Anna Matsushita

  A few years ago, in a certain part of Tokyo, we found ourselves engrossed in gathering information about Cyprus as the night drew on. At the time, we were working for a small travel agency, and a client had approached us with the idea of creating a tour to Cyprus. We worked closely with our local partners on the island, while also gathering as much information as we could in Japan, all in an effort to craft a truly remarkable tour.   Cyprus, an island nation in the Mediterranean, lies just off the coast of Turkey. It is easily accessible, with airlines offering connecting flights from Japan. The island has long been home to many Greek settlers, and historically, it has fallen under the rule of several great empires: the Hittites, Assyrians, Egyptians, Roman Empire, Frankish Kingdom, Venice, the Ottoman Empire, and Britain. Like many Mediterranean islands, it is a crossroads of civilisation, where cultures have blended and shaped the land over millennia.   Cyprus boasts ...

      Allow me to indulge in a little rambling from my twilight years. It was some forty years ago, on an otherwise ordinary day at school, when I was abruptly asked, “Anna, why did you go upstairs?”   It was in late 1980’s, and at the time, my family had been relocated to London due to my father’s job, and I was attending an international school. The weekend prior, we had ventured to London’s Chinatown for a much-anticipated dinner. The memory still lingers—savouring stir-fried greens, steaming noodle soups, fried rice, and tapioca in coconut milk. Bliss.   On the way to the restaurant, I’d run into a classmate and their friends quite by chance. Later, I learned that they had trailed us, curious about where Japanese families dined. Apparently, the sight of us entering a Chinese restaurant had intrigued them enough to follow us inside.   The restaurant, like many in those days, operated on a system of subtle (or not so subtle) racial disti...

    Nearly 40 years ago, while living in Britain, I was once asked an intriguing question by a Swiss friend:   "Japanese eat raw fish, don't they?"   When I confirmed this, the response was swift and unfiltered: "That's disgusting."   The phrase "raw fish" conjures up visceral, almost grotesque imagery—the notion of biting into a fish, freshly plucked from a stream, scales and all. To clarify, I explained that what we eat in Japan is akin to Italian carpaccio—thinly sliced fresh fish served with soy sauce rather than olive oil and balsamic vinegar. My friend appeared somewhat reassured, if still perplexed, by this cultural culinary nuance.   Curiously, the term "raw fish" persists today in articles about Japan, especially those catering to Western audiences. While such descriptions aim to demystify sashimi, they inadvertently evoke a sense of barbarism, fostering reactions like the one I encountered: "disgusting....

 One winter, my family and I embarked on a journey to the Canary Islands, situated off the coast of North Africa, to celebrate the year-end holidays. These islands, a bit farther south than the Mediterranean, are renowned for their numerous volcanoes. My destination was one of the islands in the archipelago, Lanzarote. It's a Spanish territory where the predominant language is, unsurprisingly, Spanish. Upon landing at the airport and traversing the island by bus, I beheld many curious sights. I noticed peculiar circular enclosures made of stone, with greenery growing in sunken centers. Our guide explained that these were vineyards. The island, formed from volcanic ash, experiences strong winds, making it challenging to cultivate taller crops. Thus, they construct enclosures with rocks to shield against the wind, creating depressions in the center where grapevines thrive. That day, our group of nearly thirty individuals was meticulously led around by our guide, showcasing variou...

 In my early years, I resided in the Tohoku region of Japan. Near the housing complex nestled in the mountains, there was a forest where various fruits grew.   Among them, the mountain grapes held a special fascination for my young heart. Simply put, they looked delicious. Despite being warned by adults never to eat them, they seemed even more tempting.   During that time, I heard a folktale called "Saru-zake" (Monkey's Wine). It narrated a story of a monkey living in the mountains who hid the mountain grapes he had gathered in a tree hollow. Over time, it miraculously turned into wine. A woodcutter who discovered it tasted the wine, found it incredibly delicious, drank too much, and ended up drunk—such was the essence of the story, if I recall correctly.   This wine made from mountain grapes (Vitis coignetiae) is considered one of Japan's oldest alcoholic beverages archaeologically. Its origins can be traced back to the Jomon period, approximately 10,000...

