Remembrance Sunday - something Japan needs?

Remembrance Day, or Veteran's Day, is something recognised in many countries around the world on or around 11 November each year. A reflection for those who lost their lives in conflict wherever and whenever it occurred. It's an important moment as the world falls silent for a brief moment and everyone looks to themselves for what they owe. I was once at Heathrow Airport as the silence fell. We stood and even those who didn't understand could see this was important to those who did. 

Japan sometimes struggles with its past. There is a lack of knowledge, teaching and recognition of the events of the last century. The Yasakuni Shrine leads to nothing but conflict as within Japan the overwhelming perception is that it honours the dead of war but outside Japan it is the honouring of the founders of the conflict. No one believes it wrong to remember those who died for their country but it is important to recognise the difference with those who started the conflict in the first place.

Today is Remembrance Sunday in England and many other countries. There will be a ceremony at the Cenotaph in central London at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. And people will stop and think about what happened. And sometimes I wish my friends in Japan would have the same opportunity and finally let the past go.

900,000 poppies at the Tower of London. Remembering.

Which Murakami? A Brace of Authors in Japan

Japan has many outstanding authors, some of them even beginning to end stories without the traditional and obligatory tragic ending exemplified in the works of Yukio Mishima. Mishima's books not only individually always ended badly, each of his books in the four piece cycle the "Sea of Fertility" ended on an extreme down (forcing you to question why you picked up the next each time) but the entire tetralogy fades to death and nihilism. Added to this, the day he finished the final work, he led a failed coup, ultimately committing ritual suicide. It has to be said, that is somewhat redefining the meaning of "a tragic ending".

Mishima apart, there are two authors who somewhat break the mould and they're both called Murakami. Haruki and Ryu are each prolific writers exploring life and love through a series of surreal, and often violent, story lines. Haruki is probably the better known internationally,  his work having been more widely translated but so have a number of the books Ryu Murakami, the most widely recognised probably being Coin Locker Babies and the extremely dark In The Miso Soup. 

If you read Haruki Murakami's 2011 (English publication date) work, IQ84, and wondered at the title, it's actually a clever play on the Japanese for the number nine which is pronounced "kyu". IQ84 being the identifier of an alternative universe to this where the date is 1984. In fact many of the works of Haruki play on English phrases, my favourite being A Wild Sheep Chase and I defy anyone to completely understand his book The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle. 

The one thing the two brilliant authors do have in common though is simple. Whatever you do for Christmas, do not even think of giving copies of either of them to your Great Aunt Nellie. Unless you want her to pop her clogs…

Competition time - A new name for my blog

My first "blog birthday" is just around the corner and I hope everyone has enjoyed reading at least some of the posts. During that year I've used the name "TheBeginnersGuidetoJapan" but have always thought of shortening it. Something short and catchy if you see what I mean but related to the theme of explaining some of the more curious issues experienced here. If anyone has any thoughts I'd love to hear them. I'll send the winner a discount code for my books (though that might just be a disincentive to some….)

All suggestions please post below. Very grateful for your time and thoughts!

The perils of katakana - A Homer Simpson moment

Katakana is one of the four basic alphabets in use in Japan, the others being Hiragana, Kanji and the Roman alphabet. The useful aspect for foreigners though is that Katakana is used predominantly for western words and where as you may know how to pronounce something in Hiragana or Kanji you may not necessarily know what it means.

For example, if you can read the word "ice cream" in Katakana, you know what you're ordering but even if you can read "bonenkai" in Hiragana, you may well still be at a loss to know you've just been invited to a Christmas party. And this can lead to problems.

Back in the day I worked at adidas in Japan (and yes, it is spelt with a lower case "a" though whoever thought of this had clearly never used a auto-spell checker or would have given it up as a lost cause). We were sourcing product from various countries across Asia when we received a message from a factory in Thailand. They had shipped 400,000 T-shirts with a slight typo in the Japanese tags. Instead of correctly printing: 

アディダス ジャパン

which is how to spell "adidas Japan", they had misprinted it forgetting the modifiers and mistaking the "n". The result was we had 400,000 T-shirts on their way with this:

アティタスジャパソ

printed on them. If you read it out loud it's actually "atitas Japaso"! "But don't worry" they went on to say, "only a native speaker will realise"….

Winter's coming - it's onsen time

After the heat of summer comes typhoon season to clear the air in Japan and then the temperature falls as winter draws in. Early November is still comfortable in Tokyo and walking outside in a shirt is possible, but not for long. Soon it will be freezing, the snows already falling in the north of the country. But with winter also comes onsen season.

An onsen is a natural hot springs, often in the mountains, designed for a relaxing evening, soaking in the  reputedly therapeutic waters. Resort towns have grown up around the springs and people will travel for a weekend away for nothing else than to eat, drink and have a bath. In summer the temperatures are too warm and the springs are often empty but as the weather cools they become part of a national pastime.

These days they are mostly separated but family pools are still popular allowing everyone to enjoy their time together. But the best are the outdoor baths, the rotenburo, especially in the snow. Sitting neck deep in how water with snowflakes coming down, towel neatly folded on your head, what could be better than that.

Lunch box art - simply awesome!

Japan is famous for it's exquisite gastronomic creations, presented to the diner in beautiful and creative arrangements. Nothing is out of place, each morsel arranged in perfect alignment. Mouth watering sushi adorns the tables of some of the finest restaurants in the world; teppanyaki prepared in front of your eyes, each cut meticulously controlled with definitely no bagging of knives or flipping of food. 

It may not be as famous though, but Japan has also raised the humble lunch box to what can only be described as an art form in it's own right. Mothers labour lovingly over their creations for their children to be sadly deprived of the chance to see their faces as they open them later at school. Some of them are truly works of art. The images below were all recently prepared by friends of mine for their children; and I write in awe at their skill and imaginations.

Halloween. The Americanisation of Japan?

Shibuya, the youthful, nightlife centre of Tokyo came to a virtual standstill last night as tens of thousands of people dressed up as everything from Dracula to Waldo and partied into the night. Halloween has seriously come of age in Japan. And the question has been raised of whether this is a further Americanisation of Japan and is that a good or a bad thing.

The coordination was remarkable. Friends had arranged themes and arrived as individual concepts groups. The lockers around the station were bulging with clothes as people changed (presumably so their parents didn't see them leave the house dressed in such creative ways). Each time the lights changed at Hachiko Crossing police would run to the centre in a vain attempt to try and control the revellers. Wasn't happening. They were instantly overwhelmed but really didn't need to be there.

So, in answer to the question as to whether this was a further example of an Americanisation of Japan I would say no. There were literally thousands of teenagers gathered together simply having fun. A lot of work and organised planning had gone into this night. This wasn't an Americanisation of Japan, this is the Japanisation of Halloween.