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Continue reading →: A Cone of Dutch NostalgiaI forgot how good potato fries are in the Netherlands. It is not that the fries in Japan are bad but Dutch patat is still the best I have ever had. Yesterday I was walking through Delft with my mother and we passed a patat zaak. The moment I saw…
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Continue reading →: Price Shifts in Dutch CafésOne fresh mint tea and a cappuccino for 9.60 Euro. It caught me off guard. My mother and I were walking through Delft on a drizzly grey day and we decided to sit down for something warm. Nothing fancy. Just two simple drinks. When the bill came, I stared at…
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Continue reading →: In the Air to Amsterdam: Good WiFi, Good Meals, and One Odd Airport MomentI am writing this somewhere between Incheon and Amsterdam. There is not much to do on an airplane, so I decided to use the time for my daily blog post. For 18 Euros I bought airplane WiFi, and I have to say it works surprisingly well. It has never been…
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Continue reading →: My Morning in Rural JapanMy mornings in rural Japan are slow and quiet. I wake up on my futon and take a moment to sit up straight in a cross-legged position. I scan my body, notice whether there is any tension or pins and needles, and allow my mind to settle before I start…
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Continue reading →: A Clearer Direction for My BlogYesterday I paused the Hidden Japan series, but it is not finished. I simply decided to take a step back and look at the direction of my blog as a whole. After more than two years of daily blogging, it feels like the right moment to review what I have…
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Continue reading →: Emotional Restraint Shapes Everyday Life in JapanOne of the quietest and most defining aspects of Japan is emotional restraint. You notice it slowly, not all at once. It appears in the way people speak softly on trains, in the way conversations pause so that no one talks over another, and in the way feelings stay below…
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Continue reading →: What Women Do to Make Men Feel Understood in JapanJapan has many social spaces that developed quietly over time. Some exist in narrow city streets lit by soft signs. Some exist in places where people go after work to breathe out and let the day fall away. Hostess clubs belong to this world. They are often misunderstood from the…
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Continue reading →: Why Japanese People Hire Stand-In Friends for Events and Social SituationsJapan has many quiet social expectations that shape daily life. People move through the world with awareness of how their actions affect the group around them. This creates a culture where harmony feels more important than individual expression and where showing the right social balance matters. Within this framework, there…
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Continue reading →: Smile Clubs and Cuddle Cafés in JapanJapan is a gentle country on the surface. People move with quiet respect. Conversations flow softly. Even small daily exchanges feel organised and polite. But beneath this calm, there are feelings that often remain unspoken. A society that values harmony also creates spaces where emotional needs are held back, sometimes…
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Continue reading →: The Business of Renting Family Members in JapanSome parts of life in Japan reveal themselves only when you look a little closer. They are not hidden on purpose. They simply sit quietly in the background, unnoticed unless you know they exist. The business of renting family members is one of those quiet realities that can surprise people…
This blog is for thoughtful adults who are starting again — in learning, creativity, or life — and want to grow steadily without noise or pressure.
Here you’ll find daily reflections and practical guides shaped by lived experience. The focus is on learning through doing: building consistency, adapting to change, and finding clarity in everyday practice.
The stories and guides here come from real processes — creative experiments, hands-on projects, life in rural Japan, working with nature, and learning new skills step by step. Nothing is rushed. Nothing is polished for performance. The aim is steady progress, honest reflection, and practical insight you can actually use.
If you’re curious about life in Japan, learning new skills at your own pace, or finding a calmer, more intentional way forward, you’re in the right place.
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