All posts tagged "Community"

  • Chen family: Living frugally in Japan

    Many families put off reviewing family spending at the start of the year because they hope things will get better.  The not-so-welcome news of  the year and next,  is the impending consumption tax increase which economists predict...

    • Posted January 1, 2014
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  • Japanese preschooler donates his piggy bank savings to typhoon victims

    According to the United Nations, typhoon-ravaged Tacloban city, Leyte,  Philippines has recorded a death toll of 4,460 with the number still expected to rise as local and international disaster relief operations continue the search.  Some bodies are...

    • Posted December 17, 2013
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  • A bright spot

    In less than three years following the Fukushima nuclear disaster, Japan delivers a brand new 70 – megawatt solar facility powering up some 22,000 homes in Kagoshima from Nov 2013.   The ethereal-looking Kagoshima Nanatsujima Mega Solar Power...

    • Posted December 17, 2013
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  • Tiger Tiger Burning Bright

    The beginning of the month sees Tiger Copenhagen (Flying Tiger Copenhagen  for  Tokyo purposes), the Danish super cheap and super cheerful discount store with a sense of design, coming to town. We no longer have to travel to...

    • Posted October 6, 2013
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  • Community News

    Skype Classrooms Becoming the Norm Japanese language teachers are now reaching out to students who want to take a course but lack the time to commute to school via SKYPE classrooms. One Japanese teacher says, “It’s pretty...

    • Posted August 5, 2013
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  • Head, foot, mouth disease (HFMD) outbreak

    As Japan’s July temperature hits the 33-35 degree level, the number of children reported to have been treated for  hand-foot-and-mouth infection (Teashikuchibyo) or a common form of coxsackie virus, is at its record high this year, according...

    • Posted July 17, 2013
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  • How much does a public daycare in Japan cost?

    Structure The curriculum objective of a public daycare in Japan is a mix of both childcare and educational play supervised by city authorized child care professionals. Hours Although the hours vary depending on municipality rules,  drop off...

    • Posted June 18, 2013
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  • Tokyo roads: How good a driver are you?

    You know the situation: you’re in the outer lane of the Expressway, going about 110 Km per hour, moving along with a fair bit of traffic.  A foreign car with blacked out windows comes charging up behind...

    • Posted June 18, 2013
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  • Tokyo International Kindercare opens

    A welcome addition to international schools in the Azabu area is the newly opened Tokyo International Kindercare,  a full time pre school and kindergarten located in Higashi Azabu .  Billed as a school offering world-class education yet...

    • Posted May 8, 2013
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  • Cost of Wedding in Japan

    The average spending in 2012 for a wedding ceremony in Japan according to an annual survey by Zekshi, Recruit Marketing Partners, was ¥34,380,000 with 73 as the average number of invited guests. Compared to the result of...

    • Posted May 1, 2013
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  • Bi-cultural marriage: Alex & Ray

    Cross-cultural, multi racial mingling is part and parcel of living in Japan. We invite couples to share their thoughts and speak up about life in our mixed up world.This month, cover girl Sasha’s mom Alex from Belarus,...

    • Posted March 3, 2013
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  • A father’s nightmare in Japan

    My journey to Japan began in 1996. I was tired of the United States and wanted to see the world. Japan was strange yet fascinating. It is a country where no means yes and yes means no....

    • Posted December 3, 2012
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  • Community news

    NHK viewing fee drops Effective last month, NHK has slashed monthly subscription fees for regular terrestrial broadcasts on NHK G and NHK E by ¥120.  The new monthly subscription fee is ¥1,225.  Japan’s switch from analog television...

    • Posted October 31, 2012
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  • Tokyo Theatre for Children presents…

      Tokyo Theatre for Children presents: SHARNOOZLE — It’s Magic! Directed by Linda Polgar Written by Robert Tsonos Music and Lyrics by Mike Wiskar Samsa Asagaya Theater   *2 minutes walk from Asagaya Station — North Exit *only...

