Go! Go! Nihon blog

Category: Japanese Culture

Japanese Culture
Kabuki is one of the great performing arts, with a long, rich history and origin that dates back over 400 years. Throughout history, kabuki in Japan has gone through a lot of transitions and reforms....
Japanese Culture
Having the opportunity to work full-time in Japan is truly a dream come true for some. It offers a glimpse into a dynamic and intricate work culture. From punctuality and team collaboration to professionalism and...
Japanese Culture
When autumn arrives in Japan, landscapes across the country turn all shades of red, orange, and yellow. In Japanese, the process of leaves changing colours is called “momiji“, which is also the name of the...
Japanese Culture
Why should the living get to have all the fun anyway? Every 7th month of the year, Japan celebrates Obon お盆, one of the biggest holiday periods of the year. But what is Obon? In short,...
Japanese Culture
It’s on the back of the ¥1000 bill, on the first page of a Japan Google Image search, and is an almost perfectly symmetrical volcano neatly capped in snow during the winter months. Mount Fuji—Japan’s...
Japanese Culture
Buddhism is one of the two main religions in Japan and has co-existed with its counterpart, Shintōism (神道) for many centuries. Buddhism was officially brought to Japan from China and Korea during the 6th century...
Japanese Culture
If you’re living in Japan and have a calendar at home, you may have noticed that there is some additional information under the date in black or red letters. This is the traditional Japanese six-day...
Japanese Culture
When you think about spring in Japan, surely the first thing that springs to mind (no pun intended) is the cherry blossoms that draw large crowds of locals and tourists alike. The tradition of hanami...
Japanese Culture
In Japan, the Western holiday of Valentine’s Day was popularized in the 1950’s. There’s also a follow-up holiday called White Day (ホワイトデー) on March 14, which was invented as a day for men to give gifts and...
Japanese Culture
Celebrating the new year in Japan is a fantastic experience. Unlike many western countries you traditionally don’t shoot fireworks during New Year (except maybe at Disneyland).  Rather, it is customary to place a shimekazari (しめ飾り)...
Japanese Culture
Have you ever visited a temple or shrine in Japan and seen large amounts of wooden plaques hanging on display at the temple grounds? These wooden plaques, so called ema (絵馬), have a long history...
Japanese Culture
In Japan, New Year’s is the most important holiday of all. Celebrating the Japanese New Year, or Oshōgatsu (お正月)  in Japanese, means spending time with family and loved ones while eating lots of food and...
Japanese Culture
Every year on August 11, people celebrate Mountain Day, or Yama no Hi 山の日, in Japan. This is the country’s newest public holiday, enacted in 2014 with the intention to encourage people to pay homage...
Japanese Culture
What’s in a name anyway? Well, if you grew up in Japan, a lot. A rich history lives behind every Japanese family name. Each one tells a story linked to a historic clan of ancient...
Japanese Culture
What are those interesting-looking, red Daruma dolls anyway? You’ve likely seen them in Asian restaurants around the world or hiding just about everywhere in Japan. But few know the interesting and somewhat dark history behind their...
Japanese Culture
They’re an absolute must-see whether you’re religious or not. Japan’s temples and shrines are some of the most beautiful in the world. Most of them are nestled into gorgeous locations across the country. Think secluded cliff-side...
Japanese Culture
There’s nothing wrong with a Attack on Titan binge, or rewatching Mononoke Hime for the umpteenth time. They’re great! But, there are so many other movies in Japanese aside from your favourite anime. Besides language...
Japanese Culture
Japanese pop music, or J-Pop, is popular all around the world thanks to movies, anime and the internet. But did you know Japan also has an incredibly rich and long history of traditional music and...
Japanese Culture
The word omiyage お土産 translates to “souvenir”, but the practice of giving omiyage in Japan is much more nuanced than your typical western ideas of what a souvenir is.  Giving omiyage is deeply ingrained in...
Japanese Culture
If you watch anime or read manga, you’ll probably have come across the word senpai 先輩. This is usually someone older, such as an older student at a school. But what a senpai is and...
Japanese Culture
You might not be familiar with the term “Ukiyo-e”, but there’s a good chance that you have seen the famous Great Wave of Kanagawa. This beautiful piece was created as a woodblock print and alongside...
Japanese Culture
Shibori is a Japanese tie-dyeing technique that has been used for centuries. Famous for its blue dye, shibori is the result of experimentation with more interesting approaches to textile production, rather than just colouring clothes...
Japanese Culture
A lot of what you hear about the Japanese work culture tends to focus on one thing: the long, unrewarding hours and the overwork. But there are actually so many unique aspects of Japanese work...
Japanese Culture
Japanese pop music has millions of fans around the world. Even if you feel you need a beginner’s guide to J-Pop, you’ll probably recognise more hits than you realise. You’ll hear J-Pop hits in movies,...
Japanese Culture
The Japanese kimono is a quintessential garment and despite changing fashion over the years, it’s still seen as an icon of Japan. Literally meaning ‘worn thing’, it’s had a prominent place in the history of...
Japanese Culture
The Tanabata Festival is one of the most joyous and colourful festivals in Japan and there are plenty of them that happen all over Japan. Tanabata (七夕) means evening of the seventh, but it can...
Japanese Culture
Japanese green tea (茶, cha) is a very important part of Japanese culture and the accompanying ceremony is one of the three classical Japanese arts of refinement. The Japanese tea ceremony is called sadō (茶道) or...
Japanese Culture
It’s hard to imagine communicating these days without the use of emojis – but do you know their history? Read on to learn more about the history of emojis and the significant role that Japan...
Japanese Culture
Japanese calligraphy is one of the most well known and popular of the traditional arts of Japan. It’s called shodō (書道) in Japanese, which literally means way of writing. Shodō has a very long history....
Japanese Culture
