News

Last Friday ex-JETs gathered in a characterful pub in Soho for a few Friday drinks. It was great to welcome some new faces to the London Chapter and it ended up being quite an international crowd. The force was strong with Nagasaki JETs with no less than three people from different parts of the southern prefecture!  After talking just a...

明けましておめでとうございます！Happy New Year! Hope you are all having a wonderful start to 2019, the year of the pig! Last Thursday 17 January, JETAA London held an annual general meeting in our usual Somers Town settings to go over the events of 2018 and think ahead to what exciting things we could do in 2019. It was a...

Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Shoplifters (Manbiki Kazoku) depicts an underside of Japan that few foreigners see or think about and, in my experience anyway, few Japanese people discuss in public. While Kore-eda is well-established as a director of perceptive films about contemporary family life, this was nonetheless a surprise winner of the Pa...

Home Sweet Tokyo, NHK's first comedy led by a foreign writer, has aired for its second season. The show was created by former JET BJ Fox, who was interviewed by JETAA UK about his experiences and inspirations last year.  Another run of four...

The Japan Foundation Touring Programme returns this February and March, touring an impressive 19 cities across the UK, spanning Inverness to Exeter. Now in its 16th year, and arguably the largest programme of its scope in the UK, this year’s theme is that time-honoured subject of cinema – lo...

The pitch: Japanese comfort food in an authentic no-frills café setting. Review: E-Kagen is a great-value, no-frills café set above an Asian supermarket in the centre of Brighton. Don’t expect high-end, delicately flavoured works of art here: E-Kagen gives you a big, robust punch of flavour and you ...

Having fallen into studying Japanese himself as a teenager Stuart Drinkwater, a Senior Associate at PwC, now helps run the Birmingham Japanese Conversation Exchange (BJCE) group.  JETLAG talked to him about his experiences on JET and how working for PwC facilitated a ret...

Photo credit: ©Clive Barda photography Calling former Hiroshima JETs – help needed with a UK-Japan Season of Culture project: Five Primary Schools in Coventry, UK are seeking a partnership with five schools in Hiroshima city, Japan to support our Cities of Peace project which was launched in September this year. As part of th...

Overview Nihongo Scotland is a JETAA Scotland member-organized Japanese language group which has been operating since the summer of 2014. The group began as a small weekly study group for ex-JETs and has since grown to welcome students of Japanese from the wider community.  Nihongo Scotland has, to date, perform...

Saturday 13th October, JETAA, in conjunction with Japan Society North West, held a concert and workshop of Japanese folk music (minyou). This well-attend event welcomed Hibiki Ichikawa and Abkari Mochizuki from London to deliver an entertaining and educational performance th...

Image credit: Yoshiaki Miura Many JETs return from Japan keen to continue to use their Japanese in some way, be it professionally, just for enjoyment or gaining further qualifications, such as the Japanese Language Proficiency Test. But without the opportunity to use Japanese in everyday life, even when will is there, it can quickly dry ...

It’s now very likely that during your working life you will interview at a company or organisation from outside your home country, or be interviewed by someone of a different nationality: indeed, anyone who’s participated on the JET Programme has already experienced this at least once. Earlier this year

by Rob Gorton – JETAA Midlands Chair When I first returned from the JET programme I lived in London, where there’s an extremely large Japanese community. When I moved to the Midlands for work, I wondered whether I’d be able to find anything similar, and was worried not. Would there be anyone who shared my interest in Japan or my ex...

Former JET Beth Kempton has written a book seeking to distil the famous and elusive Japanese principle of wabi sabi into an approach to our fast-paced world. Praised by the Sunday Times as "a truly transformative read" (and with translation rights already sold in 19 languages), Wabi Sabi: Japanese wisdom for a perfectly imperfect life 

While Olly Wells had planned to go into teaching before JET, the experience has proved the foundation of a thriving career in the state and international sectors. He is currently headmaster of Rong Qiao Sedbergh School in Fuzhou, China, and is also doing a PhD at Lancaster University. JETLAG caught up with him to discuss his experiences....

To learn how to submit restaurant reviews to JETAA UK yourself – and stand a chance of winning a £25 Japan Centre voucher – please see this guide. Okan, London The pitch: Delicious Okonomiyaki a stone's t...

Gemma Treharne-Foose's three years in Shimane-Ken – first in Hirata and then Hamada – have had a major impact on her life: she realised a desire to 'sell Wales to the world' and, after working in PR for the Welsh government, a decade later she even named her marketing and communications business Ichibata after the train she took to visit h...

On Friday 21 September the annual JETAA UK Careers Forum was held at Asia House in London. We welcomed back the newly-returned JETs for a day of panel discussions and breakout sessions to discuss the transition period from being an ALT or CIR in Japan into employment in the UK and how to best leverage those JET skills. JET alumni from a...

