The List of Articles I Have Written for Foreign People Living or Traveling in Japan

The national flag of Japan

I have friends from overseas. I have written some articles for them over the years when they live in Japan or travel in Japan. I have put together a list of those articles in the hope others will find them useful. I intend to update this list each time I publish an article on the same topic.

• “Public Wifi Services in Japan“
• “Wifi Availability in JR Tokai Shinkansen Trains and Stations“
• “Line: the de Facto Standard IM Service in Japan“
• “Voice-Capable SIM Cards Are Hard to Come By for Visitors to Japan“
• “Using iPhone 7 from AT&T in Japan on UQ Mobile’s Network” — I know this is a wierdly specific article. I actually wrote this because a friend who was visiting Japan had an iPhone from AT&T and I planned to let her use one of SIM cards that I have through my contracts with UQ Mobile, a local cell phone carrier.
• “Why Your Carrier’s International Roaming Package Might Not Be Your Best Option” — This is an old article, written in 2016. So the content might be outdated, but it may serve as a cautionary tale.

The following are specifically about Kobe. I currently live there and that is one of the places they are likely to visit for that reason.

• “What to Do in Kobe — from Foreigners’ Perspective“
• “My Favorite Steak Restaurant in Kobe That Serves Kobe Beef… Well, Almost“
• “Yakuza Are Very Much Alive and Kicking, and It Is No Good News“

In addition, here are the articles on miscellaneous stuff about Japan I have written:

• “Plays on Words in the Names of Dragon Ball Characters“
• “Most of the Japanese Are Not Practicing Buddhists“
• “Is Japan Trying to Rewrite History?“
• “「茶道」 is Always Read “Sado” in Japanese, Never “Chado”“
• “Getting Issued-in-Japan Credit Cards” — It’s is an old article; the content might be outdated.
• “Japanese Web Fonts Available for Use on AMP-Compliant Websites“
• “How to Use Photo-U TV” — This explains how to use a portable TV set that I have, because I loaned it to a friend for a period.