culture│CondeHouse

March 21, 2022

This Is a Must-Visit, Hokkaido Restaurant #2

No.1 in salmon roe The Japanese people like to eat fish eggs. The roe of salmon and cod (pollack, to be more precise) is the top two. Salmon roe is one of special marine products of Hokkaido. It comes into season in the autumn, and we local people buy and pickle it ourselves. It’s so popular that many tourists come here with the aim of eating it. In addition, Hokkaido is also a top production area of pollack roe, but it’s little known. Most of the Japanese people believe the home of pickled pollack roe is Kyushu area. It’s located far opposite to Hokkaido, in the southern part of Japan. Of course, most of them are made of pollack roe caught in Hokkaido. Our ex-chairman often lamented over the big loss in local profits, saying it’s a good example of failure in branding. No.1 in most of the food products […]

Japanese culture

March 17, 2022

Do You Know the Meaning of Silence in Japan?

Cognitive difference from aliens Have you watched the Hollywood movie titled “Arrival” (2016)? Simply put, it’s a science fiction depicting the contact with aliens. I know it may sound same old, but it’s completely different. The movie depicts the close encounters from the view point of linguistics. What is most interesting to me is the design of the letters the aliens use. It is 3D! The scriptwriter must be a genius. I just imagine he set the story like this. The aliens live in a four-dimensional world, and so, their letters are expressed in 3D. I’ve never even imagined to design letters in 3D, even a little. Can you believe it? The letters can be read from directly above! It was a fresh reminder of the fact that we can’t transcend our respective cognitive frames so easily. Cognitive difference from the talented In this connection, let me introduce another Hollywood […]

Hokkaido food

March 14, 2022

This Is a Must-Visit, Hokkaido Restaurant #1

Not the emperor of the Mongel Empire Genghis Khan is a barbecue of mutton, lamb, and vegetables, one of Hokkaido specialties. Mutton and lamb are not so generally eaten in Japan. There are many Japanese people who don’t like the smell. It’s very difficult to find a Genghis Khan restaurant outside Hokkaido. There were not so many even here when I was a kid, like 30 years ago. Genghis Khan was just one of home-cooked meals at that time. It appeared on the dinner table at least twice a month in my home, not a special treat at all for us. To be honest, I still have a little difficulty paying and eating it outside at a restaurant but must admit there are some good ones. The truth about Genghis Khan On the outskirts of Sapporo, the capital city of Hokkaido, there’s a kind of resort complex with some museums, […]

Knowledge bragging

March 10, 2022

Do You Know the Role of Japanese Giant Hornets?

Japanese honey bees Honey made in Japan is expensive, but most of them are made by European honey bees. Honey made by Japanese honey bees in Japan is so valuable. I’ve never eaten that, of course. Japanese honey bees are slightly smaller than European honey bees, and accordingly, their ability to collect nectar is lower. More time is required for the harvest, which diversifies the sort of honey ingredients (flowers), ages honey, and consequently makes the taste richer. Another reason why it’s more costly is Japanese honey bees don’t stick to their hive, while European honey bees do. No matter how much beekeepers take care of their hive, they sometimes abandon it. Funnily enough, this is one of the reasons why they can survive in Japan. Bees VS hornets The king of insects in Japan is Japanese giant hornets. They are 40 to 50 mm in size, at the top […]

Japanese culture

March 8, 2022

Have You Ever Seen High Class in Japan?

