http://www.seekjapan.jp/on-japan I am a language teacher working at a private Junior High/High School and College in Western Japan. Since I earned my undergraduate degree in 1997, I have spent nearly half of my time living, working and studying in foreign countries, in Asia and Europe. Since 1995 I have visited Japan nearly every year and spent two years living here from 1998 - 2000. I am now working again in Japan for an unspecified length of time. GMT en-us http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1672/梅雨　Japan's+Fifth+Season+-+The+Rainy+Season http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1672/梅雨　Japan's+Fifth+Season+-+The+Rainy+Season Wed,4 Jun 2008 GMT I’ve been dreading this for nearly a month now.  Ever since the weather started to get nicer and the days a bit longer at the beginning of May, there was this sense that something unpleasant was lurking just around the corner.  With two consecutive days of steady rain last week, I realized that the unpleasantness was nearly upon us.  Within the next week or so, we will be right in the middle of the rainy season.  Rainy season is particularly severe ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1654/Cleaning+Day+in+Our+Neighborhood http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1654/Cleaning+Day+in+Our+Neighborhood Mon,2 Jun 2008 GMT I can’t believe this!  A lawn mower would finish this job in five minutes, yet here we are, five of us, hunched over with little knives, cutting grass by hand on a beautiful Sunday morning.  Yesterday was outdoor cleaning day at our mansion.  What I saw as a five-minute job lasted nearly an hour and a half.  When I discovered that we would be cutting the grassy areas around our condo building by hand, I was a little annoyed.  It was a nice, ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1648/Asashoryu+and+Hakuho+Vent+Their+Frustrations+on+One+Another+ http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1648/Asashoryu+and+Hakuho+Vent+Their+Frustrations+on+One+Another+ Mon,26 May 2008 GMT “How about Asashoryu?” I asked a Japanese friend of mine.  She gasped, “Oh no! He’s bad boy! I don’t like him!”  If Asashoryu is trying to promote a “bad boy” image, he did a great deal for it in yesterdays final match of the 2008 Summer Sumo Tournament.  Even though the tournament’s winner, Kotoshu, had been decided during the previous day’s bouts, Asashoryu and Hakuho ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1644/Verandas:+A+place+for+laundry?+Or+something+much+more? http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1644/Verandas:+A+place+for+laundry?+Or+something+much+more? Sun,25 May 2008 GMT I was thrilled when I read through the description of my new apartment in Japan: Bathroom, kitchen and dining area, living room, tatami room and a small balcony.  The balcony is what made me excited more than anything else.  I had grown up in a house with a large front, and back porch, where I spent many hours relaxing on porch swings, playing games, talking with friends, enjoying lemonade or iced tea.  I was just finishing up college, where I had spent two years in ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1643/Kotoshu,+the+first+European+Sumo+Champion http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1643/Kotoshu,+the+first+European+Sumo+Champion Sat,24 May 2008 GMT “Bulgarian ozeki Kotooshu is kadoban once more, meaning that he finished with a losing record last time and anything shy of an 8-7 record this time will see him demoted to sekiwake. Given his lackluster performances over the past few months, there's little doubt that he'll be moving downward.” – Mark Buckton, the Japan Times, May 8, 2008. Sports writers are even less accurate than the weatherman, it seems.  Today Bulgarian Sumo wrestler, Kotoshu, blew Mr ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1598/Over-work+=+No+Time+for+Sex+=+Declining+Birthrate http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1598/Over-work+=+No+Time+for+Sex+=+Declining+Birthrate Thu,24 Apr 2008 GMT “Have you gotten used to working on Saturdays yet?” a co-worker asked me recently.  “No!” I answered emphatically, “and I don’t plan on ever getting used to it.”  Japan has a great deal of admirable culture.  There are many ways of thinking and doing things that I wish Americans would become aware of.  But the Japanese dedication to “the company” is a misplaced priority, ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1595/Rustic+Log+Cabin,+Beautiful+Mountains,+and+a+lot+of+Blankets http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1595/Rustic+Log+Cabin,+Beautiful+Mountains,+and+a+lot+of+Blankets Fri,18 Apr 2008 GMT As I mentioned in my previous article, it nearly cost us our lives to get to the Iwami Furusato Taiken Mura in Yasaka, Shimane prefecture.  We did get their eventually, and it didn’t take us long to feel like it was worth all the efforts.  My mother found this place on the Internet from a section of a site profiling things to do and places to stay in the Iwami area of Shimane.  It looked appealing for us, a family of 6, including two small ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1592/US+Family+(nearly)+Dies+in+Japanese+Mountains http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1592/US+Family+(nearly)+Dies+in+Japanese+Mountains Tue,15 Apr 2008 GMT “We better get out of here before it gets dark.”  You hear this line in movies all the time, but how many people have actually said it with a genuine fear that if you don’t really get out of wherever you are before dark, something bad is likely to happen?  These were my sentiments, as well as those of my traveling companions as we attempted to locate our lodging for our road trip to Shimane last month (a different trip, than my adventures in Gifu ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1582/UNESCO+World+Heritage+Sites:+Gokayama+and+Shirakawago http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1582/UNESCO+World+Heritage+Sites:+Gokayama+and+Shirakawago Tue,8 Apr 2008 GMT On Sunday I left behind the cherry blossoms and embarked on another road trip.  It wasn’t a ten hour, two day trip across half of Japan this time.  Today we took a day trip, heading into the mountains in the heart of Japan.  Our goal? The UNESCO World Heritage sites of Gokayama, in Toyama prefecture, and Shirakawago, in Gifu prefecture.  These two villages are built along rivers that snake their way through the valleys of Japan’s central ... http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1556/Spring+Break+in+Japan:+A+Japanese+Road+Trip http://www.seekjapan.jp/article/1556/Spring+Break+in+Japan:+A+Japanese+Road+Trip Wed,2 Apr 2008 GMT “Are you crazy?!  You want to do what?!”  I received this reaction from several Japanese friends when I informed them of my plans for spring break.  We planned to drive from Hokuriku, in central Japan, all the way to Shimane Prefecture, which is only one prefecture away from the last one on the main island of Honshu, Yamaguchi.  After consulting with an acquaintance from Shimane, I estimated the trip would take about 10 hours of ...