Amy Chavez - The Japan Times

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Amy Chavez

For Amy Chavez's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives

Jan 24, 2016

Eating crow on the issue of the clever critters we consume

The controversies surrounding the eating of various animals in our modern world are numerous: the hunting of bluefin tuna to near-extinction; eating shark fin soup (in which only the fin is used and the rest of the shark is often discarded); the consumption of dogs in various Asian countries; the use of endangered animals for Chinese medicine; and even the feedlots behind the huge beef industry in the U.S.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Dec 27, 2015

Taking a longer view in defense of clutter

There's a worrying trend in Japan that is spreading throughout the world: that of throwing things out.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Nov 29, 2015

Seeing 'only in Japan' through an inflatable kayak moment

'Only in Japan' isn't just about the lengths people go to here to do things for others — it's also the lengths they go not to.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Oct 25, 2015

It's the little things — like ¥10 — that remind me why I'm still here

It's times like these that I chuckle to myself and am reminded why I love living in Japan.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Sep 27, 2015

Can art bring people back to Japan's depopulated islands?

I've seen island revitalization projects come and go, but the idea of an NPO riding on the coattails of a successful art trend in the area strikes me as having some promise.

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Aug 30, 2015

I've often thought about your doppelganger, but have you?

Have you considered that maybe your double lives in Japan? And that you might meet them someday?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Jul 26, 2015

Even the departed are abandoning Japan's countryside

At a time when Japan is trying to revitalize the countryside, the dead are being relocated to the big cities.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Jun 28, 2015

Time to banish old people to the countryside?

I couldn't help but gasp upon reading the Japan Policy Council's new recommendations to help take the aging population burden off Tokyo: "Encourage the elderly to move to the countryside, where the facilities are less crowded and there are more spaces for those needing full time care."

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

May 24, 2015

Fostering entrepreneurship beyond the foreign community

Some people say that as long as you have blond hair, blue eyes and white skin, you can get a job, succeed and even become a celebrity in Japan. So imagine what would happen if there were two such people, married to each other!

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Apr 26, 2015

A bare-knuckle race against time to the Edo Period and back

How in the world did I find myself in the passenger seat as an eager accomplice in a car chase?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Mar 25, 2015

Frenemies, screenagers, kidults — kondo your English with these trending terms

How up-to-date is your English vocabulary? New words reflect a changing society and, as a result, new words are coined every day. Reading English newspapers and media from around the world can help you keep up with the changes. Here are some words I picked up recently on my travels.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Feb 25, 2015

With more beer machines and school days, were the '90s better?

Japan has come a long way in the past 20 years. Or has it?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Jan 21, 2015

Mount Fuji is 'brown hill,' A-Bomb Dome is 'depressing': Whiners diss Japan's wonders

Let's explore what some disgruntled travelers have to say about Japan's most impressive World Heritage Sites.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Dec 24, 2014

Mastering the art of incense takes longer than you think

If you find all this incense as intriguing as I did and are ready to sign up to become a master in the Way of Fragrance, then I suggest you start right away, if not 20 years ago.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Nov 26, 2014

Seeking Japan's gods and nobles in roots, stone and moss

If you've had a hankering to go hiking with Shinto deities, why not try the Kumano Kodo trail in Wakayama Prefecture?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives

Oct 29, 2014

Town hall meetings: Abandon logic, all ye who enter here

The first thing you want to do when you get to the meeting room, whether it be summer or winter, is open all the windows. This is because you'll have to throw all logic out the window. Open as many as possible, 'cause there's a lot of logic to heave.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Sep 24, 2014

Missing such sweet serow, Japan gets the goat

Whereas cats will walk away when you need them most, goats will continue to nibble at your fingers, root through your pockets, or just eat whatever you're wearing.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Aug 27, 2014

On this island, depopulation isn't the problem — inertia is

There is one thing most people don't realize about this island paradise amid the Seto Inland Sea: that despite many people wanting to move here, none of them can.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Jul 23, 2014

To appear or not to appear on Japanese TV . . .

If you're in Japan long enough, you're bound to get the opportunity to appear on Japanese TV. But you might want to think twice before you make the leap to 'TV gaijin.'

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / JAPAN LITE

Jun 15, 2014

Oh, the places we'll go in 2020 — unless, of course, we won't

In 2020 the Tokyo Olympics will be here! And all our troubles will be gone. Unless, of course, they won't. Because, sometimes, they don't.

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.

[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

When trying to trace your lineage in Japan, the "koseki" is the most important form of document you'll encounter.

Climbing the branches of a Japanese family tree

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Vol. 35: Travel in time — and stay there

Vol. 35: Travel in time — and stay there

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