    • Posted October 4, 2012
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  • Joel Assogba: Dad on a mission

    Joel Assogba is a writer-illustrator, a freelance columnist, author of trilingual books in Japanese, English and French, an activist and also a passionate public speaker.  Above all, he is a father —  with a big mission.  TF...

    • Posted July 31, 2012
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  • Do you download music and movies off the Internet?

    The Internet is filled with an endless array of information, among them popular entertainment media that is easily accessible. Take heed: downloading unauthorized content is now a criminal offense in Japan that can possibly land you in...

    • Posted July 1, 2012
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  • Community News

    Airports with Strollers Over the years, Emirates Airlines has consistently won awards for overall excellence in service.   Always ahead of the race in keeping passengers’ comfort a priority, global travelers to Dubai with small kids will be...

    • Posted July 1, 2012
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  • Community News

    Photo © Elena Derevtsova   The New Supermarket In Town Foreigner-friendly Motomachi Union supermarket in Yokohama has newly opened a branch in Roppongi on December 14, 2011. Unlike the usual fare, Union Motomachi Roppongi is open 24...

    • Posted January 30, 2012
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  • Hold on to your dragons

    Divya Cherian, artist and founder of Bite the Rainbow International Art and Design, is all fired up for the Year of the Dragon, 2012.

    • Posted January 30, 2012
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  • Educating today’s kids: what’s on offer?

    There are many factors as well as diverse choices to consider where best to send children to school in Japan. Japanese schools and International schools both offer advantages.

    • Posted December 30, 2011
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  • Bruce Gherbetti story

    The human memory is more fallible than most of us want to believe, yet some things – like the love of a father – can never be forgotten.It had been two years and two weeks to the...

    • Posted November 2, 2011
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  • A killing separation

    A Frenchman took his own life because he could not see his children after the divorce with Japanese spouse. The life and career of Arnaud Simon once could have exemplified the excellent relationship between Japan and France....

    • Posted September 30, 2011
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  • The need for a children’s rights network

    As early as 1996 news articles discussing Japan’s “other abductions” began appearing in major publications. These brought to light the issues faced by non-custodial parents in Japan. Foreign fathers and mothers going through divorce in Japan were...

    • Posted June 8, 2011
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  • Lending a helping hand to Ishinomaki

    It will be 20 years this autumn since I first visited Ishinomaki in Miyagi prefecture. I was not to know, however, that 20 years later Daikanyama would be one of the few places in Ishinomaki not...

    • Posted June 8, 2011
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  • What are the international schools doing to help Tohoku?

    Nishimachi International School In April, Grade 9 students held their annual Community Service Car Wash at the Nishimachi playgrounds to contribute to the relief fund for the March 11 tsunami victims in the Northeast of Japan. Nishimachi...

    • Posted May 15, 2011
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  • Tokyo mom’s earthquake experience

    March 11, 2011. I was working when I felt the building shake and groan. At first it seemed like weak tremors I have experienced in the past, but when the trembling intensified, the thought that this was...

    • Posted March 31, 2011
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  • Letchford and Letchford

    Geoff and Rebecca are the Letchfords, who have for the last twelve years called the world their photo/design studio. He shoots, she designs. Together they have become one of the most sought-after portrait photographer teams in the...

    • Posted February 28, 2011
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  • Salvatore Cuomo

    When Salvatore Cuomo rolled up his sleeves and came back to Japan to help out his ailing father manage the family business at the age of 18, little did he know that that was to be the...

    • Posted February 28, 2011
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  • A look on love

    Do you need the constant reassurance of being loved? If so, don’t have kids, and buy a pet instead!For most individuals, life is a constant struggle that consists of hoping that the person to whom they wish...

    • Posted February 1, 2011
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  • Meet the star of Halloween Night Fever!

    On October 31st this year, spirits soared as Halloween Night Fever took Omotesando Hills’  Space O by storm.  Families from all over Tokyo and Yokohama gathered to join in the monster festivities, where dancing, games, magic, costume...

    • Posted November 29, 2010
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