Feature
The Tottori skulls: Bridging the great divide |
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| Some would call it luck, and some would
call it fate. But when architects in the small seaside town
of Aoya in Tottori Prefecture, Japan started clearing land for
the construction of a new overpass back in 1998, they couldn't
have known they would stumble upon one of the most amazingly
preserved archaeological sites the world has ever seen. |
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Column
A
shepherd who's lost his way: Hospitals and life in rural Japan |
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 Japanese
proficiency in English is not high generally speaking especially
when compared with people from the Rest of the World. Partly
as a result of being slow on the uptake, and more commendably
due to a desire to retain the importance of their own language
and not be forced into learning, to pander to American political
and economic strength. Whilst foreigners living in their homes
from home in Tokyo or Osaka, need never learn anything beyond
"arigato", people living in rural areas require a
much more inclusive knowledge to survive. |
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| Editor's Notes |
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| Thank you for
clicking into the second edition of The Foreigner - Japan! This
month's magazine features stories from Japan's Tottori Prefecture,
as well as getting the low down on a few scary topics that have
recently been publicized in the news, from a few experts down
in Tokyo. |
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News
Suicide:
Japan's growing nightmare |
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 In
the past several years, much has been written about suicides
and their connection to high unemployment rates in Japan. Dire
statistics show that in the years since 1998, Japan's suicide
numbers have topped the 30,000 mark annually. This has the general
population, as well as health and social welfare critics around
the world taking notice. |
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Column
SARS
epidemic not on Japanese shores |
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 It
was just a few short weeks ago that I returned home to Canada
after a two year stint in Japan. Though sad to leave my new
friends back in the world's sushi capitol, it's good to be back
amongst old friends and family, with however one major exception.
I keep running into the same question from local folk, "You
didn't bring that SARS back with ya, didja?" |
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