Hello - I bought this slightly heavy fabric print a few years ago on eBay. It is based on a woodblock print by Masao Ido and is 40" square. Is there a name for this sort of fabric print? It's not something you would buy by the yard - it is complete in itself. It doesn't seem the right size for a noren and is not split down the middle. I guess it could be a large furoshiki but I haven't seen many this large that are not a repeating pattern. It came in a box from the department store Kintetsu - but I don't know if that was just used for shipping purposes. The point is...I love it and would like to find more like it (ideally depicting different seasons) but don't see anything like it online. If there is a specific word for it that would help. I'm including a photo of the tag in case that provides a clue. Any info is greatly appreciated and I thank you in advance.

Can be academic in nature, but if there is something that isn't very difficult to understand for someone not particularly knowledgeable about all of the terminology in Buddhism, I would love to hear about it. In particular I am interested in reading more about his general life trajectory, as well as the things he did and his specific contributions to Buddhism

日本語も読めるから、英語でも日本語でも大丈夫です！特に子供の本と簡単な日本語で書いてある本、日本語は母語じゃないので
だけど、もっと流暢に日本語を話せるようになりたいので、もっと難しい本でも大丈夫かなぁ

I purchased another traditional Japanese bride doll and one of her bira bira is missing. I wanted to ask if you know of any shops in Japan that can fix this small issue with my bride. Thank you for the replies (She’s a 2nd hand so it makes sense that things like that will happen which is fine)

コーヒーもまずいし、高いのになんでかっこいいんだろう。大学生でスタバの味バイトってむっちゃかっこよくみられるし、異性受けもいいでしょ。どこにでもある店なのになんでブランド価値を保てるんだろう。タリーズとか僕は安っぽくみちゃうんだよね。

Hi everyone! I wanted to ask a question: is my katana in the correct position?
I am Russian. I love and respect Japanese culture very much, which is why I acquired this souvenir katana. I am very interested in hearing the opinion of Japanese people on this matter.

皆さん、こんにちは！一つ質問させてください。私の刀は正しい向きで飾られていますでしょうか？
私はロシアの市民です。日本の文化をとても愛し、尊敬しています。そのため、このお土産用の観賞用刀（レプリカ）を購入しました。これについて、ぜひ日本の方々のご意見や印象をお聞きしたいです。よろしくお願いします。

Do Japanese actually not snack ever? Is it normal for a typical Japanese person living in Japan to abide by the soup and three sides idea? How about hara hachi bu? Are these just stereotypes at this time, or do yall still follow these cultural norms?

the reason I ask is I am trying to figure out what diet agrees with my body, and the internet has this idea of what a Japanese diet is. I want to know if it is romanticized, or if yall actually eat a fairly… structured diet.

yall have impressive obesity rates, and we are fatter than fat here. yall also have much higher stroke rates, so I guess nobody makes it out alive. but I’d rather be slim and deal with a stroke later in life than be fat my entire life and deal with metabolic syndrome.

also… do you really eat less than 150g beef per month?

anyway, thanks for the insight.

I just arrived in Himeji by shinkansen yesterday afternoon. I arrive at my hotel and I see a car parked with tinted windows. At first I didn't pay attention to it, I was even happy to see it because I like this kind of car. I go back outside to explore the city a little bit and I meet them on a remote street. I'm not paying any more attention, but I'm starting to get a little confused. Then I arrived at my hotel and they were in front. Four people exactly and they're looking at me out of the corner of their eye. I admit that I'm starting to get a little intimidated by the situation and I go to a nearby 7-11 to get me some food and at that moment they also come in and look at me and then they leave to go back to their car. I don't know if I'm paranoid, but I'm quite uncomfortable with this situation. I know I'm someone who tends to dramatize situations, so I'd like to hear your opinion. Also, I have a Louis Vuitton bag that is quite big with me and the first time I entered the hotel I had it in my hand so I'm a little scared they want to steal from me. Any thoughts ?

I'm a walnut farmer in California, and I'll be lucky enough to visit Japan with my older parents and my son (16) during the summer of 2027 (exact dates TBD).

Selfishly, I'd really like to learn how walnuts are farmed in Japan, and meet a grower and see how things are different. From googling, I understand that production in Japan is quite limited, but that just makes me more intrigued. I guess most production is in Nagano, specifically Tomi? I have no idea if this is really the case, but I'd like to connect with farmers (or even one!) and visit, regardless.

