物への対処　何を食べていいのか？何を食べてはいけないのか？

2011-06-23T04:50:00.000-07:00

原子力発電所　放射性降下物への対処　何を食べていいのか？何を食べてはいけないのか？
おそらく警告もしくはパラノイアが起こるだろうと思っていました。私の健康のためではありませんが、
私は成長中の子供たちが食べているものについて心配をしていました。どのようにして安全を保てばいいのでしょうか。

政府や地域は物が安全だと言っていますか。メッセージを聞いてくれないことが問題だと考えます。
私は本当に国が言っていることを信じられなかったのです。しかし、私はメッセージを送らなければいけません。

そうすれば、食べ物の安全性に関して信頼することが出来るでしょう。

Read More

Japan`s Zenlok wins 2 Prestigious Awards

2011-06-23T04:48:00.000-07:00

クラウドセキュリティサービスを展開するZenlok株式会社（本社：東京都渋谷区、代表取締役：アミール・アヤロン、http://www.zenlok.com）は、この度、GoogleApps™のアカウントにてZenlokのサービスにログインできるシングルサインオン(SSO)認証機能を追加しました。

このサービスは2011年3月29日からご利用いただけます。
従来Zenlok™サービスをご利用いただくには、Zenlok™サービス専用のログイン情報（アカウント）が必要でしたが、GoogleApps™ご利用のお客様は、現在お使いのGoogleApps™ログイン情報（アカウント）のみで、すぐにZenlokのサービスをご利用いただくことが可能になります。

Read More

For all the Fair Skinned People Living in Japan

2011-06-19T05:14:00.001-07:00

Novel approach to treating cancer

By CESAR CHELALA

NEW YORK — The discovery that two new drugs can control melanoma could revolutionize the treatment not only of melanoma but also of other cancers as well.

Melanoma is cancer of the pigment cells in the skin. Although it accounts for only 4 percent of all skin cancers, it is responsible for almost 80 percent of the deaths, particularly because it tends to spread early in its course.

Melanoma kills by spreading through blood and lymph nodes into the internal organs of the body. This is what makes it more dangerous than other skin cancers, which don't metastasize as easily.

A melanoma the size of a dime on the skin has a 50 percent chance of having already spread. In addition, melanoma is spreading faster than any other kind of cancer in the United States. It is estimated that at least one person in the country dies of skin cancer every hour.

Japanese House Plans

2011-06-18T18:15:00.000-07:00

Japanese House Plans, what you didn't know

(Photo by Ian Griffin)

by Lyanne Thomas

What's there to know about Japanese houses besides that the houses are versatile and small compared to those in Europe and America?

Well for one, Japanese homes allow you to maximize your available space. Most Asian houses, including those from Japan are simple with an aesthetic beauty to them. The traditional Japanese house is built by erecting wooden columns on a flat foundation of stones.

Read More

Sarah Bareilles helps out in Tohoku

2011-06-15T06:37:00.000-07:00

Musician Sarah Bareilles of the USA and former resident of Minamiashigara, Chris Zanella is a member of the volunteer group “All Hands” dispatched to Ofunato, a city badly damaged by the last tsunami. Using EM and his own “Hands”, he is helping to clean up and reconstruct the city along with his group.

He wrote a very touching story of a girl, a victim and evacuee, that I pasted below.
Hope you like it. Read More

Sara Beth Bareilles ( /bəˈrɛlɪs/ bə-rel-is; born December 7, 1979)^[1] is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. She achieved mainstream success in 2007 with the hit single "Love Song", which brought her into the number one spot on the Billboard Pop 100 chart.^[2] She has sold over 1 million records worldwide and has been Grammy-nominated three times.^[3]

日本と海外における教育の未来

2011-06-15T05:31:00.000-07:00

日本と海外における教育の未来

by Kevin R. Burns

イギリスのサマーヒルのような学校について読んだときと同じように、TED.comでケンロビンソン氏と初めて話をしたことでも、私は奮い立たされました。そして、ウマが合う教師たちと私の考えを共有しました。私はとても創造的だったのですが、学校中の生徒にうんざりしていました。私のIQテストのスコアは高く、私の恩師も私に話しかけるのが好きでしたが、私は学ぶことを押しつけていたこと気づき、しばしば不快な思いをしていました。私は自分のプロジェクトを行いたかったのです

日本と海外における教育の未来

Anti-Nuclear Power Protests Continue in Tokyo

2011-06-11T17:45:00.000-07:00

TOKYO -- Protesters held mass demonstrations against nuclear power across Japan on Saturday, the three-month anniversary of the powerful earthquake and tsunami that killed more than 23,000 people and triggered one of the world's worst nuclear disasters.

More Stories about Life in Japan

Streets in parts of Tokyo were completely jammed with thousands of chanting protesters, paralyzing sections of the city. Some marchers called for the country's nuclear plants to be shut down immediately and for stricter radiation tests by the government.

Read More

The Reality in Tohoku is Worse

2011-06-10T19:02:00.000-07:00

Tohoku, Japan

"The Reality in Tohoku is Worse."--stated Hiroko Takeshima recently after she got back from
Tohoku.

Takeshima went up north to volunteer during Golden Week.   She helped to clear debris from
one of the towns devastated by the Tsunami.   She hails from Tohoko but lives in Kanto now.

She related that things in Tohoku are not like they appear on the news.   You often don`t see the details on the 6 o`clock news.

For example one volunteer spent a day digging a car out from the rubble.   He retrieved the body hoping to give relief to the relatives.    The body was intact except the fingers had been cut off.    Her hand was hanging out the window of the vehicle.

Tsunami`s don`t usually cut off fingers.    But people do.

Someone had beaten them to the punch and taken the unfortunate lady`s rings.   Takeshima related that these are some of the stories you don`t hear on NHK.

