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Tag: Japan

W.T.F. Japan: Top 5 steps to immigrate to Japan 【Weird Top Five】

This week for my RocketNews24 W.T.F. Japan article, I wrote about top five steps to immigrate to Japan.

So originally I had a completely different W.T.F. article all set and ready to go for this week. But then, due to certain recent events, I decided that there was something much more important that needed to be written about – how to leave your country for Japan.

Of course, this is all a bit tongue-in-cheek. I doubt many people will actually be leaving the U.S. because of the election, but it’s still a fun fantasy for some. And hey, if someone really does want to leave, then my article might just provide them with some helpful information.

I actually didn’t know a ton about immigrating to Japan before I wrote this, and I feel like I learned a lot by doing the research and compiling it all together. Immigrating to Japan is certainly not easy, but it’s not impossible either. If you’re really determined to do it, there’s not much stopping you.

So whether you want to leave the U.S. and head to Japan, or if you want to stick it out and see what happens, either way hopefully it will be a fun read.

Read the article here.

Photo & Haiku Friday: Japanese Trump Mask

Every Friday I like to write a too-cool-for-school haiku inspired by a photo from JapanI bribe my wife to add her own as well, so we can get as many interpretations as possible, and sometimes a Japanese one happens to float in off a gentle breeze of inspiration.

Last week we looked at an advertisement for a hospital from hell. Here’s this week’s photo, a screenshot of a mask for sale on a Japanese website:

W.T.F. Japan: Top 5 Japanese pet kabutomushi beetles 【Weird Top Five】

This week for my RocketNews24 W.T.F. Japan article, I wrote about top five Japanese pet kabutomushi beetles.

A few months ago I looked at the top five creepiest Japanese insects, and one notable bug missing from the list was Japanese beetles. The way they fly up and attack people, you might think they’d be a prime candidate.

Except for the fact that Japanese beetles are often kept as pets. I couldn’t possibly bring myself to include pets on a “creepy” list, but I knew I’d want to talk about them one day so here we are!

Keeping beetles are pets may seem crazy to those outside of Japan, but it’s basically the equivalent of keeping goldfish here. They’re popular with kids and don’t live very long, but at least with beetles you can get some of that creepy-crawly affection if you so desire.

Whether you love beetles or think they look like poops with legs, you’ll probably enjoy reading this one.

Read the article here.

Photo & Haiku Friday: Hospital from Hell… in my Hometown

Every Friday I like to write an ode to a photo in Japan with a hot-off-the-keyboard haiku. Sometimes a Japanese one happens to float in off a gentle breeze of inspiration as well.

Last week we looked at a Shiba Inu in Halloween costume. Here’s this week’s photo that I took at my local train station, a lovely advertisement for a hospital:

W.T.F. Japan: Top 5 most confusing Japanese counter words 【Weird Top Five】

This week for my RocketNews24 W.T.F. Japan article, I wrote about top five most confusing Japanese counter words.

Japanese is a hard language to learn, but not for the reasons most people think it is. I did a previous W.T.F. Japan about the top five myths about learning Japanese, and I stand by that kanji is definitely not the hardest part of Japanese.

Maybe someday I’ll do a W.T.F. on the top five reasons Japanese is actually hard, but for now I just wanted to focus on one of the harder aspects of the language: counter words.

In English we say a “head” of lettuce and a “loaf” of bread, but in Japanese they have counter words for everything. No matter what you’re counting – people, computers, books, sheep – there’s a counter word that must be used. You can’t just say “three sheep” and be understood, you have to say the equivalent of “three heads of sheep.”

In this W.T.F. I go over some of the more ridiculous counter words, which have tripped me and my students up for years. Even if you’ve never studied Japanese before, I think it will be a fun read just to see how linguistically different (and crazy) Japanese can be sometimes.

Read the article here.

Photo & Haiku Friday: Stegosaurus Shiba Dog

Every Friday I like to decorate desecrate a photo in Japan with a heavenly haiku. I bribe my wife to add her own as well, so we can get as many interpretations as possible, and sometimes a Japanese one happens to float in off a gentle breeze of inspiration.

Last week we composed haiku for a mama praying mantis. Here’s this week’s photo of a shiba dog in a stegosaurus costume for Halloween:

W.T.F. Japan: Top 5 budget Japanese Halloween costumes 【Weird Top Five】

This week for my RocketNews24 W.T.F. Japan article, I wrote about the top budget Japanese Halloween costumes.

Halloween is becoming bigger in Japan every year. Even though trick-or-treating still isn’t really a thing, dressing up very much is, and there are some Japanese monsters that make for great costumes.

Unfortunately Japanese costumes can be a little hard to come by outside of Japan, so this week I worked together with my wife to show off how you can make your own for extremely cheap. Every costume is about $6 or less to make, and pretty much guaranteed to be unique.

So if you need a costume and you’re short on cash… I think you know what to do.

Read the article here.

W.T.F. Japan: Top 5 craziest Japanese certification exams 【Weird Top Five】

This week for my RocketNews24 W.T.F. Japan article, I wrote about the top five craziest Japanese certification exams.

When I worked as a Japanese tutor, I would often tell my students that Japan has a test for everything. They didn’t believe me when I told them about the “housewife certification exam,” so now was my chance to finally show them the hilarious truth!

Honestly, I’m not a fan of tests. A lot of my students expressed a desire to take the JLPT (Japanese Language Proficiency Exam), but I advised against it. That may sound strange, hut here’s the truth: there’s nothing really to be gained from taking the test. Let’s say you pass Level 1… great! You’re exactly the same person with the same knowledge you were before you passed it! Let’s say you fail it instead… great! You’re still the same person!

I suppose the argument can be made that in studying for the exam you learned more about the subject, but most teachers agree that “teaching to the test” is horrible. I would have much preferred by students study manga, anime, books, or anything intended for native Japanese speakers, rather than the artificial Japanese created for the exam.

But hey, that’s just me. If you love tests, more power to you! Maybe you’ll find some great ones to take on this list.

Read the article here.