Blogs on Japan

Blogs on Japan has started a new feature where we will interview different bloggers who blog about Japan. Up this time is Kirai.net, a great blog about Japan that is written in English and Spanish! 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.

When did you start blogging about Japan and why did you start?
I started blogging about Japan three years ago when I received the good news that I would be enjoying one year internship in Japan.

Describe your blog in one word.
Geek.

If you could introduce one of your posts to new readers which one would it be and why?
Japanese Aesthetic Values. It explains two important concepts of Japanese aesthetic values and beauty. I try to explain why Japanese simplicity is many times so beautiful.

What blogs do you read?
In English my favorites are http://blog.q-taro.com/ and http://www.dannychoo.com.

What is your favorite place you have been to in Japan and why?
I like Hakone, because of the lake and the beautiful views, you can really relax one weekend over there and then come back to Tokyo full of energy.

How long have/did you live in Japan?
I’ve been here three years

The best thing about Japan is…
There are not many things to worry about once you get used to life here.

The worst thing about Japan is…
Japanese are very open at the beginning when you first met them, but after that they are more closed and it’s difficult to make real friends.

Who is your favorite Japanese celebrity?
Don’t have any favorite celebrity.

One thing about Japanese culture that I will never understand is….
Why do they follow VERY stupid rules even when they know it’s stupid?

What is the most delicious food you have had in Japan?
Here in Japan I discovered one of my favorite dishes: Unagi.

What is the most disgusting food you have had in Japan?
Natto.

What is the coolest gadget you have used or seen in Japan?
I like the Sharp Zaurus PDAs a lot. Why do they not export them?

Thanks for taking part in the interview and keep up the good work!

Blogs on Japan has started a new feature where we will interview different bloggers who blog about Japan. Up this time is Geisha, Interrupted! If you would like to be interviewed, please contact me! Also you can read previous interviews.

When did you start blogging about Japan and why did you start?

I started only a couple months ago, back in May. I just finished writing a memoir about my experiences in Tokyo as a nightclub hostess in Ginza. My book will not be released back in The States until April 2008 however, so that gives me some free time to play blog. I’ve also found myself in recovery from alcoholism recently (not unrelated to all the hostessing - as I’m sure you can figure out) so the site doubles as my sobriety journal. That said, I guess I’m trying to pull off an ex-hostess-rediscovers-Tokyo-in-sobriety angle. There is so much emphasis on the drinking culture here in Japan, especially throughout the foreign media. I wondered how it might be received if I took a reverse perspective. At the same time, it’s hard to take myself seriously for too long.

Describe your blog in one word.

I am torn between “sakuran” and “eeeeeeeeehh?”

If you could introduce one of your posts to new readers which one would it be and why?

Tree or poodle! The very essence of my blog exists in the subtle difference between these two entities.

How long have/did you live in Japan?

Five years.

What is your favorite place you have been to in Japan and why?

Eitaibashi. I am obsessed with the current aesthetic and historical lineage of this bridge. This is because I am a dork.

The best thing about Japan is…

Onsen.

The worst thing about Japan is…

The way some shop employees will make a large X with their arms and shove said X into your face in order to express that they don’t have what you’ve asked for. This is despite the fact that you approached them in polite Japanese. Also, the singing potato man: he’s very annoying.

Who is your favorite Japanese celebrity?

Ayumi Hamasaki! She is just so cool. Again, I am a dork.

One thing about Japanese culture that I will never understand is….

Cartoon porn.

What is the most delicious food you have had in Japan?

Anything made by my former homestay mother in Yokohama. I hate her, but she is an awesome cook.

What is the most disgusting food you have had in Japan?

Anything that’s still moving.

OK, that is it for today! Thanks again for the interview and let me know when the book comes out!

Blogs on Japan has started a new feature where we will interview different bloggers who blog about Japan. Up this time is Broken Mirror! If you would like to be interviewed, please contact me! Also you can read previous interviews.

When did you start blogging about Japan and why did you start?

I started blogging about Japan, when I came here on scholarship, in October last year.

Describe your blog in one word.

Variety :)

If you could introduce one of your posts to new readers which one would it be and why?

It would be the one from 14thOct2006, titled “Czy Japonczycy czaja Chopina,” because these are my first impressions on Osaka and Kansai people :) And Japanese in general.

What is your favorite place you have been to in Japan and why?

One of my favorites is Miraishin no Oka, a hill carved in white marble, being a part of the Kousanji Temple in Prefecture of Hiroshima. It`s absolutely beautiful, and so peaceful…It`s hard to believe, that one man made this jewel.

