Japanese News, Culture, Music and Everything in Between
Monday, December 19, 2016
Friday, December 16, 2016
FFLC Has Approved Your Application for School in Japan
Congratulations, Fukuoka Foreign Language College has approved your application!
Today we received another win towards heading to Japan in April 2017. We’ll continue to update you on how the process with Go! Go! Nihon goes but for now here’s what they have to say. (This post here is a bit about what I personally submitted to Go! Go! and to the school in Fukuoka – it’s basically the reasoning of WHY I want to enter Japan and learn Japanese).
-Nihonscope
—
Hello Nathan!
Congratulations, Fukuoka Foreign Language College (FFLC) has approved your (and your wife’s – please see email sent to your wife’s email ) application for the session starting in April and will be submitting it to Japanese immigration for visa approval at the deadline. The visa result is scheduled to be released around the last two weeks of February 2017.
This is how the process works;
1. Application submission to school. – COMPLETE!
2. Application approval by school and submitted to Japanese immigration for approval. – COMPLETE!
3. Japanese immigration approval about 1 month prior to the start of your session (this is standard procedure and not within our control).
4. Japanese immigration issues a certificate of eligibility (COE) at this time.
5. You are required to pay the first 6 months of tuition in order to have the original COE copy mailed to you.
6. Take the original COE copy to your nearest Japanese embassy prior to your arrival in Japan.
— ARRIVAL TO JAPAN —
Your first day of school at FFLC is scheduled to the 12th of April 2017, but this has yet to be finalized at this time. We strongly recommend that you do not arrive to Japan earlier than 2-4 days before your study start. This is because there is a lot that you have to do during the final month before departure in regards to your student visa. If you are unable to complete the below procedure before departure you will have to reschedule your flight.
Once your COE is issued in the end of February 2017 you have to complete the following procedure before you can travel to Japan:
– Pay the school via international bank transfer (takes 2-5 business days)
– Receive original COE copy from Japan (takes 4-6 business days)
– Submit original COE and visa application to the Japanese embassy in your home country (takes 2-5 business days)
– Collect your finished student visa at the Japanese embassy
All this must be done before your flight. Therefore, it is important not to book an early flight. Please be advised that you will be stopped by the Japanese Immigration at the airport if you fail to receive your finished student visa before departure and try to enter Japan after your COE has been issued. Please note that;
-The payment of the tuition fee to the school can not be made until your COE is issued in the end of February 2017.
– We will send you the complete payment details once your COE is issued.
-The original COE will not be sent to you until you pay the 6 months tuition fee by international bank transfer.
-Once the original COE is delivered to you you are able to hand in your student visa application to your nearest Japanese Embassy.
An arrival time between 08:00 and 16:00 is recommended, otherwise you may have to spend the night at a hotel / hostel before you can move into your accommodation. If you arrive on a public holiday, there is a small chance that the housing agency is closed. If you want to be sure to be able to move in the same day, it is best to come on a weekday. Since you will be entering Japan on a student visa you are not required to have a return ticket.
You can check for cheap, available flights at skyscanner.net It is up to you to decide what day you want to arrive to Japan but please make sure to follow our advice!
— HEALTH INSURANCE —
As a student in Japan you must join the Japanese National Health Insurance which costs about 2000 – 4000 yen per month when you have a student visa. NHI accounts for 70% of any expenses related to your health. The other 30% will be your responsibility.
Once you have arrived in Japan, it is important that you register as residents of the nearest city or ward office as soon as possible and then you get your National Health Insurance Card. The school can provide you with more information about this after your arrival to Japan.
