Unpacking Japan

Meet William Reed, also known as the renaissance samurai. He sits down to talk us about moving to Japan in the 1970s, his lifelong practice of martial arts and calligraphy, and his passion for teaching Namba, the samurai walk. 0:00 Intro0:44 Meet Will5:15 Discovering aikido9:06 Homestay in Japan13:17 Tokyo in 197217:38 Deciding to come back to Japan21:46 Returning in the 80s24:10 Practice of marti...

Meet Cory, a sofubi (soft vinyl toy) producer under his company Science Patrol. Cory sits down to talk to us about getting into sofubi, learning the trade and setting up his company here, creating officially licensed merchandise for Japan's one-day license events, and everything that goes into creating these toys.--0:00 Intro0:44 Meet Cory4:58 What are sofubi?8:44 Why so many kaiju?9:54 What&#...

Meet Berry, an idol from California performing in the group himi♡chuu. She sits down to talk to us about chasing her childhood dream of becoming an idol, turning an internet hate mob into an opportunity, and finally coming to perform in Japan.--0:00 Intro0:44 Meet Berry 5:07 Berry's idol dream8:08 The SORB3T incident15:58 Turning her setback into an opportunity24:01 Debut as a soloist28:45 Are...

Meet Karen Hill Anton, a writer who first came to Japan in the 1970s. She tells us about living in a martial arts dojo before moving to an old farmhouse and raising her children in the countryside, and sharing her experiences here as a writer.--0:00 Intro4:05 Living in a dojo7:48 Moving to an old farmhouse14:21 Deciding to stay long-term19:48 Life in Hamamatsu22:27 Karen's dance class24:24 Whe...

Meet Micaela, a vlogger based in Fukuoka, Japan. She sits down to talk to us about going to Japanese high school and music school, working as a full-time influencer at an agency in early YouTube, and her current life in Fukuoka.--0:00 Intro0:46 Meet Micaela3:05 First interest in Japan 6:25 Was Miyazaki a personal choice?8:02 High school in Japan 13:11 Why Japan became home14:36 Choosing Kyushu ove...

Meet Peter Frankl, a Hungarian mathematician living in Japan. Peter sits down to talk to us about his life and journey to Japan, his NHK series for children, and why he thinks the Japanese have a mathematician's mindset. -- 0:00 Intro 0:44 Meet Peter 5:14 Arriving in Japan in 1982 10:08 Researching in Japan 15:04 Peter's fascination with math 19:51 Japanese people are kind of like mathemat...

Meet Harry, an indie music promoter working in Tokyo. He sits down to talk to us about his love of Japanese indie music, the mind-boggling variety of acts you can find, and how you can get tickets as a foreigner in Japan. -- 0:00 Intro 0:44 Meet Harry 7:05 Interest in Japanese music 12:21 Japanese music has EVERYTHING 22:18 Favorite stories 26:51 How to support the scene 32:12 Helping foreigners g...

Meet Shibuya Kaho, a writer, cosplayer, and livestreamer from Tokyo. She sits down to talk with us about her time as a journalist, her book on the AV industry, and her current life as a streamer and cosplayer. -- 0:00 Intro 4:17 All-girls school in Japan 7:57 Journalism internship 11:48 Time as a sports journalist 17:58 Book about the AV industry 23:18 Reaction from the industry 29:52 Suing the AV...

Meet Zhafira, an Indonesian content creator who spent several years in Japan growing up, returning to Indonesia and coming back to Japan as an adult. She sits down to talk to us about her life between countries and the challenges faced by Japanese Muslims and Muslim immigrants here. -- 0:00 Intro 0:44 Meet Zhafira 4:24 Growing up Muslim in Japan 8:31 Going to school as a Muslim in Japan 11:10 Cult...

Meet Dani, a content creator from Venezuela also known as the guy in the fox mask. Dani sits down to talk to us about his journey to Japan, what it was like for him to work here, the reality of being a Japan content creator, and where the heck the mask came from. -- 0:00 Intro 0:44 Meet Dani 6:37 Start in content creation 9:24 Content creation process 13:06 Becoming a full-time creator 16:52 How t...

Meet Evie, a fashion model and content creator living in Tokyo. Evie sits down to talk to us about her interest in Japanese fashion, how Japanese styles are being taken overseas, and her own fashion and feminism content.--0:00 Intro0:44 Meet Evie5:44 Coming to Japan for fashion8:57 Where subcultures come from11:19 Foreign view on subcultures12:12 Moving to Japan16:35 Job hunting in Japan21:11 Star...

Meet Tove Bjoerk, a professor of Japanese culture and kabuki researcher at Saitama University, who sits down to talk to us about the history of kabuki. She tells us about the origins of kabuki performances, how it's evolved throughout the years, and the secret to why it remains so successful to this day.--0:00 Intro0:44 Meet Tove8:48 Interest in theatre9:56 Interest in Ichikawa Danjuro14:24 Wh...

