Hoppy (Japaneses: ホッピー) is a slightly-alcoholic (0.8%) beverage made of hops and malt, and can be found in Tokyo's izakayas (Japanese: 居酒屋) or supermarkets. Hoppy was released in 1948 and is owned by privately-held Hoppy Beverage Co. Ltd. To this day, the company is still run by
The Nikko Kanaya Hotel (Nikko Kanaya)(Japanese: 日光金谷ホテル) was founded in 1873, making it 151 years-old. My trusty Frommers guide says it is the most famous hotel in Nikko, describing the hotel as combining "the rustic heartiness of a European country lodge with elements of old Japan". Think
Growing up, I had a toy train track I'd spend hours arranging and re-arranging. I don't recall having the actual toy train to "run" on the track, but I still had a lot of fun. Trains are mechanically fascinating, as they efficiently and reliably
I lunch at Sukiya (Japanese: すき家) regularly, sometimes up to three times a week. Sukiya is Japan's leading gyudon (Japanese: 牛丼) restaurant chain with over 2,000 outlets nationwide. The Sukiya near my home is open 24-hours a day, 7-days a week. Gyudon means "beef bowl"
I enjoy going to Japanese restaurant-bars and izakayas (Japanese: 居酒屋). There is something about the atmosphere, food and drink coming together that make you leave with a satisfying experience. If you're having a bad day, you will leave happy (and merry). If you had a good day, you
I moved to Japan recently and had to properly establish my residence in the Ward I live in. The first step was to pickup my Residence Card (Japanese: 在留カード | Zairyu Ka-do). What is the Zairyu Card? The Zairyu Card is issued to persons who reside in Japan for the mid-
I came across the word "polyglot" in a YouTube video. According to dictionary.com, "polyglot" is derived from the greek word polýglōttos, which means "many-tongued". "Polyglot" (n) is a person who can speak many languages. I grew up in Malaysia learning three
I have always aspired to document and communicate well-written thoughts and experiences regularly through a medium of sorts. The internet has no shortage of well-produced written, visual and audio content that make me wonder: "Why can't I do that too?" But each time the proverbial pen