Introduction
Japan is a country in South East of Asia with very vast a culture and origins. Entities such as sumo wrestlers weighing 350 pounds, fire-walking ascetics on the streets and young to very old Geishas are unique only in Japan. No matter how hard you look for such things in the western part of the globe, you will surely end up failing because no other place in the world has these kinds of things aside from Japan.
Japanland by author Karin Muller is a describing that aims to let the readers obtain a clearer and brighter picture about Japan and what the culture inside it is like. The book basically tries to deliver to its readers the natural image of Japan with a promise to discover why a lot of people have visited Europe and the Americas already but few have visited this country.
For someone who would want or is interested to visit Japan, it might be helpful to read about this book by Karin Muller first. Why? It is simply because one could actually consider this book a thorough collection of the things that one might not expect to be present in Japan. The book actually was able to cover almost every aspect of a Japanese Family’s life.
Since the book is a collection of the author’s collective experience during her stay in the land of the rising sun, it could be assumed that most, if not all, information that could be found inside the book is valid and accurate. As a brief overview about what the author did to collect the information and technically all the things that she written in the book, she lived inside the house of a Japanese family and she lived with them for a specific time. Of course, along the way, she ventured to different quests and went to different places, perhaps for her to be able to have a better grasp of the exoticism of the Japanese culture.
After reading the book, I found out that Japan shouldn’t actually be considered an exotic place for tourists because there isn’t a single place that you wouldn’t love to visit there. The culture of the family where Karin stayed alone should be enough to prove that Japan is not a weird place inhabited by people with weird culture and behaviors.
Cultural Trends in Japan
Japan, just like any other country has its own culture that is of course, distinct in a different way. In the same manner, Japan’s culture may also be subject to change due to the different factors present in the society like technology and foreign influence.
Festivals
There are a lot of festivals in Japan. In fact, it is an important element for the Japanese to participate in such events. In Japan, there are different shrines and with every shrine comes a different form of festival or celebration. Usually, festivals are held annually or every season. In terms of the length of the entire festival, the usual time frame actually lasts for around two or more days. This is one thing that’s actually supposed to encourage flock of tourists to the country.
Geisha
One of the most prominent parts of Japan’s culture is the Geisha culture. As a brief overview about what Geisha is, these are people whose line of work covers entertaining guests during meals. Geishas are commonly female and they should be able to have an innate or skilled ability to entertain, or communicate with the guests for richer interactions. Overall, their role would be to make the guests feel comfortable and at ease whenever there are important events such as drinking games, festivals, meetings, dance performances or even just a casual conversation.
Samurai and Sword-Making
The samurai culture could be considered one of the greatest treasures Japan could ever have too. If the knights and lancers dominated the western part of the world during the feudal ages, Samurais were the ones popular in Japan during that time. One difference between a samurai and a knight is that a knight values chivalry more than his honor but a samurai values honor more than anything else. A samurai could even kill himself for the sake of him not losing his honor.
The art and craft of sword making is another field where the Japanese people excelled in. During the times when swords were the primary weapon, Japanese swords or the Nihonto became one of the most remarkable because of its beauty and most importantly, sharpness. In the book, Karin actually witnessed how a Sword-maker with his young foreign apprentice made a Japanese sword from scratch and she saw that it wasn’t just a simple heating and cooling task at all. Since swords are considered deadly weapons, an individual who wants to own a sword should have a permit first for his sword possession to be considered legal.
Living or Visiting in Japan
Japan is not a bad place at all, based on what the author said about the type of place and country Japan is so I would really be interested to visit such place. Besides, who wouldn’t want to go and visit a place when you know that majority of the people there are kind-hearted and hospitable enough to allow a stranger inside their house to stay for a vacation and live with the entire family?
Living in Japan would actually be a whole new different story because there are things that you really cannot do there that you can at your home country. It would probably be better to consider Japan as a place where you could spend the time to relax and enjoy instead of considering living in it for good.
Book Recommendation
Overall, the book “Japanland” has exceeded my expectations. The topics and the different aspects about Japan presented by the author were not really boring, considering the fact that the Japanese are known to have a laid back type of attitude. Nevertheless, the author had converted such things into an engaging journey that the readers would really love to experience.
In terms of the book’s capability to enrich its readers with knowledge about Japan’s culture and other things that cannot be seen by foreigners unless they visit the country, I would really love to recommend the book to everyone who is interested to know more about Japan. Every basic thing that one has to know about Japan could be found inside the book and the author has provided a clear and logical way of presenting her experiences during her stay at the place. Lastly, I would like to commend the family who let the author stay inside their house during her stay.
References
Muller, K. Japanland: A Year In Search of Wa. Rodale Books, September 2005. Print.
