Random Japan

Three common complaints foreigners have about Christmas in Japan, and how to make peace with them

Casey Baseel

‘Tis the season for grumbling about cultural differences, but does it have to be?

Japan absolutely loves Christmas. As a matter of fact, with holiday decorations up all over Japan, Christmas almost seems to have become as much a part of Japanese life as cherry blossom viewing parties in the spring.

Of course, expats and overseas visitors are acutely aware of the fact that Christmas is an imported holiday. What’s more, Japan’s yuletide festivities don’t quite sit right with all of them, which leads to some common complaints from foreigners in Japan about how the country celebrates Christmas.

STATS

• ¥156.8 billion: Amount of “wasteful” government spending in fiscal 2014, according to the Board of Audit
• 20-50 percent: Price increase for select items at Muji shops in Japan, thanks to hikes in the cost of cotton and other raw materials
• 8: Consecutive months that Toyota’s Aqua hybrid has been the bestselling car in Japan

POLICE BLOTTER

• MPD officers arrested three people for producing and selling counterfeit goods featuring characters from the hit videogame/anime series Yokai Watch.
• The scheme allegedly netted the perpetrators more than ¥1 billion.
• Police in Chiba busted two Indonesian expats for allegedly attempting to export a rifle scope back to their homeland.
• One of the men had allegedly posted a video of Osama bin Laden on his Facebook page.

Angry At The Yakuza?
Hit Their Office With Your Car

What Percentage Of Japanese Think Lawmakers Are Untrustworthy?
49%


Japanese Marriage 
Stay's In The 19th Century

Studio Ghibli unveils new animated film set for release in Japan next year

Japan’s most famous anime production house is back in the animation saddle, with a European director holding the reins.

For some time now, there’s been speculation about just what’s to become of Studio Ghibli in the post-Hayao Miyazaki era. The anime production house has seemed more than a little rudderless since the retirement of the legendary director who co-founded the company, with some of its higher-ups even musing that it might be time to just go ahead and shutter the production side of the business.

But animation fans the world over will be happy to know that Ghibli is now at work on a new animated movie, titled “The Red Turtle.” However, it’s debatable whether or not it should be called anime, since it’s a co-production with Europe’s Wild Bunch, and has a Dutch director and French screenwriter.