“What I always wanted to do in Japan was hand-held fireworks! I heard that you can do it on the beach. The sea and the hand-handled sparklers really feel like Japan.”

Outside of Japan, the use of fireworks is often limited to certain days, like holidays, and most places where fireworks are allowed are not easily accessible. For this reason, the Japanese custom of summer fireworks may seem unusual. Recently, places where fireworks can be used have also been limited in Japan, but usually one can still enjoy hand-held sparklers in summer by the beach.

People seem to learn about Japanese hand-held fireworks from anime and other TV programs. So, surprisingly, it's one of the things a lot of visitors look forward to!

“There aren’t that many skyscrapers in the UK, and we don’t have the cool neon signs everywhere either. The glittering Tokyo nightlife really called out to me.”

Large cities like Tokyo and Osaka are almost as bright at night as they are during the day. That may come as a surprise to some, because it's a completely different atmosphere to that of Europe.

In some countries outside Japan, there are laws that don’t allow the sale of alcohol past 10pm, but not Japan. Japan is often considered a city that never sleeps - in part because in some areas you can drink until morning! And as a city that never sleeps, the streets are always shining with neon, creating that unique vibe everyone knows about.

“I want to stay in Japan, because I want to experience Japanese houses and the life of Japanese people”

Japanese houses are naturally full of the country's traditions, like taking your shoes off upon entering, or having a bathtub in the washing area.

Some people want to experience Japanese normal life because it’s completely different from that in western countries. Our interviewee in particular wanted to experience home cooking, which is pretty different from the Japanese food one can find in a restaurant.

This one may seem particularly strange to Japanese people, as something that may be totally normal for them, like kotatsu in winter, is totally unheard of abroad! For those of you who are wondering - a kotatsu is a table covered by a blanket, with a heat source underneath, meaning you never want to get out from under the table in winter!

“I’m interested in Japanese life and their hobbies. So I want to visit popular travel destinations chosen by Japanese people themselves.”

There's plenty of information out there in English about what spots are popular with international tourists (*ahem*), but this Slovakian woman told us that popular tourist spots among Japanese people aren't as easy to find without speaking Japanese. She can speak Japanese fluently, so she wanted to try her best to see the "real" Japan.

Recently, more than 30 million overseas visitors have come to Japan, and there are so many tourists that cities are overflowing. Japanese people might assume tourists would prefer to see whatever the other international tourists are seeing, but that really depends on your taste!

“I heard that the Shinkansen brings sushi to you in Japan. I want to see it!”

The fast-mini-train delivery system in sushi restaurants with a rolling belt, has become more and more popular. So much so that these little trains have become an attraction in their own right. The Shinkansen is popular among foreigners and it’s interesting to them that a miniature version of it carries sushi, to the point that some seem to be more interested in the little train itself than they are in actually eating sushi.

“I want to slurp ramen! I can’t do it in the U.S.”

In many countries, making noise while eating is considered rude, but in Japan it's almost compulsory to slurp noodles! It seems to be a special experience that one can only have in Japan, because even in Japanese restaurants abroad one can’t do it without being considered rude. This American man loves ramen and he loves it when he travels to Japan because he can enjoy his noodles without worrying about making noise.

“I want to participate in Japanese festivals. Among other things, carrying the mikoshi seems really interesting.”

Shrines are everywhere. They are different from one another and they all have a unique origin. So even during festivals there are many traditions related to carrying them around. A Malaysian woman told us that she wanted to carry one of these mikoshi shrines one someday. She said the idea of carrying a shrine in a hot and energetic environment seems cool and she would love to try it.

Unfortunately, this requires a lot of training, so usually is reserved for residents only, but recently some areas have been allowing international visitors to be an active part of the festivals, so it may be possible for her to give it a go!

“When I think about Japan, I think Kimono. Yukata are also nice, but I really want to wear a kimono”

In Kyoto, you often see tourists walking around in a kimono. A kimono is always one of the first things that comes to mind when thinking about Japan. In recent years yukata can be bought for less than 10,000 yen, so it seems like many foreigners buy that instead of a kimono.

However, kimono are also popular. Some visitors said that their dream was wearing a beautiful, embroidery kimono. Having the full experience of wearing a kimono and going for a tea ceremony is something not even all Japanese people have tried out - seems like we should give it a go!

“I love games from the 1980's and 90's but they don’t sell them overseas. I heard that they do sell them in Akihabara, so I want to go and buy them!”

In the past years, the connection of maid cafes and Akihabara has become bigger and bigger, but the neighborhood is still also visited by people looking for game shops and computer parts. This Dutch man loves old video-games. He wants to visit Akihabara to find old Nintendo's and Sega's gaming consoles. Akihabara is a dream area for retro-game fans.

“I learned about the tea ceremony during the increase of popularity of Japanese green tea, but it seems a bit complicated”.

Tea ceremonies may seem very hard to perform, but there are many places where you can have a guided experience it first hand, and enjoy the tea afterwards. In fact there are many tourists who come to Japan and have this experience.

“I want to ride the shinkansen. It’s fast and it looks cool. I definitely want to ride it when I go to Japan”

The shinkansen is popular among many tourists, some of whom even use it to travel just a short distance, like from Tokyo to Yokohama. If you're visiting Japan from abroad, you also have access to a pass that allows unlimited rides on the shinkansen for a limited period of time, and some people enjoy traveling on the different lines simply for the experience. There are different Shinkansen lines, so some people want to try them all.

Here we got to talk about a lot of different things, but as a Japanese writer myself, some of them were particularly surprising! Having access to these things every day has made me more used to them, but I'm glad visitors can find them exciting!

Original Japanese written by: Fujico