That kind of thinking has slowly changed over the years as more and more people see TV advertising and the growing numbers of people riding public transportation enjoying their smartphones as they go back and forth to work chatting, emailing, surfing the Internet and playing games. Those who still haven’t switched to a smartphone can be seen or felt looking over smartphone users’ shoulders as they try to get a glimpse of what their smart devices can do. These people anxiously await their 2-year contracts to end so they can rush to the store and upgrade.

Now that even larger Android phones have come out on the market and fewer old style flip-phones are being sold, most who once thought iPhones were too big, now drool over larger-screened devices. What used to be thought of as a big minus has now become a major plus.

The smartphone market is on fire in Japan and people from all age groups are flocking to stores to get one!

Can you believe there is a sign like this being displayed in a store in Osaka, the second largest city in Japan where millions of people live? Believe it! It’s something that happens all the time, maybe not so foul, but the misuse of English is prevalent in all facets of literary use throughout Japan.

In this day and age, when computers and electronic dictionaries are something most have access to, you’d think those wishing to use English would get it correct. That, however, is not the outcome, no matter what their approach. They still get it wrong; so much it has become a sort of cult for foreigners!

Foreigners living, working and/or traveling in Japan cannot go a day without seeing some sort of English faux pas. Many foreigners make it a mission to seek out bad English. Once they find it, they post their findings to the web. Many blogs and websites around the world have been created by native English speakers to display strangely written English on T-shirts, signs, billboards or other forms of English print. It’s amazing how much there is out there! It’s even funnier when you take into consideration the huge number of foreigners that now live in Japan who can provide Japanese with English support if they were ever given the chance.

Most of the grammar mistakes come from people who think they have a good enough grasp of the language to do it on their own. Some might consider them idiots while others might consider them genius, if you taken into consideration the amount of exposure they get from foreigners posting their mistakes. Just look at how much exposure the store in Shinsaibashi is getting as their sale campaign is being splashed across the web on Facebook and websites like this one.

Another reason people in Japan make grammar mistakes, aside from the fact they don’t hire out foreigners to edit their works, is they take words straight from their dictionaries and use them thinking that because their dictionary said it means what they want to say in Japanese that it can be used in English just the same way. Unfortunately, this does not apply to all or most words the English language. Just look at the different words in a Thesaurus and you’ll see how words may be similar in meaning, but are used in different ways at different times. And some words, if used in conjunction with other words, may take on a whole different meaning.

Japanese people would do well to hire out foreigners to edit their English, especially since so many of them now live in the country and work in the English industry. But then again, they might not get as much exposure if their English stopped being funny!

Years ago, ATMs used to closed from before January 1st and wouldn’t be available for use until around the 4th or 5th. If you needed money, you had to get it out of the bank before then, otherwise you’d be without money for almost a whole week. Nowadays, ATMs are open 24 hours at convenient stores, and some are open at other locations. But banks are generally still closed during the New Year holiday period.

Another place that closes down on the 1st is gas stations. If you wish to get gas on January 1st, good luck. You can find some on major highways, but ones in local townships are generally closed for at least on day.

Anyone traveling to Japan during the New Year holiday period should remember this and make sure to have enough cash available because stores, even large ones, sometimes don’t take credit cards. If you don’t have cash, you’re stuck, especially at restaurants!

The OSAKA Hikari-Renaissance 2011 will be from December 14 (Wed), 2011 to December 25 (Sun). The 9th OSAKA Hikari-Renaissance is a symbol of Aqua Metropolis Osaka. Building the light display is a way to show the energy of Osaka via Nakanoshima, Osaka.

This year, numerous plans have been prepared for the “Central Venue” around Osaka City Central Public Hall and the “East Venue” in Nakanoshima Park. Approximately 460 gingko trees have been decorated along the 1.9km length of Midosuji.

Osaka “Aquarium” Kaiyukan

Osaka “Aquarium” Kaiyukan in the Osaka Port area will be displaying illuminated forms of sharks, dolphins, penguins and other sea creatures. A 22-meter tall tree is illuminated and changes colors every few minutes.

Adding beauty to the light display, a mist fills the air giving off a spectacular atmosphere in the night lights.

Also, a mist blast adds a fantastic atmosphere. The popular rockhopper penguin from Kaiyukan comes to Event Square jumping on the switch to turn it on (approx. for 5 minutes from 17:00) on weekends and holidays until December 25 (Sun). Please come and see him do his stuff.

Eco-Friendly

This year’s illumination events have been created through joint efforts of many people. LED lights and environmentally-friendly sources of electricity are being used this year to conserve energy through lower electricity consumption.

Yawata City, which lies just along the northeastern border of Osaka prefecture, is host to one of the latest Costco stores to be opened in Japan. Tons of people will be flocking to the store today to get a glimpse of the latest addition to the Costco Japan family.

Roads leading into the Yawata Costco will most likely be jammed with cars as members and visitors head to the store to shop on Opening Day.

Locals have been anticipating this day for a long time and have hopefully prepared themselves for the traffic that will now be something they have to deal with on a daily basis. Granted, it might not be as bad as it most likely will be today, but nonetheless, from now on, anyone living near Costco Yawata will have a lot more traffic.

Locals, like myself, will most likely walk or ride their bicycles to beat the traffic. Anyone going by train will have to take a bus or taxi in order to get to the store since JR Matsuiyamate station is not a close walk away. But even though the store is not a short walk away, today, anyone going by train might want to consider walking. It might be actually faster!

I’m heading there by bicycle now…

The previous prediction that maple leaves would be ready for viewing unfortunately was incorrect. Maple leaves are still green in many areas around the Kansai region. Some are red. Some are yellow. Finding really bright red maple leaves is getting easier as winter approaches, but they are few and far between.

The better areas to find momiji are in the higher mountain areas or where trees are in direct sunlight.

Good luck finding really red maples! When you do find some, let us know where you found them.

Costco Yawata will open December 9th!

If you are not a member yet, get your membership now before the doors open at a 1000 yen discount. Go to the store to sign up.

View Kyoto Costco Yawata in a larger map

Well, get ready because we may have found out the day it will open!

Locals in the Yawata Costco area have heard, either from a little bird or from those who work or will work at Costco there that the new store will open on Dec 8th, in time for Christmas and right after something else in the area happens on the 7th. Whether this is fact or not still remains to be seen. But this is what we’ve been hearing and it would be smart on Costco’s part to open before Christmas.

By the way, if anyone reading this article is not a member yet, now is the time to get a membership. If you go to the Yawata store and buy your membership, the annual fee is around 1000 yen cheaper right now before doors open.

Trees in mountain areas started changing last week, while trees in lower elevations are still green because temperatures have not been cold enough to cause a change. Because temperatures have dropped the past few days, trees all around the region will begin changing colors from now on. Trees in mountain regions will be red in some places this weekend, but colors will still be in a between stage.

Next weekend will most likely be the perfect time to view maple leaves still on the trees in bright reds and yellows and greens. Wait one more week and the leaves will begin falling.

Based on weather last year, which was similar to this year, the last weekend before December was the best time to view Japanese maples. The first weekend of December was also a good time to view maple leaves, but by that time most of the leaves had already fallen. Only a few trees on the first weekend of December still had leaves on them. Still, it was beautiful!

At first Costco was supposed to open in spring of this year. Later, they pushed it to autumn. Late in autumn, they changed the sign in front of the store reading it would open in winter.

For whatever reason they chose to push the date back, anyone close to Kyoto that knows about Costco is frustrated that they keep pushing the dates back, but we anxiously await the opening of the Kyoto store.

Hurry up Kyoto Costco! Open up!