As part of my homework for the weekend, I was asked to write an essay detailing the international relations disaster that is the Japanese government’s method of dealing with past war crimes. I was thrilled. However…
![[Puzzling Tuesday] Cultural Crossover?](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/IMG_20140704_141825-1-670x300.jpg "[Puzzling Tuesday] Cultural Crossover?")
[Puzzling Tuesday] Cultural Crossover?
When I see this in the streets of Buenos Aires…
![[Puzzling Tuesday] REAL Sponge Cake.](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/106704809_37fdbbdc8b_o-640x300.jpg "[Puzzling Tuesday] REAL Sponge Cake.")
[Puzzling Tuesday] REAL Sponge Cake.
Japanese restaurants and food sellers have a habit of displaying plastic versions of the food that they serve inside. This one was a surprisingly accurate rendition of a sponge cake I saw in Kanazawa back in 2004.
![[Japan] Lessons in Bureaucracy Part 1: An Introduction.](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/14231353244_9e43cbfbc1_o-e1402965506129-670x300.jpg "[Japan] Lessons in Bureaucracy Part 1: An Introduction.")
[Japan] Lessons in Bureaucracy Part 1: An Introduction.
Who would have thought it? Crappy bureaucracies exist everywhere, in every language.
![[Puzzling Tuesday] Dangle.](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/06/309147617_eb7383840a_o-640x300.jpg "[Puzzling Tuesday] Dangle.")
[Puzzling Tuesday] Dangle.
This was a jumper me and my friends noticed in Kanazawa, Japan in 2004. I’m not sure it’s the kind of thing you can wear to just any occasion.
![[Japan] Introducing Vegemite at a Japanese School – Dos and Dont’s](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/Vegemite-670x300.jpg "[Japan] Introducing Vegemite at a Japanese School – Dos and Dont’s")
[Japan] Introducing Vegemite at a Japanese School – Dos and Dont’s
Introducing Vegemite to people in Japan is a particularly tricky thing to do, particularly if you have trouble articulating the subtleties of the spread in Japanese. Nevertheless, it’s probably something that most Australians working with children in any capacity may feel inclined to do at some stage, even if only for lack of anything else to do in class.
![[Photoset] Japan: Has It Been Six Months Already?](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/01/5380490784_d1c4b5bbe8_o-670x300.jpg "[Photoset] Japan: Has It Been Six Months Already?")
[Photoset] Japan: Has It Been Six Months Already?
I’ve finally gotten around to uploading photos from the past several months. Hope you enjoy them!
![[Japan] Elves and Reindeer and Ducks, Oh My!](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/11/Ducks-reindeer-elves-670x300.png "[Japan] Elves and Reindeer and Ducks, Oh My!")
[Japan] Elves and Reindeer and Ducks, Oh My!
It seems that even for non-ESL speakers, some of the more specific Christmas-related terminology can get mixed up occasionally.
![[Japan] Taiko Performance!](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/5109596575_0ac17f5d63_o-670x300.jpg "[Japan] Taiko Performance!")
[Japan] Taiko Performance!
The second performance of my new taiko drumming group, Kawauso Daiko. Was brilliant fun!
![[Japan] Ah, the things that make translators chuckle.](https://travel.kavp.net/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Kikyuu-Club-Sono-Ato-353x300.jpg "[Japan] Ah, the things that make translators chuckle.")
[Japan] Ah, the things that make translators chuckle.
Sometimes I put silly place-holder words and phrases into translated texts, so that I can immediately know the literal meaning in English without having to recheck in the dictionary. I go over the text a few times, revising it until the word or phrase sounds natural and acceptable, so normally the place-holders are replaced. There are times when I grow attached to them, though!