Minimalism - Online Income - ESL - Japan
It’s quite common in Japan to see news reports about chikan, people who grope others on crowded commuter trains. In today’s Mainichi News, there’s a story about a policeman doing just that. Here’s the gist of it: Koji Yamano, 50, the policeman, was arrested for breaking an Osaka Prefectural Government ordinance outlawing people from creating a public nuisance. Yamano admits to the allegations. “I just couldn’t help myself. I’m so […]
Over the last few months, Mami and I have been seriously saving for a house. We’ve visited a few but have yet to find one we’re happy with. While I knew that I might encounter problems getting a mortgage, I figured that because she is Japanese we would be okay… but it looks like it won’t be that easy. Firstly, most banks won’t loan money to foreigners unless they have permanent […]
One of my students wanted to write an English translation of an interview she found in a magazine, and not an easy one at that. Her final translation came to seven pages, and she asked me to check it. “Sure, no problem, let me have a look” I agreed. Although this student’s English level is pretty high, when it came to translation, she threw her conversational ability out the window and reverted […]
After I graduated back in 1997, I boarded a JAL flight from London to Tokyo as I set out to experience a country which would later become my home. I was 21 years old and had no idea of what to expect, in fact I wasn’t even sure that the family I hoped to stay with for the summer even knew I was coming! These were the days before the internet and […]