For more stories about Living in Japan

Cases of theft have actually increased in Fukushima Prefecture, up 207 cases after the earthquake and Tsunami. Cases of other crime are down across the board, for example: violent crime, and rape.

A journalist I know reports police numbers have been bolstered in Tohoku due to increased looting and now more about this in Japanese:

福島、侵入盗４割増６９５件…原発周辺狙われる

読売新聞 6月10日(金)1時37分配信

今年５月までの３か月間に福島県内で発生した侵入盗被害が、昨年の同時期より約４割増の６９５件に上ったことが警察庁のまとめでわかった。 Read More

FBC - Foreign Buyer`s Club Going Strong

2011-06-06T15:51:00.000-07:00

TOKYO —

When American Chuck Grafft and his wife Kelly started a co-op in the late 1980s to import items that they and their friends in the foreign community missed most from home (bagels, breakfast cereal and peanut butter), they probably had no idea that more than 20 years later, their business would be booming, offering more than 40,000 items to thousands of families ordering several thousand items every week.
Japan Today hears more from Grafft about his success story.
Why did you start the Foreign Buyers’ Club?
Kelly and I started the FBC to help those of us in the community who missed things from home. It was like a hobby for the first few years. We took two years to get set up and get approval to import items.
How has business been so far this year?
Fairly steady. We have about the same number of orders but less items per order.

Read More

The City of Angels, Bangkok, Thailand

2011-06-05T00:41:00.000-07:00

The City of Angels, Bangkok, Thailand

Another perk of living in Japan, is making our income in a very high currency, then traveling to
exotic locales throughout Asia.

My brother Wayne talks about Bangkok and what is is like:

Introducing a city invites superlatives, especially when that city is Bangkok. It seems that every travel guide must impress its readers with the most grandiose and arcane aspects of the metropolis into which they are about to dive. But chances are that, for most, Bangkok`s reputation has prededed its reality. So it would be wise of those reading these wordsm who are about to plnge into the maze of Bangkok`s whirl, to review their preconceptions.

Read More

Many Drown in Japan each summer

2011-06-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

Learn what to look for!

Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning

The new captain jumped from the deck, fully dressed, and sprinted through the water. A former lifeguard, he kept his eyes on his victim as he headed straight for the couple swimming between their anchored sportfisher and the beach. “I think he thinks you’re drowning,” the husband said to his wife. They had been splashing each other and she had screamed but now they were just standing, neck-deep on the sand bar. “We’re fine, what is he doing?” she asked, a little annoyed. “We’re fine!” the husband yelled, waving him off, but his captain kept swimming hard. ”Move!” he barked as he sprinted between the stunned owners. Directly behind them, not ten feet away, their nine-year-old daughter was drowning. Safely above the surface in the arms of the captain, she burst into tears, “Daddy!”

How did this captain know – from fifty feet away – what the father couldn’t recognize from just ten? Drowning is not the violent, splashing, call for help that most people expect. The captain was trained to recognize drowning by experts and years of experience. The father, on the other hand, had learned what drowning looks like by watching television. If you spend time on or near the water (hint: that’s all of us) then you should make sure that you and your crew knows what to look for whenever people enter the water. Until she cried a tearful, “Daddy,” she hadn’t made a sound. As a former Coast Guard rescue swimmer, I wasn’t surprised at all by this story. Drowning is almost always a deceptively quiet event. The waving, splashing, and yelling that dramatic conditioning (television) prepares us to look for, is rarely seen in real life.

Dealing with Fallout

2011-05-31T16:32:00.000-07:00

What to eat and what not to eat?

I`ve probably “erred” on the side of caution or even paranoia on this one, and it hasn`t been because of my health but I have been concerned about what my rapidly growing children eat. How can I keep them safe?

The government, local and national has been saying things are safe?

I guess my problem has been I haven`t heard the message. I didn`t really trust them.

However maybe I have to; and in fact maybe they are trustworthy in the case of food safety anyway.

So many politicians disappoint it seems, so it is natural to lose trust in them.

About food though, I think the Japanese government is doing a good job. And if they fail or if the local government fails to inform, NHK or some fifth estate media
source fills in. Read More:

Have back problems in Japan

2011-05-30T20:03:00.000-07:00

What to do about them? Where to turn?

(Pictured, Japanese actress Yuki Uchida)

Back Problem in Japan, Have you put your back out while living in Japan? It is
not fun, no matter where you do it! I know, I have done it countless times now.

I first put out my back at age 34. My friend Doug commented I guess you are
getting old. He meant well but I was not amused at the time. Now that I have no
doubt that I am old, I understand he was trying to be helpful. I guess I
shouldn`t have put him into the full pretzel! Just the half-pretzel would have
sufficed!
Read More:

Japan`s Earthquake Warning System

2011-05-23T16:25:00.001-07:00

No other country in the world has one!

Is there any way to know there will be an earthquake in advance?

Yes. The earthquake early warning system operated by the Meteorological Agency provides advance warning of earthquakes.

According to the agency, the nationwide system is unique to Japan. But it only gives people seconds, not days, to prepare.

When an earthquake hits, two kinds of waves travel underground, first the P-waves and then the S-waves. When the agency detects P-waves, a warning is sent immediately, before the S-waves, which people actually feel, arrive.

People can receive the warnings on mobile phones operated by NTT DoCoMo Inc., Softbank Mobile Corp. and KDDI's au, or through TV or radio broadcasts.

But according to the Meteorological Agency, there is as little as only 10 seconds between the warning and when the tremors arrive. Close to the epicenter, the quake arrives faster than the warning.