  31st March 2024 marks Easter, a celebration in Christianity commemorating the resurrection of Christ. This widely embraced Christian holiday, now quite prevalent in Japan, is a moveable feast, changing dates each year. Despite the uncertainties of the pandemic, places like Tokyo Disneyland used to host Easter events in pre-COVID times, featuring egg-shaped chocolates and festive treats. The Easter period spans about a month and a half. In Catholic tradition, it kicks off with Shrove Tuesday's Carnival, 41 days before Easter, followed by Ash Wednesday, marking the start of Lent – a period focusing on prayer, fasting, and charitable acts, sharing in the suffering of Christ. During Lent, individuals often undertake acts of kindness or give up indulgences such as sweets. On Shrove Tuesday, known in the UK as "Pancake Day," festivities involve making and flipping pancakes in a unique competition. Towns and villages host pancake-flipping challenges, and some even attempt the ...

 In 1990, I came back to Japan from the UK, in an attempt to go to a university in Tokyo. Back in those days, high school diplomas given by scholls in abroad were not really accepted by universities in Japan, Even though you finished A-level or SAT, you still have to go through an entrance examination. Not many universities let students who studied abroad, so we were left with very few choices.   I failed my first university examination. I have not used Japanese for a while, and I was not familiar with essay writing in Japanese. It was pressurising to write these Kanji characters in handwriting, hoping that I didn’t make much mistakes – which, probably I did.   I took summer course for students who graduated from high schools abroad, to brush up English and Japanese languages, as well as essay writing, Withing two months intense course, I became much more confident using the both languages.   I took another entrance examination at a university in Tokyo....

Today is the moon festival in Japan. Apparently many people were looking forward to this annual event more than usual, possibly to be festive more than usual and enjoy the day thoroughly. Lots of text have been exchanged to talk about today’s weather forecast. Apparently it will be cloudy today, so the visibility of the moon may not be good. Some of my friend went out to see the moon last night, held a little party at home. Some of them cooked sweet dumpling with their kids, which looked fun. The reason why dumplings are chosen for the sweets of the day is simple : Dumplings look like full moon ! At home, my family was festive more than usual. We did went out last night to see the bright moon. My parent went out today, and bought some sweets which may be too much for the three of us.  They said some of the stores were offering Silver grass, a typical decoration of this day. Sadly the silver grasses at the stores were too mature, flowers were all open and fluffy seeds were alm...

Mid-Autumn Festival– or, rather know as Otsukimi (Moon viewing) -   is on its way in Japan once again this year on 21 st September, 2021. The full moon on 15th August in Chinese calendar is called “Chu-shu no Meigetsu” (中秋の名月：Beautiful moon in mid-autumn). As Chinese calendar is lunar calendar, it is a movable feast. The full moon appears sometime between mid -September to mid-October. Ideally, families enjoy full moon with a sweets and dumpling while admiring the full moon. At home, this year's sweets are like these. The custom of moon viewing in Japan goes back about 1000 years ago. Nobles in court or palaces in Kyoto started to admire the full moon, holding party to sing old Chinese poems, play music and drink fine wine. Such a festivity appears in some of the literatures like “The Tale of Genji” by Lady Murasaki. Genji holds a feast at Katsura Villa in Kyoto along with his friends, playing musing and enjoy wine under the moonlight. ( more on this from Katsura Imperial Vi...

  The third COVID state of emergency was lifted in the Kanto region of Japan at the end of March 2021. People gradually started to go out more often. On the surface level the life seemed to be returning to normal – except that people were wearing face masks even those without cedar pollen fever – allergy similar to hay fever. On a weekend, I visited Yokohama. Yokohama is located about 30 minutes from Tokyo by train. It is known as one of the oldest port towns which started trade with western countries, such as France, Britain and America about 200 years ago. It is pretty big city with many areas to visit, such as the three towers of King, Queen and Jack, Hikawa-Maru ocean liner, Minato-mirai area, China town, Yokohama English Rose garden and many more. The Yokohama station is one of the spots where you can see some iconic figures which represent Yokohama’s history. Once you are out of central ticket gates of JR or other private railways, you might notice very small trails of the hi...