The relatively short time between the end of the FIFA World Cup and the start of the domestic league season this summer does seem to have meant fewer European clubs coming to Japan for money-spinning ties against local opposition. To my knowledge, the only teams to have made a journey to Japan have been a couple of German giants.
What usually happens with these matches is that when they’re first announced I Continue reading
As a Brit living in Japan, I really have mixed emotions when either Great Britain or England play against Japan in any sporting competition. It is admittedly not the biggest rivalry but for any sports fans in my situation it is one that matters but such meetings really have been infrequent during all the time I’ve lived in Tokyo.
In tennis, Great Britain defeated Japan 2-1 in the United Cup in January and 2-0 in the Billie Jean King Cup last year having lost 3-2 in the Davis Cup before that. England lost a Continue reading
Needing some original Sunday morning dog walking ideas, my wife and I decided to walk round the famous green train line which passes through most of Tokyo’s urban centres in a loop. I should point out that our little six-year-old chihuahua would do a mix of walking and being carried either in my arms or in his backpack.
The 35-kilometre route for the whole Yamanote line was broken down into Continue reading
It has been said that the most memorable World Cup for many football fans is the one they experience around the age of 11 (give or take a year or two!) so for me that fell between Mexico ’86 and Italia ’90. Both of those tournaments hold special memories for me and it really did feel special to have some matches taking place in Mexico this time.
The majority of matches were hosted in the USA (with some in Canada too) though and it was eventually Spain that reigned supreme. I only saw them in live action in the latter stages but hadn’t actually considered them for the top prize prior to that as they never really Continue reading
During all my time in Japan I’ve managed to see the majority of the top test-playing international rugby teams at some point but there have been a couple of notable absentees for a while.
The title of this post reveals that one of those teams was the current Continue reading
Late night or early morning flights in my experience tend be just after midnight or at about 6:00 am. On this occasion though my flight from Amman (Jordan) to Istanbul in Turkey was right in the middle of that time zone.
The 3:15 am flight might have saved me on a night’s accommodation, but I did Continue reading
12 months on from our last trip to Hiroshima and we were back but this time things were a bit different and not in a good way.
At the start of the year beloved family dog Cocoa Continue reading
“The miracle of Brighton” in 2015 helped propel Japan’s national men’s rugby team towards the upper echelons of world rugby. That famous win against South Africa in the Rugby World Cup in England was one of the greatest upsets in global sport and things got better four years later when they hosted the tournament and defeated the likes of Ireland and Scotland in the Pool stages. Japanese rugby was very much on the rise but could it be sustained?
Sadly, Japan is located in a remote part of the world compared to all the other powerhouse nations of the sport. Joining the Six Nations tournament in Europe was never really likely but the southern hemisphere Rugby Championship did seem a more likely proposition for helping the Brave Blossoms progress with regular top-tier matches. That has never materialised though leaving the Continue reading
There’s nothing us Brits love more than a bit of toilet humour so when I heard there was a museum devoted to such matters I thought it was a place I just had to see.
Whenever I hear the word Toto two things come to mind. One of them is the American rock band famed for the early 80s hit single ‘Africa‘ and then there’s the toilet manufacturer. The latter has a museum in Continue reading
Usually when one visits a museum, it is to see whatever is being exhibited inside but the beauty of this place is very much the distinctive external appearance.
With two rectangular prisms protruding from the building, the cantilevered structure of this museum resembles bulging robotic eyes or binoculars. This aesthetically pleasing structure is the Continue reading
Tokyo Fox (東京狐) 