— OUR NEXT CONTACT —
Please check our wiki FAQ for more information about life in Japan;
http://gogonihon.com/study-
We will be sending you an e-mail in January with the following information:
– Accommodation Request
We will send you an accommodation search form where you fill in the details of your arrival to Japan and preferences regarding accommodation. It might be a good idea to start by taking a look at our accommodation examples right now to see what choices you might have: http://gogonihon.com/en/japan-
– We will also give some tips and advice on what to consider and prepare before departure
Originally From: Nihon Scope
Thursday, November 10, 2016
Nomihodai Meaning, Etiquette & Proper Precautions Before Ordering
Nomihodai – Meaning, Etiquette and Precautions Before Ordering
Nomihodai, what does it mean and why is it so important… mostly to foreigners? Nomihodai means “All you can drink” or in Japanese the literal translation is Nomi 飲み = “Drink” and Hodai 放題 = “all you can” or sometimes called “Free Drink System”. This is a sort of option you can have with certain izakaya to bars and restaurants. There is also all you can eat (tabehodai) that at times couples with this type of promotion. From what I know of nomihodai, is that it ranges from $5 to $20 for 1 hours to 2 hours of all you can drink face wrecking fun. Now many times you have to be aware of what you’re getting into, you may think that $5 is super cheap, and I’d say you’re right, especially to sit there for 1 hour to 2 hours sucking down alcohol. But you’ll find when you visit Japan that many of these places that offer nomihodai will also have some clauses in their “Terms of Service” which you should ask about before agreeing to nomihodai.
For example, you may enter into a bar and request nomihodai, you may actually have to pay an entrance fee and it can vary from place to place, which could range from $3 to $10 depending on where you go. Now, that’s not where it stops, you will want to also ask the greeter or host/hostess about the plate minimum. Now… what is a plate minimum? A plate minimum is a requirement to order X amount of dishes while you are drinking per person (usually). But usually this shouldn’t be a problem I’d hope for most people. You’re sitting there drinking, you think you would want to eat too right? So as to not entirely punish your liver, this usually is a wise idea.
So the $5 to $20 all you can drink ends up many times for 2 people being more like $40-$50 for an all your can drink fiasco, I’d say still for 2 people to go all out and spend only say $40 to have a hell of a time and get a bite to eat is pretty cool.
Now let’s get into more nitty gritty about the infamous nomihodai!
One thing to note is if you’re planning on a night of sorrowful drinking because your ex left you, then think again, as generally nomihodai can ONLY be ordered when 2 or more people are par-taking in the fiasco of controlled liver destruction. Of course I’m sure if you REALLY wanted to slam it home, you could possibly negotiate for 1. But, the fun of nomihodai is to have that unsuspecting friend to ambush with your recent breakup. Although there are izakaya, restaurants and bars that offer nomihodai openly, there are also several places that reserve this right to people who RSVP for a larger group, just keep your eyes open.
A Few Etiquette Rules to Keep in Mind:
- Foreigners usually abuse the hell out of nomihodai, with that in mind at least have the courtesy to drink your current beverage all the way first before asking for more. About 20 minutes before your time is over you’ll be given last call, don’t be rude and order 5 drinks effectively wasting the drinks because your dead drunk on the floor.
- All drinking Etiquette applies here. A few rules are: Not beginning until your entire group/party is ready to sign on for the onslaught of their liver with a proud and forceful ‘KANPAI!’. So make sure you’re not holding people up! Another is pouring for others and not yourself, if you want more pour for someone else and they’ll pour for you and if you see anyone with a empty cup, be courtesy and refill their cup. But note leaving your cup full indicates your finished drinking. This is something you might want to take note of if you ever nomikai… your liver will thank you knowing this information.
- Loud drunkness is not only okay, it’s promoted as long as it’s within normal means, but outrageous drunken behavior that takes the joys of nomihodai from other customers is something to avoid, if you’re a straight out crazed maniac when you drink, perhaps you should buy a six pack and stay home.
What REALLY To Be Cautious of With Nomihodai or General Izakaya/Restaurants in Japan?
Now here comes my main concern to all you Eggs out there looking to have your first izakaya, nomihodai or nomikai experience. There is something YOU MUST be aware of, there is an imposter that lurks in the darkness, claiming to be something of great value to the lives of Japan, but it’s sneaky, it’s not what it claims to be. What is this mysterious imposter?
