Local character Hikonyan （地元キャラクター ひこにゃん）
In Japan, it used to be very popular for municipalities to create cute characters and to introduce their hometowns. There was also a competition to find out which municipality was most cute. Hikonyan in Hikone City, Shiga Prefecture was highly…
A hot spring (onsen) where naked men and women bathe together（混浴の温泉）
It is very surprised by foreigners that there is the custom of taking a public bath without wearing a bathing suit. Furthermore, they say there used to be a custom of both men and women to spend the same bath…
Dragonflies from the other world
In Japan, it has long been customary to visit graves in mid-August, because people believe, on those days, deceased ancestors return from the other world to this world. We have to greet them properly. The reason for greeting is to…
Two capitals in the east and the west have appeared in Japan since 16th Century
In Japan, the capital refers to the place where the emperor lives. Now it is Tokyo both in name and in practice, but this was not the case in the early modern period. The emperor was in Kyoto, but the…
The queen of the alpine plants Dicentra peregrina “komakusa 駒草”
The pretty flowers of alpine plants heal the hearts of climbers. I want them to stay there forever. However, there are bad people who steal and take them. Dicentra peregrina , which is called as the queen of alpine plants…
Koshien Stadium is the sacred place for Japanese baseball
Although baseball is a sport that originated in the United States, it is very popular in Japan. It came into Japan in the late 19th century. Student baseball games were started first. Then the Professional baseball began in 1936. The…
Smokybrown cockroach
The scientific name is Periplaneta fuliginosa. It is no doubt that this is the most hated insect by people in Japan. It is true that there is a possibility that it may come to our food, taking pathogens that are…
Difference of “鬼” in Japanese and in Chinese and the consideration of the history
There are many known examples with completely different meanings of the same Chinese characters between in Japanese and in Chinese. I have been a little surprised by knowing the meaning of “鬼” in Chinese. Below I will try to explain…
Human society before farming was peaceful
In Japan, the Paleolithic period in the glacial period ended 10,000 years ago. Before farming began a few thousand years ago, hunting life was long practiced under a warm climate. It was around this time that t The oldest pottery…
Mountain worship in Japan 1: Where the souls of the dead people go
I think everyone has the feeling that a person is made up of a body and a soul. It seems that people in old time actually thought so. In Japan, the excavated vessels indicate that the dead people were buried…
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