The Meteorological Agency updates its technology to improve the system every time it encounters problems. For example, the system didn't function properly after the March 11 quake because big quakes occurred too frequently. The agency is now working on solving this issue, according to its Seismological and Volcanological Department.

Accusing the Innocent, one tragedy of Japan

2011-05-23T16:09:00.000-07:00

I have heard of a few cases like this. There was a Keio student who too, I believe was innocent.
The Keio teachers (my friends) who new this young man, knew him to be a very good student and a good person. They had known him through 6 years of jr/sr high school.    I think the people that know you well, have a good rapport with what you are, and are not capable of.

This young man was accused of groping late at night by a young woman. He was grabbed by the
train line attendants then grilled by the police.   He too was released.    And according to the
Japan Today article that follows this implies innocence though the police will not tell you that.
They should, it is their job.

The Keio student unfortunately, was traumatized by this young woman and the police and jumped from a Kanagawa building four days later. What a tragedy!    And what a waste.

Japan is wasting her youth on events like these.   A youth that is becoming a all too small minority as it is.    She needs to do away with the guilty until proven innocent model.   It doesn`t work.
How do you prove you are innocent when it is your word (only) against the accuser and the police.

Some people really are innocent, but it is difficult to prove. I think the innocent until guilty
model of justice, while not perfect, works much better.   The police have less power and I believe
fewer go to prison because of it.

Japan Today Story Follows:

TOKYO —

Shortly before midnight on Dec 10, 2009, a 25-year-old university worker named Shinsuke Harada was making his way through Tokyo’s Shinjuku Station on his way home. Suddenly a young woman cried out, “He touched me!”

The woman’s male companion grabbed Harada, apparently roughed him up a bit, and hauled him over to a station employee. Station officials brought in the police. After some seven hours of questioning, Harada was released. Dazed and humiliated, Harada took a subway to Waseda Station and jumped in front of a moving train.

On Jan 29, 2010, Tokyo Metro police processed the case as “chikan” – groping – and passed the documentation on to prosecutors, who quietly laid the matter to rest in view of Harada’s death.
On April 26 of this year, Harada’s mother filed a civil damages suit against the city of Tokyo, on the grounds that police got prosecutors involved even though they knew that Harada was innocent, causing his family to suffer social disgrace.

Read More

If Hamaoka is potentially deadly, what about all the other nuclear reactors

2011-05-23T15:57:00.000-07:00

If Hamaoka is potentially deadly, what about all the other nuclear reactors?

TOKYO —

Toyo University geologist Mitsuhisa Watanabe has a startling revelation for Sunday Mainichi (May 29) and its readers – startling at least to those who think nuclear energy is serious business and should be treated (if at all) with respect.

If Hamaoka is hit by an earthquake-tsunami event approaching in scale the one that in Fukushima Prefecture is making nonsense of decades of blithe official assurances that nuclear power is safe – and seismologists rate at 87 percent the chance of a major quake occurring near Hamaoka within the next 30 years – Tokyo itself, the heart and lungs of Japan, would suffer what much of Tohoku is now suffering.

“Let history judge,” said Kan, implicitly elevating his decision to a historic level. Sunday Mainichi is not impressed. The nation’s entire nuclear industry, it claims, was built with astonishing recklessness. Closing one plant is, in the contemptuous words of former Tohoku University seismologist Masakazu Otake, “haphazard lip service, a kind of blood offering to the gods, a political performance.”

Read More

The Mayor who saved his town from the Tsunami

2011-05-16T05:03:00.001-07:00

FUDAI —

In the rubble of Japan’s northeast coast, one small village stands as tall as ever after the tsunami. No homes were swept away. In fact, they barely got wet.

Fudai is the village that survived—thanks to a huge wall once deemed a mayor’s expensive folly and now vindicated as the community’s salvation.

The 3,000 residents living between mountains behind a cove owe their lives to a late leader who saw the devastation of an earlier tsunami and made it the priority of his four-decade tenure to defend his people from the next one.

His 15.5-meter floodgate between mountainsides took a dozen years to build and meant spending more than 3.56 billion yen.

“It cost a lot of money. But without it, Fudai would have disappeared,” said seaweed fisherman Satoshi Kaneko, 55, whose business has been ruined but who is happy to have his family and home intact.

The gate project was criticized as wasteful in the 1970s. But the gate and an equally high seawall behind the community’s adjacent fishing port protected Fudai from the waves that obliterated so many other towns. Read More

南足柄市の放射線　何が安全で、何が危険なのか

2011-05-16T04:33:00.000-07:00

南足柄市の放射線　何が安全で、何が危険なのか？

南足柄市の住民皆、子供たちの安全を維持したいでしょう。
南足柄市加藤市長、何が安全なのでしょうか？

加藤市長、選挙での勝利おめでとうございます。さて、今こそ任務をこなすときです。
事をゆっくり進めている場合ではありません。南足柄産のお茶の放射線量に関するニュースが
NHKで報告されるのを待つべきではないのです。市長が先導するべきです。
あなたが市長なのですから、先導するのは当然です。
放射能がないかどうか、何をテストしたのでしょうか。食べ物は安全でしょうか。水は安全でしょうか。

Read More

Smiths Schools of English in Japan, an opportunity?

2011-05-10T15:31:00.000-07:00

Smiths Schools of English sells school franchises in Japan. Some teachers buy, build then

school or schools.

I think just being associated with a man like Mr. Smith, a man obviously with a lot of chutzpah and entrepreneurial spirit, is a great thing. A lot of that rubs off, if you learn as much as you can from people with their own business. Unfortunately few think like this. Most people think of a job - getting a job, keeping a job or looking for another job. Read More

A Lot of Hot Water, but Not Much Is Being Used to Produce Electricity

2011-05-10T15:29:00.000-07:00

YANAIZU, Japan — As visitors to any of Japan’s thousands of hot springs know, this country is sitting on a lot of very hot water.

