http://www.seekjapan.jp Word from the streets of Japan Mon, 9th Jun 2008 03:03:08 en-us http://seekjapan.jp/article/1676/Naked+Gaijin+Onsen+Review:+Gero+Onsen http://seekjapan.jp/article/1676/Naked+Gaijin+Onsen+Review:+Gero+Onsen Fri, 6th Jun 2008 22:36:24 Gero; Takayama Line; Chubu Region No one has a good word to say about Gero. It is accused of being tacky, too touristy and of having far too much con... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1675/Japanese+Journalist's+article+on+Karoshi+wins+global+media+prize http://seekjapan.jp/article/1675/Japanese+Journalist's+article+on+Karoshi+wins+global+media+prize Wed, 4th Jun 2008 13:05:10 The International Labour Organisation (ILO) Asia and Pacific office advises that Japanese Journalist Misako Hida has won the ILO's international&nbs... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1674/Moving's+A+Real+Bitch http://seekjapan.jp/article/1674/Moving's+A+Real+Bitch Wed, 4th Jun 2008 11:43:07 Moving to a new apartment is always a complicated affair. Aside from trying to find a place that's gaijin friendly, there's also the real estate paper... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1673/The+Grammar+Wall+Of+Shame http://seekjapan.jp/article/1673/The+Grammar+Wall+Of+Shame Wed, 4th Jun 2008 10:11:03 It's interesting how teaching in Japan, you start to adopt the same incorrect grammar that you as a teacher are trying to dissuade your students from ... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1672/梅雨　Japan's+Fifth+Season+-+The+Rainy+Season http://seekjapan.jp/article/1672/梅雨　Japan's+Fifth+Season+-+The+Rainy+Season Wed, 4th Jun 2008 07:27:30 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 ... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1668/Japanese+pronunciation+pt.+III:++initial+consonants http://seekjapan.jp/article/1668/Japanese+pronunciation+pt.+III:++initial+consonants Mon, 2nd Jun 2008 16:29:46 Today, I'm going to look at Japanese initial consonants. There are a lot more of these than there are vowels, but the good news is that English speake... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1667/Takashi`s+Dairy++-++week+23 http://seekjapan.jp/article/1667/Takashi`s+Dairy++-++week+23 Mon, 2nd Jun 2008 13:59:04 Hello!  I`m Takashi, a salaryman.  Each week I regurgitate the same tired old jokes... I mean, I write my diary.  Here`s what happened ... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1654/Cleaning+Day+in+Our+Neighborhood http://seekjapan.jp/article/1654/Cleaning+Day+in+Our+Neighborhood Mon, 2nd Jun 2008 07:55:09 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, cu... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1653/Nagoya+Hikes:+Sekigahara+ http://seekjapan.jp/article/1653/Nagoya+Hikes:+Sekigahara+ Sun, 1st Jun 2008 22:34:25 The sight of a bloodthirsty battle and the beginning of the Tokugawa period is now a peaceful agricultural town. The Battle of Sekigahara is one of t... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1652/Nagoya+Hikes:+Kamado+waterfall+hike http://seekjapan.jp/article/1652/Nagoya+Hikes:+Kamado+waterfall+hike Sun, 1st Jun 2008 21:28:03 Waterfalls, rice fields and an Edo period stone path through the mountains It seems that the life of a foreigner in Japan falls into two basic catego... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1651/Mystery+of+the+Fava+Bean http://seekjapan.jp/article/1651/Mystery+of+the+Fava+Bean Fri, 30th May 2008 12:01:52 “A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice chianti,” Anthony Hopkins (Hannibal).  That qu... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1650/Hito+Me+Bore+! http://seekjapan.jp/article/1650/Hito+Me+Bore+! Thu, 29th May 2008 04:02:13 Love at first taste would be the proper axiom for this rice, but the farmers in Miyagi who grow it chose to name it “Hito Me Bore” love at... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1649/Browsing+is+OK+at+Conveni? http://seekjapan.jp/article/1649/Browsing+is+OK+at+Conveni? Tue, 27th May 2008 14:53:51 I was in a convenience store to copy a few pages of a book. I found the photocopy machine, set in the back, was surrounded by a couple of people. They... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1648/Asashoryu+and+Hakuho+Vent+Their+Frustrations+on+One+Another+ http://seekjapan.jp/article/1648/Asashoryu+and+Hakuho+Vent+Their+Frustrations+on+One+Another+ Mon, 26th May 2008 17:07:47 “How about Asashoryu?” I asked a Japanese friend of mine.  She gasped, “Oh no! He’s bad boy! I don’t like him!&rdqu... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1647/Japanese+Pronunciation+pt.+II:++deceptively+simple+vowels http://seekjapan.jp/article/1647/Japanese+Pronunciation+pt.+II:++deceptively+simple+vowels Mon, 26th May 2008 14:12:25 Today, I'll focus on vowel sounds—I'll deal with other aspects of Japanese pronunciation in another installment. I should note that I'm using s... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1646/Japanese+Pronunciation+pt.+I:++introduction http://seekjapan.jp/article/1646/Japanese+Pronunciation+pt.+I:++introduction Mon, 26th May 2008 13:12:03 One of the biggest surprises I got when I first started studying Japanese was that my teachers spent very little time teaching pronunciation.  Be... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1644/Verandas:+A+place+for+laundry?+Or+something+much+more? http://seekjapan.jp/article/1644/Verandas:+A+place+for+laundry?+Or+something+much+more? Sun, 25th May 2008 07:12:59 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 sma... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1643/Kotoshu,+the+first+European+Sumo+Champion http://seekjapan.jp/article/1643/Kotoshu,+the+first+European+Sumo+Champion Sat, 24th May 2008 21:24:36 “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 t... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1642/Hiroshima+bombing http://seekjapan.jp/article/1642/Hiroshima+bombing Sat, 24th May 2008 01:39:46 Well this is a hard subject to write about I have been to Hiroshima peace park only one time in my life about 11 years ago. So here is my experience. ... http://seekjapan.jp/article/1641/Takashi`s+Diary+-+week+22 http://seekjapan.jp/article/1641/Takashi`s+Diary+-+week+22 Thu, 22nd May 2008 12:02:38 Hello!  I`m Takashi, salaryman of the future.  Really:  the week before last I fell through a wormhole in the space-time continuum duri...