Japan Station: Deep Dives into Japanese Culture, Language & Society

On this episode of Japan Station , we go through a list of some of the most unique and interesting slang of Japan's Taishō period (1912-1926). 👉Topics Discussed Popular Taishō era slang How polie during the Taishō era used to say  moshi moshi Why it was an insult to call someone Mitsukoshi during the Taishō era What it was like during the Taishō era Taishō era youth culture What a  gomu geta  was...

On this episode of Ichimon Japan we ask: 10 Reasons You'll Hate Living in Japan. Really? Topics Discussed Reasons why you may hate living in Japan No trash cans Why there are few public trash cans in Japan Where to find trash cans in Japan Whether it's rude to walk while eating or drinking in public in Japan Lack of soap in public restrooms Individually wrapped items About not being able to have t...

On this episode of Japan Station , I break down the two very different meanings of the word okuribito . 👉Topics Discussed About the 2008 Japanese film Departures (Okuribito) What does  okuribito  mean? What does おくりびと mean? What does  okuribito 億り人 mean? The Japanese slang term  okuribito Why it is more difficult to become an "okuribito" in Japan now And much more! 👉Subscribe to the Podc...

On this episode of Japan Station , I talk to Ami Eldridge, the co-founder of Sumizumi LLC, a company in rural Kochi Prefecture trying to revitalize the area through charcoal production. 👉Topics Discussed About Ami Eldridge's efforts to revitalize rural Kochi Prefecture About the Niyodo Town and Niyodogawa River area About how Sumizumi LLC is using charcoal and akiya (abandoned houses) to revitali...

On this episode of Japan Station , author Hiroko Yoda joins us to talk about the complexities of religious and spirituality in Japan, a topic she covers in her new book  Eight Million Ways to Happiness . 👉Topics Discussed Why Hiroko Yoda was told to tell people she's Buddhist before going to the U.S. to study abroad About "Yaoyorozu no kami" About the history of the word for religion (shūkyō, 宗...

On this episode of Japan Station , we talk all about Jaan's most famous "local mascot" Kumamon. We cover everything you should know about Kumamoto's most beloved bear. I also share an absolutely crazy story that happened to me when I went to see the Kumamon show in Kumamoto in the fall os 2025. 👉Topics Discussed About Kumamon How Kumamon was created The history of Kumamon Who created Kumamon How...

This is a re-broadcast of episode 65 of the Ichimon Japan podcast (originally published on 12/21/2022). On this episode of Ichimon Japan we ask: What is Christmas like in Japan? (About Japanese Christmas) Topics Discussed All about Christmas in Japan Japanese Christmas customs in Japan All about fried chicken and Christmas in Japan Why KFC is the thing to eat during Christmas in Japan How Christma...

On this episode of Japan Station , I dig into the world of dead Japanese Bubble Era slang. Specifically, I talk about the term  hanakin (花金). Also I talk about the days of the week during World War II in Japan. 👉Topics Discussed What is  hanakin What  hanakin  means About the kanji used to write  hanakin How I learned the days of the week in Japanese How there were no weekends during World War...

On this episode of Japan Station , Sensei Martian talks about what it was like walking 3200 km from Cape Sata, the southernmost point on mainland Japan, to Cape Soya, the northernmost point on mainland Japan. 👉Topics Discussed About the Kyushu Challenge Why Sensei Martian decided to walk 3200 km/3000 miles+ across Japan About walking the old Tokaido Road About walking from the southern end of Jap...

On this episode of Japan Station , I talk about the Kyushu Challenge, my recent 558 km walk from Iwakuni, Yamaguchi to Sakurajima, Kagoshima. 👉Topics Discussed About the Kyushu Challenge The route I took to walk from Iwakuni in Yamaguchi Prefecture to Sakurajima in Kagoshima Prefecture About how a restaurant owner gave me money How I appeared on TV in Yamaguchi Prefecture About kawara soba About...

On this episode of Japan Station , I talk about how I was able to save money on airfare for my latest trip to Japan. I also share how I almost lost money due to a luggage issue and I talk about why regional JR passes can save you lots of money while traveling in Japan. 👉Topics Discussed How I get the cheapest plane ticket to Japan ever About smartfares.com Why you should check how many bags you a...

This is a rebroadcast of episode 76 of  Ichimon Japan . On this episode of Ichimon Japan we talk about the history of pillows in Japan and an absurd belief regarding the sleeping Topics Discussed About the history of pillows in Japan About early pillows in Japanese history About the evolution of pillows in Japan About pillows during the Edo Period About  hakomakura  (box pillows) About the oldest...