Japan’s Nuclear Future in the Balance (May 10, 2011)

A blog about energy and the environment.

Go to Blog »

Continued,

So far, though, little of it has been harnessed to produce energy. There are only 18 geothermal power plants in the country, and together they account for only 0.3 percent of Japan’s electricity production.
But some say that with Japan’s reliance on nuclear power plants coming into question, the country should harness more of its geothermal natural resource to provide clean, renewable energy.

Read More

Sony confirms personal info theft of all 77 million network users

2011-05-07T00:19:00.001-07:00

Sony confirms personal info theft of all 77 million network users

Kyodo

WASHINGTON — Sony Corp. has informed a U.S. congressional panel that personal information related to all 77 million users of its online services was stolen during a recent data breach involving its popular PlayStation gaming systems.

In a written response dated Tuesday to a question paper from the House of Representatives' Energy and Commerce Committee, Sony said, "The criminal intruders stole personal information from all of the approximately 77 million PlayStation Network and Qriocity service accounts."

Sony had earlier said an unauthorized person may have obtained the personal information, including names, addresses, e-mail addresses, birthdates and passwords, from the 77 million accounts by unlawfully accessing the systems.

Could Fukushima provide catalyst for Japanese youth to reach criticality?

2011-05-06T03:12:00.001-07:00

TOKYO —

Calls to protest bring thousands, the conventional press is shunned and rogue academics suddenly find people are willing to listen—it would be going too far to say Japan was joining the “Arab Spring,” but the nuclear crisis has shown there are limits to youth apathy in this country.
The 20 years since the bubble burst have at times seemed like an experiment to make a population as lethargic and hopeless as possible and then observe the decline. But there was always a twist that made things different than the malaise of a Tunisia or an Egypt: decent living standards. A roof over one’s head and food on the table are virtually guaranteed, and almost everyone has enough for a trendy wardrobe, a PlayStation and a night of oblivion in an izakaya once or twice a week. If you are satisfied with that, you don’t even have to work very hard for it. Read More

On Being Politically Correct

2011-05-03T16:38:00.000-07:00

Reprint of Old Article

On Being Politically Correct The great movement to be politically correct has helped lead us to mediocrity. Writers, professors,
doctors and others live in fear of offending the wrong person. Professors are hauled in front of university
boards having to defend something they may or may not have said in a given lecture. Doctors must be
very careful about the way they examine patients and do disease preventing research.
The intimate nature of being a doctor sometimes causing doubt and misunderstanding.
I am not saying that all are innocent. There are people out there doing
terrible things and they must be punished. However, it has gone to far. The new McCarthyism is a reality.
In the realm of writing, I can no longer rave about the beauty of Japanese women, without coming under
some scrutiny from my readers. Poets have long raved about the beauty of many things including men and women,
but it seems one can no longer do this, without having to defend the act. Why not? I can rave about the beauty of a flower
and that is okay, why not women? Are women not beautiful? How can this possibly be offensive? I do believe that
outer beauty is skin deep, and we all have a lot of inner beauty too. To be politically correct, one must deny the existence
of the former. Why not acknowledge it, while also stating that personality is the most important thing. If you want to
rave about the beauty of men do it. I will be happy in knowing that I am not a physical object nor a sexual one.
I am simply me and there is more to me than my physical appearance. I feel that this anger over raving about
physical beauty, primarily comes from those who are not very confident about their own inner beauty and strengths.
It is a comment about them in other words.
One friend with more experience at living than I, said that this movement to be politically correct is simply a furthering
of the women's liberation movement--a step too far. I agree with this argument. Women's lib was a necessary protest
movement, and great strides were made, but now it is getting ugly. One woman at Simon Fraser University in Canada
decided that she wanted one of the coaches at the university, and she was willing to do almost anything to get him.
After being repeatedly rejected she accused him of sexual harassment. Due to her physical beauty, she was believed.
Us men are animals you know. This SFU coach hired himself a good lawyer, held some press conferences and took to battle.
Proving himself innocent and hounded by a horny young woman. He had been fired over the allegations. I will repeat that: he was fired over
allegations--nothing had been proven. That is the problem too. Doctors, teachers and other professionals can be destroyed
simply by irresponsible and erroneous allegations.
The final chapter of this SFU story had the woman in disgrace but unpunished, the Dean of the
university lost his job for firing the coach in the first place. The coach was finally vindicated and got back to teaching
and trying to win championships. This whole movement has gone to far, and would make a great comedy if it were not so
tragic and stressful for so many people.
No I say rave about the beauty of men, women or flowers. Don't let any narrow minded person tell you otherwise. If they do,
you have to ask them what axe they have to grind? What are they bitter about? Acknowledge beauty, don't be afraid to tell
someone they are beautiful in whatever way they are. I do draw the line at bosses telling their employees they are very attractive;
the same goes for teachers telling students. But in general, let's stop with this nonsense of believing that it is morally wrong.

Recognize that the real beauty comes from inside, and this should
be acknowledged too. All of us are beautiful, and physical beauty really is only skin deep.

