Fall is in full swing here in Tokyo and the nights are quickly getting cooler and cooler while the leaves are changing color…

On March 27th an unexploded bomb was found in the Tokyo suburb of Chofu by construction crews.  It is suspected that the B-29 bomber carrying the ordinance collided with a Japanese Hien fighter plane on April 7, 1945 before it had an opportunity to deliver it’s payload.  A 63 year old resident of the area was a junior high school student at that time and sketched the crash in his diary and returned the following day to sketch what remained of the B-29 bomber.  Researchers compared the sketch with the …

In Japanese schools there’s a pure approach taken to sports; Participate for love of the sport and to show that you’re willing to give 100%. While there’s no doubt that Japanese schoolkids, like schoolkids all around the world, love to compete and show their stuff on the field, track, etc…, it’s also clear that they’re encouraged to support each other and keep animosity out of competitions.
Even in elementary schools (and sometimes earlier) kids are expected to participate in undokai, or sports festivals. By the time they reach junior high school …

If you’ve read a couple-dozen blogs or so on Japan, you’ve likely seen more than a few posts about someone’s favorite ramen here, particularly in Tokyo. Hell, there’s a whole blog dedicated to one person’s lifelong (maybe) ramen tour of the Kanto area. You may have heard of it; it’s called Ramen Tokyo. Well, rest assured that I won’t be starting my own ramen tour for the sake of having a series here at 7:10 called “Recommended Ramen.” But, if I do come across an amazing bowl of noodles every …

…or is it? The global financial crisis we face today has not had as strong of an impact in Japan as it has in other parts of the world and, for those who have little or no contact with family and friends in their home countries, just how serious the crisis is might not be easily felt.
Just how grim is the situation? Well, not being much of an economics expert, and certainly not a business and finance reporter, I’ll just provide provide a couple of links for readers to check …

Like heavy metal in the workplace? Like Japanese co-workers who like heavy metal in the workplace?

Foreign finance fees can be killer- on top of the bogus 1% Visa/Mastercard foreign transaction fee for using anything with their logo on it, it’s not uncommon to see 1-3% conversion fees and $2-5 transaction fees for purchases and ATM withdrawls- from your own bank! The guy that owns the ATM can charge you whatever he wants on top of that. I’ll be in Japan for a year, so keeping these extra charges to a minimum is worth some effort. I’ve poked around a few different sites, and figured out …

How people move about in public spaces varies from one society to the next. What’s the “right” way in Japan?