Early in spring every year families with daughters celebrate Girls’ Day in Japan. It’s referred to as Hinamatsuri (雛祭り) in Japanese, which means doll festival. And for this reason it’s also known as Dolls’ Day....
Japanese Culture
Sending postcards from your visit abroad is a must, particularly when visiting Japan where you can find original and very special postcards. In fact, there’s an endless variety of types, colours, shapes and motifs for...
Japanese Culture
The concept of Japanese hospitality, otherwise known as omotenashi (お持て成し), has come to light recently. Though translated simply as hospitality, the word omotenashi has a meaning deeply rooted in the Japanese psyche. It’s not simply...
Japanese Culture
Japan’s new era has begun and it’s called Reiwa (令和). It technically began back on the 1st May when Emperor Akihito abdicated the throne and his son Naruhito ascended it and this means there is...
Japanese Culture
Japanese folklore encompasses a wide variety of mythical monsters yōkai (妖怪), some scary, some lucky, and some a bit more on the mysterious side. Amongst these is the Tanuki (狸), or Japanese raccoon dog. It...
Japanese Culture
If you’re out and about in the summer in Japan you’re like to see people beautifully dressed up and enjoying the warm weather. But what is the yukata (浴衣), when do you wear it and most...
Japanese Culture
The Sumō Tournament is an event that is famous around the world. A martial art that is all about brute force and using your weight to beat your opponent. But what exactly is it made...
Japanese Culture
If you’ve been into a Japanese home or even just seen some pictures of one, it’s likely that you will have seen a kotatsu table proudly taking centre stage in the middle of the living...
Japanese Culture
As every culture has its ghosts and ghouls, so too do the Japanese in the form of yōkai (妖怪). Made up of two kanji that represent “bewitching; calamity” and “apparition; mystery; suspicious,” they also come...
Japanese Culture
Japanese animation is a big industry and some of you may already know that there’s one name that has dominated this world for some time: Studio Ghibli. Many people that come to Japan, come with...
Japanese Culture
Japan celebrates each of the four seasons in very special ways. That’s why when the rainy season ends and summer starts to fire up, there’s an endless list of things to do or events to...
Japanese Culture
Dragon Ball, Naruto, Cardcaptor Sakura… these manga (漫画, まんが) are known throughout the world and have brought Japanese comics fame across the international scene. A genuine institution, Japanese manga have a unique style that sets...
Japanese Culture
Tattoos in Japan have a long history, winding past the forbidden image it has in present Japanese society. It’s an integral part of the country’s culture, and its unique style separates itself from western tattoos....
Japanese Culture
When you think of Japanese music, more often than not modern J-Pop will spring to mind as the popularity of idol groups spreads around the world. However, there’s a rich and varied history behind Japanese...
Japanese Culture
Anime (アニメ) is a word derived from “animation” and is used by Japanese people to refer to any animated drawings, no matter their country of origin. In English, it is mostly used to refer specifically to...
Japanese Culture
In August of 2018, I finished up my job in Tanegashima and started a 3 month journey from the southernmost island of Japan all the way up to the very top, and finally settling down...
Japanese Culture
There are a total of 16 Japanese public holidays. They can range from the typical New Year’s and National Foundation Day, to the more specific Coming of Age Day and the Emperor’s Birthday. Here you...
Japanese Culture
It’s early morning, and by luck, you’ve come on a day everyone seems to be busy doing anything else. Walking up the steps, you glance to your sides and notice two large fox statues, keys...
Japanese Culture
Japan is one of the most culturally rich countries in the world with an interesting history, a ton of non-spoken rules and its own unique costumes, making it easily one of the most fascinating countries...
Japanese Culture
Whether you’re at school, work, a sports game or going on a date, the word ganbaru (頑張る) and its imperatives ganbare/ganbatte are used so frequently in Japan. But it’s a difficult word to translate into...
Japanese Culture
Origami (折り紙), which in Japanese literally means “folding paper”,  is thought to have originated in Japan but is a part of many Asian cultures, such as Chinese. Through various forms of folding, a flat sheet...
Japanese Culture
You may have seen or read Memoirs of a Geisha. You may have seen the girls with painted-white faces in Kyoto. You may think you know what a geisha is or you may have no...
Japanese Culture
Spring may best be symbolized by sakura, or cherry blossoms in Japan. Cherry blossoms also symbolize the beginning of the year for many, as the Japanese school year and fiscal year start in April, just...
Japanese Culture
Shintō and Buddhism are Japan’s two major religions, with Shintō recorded as far back as the 8th century, although its existence has probably been much longer. Buddhism was brought from China in the 6th century,...
Japanese Culture
Bonsai (盆栽) is a beautiful art form in Japan that aims to blend horticultural skills with Japanese aesthetics. Its two kanji—bon (盆) meaning basin or tray and sai (裁) meaning planting—literally translate to “planted in...
Japanese Culture
Where the crosswalk goes from red to green and as many as 2,500 people hustle and bustle across the intersection each and every time, at Shibuya Station sits a bronze dog statue. Stoically waiting for...
Japanese Culture
At some point in your life, you’ve probably been sucked into a movie so enchanting it left you speechless. There was something about that movie, like you were standing next to the characters or you...
Japanese Culture
You may have noticed Go! Go! Nihon’s mascot, the cute cat with its paw in the air, waving at visitors from its spot next to the logo (at least to most Westerners it’s waving, but...
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Who we are

Go! Go! Nihon Live and Study in Japan!

In 2009, after meeting and studying at a Japanese language school together, Davide and John start working on a project that will make the process of living and studying in Japan much easier. The idea for Go! Go! Nihon is born. The service and website is launched with Italian, Swedish, and English language support. There is an immediate positive reception to the service and the first long-term students start the October session that year.