Category Archives: travel japan

Travel Japan with me with out ever coming here. I’ll post information about Japan and you’ll be able to see Japan through eyes before you jump on a plain.

Kameido Gyoza Is Absolutely Awesome

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This weekend I went with some friends to Kameido (亀戸) Station, which is in an area of Tokyo known as Shitamachi. Shitamachi is kind of the old Edo-era Tokyo with its sumo arenas, old temples, and shady entertainment districts. Kameido is a mini-Chinatown, and it’s famous for… yup, Chinese food.

 We went to a restaurant to eat the legendary Kameido gyoza (餃子 – Chinese-style dumplings). The place was a tiny closet (what do you expect) on a twisty, centuries-old road run entirely by crazy old Chinese ladies. There was one guy in the place and it was his job to fry plate after plate of gyoza. Meanwhile, the ladies walked around glaring at people, shouting at each other, and bringing plates of hot, crispy dumplings. Continue reading →

How To Tell If You Paid The Wrong Amount At A Japanese Convenience Store

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Here is how you can find out if you’ve given the wrong amount of money to a disheveled septuagenarian convenience store clerk in Japan.

First, she spreads the coins out on the little mat so that they’re all visible.  Once this is done, she counts them very slowly six times. 

That should tip you off.  They usually only count the money three or four times.  If she counts more times than that and the counting slows down slightly each time, this means something is wrong. Continue reading →

Where Will The Next Big Japan Earthquake Strike?

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We’re still getting some shakes here and there in Japan in the wake of the March 11th Japan-EarthquakeTohoku earthquake.  It’s been predicted that they’ll continue for the next year or so.  There are lots of predictions about where the next big quake will be, and much to my chagrin, my home of Chiba prefecture is one of them.

This is a map from the Quake Prediction site, where they use thermal temperature changes, tectonic plate heat, micro earthquakes and a number of other methods to make predictions.

If you look at the Chiba peninsula, it’s marked as a risk area for a 5 to 5.5 magnitude earthquake.  Places marked for bigger earthquakes are Hokkaido, Kyushu and Fukui Prefecture.  The area around Fukui has a number of nuclear reactors and also Lake Biwa, the source of drinking water for most of Kansai region.  That’s a little scary to say the least.

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Kyushu

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Kyushu is the southernmost island of Japan, and it’s hot and muggy all year around. It has an almost tropical climate, which is great for surfers and other beach lovers. Further inland you can find lush green mountains, but the big draw of Kyushu is the beaches.

kyoshu

The region of Kyushu also includes Okinawa, which is about an hour south by plane. Okinawa is a unique place in Japan because it used to be an independent kingdom. Now, Okinawa is a mix of Japanese, American and native Okinawan people. Okinawa has great fishing and beaches, and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in Japan.

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Japan’s Energy Drinks

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You’ve seen all those little tiny bottles at the convenience stores. The advertisements usually show tired businessmen guzzling them and then heading back to work recharged. I’m talking about Japanese energy drinks. You see them everywhere!

power drink from Japan
Some people have tried them and spend the next few hours zipping around on a caffeine rampage. Others have choked them down only to get a slight sugar buzz and then feel more tired than before. They usually advertise that they have some kind of Chinese herbs that give your body natural energy, but what’s really in those energy drinks?

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