Charles Lewis - The Japan Times

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Charles Lewis

Charles Lewis has lived in Japan since 1977 where he has been an editor, writer, teacher, carpenter, fisherman, importer, wholesaler and retailer. He is a founding member of e-publisher Shonan Press. He contributes to Eye-Ai magazine and has written for The Japan Times since 2010.

For Charles Lewis's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE

Mar 21, 2018

Springtime in Japan brings the sadness of the eikaiwa exodus

Budding English skills built up over years at conversation school can wither as junior high school clubs take over students' lives.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT

Sep 14, 2016

Japan's dual citizens get a tacit nod but keep their status in the shadows

Is the 'don't ask, don't tell' status quo the ideal situation for a country that tends to be reflexively conservative on issues of race and nationality yet benefits from the dual-citizen population?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS

Nov 7, 2015

Kalani Po'omaihealani: 'Stand firm and strive for the summit'

Hula master on music, dancing and the hula sidestep

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS

Jul 25, 2015

M. Payne: 'Live life to the fullest, and have no regrets'

Photographer on dancing and Jay Gatsby

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Issues / LEARNING CURVE

Feb 15, 2015

Spare a thought for the junior-high students going through 'exam hell'

Adolescence has never been easy, but add the pressure of having to pass an important high school exam and you have what's commonly known as 'entrance exam hell.'

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / TELLING LIVES

Oct 19, 2014

Renaissance man scours the globe for stories

Manuel Bruges has lived life to the full, as photographer, inventor, journalist, chef, boxer and more.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

Jul 30, 2014

Enoshima: Do you think Japan should legalize casino gambling?

Charles Lewis asks interviewees in Fujisawa, Kanagawa Prefecture, what they think about the idea of relaxing the long-standing ban on gambling and and allowing the establishment of casinos.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

Jul 21, 2014

Atami: What do you make of this statue of a jilted gent kicking a girl while she's down?

Gracing the shoreline in Atami, Shizuoka Prefecture, is a statue unique among the many in Japan that celebrate local legends or famous historical figures: A work depicting a man kicking a woman.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

Apr 28, 2014

Fujisawa: What do you think of the new rules for standardizing English on public signs?

New transport ministry guidelines require that public signs use standardized English words to replace Romanized Japanese words. So what do tourists and residents in Enoshima think of the changes?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Our Lives / TELLING LIVES

Apr 27, 2014

Hawaiian XLeague player Alo finds much that's familiar in his adopted land

For most people around the world, football means just what the word suggests: a sport played primarily with the feet in which the ball is rarely touched with the hands.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT

Sep 30, 2013

Cultural and legal hurdles block path to child adoptions in Japan

While more than 7,000 couples applied to adopt or become foster parents every year between 2006 and 2010, only 309 children were adopted in fiscal 2010, according to government figures.

COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT

Apr 23, 2013

Renter guarantor system a headache for foreigners

Things were going well for Patrick after a year in Japan. He had found a job he liked, met a girl he planned to marry and was ready to move out of the small room his older brother, a longtime resident, was letting him use.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

Nov 13, 2012

Kamakura, Kanagawa: What is your ideal pet?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

Aug 21, 2012

Fujisawa, Kanagawa: What will you remember about the London Olympics?

Isabelle Provost

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

Jul 3, 2012

Fujisawa: Do you think the government should raise the tax on tobacco?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Issues / LIGHT GIST

May 29, 2012

Manjiro, patron saint of eikaiwa, watches over English teachers

It can be tough teaching English in Japan. The chain school grind of late hours, noisy kids and boring middle-aged office workers takes its toll. Uppity teachers at public schools treat ALTs with contempt and all English instructors feel the humiliation of being looked down upon by their foreigner brethren who don't teach.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

May 15, 2012

Fujisawa: How has the Fukushima nuclear disaster changed your life?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

Mar 27, 2012

Shonan: What do you think about the government's plan to create citizen ID numbers for tax and other purposes?

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / THE ZEIT GIST

Jan 10, 2012

Local Japanese school is the obvious choice if you want your child to fit in

The first day of elementary school, a milestone in a child's life, brings a mix of emotions for parents. The pride and joy of seeing their child taking his first steps into the world are tempered with feelings of anxiety in moms and dads everywhere.

Japan Times

COMMUNITY / Voices / VIEWS FROM THE STREET

Dec 27, 2011

Kamakura: What word for you sums up 2011?

Mattia CimolaiStudent, 23 (Italian)Change. I'm from Italy and this year a lot of things have changed there, like the government and so on.

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

Historically, kabuki was considered the entertainment of the merchant and peasant classes, a far cry from how it is regarded today.

For Japan's oldest kabuki theater, the show must go on

By Lance Henderstein

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Vol. 34: Tokyo, a vanguard city for sustainability

Vol. 34: Tokyo, a vanguard city for sustainability

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