Spill The Matcha

Fifty episodes of unfiltered late-night rants, cultural deep dives, dating disasters, and endless matcha. To celebrate this milestone,  Misato and Cherine  are taking a step back to answer the ultimate question every expat and local gets asked:  Why do we stay, and what drives us absolutely crazy?

This week,  Misato and Cherine  open up the vault on early-stage romance in Japan, breaking down the ultimate  Green Flags and Red Flags  you need to know before going on date number two.

Making genuine adult friends is tough anywhere in the world, but in Japan, navigating social circles can feel like playing chess in a foreign language! This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  tackle one of the most common, painful, and widely debated expat topics:  Why is making deep, lasting friendships in Japan so tricky?

No more hiding behind vague age groups—this week, the girls are laying all their cards on the table!  Cherine and  Misato are having an unfiltered, deeply empowering conversation about getting older, managing energy levels in a fast-paced country like Japan, and answering the big existential question:  Do we actually get happier as we age?

In this special comeback episode, Misato welcomes a jet-lagged but hyperactive Cherine back to Osaka. The girls unpack what it’s really like to return to your home country after years abroad—and the bizarre, surreal feeling of landing back in Japan.

Scroll through your phone for five minutes and everything looks picture-perfect—sunset coffee runs, flawless skin, and constant life wins. But how much of what we post is actually  real ? This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine get uncomfortably honest about the masks we wear online and whether social media has forced us all into becoming fake versions of ourselves. Sponsors: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠...

When was the last time you actually flipped through live broadcast channels? This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  break down the massive generational shift in how we consume media, contrasting European viewing habits with Japan's unique TV landscape. Cherine  opens up about the European media reality: for Millennials and Gen Z across Belgium and France, traditional TV channels...

With her trip to Belgium just around the corner,  Cherine  is currently facing every expat’s worst nightmare: fitting a mountain of Japanese souvenirs into a single checked bag. This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  break down the ultimate guide to  buying gifts in Japan  for friends and family back in Europe. The girls explore the massive cultural difference between casual Western...

After living in Japan's hyper-organized, ultra-polite bubble, heading back to Europe hits a little differently. This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Cherine is packing her bags for a trip back to her home country of Belgium , and the pre-departure jitters are real. The girls have a candid, heart-to-heart conversation about how European society transformed during and after the COVID-19 pandemic—fr...

Grab a giant cup of Matcha because we are dropping our  very first 1-hour mega episode! This week, we are diving deep into the beautiful, confusing, and completely essential world of Japanese linguistics. Specifically, Misato is putting Cherine through the ultimate linguistic gauntlet:  Giseigo and Gitatago (Japanese Onomatopoeia). In English, things go "buzz" or "splash." But...

If you think Japanese fashion is all about quiet minimalism and blending into the crowd, think again. This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  take a deep dive into the history, philosophy, and modern comeback of  Gyaru culture . Originating as a massive counter-culture movement in the 1990s and 2000s, Gyaru was a direct middle finger to traditional societal expectations of what a &qu...

After weeks of playing the cultural guide, Misato is finally taking total control of the microphone. This week on  Spill the Matcha , it’s time for  This or That: Japan Edition , and Cherine is firmly in the hot seat. Misato has curated a list of the most agonizing, hilarious, and deeply telling lifestyle dilemmas that anyone living in Japan eventually has to face. From traditional daily habits to...

Fix your hair and check your lighting, because  Spill the Matcha  is officially on video! This week,  Misato and Cherine  hit a major milestone with their first-ever visual episode. But instead of celebrating quietly,  Cherine drops a bomb that threatens the entire existence of the show: she absolutely, unconditionally detests matcha.  Watch Misato go through the five stages of grief on camera as...

Japan might be famous for its low street-crime rate, but behind closed screens, a different kind of predator is on the rise. This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato  catches  Cherine  completely off guard by diving into the dark, sophisticated world of  Kokusai Romance Sagi  (International Romance Scams) currently plaguing Japan. Sponsors: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ninja Wifi (use Code MATCHA10 for 10% OFF)⁠

If you walk through any major entertainment district in Japan, your senses are instantly bombarded by giant flashing screens, deafening ad trucks, and a small army of people trying to hand you things. This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  are pulling back the curtain on  Japanese street advertising and neighborhood scams. Sponsors: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ninja Wifi (use Code MATCHA10 for 10% OF...

Remember when staying out until 5:00 AM was a breeze and hangovers didn't last two business days? Yeah, Misato and Cherine barely remember those days either. This week on  Spill the Matcha , the girls are getting real about  clubbing in your 30s , focusing on the wild contrast between Osaka’s two biggest nightlife hubs:  Amerikamura (Amemura)  and  Umeda . Sponsors: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Ninja Wifi (use Co...

From "alphas" and "simps" to "incels," Western internet culture loves a label. But how does Japan categorize its male population? This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  take a deep, unfiltered dive into the fascinating, hilarious, and sometimes dark world of words used to describe men in Japan. The girls look at how Japan transitioned from mainstream so...

If a TV show wins ten Emmys but no one in Tokyo is talking about it, does it even exist? This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  explore the fascinating divide between what’s popular in the West versus what actually makes it big in Japan. To test the waters,  Cherine hosts a hilarious pop quiz for Misato  to see if she recognizes some of the biggest Western TV shows, games, and inter...

There are Disney fans, and then there are  Japanese Disney Fans . This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine take a trip into the vibrant, obsessive, and surprisingly disciplined world of Tokyo Disney Resort mania. While "Disney Adults" sometimes face a bit of internet side-eye in the West, in Japan, loving Disney as a full-grown adult isn't just normal—it’s practically a n...

Saying "I quit" shouldn't require a mediator, right? This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  break down the incredibly awkward, high-stress, and culturally complex world of  quitting a job in Japan.  While changing careers is normal in many parts of the world, Japan’s traditional corporate culture still treats leaving a company like a major breakup. The girls dive into...

Don’t let the title fool you—this might be our most high-stakes, adrenaline-pumping episode yet. This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  are diving into the obsessive, wallet-stretching, and strangely addictive world of  Japanese Point Cards. In the UK and Belgium, a loyalty card is just something taking up space in your wallet. But in Japan? It’s a way of life. From the iconic &quot...

Put down the roses and pick up the planner! This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  are debating which country truly wears the crown for romance. We all know the stereotypes—Italy and Spain are the lands of fiery passion and spontaneous grand gestures—but where does Japan fit in? The girls get real about why romance in Japan feels less like a movie and more like a carefully managed p...

No place is perfect, even if it looks like it on Instagram! This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  are getting brutally honest about the things they would change about their home countries— Japan and Belgium. From social etiquette to public infrastructure, the girls dive into the daily frustrations that make them roll their eyes. Things take a hilarious (and slightly gross) turn whe...

Why does everyone in Japan suddenly have the exact same keychain? And why do we all look like aliens in our latest  Purikura  photos? This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Misato and Cherine  are taking a deep dive into the fast-paced, glittery, and sometimes bizarre world of  Japanese fads and trends. From the "Seal Book" (sticker book) obsession of the 2000s to the high-tech photo booths o...

Imagine going from the neon-soaked, ear-splitting chaos of a Japanese Game Center to... a dark, dingy, and surprisingly depressing police station. This week on  Spill the Matcha ,  Cherine  tells the full story of the night she lost her wallet and her subsequent "adventure" with the law. Forget the high-tech Japan you see in movies; Cherine takes us inside the  Umeda Police Station , whi...