Day Trips – Kanazawa
Feb 29, 2024 By Bert Wishart
Nestled along the western coast of Japan, Kanazawa in Ishikawa Prefecture is a great example of modern Japan settling side-by-side with its history. It is a city that retains much...[ Click to read more ]
Getting a Kick out of Karate – What’s it all about and where to do it in Nagoya
Nov 30, 2023 By Bert Wishart
When I was six years old, my parents signed me up at a local karate class. I’m not sure why; perhaps because, as the smallest kid in my class, they...[ Click to read more ]
The Amazing and Baffling World of Nagoya’s Manga Cafes
May 30, 2023 By Bert Wishart
Comic books are popular worldwide, but in Japan, reading manga is, for many, something akin to an obsession. Everyone reads manga, from little kids to fully grown adults, but it...[ Click to read more ]
Studio Ghibli – Sharing Japanese Culture with your Kids
Apr 27, 2023 By Bert Wishart
With a tradition going back centuries, Japanese animation, known better as anime, is perhaps one of the country's greatest cultural exports. While you may feel little interest in cartoons outside...[ Click to read more ]
Casting Your Net: Discover More about Japan with Podcasts
Feb 27, 2023 By Bert Wishart
So, you find yourself in Japan, and you want to immerse yourself in the culture, but you've got three fundamental problems: you can't speak the language well enough to flick...[ Click to read more ]
Have a Good Morning! Nagoya’s Breakfast Institution
Aug 31, 2022 By Bert Wishart
Japanese cuisine is well known for its delicate flavors, subtlety, and exquisite fragility. However, here in Aichi, we do things a little differently. Nagoya-meshi is famed for its full flavor,...[ Click to read more ]
The Vend of The World – Explore Nagoya’s Eclectic Vending Machines
Jun 30, 2022 By Bert Wishart
Is there a more convenient country in the world than Japan? The trains run so fast they’re named after bullets, package redelivery can be arranged anytime, and there is an...[ Click to read more ]
Let’s go to Shirakawa-go in Gifu!
May 30, 2022 By Bert Wishart
Japanese often talk about the majesty of their four seasons (conveniently forgetting the fifth, the rainy season). Still, if you live in a city like Nagoya, you could be forgiven...[ Click to read more ]
Fortune Telling? It’s for the Birds!
Oct 28, 2021 By Bert Wishart
A Japanese proverb says, of the futility of trying to predict the future, 'when you talk about the future, demons laugh.' And yet, much of the population believe that the...[ Click to read more ]
Get to the Point – Traditional Japanese Swordsmithery Near Nagoya
Oct 28, 2021 By Bert Wishart
According to historian and author Stephen Turnbull on the Netflix documentary The Age of Samurai, "the samurai's most iconic weapon was the katana, the Japanese sword, widely regarded as the...[ Click to read more ]