Meet Chai Kanda, CEO of Shiki Properties in Kyoto, who sits down to talk about Japan's short-term rental market. He talks about his work restoring machiya for vacation rentals, Japan's tourism boom, and how regulations affect Japan's tourism industry. -- 0:00 Intro 0:45 Meet Chai 1:07 What brought Chai to Japan 2:07 Chai’s childhood in Japan 2:27 Leaving Sydney for Japan 2:51 Chai’s or...

Meet Ken Shibusawa, an economist and great-grandson of Eiichi Shibusawa, the father of Japanese capitalism. He sits down to talk to us about moving to Japan to rediscover his roots, discovering his great-grandfather's writings, and his own finance career in social entrepreneurship and connecting Japan to Africa. -- 0:00 Intro 0:46 Meet Ken 3:30 Moving to Japan 9:06 Starting a finance career in...

Meet Sora, a voice actor from Japan*, who sits down to talk to us about his life and career. He tells us about his struggles with his identity and how weebs helped him learn to be proud of his country, his journey from English teacher to voice actor and creator, and the absolute state of Japan content. *yes really -- 0:00 Intro 0:46 Is Sora actually Japanese? 4:21 How weebs changed his perception...

Meet Chloé Viatte, a French professor and bunya ningyo joruri puppeteer, who sits down to talk to us about this rare Japanese theatre. She tells us about her journey to Japan and interest in puppeteering, how these puppets are operated, and why they might disappear forever. -- 0:00 Intro 0:44 Meet Chloe 5:35 Planning to move to Japan 7:35 First time in Japan 10:03 Life in Niigata 12:06 Interest in...

Meet Osama Ibrahim, an Egyptian opthamologist practicing in Japan. He sits down to talk to us about getting his medical license here, his work as a researcher, and the challenges he's had as a foreign doctor in Japan. -- 0:00 Intro 0:46 Meet Ibrahim 4:21 Coming to Japan 8:07 PhD in Japan 14:49 Overcoming the language barrier 19:35 Getting a Japanese medical license 26:03 Passing the exam 30:07...

Meet Chani, a teacher and content creator that sits down to talk with us about moving to Japan at almost 50. She tells us about her first homestay experience in Japan, life as a teacher bringing her students here, buying an akiya here and her big move to her next stage in life.--0:00 Intro0:44 Meet Chani2:52 Homestay in Japan6:03 Move back to Japan9:55 Moving back at 5019:34 Japanese teacher to En...

Meet Luna, a model living in Tokyo who performs as a drag queen under the name Andromeda. She sits down to talk with us about being queer and transgender in Japan, and why older people keep asking her why being trans is considered an issue -- 0:00 Intro 0:45 Meet Andromeda 6:18 Moving to Japan & working at fashion company 11:17 Life in the Japanese fashion industry 12:54 Interest in kimono 17:...

Meet Kodo Nishimura, a Pure Land Buddhist monk. He sits down to talk with us about growing up in a buddhist temple as a gay man, learning to understand himself studying abroad, and rediscovering his own calling as a monk. --Follow Kodo:https://www.kodonishimura.com/https://www.instagram.com/kodomakeup/https://www.tiktok.com/@kodomakeuphttps://x.com/kodonishimura ⁨@KodoNishimuraMakeup⁩ Follow us:ht...

Meet Peppe, an Italian mangaka who gained international attention after his appearance on the reality show Terrace House. He sits down to talk with us about his journey to Japan and struggle to get published while studying Japanese and working as a fashion model, to his time on Terrace House just as he was making his debut as a serialized mangaka.--0:00 Intro0:46 Meet Peppe6:20 Deciding to move to...

Meet Jaya, a content creator documenting renovating his dream house in Japan. He sits down to talk to us about finding the ideal akiya, the auction process, and everything they've put into renovations so far.--Follow Jaya: www.youtube.com/@TokyoLlama https://www.instagram.com/tokyo_llama/Follow us:https://unpacking.jp/https://www.instagram.com/unpacking_japanhttps://www.tiktok.com/@unpackingja...

Meet Randy Soei, a tea master from Canada, who sits down to talk with us about why the tea ceremony is unlike any other Japanese art. He talks to us about his history with martial arts, the role of tea in Japanese culture, and the beauty of the tea ceremony. --Follow Randy: https://15-1a.com/ https://www.instagram.com/soei151a/https://www.facebook.com/ranhotei https://x.com/ranHotei Follow us:http...

Meet Ian, founder of e-commerce tea platform Yunomi Life, who sits down to talk with us about the state of Japan's matcha industry. He tells us about the sudden growth of the tea industry, how sustainable it is, competition from countries like China, and the whether or not the matcha industry is really a bubble.-- Follow Ian: https://yunomi.life/https://www.instagram.com/yunomiteahttps://www.i...

Meet Trevor, a baseball journalist reporting on the Hanshin Tigers to foreign and overseas fans. Trevor sits down to talk to us about the importance of Japanese baseball, his own journey to Japan, and why Tigers fans are so passionate about their team. -- Follow Trevor: https://x.com/thehanshintiger https://trevorraichura.substack.com/ Follow us:https://unpacking.jp/https://www.instagram.com/unpac...