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	<title>Japan Uptown</title>
	<link>http://japanuptown.com</link>
	<description>Blogging everything on Japan. Japanese culture, lifestyle, foods, entertainment such as music, movies, tv shows and manga.. !!</description>
	<lastBuildDate>Sat, 19 Dec 2009 00:45:06 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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		<title>Black Onsen Eggs of Owaku-dani</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In many hot spring resorts in Japan (called as ‘onsen’), you will be able to fine onsen eggs – which basically is boiled eggs.
These onsen eggs are made by dipping the eggs in the very hot onsen water. Most onsen eggs are soft-boiled and the weird part is that most of the time the yolk is harder than the white. A natural miracle? You can perhaps say so since this is not the normal phenomenon of soft-boiled egg where you will have the whites harder than the yolk. But if ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/black-onsen-eggs-of-owaku-dani/</link>
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		<title>Basics of Food and Cuisine in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Eating authentic Japanese food and cuisine will always be your true and complete aesthetic experience – the sort that you will never find elsewhere.
It’s exactly the exquisite oriental feeling every time you dine with traditional taste and settings of Japanese foods and cuisines. Japanese food is a real deal of delight for the eyes, the nose and palate. Previously, I’ve posted some articles of the types of Japanese foods like Onigiri and Taiyaki. These foods may seem a little typical but you can expect a much more elegant and beautifully ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/basics-of-food-and-cuisine-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Festival and Traditional Annual Event: Akoh Gishi Sai</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Akoh Gishi Sai or &#8220;The Forty-Seven Loyal Retainers in Akoh&#8221; is one of the many festivals in Japan, which is traditional in nature.
If you’ve heard of the samurai movie ‘Chushingura’, then you have all the reason to know about Akoh Gishi Sai. If you are a follower of the Japanese culture, history and lifestyle, you will probably have noticed the extent of loyalty in their lives. Being loyal to one’s Country, King, Lords, Masters and Parents is basic knowledge and ethic in the Japanese people since the ancient times. Although ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-festival-traditional-annual-event-akoh-gishi-sai/</link>
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		<title>Japan&#8217;s Top Idol Boy Band &#8211; KAT-TUN</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Kat-tun, is the latest craze and idol in Japan for many young adults and teenagers.
Consisting of six fine looking men who flourished individually as well, they are ready to rock on Japan more now and in the future. Kat-tun is an all boy band, a product under the label of the famous male groups producer – Johnny Jimusho or Johnny’s and Associates. The members were around since they were all still around junior high school students and have been performing to other older generations of Johnny’s groups and singers like ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japans-top-idol-boy-band-kat-tun/</link>
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		<title>Seniority, Age superstition and Legal age in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In Japan, customs and traditions still prevails to these days.
VK8TYGJH2XG5 Even though the current society has been much modernized, there are still substantial traditional and customary impact in their daily lives. For social purposes, age is reckoned in both relative and absolute terms. Relative age is set by order of birth: one is senior, peer, or junior to someone else. Japanese often claim that theirs is a uniquely “vertical” society, pervaded by rules of seniority. Seniority rules, however, are common to modern institutions such as schools, corporations, and bureaucracies in ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/seniority-age-superstition-and-legal-age-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>Travel journal: For The Love of Koi</title>
		<description><![CDATA[This is just a small guide on how to buy Koi fish in Japan when you do not have enough time to spend there.
Undoubtfully, the best koi breeds are the ones you can find in Japan, and only in Japan mostly. Initially, the famous place for koi breeding in Japan is in Niigata prefecture, on the northwest coast of Honshu. But it is rather difficult to buy koi fish there when you will only be in Japan for a few days. Nevertheless, my passion for koi fish still brought me ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/buying-locating-koi-fish-breeding-place-japan/</link>
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		<title>Soft Drinks in Japan and Weird Names Pt1 Pocari Sweat</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Honestly speaking, Japan is not only a country that is unique naturally, but also in the modern context, Japan excelled as a country that produces a lot of exotic brand names and products. If you’ve ever been to Japan for some time, you will probably get used to seeing a lot of vending machines and almost anywhere. These vending machines sell a wide range of product types and one of them are soft drinks and beverages, which also came with unique and bizarre names. One of it is an energy ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-soft-drinks-pocari-sweat/</link>
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		<title>Hinomaru &#8211; National Flag of Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Japan is known as land of the rising sun, and they have a good reason to be called with this nickname. The sun in the Japanese history is something that is worshiped as a deity. As a matter of fact, the chief divinity in the Shinto pantheon is the sun goddess, Amaterasu Omikami. Through this, you can guess to what extend is the sun for the Japanese people in the olden times.
