Japan is well renowned for beautiful traditional buildings and shrines. Part of that old aesthetic is traditional Japanese fans and umbrellas. These fans and umbrellas are still seen and used to this day, especially in the cultural capital of Kyoto. However, the questions many have are what are they, where did they come from and when did people use them?
Kimono and yukata are traditional Japanese garments that have charmed people around the world with their beauty, style, and traditional aesthetic. They are full-length T-shaped robes that have long sleeves and are secured in place with a decorative belt. There are many specific rules for when and how to wear kimono and yukata, known as kitsuke. The rules for kimono are much stricter as they are considered formalwear, while rules for wearing yukata are more relaxed. (more…)
Packing a lunch every morning—whether it’s for your beloved spouse, children, or yourself—can be a total drag. Heck, even with all the time in the world, you think packing lunches is still a pain. Well, you’re not alone. Lucky for you, we’ve compiled a list of handy bento gizmos and gadgets to make your mornings easier—oh, and also, you’ll be able to make insanely cool-looking bento lunches with half the usual effort. Sounds great, right?
The man arm pillows, heated toilet seats, sushi bag covers … we’ve all heard of these bizarre, yet actually (kind of) useful items. And we secretly want all of them. Well, if Japan can make ingenious inventions for the bedroom and bathroom, there’s no reason why it can’t for the kitchen—and it did. Here are some top must-have gadgets!
Most people from outside of Asia don’t think of green tea as a flavor they want in a snack. But those of you who have basked in the delight of creamy, sweet, slightly bitter green tea desserts have probably already been converted to the green side of the snack universe. There are many kinds of green tea snacks: from chocolate to cookies to ice cream and traditional Japanese wagashi sweets.
Perhaps you’ve heard of them–these majestic plastic thrones with the latest in rear-end pampering technology. To the Western eye they are a fabled bathroom wonder only available to Hollywood’s super-rich, but in Japan these “washlet” toilets are accessible to all, from train stations to shopping malls to private commodes, with 72% of Japanese households now performing their daily duty atop these electronic bidet toilets.
Have you ever wondered what’s in Japan’s water to make sushi rice look mouth-watering good? That same water can also clean an amazingly dirty gyūdon bowl; but the true secret ingredient to either of these is not the water, it’s the Japanese appliances. People from nearby Asian countries fly to Japan just to get their hands on the country’s rice cookers and compact dishwashers and if they can’t take it with them by plane, they’re sure to use a buying service like FROM JAPAN to get them.
Fukubukuro Season in Japan is basically the equivalent of Black Friday in the United States. Starting from the day after New Years and usually lasting until January 5, stores try to get rid of products left over from the previous year, by packaging them into bags called fukubukuro and selling them at ridiculously discounted prices. Usually, the fukubukuro is sealed to prevent you from looking inside, basically making it a mystery shopping event; however, in an effort to draw more customers recently some stores have departed from the surprise aspect and now post fliers showing what’s inside. That way, the customers don’t feel like they got a raw deal. Interestingly, it seems to be working for the stores as fukubukuro are as popular as ever.