What happens when the two quirkiest queens of pop try to out-kawaii each other? Japan found out this week when Lady Gaga appeared on the TV show Music Station (ミュージックステーション) and was sat in the same studio as Harajuku’s own Kyary Pamyu Pamyu (きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ). Both wearing colourful outfits and pink bows in their hair, Lady Gaga … Continue reading
I know one should never judge a book by its cover, but it seems like that rule doesn’t apply to chocolate. When I was in the Japan Centre in London the other day I caught sight of this: This is MATCHA by Les Gourmandises de Miyuko & BESCHLE, and it’s absolutely delicious. The matcha (抹茶 … Continue reading
I’m lucky here in Bristol to work very close to two Japanese restaurants – Obento and Masa. I wrote about Obento a while ago, so today I thought I’d tell you about Masa. Masa, located on the corner of Baldwin Street and Queen Charlotte Street (BS1 1PN). It markets itself as ‘teppanyaki-style’ (where the diners … Continue reading
I’m feeling full of a cold and struggling for inspiration tonight, but there are only four more posts to go before I complete NaBloPoMo, so I must keep going! I think about Japan pretty much 24/7 – at work, at home, everywhere – but this month I feel like I’ve devoted even more time to … Continue reading
Everyone at work was feeling a bit under the weather today, and lunchtime turned to silliness. My colleague decided to introduce us to an app called RapMushi (ラップムシ) which he had on his iPhone, and I have now downloaded on my iPad. The app’s free – I wouldn’t have downloaded it if it wasn’t – and … Continue reading
The sound of a trumpet across a mountain valley leads a young man to befriend a mysterious stranger. During repeated visits to the cave where the stranger has set up home, the young man learns about his past – in the mines, villages and ports of the region. The stranger’s hilarious, bawdy and touching narratives … Continue reading
I’m quite a fan of the brand ‘innocent‘, known for their healthy smoothies, so I was keen to try their new product – innocent noodle pot in Japanese ramen flavour (they also have noodle pots in other Asian flavours). The first thing I noticed about this instant noodle offering was that despite being called ‘ramen’, the … Continue reading
From April until October this year, there was a special item on display in the Japanese Galleries at the British Museum – the Perry Scroll. I apologise for not posting about this event sooner, but perhaps it’s still interesting to those of you who missed it. As part of Japan 400, a year of events … Continue reading
(Image source) Umami. Do you know that word? It’s a Japanese word (うま味) meaning something like ‘pleasant savoury taste’. According to Wikipedia: “People taste umami through receptors for glutamate, commonly found in its salt form as the food additive monosodium glutamate (MSG). For that reason, scientists consider umami to be distinct from saltiness.” Although originally … Continue reading
Whilst Christmas shopping the other day I came across these Hello Kitty ‘Sprinkle Cupcake Treats’ from America and couldn’t resist treating myself. I should have known better! Had they been Japanese hello Kitty sweets I’m sure they would have been quite nice, but these American sweets were sickly sweet and quite disgusting! (>_<) No wonder … Continue reading
Haikugirl's Japan 