Engawahttps://morethingsjapanese.com/Japanese food, seasons and everyday life, explainedCoralway's 2012 Kengo Tarumi prize: Okinawa's island photography and the photographer behind ithttps://morethingsjapanese.com/coralways-2012-kengo-tarumi-winner/https://morethingsjapanese.com/coralways-2012-kengo-tarumi-winner/2026-10-26About Coralway, the in-flight magazine of Japan Transocean Air devoted to Okinawa and its islands; the Naha-based photographer Kengo Tarumi and his books; the 2012 Kengo Tarumi prize within Coralway's photo contest; and a practical guide to photographing Okinawa's outer islands, from light and seasons to typhoons and sacred places.Mochi: Japan's rice cakes, from mochitsuki to New Year souphttps://morethingsjapanese.com/mochi/https://morethingsjapanese.com/mochi/2026-10-26A guide to mochi: how glutinous rice is steamed and pounded at mochitsuki, kagami mochi and zoni at the New Year, round versus square mochi by region, seasonal mochi sweets, how to cook dried blocks, and the choking risk for older people and children.Natto: what it is, how it is made, and how to eat fermented soybeanshttps://morethingsjapanese.com/natto/https://morethingsjapanese.com/natto/2026-10-26A practical guide to natto, Japan's sticky fermented soybeans: the Bacillus subtilis fermentation, the types you will see in shops, how to stir and season a pack, ways to cook with it, and the vitamin K caution for people taking warfarin.An Okinawan New Year: two New Years, nakami-jiru and the flags of Itomanhttps://morethingsjapanese.com/an-okinawan-new-year/https://morethingsjapanese.com/an-okinawan-new-year/2026-10-26How New Year is celebrated in Okinawa compared with mainland Japan: the solar New Year as a family holiday, the lunar New Year (kyū shōgatsu) still kept in fishing communities such as Itoman with big-catch flags on the boats, nakami-jiru pork soup instead of ozōni, prayers at sacred sites, and tips for visitors.Living small the Japanese way: space-saving ideas for a city apartmenthttps://morethingsjapanese.com/living-small-the-japanese-way/https://morethingsjapanese.com/living-small-the-japanese-way/2026-10-24How Japanese homes make small spaces work, and how to borrow the ideas for a city apartment anywhere: what counts as small in Japan, multi-use tatami rooms and futons, built-in storage, sliding doors, floor-level living, the genkan entrance, compact wet rooms and seasonal rotation, with a technique-by-technique table and a weekend plan.Japanese houses: how a traditional home is laid out, and how modern homes changed ithttps://morethingsjapanese.com/japanese-houses/https://morethingsjapanese.com/japanese-houses/2026-10-21A guide to Japanese houses: the parts of a traditional home (genkan, tatami rooms, fusuma and shoji, tokonoma, engawa, kitchen and bath), regional types, why houses are built to last only a few decades, earthquake and climate design, and how post-war apartments and the LDK layout changed everyday life.Tatami mats and room sizes: how Japan measures a room, and how to live on tatamihttps://morethingsjapanese.com/tatami/https://morethingsjapanese.com/tatami/2026-10-20A guide to tatami: what a mat is made of, the regional sizes (Kyoma, Chukyoma, Edoma, danchi-ma), how rooms are measured in jo and tsubo, the 1.62 m² advertising rule, traditional layout customs, and practical care for tatami in a humid climate.The genkan and shoes-off homes: how Japan draws the line between outside and insidehttps://morethingsjapanese.com/genkan-shoes-off-at-home/https://morethingsjapanese.com/genkan-shoes-off-at-home/2026-10-19A guide to the genkan, the sunken entrance of Japanese homes: why shoes come off, how to step up and turn your shoes, house slippers and toilet slippers, tatami etiquette, where else in Japan you remove shoes, and how to create a genkan-style entrance in any home.Train and public manners in Japan: queues, phones, escalators and quiet carriageshttps://morethingsjapanese.com/train-and-public-manners/https://morethingsjapanese.com/train-and-public-manners/2026-10-19A practical guide to manners on Japanese trains and in public spaces: queuing at platform markings, letting passengers off first, phones on silent and no calls, priority seats, women-only cars, backpacks, eating and drinking, escalator sides and the Saitama and Nagoya ordinances asking people to stand still, and walking in busy stations.The Japanese bath: ofuro at home, sento and onsen, and how to use themhttps://morethingsjapanese.com/baths-and-bathing/https://morethingsjapanese.com/baths-and-bathing/2026-10-18A guide to Japanese bathing: how the home ofuro and unit bath work (wash outside the tub, shared bath water, reheating), the neighbourhood sento and its regulated price, hot-spring onsen etiquette step by step, towels, tattoos and the Japan Tourism Agency's guidance, and bathing safely in hot water.Garbage sorting in Japan: how the system works, and how not to