Virtual Culture

Sumo

Sumo is a traditional Japanese sport with a long history. In Sumo, two rikishi (sumo wrestlers) wearing nothing but a mawashi (loincloth) face each other in a dohyo (circular ring), and try to push, grapple, and throw each other outside of it.

Traditional Japanese Houses

Japanese houses have kept their traditional form but incorporated new technology to keep up with the times, making living more convenient. Recently, there has been renewed interest in traditional Japanese houses, which are long-lasting and eco-friendly.

Kendama

A kendama is a traditional toy that can be used to perform a number of fun tricks. These days, it has developed into a competitive sport, and is growing in popularity around the world.

Bento

The bento box, a special container meant to let people carry around their food with them, is an important part of Japanese food culture. Bento come in many varieties, including bento you make yourself at home, bento you can buy at convenience stores and other places, high-quality bento sold by restaurants, and ekiben, which you can eat while on the train. The fillings of bento can also come in an infinite number of variations.

Judo

Judo is a martial art that was born in Japan. It became popular around the world as a competitive sport after being featured in the Olympics. Try out your skills in a bout of virtual judo!

Kimono

Kimono are traditional Japanese clothing. It has taken a long time for them to evolve into the form they take now. There are lots of different types of kimono that use different fabrics and are made in different ways.

Yabusame & Kyudo

Yabusame is a ceremony in which archers clad in the hunting outfit of medieval warriors shoot at three targets as they race by on horseback. Kyudo, or Japanese archery, is a type of martial art where a bow is used to fire arrows at targets.

Ukiyo-e

Ukiyo-e is a woodblock printing technique that became popular in the Edo period (1603–1867). A picture is drawn, carved into the wood, applied with color, and then pressed onto a piece of paper, so that the same picture can be remade many times over.

Fukuwarai

Fukuwarai is a traditional New Year's game that has been played by kids in Japan for centuries. A player is blindfolded and has to place the eyes, nose, mouth and other parts on a blank face while relying on their own intuition. If you like, you can try playing a virtual game of Fukuwarai!

Bonsai

Bonsai is a traditional Japanese craft in which a plant is grown in a pot to look even more beautiful than it would in the wild. These days, there are lots of bonsai enthusiasts all over the world.

The Koto

The koto is a stringed instrument, like a guitar or violin. A lot of koto music expresses customs or seasons that are meaningful to the Japanese people.

Shodo

Shodo (Japanese calligraphy) is a part of traditional Japanese culture that involves using old-fashioned writing implements such as a fude (brush) and sumi (black ink) to draw Japanese characters such as kanji and kana in an artistic way.

Ikebana

Ikebana is a traditional Japanese art form that has been practiced in for around 700 years, and involves artfully displaying branches, leaves, and flowers in vases and other vessels. Practitioners take great care to make the most beautiful arrangements they can with a limited number of flowers.

Origami

Origami is a traditional Japanese pastime where a single square of paper is folded in different ways to create shapes, such as animals and plants. Origami can be enjoyed anywhere; many Japanese people enjoy it at home and at school.