The sun can also be seen from the national flag of Japan or more popularly known in Japan as ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/hinomaru-national-flag-of-japan/</link>
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		<title>Simple Breakfast Japanese Style – Onigiri Recipe</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Onigiri is the typical Japanese breakfast menu.
It is a very easy, convenient and even portable Japanese dish that is possible for people around the world to enjoy. Onigiri or rice balls are often enjoyed with sips of ‘miso shiru’ or miso soup, which is based on soybean and the fillings of Onigiri can be vary according to your taste and preferences. You can even make it a vegetarian-based meal suitable for both breakfast and even lunch. With the help of a handy onigiri mold that you can obtain from the ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/simple-japanese-breakfast-onigiri-recipe/</link>
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		<title>Between Johnny’s Jimusho, Johnny’s Entertainment and Johnny Kitagawa</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Johnny’s Jimusho, Johnny’s Entertainment and Johnny Kitagawa are all big names in Japan, especially among music lovers, young adults and teenagers.
The Japanese modern music industry had seen a huge contribution from the Johnny’s Jimusho, established by the ‘father of boy bands’ – Mr. Johnny Kitagawa since way back in the 1960s. If you are a fan of the recent days Japanese boy bands, perhaps you might find it a little weird to find out that the template of their music was actually much more or less based on enka and ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/johnnys-jimusho-johnnys-entertainment-and-johnny-kitagawa/</link>
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		<title>Japan Tourist Attractions &#8211; Kiyomizu Temple</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Japan is most well-known for its many outstanding and extraordinary build of temples and shrines, one temple that is very well-known is the Kiyomizu Temple or Kiyomizu-dera.
It will pretty wasted if you didn’t get the chance to actually seen Kiyomizu Temple with your own eyes, if ever you have the chance to visit Kyoto even for a shirt while. I can guarantee most tour groups to Japan will have a short stop here at Kiyomizu Temple. You can say it is one of the most famous tourist spot in Japan ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japan-tourist-attractions-kiyomizu-temple/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Dumpling Gyoza Madness!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Gyoza, once tasted you will want more. Gyoza is actually Japanese dumpling which is very famous food in Japan, usually as a dinner meal both at home or eating out. Japanese dumpling has its credit to the origin, the Chinese dumpling which is also a famous and authentic food by the Chinese people. However, the Chinese version of dumpling came in many different forms and taste, but as for Japanese dumpling, practically there is only one kind that is well-known and famous for (like the one shown in the picture), ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-dumpling-gyoza-madness/</link>
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		<title>Ninja, The Secret Weapon of Japan&#8217;s Wartime</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Knowledge of feudalism in Japan may not be complete without getting to know about Ninja or Shinobi, the Japanese mercenary who specialized in unorthodox arts of war.
A ninja can get pass you unnoticed, like a ghost passing by and you will probably have to rely to your sixth senses to feel certain presence but yet unseen. You will find it a lot in movies, epic and historical Japanese dramas, Japanese animation or anime, video games and comic books or manga. If you’re into cosplaying, you will find that ninja is ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/ninja-the-secret-weapon-of-japan-wartime/</link>
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		<title>Hiroyuki Sanada, The Successful Japanese Actor on International Screen</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Somehow, Hiroyuki Sanada gives me the impression as the Asian Robert Deniro.
You might see his face randomly on the TV and certain movies, but he’s actually a well known and respected public figure in the Japanese world of entertainment. You’ll be astounded to see his performance in samurai dramas and movies, and the world got to see the best of him from ‘The Last Samurai’ and also through ‘Sunshine’ which he co-starred next to big names like Tom Cruise and Asian martial art superstar babe, Michelle Yeoh. You’ll probably caught ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/hiroyuki-sanada-successful-japanese-actor-on-international-screen/</link>
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		<title>Interesting Japanese Ancient Custom: Ohaguro or Black Teeth</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Yellow teeth are a real turn off, but black teeth are a major turn on, for the ancient Japanese people at least. Ohaguro simple means to blacken the teeth.