annoy your neighbourshttps://morethingsjapanese.com/garbage-sorting-in-japan/https://morethingsjapanese.com/garbage-sorting-in-japan/2026-10-18A practical guide to household rubbish in Japan: why rules differ by city, the usual categories (burnable, non-burnable or metal and glass, recyclables, plastic, PET bottles, oversized items), collection days and the 8 a.m. rule, preparing items, oversized rubbish by reservation, appliances under the recycling law, and tips for new residents.Japanese gift-giving: omiyage, visiting gifts, seasonal gifts and wrappinghttps://morethingsjapanese.com/japanese-gift-giving-omiyage/https://morethingsjapanese.com/japanese-gift-giving-omiyage/2026-10-17A guide to gift-giving in Japan: omiyage souvenirs for colleagues and friends, temiyage when visiting someone's home, the summer and year-end gifts ochūgen and oseibo, return gifts, wrapping and furoshiki, giving and receiving with both hands, and numbers and items to avoid.Chopstick etiquette and Japanese table manners: what to do, and the few things never to dohttps://morethingsjapanese.com/chopstick-etiquette-and-table-manners/https://morethingsjapanese.com/chopstick-etiquette-and-table-manners/2026-10-16A guide to Japanese table manners: itadakimasu and gochisōsama, how to hold and rest chopsticks, the chopstick taboos (tate-bashi and hashi-watashi and why they recall funerals), lifting bowls, eating noodles, sharing dishes, soy sauce, paying and tipping, with a quick do-and-don't table.Okinawan home cooking: goya chanpuru, fu chanpuru and the island pantryhttps://morethingsjapanese.com/okinawan-home-cooking-goya-chanpuru/https://morethingsjapanese.com/okinawan-home-cooking-goya-chanpuru/2026-10-16A guide to Okinawan home cooking: what makes it different from mainland Japanese food, the chanpuru stir-fry family (goya, fu, tofu, sōmen), how to prepare bitter melon and reduce its bitterness, a step-by-step goya chanpuru, island ingredients such as shima-dōfu, pork and kombu, Okinawa soba and jūshī rice, and where goya grows in Japan.Japanese pickles (tsukemono): umeboshi, nukazuke, takuan and quick pickles at homehttps://morethingsjapanese.com/japanese-pickles-tsukemono/https://morethingsjapanese.com/japanese-pickles-tsukemono/2026-10-15A guide to tsukemono, Japanese pickles: the main methods (salt, rice bran, vinegar, miso, soy sauce, sake lees), classics such as umeboshi, nukazuke, takuan, gari and shibazuke, how they fit into a meal, a simple quick-pickle method, keeping a rice-bran bed, and notes on salt and safety.Soy sauce types: koikuchi, usukuchi, tamari, saishikomi and shiro, and when to use eachhttps://morethingsjapanese.com/soy-sauce-types/https://morethingsjapanese.com/soy-sauce-types/2026-10-14A guide to Japanese soy sauce (shoyu): how it is brewed, the five official types (koikuchi, usukuchi, tamari, saishikomi, shiro), what each tastes like and how to use it, reading labels (brewing method, grades, wheat and gluten), reduced-salt soy sauce, storage, and how it compares with Chinese soy sauces.Making miso soup: the main types of miso, how miso is made, and an everyday recipehttps://morethingsjapanese.com/making-miso-soup/https://morethingsjapanese.com/making-miso-soup/2026-10-13A guide to miso: how it is fermented with koji, the types by koji (rice, barley, soybean) and by colour and sweetness (white, red, mixed), regional styles such as Shinshu, Saikyo and Hatcho, storage, and a step-by-step everyday miso soup with seasonal ingredient ideas.Dashi: the Japanese soup stock behind miso soup, noodles and simmered disheshttps://morethingsjapanese.com/dashi-japanese-soup-stock/https://morethingsjapanese.com/dashi-japanese-soup-stock/2026-10-12A practical guide to dashi, the foundation of Japanese home cooking: kombu, katsuobushi, awase, niboshi and shiitake dashi, step-by-step methods and timings, why kombu and bonito together taste stronger (umami synergy), instant dashi, storage, and vegetarian versions.Kumejima and Okinawa's outer islands: island life, seasons and how to visithttps://morethingsjapanese.com/kumejima-okinawa-outer-islands/https://morethingsjapanese.com/kumejima-okinawa-outer-islands/2026-10-11A guide to Kumejima and Okinawa's outer islands: where they are, how island life and the calendar differ from mainland Japan (early cherry blossoms, lunar Obon, typhoon season), Kumejima's sandbar, tsumugi silk and island food, getting there by plane or ferry, when to go, and visiting small communities respectfully.Rice in Japan: choosing it, cooking it, and its place at the tablehttps://morethingsjapanese.com/rice-in-japan/https://morethingsjapanese.com/rice-in-japan/2026-10-11A step-by-step guide to cooking Japanese short-grain rice in a pot or rice cooker: choosing rice, the go measure, washing and soaking times, water ratios, resting, storing leftovers safely, no-wash rice, and shaping onigiri, with notes on how rice consumption has changed in Japan.