After work one sweltering summer day, you and your coworkers slip into an izakaya to tip back a few pints before heading home. The server comes to take your order and the first words out of your coworker’s mouth is “toriaezu nama” or “draught beer to start.” Except the word he uses, nama, does not mean draught, or anything resembling draught. Nama means “raw.” But what is raw … [Read more...] about What’s so “nama” about Nama Beer?
Highway Oasis: Destination Rest Stops
Recreation in Japan is serious business. Consider the people waiting in line for hours just for the chance to shake hands with a man in a furry mouse costume. Tokyo Disney Resort alone welcomes more than 17 million guests annually, and these figures are on par with the dozens of other amusement park in the country. Japanese people work hard and play hard, and there is no … [Read more...] about Highway Oasis: Destination Rest Stops
The Sometimes 9 Writing Systems Japanese Students Learn
Much has been written about how English is taught in Japan. Usually the topic is a critique of the curriculum that teaches to the test instead of for practical communicative use. You can also find multiple articles and videos asking variations of the question, “Why can’t Japanese people speak English?” This of course is a valid question given that Japanese students have at … [Read more...] about The Sometimes 9 Writing Systems Japanese Students Learn