Happoshu…. はっぽ酒
What is happoshu you may ask? Well to shine a light from heaven on to the sin of what happoshu is, it’s simply pretend beer. What do I mean by that? I mean that it’s light beers 2nd removed cousin, and it’s not just light it’s LIGHT beer. It’s considered a diet beer many times and has been quoted by some to taste like ‘weasel urine’ (you’ll see what I mean). The reason this wannabe beer… or rather alcoholic drink exists is to avoid tax margins that are imposed by the government of Japan. By either brewing the beer with non traditional ingredients like corn, soy, rice and potato’s they can effectively sell their beer for much much less as well effectively ruin your liver twice as quickly. The rule is that if there is less then 67% malt used in the beer it can then apply for tax cuts, and if there is NO malt, it’s consider a 3rd Tier Beer, I believe imported beer can also fall into this tax cut category as it’s not brewed in Japan so they can avoid this tax altogether (don’t quote me on that though).
So when you go out to a restaurant or izakaya, make sure you ask if they have draft beer (nama biiru). If they act funny afterward, you know it’s for sure a sign to respect the liver god has given you and carry forth to the next possible choice. To really shine a light on the horrible-ness of these beverages take a look at the general rating (if you have not already) of the fake beers at beer advocate, you’ll notice only 3 out of the 65 listed ‘beers’ have a rating of 4/5 (80%) then quickly it buckles down into the high 1’s. For the most part, they’re pretty bad. But to be fair those ‘top’ rated happoshu beers only had 1 or 2 reviews.
The idea of nomihodai was take from the ‘All you can eat’ buffet restaurant types that were inspired originally by the Swedish back in the 1950’s in Tokyo… So you can certainly play this stuff your face attitude with nomihodai, but I’d say in ending have fun but know for the majority of Japan, nomihodai is not a place to smash your face in with a beer bottle, Japanese people actually are well known to keep it to a threshold they can manage (for the most part), so enjoy yourself but just know you might get a ‘yappari’ or ‘baka gaijin’ throw your way if you make an ass of yourself.
-Nathan Scheer
Originally From: Nihon Scope
Saturday, April 16, 2016
Sunday, April 10, 2016
Princes Jellyfish
Watch Princess Jellyfish Full – Free – Online
Get to Know What Onei is in Japan
(Videos Below)
Princess Jellyfish is a rather down to earth anime in terms of the kinds of anime that are out there from Japan. I tend to like to watch anime that reaches more into the culture of Japan then just simple craziness (at times – B/FMA ;P). But this anime is great to watch to see a little bit more about how the Japanese think, act. But this anime peers more so into the cross dressing and gay atmosphere in Japan. Men who dress up in women’s clothes in Japan are called ‘ONEI’ (OH-NAY), in fact it’s a common practice and something you’ll quite often see if you watch Japanese television. It’s not really shunned upon either, in fact it’s said that some very influential samurai and political leaders were gay and would rather enjoy a good looking man then the women that were hanging around. So as in the past of Japan it was certain cool to swing either way, as long as you were a man. That one-sideness still exists though, there are very few open lesbians in Japan. It’s still seen that women are suppose to have a man (AKA owned). It’s the rough truth but that’s how culture of the past still affects the present!
Either way enjoy Princess Jellyfish.
Short description of the plot: Princess Jellyfish centers around Amamizukan, an apartment building in Tokyo, where the only tenants are otaku women, and where no men are allowed. While each character has her own particular fixation, the protagonist is Tsukimi Kurashita, whose love of jellyfish stems from memories of her deceased mother taking her to an aquarium and linking the lace-like tendrils of jellyfish to the dresses of princesses. Tsukimi hopes to become an illustrator and is an awkward girl terrified of social interaction, attractive people and the prospect of formal work. The other tenants of Amamizukan are the same, being NEETs who refer to themselves as the “Amars” (nuns). Tsukimi meets the stylish Kuranosuke Koibuchi, the illegitimate son of a politician, who cross-dresses to avoid the obligations of politics and to feel closer to his mother. Tsukimi keeps the secret of his masculinity from her man-hating housemates, even as she is troubled by the intimacy of having a man in her room at times. Amamizukan’s surrounding neighborhood is under threat of redevelopment, as opportunists aim to turn the quaint area into a more cosmopolitan region, with many of the buildings being demolished to make room for hotels and shopping centers. Although Amamizukan’s tenants fear and loathe attractive people, they are helped by Kuranosuke who does not want to see Amamizukan destroyed.