It is an old Japanese custom that was so popular centuries ago in Japan, and up to the Meiji period at the end of the 19th century. If you’re lucky enough, you could probably catch a glimpse of this black teeth phenomenon in Kyoto nowadays by Geisha ladies. In the olden days, most married Japanese women, some aristocrats, samurai and even those ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-ancient-custom-ohaguro-or-black-teeth/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Cartoon and Animation or Anime</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Animation is not unusual to Japan – they have the ‘anime’ or the Japanese way of saying animation. The world outside Japan regards whatever kind of animation that the country produced as anime or Japanese animation and it was originated way back in 1917. It’s that old! And we only thought it was somewhere nearer to this century we’re living in now, right? Anime is a major boomer and real big business in Japan, and it has been spreading around the world too. There are millions if not billions of ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-cartoon-and-animation-or-anime/</link>
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		<title>Yokohama, the City of the 21st Century</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Yokohama &#8211; The second most populated city in Japan, is the capital of the Kanagawa perfecture located at Tokyo Bay, south of central Tokyo. It is also the city where the tallest building in Japan is located, which is the Yokohama Landmark Tower. You know how delicate Japanese people are with tall buildings. They don’t have much of it due to the frequency of earthquake all over the Japanese islands. Nevertheless, all the many kinds of attractions and development available in Yokohama have earned the city the title ‘The city ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/yokohoma-city-history-population-location-weather/</link>
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		<title>Koi Fish and Koi History: Between Hobby, Art and Heritage in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[‘Koi’ could mean two things in Japan, one is ‘Love’ and another is the main topic here – a specialty carp fish.
Both words are written in different Kanji though. Koi fish are actually the descendants of wild common carp that have been selectively bred since thousands of years ago for color, pattern, body shape, scales and personality. Yes, you can say it is another kind of Japanese art heritage that is cultivated through time. Now, the koi breeding has been spreading worldwide and there are various exhibition and competition held ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/koi-fish-and-history-hobby-art-and-heritage-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>All Time Best Japanese Female Singer &#8211; Namie Amuro Suite Chic</title>
		<description><![CDATA[People called her ‘The Queen of Pop’, the ultimate ‘The Dancing Queen’ and now even as ‘The Queen of Hip-hop’. With the groovy songs and complicated dance moves, Namie Amuro is really a superb singer who has lived up to her titles, even though there were jumps between her genre of music. Anybody who have seen her on stage would know what I mean. Her performances were always energetic, non-stop dancing with lots of difficult moves (try that with live singing as well) and great showmanship that earns five thumbs ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/all-time-best-japanese-female-singer-namie-amuro/</link>
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		<title>Halloween Costumes, Parties and Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Are you wondering of how people in Japan celebrate Halloween? But the question is whether they do celebrate it or not, right? 
Well, it’s really hard to say but the rising cosplay trends in Japan may have something to contribute to the celebration of Halloween in Japan. However, one of the common activities on the event are the ones usually held in Tokyo Disneyland and Osaka Universal Studio every year and there will always be a surprising number of people, usually young adults and teenagers who participated in the events.
In ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/halloween-costumes-parties-and-japan/</link>
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		<title>The Original Religion of Japan &#8211; Shinto and Shintoism</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Here are the basic information of the indigenous Japanese religion, Shinto and Shintoism.
Japanese in short can be described as natural practitioners of polytheism. Since the earliest history of Japan and the ancient people of Japan, they have been worshiping a number of Gods that are largely related to nature, such as the Sun Goddess, God of the Sea, God of lightning and many more. This natural spirituality of the Japanese people is called as Shinto or ‘Way of the Gods’. The similar term or description first appears in the historical ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/the-original-religion-of-japan-shinto-and-shintoism/</link>
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		<title>Journal 1: Find Tempura Restaurant in Yokohama</title>
		<description><![CDATA[One thing I wouldn’t miss the chance to do during my first trip to Japan is to experience first hand the local ‘Tempura’, with the original taste of Japan. I had to admit, it is completely different, and sadly to say it was so much better, way better than the ones available back at home. Sadly because I wouldn’t be able to try it every now and then and I would probably have to make a second trip to this land of the rising sun just to have a go ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/finding-tempura-restaurant-in-yokohama/</link>
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		<title>Japan Weather &#8211; The Striking Autumn in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Fall season or autumn (or ‘Aki’) in Japan starts in the early September, and it is also the season of typhoon. This year Japan was visited by infamous Typhoon Melor in the near mid of autumn. Weather resembling that of the rainy season also occurs because of the autumnal rain fronts. The weather clears in mid-October, and the winter winds start to blow. If summer is a season of fun, festivals and holidays, autumn in Japan is more like a season of relaxing and pure enjoyment of nature and it ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japan-weather-autumn-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>From Manga to Anime &#8211; The Funny Crayon Shin Chan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[If you’ve been following this blog, you’ll probably come across the post of the death of Yoshito Usui sensei, the creator, writer and artist for the all time favorite manga (perhaps next to Doraemon) – Crayon Shin Chan. The anime went hiatus for a while before the show was aired again on October 13, 2009. It was announced then the show would continue. Until when? That’s yet to be decided.
