In the year 2000, my wife Mandy and I celebrated the new millennium by climbing Mt Fuji, which straddles the border of Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures in central Japan. When we arrived back home two days later, every muscle in our body ached, our feet had blisters, and our toes were bruised, but it was […]
Summer Customs in Japan
Japanese summers are usually introduced by a warm, sunny spring season, but this year, the temperatures and conditions have been wildly erratic. However, ‘Tsuyu’ (the rainy season) has arrived on schedule as usual, bringing with it the typical heat and humidity that can be expected at this time of the year, and the realization that […]
Japanese Year in Sync with the Seasons
One of the first things I noticed, as a schoolteacher in Japan, is that so many countries start their school year in a different month. I come from Australia, where the school year is the same as the calendar year, and so the students begin their classes in January. Being in the southern hemisphere, Australia’s […]