Cool Japan

Japanese people contrive ways to protect against the cold to get by their chilly winter comfortably. In town, we found people with scarves and ear muffs on, several socks worn on top of each other, and those with exothermal underwear on. We visited a family living comfortably in their house covered with heat insulator over their exterior walls all the way down to 1.5m beneath the house, saving heating expenses by making good use of earth thermal and solar heat. And disposable heating pads, products which have now come into use worldwide. We made a visit to a company developing new products one after another.

There are over 10 million pet dogs throughout Japan. Foreigners find many surprising things in the relationship between dogs and Japanese people. Amazed at the owners carrying shovels and bags as they walk their dogs and astounded to see dogs in clothes. At the shop for tailor-made dog clothes, a dog was being measured over 10 points from their legs to tails and were being checked even on their constitution and condition of the skin before they had their outfit customized. Also made a visit to a dog-show for Akita Inu and its breeding site to explore the appeals of the dog that’s becoming popular even overseas.

Traffic safety in Japan is full of surprises for foreigners. It’s strange for them to see pedestrians dutifully waiting at red light until it turns green when no cars are coming and impressive to see cars yielding, each taking turns to enter junctions. A driving school equipped with training roads on the premise providing a detailed course from driving skills to even manners is rarely seen abroad. And how will foreigners respond to road safety classes where the stunt men ‘reconstruct’ accidents with their convincing performances?

"Miso" is an indispensable condiment to Japanese cuisine. Foreigners are amazed by the great variety of miso, referred to as "as many miso flavors, as many miso storehouses" . New waves are seen in new shops specializing in miso soup being developed as well as miso being used even in French cuisine. Miso prepared during the cold winter slowly enhances the its flavor. We visited Takayama in Gifu Prefecture, to a traditional Miso storehouse with 120 years history, to watch their careful and thorough production methods. We also focused on the freeze-dried miso soup ready to serve by simply pouring hot water.

Cool Japan is going into its 10th year. In its first episode today, the “Coolest of the Cool” will be chosen from among all the best of cools of the previous year which will once again be reviewed here under the categories of "technology", "food" and "tradition". The program will also highlight all scenes where cultural gaps between Japan and other countries stood out. Also, video letters from our previous foreign guests will introduce their favorite Japanese items they took back home with them. It’s a year-end roundup you can’t miss it!

Foreigners often find ways Japanese people look for love to be quite odd. Japanese tend to find their partner somewhere close by such as at work which Europeans and Americans consider strange coming from countries separating work life from personal life. Our foreign guest watched a matchmaking party, the standard way for Japanese people to look for love nowadays. We also visited a school where men build skills on communicating with women. Looking for love is a universal theme yet methods vary. The theme gives rise to a heated debate!

Many Japanese visit their family graves on the verna equinox. Paying a visit to graves, a place where they feel strongly attached to seems to create an opportunity to strengthen family bonds. Lately, an increasing number of people are relocating their graves closer to home from afar to enable more frequent visits. There are also people referred to as “Haka Miler” who visits graves of prominent figures going as far as foreign countries. The program will explore the differences between Japan and other countries people’s passion toward graves and their feelings toward ancestors, as well as trends in graves.

Japanese primary schools are filled with surprises for foreigners. Students commute to school in groups with lower-graders being led by upper-graders. Children also break into teams to take on the tasks of cleaning and lunch duty. Japanese primary schools are not only a place to study but also a place to learn communal life. At a primary school in Saitama pref., children were having a jump rope challenge in teams formed with students from all grades, (one to six). At a primary school in Nagano Pref., a “rural education system” was being conducted where children from the city come to live together with schoolmates away from home in the heart of nature’s bounty.

Japanese Kawaii culture takes the world by storm! Our foreign guests explored its latest trend in town. There they discovered different categories established for Kawaii like “Busakawaii (adorably ugly)” and “Kimokawaii (cute and disgusting)”. In the “Kawaii Science Project” at Nagaoka University of Technology, cute items are incorporated into science experiments to make science fun for students reluctant to study the subject. And up close with the work of Sebastian Masuda, the initiator of Harajuku’s Kawaii culture, to explore its very roots.

Many Japanese are said to have “great love for rail travel”. More trains that serve to make the train ride itself enjoyable rather than a simple means of transportation are being developed. Our foreign guests who experienced such rail travel were astonished by the delicious lunch from in-car sales and the announcements made on the views from the window. Taking the opportunity afforded by the extended opening of Hokuriku Shinkansen, travel agencies keep themselves busy planning new package tours for the fall season. The restaurant train of Hisatsu Orange Railway, connecting Kagoshima and Kumamoto prefecture, aims to revitalize the area by attracting travelers with their specialty dishes cooked with plenty of locally-grown ingredients.

Yokai has always been something the Japanese people feel very close to. And they are very popular. They appear not only in traditional folk tales but also in manga and animation. When we requested people in town to draw their favorite yokai, many of them drew kappa, ittan-momen, and the latest animation characters very skillfully. Sakaiminato City in Tottori Prefecture, the birthplace of Shigeru Mizuki, is experiencing a boost in visitors through their successful revitalization of the town. Yokai is considered as part of the local ethnologic and cultural studies at Kyoto Gakuen University where its students conduct interviews with the local people.

May is the season for new tea leaves. Japanese tea is now gaining popularity abroad as a healthy drink taken with no sugar or milk. And matcha tea flavored snacks are highly acclaimed as souvenirs among foreign tourists. In the program, we made a visit to a store specializing in tea and a restaurant with a concept of ‘eating tea’, as well as a Gyokuro farm to have a look at their elaborate work. We also made a visit to a manufacturer of Tokuho a Specified Health Use green tea beverage certified by the country to close in on behind-the-scenes of its development.

Japanese people are known to be precise about time. The punctuality of trains that arrive on time as well as Japanese people who aren’t usually late to meeting places astounds our foreign guests. They also praise the estimated time of arrival of the car navigation system. A foreign guest experienced the latest car navigation system which provides the shortest route to a destination by catching traffic jam info updated on a moment-to-moment basis. Rapid cooking spaghetti was developed especially for Japanese people who wish to save time even for cooking. After much trial and error, 3-min boiling time was realized by creating a pinwheel shape on the cross-section of the noodle. The program will share the story of its development.