Japanese Culture articles, rants, and conversations.

Sunday, December 17, 2006

Real Estate in Japan

Japanese Real Estate prices have had a terrible time over the past two decades. In fact, the market experienced a run where property prices fell for sixteen years in a row despite the government trying desperately to reverse the trend and get people to invest. Visit Japanese culture for more readings.

Thursday, December 07, 2006

Japanese Jiujitsu

One of the most popular martial arts is Jiu Jitsu. Other martial arts like judo, karate, sambo, taekwondo and many others are also very much popular. Jujitsu has its origin in Japan. In fact, jiu jitsu means "gentle art" in Japanese. Jiu Jitsu involves using a combination of techniques to overcome an opponent. Martial artists practicing jujitsu use a variety of techniques like blocking, locking, striking, throwing, sweeping and grappling to defend themselves against attackers. Learning jujitsu is a difficult task and involves a lot of hard work and practice. Nevertheless, complete mastery over jiu jitsu can be achieved with diligent efforts. For more articles, visit Japanese culture today.

Wednesday, October 25, 2006

Naruto

Naruto (ナルト) romanized as NARUTO in Japan) is a manga by Masashi Kishimoto with an anime TV series adaptation. Its main character, Naruto Uzumaki, is a loud, hyperactive, adolescent ninja who constantly searches for approval and recognition, as well as to become Hokage, who is acknowledged as the leader and strongest ninja in the village. Visit Japanese culture to read more.

Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Japanese Pachinko

Pachinko parlors share the reputation of slot machine dens and casinos the world over—garish decoration, over-the-top architecture, the smell of tobacco, a low hanging haze of cigarette smoke, the constant din of the machines, and blinding levels of illumination to keep players entranced for hours in their games. Pachinko parlors are by far some of the most flamboyant and colorful buildings one can see in Japan. Visit Japanese Culture for more readings.

Saturday, September 30, 2006

Nintendo Wii

The Nintendo Wii has been in development for quite some time now. The initial name of the project was Nintendo Revolution but later on, the guys at Nintendo decided to change it's name to "Wii" (it's pronounced we). The console itself is a black (it can also come in other colors, that's a common practice by Nintendo), sleek, rectangular box with a blue, beautiful, LED illuminated slot-receiver. The exterior follows the concept 'keep it simple and effective' and it's completely different from the flashy Xbox 360. Visit Japanese Culture for more readings and to read more about this gaming console.

Sunday, September 24, 2006

Japanese Kuso

The roots of Taiwanese kuso was kuso-ge's from Japan. The word kuso-ge is a portmanteau of kuso and game, which means, quite literally, "shitty games". The introduction of such a category is to teach gamers how to appreciate and enjoy a game of poor quality - such as appreciating the games' outrageous flaws instead of getting frustrated at them. This philosophy soon spread to Taiwan, where people would share the games and their (often satirical) comments on BBSes. Games generally branded as kuso in Taiwan include Hong Kong 97 and the Death Crimson series. To read more, visit Japanese Culture

Monday, September 11, 2006

Shop Japan

Tokyo, Japan shopping offers the choicest shopping in Japan making it a paradise for shoppers. Large department stores, specialty shops, fashion boutiques, hotel arcades and shopping centers abound. Popular buys include cameras, watches, CD players, hi-fi equipment, silk goods, lacquer ware, Japanese dolls, and woodblock prints. The most exciting and memorable shopping experience I had was going shopping at stores which sell everything at 100 yen. These stores are all over Japan and are really worth going into. Visit Japanese Culture for more articles.

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Koi

Koi fish are a form of carp fish originally from Japan. They are very similar to goldfish, and some experts believe kois were an attempt by Japanese breeders to imitate goldfish. Raising koi fish was not introduced worldwide until 1914, and before that date it was solely a Japanese affair. To learn more, please visit www.chinatownconnection.com/koi-fish.htm

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Beauty in Japanese Society

When looking for Japanese Beauty , individuals will also want to consider their mannerisms and their social skills. Even those these things are not necessarily part of the beauty regimen, they are helpful in presenting the allure which is what this culture often represents around the world. Calm and serenity are things to have come through. Things like peace and silent beauty are what is regarded here. To read more, visit Japanese Culture Guide.

Monday, August 14, 2006

An Introduction to Sudoku Game

If you conduct a web search for Sudoku game you will find it has a massive following. The Internet has become a perfect haven for those logically inspired sleuths dedicated to filling in the boxes and solving puzzles. There are tons of websites dedicated to the game. There are also contests where contestants can actually win money or prizes. Contests, however, usually have to be done in person because there are computer programs available which can solve Sudoku game puzzles in a snap.