For information sake, Crayon Shin Chan was originally a manga or Japanese comic that follows the life of Shinnosuke Nohara or ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/manga-to-anime-the-funny-crayon-shin-chan/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Cuisine: Japanese Fried Food Tempura</title>
		<description><![CDATA[History may have recalled Japan as a healthy nation with low use of fat and oil ever since their early civilization and period. Perhaps, due to their way of life and healthy eating habits that many of Japan’s citizens are enjoying long life. Before tempura was introduced in Japan in the mid sixteenth century during the Tokugawa period by Portuguese missionaries, Japanese diet was basically made mostly of fish and vegetables, boiled or steam or made into soup eaten with cooked rice. The use of oil and fat was minimal ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-cuisine-fried-food-tempura/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Star Actress, Nanako Matsushima and GTO</title>
		<description><![CDATA[This is the first post of Japanese Actors/Actress and that would cover one of my favorite and very talented Japanese actresses of all time – Nanako Matsushima. She was entitled with the Best Actress Award several times on the Television Academy Awards in Japan which was held annually. The first time was in the year 1999, and later she made it onstage again in the 2000, 2002 and 2003.
Nanako Matsuchima was born on October, 1973 in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. She is a Libra with blood type A. On February ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-star-actress-nanako-matsushima/</link>
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		<title>The Most Expensive Hello Kitty Doll in the World??</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The most expensive cat in history would probably be the all time favorite character – Hello Kitty, which is adored by female especially from varying age groups. Being a little too weak to cute and cuddly things have really gotten me a little smitten with this really popular and cute cat. Anyhow, I just love and adore cats! Mieow~
Hello Kitty is a fictional character which portrays a white female cat wearing a red bow on one ear and with no drawn mouth. It was and still is produced by Sanrio, ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/the-most-expensive-hello-kitty-doll-in-the-world/</link>
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		<title>Fundamental of Japanese Alphabet: Hiragana, Katakana and Furigana</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Today, we’re going to talk about the Japanese writing system. One drawback when you’re visiting Japan is the lack of English directions and help menu, especially in much less busy places outside the big cities. However, you’ll still find foreigners-friendly areas in major big cities like Tokyo, Yokohama, Osaka as well as Yokosuka since there are a lot of foreigners and expatriates working at these places.
Is not impossible to learn and understand the basic Japanese writing. The first thing is that you have to know the fundamentals of Japanese writing ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-alphabet-hiragana-katakana-furigana/</link>
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		<title>The Prices and Benefits of Staying at a Ryokan in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Your trip to Japan may never be complete and thorough without a night stay at  Japanese traditional inns or what they called as ‘Ryokan’ in Japanese language, which is ran by local families for generation. If you’re vacationing in Japan for a few days, it won’t hurt to arrange for yourself one night stay at a ryokan around your visited area at an affordable price. It will be worthwhile since this is something you won’t be able to experience elsewhere in the world.
Ryokan, is where Japan has reigned supreme ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/the-prices-and-benefits-of-staying-at-a-ryokan-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>What&#8217;s Manga? &#8211; Get to know Japanese Comics Online</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Manga. A word that may be alien to you. Of course it is if you’re not a Japanese and you don’t even know what are ‘Doraemon’ is. I simply love manga, and I’m not embarrass to say that it was one of the reason as to why I started learning Japanese language. Perhaps the word comics is much more familiar to you right? Well, I guess I’ll tell you anyway.
