Category Archives for "Educational Articles & Videos"

(updating…) When I teach English classes, I often ask my students what they did over the weekend. Usually I get the standard, “Nothing special.” response and that’s the end of it. Yesterday, I had a very small class (only two students) and I tried asking the very same question; it’s a great way to get […]

You made it to Japan and you’ve successfully managed to exchange money…what you are now holding are Japanese Yen.  Japanese yen are the national currency of Japan.  If you’re staying in Japan for a while get used to seeing these bills and coins because they will become a part of your daily life. CURRENCY DENOMINATIONS […]

Washing your clothes is a pretty important, basic skill, one that you might often take for granted.  Honestly, wouldn’t it suck so bad to have to wear dirty clothes all the time?  Eventually the smells from your clothing’s everyday use would get so bad that you’d offend everyone around you.  You’d be ousted from social […]

(updating…) Hopefully you’ve read Part 1 of “How to Use a Japanese ATM” as it shows the essential kanji we’ll be dealing with when using the ATM.  Now, I will show how to do each of the procedures step by step.  First, let’s examine how to do a basic withdrawal: 1. WITHDRAWAL When withdrawing money, […]

Using money is a daily routine for most people, so knowing how to handle basic transactions on an ATM is an essential skill.  Often in Japan you can access machines, at convenience stores & the post office for example, that have an English language option.  If you have access to those kinds of ATMs, that’s […]

Having a chance to visit the U.S., even though it was just a week, really made me think about how different my life is here in Japan. Different doesn’t necessarily mean better or worse…just different. This spawned the idea to create an article series showing some of the differences between being in Japan and being […]

Having a chance to visit the U.S., even though it was just a week, really made me think about how different my life is here in Japan.  Different doesn’t necessarily mean better or worse…just different.  This spawned the idea to create an article series showing some of the differences between being in Japan and being […]