Eat in Tokyo: Tea Ceremony

The Japanese ceremony, known as sadō (茶道) in Japanese, is a traditional way of having tea in Japan. In Tokyo, as it is new and cool for visitors, they will always try the tea ceremony.

Tea ceremony is a way of welcoming guests. It isn't just about drinking tea, it also involves a meal, a traditiona Japanese meal.

Before the guests enter, the teishu(亭主, host) fills a tsukubai(蹲踞, stone basin) with fresh water and then washes his hands and mouth. The guests are welcomed with a bow. Everyone remains silence. At the stone basin, the guests and host's assistant purify themselves and enter the teahouse through a sliding door that is just three feet high. To enter everyone has to bow, and this symbolises equal regardless of status or social position. The last person to enter puts the latch on the door.

In the tea ceremony, water represents yin(陰, the dark side), whilst the fire in the hearth represents yang(陽, the sun), as influenced by the Chinese. A jar called the mizusashi(水指) holds fresh water and symbolizes purity and only the host touches it. The green tea is called matcha(抹茶) in Japanese, and it is kept in a small ceramic container.

The host cleans the tea container and tea scoop with a fukusa (ふくさ, silk cloth). He fills the tea bowl with hot water and rinses the whisk. He then empties the tea bowl and wipes it with a tea towel. The host lifts the tea scoop and tea container and places three scoops of tea per guest into the tea bowl. Additional water is added to the paste until it is the consistency of cream soup, returning any unused water to the kettle. The host passes the tea bowl to the main guest first, and he will have to bow and accept it. The main guest admires the bowl by raising and rotating it. He then drinks some of the tea, wipes the rim of the bowl, and passes it to the next guest who does the same thing.

Live in Tokyo: J-Pop and J-Rock

J-pop and J-rock simply means Japanese pop and Japanese rock. They are both very popular in Tokyo. The music industry in Japan is of a large scale, and is the second largest music industry in the world, only behind the US.

J-pop is popular amongst all age groups - anime for youngsters, drama for adults, cartoons for children, etc. The most popular artists in Tokyo are EXILE, Fukuhara Miho, JUJU, Nakashima Mika, Mr. Children, B'z, GReeeen, Arashi... Their songs are found in Japanese animes, commercials, movies, TV shows, and video games.

J-pop has taken over many areas in the world, especially Asia, including Taiwan, Korea, Hong Kong... Pop artists are fashion leaders as well, what they do impacts the Japanese people.

Live in Tokyo: Manga

Manga(漫画, comics) plays an important role in people's life in Japan. Whether you are a boy or a girl, you will surely read manga. Manga include a wide variety of subjects: action, romance, adventure, sports, fantasy, adult... Manga is particularly popular in Taiwan("manhua"), Korea("manhwa" and Hong Kong("manwa"). In other places in the world, manga is gaining its popularity, especially in France and in the US.

Manga firstly originates from the American cartoon, especially Disney. During the American occupation of Japan in WWII, mangas are created, influenced by the American culture. Astro Boy was then one of the most popular ones, and it still remains its popularity now. France was then deeply influenced by this Japanese culture in the 19th century, i.e. Japonisme.

Popular manga in Japan includes Bleach (ブリーチ), Death Note (デスノート), Detective Conan (名探偵 コナン), Doraemon (ドラえもん), Fullmetal Alchemist (鋼の錬金術師), Naruto (ナルト), One Piece (ワンピース), the Prince of Tennis (テニスの王子様), Yu-Gi-Oh! (遊☆戯☆王), etc.

Eat in Tokyo: Bentō

弁当(Bentō) is a takeout or home-packed meal common in Japan. Traditionally, it is a meal divided into two parts: one half of the box will be filled with rice, and the other half will be filled with a variety of accompanying foods, such as vegetables, fish, eggs, or meat. A well balanced bento will consist of rice to side dishes in a 1:1 ratio, and within the side dishes a 1:2 ratio of fish/meat to vegetables.

Containers are commonly disposable mass produced to hand crafted lacquerware. Although bento is readily available in many places throughout Japan, including convenience stores, 弁当屋(bentō-ya, bento house), train stations, and department stores, it is still common for Japanese homemakers to spend considerable time and energy producing an appealing boxed lunch.

Common side dishes can include:
* Tamagoyaki - Omelette strips (or squares) cooked with salt and sugar
* Fried or scrambled eggs
* Sausages
* Fava beans
* Seafood - fish, octopus, eel, Kishu fish soaked in vinegar, shrimp, prawns
* Sushi rice
* Lotus root
* Boiled burdock, wrapped in a slice of anago (sea eel)
* Bamboo shoots
* Steamed, boiled or pickled vegetables

In modern Japanese culture, bento is consumed at work, on picnics, at home, at school and even at private parties, as they offer a simple, convenient and attractive form of hospitality. They are also served at Japanese restaurants as a form of take-out, so customers can enjoy the taste of their favourite chefs in the comfort of their own home.

As in Western schools, Japanese schools sometimes provide lunch for their students, or require them to bring their own to eat during a lunch period. These are usually prepared by the children's mothers, but as women are gradually moving out from their traditional role in the home and into the job sector, some students like to prepare their bento themselves.