Manga is a Japanese term for comics and printed cartoons. This word was only used in modern form, with an early ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/whats-manga-get-to-know-japanese-comics-online/</link>
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		<title>Tokyo Japan, Information, Population and Weather Check</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Tokyo, the capital and the heart of Japan, cannot be briefly described in just a few sentences or even in a single post. There are a whole lot of things to tell when it comes to Tokyo since you can find a multitude of activities in this huge area of about 2,187.08 sq km². Tokyo is the most populated city in Japan, followed by Yokohama and Osaka. The population of Tokyo is about 12.79 millions of people residing within the area with a density of about 5,800 people per km². ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/tokyo-japan-information-population-and-weather-check/</link>
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		<title>Getting and Eating Pizza in Japan &#8211; A Small Luxury</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Pizza – a very well-known meal worldwide, is actually a sheer luxury in Japan. Yes, you heard me right. A luxury in Japan, simply means that it is an expensive menu in Japan which can eventually cost you up to ¥3000 ++ (which is about $30++) for a single large pizza, without any other add-ons. If you’re living elsewhere where pizza is almost an everyday menu and affordable where your family can enjoy every now and then, this is probably an insane price to begin with! (It is insane since ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/getting-and-eating-pizza-in-japan-a-small-luxury/</link>
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		<title>Super Japanese Rock Band &#8211; L’arc~en~ciel a.k.a Laruku</title>
		<description><![CDATA[
It’s time for another top Japanese artiste / band profile. This time, it’ll be on L’Arc~en~ciel, or most commonly known among the Japanese fans as ‘Laruku’, since pronouncing their full band’s name properly is pretty difficult, even for me. L’Ar~en~ciel means Rainbow in French, in Japanese, Rainbow is pronounced as ‘Niji’. Laruku have been around for almost 18 years and they consist of four members:-
Takarai Hideto or more commonly known as Hyde, born on 29th January 1969 in Wakayama, Japan. The lead singer and main lyricist of Laruku and also ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/super-japanese-rock-band-larc-enciel-aka-laruku/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Greeting Etiquette and Customs – Lesson Two on Bowing</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Hello all, and welcome to lesson two of Japanese Greeting Etiquette and Customs! This time, it will be on the main form of physical greeting in Japan, which is bowing. Bowing, in the Japanese culture is much more common rather than giving a casual handshake or a hug (for much more casual and friendlier occasions), like people of other nation usually do. Bowing, together with its implication is actually quite complicated, especially for foreigners like us to comprehend.
Most social situations in Japan have an appropriate greeting, and bowing has many ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-greeting-etiquette-and-customs-lesson-bowing/</link>
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		<title>Another Interesting Facts About Japan &#8211; White Taiyaki?</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Previously, I’ve written a post about Taiyaki, a sort of traditional snack of pound cake with sweet red bean paste inside it. It also has the shape of a fish, which make it distinctive. One thing I forgot to mention about Taiyaki in my previous post is the fact that Taiyaki is often eaten during winter. It’s like some sort of a winter specialty whereby in winter, you’ll see a lot of Taiyaki stalls on many busy streets. But in other season, you probably can get it in department stores ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/another-interesting-facts-about-japan-white-taiyaki/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Papercraft –Origami Papercraft, The Art of Folding</title>
		<description><![CDATA[It’s time to get a little more artsy and crafty with another post on Japanese Papercraft, which in case you didn’t know, an art that has last for centuries! Origami is a very old Japanese art that could have possibly been dated back to the Heian period (794-1185) – the same birth period of Geisha, the unique, beautiful and extraordinary sexy courtesans of the Japanese high-class ancient society.
If I were to go through the history of Origami, I have to say, like most Japanese arts, Origami too was based on ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/origami-papercraft-the-art-of-folding/</link>
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		<title>Crayon Shin Chan Creator&#8217;s Tragic Death</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Whoever has never heard of Doraemon? A manga and anime character that has gain popularity worldwide. Kids everywhere love watching the anime on TV and reading the manga. On the day when the mangaka (a term known in Japan as a person who creates, write stories and draw comics) died, it was the day that many people, especially avid fans of the manga mourn altogether. Not only because there won’t be anymore releases but also because they’ve loved the mangaka, the ideas and good memories brought by him while reading ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/crayon-shin-chan-creator-tragic-death/</link>
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		<title>Vending Machines&#8217; Business in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Japan may be facing a declining birth rate, but not in the number of vending machines available in the country. In just no more than 4 years, there has been an additional of 100,000 more vending machines of all kinds available nationwide in Japan. In 2006, the number of vending machines was roughly 5.4 millions and in the year 2009, the figure has reached 5.5 million. Ratio is about one vending machine for every 20 people living in Japan.
