The Wayfarer Blog

Yes, that’s right. I wrote “Oink, Oink,” and not “Happy Valentine’s Day.” I feel like a bit of a pig. And not because of what I ate, but because of what I said. It was the “perfect” ending to a “perfectly odd” day.

Don’t get me wrong. It wasn’t really a bad day. Sure, a lot of annoying things happened, but what’s new, right? By the time I got to my evening company class, I was in a pretty good mood. I have two back-to-back classes, and I’ve been teaching most of the same students for years, so I can get away with a bit of joking. But tonight, I put my foot in my mouth…

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This isn’t a new link, and even the author admits it is probably an oversimplification, but it is an interesting point. What is the difference between the typical way that Japanese people and Chinese people approach problems?

James Fallows (November 27, 2007) - "The" way vs "a" way (Japan v China dept):

With usual caveats against sweeping generalization, what this made me think was: Japan is all about the way of doing things. Practice, ritual, perfectionism, as much fanatical attention to the process as to the result. China is all about finding a way to do things. Improvisation, little interest in rules, putting up with whatever is necessary to attain the result.

Yes, I think it is a generalization, but it does ring true to some extent. Interesting.

(Via A Whole Lotta Nothing.)

In the “I really didn’t need the calories or added expense but I don’t care!” category:

Christmas Cake!

Christmas Cake is a big deal in Japan. In every cake shop and supermarket, and in front of every convenience store, you can see a crowd of people buying cakes for Christmas. This year, I decided to get one, too.

I went to my local Supermarket and got a few groceries. Ginza Cozy Corner, a famous cake shop, was selling cake in two areas of the store. One area, their dedicated shop, had a huge line. But in the middle of the store, they had a special booth set up with just a few people. I walked up to the counter and chose this beauty:

Click the link below to read on and see more pictures!

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Hello…remember me? Is anyone still out there? I’m almost afraid to check the logs…

This month has been really busy for me. And on top of that, I have been spending a lot of time thinking about what to do next. I feel that next year will offer a tremendous amount of change in my life. After so many years of a more or less status quo existence, I look forward to new challenges and opportunities.
More on that later.

One unfortunate side effect of my leg problems has been the fact that I have missed many opportunities to explore new areas, and especially to take pictures. Last night, at my final college class, the sunset behind Mt. Fuji painted the sky in the most amazing colors. It was like something out of an Ukiyo-E （浮世絵–Japanese woodblock）painting…

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To all of my friends and family in the U.S., I’d like to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving. Best wishes.

Cherry blossoms!

Yes, it is almost that time of year, when everyone heads out to enjoy the fleeting beauty of cherry blossoms. Cherry blossoms are called “sakura” (桜) in Japanese. I think most people are familiar with the song, “Sakura, sakura…”

I found some cherry blossoms pictures from about year ago on my hard drive, which I hadn’t uploaded yet. You can see them on my Flickr page, or just click on one of the pictures in this post. If you want to learn more about cherry blossom viewing in Japan, please read on…

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