Learning Culture

Completed in 1958, Tokyo Tower is a multi-purpose broadcasting tower.

Purikura are photo booths in places like arcades where users can create stickers from photographs th

Sukiyaki is a dish made from beef, tofu, spring onions, and other vegetables simmered in a sweet and salty sauce made with sugar and soy sauce as a base.

Sashimi is raw seafood served in thin slices. It is also called otsukuri.

To make shabu-shabu, you cook vegetables and tofu in a hotpot filled with flavored broth, and dip thinly sliced pieces of meat into the broth. The meat and vegetables are eaten with ponzu or sesame sauce.

Today, though, there are a lot of stylish yakitori places that are like café bars, and it is not unusual for women to dine alone, or for couples to come on dates.

Although now sushi is a gourmet cuisine, it was first mainly eaten at food stands and considered as a simple fast food.

Like udon, soba noodles, made from buckwheat flour, are the typical Japanese noodles.

Yakiniku is a type of Japanese barbecue. In the US(United States), this type of cooking is sometimes called "Korean barbecue".

Dumplings can be fried, steamed, or boiled, but in Japan fried dumplings are the most common.

Oden is a dish made by simmering daikon, chikuwa, konnyaku, and a variety of other ingredients in a pot with soup.

Basic tempura is fish, shellfish and vegetables fried in a batter made from eggs, water, and flour.

Kimonos are Japan's traditional national dress.

At first, castles were defensive bases, but later shoguns and samurai started living in them.

There are no specific rules for enjoying Japanese gardens.

Japan is a volcanic country, and so it has a lot of hot springs.

Shintoism is a religion unique to Japan and has existed since before Buddhism came to the country.

When sumo wrestling first became popular in Japan 1500 years ago, it was a ritual used to predict the outcome of crop harvests.

Kabuki is a traditional Japanese performing art that features music, dance, and drama.

Zazen is a practice found in Zen, one kind of Buddhism.