Jul 8, 2013

How do you deal with the scorching heat of summer? Surrounding oneself with cool-looking items to make a place look cooler and thus feel cooler, is a common practice around the world during summer. Japan is no exception. Some of the most popular traditional summer items—used long before the air conditioner was invented—are furin (wind chimes), sudare...

Jan 4, 2013

Happy New Year! Now that the holiday madness is over… I have the next holiday in mind. Haha, just kidding, because Valentine’s Day isn’t a holiday at all, just another day the card and chocolate companies made up in order for us to spend our money. Having said that, I’m thinking that this year I won’t be giving “edible”...

Dec 12, 2012

An acquaintance of mine who has been in Tokyo for a few months read my previous article on job hunting in Ginza, and asked me what it was that I liked so much about the place. Isn’t the entire district a showroom for high fashion and haute couture from abroad? (Continued after the Japanese...