Must Read Japanese Books in English (Part 2: Lighter Reading)

There was lot of interest in the previous post on classic Japanese literature - it seems people are seeking good summer reading …

Must-Read Japanese Books in English (Part 1: The Classics)

Back in June, celebrating 50 posts, I mentioned ideas for new things on the blog one of which was reading recommendations. In the…

Unagi and Konnyaku Sentences in Japanese

ウナギ文　コンニャク文 An unagi-don, or box of eel on rice The Japanese are a nation of foodies, take what they eat very seriously indeed, a…

Glory Flower: Smell vs Aroma in Japanese

The buds of the Glory Flower with one flower ahead of the pack Here's a striking shrub that took me a while to find the name …

Catchy Japanese Words for Summer

夏　擬態語 The full heat of summer  ( natsu 夏) has just come to Japan, and, being the weather, it's often the first thing Japanes…

Entry Prohibited! Remembering Kanji through Everyday Signs

Tachi-iri kinshi (no entry) Returning from a trip to the UK, I will never forget the moment I reached my one-room apartment in J…

Soutou - "quite" or "rather" in Japanese

相当 soutou (with both o's lengthened: soh-toh ) is a word you regularly hear in Japanese conversation that is usually used mu…

Tokimeku - heart aflutter

ときめく I was talking to a colleague today about tidying up, and she said that her secret to keeping things tidy at home was to keep…

Onigiri: Enviromentally Friendly Rice-balls

Different flavours of onigiri lined up in a 7-Eleven The word for rice-ball - onigiri (お握り) from the verb nigiru meaning to sque…

The "Japanese is difficult" myth

A selection of Japanese language textbooks There is a common perception, both inside and outside Japan, that the Japanese languag…

Japanese Language: Saying sorry over and over

Remember your first impression of the Japanese, packed in tourist buses and racing through Europe in a cloud of 'Sorry, sorry…

Japanese Language Of Words and Women

Much has been written in praise of the Kyoto woman: her beauty, her grace, her charming and distinctive speech. Indeed, throughou…

Rain, Snails, and Japanese Animal Names

On Wednesday, the rainy season was officially announced to have begun in Tokyo. The start of the rainy season is known as tsuyu…

Bites, Stings, and Fearsome Bees

A (hopefully dead) suzume-bachi or giant Asian hornet The weather has turned much warmer these past few days - Sunday hit a high…

Dandelions, Tampopo, and Noodles

Kantō-Tampopo found in Japan in the spring I was recently asked by a Japanese if we had dandelions in the UK and certainly we do.…

Counting, Numbers, and "Peace"

Numbers are very easy to learn in Japanese since 1-10 is pretty much all you need to know: 11, for example, is simply 10+1( jū-ic…

Crayon Shin-Chan: The Bad Boy of Japanese Manga

A Tokyo subway train celebrating 25 years of Crayon Shin-Chan Japan is world famous for its cartoons ( manga ) and animated carto…

Wisteria on the Vine

Fuji (wisteria) flowering on the vine At this time of the year, with the temperatures climbing and the sun coming out, one of the…

What colour is it? Green and blue in Japan

Kerria Japonica ( yamabuki ) or Japanese yellow rose One of the fun things about learning a foreign language is that you realise …