Kevin R. Burns

A Japanese Robot

2011-05-02T18:03:00.001-07:00

X- Japan performs, "Tears"

2011-05-02T17:53:00.001-07:00

X Japan, one of my favorite Japanese bands performs, "TEARS"

Learning English or Teaching it in Japan? ボキャブラリーを教えるためのゲーム

2011-05-02T17:18:00.000-07:00

ボキャブラリーを教えるためのゲーム

by Lyanne Thomas

新しい単語を学ぶのは退屈できついと言っているのは誰ですか。退屈な暗記法は実用的で楽しい方法ではありませんが、子供は何千もの単語を学ぶ必要があります。それゆえに教師は絵の中にボキャブラリーゲームを加えるなど効果的で楽しい学び方を考えなくてはいけません。教えるためには、ボキャブラリーゲームティーチャーズを使うといいでしょう。ボキャブラリーを楽しく学べる方法をいくつか紹介します。 Read More

How to sell everything, move to Japan, and keep a U.S. address

2011-05-02T17:12:00.000-07:00

How to sell everything, move to Japan, and keep a U.S. address

Posted by Steve in Expat Tips, Life in Japan You’ve decided to let go and move overseas. It’s time to sell as much as you can, if not everything! I sold stuff at a flea market, in the newspaper, using Craigslist, and on eBay, and I had a garage sale. I donated some household items and clothing, and the rest of my stuff I just gave away for free. These methods helped me get rid of everything I owned in the U.S.
But what about staying in contact with your home country? You know… a phone number, voice mail, and a mailing address? Sure you can use your parents address or another family members address and this would be the most affordable way, but sometimes it feels good not to have to rely on anybody to get things done. Here are some steps on how to make it happen on your own terms.

Get a new address first using a 3rd party service. You could use the service Mailboxes Etc, but it’s not convenient. I recommend an online service such as Earth Class Mail. They’ll email you, scan your mail, even forward things to you. It’s important to do this first because once you decide where you’ll be getting your mail you need to get a notarized copy of USPS Form 1583 to authorize the service to receive mail on your behalf. Get this done at a notary or your local bank. But watch those fee totals! You’ll be paying a monthly fee + scanning fees + mail forwarding fees. Last year I spent a more than $1200 USD on this service. This year I’m estimated to spend about $800.

Obama, America you are Blessed with a Good Man as President

2011-05-02T14:41:00.000-07:00

Obama, America you are Blessed with a Good Man as President

Does it really matter if his documents were forged or otherwise not legal when he was a baby?
If indeed that happened?   He is one of your better presidents in many, many years.   Plus by
stirring up the controversy you are hurting the relationship between caucasians and African
Americans.

Even if Obama`s documents have some discrepencies, grant him instrant citizenship. He is
president after all and a good one. Then be done with it. We would love to have him as our
prime minister in Canada, and I would love to have him lead Japan out of her morass.

Anyway, I was sent this by a friend. This seems to suggest that the birth certificate documents
are somehow lacking.

'13 Assassins' Director Takashi Miike Goes Old School

2011-04-28T20:39:00.001-07:00

13 Assassins" is easily one of the best movies to come out of Japan in a while and the best action flick to come out so far this year. Unlike the anodyne action sequences of such recent sword fighting fare as "Sucker Punch," this movie wasn’t created in a computer; the violence in this film feels real and raw. Unlike the spastic battle scenes in "Battle: Los Angeles," this film doesn't feel like the cameraman was being chased by a bear. Instead "13 Assassins" has the sweep and grandeur of an old-school Akira Kurosawa samurai movie -- only with more blood. A lot more blood. Read More

Making Music Japanese Style

2011-04-28T02:24:00.001-07:00

Nuclear Boy

2011-04-26T22:17:00.001-07:00

Nuclear Boy, subtitled in English

Japan Based Zenlock wins Prestigious Award

2011-04-22T02:52:00.001-07:00

Zenlok Corporation Wins Prestigious "Red Herring Global 100" Award

Feb 1, 2011 2:00:00 AM

Tokyo, Feb 1, 2011 - (JCN Newswire) - Japan based security venture, Zenlok Corporation was awarded the Red Herring Global 100 Award for its innovation and leadership last week in Santa Monica, California, where Red Herring announced its Global 100 award in recognition of the leading private companies from North America, Europe, and Asia, celebrating these startups' innovations and technologies across their respective industries.
Zenlok Corporation, founded in 2007 by well known Tokyo entrepreneur, Amir Ayalon, is a leader in providing security solutions that protect data in transit and during storage.

Read More

Are Japanese people hard-wired to hoard?

2011-04-15T07:34:00.001-07:00

Are Japanese people hard-wired to hoard?

March 15th, 2011 by Philip Brasor & Masako Tsubuku

Last week’s earthquake and tsunami has engendered a nationwide run on retailers that has alarmed the authorities. Even in Hiroshima, which was totally unaffected by either catastrophe and isn’t in a related earthquake zone, people are said to be stripping store shelves of batteries. Renho, the Democratic Party of Japan superstar who heads the consumer affairs ministry, blasted the mentality that has led to this behavior, saying that she could understand why people might want to buy batteries and portable cookers and even bicycles, but “natto and chicken”? She stressed that it causes shortages of much needed supplies to the afflicted areas and used the word kaishime to describe these actions, which means to “corner the market,” except that she isn’t talking about companies, but individual consumers. In that regard it seems an imprecise term, but the negative connotation is what’s important.

Read More

Fukushima - "In for a Long Battle" - Kan

2011-04-11T02:59:00.001-07:00

Asia Pacific Hockey League

2011-04-11T02:49:00.000-07:00

The Asia Pacific Hockey League was created to raise the level of ice hockey across Asia by providing a framework for development through a combination or regularly scheduled games and specific hockey training. The games will be played in tournament format in events scheduled across Asia. Learn more about the Hockey Summit and the APHL

Tips On Buying Japanese Clothes Online

2011-04-06T17:18:00.000-07:00

Tips On Buying Japanese Clothes Online
by: Brian Russman

If you have ever seen a kimono in movies or maybe even in real life, you probably think it is a colorful dress (at least if we talk about women traditional clothes) with long sleeves and various patterns. There is surprisingly little details on what Japanese traditional clothes really are despite the fact we have access to seemingly everything we could only think of. We can easily buy whatever dress we want from the comfort of our homes, but when it comes to kimonos we often find ourselves scratching our heads in confusion. What is a real kimono? Where to buy quality Japanese clothes online?

