Osaka Motor Show 2012

Osaka Motor Show 2012

Posted by in Crazy Consumers, Osaka on 25. Jan, 2012 | No Comments

I went to the Osaka Motor Show! (I was in Japan last week, back in Shanghai already though.) This was my first motor show, but it was basically what I expected. A geeks paradise. Cars, girls, lots of guys with cameras, and an excuse to point your camera at anything and take 100,000 photos in [...]

Royal Milk Maid Cafe in Akihabara

Royal Milk Maid Cafe in Akihabara

Posted by in Osaka, Tokyo on 15. Jan, 2012 | 2 Comments

I have a friend who is about to head to Japan for the first time, and he wants the Maid Cafe experience. I have been to maid cafe’s before, but not anytime in the past 5+ years or so… so I’m way out of the loop. This youtube introduction of Royal Milk is pretty good, [...]

Okonomiyaki in Shanghai at Takenosuke

Okonomiyaki in Shanghai at Takenosuke

Posted by in Food, Shanghai on 18. Dec, 2011 | 4 Comments

I’m still living in Shanghai – and I’m still enjoying Japanese food whenever I can! Today I checked out an Okonomiyaki place with my wife and her friend… and her friend’s 5-year old who happened to sleep on the floor throughout the entire meal… the slacker. Okonomiyaki at Takenosuke in Shanghai The name of the [...]

Road Trip: Osaka to Hida Takayama and between

Road Trip: Osaka to Hida Takayama and between

Posted by in Food, Travel on 20. Nov, 2011 | 2 Comments

Osaka family road trip! We are living in Shanghai now, which makes a quick trip to Japan every now and then surprisingly quick and affordable. I took a few days off of work a few weeks ago to take a 5 day trip back to Osaka to catch up with the in-laws and meet some [...]

Japanese Food in Shanghai: Kogumaya

Japanese Food in Shanghai: Kogumaya

Posted by in Food, Shanghai on 17. Sep, 2011 | Comments Off

In my never ending quest to eat as much Japanese food as possible, my wife and I went to Kogumaya in Shanghai on a Wednesday night for dinner. There were only two of us so we got seats at the counter. On the way to the counter we passed by lots of small rooms filled [...]

The Search for Ramen in Shanghai

The Search for Ramen in Shanghai

Posted by in Food, Travel on 19. Jul, 2011 | 2 Comments

If you like Japanese ramen, then you’ll appreciate how difficult it is to find good Japanese ramen outside of Japan. Well, now I’m in Shanghai, and there are 50,000 Japanese living here long term. There are more than 100,000 if you include those Japanese that are frequently in and out on short business trips. So, [...]

The tourist’s guide to avoiding tourist attractions in Japan

Posted by in Travel on 29. Nov, 2010 | Comments Off

With its unique blend of both extreme modernity and rich historical traditions, thousands of people every year continue to book their airline tickets and holidays to Japan. While there are certain touristy sites and attractions that are a must on all itineraries, consider getting off the well-trodden tourist track. Here’s a guide to some of [...]

Interview with @jyemenai

Interview with @jyemenai

Posted by in Books, Language, Tokyo, Travel on 23. Oct, 2010 | 2 Comments

@jyemenai and his Pepsi bottle Hello JapanNewbies! We’ve got another interview for you. This time, with @jyemenai, who has recently returned from his first trip to Japan, which also happens to be his first trip overseas! Let’s get right into it. Could you tell us briefly what the KCP program is all about, and why [...]

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