After the Earthquake: Japanese Contemporary New Media Art Showcase On August 27th JETAA NW collaborated with FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology) in Liverpool and invited the public to a presentation in the stylish cinema room, The Box.  Director of FACT, Mr Mike Stubbs, gave a presentation on the background an...

On August 18, JETAA North West was invited to join Free as a Bird, the Keiboku Calligraphy School’s second exhibition and performance at the Jacaranda Club in Liverpool.  The Keiboku School is a large private calligraphy s...

On Friday 20 July the London Chapter hosted a pre-departure gathering for outgoing JETs. The event followed the pre-departure orientation and embassy reception, and many took the short walk over to the Marquis Cornwallis to meet JET alumni and get advice based on first-hand experience (and be introduced to the concept of NIJIKAI!) It wa...

On July 21st, JETAA North West collaborated with SugarSalt Bakery and Kimono Keiko, both based in Chester, to bring together Japanese and British culture.  We named the event Kimono and Japanese Afternoon Tea. We had hired a room at The Unity Centre in Chester and upon arrival we were presented with a selection of beautiful...

On a scorching Sunday 24 June JETAA London met at Katzenjammers Bierkeller near London Bridge for a thrilling fun-filled afternoon of football. There were two second group matches: England v Panama and Japan v Senegal. Both teams could seal their progress into the knockout stage with wins, so all was to play for. A rowdy atmosp...

A former JET broke major ground last year when he became the first non-Japanese person to have his own sitcom on NHK.  BJ Fox – a comedy alias – is the star of Home Sweet Tokyo. The show focuses on the lives of the British Bryan Jenkins (played by Fox), his Japanese wife Itsuki and their daughter Alice after the family mo...

The first Japanese-owned sake brewery in the UK is on the cusp of opening. Dojima’s purpose-built facility on the grounds of the Fordham Abbey estate in Cambridgeshire promises to be a 'taste of Japan in the heart of the English countryside'. It’s been nearly 200 years in the making. The Hashimoto family behind Dojima first started b...

Europe’s largest Japanese food hall has just opened in Westfield London. Ichiba combines an array of food stations with retail space for Japanese culinary staples, sweets and treats, kitchenware and ceramics, sake, books and beauty products. All in all, 3000 Japanese products are reportedly on sale! Diners can choose between a ...

Submitted by a former JET: Hokkaido 2007-2009 The pitch: Award-winning, high quality Japanese food Review: I’ve actually visited this place a number of times over the years and have been constantly impressed with the high quality food offered. The menu does get refreshed every now and then and...

The Japan Society of the UK recently held its first regional business event: ‘Japanese Business Links in the North of England’, hosted by PwC in Leeds. Sarah Parsons, Managing Director of East West Interface, who is also a Trustee to the Japan Society and JETAA UK Chair, invited speakers within Japan-related businesses in that area to come ...

For Damon Mitchell, JET helped him to create and realise a lifelong connection with Japan, a connection he continues to nurture back in the UK as Games and Community Director of Ludorati, a board game café in Nottingham. JETLAG caught up with him to learn how he first made it to Japan (via Slovakia) and why he recommends the film Y...

On 22 May the first JETAA Midlands Japanese-Themed Board Gaming Social took place at Ludorati in Nottingham.  It was conceived as a joint event including both JETAA Midlands and students of the Japanese Society from Nottingham University to promote participation in the JET Programme. The idea was to create an informal atmosphere where...

The JETAA Scotland Chapter has been seriously busy since spring, organising several events promoting Japanese culture and intercultural interaction, with the support of JETAA, Japan Society of Scotland, Japan Society UK and The Sasakawa Foundation and supported by the Japanese Consulate in Edinburgh. Fuji Festival ...

JETAA UK’s annual Welcome Back Careers Event will be held at Asia House in London on Friday, 21 September 2018, 13:30-18:00.  This event provides an invaluable opportunity for former JETs to receive advice on developing their careers post-JET and the ideal forum to learn about job opportunities and industries where their skills ...

On June 3rd JETAA North West attended Japan Day as an exhibitor.  We had a stand where we exhibited paraphernalia from our time teaching in Japan, kimono and Japanese culture books.  Japan Day is Japan Society North West's free all-day festival celebrating the many fascinating aspects of Japanese culture.  Since 2006, it has been held every ...

JET Pre-departure Events in the North West On June 16th and 23rd JETAA North West held get-togethers in Liverpool and Manchester respectively for those in the area who are due to go out on JET this summer.  We also invited alumni along to give advice from their first hand experience of Japan. The Liverpool get-to...

