Foreigner Radio Taisou Fun
Posted by harvey in Society, Working on 12. Mar, 2010 | 1 Comment
A friend of mine had the pretty rare experience of working in a company that still does the Radio Exercises (ラジオ体操) before starting work each morning.
The video says it all.
Japan is a quirky place.
I once worked in a company which still had the ラジオ体操 music play over the loud speakers each morning and after lunch, [...]
Japanese Learner Interview with @sandkatt-part 2 of 2
Posted by harvey in Books, Language, Travel, Working on 08. Dec, 2009 | 4 Comments
Hey everyone! This is Part 2 of our interview with @sandkatt. Be sure to check out Part 1 if you missed it!
Following you on Twitter it’s obvious that you have a firm grip on Japanese. You read casual Japanese Twitter speak, and can reply in Japanese quickly as well. Your grammar is also very clean [...]
Japanese Learner Interview with @sandkatt-part 1 of 2
Posted by harvey in Books, Language, Travel, Working on 06. Dec, 2009 | 8 Comments
Hey everyone, let’s get to know the JapanNewbie crowd a little better. I want to introduce you to @sandkatt. The following is part one of a two-part interview exploring @sandkatt’s road to Japanese proficiency.
@sandkatt in Hiroshima
Sandkatt is a Japanese learner I noticed on Twitter. I noticed her because her Japanese is really good! Surprisingly so… [...]
The Year of No Money in Tokyo
Posted by harvey in Books, Tokyo, Working on 11. May, 2009 | 3 Comments
Wayne Lionel Aponte, the author of the recently published The Year of No Money in Tokyo, sent me a copy of his book to read and review. This was my first casual summer vacation read, and it was an interesting ride. This book did not strike me as a masterpiece, but Wayne’s experience and personal [...]
Overwork – karoushi
Posted by harvey in Media, Society, Working on 11. Jun, 2008 | 4 Comments
I rarely post news articles, but the text for the photo in a recent IHT article entitled, “Japanese salarymen fight back” is just too intense.
And I quote.
Hiroko Uchino in her home in Aichi, Japan, with a photo of her husband, Kenichi, who died of overwork at the age of 30.
That is just too sad. As [...]
Homestay in Japan with Volunteers for Peace
Posted by harvey in Travel, Working on 11. Mar, 2008 | 3 Comments
I got a question via the Talk2Me form from a reader who plans to go to Japan with Volunteers for Peace next year.
I had never heard of Volunteers for Peace, and wouldn’t even have expected Japan to be an option for a program like that, so thanks for the info! Has anyone reading ever met [...]
Home stay in Japan with WWOOF
Posted by harvey in Travel, Working on 14. Jan, 2008 | 8 Comments
Someone asked me recently about possible ways to arrange for a home stay in Japan.
Other than the usual study abroad program via a university, or the YFU program (this is how I first came to Japan when I was in high school), the first thing that came to mind was WWOOF Japan (Willing Workers On [...]
Teaching in Japan for Mid-Career Folks
Posted by harvey in Working on 30. Sep, 2007 | 1 Comment
I got a question from a reader wondering how one could go about moving to Japan to teach English when already beyond the age limits for JET. Here’s my attempt at an answer.
I have never officially done the English teaching gig, so I don’t have a lot of first hand information, all of the information [...]
