Posts Tagged: japan

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3
Sep 10

When You Gotta Go: Japanese Bathrooms

Japanese bathrooms may seem like a strange topic for this blog, but it’s essential that Westerners who hope to visit or live in Japan familiarize themselves with what to expect in Japanese bathrooms. The news about overly-mechanized Japanese toilets usually spreads to the West as a sort of “funny story,” but there’s far more to Japanese bathrooms than gimmicky singing toilets or the like.

In public, you may find it difficult to find a Western-style sitting toilet in many stores, restaurants, schools and places of work. If you look hard enough, you should find at least one stall with a Western-style toilet in each bathroom in most modern buildings, but the majority of toilets in public stalls are actually Eastern-style squat toilets, which look like oblong, porcelain-lined holes in the ground.

As part of a society that values cleanliness, the Japanese continue to use this ancient style of squat toilets because they require no contact with a person at all, so there’s no chance of germs or messes accumulating on a seat and spreading from person to person. Men can easily use a squat toilet when urinating as they can stand. As far as women urinating or either gender going #2, the user must face the toilet and place one foot on either side of the squat toilet, bend the knees entirely, and balance their rear end a few inches above the toilet, without making any contact. When finished, the user can use toilet paper and then hit a flush lever.

After years of practice or perhaps just because of genetic disposition, Asian people can usually bend this way and stay balanced because their feet remain flat on the ground. However, when most foreigners try to bend this way, they naturally tend to remain on the balls of their feet, making it more difficult to balance. Obviously, many older people or people with mobility issues will find these toilets impossible to use. That’s why it may be best for foreigners to search out the Western-style toilet stall, if possible.

You may also notice a pair of slippers in a stall or outside a bathroom, particularly in older buildings with only squat toilets. The idea is to keep bathroom germs in the bathroom and keep other germs out of the bathroom. It’s implied that you should put on the bathroom slippers (and take off your own shoes–assuming you haven’t already, which you most likely have in an old-fashioned Japanese building) only when using the toilet and leave the slippers where you found them when you’re finished for the next person.

In public bathrooms, you may hear strange sounds coming from other stalls, particularly if you’re a lady. Or you may notice an odd panel on the wall. The noise may sound like mechanical trickling water or white noise or any other strange sound. This is because many Japanese people are embarrassed to be heard going to the bathroom (the tinkle or plop) and so would rather drown it out. Some women carry their own portable soundmakers expressly for this purpose, but you may find what’s called an otohime panel in your stall that will make noises for you.

Another important note when using a public bathroom is that you should bring your own hand towel! To save energy and cut back on waste, most public bathrooms do not have hand dryers or paper towels available. People are expected to purchase their own small reusable hand towel and carry it in a baggie in their purse or pocket to use after washing their hands. Some bathrooms (usually in more older buildings) also do not have soap; you can carry a small bar of soap in a hard case along with you for this purpose. However, many bathrooms in the more modern buildings will have soap and hand dryers available.

Japanese homes (unless it’s an old-fashioned home, in which case you’re likely only to find squat toilets) are where you’ll find those mechanical Western-style toilets with many interesting features. Most toilets in Japanese homes at least have a bidet function (with which you can spray water on your behind to clean it off) and an air-drying function so that you won’t even have to use toilet paper (although you may, if you like). Any other function (such as seat heating, automatically opening and closing lid, automatic flushing, and a thermostat for the room temperature, among others) is pure extra entertainment.

Oh, one more thing: you’ll notice that in Japanese homes, the toilet is never in the same room as the bathtub and/or shower. It’s often in a very small closet-like room across the way or next to the shower/bathtub room. This is again a testament to the Japanese culture’s love of cleanliness, so that no toilet-related bacteria or filthiness can spread into the place where people clean themselves.

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27
Aug 10

The Particle “Mo”

The grammar section of The Japanese Tutor takes a closer look at a number of important particles in the Japanese language. Another particle you’ll hear and use a lot in the Japanese language is mo, which can mean “too,” “as well,” “also,” and sometimes even “and.”

