Blogs on Japan

Blogs on Japan is interviewing different bloggers who blog about Japan. If you would like to be interviewed, please contact me! Also if you are looking for some interesting blogs on Japan, take a look at the previous interviews. This interview is about how You, madam, are no Sei Shonagon.

When did you start blogging about Japan and why did you start?
I started at the end of May 2007. I hoped to document what I had previously left to my rapidly fading memory.

Describe your blog in one word.
Evolving.

If you could introduce one of your posts to new readers which one would it be and why?
“A lotus grows in Takayama: blogging about Japan”

I think this post outlines what I want to do with the blog and how I look at the problem of trying to write about life in Japan.

What blogs do you read?
I scan a good number of blogs, but I really enjoy The Westerner’s Fear of the Neonsign for its ironic point of view, Blue Lotus for Japanese food posts, and Tokyofoodcast and Tokyo through the drinking glass for posts about sake.

What is your favorite place you have been to in Japan and why?
I have a real fondness for mountain towns like Matsumoto, Hida-Takayama, and Yonezawa: friendly, talkative people, interesting local culture, excellent food, and gorgeous scenery.

How long have/did you live in Japan?
I first lived in Japan from July 1990 to October 1992. I returned in November 2005 and will leave in late 2008.

The best thing about Japan is…
Onsen ryokans.

The worst thing about Japan is…
Drunk old men on trains late at night who think I don’t speak any Japanese.

Who is your favorite Japanese celebrity?
Asashoryu isn’t Japanese, so I guess I’ll pick Gal Sone. She seems to embody the bizarre contrasts in modern Japanese pop culture.

One thing about Japanese culture that I will never understand is….
No PDA. When my husband and I are out, we always hold hands, kiss each other hello and goodbye, and give each other reassuring squeezes. Young Japanese couples seem to be more physically affectionate than older couples, but I rarely see kissing and hugging. I know it’s a cultural difference (and none of my business), but I couldn’t live like that.

What is the most delicious food you have had in Japan?
A well-crafted junmai yamahai sake can make me moan with pleasure.

What is the most disgusting food you have had in Japan?
I pride myself on enjoying all food, so I find it shocking to find a food I actively dislike. Yet, no matter how different kinds I try, I just don’t like natto.

What is the coolest gadget you have used or seen in Japan?
I’m not much of a gadget person, but my automatic bathtub at home is awesome. I set it to fill and stay hot with just the touch of a button. I can’t believe U.S. bathrooms are so primitive.

Thanks for the interview! I totally agree with the primitive bathrooms…don’t even get me started on the super toilets they have here!