Culture & Manners

Walk through a Tokyo neighborhood and you might see a dog riding in a stroller. A toy poodle in a […]

Ask a young child in Japan to name their favorite character, and the answer is likely not Pikachu. It is

Netflix, YouTube, social media — Japanese anime is being watched on every platform, in every country. Demon Slayer, Attack on

The word “kawaii” is now used around the world. Fashion, characters, food, interior design — Japan’s kawaii has grown beyond

Every foreigner who studies Japanese eventually encounters the same wall: keigo. Polite language, honorific language, humble language — the same

One of the first things foreigners notice when living in Japan is how frequently people apologize. A train arrives one

When eating in Japan, the most fundamental tool at the table is the chopstick. But chopsticks in Japan are more

One of the things that surprises foreign visitors to Japan most consistently is the quality of the public toilets. Station

Foreigners living in Japan sometimes experience a moment of genuine puzzlement. Nobody said anything. No announcement was made. No instruction

A foreign visitor finishes their meal at a Japanese restaurant and leaves some cash on the table as a tip.