You can use mo in place of the particles wa, ga, or wo. That means that you should place mo after the subject or object or the sentence, whichever is the thing that is “also.” For example, if you heard someone say, “My little sister is a high school student,” you might respond, “My younger brother is a high school student, too” or “My younger brother is also a high school student.” In Japanese, the conversation may occur in the following manner:

Imouto wa koukousei desu.

Otouto mo koukousei desu.

This subject-use of mo also applies when discussing someone performing the same action. For example, in English someone might say, “My little sister went to the cinema yesterday.” You might reply, “My younger brother went to the cinema yesterday as well.” The Japanese translation of this dialog is:

Imouto wa kinou eigakan ni ikimashita.

Otouto mo kinou eigakan ni ikimashita.

When using mo with an object, you place the particle after the object in the sentence. For example, if you want to say, “My younger brother likes dogs. He also likes cats,” you can use mo after the object of the second sentence (neko/cats):

Otouto wa inu ga suki desu. Kare wa neko mo suki desu.

Mo can also be translated as “and” when used in a list. With a few exceptions, you should use the particle mo after each item in a list when talking about three items or more. Sometimes you can use it even when you’re only talking about two items, but you’re more likely to hear the particle to (which usually means “and”) when there are only two items. You will not hear to used in long lists.

For example, if you want to say, “My younger brother likes dogs, cats, birds and hamsters,” you should say mo after each object in the list:

Otouto wa inu mo neko mo tori mo hamusutaa mo suki desu.

Practice using mo in a sentence. Review the lesson on the particles wa, ga, and wo and replace those particles with mo.

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20
Aug 10

The Obon Festival: A Tribe to Ancestors

This week was the festival of Obon throughout Japan. Obon, a Buddhist holiday, is a time for bonding with one’s ancestors and deceased family members. The Japanese pray for the ancestors’ happy lives as spirits and acknowledge that they themselves could not have existed without them. Although most Japanese are not highly religious, this Buddhist holiday is a culturally important one. People tend to meet up with their family and return to their hometowns so that the family can pray together and also enjoy one another’s company and celebrate their lives.

Obon occurs on a lunar calendar and is different each year–and is even different in the same year among different regions–but occurs sometime between July and August. This year, most of Japan had Obon festivities from August 7th through the 17th.

Mukae-bon takes place on the first day of the Obon festival. After thoroughly cleaning their home, Japanese families light special Obon chochin lanterns inside the home and the family members walk the lanterns to the family gravesite area (if possible–they may just hang the lanterns outside the door and call them home as well). They call their ancestors’ spirits home and it is thought that these spirits reside within the homes’ Buddhist altars for the duration of the festival. The family keeps the lanterns lit beside the altar and also decorates the altars with flower arrangements and incense. They offer food to the spirits throughout their one-week “stay” in the home. On the last day of Obon, Okuri-bon, the family will walk the lit lanterns back to the gravesite in order to guide them back to the afterlife.

Because Obon takes place in the summer, the thought of ghosts wandering among the living permeates into Japanese culture as a whole. Like Halloween in the West, the Obon festival becomes a time for spooky tales, horror movies, ghost sightings, and the Japanese equivalent of a haunted house, which is sometimes called kimodameshi, a “test of courage.” At night, people will dress up like ghosts in the grounds of a Buddhist or Shinto temple and groups of people will split into groups of no more than two in order to face the dark, spooky path to the top of the temple. (These trials are usually undertaken by teenagers and young adults.)

Have you ever celebrated Obon in Japan? Have you ever gone on a kimodameshi? Would you like to?

