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Welcome to r/AskJapan!

Makudonarudo (マクドナルド) McDonald's

Guguru (グーグル) Google

Toiretto (トイレット) Toilet

Kitto Katto (キットカット) Kit Kat

Dizunirando (ディズニーランド) Disneyland

Takushii (タクシー) Taxi

Hoteru (ホテル) Hotel

Sebun Irebun (セブンイレブン) Seven-Eleven

Miruku (ミルク) Milk

Basu (バス) Bus

Biru (ビール) Beer

Sutābakkusu (スターバックス) Starbucks

Sarada (サラダ) Salad

Hanbāgā (ハンバーガー) Hamburger

Sandoitchi (サンドイッチ) Sandwich

Sōsēji (ソーセージ) Sausage

Kōhī (コーヒー) Coffee

Kēki (ケーキ) Cake

Aisukurīmu (アイスクリーム) Ice cream

Furaido poteto (フライドポテト) Fried potatoes / chips

Konbini (コンビニ) Convenience store

Esukarētā (エスカレーター) Escalator

Arukōru (アルコール) Alcohol

Barēbōru (バレーボール) Volleyball

Bēsubōru (ベースボール) Baseball

Basukettobōru (バスケットボール) Basketball

Gorufu (ゴルフ) Golf

This cap went in my shopping cart among many random goods from the infamous Don Quijote.

I tried to search for the symbol, but couldn't find what it means. I'd appreciate if someone could help to translate it, thanks ✌️

My boyfriend is going to japan with a working visa and will be there for around 6-8 months and i will be wanting to visit him there. How many times can i travel to japan in a year. Baring in mind im from the uk. Im planning on going there for a week in February for valentines for maybe a week then coming back at the end of March to travel japan with him when he finishes his job there but reading on the rules is confusing me a bit. Im wondering if you guys can tell me if i can do that?

This s a bit random, but I was curious. I have no idea about the coffee culture in Japan, and I suppose if people take dark coffee, but I was wondering if anyone has tried a colada (aka, a Cuban Coffee) before. Someone asked about good gifts to bring over for a visit, and I thought Cafe Bustelo would be unique, and that was what led to this question.

I feel like he's always gonna be my fav and I'm curious about his staying power.

I am very sorry if my questions seem culturally insensitive. I’m slightly tipsy and I have an otherwise limited knowledge of Japanese culture.

Today, I’ve just received an offer for a position in Tokyo, which would require me to be there for about seven months. I’m trying to figure out a few things before making a decision, and I’d appreciate any insights you might have.

For personal context, I was born and raised around Switzerland, France and the UK but my parents themselves are South Asian (Sri Lankans). I’ll be sharing an apartment with a friend who was born and raised in Tokyo and works as a musician there. For the sake of this thread, my field of work will be kept private.

1. Given that my work is time-intensive and requires adjusting to various time zones, I need to know if public transportation in Tokyo is extensive and operates after midnight.

2. I’m an avid musician and often tend to busk whenever I have a free day. I’m wondering if it’s possible to do the same in Tokyo and if there are any specific regulations or sensitivities regarding playing musical instruments, especially in apartment and public settings. If this is not the case, is the music scene accommodating to foreign performers and artists?

3. My cultural idiosyncrasies are primarily European but I’ll likely be perceived as South Asian due to my ethnic background and skin colour. Will this affect my livelihood in any way?

4. Tattoos - will I need to remove them? Cover them up? I have a forearm one and one on the back of my neck but both are pretty whimsical / light.

Thanks in advance for any help or advice.

Hi! A friend and I are going to Japan and we’re gonna go see the festival in Chichibu. We know it’ll be super cold, but we’re also interested in wearing yukata to the festival. Would this be okay, or is it weird/inappropriate? 🫣🙏 thanks!!

Edit; we won’t be wearing yukata! Maybe in the future. I do have a follow up question though, for anyone that can help:

Does chichibu have Uber and taxis? Getting around Tokyo was easy (taxis and Ubers around every corner), but I have no clue about Chichibu and I can’t find anything on google. Thanks.

Thanks I’m advance!

In a lot of Japanese romance, after the couple finally admits their love and gets together, they will inexplicably (and unnecessarily) separate for years while they go on some journey, work on careers, visit a foreign country, or whatever before coming back together.

Examples: Toradora or Pseudo Harem.

It's a surprisingly common trope and I'm wondering if the reason it exists is because it actually happens in Japan?

