Life Style

The Power of Me-Time For Travel: Why It’s Essential

Me Time Japan Team | June 21, 2024

Exploring new places through travel is a transformative experience that broadens our perspectives and encourages personal growth. At the intersection of travel and personal enrichment, we believe that dedicating “me-time” is essential for personal well-being, not merely a luxury. Taking these moments during journeys offers unique advantages, fostering self-discovery and inner reflection. If you’re considering a personal adventure, here are compelling reasons to embrace the opportunity for “me-time”: Why Me-Time Matters: Discover the Benefits Rediscover Your True Self When you embark on a journey for Me-Time, you will face decisions and challenges that will help you discover your true self. Traveling exposes you to raw experiences where you can reconnect …

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Forge Your Path: Embrace Solo Adventures for Personal Growth

Me Time Japan Team | June 5, 2024

a woman running up a hill in the mountains

“Solo activity” is an opportunity to develop a new self through mental and social independence. A rule to fully spend time by yourself in the wilderness. Drinking alone, traveling alone, eating alone. “Solo activities” have become recognized and understood more in recent years and refer to actions and experiences that match your own pace and thoughts. With the idea of mental and social independence, far from being negative ideas of “loneliness” or “being a loner,” we earn a place in society by triggering the development of a new self. In the digital age, getting time to yourself is more difficult than you might think. In other words, it’s not easy …

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Life Style Table For One

Alone and Thriving: Cultivating Joy in Your Solo Moments

Me Time Japan Team | May 15, 2024

“Doing things solo” is an opportunity to re-make oneself by establishing mental independence and freedom from dependence on others. Here are the rules for eating alone in New York, an idea that’s quickly becoming popular! Over the past few years, people have gained a better understanding and appreciation today of the idea of doing things solo, whether it’s drinking alone, traveling alone, or eating alone. Doing things solo is all about moving at your own pace, and making your actions and experience about your own approach. The concept is mental independence and freedom from a certain dependence on others, instead of negative feelings of loneliness or being left out. We …

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Japanese Diaspora Life Style

Addressing Life’s Challenges Through Norwegian Picture Books

Me Time Japan Team | April 10, 2024

Last year’s Nobel Prize in Literature went to a Norwegian playwright, sparking interest in Norwegian books in Japan. Join us in exploring Norwegian picture books with translator Junko Aoki and writer Gro Dahle. The world of Norwegian picture books may be full of surprises for Japanese people as they vividly depict all kinds of social issues, including gender-related matters and domestic violence. Among them, The Angry Man captures domestic violence by parents from a child’s perspective. In Aquarium, it highlights the presence of young carers, making their existence known to society even before it gained widespread recognition. In Aquarium, the book portrays the daily life of a young girl whose mother is a goldfish …

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Japanese Diaspora Life Style Table For One

Uncovering the Thriving Food Culture in South Korean Society

Me Time Japan Team | February 1, 2024

Korean dramas and movies, which have gained popularity globally, often feature scenes of meals, which stimulate the viewers’ appetite. If you search online for “Korean drama meals,” you can easily find recipes to recreate meals that have appeared in popular dramas. Many books have been published on this subject. We also see that people are flocking to Koreatowns around the world and paying a visit to South Korea in search of authentic gourmet meals. Why do Korean dramas and movies often feature dining scenes? We can find part of the answer in 『続・韓国カルチャー　描かれた「歴史」と社会の変化』written by Junko Ito. Her book examines social changes through entertainment in South Korea and provides detailed explanations …

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Life Style

Clear Your Mind, Breathe, and Stand on Your Feet

Me Time Japan Team | November 15, 2023

During the pandemic, it was virtually impossible to see what was going to happen in the near future. Some things were occurring at a blinding pace, and we simply did not have any control over certain situations. When our minds are in turmoil, a firm awareness of our feet as the center of our axis can actually help calm our thoughts and strengthen our minds. A Buddhist monk once told us that when our mind is in turmoil, we should be aware of the soles of our feet, to help feel and calm our own presence. “Feet on the ground” is a Japanese idiom meaning a stable, steady, and calm …

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Life Style Me Time Guide Table For One

Table for One in Japan: How to Enjoy Solo Dining

Me Time Japan Team | October 15, 2023

Ohitorisama means one person or Table For One. It has become a rapidly growing movement over the last ten years. There are an increasing number of mangas, TV drama series, and books about the Ohitorisama lifestyle. The solo life activities includes activities such as travel, camping, Onsen(a Japanese hot spring), Tabe-aruki (eating while walking), and much more. Specifically, Japan’s Table For One culture is growing in popularity exponentially. Many Japanese people are dining alone regularly. They see foreigners who visit are thoroughly enjoying the experience and not frustrated to be alone. It’s solo diners’ heaven, as many foreign solo travelers exclaim, “the Japanese food experience is one of the best memories …

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Cultural Footprint Japanese Diaspora Life Style

South Korean Literature Brings Hope & Empowerment: K-book Store in Tokyo Chekccori

Me Time Japan Team | August 31, 2023

South Korean literature is increasingly popular amid the fourth wave of the Hallyu boom. Kim Seung-bok, who founded Cuon, a publishing company specializing in South Korean content, possesses a wide range of literary works. South Korea is considered both geographically the closest and yet one of the most distant countries from Japan due to its historical conflicts and divergent political views. On the other hand, there are many Japanese who enjoy visiting the country on vacation. The younger Japanese generation is drawn to the Korean lifestyles and values through their exposure to K-pop, K-dramas, and movies. It is not surprising to encounter Japanese students, who diligently follow South Korean culture …

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Japanese Diaspora Life Style

Zen Meditation in a Trailblazing Mobile Teahouse

Me Time Japan Team | May 10, 2023

When you pursue a lifestyle inspired by Zen—live like a floating cloud without obsessing over anything, it may create an opportunity to build a positive society that shares happiness universally. Joe Jun Liao, an entrepreneur originally from Hong Kong, is building a network to improve personal wellness and the common good in Hong Kong, Thailand, and Japan. While studying architecture at Harvard Graduate School of Design, he started to think about how designing spaces to create invaluable experiences could lead to a mindful society and help solve social problems. After working as a software engineer in California, he founded Hong Kong’s first capsule hotel, SLEEEP, with his childhood friend and …

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Cultural Footprint Life Style

Life Education in Japan: Fully Living in the Present Moment

Me Time Japan Team | April 30, 2023

Teaching how to deal and cope with life and death situations is commonly known as Life Education in Japan. Life Education has become an increasingly important topic today, especially in these unprecedented times. There are so many notable moments where this type of education becomes essential and valuable. One of those moments was on March 11, 2011 where a magnitude-9.0 earthquake struck Japan’s northeastern shores. This horrifying earthquake was also followed by a tsunami and a nuclear disaster killing more than 15,500 people. The grief of these consecutive series of awful events have not subsided in the memories of survivors. Another time where Life Education becomes helpful and important is when we age. As we …

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