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13
Aug 10

Karaoke: More than Just a Sing-Along

Karaoke may not be an exclusive activity to Japan—nor was it necessarily originated in Japan—but the name itself demonstrates how widespread and influential the activity is in Japan. “Karaoke” is a Japanese loanword, a portmanteau of the words “kara” and “ookesutora” which mean “empty” and “orchestra,” respectively. (Incidentally, the word is pronounced “kah-rah-oh-kay,” not “carrie-okie.”)

While sing-along was nothing new even in the US at the time, the concept of karaoke blossomed in the 1970s in Japan. Musical entertainment during dinner has been a long-standing cultural tradition and it was during the 1970s that a drummer named Inoue Daisuke first decided to market a tape player that played music (so that people wouldn’t need to play the instruments) at ¥100 (about $1) a song. The machines were too expensive for most people to purchase, so hotels, restaurants, and bars tended to rent them out for parties at those establishments.

Later in the decade, businesses actually developed with the karaoke machine at the center. “Karaoke boxes” were places that offered sound-proof rooms for small groups to rent while singing with karaoke machines. These businesses really took off, eventually booming in the 1980s (when the phenomenon and the word “karaoke” was exported to the West). They’re still quite popular today.

Karaoke boxes typically serve alcohol (which frees legal adults’ inhibitions and makes them more likely to have the courage to sing in public!) and food upon request. You just need to pick up the in-room phone and place your order. Rooms are usually available at a set hourly rate, although you may be charged by how many people you have in your group as well. You can even rent a room in a karaoke box by yourself if you’re too embarrassed to sing in front of other people! Karaoke song catalogs typically include mostly Japanese songs and Western songs (which everyone tries to sing in English).

Anthropologists have surmised that karaoke is especially popular in a country like Japan where the general population works extremely hard and needs a physically freeing way to unwind. In Japan, most people don’t care how good a singer you are, nor do they make a big deal and laugh if you’re a bad singer. They just enjoy letting go with each other after a hard day at work or school.

Have you ever sung karaoke? Have you sung karaoke in a Japanese-style restaurant or karaoke box? Would you like to sing with a group of Japanese people?

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6
Aug 10

Donburi: Rice Bowl Meals

In Japan, eating donburi is an easy way to warm up on a cold winter day–or just to enjoy a flavorful, hot dish whenever the craving strikes you. “Donburi” means simply “bowl,” but when it comes to food, it refers to a family of rice bowl dishes. What distinguishes these types of dishes is that meat, tofu, eggs and/or vegetables are simmered together into a stew and then poured atop steamed white rice.

There is no singular simmering sauce used in all dishes, but popular ones include dashi (the stock used in miso soup), soy sauce, and mirin (a type of rice wine). Ingredients typically (but not always) included are onions, eggs, and seafood. One of the most popular types of donburi is oyakodon, which literally means “parent-child donburi.” This is because it consists of both chicken (the “parent”) and egg (“the child”). Oyakodon also includes onions and may be simmered in a variety of sauces, but is usually simmered in a soy sauce mixture.

Another popular donburi dish is katsudon, which features fried pork cutlets, egg, and onions. However, there are many seafood varieties, such as tenshidon, which offers a crab meat omelet over rice, and tekkadon, which features spicy raw tuna and seaweed. There’s also unadon, which includes cooked eel.

You can find beef in donburi dishes such as gyuudon, which features just beef and onions, and tanindon, which is like oyakodon, only with beef in place of the chicken. (“Tanin” means “stranger,” since the beef and egg would have no familial relation.)

Donburi are typically inexpensive dishes available quick to order. You may find a small Japanese restaurant with only counter seating, but turnover is fast since the food is made quickly and you’ll be able to get a seat without much wait. Just don’t linger around more than necessary, as you’ll want to free up your seat for another customer.

Donburi dishes are also popular ways to prepare leftovers and give them additional flavor. Home chefs need only simmer some meat and vegetables from a previous meal together in sauce and serve them over steamed rice.

Have you ever eaten a donburi dish? Which one? Which ones sounds the most appealing to you and why?

