Impressions of daily life in Japan
Are Japanese cats more docile than other cats? Before having lived in Japan, I would have thought this to be a ridiculous question. Surely cats are the same everywhere? Cats are not subject to cultural differences, are they? But living in Japan, surprises are never far off. I have seen Japanese cats tolerate things from... Continue Reading →
Keeping a pet is quite a challenge in Japan. Living space is limited and the rules about keeping pets are very strict. But the Japanese wouldn't be the Japanese if they hadn't found a very interesting solution to that problem. I present to you: The Cat Café. Cat cafés are places where one can go... Continue Reading →
Never have I seen tamer cats than during my stay in Japan. I have seen Japanese cats submissively undergo treatments that would have sent any Belgian cat into a hissing, clawing and biting frenzy. You can imagine my surprise when I came across the following scene in a shopping street in Okinawa: How often do... Continue Reading →
Nara is an ancient city not too far from Nagoya. At one point it was the capital of Japan (from 710 to 785). The most famous sites include the largest wooden structure on earth (Todaiji Temple), a 15m Buddha statue and the second tallest pagoda of Japan (Kofukuji Temple). But never mind all that, because... Continue Reading →
I once heard somewhere that 80% of all content on the internet is porn. But surely that can't be true. If you ask me, 80% of all content on the internet consists of funny cat pictures. The most famous website with funny cat pictures is 'I can has cheezburger'. It features pictures of cats with... Continue Reading →
There are few Japanese animals as fabled and feared among expats in Japan as the poisonous Japanese centipede (called mukade in Japanese). Proof of this widespread fascination is the number of people who find their way to this blog on a daily basis, looking for mukade information. Having been a Japan geek long before moving... Continue Reading →
The Japans 