And in 2005, Sudoku took off in the United States, becoming one of the largest puzzle sensations ever. If you search through various blogs and Sudoku game information sites, you will find many people refer to this challenging game as the new Rubix Cube. If you grew up in the 80s it would be difficult to forget the six-sided and six colored square, but Sudoku is doing just that.

Visit Japanese culture to read more.

Wednesday, August 09, 2006

Japanese Feudal Period

The Feudal Periods in Japan took place from the 12th through 19th centuries, and it marked an important period in the country's history. The rule of Japan by regional families and clans, as well as by the shogun (war lords) created a different sort of culture marked by a decrease in the power of the emperor as well as indifference in the ruling class. This part of history can be sorted into periods named for the ruling shogun families or shogunates. To read more, please visit Japanese culture.

Monday, August 07, 2006

Karaoke in Japanese Society

Karaoke is Japanese for 'empty orchestra'. It describes a strange Japanese culture and tradition that has somehow made its way worldwide, where you sing the lyrics of well-known songs over a backing tape, preferably badly, and usually while very drunk. Many bars now have special karaoke nights and competitions, and some have even become full-time karaoke bars. To read more, please visit www.chinatownconnection.com/japanese-karaoke.htm .

Sunday, July 30, 2006

Future of Japanese Animation

The art forms, defined by complex story lines and saucer-eyed characters, are also being made and enjoyed by young women and enthusiasts of computer-generated graphics from both genders. A record 41,000 visitors, dressed wild costumes recently attended Anaheim's Anime Expo, the nation's largest trade show of Japanese anime and manga . Visit Japanese anime page to read more.

Friday, July 21, 2006

Japanese Beer

Japanese Beer is quickly gaining worldwide popularity. Today there are many popular brands of beer in Japan:

Kirin
Sapporo
Suntory
Aishi

Visit www.chinatownconnection.com/japanese-beer.htm for more information.

Monday, July 17, 2006

Doraemon

Doraemon came to this world on December 1st, 1969. Doraemon was created by Fujimoto Hiroshi and Motoo Akido of Japan. Unfortunately, Fujimoto passed away. There are hundreds of Japanese Manga volumes, and a few movies. Doraemon is a story about a robotic cat sent back to the past to save a kid called Nobita Nobi from poverty in the future. To read and learn more, please visit Japanese culture Guide today.

Thursday, July 13, 2006

Japanese Tea Ceremony

Japanese Tea Ceremony is a traditional ritual influenced by Zen Buddhism in which powdered green tea, or matcha, is ceremonially prepared by a skilled practitioner and served to a small group of guests in a tranquil setting. To read and learn more, visit www.chinatownconnection.com/japanese-tea-ceremony.htm.

Monday, July 03, 2006

Hello Kitty

Hello Kitty Phenomena has reached new levels since its induction. For those who are not familiar with Hello Kitty , it is one of the many fictional characters produced by the Japanese company Sanrio, and has long been the most popular one out of the company's characters.

To read more about Hello Kitty, visit Japanese culture guide.

Sunday, June 25, 2006

Japanese Ninjas

What we know about Ninja?

In the Sengoku period, they were referred to by a variety of names, but not "Ninja". "Ninja" is an Edo period term. The two characters, "Nin" and "Ja" are the same characaters as "Shinobi" and "mono". One of the original terms was "Shinobo no mono"--literally, person of stealth. Someone in the Edo period decided this was too much of a mouthful, so used the Sinified readings of the two characters and presto, you've got "N". Prior to the Edo period, the word was not used. Shinobi, or Shinobi no mono, was one term. "Kusa" was a very common term also, used to denote stealthy scouts. Visit Japanese culture articles for more readings.

Sunday, June 18, 2006

Japanese Art

I have always loved Japanese Art , but it seems to be getting more popular and hence more widely available in the past few years. There is something about the look and feel of Japanese Art that I love, so I figured it would be an excellent way to decorate a special space that I use for doing endless hours of valuable writing. I knew that I needed to be intentional about the way I decorated my office. I am very aware of my environment and so I know that I need to decorate and create my work environment with care. I write much better when I am inspired by my surroundings, and I know that Japanese Art is very inspiring. Also, please visit Japanese culture for more Japanese readings.

Monday, June 12, 2006

Geisha

What is a Japanese Geisha? Japanese Geisha are female entertainers like strippers in Western culture. Japanese Geisha performs for the nobility and concubines to the emperor.

Young girls were sold into the geisha life by their families until the mid-20th century and were often subject to the ritual of 'mizu-age,' whereby their virginity was sold to the highest bidder. Such practices were eradicated after World War II and the geisha profession went into a steady decline. Today, if Japanese Geisha are hired to entertain at a private party outside the upper echelons of society, they are most likely to be seasoned veterans, more akin to your favorite aunt or even grandmother than the girl next door.