Since I arrived in Japan, I tried to think of things that I could do to make myself busy and forget about my homesickness. At first, I requested my husband to order an instructional book for making beads accessories. When the book, DeAgustini, was delivered I realized the instructions were written in Japanese so what I did was to follow the photo instructions instead. I have made beads from simple to a little bit complicated designs. Sometimes, I study Nihongo lessons from Minna No Nihongo book and attend Nihongo class twice a week. I browse the internet once a day to look for a job postings and news from my country. I also use the internet to keep in touch with my family, relatives, friends and co-workers in the Philippines through Yahoo e-mail, Yahoo messeng... Read More

My boss's favorite soba shop has gone smoke-free during lunch hour, a sign of the times if ever I've heard one. Although women are generally thought to be the preservers of traditional culture in most societies, it's men in Japan who seem to be intent on keeping food culture intact. While office ladies may while away their lunch hours eating pasta or organic salads, the salarymen are down the dark alleys munching on tonkatsu or slurping their soba. I've even heard soba referred to as food for "oyaji"- or old men. And the atmosphere of the soba shops usually reflects this- they are usually smoky dens of middle aged men with their ties folded up and tucked into their shirt pockets. The very idea that the venerated haven of havens should go kinen is a complete, albeit welcome, shock.<... Read More

The Zen of Tokyo rush hour is all about your state of mind. When you think of Tokyo rush hour you may picture hoards of sweaty commuters being shoved into already full train cars. This image is unexaggeratedly accurate. However, you may also imagine that is a chaotic, nearly unbearable experience, and that couldn’t be further from the truth.

The morning commute is actually a well-organized, systematic rhythm; where the packed trains that snake around Tokyo take in and give out passengers at every station, like breathing. Akihabara, Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, Shinagawa, Tokyo. Breathe in, breathe out. The flow of passengers is like the tide on the beach. The doors open, people rush out, the music plays, and more people rush in.

Often when tourists come to To... Read More

It is customary to attend some afterwork parties. Japanese people love to hold parties for every conceivable occasion. Drinking is the focus of most parties. Most of the Japanese I know would eat little but drink more during parties. This drinking spree is fondly called as “nominication”. This term is a combination of “nomi” which means drinking or drinks and “communication”. This means socializing or establishing better communication through drinking parties. I jokingly mentioned the term “nominication” to my boss when he was about to leave to attend a party. He was quite impressed of my knowledge about the term.

I received a tip from my fellow gaijin employee about what to observe during company dining parties. The rule: do not fill your own... Read More