The worst thing about Japan is…

No night life, in places other than big cities, like Tokyo, or Osaka.

Who is your favorite Japanese celebrity?

Retired Takarazuka actress Asaji Saki.

One thing about Japanese culture that I will never understand is….

It`s more about Japanese mentality, but still: apparently they can`t adopt the idea, that their understanding of Europe (and West, in general) can sometimes be quite wrong.

What is the most delicious food you have had in Japan?

Quite recently- takoyaki in shrimp sembei

What is the most disgusting food you have had in Japan?

One terrible seasonal desert, served somewhere around hina matsuri. Made of eggs, and some seaweed….and God knows, what else. Rather horrible. XD

Blogs on Japan has started a new feature where we will interview different bloggers who blog about Japan. Up this time is La Fuji Mama! If you would like to be interviewed, please contact me! Also you can read previous interviews.

When did you start blogging about Japan and why did you start?

I started blogging about Japan on February 9 of this year when I started blogging in general. I had been thinking about starting a blog for a while. I read lots of blogs written by other people around the world, and decided that it was time that I share my own experience because it was selfish to keep it to myself. Not that I think I have an extraordinarily interesting life, because I don’t, but I know that I am always interested to know about how people live in other countries, and to learn tidbits about those countries. So, I figure that if I am interested in learning about that kind of thing, someone out there may be interested in those things from my perspective. If nothing else, I figured it was a way to collect my thoughts on life.

Describe your blog in one word.

Eclectic.

If you could introduce one of your posts to new readers which one would it be and why?

My post written on, Thursday, July 12, 2007, titled “If I eat my hijiki, will my hair be black?” I like this post because it gives some insight into one aspect of the gaijin experience in Japan and it also gives a little bit of info about Japanese culture. This is more the direction that I want to take my blog in. My goal is to use my blog as motivation to get out and learn more about the culture/country that I am living in so that I can share it with my readers.

What blogs do you read?

Too many! Some of them are:

• • Anna Dilemna
  • C’est la me . . .
  • Chez Tse
  • Chocolate & Zucchini
  • David Lebovitz
  • Geisha, Interrupted
  • Going Underground
  • JapanSugoi
  • La Coquette
  • Lucullian Delights
  • My Life as a Gaijin
  • My Little Mochi
  • My Marrakesh
  • Paris Breakfasts
  • Pinku!
  • Popcorn and Sushi
  • Shiso mama

What is your favorite place you have been to in Japan and why?

Aiiku Hospital in Tokyo—that is where my daughter was born in December of 2006. It was an incredibly positive experience and one I will never forget. The entire hospital experience was wonderful, despite the fact that my daughter’s birth ended up being by emergency c-section. Other than the hospital, I would have to say Kyoto, because I love Japanese culture and Kyoto provides that in abundance.

How long have/did you live in Japan?

I have been living in Japan for one year now this time around. I lived in Japan for a little less than one year about 4 ½ years ago.

The best thing about Japan is…

Matsuri—the Japanese know how to party!

The worst thing about Japan is…

The humidity, hands down!

Who is your favorite Japanese celebrity?

Takeru Kobayashi—6 time world champion hot-dog eater

What is the most delicious food you have had in Japan?

This is a difficult question for me to answer because I am a total foodie. I live and breathe food, so living in Japan is as if I had died and gone to heaven. I could sit and tell you about my favorite udon place, or my favorite sukiyaki place, but that might take a while, and it tends to change from day to day as I make new discoveries. However, one of my favorite food of all time is sushi, so a good sushi breakfast at one of the little sushi establishments right outside of the Tsukiji fish market rates pretty high on my food scale.

What is the most disgusting food you have had in Japan?

I can’t think of anything that I have eaten that was really disgusting. I have eaten some things that weren’t as good, but nothing bad.

What is the coolest gadget you have used or seen in Japan?

I know that most people may start thinking about all of the cool cell phones or other bits of technology that can be found here, but the first thing that came to my mind was my toilet. In fact, I have been meaning to write a post about my toilet. It is a Toto Washlet, and Toto and I have a love affair that is ongoing. Anyone living in Japan can understand that after experiencing a toilet that opens and closes its lid for you, has a heated seat, self-deodorizes, and has an assortment of bidet options, it is hard to go back to a “regular” toilet. If you haven’t experienced such a toilet, you may want to stay away, it is addicting.

All in all . . .

My experience in Japan thus far has been an extremely positive one. I love how friendly the Japanese people are. I have found that once you make a friend in Japan, you have that friend for life.

Thanks for the interview Fuji Mama! See more interviews with Japan bloggers