Japan on the Internet

This page gathers useful and otherwise interesting links on Japan. Please do not hesitate to suggest any site worth the visit by a comment to this page or by e-mail.

Embassies

Embassies should be the first stop on your Internet search about Japan. They all maintain accurate and up-to-date information about the country:

• UK Embassy (http://www.uknow.or.jp/be_e/)


• US Embassy (http://tokyo.usembassy.gov/)


• Embassy of Canada (http://www.canadanet.or.jp/english.shtml)


• Embassy of Australia (http://www.australia.or.jp/english/seifu/)

Yahoo Japan (http://www.yahoo.co.jp)

Managed by the company “Softbank”, Yahoo Japan provides numerous services to the users, including cards (地図), public transport trip calculator (路線), an online travel agency (旅行), online real estate (不動産), a restaurant guide (グルメ). There are competitors providing equivalent services in each category, but Yahoo is a convenient « one-stop shop » for everyday life in Japan.

Information

Two daily newspapers have an online presence:

• Le « Japan Times » (http://www.japantimes.co.jp/) is an English-language daily geared towards the expat anglo-saxon community in Japan.


• Le « Daily Yomiuri » (http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/) is the English version of the most popular daily newspaper in Japan.

English forums

Most expats frequently use internet forums, which are often the quickest way to get precise information, and at no cost. There are also long passionate discussions. Each forum has its own personality and style. Newcomers are welcome, as long as they respect the rules which boil down to “search before you ask a question” and “be polite and use correct English”. I also advise to avoid political or ideological discussions, and to respect forum moderators who spend a lot of time to look after their site.

• The elegantly named “fuckedgaijin” (http://www.fuckedgaijin.com/): is a very lively forum, certainly not restrained by political correctness. Members experience is represented by bottles of beer.


• Japan Reference (http://www.jref.com/) has a more neutral presentation. It is to my knowledge the most lively forum about Japan in English, with an especially rich section on Japanese music.

Blogs and personal sites

Numerous blogs relate their author experience on Japan. I will try to maintain a list of the most outstanding ones:

• Old Photos of Japan (http://oldphotosjapan.com/en), outstanding old photographs on Japan, with detailed explanation of the context.