“Japan” Web Surfing

The winter quarter (spring semester?) has kicked off and the work is piling up. When you need a break, instead of playing Minesweeper 20 more times or losing yourself in Facebook Chat, try some of these links (from At Home in Japan. You may even learn something that moves you forward in your larger goals.

This web surfing installment is on sites about everyday life.

Japan FAQ
Know before you go, the mechanics of living in Japan, by a teacher at Fukuoka’s Seinan University.

Japan Window
The nitty-gritty of getting yourself set up in Japan (including Something Completely Different), by Andy and Hitomi Grey.

Ed Jacob’s Quirky Japan
Cool places that almost nobody visits, the honest photographer, SAQ/seldom asked questions, odd shops, vending machine heaven, quirky Japan index full of unsettling statistics–the number of schools that teach unicycle riding,  etc.

KCP campus student lounge.

What’s Normal in Japan?
Vote on “do you wash your hands in the stream of water that comes out of the toilet tank?” “At what age does a person become middle-aged?” “What flavor of ramen did you order most recently?”
In Japanese.

Engrish.com
Compilation of English glitches in Japan and everywhere else.

Justin’s Tokyo
Beyond amateur travel diary, a well-designed site with intriguing essays on love hotels, a snow festival, and so on. Great images too.

The Way We Are
My favorite of this set  of links: photo essays from many Japanese high school students, 5 photos apiece; read between the lines. Love how kids think.  Bilingual.

Survival-Online Guides
The ultimate way to end a web surfing session–a list of links!  A comprehensive list of online guides.

Now, mind reeling,  you’re ready to go back to the safe tedium of work!

Coming soon–sites about study, daily living, and travel.