First off, let’s think about a situation where you are doing homework at your room while your mom is cooking downstairs.

In English;
Mom: Dinner is ready!
You: I am coming!

In Japanese;
Mom: Dinner is ready! (ご飯ができました！)
You: I am going!（行きます！）

Japanese people never say “I am coming (来ます)” in this situation. In Japanese, “行く” and “来る” are chosen based on where the speaker is. Let me explain each concept of the two verbs.

行きます（いきます）

As the picture describes, “行く” is used when a person/thing is leaving from the speaker.

来ます（きます）

On the other hand, “来る” is used when a person/thing is approaching where the speaker is.

Considering the meanings of “行く” and “来る” and looking at the two sentences below, it may be easier for your to understand the difference between them.

私は日本へ行きました。
私は日本へ来ました。

“私は日本へ行きました。” implies you are outside Japan. Meanwhile, “私は日本へ来ました。” tells the listener that you are in Japan.
Here is a tricky thing. Some learners might say “私は日本へ来ます。”. However, it sounds not right, because “私は日本へ来ます。” seems future tense. Following the rule of “来る” explained above, you are supposed to be in Japan when you use “来る”. That means you need to have completed the action, “来る”. Therefore, you should say “私は日本へ来ました。”, past tense is correct.

The last part could be confusing, but hope this article helps you understand the difference between “行く” and “来る”.
Enjoy learning Japanese!

This article gives you a convenient way to get to the nearest station to your hotel from Haneda/Narita Airport. As widely known, Japan has terrible RUSH HOURS. You may want to avoid trains that are packed with Japanese office workers after your long flight, right?

Airport Limousine Bus is one of transportations that bring you to not only the centre of Tokyo but also suburbs including Kanagawa, Chiba, Saitama, etc. Personally, I recommend this, because you do not need to exchange train lines in the Tokyo’s complicated train system.

Here is the link of Airport Limousine Bus:
https://webservice.limousinebus.co.jp/web/en/Top.aspx

You can buy a ticket at the Narita/Haneda Airport by a machine as well as online in advance. The website provides some discount tickets. Check them out!

How to buy a bus ticket is straight forward. There are machines under the sign of Limousine Bus on the arrival floor of each airport. You can select a train station and buy a bus ticket. After purchasing a ticket, go outside and find the bus stop where your bus will come (there is a map around the ticket machine that shows you the number of your bus.)

At least go to the bus stop 5 mins before the leaving time. There is staff, and you are required to show the staff your bus ticket. The bus driver takes care of your luggage.

That is everything.
Hope you will enjoy your trip to Japan!

In terms of the regulation to restaurants and bars, the government asked them to shorten business hours, and therefore, many restaurants and bars are closed from 8 pm. The owners who follow the new rule receive 60,000 yen per day as a subsidy from the government. However, some restaurant owners saying that even though they cooperated with the government, there was no big change in the number of new cases last time when the state of emergency was announced do not follow the rule. There is the fact that it is hard to keep the store remain without sales especially in downtown Tokyo, because the rent is expensive. In Shibuya, people who do not care about the rule which is people should stay home except when it is necessary to go out made a line at restaurants that do not follow the rule.

Compared with the last state of emergency, the regulation this time is not so strict. Department stores, as well as restaurants and bars, are open with a shortened business hour, though they were close last time. Regarding sports events, concerts, theaters, and cinemas, the government allows them to hold 5,000 people or 50% of the seats. In fact, approximately 20 to 80% increased in the number of people who went out, compared with the last state of emergency in some areas in Tokyo.

People got used to COVID-19, plus the loosened regulations and not enough subsidy to various businesses from the government which leans on the economy led to the worse situation. Hospitals that can deal with the virus are facing medical care breakdown. It is necessary to decrease people’s movements from one place to another to decline the new cases of the virus until the time when the vaccine is deployed. It should be a key to decrease the number of commuters by 70% and to reflect on one’s behaviours.

In the 1960s, Japan went into rapid economic growth, because of which people could afford to consume luxury goods. The culture that Japan was (is) willing to introduce was (is) American one. People tended to choose western fashion and food. People believed that becoming like the United States meant that Japan could join in one of the industrial/advanced countries.

At that time, Japan did not have a culture to celebrate Christmas with family because of the less Christian population. The company that targeted it was KFC, and KFC entered the Japanese market. In 1974, KFC started special set meals with the advertisement, “KFC fried chicken on Christmas day”, and its Christmas song.

Eating chickens has become one of a ritual on Christmas in Japan, as recently some convenience stores and even sushi restaurants have released Christmas fried chickens, however, KFC still have a lot of fans.

