Nagoya Port, is one of Japan's largest ports. One part of the port, the Garden Pier, has been redeveloped in recent years as a leisure district and offers an aquarium, shopping mall, amusement park, museums and green space. The Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium is one of Japan's larger and better aquaria. In two buildings, it exhibits and educates about marine mammals including dolphins, orca and beluga whales and other marine creatures from five aquatic regions be...

PACHINKO When you step into the a pachinko parlor in Japan, which are all over, it's evident the country has a massive gambling habit. But then again, they call it "gaming" not "gambling." On a sweltering summer's day, salary men on lunch duck from air-conditioned building to air-conditioned building. One common oasis from the heat (and office) is a pachinko parlour, Japan's equivalent of a slot arcade. Inside is uniquely Japanese. Smoke carpets the room, and ...

When in Japan, do as the Japanese do. You've heard the ever-popular saying. A seemingly easy feat, that is, unless you have never been to Japan! Let me share seven learnings we are glad to have been warned of as they certainly are important. Though far from the last of the learning's, I am sure. - Mastery of Chopsticks Our skills might be up to the challenge of picking up every grain of rice from your plate, there is a right and a wrong way. Crossing your cho...

Lovely cultural dinner out with Fushimi and lovely Aya. Starters (which was requested by the boys as cake - apple pie and banana loaf) was at our abode 5pm and we then all jumped into Fushimi's car and headed out 7pm - their treat; their choice, apology by our friends for arriving a little late. Not easy to accept, they gave us good heads up notice that they were running late! We headed down the road, not far from home to a cultural hot pot experience! We sat...

Tanabata Festival -July/Aug Tanabata (Star Festival) is celebrated around July 7th or August 7th in Japan. Tanabata is a Japanese tradition wherein people write their wishes on tanzaku papers (colorful, small strips of papers) and hang them on bamboo branches which are also decorated with colorful paper crafts. People also decorate bamboo branches with various kinds of paper decorations and place them outside their houses. You see many bamboo decorations set u...