On this episode of Japan Station , we're talking about 4 more words in Japanese. What's a mora? And why are there so many four mora words in Japanese? We talk about all taht and more! 👉Topics Discussed What is a mora? What's the difference between a mora and a syllable The possible origins of nikujaga How Japanese love to shorten terms to four mora/four kana The possible origin of the word  jagai...

On this episode of Japan Station , we talk about some of Tokyo's most popular tourist sites. Are they tourist traps or worth your time? We're also joined by stand up comedian and tour guide Shuhei "Shoe" Murakami. 👉Topics Discussed Is Tokyo Skytree a tourist trap? Should you visit it? Should you visit Tokyo Tower? Should you visit Tokyo Disneyland? Is it a tourist trap? Is Tokyo Disneyland expens...

Hey guys! I'm holding another get together in Tokyo. This time it's to celebrate the end of the Kyushu Challenge. It will be on Nov 1st at 6 pm at Pintology Tokyo! Here is Pintology Tokyo's Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pintologytokyo/ I'll be back soon enough with the usual programming!

This episode was originally broadcast as an episode of Ichimon Japan. On this episode of Ichimon Japan we ask: What is wasei eigo? (Funny "Japanese" English) Topics Discussed What wasei eigo is About English sounding words made in Japan tenshon ga takai pākā How SNS is not English arubaito nōtopasokon buraindotacchi misu misesu rippukurīmu hocchikisu OL sararīman (salaryman) shīchikin interi haiso...

On this episode of Japan Station , we're talking about Japanese idioms involving the color red (赤, aka, seki). For example, have you ever wondered why lies are red in Japanese? Listen to find out! 👉Topics Discussed Japanese idioms involving the color red Why 真っ赤なウソ/ makka na uso means a "complete lie" and what the color red has to do with lies Also discussing other idioms such as  sekirara...

On this episode of Japan Station , we're joined by documentary filmmaker Ema Ryan Yamazaki to talk about her latest documentary  The Making of a Japanese  and her latest short documentary Instrument of a Beating Heart . During the conversation we focus on the making of these films, what makes Japanese elementary schools unique, the role Japanese elementary schools play in shaping Japanese society,...

Check out the links below for more Supernatural Japan episodes! Supernatural Japan Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/supernatural-japan/id1616675498 Supernatural Japan Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/35FkGE7Kc9bXFGpt37ZF2y

On this episode of Japan Station , we're talking about the history of font design in Japan, the history of the Nintendo font and how Daniel Kaihatsu became a type face designer in Japan. 👉Topics Discussed Why Daniel Kaihatsu became interested in learning Japanese How Daniel Kaihatsu became interested in Japanese font design About doing research for videos in Japanese language About copyright and...

This was originally broadcast as episode 21 of Ichimon Japan. On this episode of Ichimon Japan we ask: What's so scary about the hour of the ox? Topics Discussed All about Japan's old way of telling time that was based on the 12 animals of the Chinese Zodiac ( eto ) Which "animals" in the old Chinese Zodiac based way of telling time correspond to which hours in the modern way of telling time Why t...

On this episode of Japan Station , we're talking about the difference between the Japanese word  kaze  (cold, 風邪) and  kaze  (wind, 風). Why do they share the same pronunciation? Are they related? Or is this all just a big coincidence? Listen to find out! 👉Topics Discussed About visiting Japan for the first time What the difference between  kaze (風邪) and kaze (風) is The history of the words ...

On this episode of Japan Station , we're talking about some of the annoying things people have to deal with when moving to Japan. Our guest this time is the CEO of Mobal, Declan Somers. 👉Topics Discussed About visiting Japan for the first time About moving to Japan and working in a Japanese company in the late '90s Japan in the '90s versus Japan today About job possibilities for foreigners in Jap...

On this episode of Japan Station , we're talking to Quinlan from the GoNorth Japan YouTube channel about surviving a bear encounter in Japan, hiking in the Tohoku area of Japan and more. 👉Topics Discussed About bear attacks and encounters in Japan How to prevent encounters with bears while hiking in Japan Whether bear bells and whistles are effective in warding off bears About Quiinlan's encounte...

On this episode of Japan Station   we ask: What was it like walking the Tokaido Road? NOTE: This is a re-broadcast of episode 78 of the  Ichimon Japan  podcast. Topics Discussed About the Tokaido Challenge About what it was like walking the Tokaido Road About the challenges of walking the Tokaido Road About what it was like walking from Kyoto to Tokyo About getting stopped by police in Kyoto About...