Push to Make Japan More Tourist Freindly

Photo by lestaylorphoto.

Photo by lestaylorphoto.

Just came across this article published by the Yomiuri Shimbun on how Japan wants to put a greater effort into promoting tourism. Of course the devastating tsunami and resulting nuclear scare has certainly effected the tourism numbers, I had no idea how low they actually were.
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Mount Fuji Set to Receive UNESCO Status

Photo by Jokin Sukuntza on Flickr

Photo by Jokin Sukuntza on Flickr

To be honest I had no idea that Mount Fuji wasn’t listed among the United Nations cultural sites already. But thanks to the BBC article Stacey just sent me, I’ve been set straight.

A formal decision is expected when Unesco’s World Heritage Committee meets in Cambodia in June.

This would make Mount Fuji the seventeenth world heritage site in Japan. So we’ll see what happens in June :)

How Many Words Do You Need to Know to be Fluent in Japanese?

Photo by e.g.gatsby on Flickr

Photo by e.g.gatsby on Flickr

Granted, there is a debate on what exactly being fluent in Japanese means. Personally my aim is to be conversationally comfortable rather than try and pack in 30,000 words. Truth be told, even if I know 30,000 English words, how many of those will I actually use every day or even in a year? So here’s what I think it means to be fluent in Japanese and how many words that’s going take.
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Free WiFi Hotspots in Tokyo

Photo by Davezilla on Flickr

Photo by Davezilla on Flickr

Finding WiFi spots in any major city can sometimes be a royal pain. I’ve spent much time wandering through Osaka and Tokyo looking for a place to connect. Well the good news is that it has got a little easier to find Internet access in Tokyo, at least in the major tourist areas. I just came across this new initiative by NTTEast for offering some free WiFi hotspots to visitors to Tokyo.
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Japanese Idiom: To Crack a Star

Photo by Skiwalker on Flickr

Photo by Skiwalker on Flickr

This is one of the more unusual idioms that I’ve found and we don’t really have a comparable English one. The idiom is around cracking a star and the meaning is not what you think.
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Japanese Artist : YUMIKO HIGUCHI

art

I discovered a lovely artist that I thought I would write about. I can’t remember how I found her but her work is marvellous. She is an embroidery artist.
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My Dream Japan Vacation – Himeji Castle

Photo by EugeniusD80 on Flickr

Photo by EugeniusD80 on Flickr

Himeji Castle has long been my dream location to visit. It has also proved to be on of my most elusive locations. Twice I’ve tried to visit and each time I have been unsuccessful. Once I arrived after the gates had closed and the other time the castle was completely entombed in a massive reconstruction project. It appears that the White Heron Castle has become my White Buffalo.
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Top Attractions in Japan Every Tourist Should Visit

Photo by Stuck in Customs on Flickr

Photo by Stuck in Customs on Flickr

If you are planning a trip to Japan, you are probably going on a visit that you only take once in a lifetime. While in Japan, you will want to take advantage of seeing all the top spots in the least time possible. There are not that many places in the world that have the kind of mystique that Japan does. Even though Japan has gained a lot of attention in the past few decades due to its booming economic success, there is still a lot about Japan that remains unknown. To really find out what Japan is all about, you will have to take the time out to visit the place. If you are planning on taking a trip to Japan, a great way to begin your journey is by visiting some of the top attractions Japan offers.
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Quick Anime Review: Figure 17

figure17

I just took a look at our current poll results on “Why do you want to visit Japan?” and I noticed that “anime” is starting to pull away. While Stacey and I don’t watch a ton of anime we find it helpful with our Japanese and some of the shows are pretty fun. Currently in our anime play list is Figure 17. Here’s a quick review.
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How To Make Totoro Onigiri

It’s been a while since we did a cute food post :) Here’s a video that the fun people over at Kawaii Kakkoii Sugoi (great name!) just sent us. If you’re an onigiri or Totoro fan you’ll be sure to like it.