KansaiConnect | Connecting the Kansai area of Japan to the World in English!

Happy Bags

After New Years in Japan, stores stuff a bag full of their merchandise and offer them at super cheap prices. Sometimes they show you what they’re offering. Other stores …you just have to try your luck. From department stores to clothing stores, to grocery stores, jewelry stores, and donut shops, there are “Happy...

Moving In; Japanese Neighbors

We have new neighbors next door. They just rang the doorbell, introduced themselves, and presented us with a customary we’re-your-new-neighbors-please-be-nice-to-us gift…a nice boxed set of 2 hand towels. I don’t know about these days, but in America, it used to be the neighbors who would welcome the new arrivals....

Traveling Drugstore

Japan is full of conveniences and practices to support the busy housewife. You can have groceries, even meals, delivered to your door daily. And the one I really appreciate is the pharmaceutical service. You never know what ailment will strike or when. But it gives me peace of mind to be stocked with whatever the situation calls for...

Having a Baby in Japan

Some good friends having their first child, another couple expecting and my son about to celebrate another birthday got me thinking about what it was like for me to give birth to both of my kids in Japan. I hardly know a thing about what having babies in America is like, but I do know that my stay in a Japanese maternity hospital...

Dotonbori Hotel, Osaka, Japan

Like many Osaka hotels, the Dotonbori Hotel is found in the central part of the city. It’s situated near the Minami downtown area. It is nearby local attractions like Osakajo Castle and Osaka Aquarium. The Dotonbori Hotel is near Kansai International Airport and a three-minute walk from the subway and railway stations. Book...

Customer Service – Panasonic stands by its name

If you ever visit Japan, one of the first things you’ll notice (besides everything being in a foreign language) is the country’s exceptional customer service. They know what it means to put the customer first. If they don’t have the answer to your problem or question, they will literally RUN to get it. And when...