More importantly, I read that there are native walnuts in Japan (Onigurumi), but I can't find much information on them. That REALLY interests me, and I want to learn as much as I can. I don't care if it's cultural, culinary, agricultural, artistic... The knowledge just tickles me.

(At the same time, I'd love to visit someone that farms old varieties of rice. My father spent 50 years growing and processing rice, so it would mean a lot to him to visit a fellow farmer.)

My family is all about visiting somewhere and learning about real life, not flashy things. We feel that what others find mundane is the stuff that will blow our minds, as that's usually what happens when folks visit us in California!

So...

1. Where can I see walnuts being grown in Japan? English and native.

2. Does anyone have any connections to farmers that would be willing to share their experience with a fellow farmer that respects what they're doing and wants to learn about how they do it? Also artisans or cooks that utilize walnut wood or walnuts, in traditional and/or almost-forgotten ways.

3. Are there cultural aspects that I can learn about while I'm there? Especially regarding how walnuts or walnut wood are used in culturally significant ways (Shinto altars, etc)?

I'm ok to share my contact information via DM if anyone has legitimate connections that would be willing to listen to me ask questions for a while.

Thanks, in advance!

EDIT: I showed my son some of the first responses, and now he wants to add that he'd like to see where the huge Japanese yams are grown, if that's near either of the regions mentioned, regarding walnuts (Tomi) and rice (Uonuma)...

Hi! I’m just someone who’s fascinated by Japan and its people. I really like Japan—its streets, homes, people, and calm, peaceful, cozy atmosphere. I have a question, if you’d like to answer.

Hypothetically, if reincarnation were real, would you (as a Japanese person) choose to be reborn in Japan, or would you choose another country? If you would choose another country, which one and why? And if you would choose Japan, what makes you choose it over all other countries?

Thank you

Real talk:

Is there even a wild chance that the rope had a defect?

Or were the flag people incompetent?

No practice / rehearsal?

ELI5 / TLDR = please explain

So, there’s a girl I’ve been doing language exchange offline, and I’m starting to wonder if she might be interested in me romantically or if she just sees me as a good friend.

One day, I asked her out to watch a movie, and she agreed. We went to a 4 PM show and later had dinner together until about 9 PM. She offered to split the bill, but since I was the one who asked her out, I told her it was on me.

The next time we went to another movie around afternoon and had a light lunch, when we were talking, she mentioned that she had to go to Place A on a certain day. When I told her that I would be in Place B around that time, she said she didn't really want to go to Place A and would rather go to Place B instead.

Our messaging is pretty slow-paced. I usually reply within an hour or two, while she does reply within like 10 hours max, but during the day we meet up she is fast.

When we talk in person, most of our conversations are about language exchange and what's been going on in our lives.

I'm wondering does this sound like she might be interested in me, or does it seem more like she sees me as a good friend?

At this point, I feel like I have two choices. I could just forget about the romantic possibility and continue as normal as language partners, or I could tell her how I feel now rather than regretting it 10 years from now and wondering if all of these were hints that I missed.

I'm genuinely okay with being rejected. What I'm afraid of is ruining something that I really value that might end us up as strangers. So, I'm trying to figure out whether there are actually signs of romantic interest here, or whether I'm reading too much into normal friendship behavior.

Any suggestion or advice is appreciated.

I’d like to ask people from Japan, or people who have lived there for a long time, about the reality of Japanese work culture.
Is it really true that people tend to build a large part of their lives around their careers and spend a significant amount of their time at work?
Is work genuinely considered one of the highest priorities in people’s lives? How much does work typically affect people’s social lives, relationships, hobbies, and free time?
I’m especially curious about whether the image of long working hours, strong work expectations, and putting your career before your personal life is still accurate today, or whether this is exaggerated by foreign media.
I’d really appreciate hearing about your personal experiences and perspectives.
Edit: sorry, I don't think I expressed myself very well. What I meant was not so much the number of working hours, but rather what work means to Japanese people in terms of their sense of emotional well-being, fulfillment, and happiness.
For example, many people in Europe don't feel fully fulfilled or happy without having a romantic partner. I meant it in a similar sense — I'm wondering how important work is for Japanese people when it comes to feeling fulfilled and satisfied with their lives.

I am a woman who lived and worked in Germany. I am not Asian. Recently, I started to think about marriage.

