In the series, Japanese brand highlights, I select one Japanese brand that's a league of its own. In the past, I featured U-plan, a hand crafted wooden toys, and Traveler's Factory. This time, I'm sharing an apparel brand that I found out through my Australian friend, Momotaro Jeans. What is Momotaro Jeans? Momotaro Jeans originates … Continue reading Japanese brand highlights: Momotaro Jeans
Tokyo boasts one of the most michelin restaurants in the world but high-end restaurants aren't just what Tokyo is famous for. 6 of top 50 best pizzas in Asia-Pacific are right in Tokyo. That's pretty special when the list includes many Australian restaurants that will have direct roots back to Italy! If you include all … Continue reading 6 of top 50 best pizzas in Asia-Pacific are right here in Tokyo
Spring, New Beginnings, and Early Resignations in Japan As cherry blossoms bloom across Tokyo, it's clear that spring has arrived, bringing with it fresh starts and new beginnings. In Japan, April 1 marks the start of the fiscal year for many companies and schools. Under the pink blossoms, countless new 社会人 (shakaijin or working adults) … Continue reading Spring time is new graduates and resignation season?
At the start of the week, cherry blossoms started to bloom with lots of buds still on the trees. Towards mid-week, there were cherry blossoms bit by bit around Tokyo: I thought cherry blossoms are blossoming earlier due to global warming but apparently cherry blossoms are blooming later than usual..or something not at all. I … Continue reading Japanese icons that may become a mere symbol
As Japanese culture is highly linked to seasons, spring equinox (春分の日）which was Thurs March 20 was a public holiday. I've mentioned in previous blog posts that Japanese sweets called 和菓子 (wagashi) is quite seasonal like sakuramochi, refreshing citrus jelly in summer, and chestnut and persimmon filled/inspired sweets in autumn. Not just seasonal, there are sweets … Continue reading Spring equinox – spring Japanese sweets
Last Friday, I wanted to do something a bit different to the usual dining out or watch movie on our home projector. I wanted to be more active and hitting up the batting center crossed my mind like when I did back in Shinjuku, https://nativeexpat.home.blog/2019/04/20/discoveries-made-by-living-in-japan-for-2-months/ but decided to go retro and hit up 'ge-sen' or … Continue reading Game on! Japanese Game Arcade
Last weekend was warm and sunny all around with plum blossoming, early cherry blossoms blooming. It was a perfect time to go for drive to visit a museum. You'd think that visiting a museum is a rainy day activity but I specifically wanted to visit Ichihara Lakeside Museum on a sunny day as it's located … Continue reading Art in Japan – Ichihara Lakeside Museum in Chiba
We hopped across on a 4hours or so flight to visit Hong Kong from Tokyo for the weekend. Compared to Tokyo, Hong Kong is hilly with a western influence. The waterfront city reminds me of Sydney, Australia where I lived for 10 years. Walking around Kowloon and Hong Kong island for a weekend, it was … Continue reading From Tokyo to Hong Kong: The Japanese Cultural Footprint Across Borders
This year has been a record breaking karaoke🎤 visitation for me. Japan welcomed a record breaking 36.8+ million international visitors in 2024 and 2025 doesn't seem to show any sign of slowing down. Personally, we have been hosting friends from overseas with the "Japanese experience" usually dining out at yakiniku or yakitori restaurant which inevitably … Continue reading 5 Surprising Uses for Karaoke in Japan
Last Tuesday, Feb 11 was National Foundation Day - 建国記念の日 (Kenkoku kinen no hi) and a public holiday in Japan so we ventured out to 志賀高原 (Shiga Kogen) for some skiing. More about the public holiday in my previous blog: https://nativeexpat.home.blog/2020/02/15/3-days-skiing-in-tsugaike-hakuba-japan/ About Shiga Kogen Shiga Kogen is located in Nagano prefecture and is Japan’s largest … Continue reading Skiing in one of Japan’s largest ski area: Shiga Kogen
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