Cherry blossom and plum blossom trees are iconic for their pink(ish) flowers and are deeply rooted in culture especially in Japan, Korea, and China. Plum blossoms, however, are less significant in Japan when compared to cherry blossoms. However, originally it was plum blossom that were admired and celebrated in the royal court of Japan and…

Everybody loves snacks, and it’s no secret that there is a huge variety to choose from when it comes to sweets, potato chips, fruit, and more. Japan is not only famous for its mouth-watering savory food such as sushi, tempura, ramen, soba noodles, yakitori, and okonomiyaki, but also for its unique and fancy snacks that…

Thereare a lot of firsts that are important to Japanese people in the new year – the first visit to a shrine, the first sunrise, and even the first dream! Hatsuyume (初夢) literally means the first dream of the New Year. It is traditionally believed it foretells the kind of year and luck you will…

Christmas is coming soon, so what are the songs in your Christmas playlist? Are they the same as last year and the years before? Aren’t you bored of listening to the same Christmas songs every year? Why not try listening to Japanese Christmas songs for a change? These Japanese classics have a different sound, and…

The well-known member of the highly successful Japanese boy band Arashi(嵐), Kazunari Ninomiya, is the first one in the band to officially get married! The happy news are legit, as it was announced by Arashi’s managing agency yesterday (November 12th, 2019). View this post on Instagram A post shared by 桜島ビジターセンター【公式】 (@sakurajima_visitorcenter) on Nov 12,…

Randoseru is the iconic Japanese school bag which can often be seen sported by elementary school children. The bags are sturdy and large, and they are used to store books and stationery to bring to school. You may even see them sported in comic books such as Doraemon. Just recently, Lexus released this new and…

Japan produces many premium variants of strawberries such as the white strawberries, Aiberry and Skyberry. As of March 2015, there are now about 253 luxury variants of strawberries in Japan! 1. Hatsukoi no Kaori View this post on Instagram White strawberry♡ I will have this every spring in Japan but this year I don't get…

The konnyaku (konjac) plant is also known as the Devil’s Tongue plant. Konnyaku is made from the core of this plant. Even though it is barely eaten in the West, it has been eaten for about 1500 years in Japan. Not too surprising, as it is proven to be beneficial to your health and although…

‘Seppuku’ (widely known as ‘Harakiri’ by foreigners) is a Japanese highly ritualized suicide by disembowelment. This ritual is specifically reserved for the samurai, by which they can regain the honour for his family that are left alive, and for him to die in an honourable way. The act of Seppuku itself is not technically a…

In Japan, the beautiful and enigmatic Geisha represents one of the most iconic cultural images in the country. They have been around since as early as 600 A.D. where they served as entertainers and companions, but the look we can easily recognize today became prominent in the 17th century. Trained in fine arts such as…