Blowing My Horn

Boasting is definitely frowned upon in the circles in which we travel, but there are occasions when a blast, preferably from a Baroque era valveless trumpet, is not only appropriate but, shall we say, mandatory. Well, as Frank Zappa put it, “The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing.” So, here we go. As our regular readers should … Continue reading Blowing My Horn →

Anticipation: Moritami Sou Honke’s Nigorizake

Featured

Many years ago, there was an interesting commercial running on American television channels. It showed ketchup emerging ever so slowly from its bottle, while the Carly Simon song “Anticipation” played in the background. The unstated message was that this product is so thick and rich that it just has to be delicious, and, naturally, one … Continue reading Anticipation: Moritami Sou Honke’s Nigorizake →

Pasteur Street Brewing Co

If any of our readers should find themselves in Hanoi with a thirst for finely crafted beer, this writer highly recommends a visit to Pasteur Street Brewing Co. A reasonably priced flight will get you the following: Jasmine IPA: light orange in color, yeasty, a hint of jasmine, weighing in at 50 IPUs, 6.5% ABV. … Continue reading Pasteur Street Brewing Co →

An Apple Called “Cat” and What It Can Do

Fallen Apples* The word cat makes an appearance in a number of English expressions, the often-used “to let the cat out of the bag,” the ever off-putting “to skin a cat,” and the inscrutable “to rain cats and dogs,” for example. Lesser-known of course are the obsolete “you kill my cat and I’ll kill your … Continue reading An Apple Called “Cat” and What It Can Do →

Afterthought

Man by Pins, Jacob (1917-2005) - 1984 - Jewish Historical Museum, Netherlands - Public Domain.https://www.europeana.eu/item/270/resource_document_jhm_museum_M008413 This is the eighth and final entry in our multi-part series on marketing Japan to affluent foreign tourists. A growing number of people and firms within the Japanese hospitality sector now understand the importance of attracting the high-end traveler, who … Continue reading Afterthought →

The Shisui Hotel

This is the seventh entry in our multi-part series on marketing Japan to affluent foreign tourists. In November 2023, we had the good fortune of having lunch at and touring the premises of the Shisui Hotel in Nara. The Shisui is one of Bonvoy Marriott’s Luxury Collection hotels. There are thirty-one of them. If there … Continue reading The Shisui Hotel →

Selling Nara to the Well Heeled

I This is the sixth entry in our multi-part series on marketing Japan to affluent foreign tourists. Is shop till you drop about to stop among the inbound? Well, an abrupt halt seems unlikely, but the sight of hordes of tourists leaving the shores of Nippon with bags and boxes of merchandise, homeward bound like … Continue reading Selling Nara to the Well Heeled →