Japonica’s First Get-Together in Tokyo
Japonica editors, writers and readers meet up in real-life
On the 6th November 2022, a group of Japonica writers, readers, and editors met in person for the first time for tea and coffee at the Park Hyatt Tokyo in Shinjuku.
After nearly a year of publishing stories on Japonica every day, this was the first time for the editors, Yuko Tamura, Alvin T., and DC Palter to meet in person, or even speak directly with each other. Most of the work of Japonica is done in late night messaging on Slack, which works well for schedules split between Tokyo and Los Angeles, but it was great to finally meet each other over a cup of coffee and a lot of delicious cake.
The occasion was made possible when Japan finally relaxed its travel restrictions to allow visitors to come from overseas, making it a timely occasion to tentatively celebrate the end of the pandemic.
I say tentatively, because this being Japan, masks are still nearly universal — mostly for cultural reasons – which Yuko Tamura writes about in her article “Peer Pressure Forces Japanese People to Wear Masks — and the Government Wants More.”
Until masks come off for good, if you’re visiting Japan, don’t forget to wear your mask, and check out DC Palter’s “25 Tips for a Great Trip to Japan.”
It was a lovely autumn day, and the Park Hyatt Tokyo was actually the hotel where “Lost in Translation” was set. A fitting location for a Japan-focused publication with articles mainly in English.
But hey, we promise that if you read Japonica, you’ll have less problems getting lost (culturally) in Japan than the the clueless people who don’t!
Speaking of getting lost, the cafe was remarkably difficult to find. Nearly everyone who joined the get-together had trouble finding the place. We agreed that the sequel to Lost In Translation needs to be Lost in the Park Hyatt Erebētā. Or perhaps, The Shinto Gods Must Be Crazy. Are any of our writers ready to write the screenplay? There’s probably another dozen people who planned to attend who are still lost in the maze-like halls of the hotel searching for the meeting spot.
During our conversations, we discussed various topics related to Japanese culture and working and living in Japan. A few articles were even born out of high tea.
Kyoko Nagano told us about agencies that help you quit your job in Japan. This was a fascinating reminder of the dark side of Japan, and resulted in her article “Quiet Quitting Japanese Style.”
A reader of Japonica, inspired by our discussion, joined us as a new writer! Federica M wrote about her challenging experience living in Japan despite her half-Japanese heritage in her heart-baring essay, “Why I Almost Gave Up Living in Japan Though I’m Half Japanese.”
Alas, all good things come to an end, and the autumn sky grew dark and it was soon time for us to part again.
Special thanks to Yuko Tamura for organizing. And to everyone who attended: Federica M, Tracy Luk, Michael Howard, Kyoko Nagano, Alex Steullet!
If you’d like to write for our publication, please check out the article: How to Add Your Story to Japonica.
We are always looking out for new writers who can provide interesting stories, perspectives, and insight into anything related to Japan or Japanese culture.