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30
Jul 10

Kobe: Mountains, Business, and Beef

With about 1.5 million people, Kobe is Japan’s 6th most populous city. Located in the Hyogo prefecture, Kobe is nestled along the coastline approximately 310 miles west of Tokyo and is reachable from Tokyo in about 3 ½ hours by train. Once among the most important port cities in Japan after Japan opened itself up to trade, Kobe is still the fourth busiest seaport city in the nation.

Kobe is home to a number of famous Japanese companies, such as Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Kobe Steel, and ASICS, which is a sportswear and athletic equipment company. Global companies that make their Japanese headquarters in Kobe include Nestle and Proctor & Gamble. With so many companies and trades in Kobe, the area among the busiest for business and office jobs in Japan.

If you’re just there to sightsee, the first thing you’ll notice is the Rokko Mountains, which frame the long, rather thin city of Kobe on the opposite side of the ocean. The apex of the Rokko Mountains is about 3055 feet high. If you’re interested in seeing the city of Kobe from the mountains, there are a number of observation decks, restaurants, museums, and even a botanical garden along the mountainside. Perhaps most famous is the Arima Onsen (read here about onsen) atop the mountain, from which you can bathe and see the city at a stunning height. Taking a bus to the onsen from the city will only cost you about US$20 round-trip.

You can’t leave Kobe (unless you’re a vegetarian or not a fan of beef) without trying some Kobe beef. Easily one of the highest quality beef types in all of Japan, other Japanese cities import Kobe’s black Tajima-ushi Wagyu cattle beef. Some of the highest quality cuts of steak made from Kobe beef can cost about US$500 (!), but you can sample much more affordable Kobe beef in anything from burgers to shabu shabu to sushi (cooked) to sukiyaki.

Your trip to Kobe would be incomplete without a ride on the giant Ferris wheel at Kobe Harborland. The view from the Ferris wheel at night is stunning!

Have you ever been to Kobe? Have you ever tried Kobe beef? Is the beef worth the rave reviews it gets? Have you ever visited the Rokko Mountains?

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23
Jul 10

News of Immigrant Exploitation in Japan

The New York Times recently profiled a group of immigrants in Japan who are facing discrimination, unfair wages and unfair hours at their places of work in Japan. Asked to come to Japan under a “foreign trainee” program approved by the Japanese government, these foreign workers were told they’d earn a better wage than they could in their home countries and earn valuable technical skills in assembly factories. Instead, they’re being forced to work long hours in unsafe conditions for less than minimum wage. Some of them are mistreated by their fellow employees.

Because it’s an island nation, there aren’t as many immigrants to Japan as there are to other countries. But countries with poorer average wages for the majority or at least a large portion of citizens, such as China, the Philippines, and Brazil, are targeted by Japanese companies as sources of cheap labor for manufacturing and farming work. While some immigrant workers are treated fairly, mistreatment of foreign workers is prevalent enough that Japanese human rights activists are trying to address the problem.

Some immigrant workers are terrorized by their bosses and are told they’re not allowed to attend church (85% of Filipinos are Christian), they’re not allowed to get cell phones or do much besides work. Some report being physically assaulted by Japanese co-workers and bosses. One Chinese immigrant even reported that her Japanese boss told her Japanese co-workers not to go near her work station—where she was stationed every day—because of the danger of inhaling toxic chemicals during the manufacturing process.

The Chinese immigrant and several other Chinese immigrants who worked for that company are building a case with a Japanese lawyer against their former employer. Human rights activists are also helping other immigrants by investigating poor treatment, but there are likely more immigrants who are not being helped. There are about 190,000 immigrants in the “foreign trainee” program, although of course the majority are likely not mistreated. Nevertheless, the mistreatment is a growing concern, especially considering that these companies are receiving their workers through a government-sanctioned program.

Do you think the Japanese government is at fault for not keeping a closer eye on the companies that hire foreign workers through the program? What kind of steps could they take to make sure Japanese companies don’t take advantage of their workers?