First of all, the word "kimono" means "clothes" in Japanese and has two sub-categories - so-called “yofuku” and “wafuk”u. The first literally means "western clothes" and represents what we are all used to putting on ourselves, while the latter is what we all call "kimono" or, literally, "Japanese clothes". And there are many types of them.

Let us take “furisode” as an example first. A furisode is exactly what you have in mind when you imagine a kimono for women. The name means "long sleeves" and it is distinguishing feature is, as you could already guess, long sleeves and colorful patterns. They are not particularly cheap. The price can go up all the way to several thousand dollars, and even an ordinary one will cost several hundreds at least. Unlike other Japanese traditional clothes, they are quite difficult to put on and take care of, which is why they are worn only on special occasions like the Coming of Age ceremony.

There are also casual kimonos, like jimbeis for men or yukatas that can be worn by both sexes. Both jimbeis and yukatas are very comfortable and light, suitable for wearing every day, and significantly cheaper than their more luxurious dress discussed above. If you absolutely need a kimono, but a furisode is too much of an investment, a jimbei or yukata are your choice. Besides, just as with other Japanese traditional clothes, not many will be able to tell the difference.

The list of clothes could really go on and on, but I do not mean to bore anyone. Rather than discussing the types of Japanese traditional clothes, let me answer one more common question: where to buy a good kimono? It shouldn't come as a surprise that most of what you can buy outside the motherland of kimonos is a low quality fake that are likely to fall apart after the very first laundry. Fortunately, with emergence of the Internet, the world shrank so much, that borders, both geographical and cultural, are not so distinct anymore.

If you are on short terms with the Japanese language, you obviously should not have any problems at all. If not, I can recommend Japanese clothes online. You can learn more about different types of kimonos and traditional accessories there and find links to reliable and trusted importers from Japan as well as instructions on how to make the purchase of your dream. Not a bad deal, huh?

About The Author
For more information on Japanese clothes online visit http://jimbei.com

The Potential of Solar Energy

2011-04-06T17:13:00.000-07:00

Jeremy Leggett, solar energy industry expert, believes that the solar energy industry will grow dramatically. Solar power is cheap and sustainable renewable energy source, whether itâ€™s solar panels for your home or a big investment in solar energy for your business.

ArticleCity.com Videos

Disappearing Biodiversity in Awase, Japan

2011-04-06T17:10:00.001-07:00

Over half of Awase have been claimed to industry, but it's a profound failure. The remaining area is for beach and resort developments. But the environment has changed drastically, affecting the local fishermen.

ArticleCity.com Videos

小田原警察　小田原で外国人を呼び止める

2011-04-06T17:09:00.000-07:00

小田原警察　小田原で外国人を呼び止める
 
小田原市、南足柄市（松田町）の警察はとても小さな町の人です。
町は成長しているのですが、他の国の人たちと触れ合う経験ははごくわずかしかありません。
地方の警察の人にとって、日本人以外の人は映画やテレビで見るものなのです。英語を話す人でさえ、です。
控えめに言いますが、私たちについて彼らは騙されやすいのです。おそらく何人かは外国人がむしろ脅していると
思い、それに対処するために厳しい雰囲気を放つのです。
 
地方に住む外国人集団は反抗的で危険、このようなスタンスは道理にかなっているかもしれません。
許容性がゼロになってしまえば、犯罪がはびこっていたニューヨークのようになってしまいます。
 
しかしながら、小田原市は沿岸にある平和な場所です。たくさんの外国人がここで生活し、家族と安心して
過ごしています。
 
地方の警察も、私たちのことについて学ぶ時期ではないでしょうか。 
 
小田原警察は最近、市内で歩いていた私のアメリカ人の友達を呼び止めたそうです。
１人の女性は犬と散歩をしていて呼び止められ、立ち止まりました。
警察は彼女に外国人登録証明書（外国人身分証明書）を見せるように言いました。
彼女が証明書を差し出すと、警察はそれを奪い、彼女の詳細を書きとめたそうです。
 
他の２人の友達も同じく呼び止められ、身分証明書を見せるよう言われました。
警察は彼らの詳細も書きとめたそうです。
 
日本の市民に、ここまではしないですよね。現在、私たちは犬を連れて歩いていても警察に呼び止められるのです。
 
小田原市鴨宮で、自転車に乗った警察が私を捕まえようとしました。おそらく彼は
私が逃げると思ってその手段に出たのでしょう。彼は明らかに何かの理由があって私を疑っていました。
私はこの地区のアパートや家にパンフレット（私が経営する英会話スクールの広告）を配っていただけなのです。
これが正式に不法だといわれる間は、警察は通常この犯罪で悩まされないでしょう。
日本人のピザ宅配スタッフや、他の会社でも行っていることなのです。
小田原警察に呼び止められている人を見たことがありません。
 
他にも、パンフレットを郵便箱に入れているときに２人の警察が私についてきたことがありました。
私は止まりませんでしたが、自転車に乗った警察が私の心を乱しました。
彼が歩いている間、通行人にベルを鳴らしているとは思わなかったのです。
 
小田原はもっと国際的になるべきだと断言します。オーストラリアやカリフォルニア州のチューラビスタの
警官は、勇敢に関係を持ちます。また、インターナショナルラウンジをオープンしています。
 
ここで生活をし、家族と共に暮らしている市民は敵ではない、と地方警察に言いたいです。
私たちはゲストでもありません。ここは私たちの地域なのです！

Damn!...I think I been mutated!!!

2011-04-04T21:23:00.001-07:00

I think I been mutated!!!!

by Kevin R. Burns

20,20,20 - 4 hours ago,... I think I bin mutated!!!