The JETAA London pub quiz returned again this year for an evening of trivia fun. Over 30 people turned up to The Somers Town Coffee House (between Euston and Kings Cross) making up 7 teams competing against each other for the pot. The teams were put to the test with 6 rounds of challenging questions, followed by some casual catch-up time over so...

JETAA is creating a Japanese restaurant map of the UK, and we need your help. The goal is to create a resource showcasing the best Japanese and Japanese-influenced food the length and breadth of the UK. So, if you know of a yummy or interesting Japanese restaurant in your area, whether it's just-opened or an established favourite, we'd love to ...

Heaven's Wind, published by The Japan Society, is the world’s first dual language anthology of Japanese women’s writing. The authors were born over fifty years from 1929 to 1979, and their stories written over the past five decades. Tales of deceit, loss and self-affirmation are set against pre-war to post-tsunami backdrops,...

This year’s JETAA UK Annual General Meeting took place in Edinburgh in March, giving committee members the chance to meet up and discuss the JETAA UK calendar of events as well as enjoy the beautiful capital city of Scotland. As well as JETAA UK committee members and chapter representatives, delegates from the Japan Local Government Centre (CL...

The idea of the ‘furusato’ or hometown still holds strong sway in Japan. The JET Programme represents a unique opportunity for participants to become embedded in a local Japanese community and, though they can stay for a maximum of five years, many continue to feel a strong connection to where they were placed after finishing the programme....

In the 1985 cult film Tampopo, one of the main characters goes for a meal with a ramen master who’s “studied noodles for 40 years”. Two steaming bowls are placed before them. The younger grabs his. He is about to dive in, before he turns to ask the still motionless old man, “Sensei, soup or noodles first?” The master turns slowly, rep...

24 March, 2018 Iconic Architecture Photography Walk The Saturday before last the JETAA UK London chapter took a stroll around the City, taking in the new and old architecture and London's landmark buildings. Ryan, our vice-chair, led the 90 minute walk which started at Sir Christopher Wren’s St Paul’s Cathedral, and ended at ...

Greeting Happy Easter from JETAA North West! We hope everyone has had a nice few days off and the sugar has helped recharge your batteries. The new year got off to a very good start here in the NW. In January we collaborated with World Museum Liverpool to put on a Study Day exclusively for JETAA and Japan Society members...

JETAA UK’s next ‘Welcome Back Careers Event and Exhibition Space’ will be held on Friday 21 September 2018, followed by an evening reception co-hosted by the Embassy of Japan and Japan Local Government Centre (JLGC). This event provides the opportunity for former JETs to receive key advice and insight on the post-JET experience a...

After studying Japanese at university, Caroline Klein spent five years in Japan, first as a CIR and then working for CLAIR in Tokyo. After JET, she spent nearly ten years working in marketing and communications for Daiwa Capital Markets before joining the (at the time) Japanese-owned Canopius Group. JETLAG caught up with Caroli...

Alison Bond was an ALT in Shingu, Hyogo Prefecture (the above photo was taken on a recent visit to her old apartment!). Returning to the UK, she continued to work in education, coordinating partnerships for Warwickshire County Council and then Warwick University. She is now Director of External Relations at Oxford Brookes University. Ali...

It begins with a flash of lightning. Hanako (Kirsty Rider) and Reiko (Kae Alexander) are squabbling sisters living with their mother, Estuko (Rosalind Chao), on the west coast of Japan in 1979.  Their classmate Tetsuo (Leo Wan) comes round to study that stormy evening, heralding a proxy battle between them. The rebellious Hanako follows...

Hinamatsuri in Liverpool   On March 6th, JETAA NW held its annual Hinamatsuri at the usual location, Sugar and Dice Board Game Cafe.  Though Hinamatsuri is known as Girls Day, and our get-together usually falls just before International Women’s Day, the event was open to all and we were pleased to ho...

94% of Japan’s population now resides in urban areas. This radical demographic shift contains a hidden violence. Communities are hollowed out and old traditions and ways of life severed from reality.  Where I Belong begins with an explicit act of violence. Its protagonist, Izumi (played by Kento Hayashi – star of the Netfli...

JETAA NW and JSNW Netsuke Study Day On January 20th JETAA NW helped organise a Study Day at World Museum Liverpool exclusively for JETAA and JSNW members.  The chosen subject for the Study Day was netsuke and we were pleased to see that this provoked a very fast response from JSNW members and drew in JETAA members from as far as London....

Peckham, London might not be the first place that springs to mind when you think of sake. But in 2017 it became ground zero of a budding ‘sake revolution’ when Tom and Lucy Wilson started Kanpai, the UK’s first brewery of Japan’s national drink.  Kanpai’s backstory is endearing. The couple first fell in love with sake – whic...