First encounter with a high society A noble class still exists in Japan. I learned the surprising fact when I worked for the prefectural government in Nagoya (the fourth biggest city in Japan and TOYOTA’s home ground) about 20 years ago. The fact may be surprising only to me because I’m from Hokkaido. It is the area sometimes called the last frontier of Japan with a short history of about 150 years. I had never seen such a class society until then. I think they’re different from just rich people. In my opinion, they are modest, exclusive (loyal to their own society), and mysterious. Mind you, I had and have nothing against them but just curiosity instead. Glimpse of a high society She was a university student at that time. I met her in an English conversation school I attended every weekend. It took long for naïve me to realize […]

Hokkaido food

March 4, 2022

This Is a Must-Visit, Hokkaido Ramen Noodle

Ramen is the expression of Japanese people’s local pride The most popular Japanese noodle dish is “Ramen.” These days, Japanese Ramen restaurants open even in Manhattan. I saw on the news that New Yorkers ate it over drinks and chat, like enjoying elegant Italian pasta dinner. It’s totally different from the one I’m writing here about. In Japan, Ramen is a fast food. Some consumer research says the average time to finish Ramen is only 14 minutes. Funnily enough, Ramen is closely related to Japanese people’s local pride. It’s probably because Ramen is reasonably priced and popular especially among the common people. You can see many Japanese people brag about their local Ramen even on the Internet, like I’m doing right now. Hokkaido is the kingdom of Ramen A major online news company every year announces the prefectural ranking of Ramen. Hokkaido (our home prefecture) is always ranked high, and […]

Marketing tips

March 1, 2022

Are You 100% Sure of What You Like?

We can’t explain even our own taste Why do we like what we like? This question has been always stuck in my head. I like curry but don’t want to eat it every day, while eating cereal every morning, though I don’t like it very much. I watch YouTube videos of social science as much as those of animals, but I would only talk about the former if asked. I know this is simply due to my silly pride to make myself look smart, though. In this way, we don’t always do or express what we like, and sometimes lie about it even to ourselves. Our taste is so complicated and mysterious that we can’t explain in most cases. Our expressed intention is untrustworthy If you’re interested in this mystery, I’d like to recommend this book: “You May Also Like” by Tom Vanderbilt. The book explains our taste from the […]

Business hacks

February 25, 2022

Do You Know How to Survive Video Meetings?

The trick to have a good conversation Do you know the secret to having a good conversation on the first date? At least in Japan, I believe many people know it: You must reserve seats facing the same direction! The psychological effects that appear by sitting face-to-face are strain, conflict, and seriousness, while we instinctively have the sense of sympathy, intimacy, and affection when facing the same direction. I used to use this psychological theory in my younger days, though I don’t think I gained a lot of benefits. Now, the theory is confusing me. How should we position ourselves in video meetings? Silence is less tolerated in video meetings How many video meetings did you have last week? I believe they become more and more common than in-person onsite ones. To be honest, I don’t like video meetings. You imagine that’s because it’s more difficult to read participants’ emotions? […]

Product development

February 21, 2022

Do You Know How to Become Popular?

Why male peacocks have colorful feathers Why do the colorful feathers of male peacocks attract female peacocks? Some people may accept the simple explanation: “Because they are beautiful,” but I never did. In all through my school days from primary to university, I was an enthusiastic student. My main research subject was always “How to become popular with girls,” though you can imagine the results of my study from the fact that it continued up until university. Anyway, it was only natural that such an enthusiastic student became interested in the colorful feathers of male peacocks and got to learn the handicap principle. The key to popularity is the handicap principle Please give it a careful thought. Don’t you think the attraction of the colorful feathers make no sense? For example, lion’s mane looks reasonable because it has a practical purpose as a protector, but what about the feathers? They […]

Japanese society

February 17, 2022

Do You Know the Truth of Inflation in Japan?

Tragedy will attack Japanese school kids Are bananas categorized as snacks for a trip? I ensure this phrase never fails to make Japanese people laugh. Japanese elementary school students (6 to 12 years old) go on a school day trip once or twice a year. It’s fun and special to go to a zoo or a park together with classmates, but equally or more important is they are allowed to bring snacks. The problem is the total amount is limited to less than only 300 yen (about 2.6 US dollars at the current exchange rate) in most schools. Kids always beat their brains to maximize the benefits arising from such a limited amount of snacks. This is the reason why bananas are subject to debate as above (as a joke) in Japan. Snack price will be inflated, but the kid’s allowance won’t You may think you can’t buy anything only […]