Impressions of daily life in Japan
"Japanese women love to wear fur." Why have I chosen this simple statement as the topic for an entire blog post? Because the difference in attitude towards fur between Japan and Belgium (and I think Europe in general) is a striking cultural difference. I have had a lot of trouble explaining to Japanese women why... Continue Reading →
One of the things that fascinate me about Japan, is the fact that they mostly have the same stuff we do, but in a different version. It makes you realize how many different ways there are of doing the same thing. A very good example is the way Japanese people use emoticons. For the more... Continue Reading →
A typical image that Westerners have of Japan, is a subway car filled with business men and school girls, all wearing white surgical masks. In the West it is considered a bit suspicious to cover your face in public. Masks are usually reserved for bank robbers and superheroes. We think that those Japanese people with... Continue Reading →
I absolutely adore Japan. And I am not the only one. More and more foreigners are becoming true Japan-o-holics. But where does this fascination with the land of the rising sun come from? What is so special about Japan anyway? One of the most interesting things about Japan, at least to me, is that it... Continue Reading →
It turns out that the mysterious 'walking sausage' in my previous blog post was not a sausage at all. Thanks to the people who commented on that post, I can now tell you that the 'mystery sausage' is in fact a piece of cod roe (fish eggs), called 'tarako' in Japanese. The tarako mascot that... Continue Reading →
My recent blog post about goodbyes has led to some speculation about the end of this blog. But fear not my friends! (Or alternatively, depending on how you feel about this blog, 'Sorry to disappoint you!') No such thing is the case. A goodbye to Japan does not mean a goodbye to blogging for me.... Continue Reading →
The Japans 