  Episode 1 |  Episode 2 |  Episode 3 P.1 |
 Episode 3 P.2 |  Episode 4 P.1 |  Episode 4 P.2 |
 Episode 5 P.1 |  Episode 5 P.2 |  Episode 6 P.1 |
 Episode 6 P.2 |  Episode 7 P.1 |  Episode 7 P.2 |
 Episode 8 P.1 |  Episode 8 P.2 |  Episode 9 P.1 |
 Episode 9 P.2 |  Episode 10 P.1 |  Episode 10 P.2 |
 Episode 11 P.1 |  Episode 11 P.2 |
Originally From: Nihon Scope
Wednesday, April 6, 2016
Saturday, April 2, 2016
Tuesday, March 29, 2016
Monday, March 28, 2016
Religion in Japan: Politics to Nothingness to Everything
Japanese Religion: It’s Different Here!
What exactly is happening spiritually in Japan? Is there something that we Westerners can learn from Japan?
As I have for at least half my life now, I’ve been researching religion in all forms. I’m no stranger to the ideas of religion and the golden thread that is present within all major and minor beliefs. But despite whatever you and I think of religion here in the West, Japan has a very flexible and moveable reins which the Japanese can move when it comes any changing tides in their country, be it political or natural. The major religions of Japan are Shinto and Buddhism, but there is also small signs of Confucian, Taoism, Hindu, Islam, Christianity and Catholicism (only about %1 follows Christ in Japan).
 Politics and Religion in Japan |  Japanology: Shinto Shrines |  Disappearing Buddha in Japan |
Instead of 7 days and 7 nights of creating the world it’s said in Shinto that after the creation of Heaven and Earth two kami (gods) were instructed to create a series of islands which soon became known as the land of the rising sun! These two kami were Izanagi and Izanami, and as they stirred the oceans the islands of Japan started to form.
But, beyond mystical kami that were instructed to create islands, this religion of Shinto has been said to be actively being practiced since the Joman period (14,000 – 300 BC). It’s very likely as religion does in Japan, it changed it’s mask to fit with the times at hand. In 600-800 AD written text begun to appear speaking about Shinto and the Imperial Family and the rites they took while practicing Shintoism. But what exactly is Shinto?
Shinto can be best explained as a similar belief that the American Indians (or the Ainu People) have/had. Everything has a place, has an energy or a kami/god. Instead of just praying to one god as Westerners are so use to doing, Japan and the Shinto religion takes praise to all sorts of gods. You can find all sorts of these Shinto shrines across Japan, in fact there is said to be somewhere around 80,000 shrines in Japan, many simple shrines in the middle of a forest or near a river.
Buddhism in Japan is also a very affluent religion as well. It said to have arrived around in the 600’s AD in Japan and at first was rejected, soon there after it was accepted, but a great tragedy happened soon after, and it was said that the kami were rejecting this new belief, but even despite this horrible beginning, Buddhism took root in Japan and soon intertwined with Shintoism. Many shrines across Japan have both Buddhism and Shinto rituals, statues, architecture and priests within the same compound. Although during the beginning of the Meiji Period (1869) Shinto was claimed to be the ‘State Religion’ in Japan and Buddhism was attacked and soon many newer shrines of Shinto would no longer collaborate with Buddhism ideology or effigies inside the shrine, although still the Japanese people carried Buddhism along any how despite the efforts of a group attempting to wither it away slowly.
