If you’re in Tokyo and you really … really … love Burger King Whoppers, you can enter their Whopper Challenge.
The contest, for those who are chosen to participate, will be held on Thursday, 2014 June 19th at 2PM in the Roppongi branch of Burger King.
Contestants will be given 30 minutes to eat seven Whoppers.
The prize for those who are successful will be free Whopper burgers for a month!
Like I said, it’s for those who really love Whoppers!
I have been living in Japan for most of my life.
I came here when I was twenty years old…and that was over twenty years ago now.
I think Japan is the most beautiful country in the world and Tokyo is the best city.
I wanted to show some scenes that I see regularly in Japan and I may have started taking for granted but they are a part of what makes Japan so special.
Rather than go through the photos in my camera’s memory cards, I decided to be a bit lazy and see what I could find online.
I found a website called Getty Images that has many stock photos…some of them of Japan.
The people who take these photos must have cameras that are much nicer than mine because they took some really nice photos.
I use photos that I took myself in most of my blog posts, but the following photos are from Getty Images.
Every January, when the "Tokyo Stock Exchange" reopens after the New Years holidays, the female staff wear kimono.
A"bird's eye view" of Tokyo
A traditional Japanese breakfast.
A Japanese garden.
The symbol of Japan: 富士山 (Mount Fuji).
Tokyo's "Rainbow Bridge".
Japanese "Green Tea".
The Shibuya area of Tokyo
The Shinjuku area of Tokyo.
新幹線 (Bullet trains)
Tokyo Tower
By the way, today is the seventh day of the New Year.
On this day it is Japanese custom to eat 「七草粥」 (“Seven Herbs Porridge“) for breakfast.
I will have it for breakfast today as I usually do on January 7th.
Click here to see my post that explains this tradition in more detail.
In Japan, Christmas isn’t a national holiday. If December 25th falls on a weekday then it’s just a normal workday in Japan.
But that said, クリスマス (X-mas) is still a big holiday in Japan. Not the biggest though…the most important holiday in Japan is 正月 (New Years).
I wrote a post before that explains a bit about Christmas in Japan…and another one that explains a bit about New Years in Japan.
To summarize though, Christmas isn’t the same in Japan as it is in Western countries.
Even though New Years is Japan’s biggest holiday, stores and streets in Japan put up X-mas decorations on November 1st (as soon as the Halloween decorations come down) and take them down on December 26th.
On December 26th in Japan, the Xmas decorations are quickly replaced with New Years decorations which stay up until around January 5th.
So Japan is decorated for the imported holiday of Christmas for fifty-six days but only about two weeks for New Years.
Basically the image of X-mas in Japan is a romantic evening for couples on クリスマス・イヴ (Christmas Eve) and a day for families with children on クリスマス (Christmas Day).
One of the popular dates spots for couples on and before X-mas Eve is to look at クリスマス・イルミネーション (X-mas lights (or, as they’re called in Japan, “Christmas illumination“)).
X-mas illumination at "Roppongi Hills" in downtown Tokyo.
There is a website that shows some of the best 「全国イルミネーション・スポット」 (Illumination Spots around Japan).
One part of that website lists 「イルミネーションおすすめスポット Best 5」 (“Top 5 Recommended Illumination Spots”).
The list is:
Also, check out this post that I wrote with photos of the X-mas illumination at Tokyo Tower and in Roppongi, Tokyo.
And also this one that I wrote about Omotesando, Tokyo turning the X-mas illumination back on last year after eleven years of not decorating.
How is Christmas celebrated where you live? Are stores already decorated for X-mas? Is looking at 「クリスマス・イルミネーション」 (X-mas lights) popular?
Today is 冬至 (Winter Solace).
Click here to read my post about it last year and see how fruit plays an important part of this day in Japan.
In Japan, at Christmastime, many places put up beautiful X-mas light decorations…or 「イルミネーション」 (illumination), as it’s called in Japan.
Couples in Japan like to look at the Xmas illuminations on dates at this time of year.
Last night we went to Tokyo Tower to see the it lit up special for Xmas. On TV they said that every evening until x-mas, Tokyo Tower will be lit up with a heart in the center of the tower from 7:30 – 8:00 PM…so we went to see it.
After that, we went to Tokyo Midtown in 六本木 (Roppongi) to see their elaborate display.
Yesterday McDonalds Japan opened a number of “McCafé” shops around Japan.
They offer seven types of coffee that aren’t available at regular McDonalds restaurants, as well as the two that are (“Premium Roast Coffee” and “Premium Roast Ice Coffee”).
The hot coffees are shown in red. Ice coffees are in blue.
The “Premium Roast Coffee” and “Premium Roast Ice Coffee” are available for ¥120 and ¥220 (depending on size) just like they are at the regular McDonalds restaurants.
The other coffees are:
HOT
ICED
To promote the McCafé in Tokyo, they’re giving away free cups of hot カフェラテ (Cafe Latte) in specially designed paper cups for a few days.
It says in this ad above that from 3:00PM on 2009 November 3 (yesterday) until 2:59PM on November 6, the McCafé in 渋谷 (Shibuya, Tokyo) will be giving away the small hot カフェラテ (Cafe Latte)…and that the first 1000 customers will receive a special ceramic mug as well.
There will also be a McCafé truck giving the free latte coffees and it’s scheduled to be at Roppongi, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Yurakucho, and Akasaka at various dates and times this month. (If you want to know when and where it’ll be at, then visit the McDonalds Japan website. (if you can’t read it and would like to know the details, then tell me which area or date you’re wondering about in the comments section of this post and I’ll reply)).
「ようこそジャパン」 (Yokoso Japan!) means “Welcome to Japan!“, and is the Japan National Tourism Organization‘s official slogan of their campaign to attract foreign visitors to Japan.
「Yokoso Japan!」 logo
Here are some of their Yokoso Japan! campaign ads.
Most of the scenes in this first one are of Tokyo (there are a few shots of Osaka, etc…but most of it is Tokyo):
These show many parts of Japan:
Do they make you want to visit this beautiful country?
The カフェアマンド六本木 (Roppongi Almond Cafe) which opened in August 1946 will close tomorrow (Saturday, January 3, 2009).
It will re-open in a new building very close to it’s current location…but it’s still surprising that they’re relocating.
In front of the カフェアマンド六本木 (Roppongi Almond Cafe) is a popular meeting spot for people meeting in 六本木 (Roppongi, Tokyo).
If people meet in 渋谷 (Shibuya, Tokyo), they usually meet near the Hachiko statue. If they meet in 新宿 (Shinjuku, Tokyo), they’ll often meet near the Studio Alta building. If they want to meet in 上野 (Ueno, Tokyo), they often meet in front of the Takamori statue. And if people meet in 六本木 (Roppongi, Tokyo), they usually meet in front of カフェアマンド六本木 (Roppongi Almond Cafe).
It’s a landmark.
Tokyo Five 
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