Hello people of Japan. I come from small town in Serbia that has a sister town in Japan, so while growing up we were exposed a bit to a Japanese culture. My question is: Do you think it would be popular if i made videos about Serbian culture in Japanese and posted it on social media, like tik tok and instagram? Thank you

Edit: I will provide links with what kind of content i aim to present.

Quick intro: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MBFVzCc281o

About our food: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ArNLVTn9x0

Landscape presentation: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDHpcAFSMr0

Like don’t they have a life?

I mean they’re making body pillows of this animal, making posts about him on social media and it’s so creepy, like girl it’s an animal why are you obsessing over it?

Is this common for Japanese women to sexualise animals?

Link to prove I’m not lying

This account says he is a 71 years old Japanese man and is happy to learn Chinese. But some Chinese who have learned Japanese think he is fake because the the later's Japanese seems unnatural. I don't speak Japanese but I choose to believe Japanese native-speakers!

Please do not vote when you are not a native-speaker.

Anyway, do not disturb any Twitter user. This is a just poll to observe for a controversial topic. Thank you for understanding.

Hi, I'm moving back to Japan from the US pretty soon and I'm going to need to keep my US phone for business. I've got a service that lets me call and text while in Japan for a small fee, so that's fine.
I'd rather not have two phones, so is it possible to get a good dual SIM phone that I can use for both a Japanese service and my American service? If so, any recommendations?

It might sound like a very weird question, but at least where I am from (Italy), it’s very common to encounter on the metro or generally around the country some teens acting as “wannabe gangsters” (they are called Maranza, so you can look it up for reference), or generally many teens acting out in public. I wanted to ask if you’ve ever encountered a group of male Japanese that were acting out in public

P.S. I’m sorry if I made some errors, English isn’t my first language

Hi everyone, I’m Alex. I’ve studied Japanese for many years, but despite getting the chance to use my skills during various trips to Japan, I always freeze, feeling completely unprepared due to a lack of real-world practice beforehand.

I created AI LingoPlay to help me rehearse real-life scenarios ahead of my trips, like ordering coffee in a cafe or checking into a hotel.

The free app is intended as an addition to your current language study resources by allowing you to practice your language skills through lifelike role-playing scenarios with a choice of AI characters, each with a different personality.

I would love your feedback!

I’d love for you to try out AI LingoPlay and share your thoughts. Your feedback is really important in helping me test, improve, and evolve the app. Whether it’s a question, suggestion, or critique, I would love to hear it.

You can find the free web app here: ailingoplay.com

Feel free to reach out to me here, via the site, or onX. I hope to hear from you soon.

Thanks, Alex

Living in Tohoku, it seems pretty dead for big outdoor events most summers with all the fun being had down south near the Tokyo core. Occasionally you hear word of raves in the mountains or what not, but I haven’t heard of any in the past few years. Anyone know if anything is going down here up north this summer (or autumn even)?

This is a rather odd question but I am staying in Japan for a while and I've noticed that there are 3-4 towels of different sizes in the bathroom. I know the large one is the bath towel, medium is for hands and face. But I don't understand the small, thin and sometimes slightly long one. I've read online that it could be for wiping your butt after using the bidet. But another source says it is for placing on the floor while getting out of the shower or for wiping your feet. Most hotels like Toyoko Inn place this towel on the side of the bathtub. So what it this towel used for?

Saw a post about marijuana in Japan and hear alot of things on here and through word of mouth. I'm a regular marijuana consumer and when I go to Japan I accept that I'll probably not be able to smoke so I just don't. However on my last trip this past year I managed to actually smoke weed like 3 times while I was there. Fairly easy as well I might add.

The first time basically happened cause me and buddy met a Brazilian there and he basically offered us to smoke and me being a goblin i said yes. He told me he just has a dude who sells it to him in town. Now the 2nd time I was in a bar in Osaka drunk as shit and I remember some Americans came in talking real loud and one of them starting saying "i can get the best weed in Orange county" yada yada, i end up chiming into their conversation as a joke saying "man if only we could have that right here". Literally a second later I feel a fist touch my chest and inside this fist a full gram dab pen. It was like a swan dropping a baby off in my lap it was beautiful. And then the third time was in Kyoto where I met a Japanese local who took me to a legal weed shop and surprisingly that THCPO stuff really works.

Anyways what I'm wondering is. How do y'all think the 2nd guy got his stuff in? I never bothered to ask but I do remember airport security wasn't that crazy. How do y'all think this was possible?

If it's taught in Japanese are English terms used? How is it taught?