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Fun Japan Videos

Aonori, the Japanese Karaoke Song I Have to Learn!

January 26, 2012
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Aonori, the Japanese Karaoke Song I Have to Learn!

At the end of last year I had my first Bonenkai with the elementary school teachers and simply put it was a blast. It’s always nice to relax with cool people, have good food, and do a some karaoke. This was the first time I’ve been to karaoke where there were no other English speakers and I really had a good time practicing my Japanese at the same time. It was a win win situation. During karaoke two of the younger teachers sang a song that I REALLY want to learn. The name of this song is Aonori (青海苔) by Brief and Trunks (wait a second…brief and trunks, aren’t those expressions for underwear?!). The...

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Honda’s Asimo Robot, The Future of Artificial Intelligence

December 13, 2011
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AsimoFeatured

I have a treat for you today!! I know I said I would finish my coverage of the the 2011 Tokyo Motor Show, and in a way this is a a part of that. When I went to the Tokyo Motor Show 2012, I got an unexpected surprise at the Honda showcase area. Just after one of Honda’s cool, yet upbeat presentations, I saw a little man, with a funny/cute walk, come to the stage. Upon closer inspection I realized that it wasn’t a man at all but ASIMO, Honda’s (dare I say the world’s?) most advanced humanoid robot. I have seen this robot on television specials in the U.S.. I’ve seen him run,...

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The Hakone Ropeway & Owakudani, The Great Boiling Valley

August 7, 2011
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The Hakone Ropeway & Owakudani, The Great Boiling Valley

The Hakone Ropeway (箱根ローウェイ) and The Great Boiling Valley (大湧谷) Hakone, Japan 2011 I can’t even remember the last time I’ve been on a ropeway, but getting a chance to in Hakone was refreshing way to see the landscape around me. I had heard about the ropeway and Lake Ashi tours before, and had even seen some pretty cool pictures of it. Some accounts say that if you go on the right day, the tour is amazing, while others say it can be a bit of a drag if it’s cloudy. A little birthday luck must have been on my side because, it was a sunny day with almost no cloud cover…I LOVED IT!...

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The Battle of the Ice Cream Shops: Baskin Robbins 31 Flavors vs. Cold Stone Creamery

July 20, 2011
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The Battle of the Ice Cream Shops: Baskin Robbins 31 Flavors vs. Cold Stone Creamery

There’s no other way to say it…it’s hot! The heat and humidity actually provided me with the initiative to write a post listing 15 Ways to Beat the Japanese Summer Heat and Humidity. One of my favorites on that list was the ice-cream remedy.* I am a self-professing ice-cream lover and I know some of you reading this out there are, too (right Nanami? Roger? Ceci? Devin? ). This wasn’t a Japan-induced thing either…I’VE ALWAYS BEEN AN ICE CREAM FAN! The vast majority of the time if I wanted ice cream I would just buy it from the grocery store, and I’m not talking about those little cute cups of Japanese ice cream…I grab...

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A Look Back At 50 Bad Video Game Voiceovers

June 25, 2011
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A Look Back At 50 Bad Video Game Voiceovers

Did You See These? A long while ago my friend Abasa posted this link on his Facebook page and it became a running gag between my co-workers and I. We were trying to decide from this list, the best of the worst. I personally have to say numbers 46 (just because it’s EXTREME overacting), 40 (just listen for yourself and you’ll see why), 18, 16, 11, 9 (the actor seems to be having a tough time reading), and 3 made me laugh out loud. Dr. Light’s speech is pretty hilarious, too (it seemed like he kept forgetting his lines or something). I never realized how bad the Megaman 8 voice-over because the game was...

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Hina Matsuri Festival 2011

March 3, 2011
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Hina Matsuri Festival 2011

So I’m in the United States visiting my family and friends, and I realize that today is a very important day in Japan. March 3rd is Hina Matsuri in Japan. I knew I was going to miss it (I left for America on February 28th) so I prepared for this in advance. On February 11th, 2011, some of our students took us to Makabe and the Inbaba Brewery. I have done two separate posts about this outing, but I saved the most important piece for last. The main reason we went to Makabe was to see an early, Hina Matsuri showcase. Makabe is a traditional town that’s famous for it’s Hina Matsuri dolls. The...

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The Coolest Karaoke Room Ever!

January 22, 2011
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The Coolest Karaoke Room Ever!

Two weekends ago, about ten to twelve students invited all of the foreign English teachers to dinner at an izakaya, いざかや, which is kind of like a Japanese tavern/restaurant wrapped into one. I was the last teacher to arrive because I usually have karate practice on Saturday nights after work, but I definitely wanted to be there. I’ve never gone out with a large group of students and not enjoyed myself. I stayed at the izakaya with the students for about an hour, and then we all decided to go to karaoke afterwards, which is pretty customary for many of the big group outings. We went to the Rainbow Karaoke center, which is very...

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Cold Water, Kyokushin Karate Training

January 19, 2011
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Cold Water, Kyokushin Karate Training

I went to my Kyokushin Karate class tonight, and had an amazing workout. It’s actually the first time in a long time that I’ve made it to a full class, with all of the stuff that’s been happening lately. Ajima Sensei, one of the best teachers there, came up to me afterwards and asked me what I was doing on Sunday. I told him just doing an English lesson (private lesson) and he wanted to know if I would be interested in doing cold water training. A group of students will go to Oari beach which isn’t very far from here, if you have a car, and practice karate in the icy cold waters...

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A Japan Guy Interview: My Japan Experience featuring Mad TV’s Erica Ash

January 17, 2011
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A Japan Guy Interview: My Japan Experience featuring Mad TV’s Erica Ash

This is a three-part interview that I did with my SUPER-TALENTED, elder sister, Erica Ash. I won’t talk to much about the details of the interview because I really want you to take a look, but needless to say Erica’s interview was true to form, you’re going to get some down-to-earth, knitty-gritty info about what life in Japan was like for her. PART ONE PART TWO PART THREE In the interview Erica mentions several things that she’s been doing since she moved back to the U.S: one project is the broadway play “Baby It’s You” if you’re in New York and want to catch a show, and the other is her comedic blog, www.thedeviledangel.com....

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Post-Japan Success Stories: Erica Ash

January 16, 2011
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Post-Japan Success Stories: Erica Ash

Today I wanted to do a post about my sister, Erica. I know you may be thinking “Donald, what in the world does this have to do with life in Japan?” Well, quite a bit actually. My sister lived in Japan for three years, too, and was able to do so much with the short time she was here. I try not to compare myself to my sister (because it’s a lost cause for me, lol ). I know I am my own person, blah blah blah, but when I recently discovered that Erica only stayed in Tokyo for three years, I was floored! I couldn’t help but think “Donald…what have you been doing...

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