Vending machines are called as &#8216;Jidou-hanbaiki&#8216; in Japan. These intelligent machines are ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/vending-machines-business-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Zodiac Origin and Information</title>
		<description><![CDATA[One more aspect that the Japanese people of the old times have outsourced from their nearest neighboring countries is the zodiac system, which in nature has many linkages with Buddhism. The Japanese zodiac system is so much similar to that of the ancient Chinese zodiac system, but in truth that is it the same thing after all. The Chinese zodiac system is rather ‘karmatic’ in nature. Something that is very well related to Buddhism. Instead of the linear pattern of the western calendar, the Chinese zodiac system adopted a set ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-zodiac-origin-and-information/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Greeting Etiquette and Customs – Lesson One on Forms of Address</title>
		<description><![CDATA[When it comes to forms of addressing a person while you’re in Japan, you’ll probably come across the –san suffix pretty often. The word –san is added to the end of a person’s name as a sign of respect. As you know, Japanese is classified as an extremely polite people in social and cultural context, especially with people they are not acquainted to. In the everyday life of Japanese people, the word –san is used as an addressing suffix added to a person family.
This is pretty similar to the English ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/lesson-one-on-forms-of-address/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Music Girl Group Profile: Speed – Starting Over, Again</title>
		<description><![CDATA[SPEED’s back in action! They’ve reunited back after 8 years of solo career for each members – certainly a very good news for their fans worldwide. They made it out when they are still so young and hype. SPEED is a Jpop girl group that was formed in 1995 and it their youngest member was only 12 at that time, bringing mostly songs of Pop and Ballad genre. They are the only girl group whose was chosen by Japanese people nationwide through a public vote. All four members are former ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/speed-starting-over-again/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Festivals: Tanabata Matsuri in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Japan is a country with a multitude range of festivals, celebrations, holidays and traditional ceremonial occasions, be it of their own origin or those derives form other cultures and later integrated into theirs. For your information, in Japan, festivals falls into two main categories; which are matsuri (simply means festivals) and nenchu gyoji (meaning annual events). Nenchu gyoji is also pronounced as ‘nenju gyoji’. Matsuri are usually festivals of native Japanese and Shinto origin. It is held annually on established dates sometimes decided by the shrine. Festivals which fall under ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/tanabata-matsuri-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>Japan Population Issue: Increasing Aging Population</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Japan is faced by another problem that literally may not sound much like a threat but reality couldn’t be much bitter. One thing for sure that it is one unique problem that is not faced by many countries – it’s Japan increasingly aging population or koreika shakai. It seems like the number of centenarians in Japan has doubled in the past six years to more than forty thousands people. That doesn’t add up yet the total increase of people above the age 60 years.

Japan has one of the world’s longest ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japan-increasing-aging-population/</link>
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		<title>Crazy fashion: Derelict Fashion in Japan’s Urban Streets</title>
		<description><![CDATA[If a single Japanese man from, let say the Tokugawa era, were to travel through time into the future, he would probably shocked with horror look on his face to see what modern Japan has to offer, especially in terms of fashion. Japan can be named as one of the main trendsetters of fashion in the world. If you’re looking for a little weirdness, freakiness with much creativity, I suggest for you to go look for Japanese youngsters in the subway and along the streets of Harajuku, Shinjuku or Shibuya.
Sometimes, ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/fashion-in-japan-urban-streets/</link>
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		<title>Nihonjin no Kigen: Where do the Japanese people came from?</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Here’s the tricky question – where do the Japanese people come from?
Most people would simply assume that the Japanese are either generations of the aborigines of the once isolated islands or people who happens to migrate into the island from the nearby mainland. However, the real answer is actually in both answers. Japanese people that lived on today are actually part of varying admixtures of the aborigines and the once continuously increasing immigrant population from the mainland, namely Korea and China.
Like the rest of the world, the Japanese land too ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/where-do-the-japanese-people-came-from/</link>
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		<title>Nihongo – The Language and Native Tongue of Japanese People</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The native language of the overwhelming majority of the more than 120 milions of population of the Japanese archipelago is called Nihongo, which is also a subject that they take with high pride. Why is that so? Well, it is rather hard to find typical Japanese people conversing and communicating in english. They find pride and honor in the very own language that they speak. But it doesn’t mean that they can’t understand and speak english at all. As a matter of fact, english is taught in middle and high ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/nihongo-the-language-of-japanese-people/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Paper Crafts: Kirigami Pepakura</title>
		<description><![CDATA[There are actually quite a number of japanese papercrafts but this time, I will talk and cover on kirigami or kirigami pepakura. The word ‘pepakura’ is a japanese translation of papercrafts written in katakana, while ‘kirigami’ literally means ‘cutting papers’ (‘kiri’ means to cut and ‘kami’ means paper. It is a type of Japanese art that involves a lot of cutting and also folding paper into certain shapes, ornamental objects and designs.
