We were walking down a busy street in Yokohama when I heard "I Can" by Nas blaring from a store. I turned my head to see where exactly the music was coming from and as I was doing so, a black guy sitting on a…

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Rory and I made our way from Tokyo to Yokohama to see my son. After we arrived at (name withheld)'s house, her parents took us all out to lunch at a restaurant in Chinatown. During spring break last year, I flew into Seattle from Detroit…

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Here are some things I saw on television in Japan: —Oliver Beene dubbed in Japanese —footage of a snail pooping —a commercial for what looked like orange juice that used the Welcome Back, Kotter theme song —a commercial for McDonald's that used an oi punk…

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During breakfast at an airport hotel (french fries and fruit cocktail, because that's what Westerners eat for breakfast), I was reading a copy of the International Herald Tribune, and I saw this article on the front page: —On Okinawa, U.S.-Influenced Diet Takes Toll —"This was…

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I'm a sucker for gimmick food and drink establishments. When Jon and I spent 15 hours in New York City last summer, I wanted to visit the Korova Milk Bar (named and modeled after the milk bar in the movie A Clockwork Orange), but I…

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I have a confession to make. I went to Japan for spring break with Rory. I told people that I was going there to scout employment opportunities and for pleasure, and while that's all true, I wasn't entirely forthcoming. I also went to Japan to…

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