Reference: フライドチキンが「日本のクリスマスの伝統」になった理由 retrieved from CNN.co.jp

Other articles are here.

The source of Bushido

Bushido is composed of Buddhism, Shintoism, and Confucianism. Buddhism teaches Samurai to keep themselves calm and accept their fate even they are confronted by death. This calmness can be acquired through meditation, Zen (here is more detail about Zen and Japan). Shintoism give a lesson of loyalty to the sovereign, respect to their ancestor, and the importance of filial piety. Confucianism which influenced Bushido requires to maintain “the 5 ethical relations among master and servant (the governing and the ruled), father and son, husband and wife, older and younger brother, and between buddy and buddy…”(Nitobe, Inazō . Bushido: The Soul of Japan, p. 10).

Regarding Confucianism, the 7 codes, 義(Gi/Justice), 勇(Yu/Courage), 仁(Jin/Benevolence), 礼(Rei/Politeness), 誠(Makoto/Truthfulness), 名誉(Meiyo/Honor), 忠義(chugi/The Duty of Loyalty) are fundamental but, at the same time, they are necessary in Bushido. 義 and 勇 are the basic requirements for being Samurai. 仁,礼, and 誠 tells them how to deal with others. 名誉 and 忠義 are the things that Samurai fought for in a battle.

義(Gi/Justice): what you must follow/keep as a person. It cannot be defined what it is, however, one said that 義 is the ability to make a decision on what you should do based on morality. The word, 義理(Giri) is often used as its meaning, it is the right reason/motivation for you to do. In other words, It is a sort of duty that you are obligated to do in order to keep the 5 ethical relations.

勇(Yu/Courage): taking a right action caused by a calm mental state.

仁(Jin/Benevolence): love, pity, or empathy to others. Samurai were required to be mannish and fair in the first place, however, benevolence was also necessary. “Bushi no nasake”, the tenderness of a warrior, means that Samurai show mercy but the mercy comes from fairness rather than emotion.

礼(Rei/Politeness): manifesting your empathy to others. To reach higher virtue in politeness, you should not brag your glory, not have a hatred for others, not seek your own interests, not offend people around you, not get upset, but should care about others, be generous, and benevolent. The utmost form of politeness is almost love.

誠(Makoto/Truthfulness): being faithful to yourself. Lying or unfairness is regarded as a coward. As utterances from Samurai’s mouth should be a fact, Samurai must take responsibility for what they said. However, 誠 is not so simple, you sometimes need to lie in order not to lose 礼.

名誉(Meiyo/Honor): Samurai’s dignity. This honor was nourished through experiences such as being said like “Don’t let others laugh at you!”, “Are you no longer ashamed?” and so on. Feeling shame sounds not good, however, it is important in order for Samurai to obtain their dignity. Nevertheless, keeping a good balance between other codes is also important.

忠義(chugi/The Duty of Loyalty): being loyal to your owner, even if you sacrifice yourself. The Samurai society was built based on the hierarchy between seniors and younger, and therefore 忠義 played an important role in the society. Samurai prioritized the public rather than the individual. They regarded themselves as an element of their society, to maintain its power or win over enemies, they were willing to die.

This is the Bushido. Samurai’s virtues are deep. It might be interesting to compare with Western philosophy. If you would like to know deeper about it, you should check this book out!

Business cards

A business card is important in Japan’s business culture. When you have a meeting with your clients for the first time, you might have an experience of exchanging your business card. In Japan, there are some rules when exchanging business cards.

1. If you are in a lower position than your clients, you should give your card first (regardless of age and job position, if your client will pay for your project, your client is in a higher position than you).
2. When you receive your client’s business card, receive the card with both hands, and be careful not to cover the person’s information on the card.
3. After exchanging business cards, put it on your card case and place it on your left side on the table. If you exchange with more than 2 persons, put them on the desk, following where they are seated.
4. Do not throw the cards away even after the meeting, you should keep your clients’ business cards. Actually, there are Japanese business persons who collect their clients’ cards in a folder.

Attitude

Some older people in Japan do not appreciate having a beard. If you meet people from Japanese traditional companies, I recommend you to shave your beard.

Eye contact is important too, however, unlike western culture, Japanese people do not feel comfortable with being stared at their eyes for a long time. When you listen, you need eye contact of course, but nodding is also a method to show that you are listening. When you are speaking, it is usually said that seeing the areas from the listener’s shoulders to the top makes listeners comfortable.

Where should you sit?

It is a rule that the farthest seat from the entrance door is for the person in the highest rank. The closer the seats are to the entrance door, the lower rank they are. Therefore, if you are in the lowest job position, you should sit on the closest chair from the door. However, it is a situation where you ask your client for something like money or making a deal in the meeting. Your client is always in a higher position than you.

