According to a recent article in weekly newsmagazine Aera, 8,158 Japanese women are married to non-Japanese men (the largest national group is American), while 27,881 Japanese men are married to non-Japanese women. The article says that the divorce rate among these "international couples" is rising faster than the divorce rate for couples in which both partners are Japanese.
This week on "Totsugeki! Idobata 7" (Charge! Well-side Discussion 7; TV Tokyo, Monday, 7 p.m.), the subject of international marriages will be discussed by the usual complement of talent and comedians who will have at their disposal eight mixed couples to interrogate and make fun of. Certain stereotypes are addressed, including the idea that Western husbands are more outwardly affectionate than Japanese husbands, and the belief in Japan that Japanese people cherish family values and children more intensely than people in other countries.
The Kabukicho district in Shinjuku is the undisputed entertainment capital of Japan, with more bars, cabarets, movie theaters, massage parlors and hostess clubs per square meter than you'll find anywhere else in the country. According to TV Tokyo's weekly neighborhood research show, "Admatic Tengoku" (Admatic Heaven; Saturday, 9 p.m.), Kabukicho is also Asia's biggest entertainment district, since about 200,000 people work or pass through the area every day.