Category Archives: Tradition

On Doing Mass Radio Calisthenics in Japan

Posted on May 15, 2013 by E.

Everyone in Japan knows how to do Radio Taiso.

Posted in Tradition, Uncategorized | Tagged , | 5 Comments

On Eating Foreign Sushi in Japan

Posted on March 20, 2013 by E.

I turned on the TV in a Thai hostel last year, and compared international news broadcasts. Fox and MSNBC were covering the shootings in Colorado; Al Jazeera was reporting on what nations could buy with the tax revenue they lost … Continue reading →

Posted in Food, Tradition | Tagged , , , | 9 Comments

On Smoking Cigarettes in Japan

Posted on February 27, 2013 by E.

Rene Magritte’s “Treachery of Images” shows us a picture of a pipe, then denies that a picture of a pipe is a pipe at all. Of course, we get it now: It’s a picture of a pipe. In Japan, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Tradition, Weird | Tagged , , , | 27 Comments

On Turning on the Japanese Air Conditioner

Posted on July 18, 2012 by E.

There’s nothing simple about turning on an air conditioner in Japan.

Posted in Shinto, Thinking, Tradition | Tagged , , , , | 11 Comments

On Forgetting Your Umbrella in Japan

Posted on July 4, 2012 by E.

When the weather changes, so does your life.

Posted in Culture Shock, Shinto, Tradition | Tagged , , | 9 Comments

On Letting Go of a Tree Branch in Japan

Posted on April 4, 2012 by E.

There’s about 4,000 kids outside my apartment screaming about cherry blossoms. 

Posted in Culture Shock, Homesickness, Thinking, Tradition, Zen | Tagged , , , , , | 6 Comments