All posts tagged: japan

Pokemon Mania Still Going Strong

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Pokemon may have been a brief fad in other countries, but in Japan, love for the strange battling creatures continues to this day. While exiting Osaka Station, I saw numerous brightly colored signs for the Pokemon Center, so I set off camera in hand to check out what was going on. The Pokemon Center turned out to be a section of a department store dedicated to selling Pokemon toys. Shelves were packed with keychains, glove puppets and action figures. Cleverly there were shopping baskets positioned at the entrance so kids could get all the items they desperately needed. Customers taking a break from shopping were playing Pokemon computer games. So there you go, Pokemon culture is alive and well. In the words of Pikachu. “Pika, Pika!”

New Year in Japan

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There are many New Year traditions in Japan. The most significant is perhaps a visit to the local shinto shrine. Preparations at the shrine start days if not weeks before the event. At Meiji Shrine in central Tokyo, bottles of soy sauce and salt were on display ready to be blessed. Various priests were preparing the grounds of the temple. The rope around the tree trunk is called a shimenawa and indicates that the tree is sacred. Visitors to the temple were getting a head start on writing their hopes and dreams on the wooden ema prayer boards. This is a smart thing to do if you want to avoid the tens of thousands who will visit on New Year’s Day. Houses are decorated with shogatsukazari (New Year’s wreaths) these can be bought at department stores or even on the street. Here’s one on a traditional house in Arashiyama, Kyoto. For many the highlight of the New Year is the chance to get a bargain in a fukubukuro lucky bag. A 5,000 Yen bag is likely …

Laser Eye Surgery in Japan

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This is a compilation of blog posts about my experience getting laser eye surgery in Japan. Short Version: I used glasses and contact lenses for 20 years. In 2013, I decided to get Laser Eye Surgery. I had iDesign iLASIK at the Kobe Kanagawa Clinic in Shinjuku, Tokyo.  Procedure went great. I now have excellent vision, better than 20/20. Hoorah. In 2020 the Kobe Kanagawa Clinic changed ownership and the clinic is now focused on other procedures. Richard, who helped me now works at the Shinagawa LASIK center which is a great option for English speakers in Japan. Shinagawa LASIK Center Richard set me up with a referral system for the Shinkawa LASIK Center  so readers of my blog can get up to 50,000 yen off.  Just message me and I’ll send you a referral discount coupon. Long Version: I got my first pair of glasses when I was about 13. At age 16, I started wearing contact lenses, and glasses became a last resort. For the next 20 years I used contact lenses pretty much …

Coca-Cola Serving Sizes (and an unusual pricing system)

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There are four can sizes for Coca-Cola in Japan. The standard can is 350ml and usually sells for around 120 yen (US$1.20). Interestingly, the 500ml can has 150ml free so is the same price, but they are often sold side by side. On the platforms for bullet trains,  coke is sold in the slimline 250ml cans at, you’ve guessed it, 120 yen. The 160ml mini cans  are available in some supermarkets for around 60 yen.  Mini cans are clearly an excellent choice allowing you to save money, reduce calories, and pretend you’re Andre the Giant.

Karatsu Kunchi Festival – Saga, Japan (The day of rain)

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Flew up to Kyushu to photograph the Karatsu Kunchi Festival. The main events took place on Sunday and Monday, but as the rain poured down, the Sunday procession was a little waterlogged. The kids were all looking a little glum. The adults however had a special remedy. Which appeared to be encouraged by the local constabulary. And so with heads held high, the floats were dragged through the city. And some people even managed a smile.

Boroga Beach, Miyako

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Perfect beach, perfect pool. Sometimes we are faced with tough decisions. Unfortunately, the reality was that on that day, I didn’t have time to swim in the pool or ocean. I was too busy checking the price of parking, noting down amenities and working out how to geo-tag the location. I’ll be back…