Japan blogs I love tuning into

My RSS reader is packed full of blogs on various topics and the category “Japan Blogs” is pretty long. But, despite this habit of collecting blogs, I only really read and look forward to new posts daily by the blogs listed below.

There are many great Japan blogs out there that are chock full of info, travel advice, and quirky tidbits, but somehow, I don’t like to graze on those pastures regularly. The blogs I like to read are those with a more narrative style and the writers usually let their personalities come through in their posts.

Blue Lotus
http://blue_moon.typepad.com/blue_lotus/
Written by a Canadian teacher, this blog will take you through lots of home-cooked Japanese food that have gorgeous mouth-watering photos and a conversational style of writing. She also talks about Japanese culture and interesting nooks in Tokyo which are great as reference points for me as an expat.

7:10 to Tokyo
http://sevententotokyo.com/
This is a great place to delve deeper into Japanese culture and society, plus some very honest advice for expats who face various issues. Everything is up for debate here and I enjoy the banter that goes on in the comments section, too. Now that is a sign a blog is rocking when your readers make it interesting for you.

Mainichi gaijin de Tokyo
http://hinoai.livejournal.com/
Take a peek into Jamie’s Tokyo Blog that tracks an American’s life as a manga artist slash part-time TV host. Her trials and tribulations are not your run-of-the-mill expat experiences so I find her accounts refreshing and unique. She pens her thoughts with a beaming positive attitude, so it’s like having a bit of sunshine on your monitor.

Tokyo Kawaii, etc.
http://tokyokawaiietc.com/
I just love looking at things from a Japanese woman’s point of view — it’s a rare glimpse as it is all in English. I’m not patient enough to wade through Japanese blogs just yet, so this would be my next best bet. Kirin, the blogger behind it, adores kawaii culture and puts up clips of Harajuku culture show, Tokyo Kawaii.

Japan dating tips
http://www.japandatingtips.com/blog/
I’ve given the author, David J. Radtke, a mention before about his e-book on Understanding Japanese Women. I actually enjoy his once-a-week newsletters that point you to his discussions on particular characteristics or behaviour of Japanese women. I know he markets his work as dating advice but he truly has a lot more going on in his observations and I would recommend this to anyone curious about Japanese culture.

Green-eyed Geisha
http://greeneyedgeisha.blogspot.com/
Another Canadian expat blog but it has a brash wit that makes me laugh out loud. She is a professional in a Japanese company, aka the Kaisha, and entertains with her stories about her encounters at work or outside. She makes light-hearted digs at baffling Japanese behaviour that I’m sure most expats here can relate to. It’s the fact that she doesn’t provide “where to go”, “what to see”, “what to eat” info which makes her blog stand out to me.

Welcome to my every day
http://bittenbefore.com/tokyolife/
This is the second blog by a Japanese woman who writes in English. Although she mostly posts about beauty products, she also talks about her own life and hobbies that I like to read about and they give me a great peek into the “average” Japanese woman. She doesn’t seem very ordinary, though, as she makes adorable plushies (soft toys), sews funky makeup brush bags, travels a ton, prepares delicious-looking bentos, bakes cakes, and creates awesome nail designs.

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