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The Problem Isn’t “Foreigner.” It’s “Japanese.”
The Problem Isn’t “Foreigner.” It’s “Japanese.” The harder question was never “foreigner.” I was born and raised in Japan. Japanese is my native language. I can’t speak Korean. I received all of my education in Japan. I have no meaningful connection to Korea as a lived reality. My parents were the same. Both were born…
How Japanese Recognition Actually Works
How Japanese Recognition Actually Works You are Japanese until someone starts checking. In the previous article — The Problem Isn’t “Foreigner.” It’s “Japanese.” — I asked what makes someone Japanese. Nationality, blood, language, education, culture, self-identification, recognition by others — I tested each one, and each one failed somewhere. Every definition produced exceptions, and the…
Are Japanese People Really Strict About “Time”?
Are Japanese People Really Strict About “Time”? The clock is doing more than one job I think I am impatient. But not in the simple sense. I can sit still. I can make things. I can spend time on something that needs time. I am not always looking for the shortest route. I do not…
Stop Over-Explaining Japan: “Itadakimasu” Is Just What You Say
Stop Over-Explaining Japan: “Itadakimasu” Is Just What You Say There is a particular kind of content that flourishes on the internet about Japan. It goes something like this: “Before eating, Japanese people press their hands together and say ‘itadakimasu.’ This beautiful word carries centuries of meaning — gratitude for the ingredients, respect for the farmers,…
Why Japanese Food Tastes Quiet. And Why That’s the Point.
Why Japanese Food Tastes Quiet. And Why That’s the Point. Foreign colleagues and friends have said it to me more than once, in different ways. The food is good, but it’s a bit… quiet, isn’t it? Or: I expected more flavour. Or simply: I’m not sure I get it. I always found this interesting. Not…
1,700 Cities. 1,700 Garbage Rules. Welcome to Japan.
1,700 Cities. 1,700 Garbage Rules. Welcome to Japan. One of the first things foreigners figure out when they move to Japan is that throwing away trash is complicated. There are guides. There are designated days. There are categories. There are bags. And there are neighbors who will absolutely notice if you get it wrong. Most…
Why Japanese Neighborhoods Look So Visually Chaotic
Why Japanese Neighborhoods Look So Visually Chaotic Walk through a neighborhood in France, or Germany, or the American Northeast, and something registers almost immediately — a tone. The houses share a material, a palette, a roofline, a logic. You can’t always name it, but it’s there. The street feels like it was planned, or at…
Japan Doesn’t Have a Vacation Culture. It Has a Vacation Schedule.
Japan Doesn’t Have a Vacation Culture. It Has a Vacation Schedule. Golden Week. The first week of May, when Japan collectively decides to go everywhere at once. Trains are packed. Highways are gridlocked. Hotel prices double. Popular tourist spots look like rush hour. Everyone knows this is going to happen. It happens every year. And…
I Walk Home at 2 AM. Nothing Is Going to Happen.
I Walk Home at 2 AM. Nothing Is Going to Happen. It’s past two in the morning in Tokyo. A young woman is walking home alone. Earphones in, unhurried pace, no visible concern about where she is or what time it is. A few blocks away, a group of three women in their twenties are…
Japan Has the World’s Best Tech. It Runs on Cash.
Japan Has the World’s Best Tech. It Runs on Cash. You’re standing in front of a ticket machine at a ramen shop in Tokyo. You’ve selected a bowl for ¥900. You look for the card slot, but there isn’t one. Just a small sticker near the buttons: 現金のみ — cash only. This happens. More than…
Irasshaimase: The Word Nobody Answers
Irasshaimase: The Word Nobody Answers Go to Ameyoko market in Ueno on a Saturday afternoon. The vendors are loud. They’re calling out prices, waving you over, making eye contact. “Irasshaimase!” — come in, come on, over here. It’s performative, it’s theatrical, and it works. You feel pulled in. Then walk into a convenience store twenty…
Japan Is Surrounded by Ocean. That Doesn’t Mean People Know How to Swim.
Japan Is Surrounded by Ocean. That Doesn’t Mean People Know How to Swim. A German colleague — from Hamburg, a port city — once casually mentioned that he’d helped rescue a drowning surfer at Shonan beach. He was a windsurfer. The surfer was Japanese. The German was fine. A few days later, a Swiss friend…
You Didn’t Order Otoshi. You Still Have to Pay.
You Didn’t Order Otoshi. You Still Have to Pay. You sit down. Someone hands you a hot towel. Before you’ve said a word, a small dish appears on the table — maybe pickled vegetables, maybe a tiny salad, maybe something you can’t identify. Then the server asks: “Otōshi, daijōbu desu ka?” You nod, because you…
Why Japanese Trains Are Silent: It’s Not Politeness. It’s Territory
Why Japanese Trains Are Silent: It’s Not Politeness. It’s Territory First-time visitors to Japan often notice it within minutes of boarding a train. Nobody is talking. Phones are on silent. Even the occasional cough seems apologetic. The assumption is usually: Japanese people are just very polite. And that’s true, as far as it goes. But…
Why Japanese People Dress Up Just to Go to the Convenience Store
Why Japanese People Dress Up Just to Go to the Convenience Store Walk into any convenience store in Japan at 11pm. You might see a woman in a full lolita dress buying onigiri. Next to her, a guy in a tracksuit. Behind him, someone in a tailored coat that probably cost more than your rent.…
