Category Archives: Travel

Life In Japan: National Holidays

Posted on May 28, 2019 by johnrachel

Holidays here in Japan are innocent, demonstrating cultural pride and appreciation. I can’t help but smile and be grateful I’m not hearing war drums, 21-gun salutes, and parades of politicians moralizing about the honor of dying on the battlefield. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Ground Golf

Posted on May 10, 2019 by johnrachel

Why does my hometown maintain a huge playing field for ground golf? To give old folks something to do and an excuse to socialize. Can you imagine? Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Planting Rice

Posted on April 5, 2019 by johnrachel

Preparing the soil to plant rice is a wet, muddy, mucky mess. l know because I’ve watched them prepare the fields directly in front of my house several years on and off. It’s astonishing how quickly the rice grows. Soon our entire valley is an intense, vibrant green, going from almost incandescent lime to the rich, deep emerald of a mature plant. Maybe I have too much time on my hands and too little excitement, but when I ride my bike through the fields of viridescent rice, I’m struck by the incredible beauty of it all. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Shoes!

Posted on February 25, 2019 by johnrachel

Japanese DO NOT wear their shoes inside their homes. I can’t begin to tell you how difficult this was for me to understand and adjust to when I initially arrived. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: JA

Posted on January 20, 2019 by johnrachel

JA stands for Japan Agriculture. JA is a huge, sprawling organization, with hundreds of stores, facilities, and offices across the entire country. But … it’s not a corporation. It’s not a government facility, branch, or department. It’s a COOPERATIVE! Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Taylor Swift in Tokyo

Posted on January 10, 2019 by johnrachel

In November 2018, my wife Masumi, her daughter Izumi, and yours truly, ambled like sheep with close to 50,000 other folks into the Tokyo Dome for an evening of pop entertainment featuring Charli XCX and Taylor Swift. The arena concert was a technological marvel and my whole life passed before me. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Kobe’s Luminarie

Posted on December 20, 2018 by johnrachel

There are so many dazzling, interesting, spectacular festivals and celebrations going on in Japan, it’s often overwhelming. The Luminarie is extremely beautiful but more somber than most. It has been held every year now for twenty-three years in downtown Kobe, to commemorate the thousands of victims of the 1995 earthquake which devastated much of the city. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Japanese Maples

Posted on November 27, 2018 by johnrachel

We make a point of going every year to Kumanoshingu Shrine for its spectacular Japanese Maple trees, which in November turn fire red, yellow, orange, brown, and every shade in between. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: Western Holidays

Posted on November 12, 2018 by johnrachel

I admit, at first I had mixed feelings when I encountered Western holidays in Asia.  Wasn’t it cultural pollution?  Wasn’t any place safe from Ken and Barbie dolls, the Easter Bunny, Superman, Santa Claus, Ronald McDonald, Taylor Swift? Gradually, however, I’ve adjusted to the fact that in Asia, Japan in particular, the modus operandi tends to be a sponge more than a condom.  The cultural roots here are so deep, a little cross-pollination actually reinforces the uniqueness of the region’s distinctive features. Continue reading →

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Life In Japan: A Morning at the Clinic

Posted on September 15, 2018 by johnrachel

I have one story that accurately represents how the “socialized” health care works here, straight from my perspective as a patient. Let me say up front, I’m completely blown away by health care in Japan, but I’ll let you judge for yourself the merits of centrally organized and controlled health care. Continue reading →

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