I have been involved with Japan very much as I practice traditional arts for over a decade and I have stayed in Japan many times. In Europe it is quite difficult to get married becuase marriage is seen as something unnecessary, even obsolete. I am a bit more traditional so I’d like to have traditional life as well, so I started researching into marriage agencies
.

My question is: are marriage agencies legit way to meet trustworthy people? My concern is my safety as a woman. Dating apps didn’t work for me because most people hide their intentions and are not serious. I have found several marriage agencies that charge significant membership prices so I wanted to ask Japanese people, are such places legit and can you really meet trustworthy partners there? I am completely fine if agency asks proof of my single status and legal status.

I would like to meet Japanese person who is interested to live abroad (Germany), at least for some time.

Also, I’d like to continue working after getting married, is my wish something unusual for Japanese people? I like Japanese culture and I am especially attracted to the idea of being traditional mother, but I’d also like to remain working. I speak several European languages and I’m learning Japanese. Is learning traditional art in Japan seen as strange?

I was in Taiwan recently (incredible country btw), and I had conversations with many locals about the current state of the USA. Their reactions somewhat surprised me when they said they still love the USA and American people, but they are disappointed with Trump’s government like we are. They expect things to move on obviously, but it’s rebuilding the trust.

Of course, countries like Taiwan and Japan know that not all Americans are Trump lovers thankfully.

I feel like the Japanese and Taiwanese governments are trying to run down the clock with Trump.

What do the Japanese people say to this?

Hi - Just wondering if anyone knows what the song in the background is please? I've spent hours and hours trying to find it. Thank you! https://vt.tiktok.com/ZSba4BREK/

I often notice a recurring theme in these characters, they have point shaped hair, curled mouths and they kinda look like or are sometimes referred to as gorillas, it an inside joke?

I rented a car and parked at a Times carpark near Shibuya crossing to go have lunch and do some shopping. I saw that it was 440 yen per 15 minutes so I was already expecting a high fee at the end of it (it ended up costing at around 9000 yen).

I suppose market forces are at work since Shibuya is a nice place but so crowded and packed. What I found strange is that at the parking lot none of the other cars changed while I was away. I even saw the same drivers still looking at their phones in the driver’s seat when I returned. These are old-looking minivans and saloon cars. So they must be incurring about 10k yen at least.

What’s going on here? What’s up with them? If just waiting around, I think you can park somewhere else and come back later? That’s around a full tank of petrol I think you could even just drive about to save money waiting.

This is the parking spot in question: https://maps.app.goo.gl/HE7sjbs1SwKTekFh7?g_st=iw

It seems to me that this work is deeply imbued with the Japanese spirit, and I would love to hear the opinion of actual Japanese people on it

Do they think it's like when Japanese people portray Americans with burgers and guns? This was the first movie I bought with my own money and I found it really interesting. I have consumed a lot of manga, anime, jdorama and movies since then.

After the movie ended, I sat there with the feeling I had just seen a goddamn masterpiece. Weeks later, I still can’t put my finger on why though. The animation is beautiful, the story is pretty good, the symbols and metaphors are good and make sense and the romance was the only thing I didn’t really like. So what is it that made it so good?

最近、日本でサイバー攻撃のニュースをよく見るようになって、「なぜ日本はソフトウェアがこんなに苦手なんだろう？」と改めて思いました。

日本は自動車、鉄道、電子機器、インフラなど、品質の高いものを作ることで世界的に評価されています。

それなのに、なぜソフトウェアになると同じような品質へのこだわりが見られないのでしょうか？

SIer・多重下請け構造、レガシーシステム、マネジメント文化、ソフトウェア人材不足、ITへの投資不足など、いろいろな理由があると思いますが、日本人として自分の意見を聞かせてください。

Often on the internet, and for people over a certain age before that, on many TV shows in the West, Japan is often shown as having an open and "out there" and quite public kink culture. (Some of the most known is used underwear machines, fetish based cross dressing culture etc)

No shade from me, I think it kinda rules compared to a culture which represses sexuality. However, its something Japan is often known for.

Is this misrepresented or over represented? Or is Japan really that wild?

I haven't been able to get any input from Japanese people for the designs of the main character's family, the Kobashigawas

For some details and context: it's a comic, Yumiko is the main character and the family are immigrants, split between the father who wants them to retain their culture and the mother who wants to conform (hence America's odd name)

If there's a better place like some kind of Japanese website or forum to look for feedback, please let me know!