Blogs about: Japan Faqs And Saqs
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Why do the Japanese have their names outside their houses?
This one puzzled me for a while, because most Japanese didn’t strike me as the kinds of people who’d want every stranger passing in the street to know their names and where they live (espe… more →
Japan Explained FASAQ
Why do the Japanese have their names outside their houses?
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alexcase wrote 3 months ago: This one puzzled me for a while, because most Japanese didn’t strike me as the kinds of people … more →
Why are Japanese apples so huge?
alexcase wrote 6 months ago: Was about to eat a “normal” sized one for the first time in years and was wondering whet … more →
Why are people more fascinated with Japan than Korea?
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alexcase wrote 6 months ago: There is little point in talking about the fundamental appeal of the countries as they are now, but … more →
Why is a painkiller called "Eve"?
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alexcase wrote 1 year ago: In Japanese, that name has the same pronunciation as the first two syllables of “ibuprofen … more →
Why does NHK call the Korean language "hangul"?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: …ハングル being, properly, only the name of the Korean alphabet. ”There is no politically n … more →
Why do many yakiniku restaurants boast of their tripe?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: Horumon (ホルモン) being the sign that proudly displays the posibility of grilling lungs. “Yakinik … more →
Why does cucumber sushi have the special name "kappa maki"?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: A kappa is a strange and interesting Japanese monster that really likes cucumbers (“maki” just means … more →
Why are the Japanese names for North and South Korea so different?
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alexcase wrote 1 year ago: Kita Chosen (北朝鮮) is supposed to be just a geographical name, and therefore to save giving the North … more →
Why do Japanese companies branch out into so many totally unrelated areas of business? Second attempt
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: One reason is to find jobs for people moving out of shrinking parts of the business rather than maki … more →
Why do most Japanese households have a fax machine?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: “Everybody had to have a fax machine in Japan… because nobody would come to your cocktai … more →
Why does no one understand when I talk about Baskin Robbins?
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alexcase wrote 1 year ago: This is one I’d been wondering about on and off for a while, then by chance came across the an … more →
Why do Japanese teachers not have the discipline problems of teachers in Britain or America?
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alexcase wrote 1 year ago: At the worst high schools, some of the classes can actually look and sound more out of control, for … more →
Why is kissing in public still taboo?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: As two people’s reactions in an article in the Japan Times two weeks ago suggest, more than a … more →
Why does the average middle aged salaryman put up with plastic suits?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: Meaning feeling like nylon rather than actually made of plastic- although if it doesn’t say 革 … more →
Why do some Japanese parcel delivery men actually open your door?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: This one is similar to my greatest irritation in Japan, knocking on clearly locked toilet doors, in … more →
Why are black belts black?
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alexcase wrote 1 year ago: According to Robert Twigger in Angry White Pyjamas, because you washing them would dissipate the ki … more →
Why "Yawara-chan"?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: Being the nickname for the judoka Ryoko Tani (谷亮子 Tani Ryouko). According to Wikipedia (where else?) … more →
Why does nothing eat all the cicadas up?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: They look pretty big and fat and juicy to me, and pretty slow moving and loud and therefore easy to … more →
Why is "Heights" the part of the name of so many buildings that are neither high rise nor on a hill?
alexcase wrote 1 year ago: The author of Angry White Pyjamas asks this question in the book. Like the (originally German) word … more →
