Japan may be America’s best ally in the Pacific rim, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the two countries share all that much, culturally. I’ve traveled in Japan, and I’ve spent quite a lot of time working and visiting the Land of the Rising Sun. My wife speaks and reads Japanese, I’ve spent months working on projects there in my previous career, and between the two of us, we’d like to think that we have a pretty good bead on Japan, the people, and the culture. We’d like to think that – but Japan has a way of throwing us for a loop now and then.
On my first visit there, though, I fell in love with the place. The people are generally warm and friendly, the countryside is beautiful, and even the cities are clean, accommodating, and safe. The food is good, the beer is good, and the nightlife in Tokyo, Kyoto, and Osaka I can attest is fun and varied. But…
