We put up a piece of paper on our noticeboard asking students to write down some if the things they think are great about Japan. Here’s what we got:

1.旅館・温泉 (Ryokan / onsen, traditional inns and hot springs)
2.プリクラ (Purikura, print club photos from vending machines)
3.Japanese food
4.食べ放題・飲み放題 (tabehoudai/nomihoudai, all you can eat and drink)
5.寿司 (sushi)
6.まんだらけ (Mandarake, a giant comic/specialty shop near the school in Fukuoka)
7.敬語 (Keigo, formal Japanese)
8.クレープ (crepes): There are loads of great crepe shops all over Fukuoka. You’ll have to try one!
9.博多弁 (Hakata-ben, the local Hakata dialect, which people say sounds quite cute)
10.イケメン (ikemen, attractive young men)
11.ガンダム (Gundam)
12.ティッシュ (tissues): People hand out tissues with ads on them on the street.
13.一風堂 (Ippudo, a local ramen chain)
14.かっこいい男の人 (kakkoii otoko no hito, handsome men)
15.百金 (hyakkin, hundred yen shops)
16.ゲームセンター (game centers, amusement arcades)
17.かわいい女の子 (kawaii no onna no ko, cute girls)
18.おにぎり (onigiri, rice balls)
19.イングリッシュ (Engrish, the Japanese form of English)
20.公衆トイレ (koushuu toire, public toilets): They’re always clean, and free!
21.レストラン・サービス (restaurant service): Japanese restaurants almost always have great service, even without tips!
22.電車 (densha, trains): The Japan rail network is extensive, and fairly cheap…

日本の「すごい」こと
We asked our students to “share what you think is great about Japan with everyone else!” Here’s what we got:

1.Traffic lights with jingles (Many pedestrian crossings in Japan play music when you can walk. In Fukuoka, there are two songs played at each intersection, so blind people can tell which direction is currently safe to cross. One is toryanse, a traditional Japanese song, while the other is Comin’ Through the Rye, by Robert Burns!)
2.Dessert Viking (In Japan, “Viking” means “all-you-can-eat”. Quite a few restaurants and hotels around the city offer fixed-price dessert buffets, with a wide range of different desserts and usually free drinks. A great way to fatten up!)
3.Super-huge ice cream jugs
4.Trains on time
5.“Sumimasen” (People say “sumimasen” a lot in Japan. Really, a lot.)
6.イケメン (“ikemen”, or handsome Japanese guys)
7.Convenience stores
8.たべ/のみほうだい (“tabe/nomihoudai”, all you can eat and drink. A popular choice for GenkiJACS parties, as everyone pays the same, so billing is easy. Usually for a set duration, for example 2 hours)
9.Ryokan / おんせん (“onsen”, hot springs. “Ryokan” are traditional Japanese inns, a great way to spend a night, and usually not too expensive. Here’s a recommended ryokan in Fukuoka!)
10.Sushi
11.Free tissues (Many companies hand out tissues on the street to advertise themselves.)
12.Yuji-sensei (of course!)
13.Mandarake!!!!!!!!!! (A giant manga and collector shop near GenkiJACS in Fukuoka)
14.Obasans with pink, blue, purple and yellow hair! (“Obasan” means old lady. A lot of older women dye their hair less-conventional colors, for presently unknown reasons)
15.Dialects / Hakata-ben (The local dialect of Japanese is quite a famous one in Japan, and people from other regions often say that it sounds cute.)
16.けいご (“keigo”, or polite Japanese)
17.Crepes (Japan has some really great crepe shops, for some reason.)
18.Engrish
19.Hawks! (the local baseball team!)
20.Nice people
21.Game Centers!! (Round 1, a couple of hundred meters from school, has all the entertainment you could ever want! Batting cages, bowling, automatic table tennis machines, a free-play arcade, karaoke and much much more!)
22.Gundam
23.Purikura (“print club”, instant photo machines designed for group photos)
24.Mika-sensei