Impressions of daily life in Japan
Purity and cleanliness are important values in Japanese culture. For example, in Japan people remove their shoes before entering a house. I believe this practice to be rooted in the focus on purity in the Shinto religion. If you come to think about it, it makes sense from a practical viewpoint as well. You leave... Continue Reading →
In Japan you never know what you'll see next. It is one of the many things that I love about living in Japan. The strangest thing you will ever see might be just around the corner. Like that one time we were visiting the towns of Magome (in Gifu) and Tsumago (in Nagano). These picturesque... Continue Reading →
One of the many things that I love about Japan is the bathing culture. Of course the onsen (volcanic hot water baths) are famous, but I also love the way Japanese people bathe at home. The key difference with bathing in the West is that Japanese people wash themselves at a faucet before getting in... Continue Reading →
One sunny afternoon, while walking around Toyota City, I came across this little red IQ. The IQ is one of Toyota's smallest models. Of course you will always see plenty of Toyotas at any given time in Japan, since Toyota holds over 40% of the market share. But what drew my attention to this particular... Continue Reading →
Many Western hotels have a Bible in every room. I never quite understood why that was the case, so today I looked it up. Apparently the Bibles in hotel rooms are the work of an American society called 'Gideons International'. Their main objective is to provide Bibles free of charge. They are best known for... Continue Reading →
The Japanese are masters of cat-napping. They are able to sleep anywhere, anytime. Their ability to squeeze in a quick nap is truly amazing. In Belgium I hardly ever see people sleeping in public, except for the occasional cat-nap on the train. But in Japan, I have seen people taking a nap in restaurants, while... Continue Reading →
The Japans 