You might not need to do all of them, but knowing them will make your business life in/with Japan easier. At least, keep in mind that shaving your beard and keeping your attitude good during a meeting is important!

Tourists might be concerned about transportation. You might try Shinkansen (Japan’s bullet train), however, the average fee between Tokyo and Osaka is around 30,000 yen (a return ticket). It is not a friendly price for tourists who are planning to visit some places. So, why don’t you buy JR Pass to save money during your trip? Here is the reason you should purchase JR Pass!

What is Japan Rail Pass (JR Pass)?

JR Pass is a pass issued by JR Group with which you are able to ride transportations operated by JR Group including most of Japan’s bullet trains, local trains, Tokyo Monorail (running between Haneda Airport – Hamamatsucho station), buses, and ferries. JR Group is the top rail company in Japan and operates all over Japan.

The pass can be bought by only short-stay travelers whose purpose of visiting Japan is tourism. You need to meet the eligibility below to buy it: You are a foreign tourist visiting Japan from abroad for sight-seeing, under the entry status of “temporary visitor.” You need to get a “Temporary Visitor” entry status stamp when you enter Japan. You should ask an immigration officer at the airport to stamp it on your passport (by Japan Rail Pass.net )

Much cheaper than buying with regular price

This is the reason I do recommend you to purchase JR pass. IT IS A GOOD DEAl! As a Japanese, I am jealous! If I am allowed to buy it, I would. Here is the price.

If you buy it overseas, it is cheaper.

1. When you buy JR Pass in Japan Regular seat
Adult:
7days pass ¥33,610
14 days pass ¥52,960
21 days pass ¥66,200

Children:
7 days pass ¥16,800
14 days pass ¥26,480
21 days pass ¥33,100

2. When you buy JR Pass at a store dealing with the pass overseas
Regular seat
Adult:
7days pass ¥29,650
14 days pass ¥47,250
21 days pass ¥60,450

Child:
7 days pass ¥ 14,820
14 days pass ¥ 23,620
21 days pass ¥ 30,220

(The information is as of April 2020 and retrieved from Japan Rail Pass. net)
If you would prefer a luxury seat, you can choose Green seat (I think regular is still comfortable). The information is on the website.

Tips

As I mentioned, a round bullet train ticket between Tokyo and Osaka is around 30,000 yen. Isn’t it expensive? If you move from one place to another, especially traveling many different places, JR pass is reasonable. The pass is valid for local trains, buses, and even ferries run by JR Group as well, you might not have to pay for other transportation fees. If you are a smart user, you will be able to travel from Hokkaido to Kyushu by using the pass.

The pass is valid only under JR Group transportation, and you cannot take on Nozomi and Mizuho (both are the types of bullet trains), just keep in your mind.

All information is from Japan Rail Pass.net

What is Zen?

As you know, Zen is a branch of Buddhism. Zen indicates “Zen-Shu” (Zen Buddhism) or “Zazen”(the practice of Zen Buddhism). The fundamental idea of Zen Buddhism is “不立文字”‘(Furyu mon ji) which means that the lessons from Buddha should be obtained through experience rather than words. Based on this, Zen Buddhism aims to attain Satori (to go beyond uncertainty in your heart and then reach the truth) by Zazen, chores, and Koan (questions to lead to the truth).

Zazen is, as you call, meditation. Monks must sit by the specific way called Kakkefuza, and then be free from distracting thoughts and keep their mind clear.

The father of Zen Buddhism is an ascetic monk called Bodhidharma from India. He came to China and spread Zen Buddhism. The story of him where his limbs have gone because of 9-year meditation is well known.

Japan and Zen Buddhism

In Japan, Zen Buddhism became popular in the 13th century (Kamakura era). We have three different schools of Zen Buddhism, Rinzai-shu, Soto-shu, and Obaku-shu.

Monks of Rinzai-shu are required to think Koan during meditation. As head temples, Tenryu-Ji and Kencho-Ji are located.

Soto-shu focuses only on Zazen. It believes that Zazen itself represents for Satori (having reached the truth). Eihei-Ji is famous as its head temple.

Obaku-shu believes that Paradise (Gokuraku Jodo in Japanse) is in oneself rather than the West and it can be found through meditation. This school combined with Pure Land Buddhism.

This is Daruma which brings good luck to you in Japan. The meaning of Daruma seems to become far from the origin, nowadays, it is associated with ‘never give up’, since it would never fall because of the loss of its limbs. Even many Japanese might not know that it is Bodhidharma himself who lost his arms and legs.