But my wife thinks its a real improvement, from when - we dated!!!

Just get me to the airport on a cargo plane

Hurry hurry hurry before I GLOW in vain!

I can`t control my fingers I can`t control my brain

Oh no no no no!!!!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dhh24BB84e4&w=480&h=390]

Read More!!!!

Dr. Andrew Weil on Connecting With Japan

2011-03-31T02:36:00.001-07:00

Connecting with Japan
Published: 3/30/2011

Today's Q&A:
Are Home Medical Tests Worthwhile?

Related:
Heart Health

The devastating earthquake and tsunami in northern Japan on March 11 has already killed thousands of people, and the full effects have yet to play out. The long-term damage to human health from radiation leaks at the Fukishima nuclear power plants will take years, perhaps decades, to manifest.

I feel this tragedy deeply. Since my first visit to Japan as a teenager in 1959, I have felt a powerful connection to its culture, aesthetics and people. In the years since, I have been back more times than I can recall. As much as I enjoy the vibrant cacophony of modern, urban Japan, I am particularly drawn to its venues of timeless serenity. Read More

Synchronicity and all that Stuff

2011-03-31T00:37:00.001-07:00

Synchronicity and all that Stuff

by Kevin R Burns
(Kanagawa, Japan)

" I'm convinced God put me here to accomplish a certain number of things;
right now, I'm so far behind I'll never die."

--Petya Lowe, Circle of Light

Synchronicity and all that Stuff

"Everything in this universe is part of an uninterrupted sequence of events."

--Mamoru Mohri, Japanese astronaut

Tokyo, Japan
Japanese astronaut Mamoru Mohri, feels that in the borderless era we live in now, the acceptance of cultural diversity and globalization is very important. "Once people take a broader , more long-term view of the things going on around them, it can give them a totally new perspective on life," said Mohri according to a press report. Read More

Are we Spirit & Live Forever?

2011-03-31T00:30:00.001-07:00

Are We Spirit & Live Forever

by Kevin R Burns
(Kanagawa, Japan)

Or When We Die, Do the Little Buggies Eat Us?

"Hello, I'd like to connect with my higher self."
"Is this a collect call sir?"
"Yes."
"Okay, I'll put you through now."............
I'm sorry sir, your higher self will
accept the charges."

"The story of my life!"

--Kevin Burns

Are We Spirit & Live Forever?
Or When We Die, Do the Little Buggies Eat Us?

This is my current life question. James Redfield in the Celestine Prophecy alludes to the
fact that we don't need to figure out the answers, rather we need to figure out our current life question. The above is mine. What's yours? If you can figure out the question Redfield observes, the answer will come.

Read More

FBC – Aid to People and Pets in Tohoku‏

2011-03-30T05:38:00.003-07:00

FBC – Aid to People and Pets in Tohoku‏

Many of our members are asking us for ways to help and how they can get certain items. Here’s the short, simple version with the latest info, but please see our website for more details on each item:

How to help others- 3 ways
Second Harvest and CRASH - Send money and aid directly to these two organizations.
AID4OTHERS – Use this coupon code to send your items directly to those affected by the earthquake.
Help Animals Too! – We’ve set up a way to help animals who have been affected by the earthquake as well. Please see our website for more info.

How we can help you and your family:
FBC Express/Food and Fun From Home - Emergency Backpacks, Lanterns (for blackouts), Batteries- direct from the US in a week.

Deli - Face Masks, Food for now, Other emergency relief items - delivery in about a week.

General Store - Water, Toilet Paper, Canned Goods and Stock Up Supplies - takes about a month, but great to stock up. Shoko's recommendations

Madi's Remailing Service - Air shipped direct from the US – The things you really need and want, but can’t find here. Order from almost anywhere and have Madi’s Remailing Service ship your items.

Also, we’ve just added a special General Store order this week to help process all the AID4OTHERS orders, so please feel free to order by this Friday (April 1st) to get your order on the next boat!

If you'd like to help us spread the word about these aid programs: forward this to a friend or us on Facebook.
You are receiving our monthly newsletter because you signed up at The Foreign Buyers' Club FBCでお買い物、登録をされた方にこのメールを配信しております。 Our mailing address is: The Foreign Buyers' Club 5-15-3F Koyochonaka Higashinada-ku Kobe, Hyogo 658-0032

On the Future of the Whole World

2011-03-30T04:13:00.001-07:00

Though I agree that we need to start thinking about what kind of alternative forms of power we are going to use not just in Japan, but worldwide. I don`t think now is the time to debate this in Japan. We need to deal with first things first, which is getting the people up north houses and safe, and fixing the reactors or burying them if that is what is needed.

Most importantly we need to stay positive that we can get all of the above done in a timely manner. It is still winter up north and will be cold for a few months more.

Read More

American Weight Lifting Champion helps Earthquake Victims up North

2011-03-28T17:40:00.000-07:00

Japan Earth Quake
Japan Earth Quake - American Weightlifting Champion helps Victims of 9.0 Earthquake

Chiba,Japan

Two time Kanagawa weight lifting champion; Ukiah, California native Chris Zanella, now calls Minamiashigara City, Kanagawa in Japan home.

The big, affable Californian, survived a hit and run accident in Odawara`s Tomizu area aboutfour months ago, he took just a Friday off of work, didn`t tell his boss about the accident, even though he was very banged up, then taught his students at Kevin`s English School the following Monday, where he has taught children to adults for the past four years. Probably if asked about why he would teach so soon after being hit by car, he would probably just shrug it off.

Read More

Playing Games in Kanagawa - Camp Zama Game Days

2011-03-27T19:42:00.003-07:00

JIGG is Japan`s International Gamers Guild, 20 years old and going strong. JIGG has been
bringing boardgame players, roleplayers, card game lovers and wargame players together since
1991. Free membership. Get in the game!