Talk in Tokyo: English-borrowed Words

There are a lot of words in Japanese that is borrowed from English. Here are a few examples:

アニメ(anime)=animation
バター(batā)=butter
バス(basu)=bus
ブレザー(burezā)=blazer
ドンマイ(donmai)=don't mind
エアコン(eakon)=air-con(ditioning)
ガラス(garasu)=glass
ハッカー(hakkā)=hacker
イェス(yesu)=yes/Jesus
イメージ(imēji)=image
キー(kī)=key
メール(meru)=mail
モバイル(mobairu)=mobile
オーライ(ōrai)=all right
オータム(ōtamu)=autumn
タバコ(tobako)=tabacco
ゼロ(zero)=zero

There are also the so-called 和製英語(wasei-eigo, Japanese-made English), examples include:

ファミコン(famikon)=fami(ly) com(puter)
ジェンダーフリー(jendāfurī)=gender free
ジーパン(jīpan)=jea(ns)+pa(nts)
コミカライズ(komikaraizu)=comic -alise, to make a comic of
コスプレ(kosupure)=cos(tume) play, cosplay
モボ(mobo)=mo(dern) bo(y)
モガ(moga)=mo(dern) gi(rl)
ポエマー(poemā)=poem -er, a poet

despite their links to foreign language words, the word forms as used in modern Japanese are not used in the same way in their languages of origin (mainly English). In fact, many such terms, despite their similarity to the original foreign words, are not easily understood by speakers of those

Japanese culture is a cosmopolitan culture consisting of different languages - Chinese, Korean, English, French, German... You can find even more interesting Japanesee words yourself.

Are you interested in other cultures? Chinese culture is great in its long history and its great amount of eastern artworks and music. Visit the Chinese Culture Blog now.

Walk in Tokyo: Tokyo Tower

Tokyo Tower(東京タワー, Tōkyō-tawā) is a high-rising tower located in the centre of Tokyo. The tower was finished in 1958 as a symbol of Japan as one of the greatest economic powers in the world. An amazing fact is, the Tokyo Tower is actually taller than the Eiffel Tower in Paris by 13m. It is 333m tall.
It costs about ¥1500(about $16/£11) to get to the top, and if the weather's good, you can even see the Mount Fuji, the holy mountain of Japan. It is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Tokyo.

Eat in Tokyo: Tempura

Tempura(天ぷら) is a traditional Japanese dish. It is either filled with vegeable or meat or, preferably, prawns, and deep-fried to be served. It is usually served with shōyu(醤油, soya sauce), mirin(みりん, a kind of Japanese condiment with the traditional rice wine), etc.

It's a surprise that tempura was not originally a Japanese dish. It actually originates to visiting Portuguese in the 16th century. But tempura, slowly adapted itself to Japanese taste. By the late nineteenth century tempura was a popular fast food in Tokyo, sold everywhere. And today's modern tempura (made by deep-frying vegetables, fish and shellfish) is no longer regarded as a foreign food at all, but a completely part of the Japanese and Tokyo culture.

In Tokyo, Tempura restaurants are called tenpuraya(天ぷら屋, literally tempura house), ranging from fast food chains to very 5-star restaurants. Many restaurants offer tempura as part of a bentō (弁当, lunch box), and it is also a popular ingredient in take-away or convenience store bentō.

Walk in Tokyo: Ginza

Ginza (銀座, literally means "silver mint") is one of the largest shopping districts in Tokyo with long history. It is well known for its various department stores, boutiques, and restaurants. Most of the stores are similar with stores you would encounter in a modern western shopping district.

There's an Apple store here - the first ever opened outside the US. There is even a 4-storey Sony Building here, with a Sony Building, boasting with the brand's latest technology. For hotel, Mandarin Oriental is the best amongst the hotels in the area.

Talk in Tokyo: Greetings

Greetings are an important part in the life in Tokyo. Japanese, and Tokyo people are well-known in the world for their politeness.

In the morning, people greets each other by saying "ohayō gozaimasu"(お早う　御座います。) or just "ohayō(お早う。)" for the informal ones. As it gets to the noon, people say "konnichiwa(今日は。)", one of the most commonly known Japanese word, it is equivalent to the French word bonjour, meaning both hello and good afternoon. In the evening or at night, people say "Konbanwa(今晩は。)".

To express thankfulness, people use "arigatō gozaimazu(ありがと　御座います。)" for formal ones and "arigatō (ありがと。)" for the friendly ones. To say you're welcome, it's a bit more complicated, it's "iie, dō itashimashite(いいえ、どう　いたしまして。)". To say sorry or excuse me, you use "sumimasen (すみません。)". Finally, to say bye, you say "sayōnara(さようなら。)". That's all for today. Enjoy Tokyo!

Eat in Tokyo: Sashimi

Welcome to my new blog, Tokyo Culture, in this blog you can find everything about Japanese and Tokyo culture. This article is about the food in Tokyo.

The Tokyo culture is influenced by the Western and Eastern culture. The Japanese food is known to be famous arround the world for keeping healthy and long life. The most common food in Tokyo is sashimi(刺身), which literally means "pierced meat". There are a few varieties of sashimi, including sake(サケ, salmon), ika(いか, squid), ebi(えび, shrimp), hamachi(はまち, yellowtail), tako(たこ, octopus), maguro(まぐろ, tuna), masu (マス, trout), fugu(河豚, putterfish), etc.



*Know more about this*
There are different types of sashimi, as you can see above, but fugu(河豚, pufferfish) is possibly the most exotic and dangerous food known to the world. If it's not properly prepared, it can really cause death. The most toxic parts of the fish are treated as hazardous waste. Fugu cooks are strictly licenced and trained to prevent poisoning, so fugu offered in restaurants is safe for consumers. That being said, some highly trained chefs include a tiny bit of the toxin when they serve fugu. The toxin will create a prickly, numb feeling on the tongue. Fugu is forbidden to the Emperor of Japan, the tennō(天皇), for obvious reasons.

There are a new type of fugu recently, Japanese fish farmers are now mass-producing poison-free fugu as harmless as goldfish. Most important, they have taken the poison out of fugu's liver - considered both its most delicious but poisonous part, one whose consumption has left countless Japanese dead over the centuries. The farmers basically put fish away from the bacteria, which fugu consume and start to develop poisonous subsances in their body after having it.