Zen requires you to face yourself and clear your mind. Its history and practice are deep and varied. If you have a chance to visit a Zen Buddhism temple, Try Zazen there!

Japan’s high technology should be pervasive in day-to-day living situations. For instance, Japan’s trains hardly delay, which is famous. Even if only a 3-minute delay, the driver sincerely apologizes to the passengers. However, by experiencing the coronavirus pandemic, I wondered why Japan is outdated. One is the advanced technology does not apply to government offices (even if it does, many do not work well). The second is remote work does not fit in Japan’s working culture. Let’s dig into these issues.

When will my coronavirus subsidy arrive?

On April 20th, the Japanese government approved to provide each Japanese resident who holds a resident’s card with 100,000 yen as a subsidy. People could apply for it via mail. If they have My Number by which the government can administrate individual information, they could apply online. The online process should have allowed the applicants to smoothly receive the money.

However, as of the middle of June, only 44% of the applicants received the money. Especially in some big cities such as Tokyo, Osaka, Nagoya, less than 20% of the applicants received it in the same period. Although 93% of the total was paid in July, some prefectures including Tokyo was still around 60%. Why was the process so slow?

A reason was the online process did not function. When the government announced the subsidy, the Japanese citizens rushed to their municipal office to create My Number. Actually, many people did not have their own My Number. In addition to this, My Number system itself had some problems in some areas. As of June, approximately 80 municipal governments declined the online application. Therefore, many people waited for mail from the government and should have filled in the necessary information and then returned the mail to the government. In short, the process ended up with manual work.

Is work form home difficult in Japan?

In governments, Japan’s high technology seemed not installed. Japan’s work culture has problems as well. When PM declared a state of emergency, lockdown did not happen, and the economy was not regulated. Many people still went to work physically. According to a survey done to 14,300 companies by Tokyo Shoko Research in July, only 31% answered as they shifted to remote work.

One of the reasons that many companies do not change their work style was Hanko (name stamp). Hanko is necessary for people or businesses in Japan to make a deal or contract. Even when you need approval from your boss or create a bank account, you must need the stamp on your paper. In fact, the survey showed that 43% answered Hanko culture hinders companies in digitizing.

New movement to digitize Japan

Under Suga Administration, Digital Ministry will be launched (in 2022?). The government will hopefully address these problems, though the average age of the new Cabinet is 71 years old… Regarding Hanko culture, the government is discussing it in Congress now. Japan has marvelous technology, therefore these issues can be solved soon, if the government and companies cooperate and speed up digitalization.

Under the pandemic, Japan lost a lot of positive economic effects from tourists. To tackle this problem, the government started a new program called ‘Go To Travel Campaign’ to Japanese citizens. Does the government really care about residents in Japan? Does it just prioritize the economy? This campaign is controversial in some ways.

What is Go To Travel Campaign?

The purpose of the campaign is to motivate people to travel during the pandemic, to revive local economies by visiting and spending money there, and to build a new norm of tourism under this harsh situation.

• People get a 35% discount from the total amount of their one-day trip or short-trip (domestic travel only).
• In addition, people get a voucher which is equivalent to 15% of their total expense for booking, by which they can buy products or receive service during their trip.
• This campaign covers up to 20,000 yen per person and per night (if a one-day trip, up to 10,000 yen)
• People can use the campaign over and over.
  (Reference: Japan Tourism Agency)

Why is the campaign controversial?

Go To Travel Campaign began from late July when the new cases in Japan rapidly increased, at that time, it was the highest in the past. Some governors such as Osaka were against this campaign, because they were afraid of the increase of more new cases in their regions. Even the governor of Tokyo, Yuriko Koike, suggested that the timing should be reconsidered.

Considering the high infected rate in Tokyo, the government announced that Go To Travel Campaign will start except for residents in Tokyo and the tour packages to Tokyo will not be included in the campaign.

Wait a minute. It does not make sense at all. Here is the thing. Many people working in an office in Tokyo live in a suburb such as Saitama, Chiba, Kanagawa prefectures. They commute to Tokyo by a packed train every day.

The government announced that over 4 million people used Go To Travel Campaign between July 27th, just after the campaign launched, and August 13th. Meanwhile, in August, the new cases in Japan surpassed 1,000 in a day.

Go To Travel Campaign excluded Tokyo, however, the government decided to include Tokyo from this October. It is true that the number of infected people has been decreasing. Nevertheless, the more people from different regions interact with each other, the more people might get infected. In terms of the economy, this campaign could work well, however, Japan has a lot of the elderly. They have a much higher risk to die because of the coronavirus than younger generations. The Japanese government under the pandemic seems to prioritize the economy rather than to protect the citizens. The government should listen to people’s voices and provide what they really need.