Japanese people tend not to have titles when it comes to religious affiliation, instead it’s quite natural to mold into whatever is happening around them, be it Buddhist in nature or Shinto, the Japanese culture is mixed with both sides of this religious coin through private worship to popular festivals. But besides getting into the extreme details of these different religions and the whose who, I’m going to break down my beliefs that surround these ideas and how they became so popular in Japanese culture and maintain themselves, and perhaps it will sound spiritual to you, if it does, it’s meant to as I feel there is something bigger happening then meets the eye with these beliefs.
The more I research about these people the more I realize that these communities of belief were created long ago, and for a very long time in Japanese history they fulfilled a purpose of bringing people together in the search for meaning in life (and still do). Life is fragile and we all have had the feeling of a more powerful energy present in our lives, it’s natural that religion of any kind arrives because of this universal feeling everyone has had at one time in their life, but these two beliefs (Shinto and Buddhism) merged so well that it’s easy to see that a destiny or fate pulled these two paths together and is the reason they are so hard to separate after being interwoven.
Between cleansing rituals of the Shinto and becoming one with all in Buddhism, there is a infinity that surrounds the soul when one is cleansed and then given an idea of that all is one and that appreciation is a main key factor of health, wealth and joy in ones life. I’m personally one who has played with both sides of these ideas and I’ve come to say both of these beliefs have drawn a line of science and belief into itself.
For example there is a new age belief called ‘The Law of Attraction‘ which is being constantly activated as the Japanese people practice these beliefs and ideas in their life. The LOA is simply what you think about and believe is what comes about (which is even taught in Christian scripture) and I truly know for a fact the mass practice of these beliefs are creating some miraculous results that are affecting the world, be it seen as good or bad, these results are furthering the evolution of man kind.
Japanese people can be said to be some of the most healthy people in the world for many reasons beyond just their highly nutritious eating habits. It’s the idea of being cleansed, being purified, being apart of All, having compassion for others, as ‘others’ are really just them, you or I anyway. Beyond just the ideas of religion or spirituality, I truly believe that these are meant to help keep the Japanese people sane and healthy (It’s Like a Massive Placebo Effect if you Will). What I mean by that is that, we humans are naturally hunter and gathers, it’s a fact, and with that we are meant to only live in tribes of maybe 100 people at any given time. The Japanese people live in a place where all their human instincts are telling them something is off. So being able to practice these beliefs and use festivals of these ideologies to instead overcome the over thinking of the mind and to come together as a community is another socially evolved resolution to the crowding of the people of Japan.
I truly believe that there is a collective mind that humanity draws from and I don’t think that these ideas came together by accident. Inside all of this something was created inside their society because of religion in their lives. This, I believe is transferred as a quiet serenity towards the life that was given to them, a peacefulness and appreciation and respect for others in the very same small spaces they find themselves at times. I truly feel that if something like Shinto and Buddhism were not apart of the Japanese culture, they would have been much more aggressive then they have been, not just with other countries but within their own country, between each person. Now, don’t get the wrong idea here, I’m not saying the Japanese are completely free of human faults, in fact there is quite a few still left obviously, but I’m attempting to point out, these subtle customs that were past down throughout history from father to son or mother to daughter that has created a more cooperative society that instead works more so through synergy.
From hierarchical family customs, to how children in school are treated and taught to how the State of Japan supports so many different festivals and events to bring one another together. These are all benefits of these two beliefs that have been so dominate in Japanese everyday life. I can say with great clarity that if these beliefs were to not have fallen in the lap of Japan, Japan would look and feel very much different then it does today, and I firmly believe it would not be a civilized society like it has become, I do not believe it would have ever had a period of restoration or economic growth without these underlying ideas from Shinto and Buddhism.
The world of Japan without compassion, appreciation and respect would be a very disorganized place!
So thank Buddhism and Shintoism for the best parts of Japan! And although the political scene of Japan is being manipulated through these religion (as is not uncommon for the rest of the world either), I certainly feel there is more good happening because of these beliefs then anything the government could ever do to subjugate the public into something that would be harmful. As said before there is something higher then the words of man directing the influence of the world and Japan is no stranger to that idea/fact.
Originally From: Nihon Scope