Japanese Experience

  If you're asked to attend a Japanese wedding be ready to part with some cash. It may seemed a bit weird for us, Filipinos, but cash-giving is very common in weddings in Japan. The amount you give  varies depending on your relationship with the couple. The closer you are to them, the higher the amount that you must give them. And you don't just put this in any other envelope but in a Goshugi-bukuro (see picture below) with your name on it. When you get to the ceremony, you should give this to the wedding receptionist.   Source: Goshugi-bukuro [Online image]. (4 November 2010). Retrieved from http://jollygoo.blogspot.jp/2010/11/goshugi-bukuro.html   They say that the groom's family should give a generous amount to the bride's family and on the average, the amount is  equivalent to the groom's salary for three months. I'm not sure if this is still strictly practiced. All I know is the boss, co-workers, friends, and family members of the couple are expected to giv

  When I first came to Japan years ago, I had almost zero knowledge about Japanese food. All I knew was sushi came from this country. So when my  sempai  gave me a plate of takoyaki and told me they were squid balls, I immediately believed him. I already ate more than four tako balls when he laughed and said, “Marge, I thought you don’t eat octopus?” I stopped eating and almost threw up. Almost.  J  Then, I realized, much of our abhorrence about certain foods are not really because our taste buds don’t like them but more because of what our mind is telling us. Since then, I started eating  tako  (octopus) and I found out that it’s not really different from squid except that it’s a bit harder. But, of course, I still can’t eat the whole  tako  just like any Japanese person does. However, I don’t mind eating slices of taco mixed with rice, vegetables, or ramen from time to time. Source:  MK. (8 October 2016).  Japanese traditional food "takoyaki"  [Online image]. Retrieved from