Kirigami is different from origami because it involves cutting to get a certain shape, though it also initially involves ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-paper-crafts-kirigami-pepakura/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Music Band Profile: Glay</title>
		<description><![CDATA[If you happened to have watched Blood: The Last Vampire and stayed till the end of the show, there is a high chance that you would probably find yourself enjoying the theme song called ‘I am XXX’ sung by a very popular Japanese band – Glay.
When it comes to Japanese rock music scene (or more commonly known as Jrock), Glay deemed as one classic commodity. This band can be claimed as one of the most respected music band in Japan, a veteran in their own arena, if not legendary enough. ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-music-band-profile-glay/</link>
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		<title>Oyoge Taiyaki-kun! Taiyaki, the Popular Japanese Snack</title>
		<description><![CDATA[It’s time for another one of the many popular Japanese Snacks! – Taiyaki or literally means ‘baked sea bream’. It is not a wonder why it presents an image of a bream, which is a type of a freshwater fish of the carp family. The Japanese, since the ancient time have been intrigued by fishes of the carp family. And this particular snack, which is no doubt delicious in its own way, is an old traditional Japanese snack that was once very popular and ubiquitous in every town. Each taiyaki ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/oyoge-taiyaki-kun-taiyaki-the-popular-japanese-snack/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Natural Art Heritage: Bonsai Trees &#8211; History and Care</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Japan is one nation that can never be separated from nature. As a matter of fact, they take pride in nature. They see and define the natural environment around them as holy beings. To the Japanese, all of the elements of nature possess spirits and emotions, aligning some the similarity to that of a human attributes. One that had been taken into deep particular interest by the Japanese is the bonsai plants.
.

Bonsai is a type of small plant (any kind of small trees!) that is nurtured in a small pot ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/bonsai-trees-its-history-and-care/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Yakuza, History and Current News</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In Japan, there is a special name for what we knew as ‘mafia’ or gangsters. They are called the yakuza. Yakuza can be considered as Japan’s organized criminals, divided into about 2,500 families or clans with possibily about more than 100,000 members altogether. Despite of their notorious demeanor and violent nature, their existence are accepted by the police and the Japanese society. The principal or top yakuza family would have to be the Yamaguchi-gumi. Others are like Sumiyoshi-kai, Inagawa-kai and Toa-kai.
Tracking their origin, the history of Yakuza may have been ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-yakuza-history-and-current-news/</link>
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		<title>Knowing Japanese Currency: Japanese Yen Exchange Rate</title>
		<description><![CDATA[For your point of information, and in case you didn’t know, in Japan, everything is paid using their own currency that is Yen (¥). The current economic development, as at July 2009 saw that the Japanese yen extending gains against the US dollar in the currency market, which means yen is slightly much more expensive as compared to the dollar.

The average current conversion on the Japanese yen to US dollar as at September 2009 is about:-
1 US Dollar = 93.05700 Japanese Yen
 click here to get the latest conversion rate. ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/knowing-japanese-currency/</link>
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		<title>Ketsueki-gata or Blood-Type Personality Analysis</title>
		<description><![CDATA[In Japan, the knowledge of your blood type isn’t only necessary for emergency purposes alone. It is quite surprising that even in the japanese modern and high-tech society, this kind of pseudo-science still prevails. Ketsueki-gata or blood type personality is a popular means of match-making, in the employment fields and even in common socializing in Japan, of which often being taken advantage of, especially by business tycoons and entrepeneurs alike. Even the top seller books of year was series of blood personality books, songs with blood personality hint to it, ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/ketsueki-gata-or-blood-type-personality-analysis/</link>
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		<title>Japan Weather – Summer, Festivals, Fireworks and Lots of Fun</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Summer in Japan is pretty much an anticipated season in Japan, next to Spring where they can see the blossoming of the beautiful Sakura trees. In Japan, summer can mean hot weather, lots of matsuri or festivals, cold drinks, beaches, open space concerts, fireworks! Holidays and vacations, and a whole lot of fun! Especially for teenagers and children. Summer holidays for school and university students can last up to more than a month. It&#8217;ll be less for the working class people which is only for about a week or so.
There ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japan-weather-summer-festivals-fireworks/</link>
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		<title>Current Japan Population 2009: Higher Density with Declining Pattern</title>
		<description><![CDATA[For all the years that I’ve studied and through all the leisure reading on the facts of Japan, one thing stays in my mind as some sort of general knowledge; is how high is the population of Japan. More to say, is how packed the main cities could be. But I should also not to forget commenting about the post-mortem of a developed or near-developed countries, is the increasing number of people who are living life in small towns and village to pursue their dreams and a much modernized lifestyle ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/current-japan-population-2009-higher-density-with-declining-pattern/</link>
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		<title>Japanese Music Band Profile: Tokyo Jihen</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Japanese Music Artiste Profile: Tokyo Jihen
Tokyo Jihen is a band created by Shiina Ringo after leaving her solo career, which consist of Shiina Ringo herself as the main vocal and support guitar, Seiji Kameda (bass), Toshiki Hata (drums), Izawa Ichiyou (keyboard), Ryosuke Nagaoka a.k.a Ukigumo (guitar), former member Masayuki Hiizumi (keyboard) and another former member, Mikio Hirama (guitar). The main genre of music that they play are rock and jazz – quite a combination to begin with. Tokyo Jihen, if translated simply means ‘Tokyo Incidents’.
Ironically, I was first introduced to ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-music-artist-profile-tokyo-jihen/</link>
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		<title>Kirin’s Sencha Panda Sensei: The Green Panda!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The taste that makes you smile! Japan has never failed to came up with cute and creative products.
For those who are not used to green tea, it is a drink that usually make people grimaced. Pure green tea is bitter with unique aroma of tea leaves. However this one particular commercialize bottle of green tea can certainly make you smile. Just like the Kirin Group slogan “taste that make you smile”. Well it certainly can make me smile with that little green tea panda sensei in the middle of three ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/kirins-sencha-panda-sensei/</link>
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		<title>Japanese style quick breakfast with onigiri</title>
		<description><![CDATA[It’s time for Asa Gohan!
The choice of filling inside these hearty triangular balls of steamed rice flavored with some salt is up to the person cooking it really. It can be pickled plum or umeboshi, salted salmon, salted dried kelp or shio-kobu or even marinated tako or squid. I’m not too sure why they actually call them riceballs when it’s actually triangular in shape. But later I found out that it really used to be in round shapes in the olden Japanese days. But machines has indeed overcome the traditional ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-style-breakfast-onigiri/</link>
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		<title>Watching movies at a cinema in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[I feel a little awkward when my Japanese friend wrote to me complaining about how expensive it is to watch a movie in Japan. Well, generally I know it is expensive to watch a movie there but I didn’t know how expensive it really was right after when she told me how much it costs.
It was like 6 times much expensive than the cinemas around my place! That is probably one of the reason why watching movies at the cinema is not so much of a craze over there. Japanese ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/watching-movies-at-a-cinema-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>Hanami or flower-viewing party festival in Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[You know… one thing about oriental countries is how they integrated flora and fauna into their cultural lifestyle – making their culture one of its own kinds. Flower viewing is not only famous in Japan, but China and Korea as well. The concept doesn’t differ much from one another too. Well, in all countries stated above, flower viewing is a leisure event where they watch and cherish the eternal beauty of natural surrounding especially blooming flowers while sitting down listening to music and sipping authentic tea.
I’m quite sure I saw ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/hanami-or-flower-viewing-party-festival-in-japan/</link>
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		<title>Japanese heritage: Sakura, the legendary flower of Japan</title>
		<description><![CDATA[To me, it’s like one of the many wonders in this world where we lived in – the ‘Sakura’ flowers or ‘cherry blossom’ some may have called it. When you’re looking at the pictures of Sakura trees in rows, it is so beautiful ‘as if’ like you’re watching a field of tulips in Netherlands, with a little more oriental touch. Alas, I had to admit, they’re rather incomparable to any other things in this world.
All these years of my life, when I come across the word Sakura, I only remember ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/japanese-heritage-sakura-the-legendary-flower-of-japan/</link>
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		<title>Welcome to Japan Uptown!!</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Irrashai minna!!
Japan has been my favorite country for a number of reasons. I guess these reasons, which I had in mind now proved to be strong enough for me to initiate a specially dedicated blog about this country, the people, lifestyle and culture et cetera et cetera.
Yes, I’ll definitely going to write a lot of interesting stuff about Japan here in this blog. Honestly? No, I’ve never been to Japan before but I’ve been doing a lot of casual researches on the country and stuffs related to it through books, ...]]></description>
		<link>http://japanuptown.com/welcome-to-love-for-japan/</link>
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