First of all I would like to congratulate you and your family on your daughter's Nyuenshiki. I had the privalege of living in Japan for 3 years and enjoyed it very much. I also think it's harsh to fire the teachers for not wanting to sing the anthem. But I do commend Japan for thier school system. They are very disciplined and lean a lot. I believe that your daughter as well as your twins will do well in school and go far in life. This is the first time I've been to your site, but I think the pictures are wonderful and they capture the beauty of Japan.

Thanks. I agree that the school system here is basically good. We're planning to keep our daughters in Japanese school at least through elementary school. After that maybe we'll put them in an international school. That's basically necessary, at some point, if they're going to speak English fluently to a level where they can attend a US university.

As for the discipline in Japanese schools; that's changing. Actually, to the shock of many Japanese people, many classrooms across Japan are literally out of control. For example, my friends neighbor is a teacher. One day, in the classroom next to her, the students stood up and staged a mock funeral FOR THE TEACHER. Afterwards, they told the teacher (who was watching all this) that the window was open and he/she was welcome to jump now.

I'll post more about all this at some point in the blog. Thanks for commenting.

I just wanted to say hello, and let you know that I am reading and enjoying your blog very much!

Great blog! I just came to your blog today for the first time. I'm looking forward you looking at more of your posts.

"It's not my place as a foreigner..." It is your place a tax paying citizen and a father of children you are raising in the country to be shocked and upset. It is our place as foreigners because we are residing in a country that allows us to voice our displeasure and even occasionally listens to us.

Your pictures are wonderful reminders of the beauty here. If it's your place to share that with us readers, it is alright to express yourself in other ways, too.

In response to Dan, I basically agree. I want to see both the positives and negatives and write about both. I'm also aware that as a foreigner (especially as I still struggle with the language), it's very easy to see the negatives. I DO see many negative things here n Japan, and sometimes I get them wrong and learn later that I just misperceived or misinterpreted. Anyway, at the start I'll try to err on the side of the positive and gradually express my critical views, too. Whether positive or negative, I hope to always be respectfully honest (not gushingly positive or negatively ranting). Thanks for the encouraging words!