If you’re feeling a bit woozy after each lesson from kerosene inhalation you know that it’s that magical time of year, when you can’t move (physically) from layers and (metaphorically) for saccharine jingles blaring from every speaker. Yes it’s winter, and Christmas is coming, and if you’re from the Southern hemisphere you might be feeling…
 Japanese Whaling Not “for purposes of†Scientific Research  On 31 March 2014 the International Court of Justice handed down its long-awaited decision in Australia v Japan, concerning the legality of whaling in the Antarctic Ocean. While the decision in Australia’s favour effectively prevents Japan’s continued whaling hunt in the Antarctic under its current…
– A guide to Japanese school uniforms One of the negative aspects to an extended stay in Japan is the normalisation of Japanese life that would draw the stares and cameras of many a foreign tourist. Never is this more evident than in the casual acceptance of students dressed in some of the most distinctive…
With February upon us it is time to celebrate the birth of famous suffragette leader, Anna Howard Shaw, on Anna Howard Shaw Day, or, as some people like to call it, Valentine’s Day. Like most Japanese appropriations of Western holidays, a sensation of “same same but different†permeates February 14 in the land of…
In amongst the faux snow and strains of, “I’mmmmmm dreammingggg of a whiteeeeee Christmassssss”, you may have also seen in your department stores and supermarkets ornate square boxes filled with products in every colour, begging to be bought at obscene prices. A far cry from roast turkey (northern hemisphere) or seafood (southern), this is osechi…
This year, from 5 December to 16 December, Kobe will again glow in the multiple colours of the Luminarie, and you too can enjoy the spectacle whilst being carried along in a tide of people, neck craned skywards. The site, extending from the Old Foreign Settlement to Hiyashi Yuenchi Park, will be visited by…
The short sleeved shirts and cool-tech innerwear of summer have finally given way to the scarves and gloves and berets and socks and layers layers layers of winter. With the weather switch now firmly jammed on cold, many JETs, especially those from warmer climates (namely, those from the Southern hemisphere who greeted summer smugly) may…
If you are an Australian or New Zealander living in Japan for any extended period of time, whaling will undoubtedly have arisen as a topic of conversation. It may be sprung on you out of the blue at an enkai during a course of whale, or initiated by your own actions if you’re bored in…
It is August. And once again, it is time to accept your part as that sweaty, melting gaijin, collapsing into the air conditioning on a train, as your fellow, perfectly groomed, Japanese passengers desperately try not to sit next to you. It’s time to acknowledge that feeling of inadequacy as you see an army of…