If you’re thinking about getting married in Japan, then here’s what you need to know.

Paperwork
Before you can get married in Japan as a foreigner then you need a sworn affadavit of competency to marry. This is normally obtained from your country’s embassy or consulate. If you’re in the military then you need to go through military channels to obtain the certificate.

What’s Legal?
You may think, like back home, you go have the fancy ceremony, then that’s it you’re married. Nope.
The ceremony in Japan, whether you chose a Western or Japanese style occasion means nothing legally.
Until you submit a “Notification of Marriage” at city hall you’re not legally married. So in theory, you could get married in just a few minutes at the city office. Not very romantic though!

Age
The legal age to get married in Japan is 18 years old for men and 16 years old for women, though if you’re under 20 years old you need parental permission. After divorce though, a woman must wait 6 months to re-marry in case she may be pregnant. Though if she happens to be divorcing and re-marrying the same man, then that can be done in the same day! It probably wouldn’t make the city office too happy though!

Japanese & Foreign Marriage
One of the big criticisms about mixed marriage in Japan is that foreigners are not fully recognised on the family register. As it’s such an important document and literally contains the identity of a family it’s come in for increasing attack in recent years for not being reformed. Whether foreign or Japanese, most parents chose to get married due to the father of a child born outside marriage not being legallly recognised.

Am I Legally Married?
Most countries including the US, recognise that a foreign legal and valid marriage, which includes Japan of course, is also valid in the US.

Divorce

In recent years terms like “Narita Divorce” and “Kansai Divorce” have become common with couples going off on honeymoon then divorcing as soon as they get back! Much like marriage, if both parties agree, then divorce can be accomplished quickly by simply filing the paperwork.
However, if one party doesn’t agree then it’s off to adjudication then if that fails, district court. The problem is that even at district court there still has to be an overwhelming reason for divorce to be approved against one person’s wishes.

Friendly, family service and their own home made BBQ sauce make this a great choice for BBQ in Okinawa.
There’s only one thing – don’t go if you’re not hungry, the portions are huge! One of their set menus will leave you well and truly fit to burst! They regularly have special menus – we tried the season special which started with soup & salad, then a generous portion of bbq ribs and chicken arrived and that was accompanied by rice or bread as well as french fries. To top it off there was even dessert!
Compared to an all you can eat restaurant which are popular in Okinawa it was good value. ¥1780 for more than enough to feel full. They also have a-la-carte options such as a BBQ chicken sandwich if you’re not feeling quite so hungry.
At lunch time there’s bento boxes. It’s a great choice if you’re thinking of hitting the drive thru at lunch time. Go straight out the other side and get a fresh bento instead. If you’ve got an event coming up or just feel like BBQ without actually having to … umm BBQ, then they do take out as well and can cater for large parties or groups. We definitely recommend Chubby’s not only for their good value sets but also the friendly family service you just don’t get in a restaurant chain.
Closed – Mondays
Open – From 11.30am – 2.30pm and 5.30pm – 9pm
Tel – 098-926-3007 Dollars OK English & Japanese OK
Special Party Menu Available
www.bbqokinawa.com

NOTE: Chubby’s BBQ has now closed!

different to home.

If you’re from a Western country then highly likely you’re used to lavishing gifts, cards and flowers on the lady in your life come Valentine’s day. Well now you’re in Okinawa you’re in for a surprise. Ladies – it’s time to pamper your man on Valentine’s day, you have to wait another month until March!
Valentine’s day in Japan is a time for ladies to present a gift to the men in their lives, normally chocolate. Ladies in the past have given good quality chocolate called “honmei choco”. However, it’s becoming more fashionable for ladies to give handmade chocolate as a sign that the man in their lives is the “only one”. Hence why you will see lots of chocolate and cake making ingredients in the stores. It’s also common for ladies to give inexpensive gifts of chocolate to work colleagues and male friends. These gifts of appreciation are called “giri-choco”. As Valentine’s day has become bigger and bigger business for the chocolate companies, “tomo choco” has also appeared in recent years, which is chocolate for their female friends.

White day comes around on March 14th and is a chance for men to return the favour. This is a relatively modern invention having started in 1978 by a confectionary company on the grounds that men should have the chance to reciprocate the gifts bought for them on Valentine’s day!
It’s now common for men to buy gifts of chocolate, jewellery, white chocolate or white lingerie for the special woman in their life. They’re also expected to give “giri choco” to female friends or co-workers who may have bought them chocolate on Valentine’s day.
However, the ladies have the last laugh, and their patience of waiting an extra month is rewarded as it’s expected for men to give gifts of two to three times the value of their received Valentine’s gift. The Japanese use the expression “sanbai gaeshi” or “thrice returned”
If you’re looking for a chocolate gift or to make your own then most major supermarkets have large displays of everything you need. If you prefer to go the Western way and send your loved one flowers, then check out www.flowerdrop.net for flower delivery in Okinawa with ordering and service in English.

Food

As you might guess for a non-Christian country, Japan isn’t as crazy about Christmas as others but if there’s one thing that says Japanese Xmas food, it’s cake. Other countries have stollen or rich fruit cake, Japan traditionally has a cream sponge with fruit, normally strawberries. It’s normally eaten on Christmas Eve after maybe going out for dinner. You’ll see them especially in convenience stores and pre-ordering for this popular Christmas treat is often necessary.

Need another excuse to eat fried chicken, then Christmas is it! If you fancy some KFC instead of turkey at Christmas then you’d better reserve in advance and yes we’re serious. KFC is synonymous with Christmas dinner in Japan with queues around the block. It’s said to stem from the 1970s when expats in Tokyo mentioned while in a store that fried chicken was the next best thing to turkey which couldn’t be found in Japan. KFC saw an opportunity and marketing took over.