Don`t give up your hobby if you come to live in Japan!

Camp Zama, Kanagawa
What is going on? Just ask the unstoppable James Keller! Camp Zama game days have been one of the consistent mainstays of JIGG. Plus going to Camp Zama is like going to the USA for the day. Yards, and yards of grass, trees and flowers, plus games of all kinds in a large room with many games. I plan on going with Bruce at some point.
Contact James if interested: - Email James: ngolmo at gmail.com

On Teaching English in Japan

2011-03-27T18:57:00.001-07:00

How do you teach English in Japan?

What are the first steps you should take?

YOUR Stories Your best, worst, strangest and funniest teaching experiences!

How much are the salaries in Japan?

Oikawa san of Keio, keeps us mindful of some important aspects of teaching

Professor John F. Fanselow of Columbia University Teachers College, observes that what you think is happening in the classroom may not be what is happening at all

Jobs in Japan for Americans, the unique American situation

How do you learn Japanese for free or cheaply?

Conrad Matsumoto enlightens us with his "almost no prep activities"

How do you teach young children?

Chris Weber gives us his hard won advice on teaching English to Japanese

David Martin of EFL Press talks about how to be an Effective EFL teacher

Should you teach on the JET Program?

How do you teach English online?

Devanshe Chauhan explains classroom management for newbies

What are the Japanese people like?

What should I know about working visas?

What are the big schools like?

Thomas Anderson weighs in on how he teaches university students

Follow Us at Facebook or Yahoo Groups

Follow us at Facebook

Follow us at Yahoo Groups

Please Donate to Help Japan

2011-03-26T18:51:00.001-07:00

The fickle media is all ready deserting Japan for other if it bleeds it leads stories.
the biggest disaster in Japanese history continues and we need your help!

Imagine America losing her west coast. This is essentially what has happened for a much smaller and less populous nation. This disaster
is unprecedented in Japanese history.

The Latest News from Japan

Japan Living

Free Lego Offer

Japan's 'silent tsunami' severs parental ties, wrecks children's lives

Rice shipped from Fukushima Prefecture

GOD AND THE SENDAI EARTHQUAKE

The House that Ikumi & Kevin Built

Greenpeace: Fukushima schools unsafe after clean-up

Fukushima Robot Operator Writes Tell-All Blog

The Immense Cost of Japanese Dams and Dam-Related Landslides and Earthquake

Time in Japan - a Question from a Canadian Reader

Japanese Government to Monitor Online Discussions About Fukushima

Kevs Twisted Humor

All about Japanese Origami

Japanese Instruments

My Trials and Tribulations of Starting the Tokyo Comedy Club

Cute Japanese Girl Warning!

Japanese Body Art

Former U.S. envoy critical of Japan's nuclear crisis response

Living in Japan

Japan Update - News on Japan

Han`s Rosling on History

Kurt K. Billie In Trouble with the Law Again

Walking around Yokohama recollecting the big quake

Two Looks at Beautiful Nagasaki

Lee Urges Japan to teach correct history

The Drug Problem in Thailand

Mask making in Thailand

Bangkok`s Parks

Tips for Effective Resume Writing

The Real Feel Termperature of your Japanese City

Once settled in, chances are you'll have to pay to stay

Star of New Brunswick and a Former Chunichi Dragon hangs up his glove

To Japan or Not

Left behind parents waiting

The truth about Hiroshima

Sumo Wrestling

Japans Nigerians pay price for prosperity

Hope for Japan`s Wpmen`s Soccer Team in World Cup

What are the differences between Japanese and Western Education?

Japan Forced School Children To Clean Radioactive Dirt From Swimming Pools

With Japan at a crossroads, it's instructive to recall the Hidaka affair

Japan vs The West

What are the differences between Japanese and Western Education?

Scream!

Japanese amusement park unveils world’s steepest roller coaster

Gut-churning ride at Fuji-Q Highland amusement park in Fujiyoshida cost about $37 million to build and opens to the public July 16, 2011.

See Photos

Read More about Living and working in Japan

Want to eat a Japanese Poop Burger?

Mitsuyuki Ikeda Wants You to Eat His Burger Patties Made from Human Waste

Oh Canada! Canadians Resident in Japan

Japan Living Forum at Yahoo Groups

Optimism for Tohoku and Japan

Optimism for Tohoku and Japan: Good ideas from ACCJ

JIGG Kanagawa Boardgames Club

You Need your Hobbies in Japan

Novelist Murakami slams nuclear policy

Novelist Murakami slams nuclear policy

Naoto Kan

When every card's a joker

Your Aparment in Japan

原子力発電所 放射性降下物への対処 何を食べていいのか？何を食べてはいけないのか？

Japan`s Zenlok wins 2 Prestigious Awards

For all the Fair Skinned People Living in Japan

Novel approach to treating cancer

Japanese House Plans

Sarah Bareilles helps out in Tohoku

日本と海外における教育の未来

Anti-Nuclear Power Protests Continue in Tokyo

The Reality in Tohoku is Worse

福島、侵入盗４割増６９５件…原発周辺狙われる

FBC - Foreign Buyer`s Club Going Strong

The City of Angels, Bangkok, Thailand

Many Drown in Japan each summer

Learn what to look for!

Drowning Doesn’t Look Like Drowning

Dealing with Fallout

Have back problems in Japan

Japan`s Earthquake Warning System

Accusing the Innocent, one tragedy of Japan

原子力発電所　放射性降下物への対処　何を食べていいのか？何を食べてはいけないのか？

南足柄市の放射線　何が安全で、何が危険なのか

小田原警察　小田原で外国人を呼び止める