Blogs

  Japanese is a culture of etiquette, with elaborate rules for table manners.The following is a brief tutorial on Japanese table manners and polite phrases, which you can practice … read more

Kinoko-gohan is one of my autumn favorites. I have used a frying pan with a lid to cook the rice since I often get asked for Japanese recipes from friends who don’t have a Japanese rice cooker. … read more

I often get asked about the best season to visit Japan. Such a seemingly simple question. However, there are more choices and more “seasons” than most people realize. Japan is a land of … read more

In July, the sun rises before 5:30 in Miyazaki, and my day starts early. By 7 o’clock, Momo (my 5-year-old Papillon) and Yuki (my 2-year-old Japanese Spitz) have had their morning stroll by a … read more

In Japan, January 7 is the day of the Festival of Seven Herbs ( Nanakusa no sekku). On this day, the Japanese make a special porridge called nanakusa-gayu with seven herbs, rice, and a bit of salt. … read more