PinnedPublished inKokoro MediaThe Truth about Buying an Akiya or Vacant House in Japan — An Interview With Matt KetchumAkiya, or vacant houses in Japan, have become a hot topic on international news websites. Articles about Japan giving away countryside…Dec 20, 20231Dec 20, 20231
PinnedPublished inKokoro Media‘Becoming Like the Sky’: an Encounter with a Street Monk in GinzaIn Tokyo, Buddhist priests chanting sutras in the streets, with their traditional robes and straw hats, have become an exotic sight not…Dec 28, 2023Dec 28, 2023
PinnedPublished inKokoro MediaThree Great Japanese Novels by Female AuthorsI have always loved reading as far as I can remember. As I kept asking, “What’s written here?” and “What’s written there?”, my grandfather…Jan 31, 2024Jan 31, 2024
PinnedPublished inKokoro MediaHow The Japanese Generation Z Is Bringing ChangeThese last years, I have come across many articles about the generational gaps between the baby boomers, the millennials, and generation Z…Feb 12, 20241Feb 12, 20241
PinnedPublished inKokoro MediaJapanese Cram Schools Are Not What You Think — An Interview with Takahiro GotoTakahiro Goto is the director and a teacher at the cram school “GS Shingaku Kyoshitsu” in Hachioji City in the Greater Tokyo Area. Cram…Dec 2, 20231Dec 2, 20231
Published inKokoro MediaAre Tokyo’s Streets Really Clean?Tokyo’s street cleanliness is a natural object of admiration among foreign visitors. “Japanese people don’t litter” has become one of the…Mar 15, 2024Mar 15, 2024
Published inKokoro MediaThe Other Side of Japanese PunctualitySome time ago, I talked with a colleague about the different forms Japanese thoughtfulness can take. She then remembered her manager at a…Mar 15, 2024Mar 15, 2024
Published inKokoro MediaThe Value of Face-to-Face Meetings in Japanese BusinessJapanese companies love meetings. Comments I frequently read on social media from foreign workers living in Japan are: “There are too many…Mar 15, 2024Mar 15, 2024
Published inKokoro MediaMy Japanese Supermarket Culture ShocksAfter living in a different country for many years, you adapt to the local lifestyle and tend to forget the things that surprised you in…Mar 14, 2024Mar 14, 2024
Published inKokoro MediaGetting along with Japanese Neighbors with GiftsNo later than last night, I took part in the economic exchange known as bartering.Mar 14, 2024Mar 14, 2024