Tabuchi, Hiroko. “Japan Training Program Is Said to Exploit Workers.” The New York Times. 21. July 2010. <http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/21/business/global/21apprentice.html?_r=1&src=mv>.

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16
Jul 10

How to Talk About Health in Japanese

If you plan on spending time in Japan or around Japanese-speaking people, it’s better that you over prepare than under prepare. Knowing how to talk about your health problems with your host family or a physician can help you get the treatment you need quickly—and accurately. Although you’ll likely be able to find an English-speaking doctor, you can get treatment faster if you’re able to explain yourself in Japanese as well.

(A cultural note: Unless it’s serious and you need medical assistance, it’s generally not considered polite to talk about your health in social situations. If you have a minor stomachache and you’re not that close to your host, for example, you might just excuse yourself without going into detail.)

Medical Term or Phrase in English Japanese Translation
I’m not feeling well. Kibun ga warui desu.
I’m sick. Byoki desu.
I injured myself. Kega wo shimashita.
I’m allergic to X. X ni arerugii ga arimasu.
My X hurts.* X ga itai desu.*
I have diarrhea. Geri desu.
I’m constipated. Benpi desu.
I have a cold. Kaze wo hiite imasu.
I have the flu. Infuruenza wo hiite imasu.

-or-

Ryuukan wo hiite imasu.
I’m on my period. Seiri desu.
I have hay fever / I have allergies (to pollen). Kafunshou desu.
I have a headache. Zutsuu ga shimasu.
I have a stomachache. Itsuu ga shimasu.
I have a toothache. Haita ga shimasu.

-or-

Shitsuu ga shimasu.
I have a runny nose. Hanamizu ga demasu.
I’m sneezing. Kushami ga demasu.
I’m coughing. Seki wo shimasu.
I vomited. Hakimashita.
I feel dizzy. Memai ga shimasu.
I have rashes. Hasshin ga arimasu.
My X itches.* X ga kayui desu.*
I want to go to the hospital/a doctor. Byouin ni ikitai desu.

*Some body parts that may hurt or itch (which you can use in place of “X” in the phrases above) include:

Body Part Japanese Translation
head atama
stomach onaka
tooth ha
chest mune
back senaka
shoulder kata
neck kubi
throat nodo
knee hiza
ankle ashikubi
toe tsumasaki
foot ashi*
leg ashi*
elbow hiji
wrist tekubi
finger yubi
hand te
arm ude
nose hana
ear mimi
eye me

* Yes, “foot” and “leg” are the same word in Japanese. Just point to which one you mean.

Just one more note. If you plan on working in Japan, you may become accustomed to their cultural views on becoming sick. As a whole, Japanese society values hardworkers and most companies actually discourage their employees from taking off from work, even when sick! If you do feel sick enough to stay home, your boss may pressure you to go to the hospital (as in a non-emergency walk-in clinic) and you may have to get a note from the doctor that says you should be permitted to stay home. If you don’t think you’re sick enough to get a note from the doctor, your boss will likely expect you to come in to work. If you have a cold or a contagious virus, you’ll be expected to wear a cold mask, which looks a bit like a dust mask, while you work. These can be very uncomfortable, especially after a while, but they’re important in an overcrowded country to prevent the spread of germs. However, while you won’t need to change your mask throughout the day to satisfy Japanese society’s requirements, scientists have doubted the ability of these masks to prevent the spread of germs after one hour of wear, so you may want to buy a bunch and change your mask every hour.

Even when you’re not sick, you’re likely to see people in public with these masks, especially in cold season. Now you know why!

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9
Jul 10

Japanese Curry (Best Served with Rice)

When you think of curry, you usually think of India, the homeland of the dish. In Japan, while they do have Indian curry on many a restaurant menu (it’s called “indo karee” in Japan), there’s a Japanese treatment of curry (called “karee,” pronounced “kah-ray”) that’s far more popular.

