You won’t find somber teens sipping matcha tea and sitting quietly in sidewalk cafes in modern Tokyo. In fact, all over Japan’s larger cities, and in many smaller ones, visitors are often shocked by the… Read More

In a culture where matcha tea ceremony and karaoke singing coexist, visitors to Japan are often astounded at the country’s strange blend of ancient and modern. Having already conquered the West, karaoke sing-along still reigns… Read More

Usually the first word that comes to people’s minds when they consider a vacation to Japan is “expensive.” There is much evidence to back up this general impression, but smart travelers know that even a… Read More

No nation on earth has worked as hard as Japan to develop a first-class robotics industry. Not since the country threw itself into post-war reconstruction has there been such a concerted effort to be number… Read More

The Japanese love their matcha tea; that’s for sure. But they also appreciate a fine mixed drink prepared by a talented, experienced bartender. In fact, almost everything about drinking in Japan is different than the… Read More

In many ways, Japan’s modern face is merely a disguised version of its collective traditions: tea ceremony, Zen Buddhism, calligraphy, flower arranging, Kabuki and Noh. Aside from recent Western influences, most of the country’s major… Read More

Japan is a land of tradition: Kabuki, Sumo, Samurai, Emperors, and matcha tea. In a land steeped in tradition and formality, gender roles tend to change very slowly. Nowhere is that phenomenon more evident than… Read More