Celebrate

Some countries treat the 25th December as being the day for big celebration and others celebrate on the evening of the 24th. Japanese often see the evening of 24th December as a romantic celebration with dinner out, proposals and of course cake. Many children do get excited at the thought of “St Claus” arriving at their bedside overnight. Once the celebrations are over, it’s a traditional time of year to clean home and business and various items are displayed to hope for good fortune in the New Year, such as bamboo rakes and decorative palm trees at entrances.

Go Out

Don’t want to sit at home – then head on out for Christmas food or fun. Okinawa may not have the wide variety of Christmas events as back home but there are places to go and things to see.
If you are looking to celebrate on Christmas Eve why not check out the Brazilian Christmas party at Bovino’s. They’re doing an all you can eat dinner with a special Brazilian Christmas menu. It also includes all you can drink soft drinks, beer and wine as well as a glass of sparkling wine and children free under 12 years all for just ¥5000!
For a taste of a snowy winter in Okinawa, the closest you are likely to get is the Christmas fantasy at Okinawa Zoo Park.
Taking place from December 23rd to 28th, they’ve got three laser shows every day, a snow show with a Japanese style igloo or “Kamakura” as well as fireworks and much more! Tickets are available in advance with a ¥300 discount off the ¥2000 door price for adults or there’s a ¥200 discount off the door price of ¥1200 for children’s tickets purchased in advance. More information at www.xmas-fantasy.com
New Year is a much more significant time for most Japanese. Even the busiest salary man takes time off to visit Shinto shrines or Buddist temples within the first couple of days of New Year. There is a large temple and shrine just outside Foster’s Legion Gate at the intersection of Highways 330 and 81. The whole area comes alive at the New Year, with various stalls outside selling food lining Highway 330 and many hundreds if not thousands of people visiting the temple there. The road gets very busy so if you want to visit it’s advisable to walk. Enjoy your Okinawan Christmas!

Apart from the road being closed and the numerous shops most of which are quite touristy, great if you’re looking for a gift to send back home, there are usually several groups or bands entertaining the crowds. When we visited, they had a rock violin group playing outside Tower Records called “Asia Aria” who were very good and there were also several drum groups dancing in formation. One we saw was doing a traditional Japanese drum dance to hip hop music! A definite must see!

Here’s one video we captured:

Borjan Hair Salon Sunabe Chatan Menu & Flyer

Borjan Hair Salon has just opened in Sunabe along the seawall!

You can get a stylish hair cut or color while relaxing in a modern clean salon with beautiful views over the East China Sea. Yukari the owner and stylist arrived from Tokyo in March 2009, but she has worked worldwide including London, New York, Washington D.C and Sydney. She speaks great English so communication is not a problem!

If you’re tired with the busy noisy salons or lack of English speaking staff then Yukari and Borjan is for you. Be treated like a Queen and relax while having your hair colored or styled with a relaxing scalp massage.

She also does styling for weddings, kimono and make-up.

In case you need another reason to visit there is a 50% discount off the menu until the end of June so stop by soon and try it out!

Click Here for their website

Have you visited Borjan? Want to add a review or comment? Click the “Add Comment” link on the right ->

Firstly, one of the units we ended up with had the “hot” problem! As of writing I am not sure if Docomo has restarted selling them but they were pulled off the shelves due to an overheating problem.

From what we discovered the issue appears to be that they fail to stop charging. OK if you plan on using it to dry out your damp Okinawa home but not so good if you don’t happen to enjoy overheating batteries that have the potential to explode!

We took that one back and were initially surprised by the return policy that although it could be replaced it had to be sent away to verify there was a problem with it! We politely pointed out that it wouldn’t look too good if a Blackberry Bold exploded in Japan for either Docomo or Blackberry, and after some rather worried looks and a couple of phone calls from the staff, had it replaced on the spot and the replacement has been fine.

What we noticed is that the PCB (Printed Circuit Board) on the faulty model was different to the new one. Unfortunately we didn’t take a picture, but if you have one that is getting hot, then it is definitely NOT normal. The faulty PCB we had had two circular white logos printed on either side of the camera when you lifted the back off. The new perfectly cool model does not.

So if you’ve bought one, and your new toy is literally burning a hole in your pocket then take it back and demand a replacement.

It does surprise us here at total okinawa, that the Bold has been customized by NTT with Japanese and their branding yet no-one spotted this potentially dangerous flaw in their stock. Full credit though for removing them from sale until they and RIM workout what the problem is.

More to come on the Bold itself and how it works in Okinawa!

Japan is a bit behind other countries in getting this gadget, but if you love typing emails on your phone then this is the gadget for you. Full qwerty keyboard, worldwide coverage and wifi so you can use it at home to browse the internet as well as on the move.

What’s also interesting is that Docomo has dropped the price for the actual Blackberry service to around 1575 yen. They are also adopting a similar data pricing model as Softbank for the iphone starting at 1029 yen and then moving up in tiers.

So in theory if you are light on data use, then the Blackberry bold will cost around half the cost than the previous 8707 version.

No idea if they will reach Okinawa at the same time, but unlike the previous version that had to be ordered from Tokyo this does seem to be a mainstream model, so if you are interested in a smartphone and haven’t dipped a toe in the Apple yet, then stop by a Docomo store towards the end of the month and see if they have them in!

The special website is only in Japanese right now but you can check it out here:

http://smartphone.nttdocomo.co.jp/

This is well worth checking out if your building can receive cable internet. It’s faster than an NTT fibre connection and cheaper as well. The fee starts from only Y4725 which is seriously cheap for this speed! Click the image below for a link to their English information page.

120Mbps High Speed Internet