Curry has only been in Japan since the late 19th century, but it’s already considered a fairly quintessential Japanese dish. Curry made its way to Japan via the English Navy. As India was an English colony at the time, the British had been influenced by Indian cooking and introduced the way in which they replicated the dish to the Japanese once Japan opened up to the West. In the British recipe, curry mimicked the style of Western stew, and that became the basis of Japanese curry.

Japanese curry took a while to catch on, but it positively flourished in the late 1960s. Besides being available in many food stands and restaurants, the curry roux mix made it possible for Japanese homemakers to easily make the dish at home. It wasn’t until the 1990s that actual Indian-style curry became somewhat popular in Japan as well.

Japanese curry is traditionally much less spicy than Indian curry, although it can be extra spicy at the chef’s discretion. The sauce is typically made from curry powder, flour and oil (and can more easily be purchased rather than made in the form of curry roux in supermarkets). The basic vegetables cooked in the sauce are carrots, onions and potatoes, but the chef can add any number of vegetables (and fruits!), such as peas, scallops, eggplants, turnips, broccoli, lotus roots, pears, melons and apples. Also in the curry is usually a meat, either cooked without additives or deep-fried first. Popular choices in Japan include beef, pork, chicken, oyster, duck and even deer.

Served over rice, Japanese curry is known as just “karee” or “karee raisu.” Other popular ways to eat Japanese curry include as the filling in bread (“karee pan”), over Japanese noodles (“karee udon”), with a raw egg (“yaki karee”) and as a soup (“suupu karee”). Japanese curry is usually quite affordable and can be found at most types of restaurants in Japan, fast-food and sit-down alike.

Have you tried Japanese curry? Did you like it more or less than Indian curry? Which type of Japanese curry seems the most appealing to you?

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2
Jul 10

Visual Kei Music: When Gothic Meets Flair

A style of music native to Japan with a sizeable following is Visual Kei (“visual” of course is an English word and “kei” means “style” in Japanese). This type of music is known for its performers’ visual style as much as their music, as they’re dressed in incredibly ornate fashion.

Visual Kei may owe some of its roots to flamboyantly colored and stylized ancient performance styles from Japan, such as kabuki and noh. They may also owe some of their style to glam rock singers, such as Ziggy Stardust (David Bowie). However, their look is largely unique and not quite exactly like any of these influences.

Visual Kei bands typically—but not always—wear clothes inspired by overly colorful or Gothic black-and-white Victorian-era European attire, with lots of ruffles and large, baggy sleeves. Feathers, ribbons and lace are common accessories. The band members’ hair is typically dyed bright colors and is styled in long, wavy or spiky style, but may also be elegantly tied back. The band members may also wear color contacts, since most Japanese people have dark brown eyes and they want to appear a little more European. (However, the contacts may also be a color not found in human eyes.)

The band members’ faces and exposed skin are also typically painted pure white, which is a direct connection to the kabuki and noh style of theatrics. (Pale, white skin is traditionally seen as a sign of beauty in Japan and may represent delicateness.) Perhaps more closely tied to the theatrical traditions of kabuki and noh is the fact that many Visual Kei bands feature at least one band member who dresses explicitly as a woman—despite being a man. All of the band members tend to embrace a sense of androgyny, but some more so than others.

The type of music you might hear from a Visual Kei band might be described as some sort of punk, classical music or operatic music and glam rock mix, with hints of metal. Songs can be both hard-core and upbeat or slow and ballad-like.

Visual Kei debuted in the late 1980s and was quite popular during the 1990s, but the popularity died down somewhat toward the end of the decade. It’s had a sort of revival since 2007, but it’s more popular these days with a core audience than a widespread one.

Here’s a taste of some Visual Kei:

~Versailles, a modern band~

~Malice Mizer, one of the most popular bands from the ‘90s (now disbanded)~

What do you think of Visual Kei music? What about the bands’ style? What do you think is more important to this genre of music, the music itself or the style of the band?

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