To honor Emperor Naruhito’s birthday on February 23 in the current Reiwa period, we take a look at the origins of this holiday, the monarchy, and how Tokyo is involved.

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn Japanese while enjoying your vacation in Tokyo. Sign up for our 5-Day Golden Week Special Course today!

They might have the same meaning, but sou そう, mitai みたい, rashii らしい and ppoiっぽい have different nuances and distinctions.  

Created as a day to honor and give thanks to the blessings of the mountains, Mountain Day (Yama no Hi) was officially announced in 2014. Here’s what the holiday is about, and how you can celebrate it in Tokyo.

Celebrated every year on March 3, Hinamatsuri goes by different names: Japan’s Doll Festival, Girl’s Day and formerly Peach Festival (Momo no Sekku).

Due to its somewhat controversial origins, National Foundation was abolished following the post-war constitution, but it subsequently bounced back 20 years later. We wonder, does it still hold the same meaning?

Similar to the language, how Japanese people celebrate New Year is different — although not entirely. There’s the usual fireworks, close-knit dinners and snuggles. But heavy in culture and hundreds of years of tradition, you’ll find families and friends making their first shrine visit of the year, buying lucky bags called fukubukuro and sending New […]

In Japanese, you can say Happy New Year with various expressions, so let’s get familiar with a few phrases.

Although Japan is well-know for its cash-based economy, mobile payment systems in Japan have been steadily on the rise. There are many different smart wallet systems available in Japan. Today, we would like to introduce the most popular mobile Payment Services in Japan. To find out more about all cashless payments in Japan, head to […]

Do you want to learn Japanese but cannot come to Japan due to the pandemic? You can take Online Japanese Lessons with us at Coto Academy anywhere in the world via Zoom. Coto Academy offers easy-to-join online group courses according to your level and desired topics. From Beginner classes to Advanced/Business Japanese classes, you can […]