Unique Japan

Paper or Plastic? I bet people are getting sick of being asked this question. I’ve been asked numerous times here in Japan. Every time I was asked, I gave it a good amount of consideration and usually end up with going with plastic. Is plastic better? I don’t know.

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The wet season is usually over by July, leaving us free to enjoy and complain about the hot, steamy weather. But – perhaps due to climate change – weather patterns in Japan, and for that matter all over the world, are out of whack, and lately it’s been raining on and off and on again despite the calendar. Every morning we flip on the TV to see how wet the day is going to be. Almost every day the weather lady has been instructing us to “Remember the umbrella!”

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There are many unique customs that are etched into Japanese culture, and one is the giving of summer gifts called Ochu-gen. If you go to any department store or grocery store around this time, you’ll see numerous displays of boxed gifts for Ochu-gen.

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One of the many favorite pastimes for Japanese guys is drinking. Even with a long rich culture of Sake and Shochu, the most consumed alcoholic beverage in Japan is, you guessed it, beer. Many businessmen work hard so that they can enjoy a nice cold beer at the end of the day. So what are some popular Japanese beers?

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Usher in spring with a beautiful woodblock print by Hirokazu Fukuda (1944-2004), and save up to 35% until April 6th.

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Back on December 23rd 2008, McDonald’s Japan released a brand new burger called the Quarter Pounder. This was McDonald’s first attempt to create a true burger. It had two and a half times more meat than its other more petite McBurgers. By the time they started selling the Quarter Pounders at 10 o’clock in the morning, thousands of people were lined up outside, eager to be knocked out by the extra juicy heavyweight. On that day McDonald’s recorded its highest single day sales in its history. So what was McDonald’s victory secret?

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A well-known Japanese saying, “Hana yori Dango”, means pudding rather than praise. A direct translation is more along the lines of dumpling rather than blossom. It’s a perfect phrase for me since now is the time of year people spend long happy hours under the Sakura (Cherry) trees for Ohanami (Flower viewing), and I, for one, am heading off to the sweets store to check out some of the Sakura sweets.

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– How Japanese aesthetics changed over time

Here in Japan, we are about to celebrate Hina-Matsuri (Japanese doll festival or girl’s day) on March 3rd. Families with daughters usually display Ohina-sama at their home to wish for their young girls to grow up healthy.

Since we are celebrating my daughter’s first Hina-Matsuri this year, we decided to check out what kind of Ohina-sama are out on the market.

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We are proud to announce the launch of the ‘We Love Daruma’ brand and complementary website www.welovedaruma.com.

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