Japanese Culture and Traditions– category –
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Must-visit in Hokkaido: Countryside Floating in the Darkness by the Light of Fireflies
Almost all the Japanese people can't help feeling "I have to go home" whenever hearing the Scottish folk song "Auld Lang Syne." The song is very popular and recognized in Japan as a song to inform closing time of shops, restaurants, etc. The Japanese title of the song is "The Light of Fireflies." People in Hokkaido have been working hard to recover the environment to see fireflies again. -
Box Lunch in the World: Similarities and Differences Between Indian Dabba and Japanese Bento
Japan and India seem to have their own unique box lunch cultures: Japanese bento and Indian dabba. Among other things, the tidy content arrangement of Japanese bento is one of a kind, while the lunch delivery system (dabbawala) in Mumbai is unequaled in the world. -
The World’s First Invention: Instant Noodles Were Thus Born in Japan
Instant noodles were invented in Japan in 1968. The inventor's name was Momofuku Ando, the founder of Nissin, the top instant noodle brand in Japan. Let's see the background story of how he invented instant noodles and his company has been improved them. -
Japanese Capsule Toy Gacha: Design to Make the World a Little Better
Gacha, Japanese capsule toy vending machines come back in style! The biggest Japanese advertising agency brought about a revolution in the Gacha industry. They've started to install Gacha in some international airports in Japan. Their target customers are foreign tourists who have too much time and too many Japanese coins on their hands. -
This Is How Japanese People Make a Fuss About Cherry Blossoms (Sakura) in Spring
In the popular places for cherry blossoms in the peak season, you can see many blue ground sheets spreading all over under cherry trees. Even though a good spot is secured somehow, most people just enjoy drinking and eating, and only few people look up cherry blossoms. This is the reality of cherry blossom viewing parties in contemporary Japan. -
Why Is the Jason Ice Hockey Mask Scary?
Did you know that ice hockey goalkeepers have no longer worn the iconic mask of Jason in the Friday the 13th series? Last week I went to see an ice hockey match for the first time. I was disappointed by the fact and somehow thought about Japanese Noh masks (please see the above image) during the match. Both of them are creepy, but in two different ways. -
Japanese Culture and Traditions: The Exchange of New Year’s Cards Going Outdated
I know we have received a lot of benefit from innovation mostly made by courageous or reckless decision-makers, but sometimes I can't help feeling that the value of being the first penguin is overestimated because of its high-risk nature. Think about it for a second: Nobody knows if such innovations can make the world richer. I think it may be better to leave it to some weirdos like Elon Musk. -
Mochi (Rice Cakes) Is Dangerous Killer Food
Have you ever eaten mochi? If yes and you're still alive, you're blessed. Do you know how many people have lost their lives by choking on mochi in Japan? It's 300 averagely every year. We probably should prohibit or at least impose a heavy tax on mochi like narcotics and alcohol, but there has been no such momentum in the National Diet of Japan so far. -
Why Nature Loves Hexagons: Snowflakes, Hexagonal Flowers Blooming in Hokkaido
Why do bees and hornets build hexagons? If we try to fill a plane surface with a single kind of polygons, there are three options: equilateral triangles, squares, and regular hexagons. Bees and hornets go with regular hexagons because regular hexagons are best in space-efficiency and second best in strength. This is the core point of the theory. What do you think? -
Japanese Culture and Traditions: Factory Tours for School Educational Trips
Do you notice anything peculiar in the above image of the big forest at the bottom of Mt. Fuji? It's moss. You can see a lot of moss on the ground. It grows on the surface of tree roots crawling on the ground. The forest soil is made of lava. The lava soil is so hard and well-drained that trees can't collect and keep water from their roots without moss.