Love it or hate it, the HBO series Sex and the City was a global phenomenon that redefined cultural stereotypes of single women in their 30s.

From 1998 to 2003, millions of viewers the world over tuned it for the latest exploits of Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte and Miranda, who challenged the notion that single life for older women was anything other than fabulous and fun.

While American audiences needed a bit of persuasion to admit that 30 was perhaps the new 20, Japanese women were quick to embrace the notion of aging gracefully outside the restrictive confines of marriage.

Indeed, there's even a new word to describe a fashionable and sophisticated single woman in her thirties, namely arasa (アラサー), which is short for aranundo sati, the Japanese pronunciation for 'around thirty.'

While Japanese government bureaucrats - the vast majority of whom are male - are scrambling to solve the problem of Japan's declining birth rate and aging population, Japanese women are increasingly embracing the freedom of unmarried life.

In fact, they're currently being targeted by some of Japan's most prominent brand name stores and boutiques, which are slowly realizing that older women have much more purchasing power than fickle teeny-boppers.

If you happen to be 'aranudo sati,' keep on reading for more info...

Japanese consumers love their electronics, and they take incredible pride in being one of the world's most technologically literate societies.

Indeed, the Japanese have traditionally been extremely loyal to their domestic brands, especially since companies like Sony, Nikon and Canon produce some of the finest electronic goods in the world. In recent years however, foreign products have started to make significant advances in the Japanese consumer market, particularly anything made by Cupertino, California-based Apple Inc.

In a society where image and fashion are paramount, Apple's stylish products speak to Japanese consumers looking to distinguish themselves from the masses. Despite the fact that Sony invented the Walkman, the vast majority of Japanese consumers rely on iPods for all of their personal music needs.

However, Apple is currently in danger of losing a percentage of their market share, following reports that a couple of iPods in Tokyo overheated, igniting stacks of nearby papers. In a society where safety and harmony are also paramount, potentially dangerous consumer goods are quickly shunned, even if they actually pose a minute risk.

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Nothing like a cute monkey running around to spice up your wait at the train station. This monkey in specific wreaked havoc in a Tokyo train station when he evaded 100 police officers trying to catch him with nets... police say he was either a wild animal from the mountains or a stray pet. Either way I am sure the train travelers passing through were amused.

There is only another week or so left in the Fuji climbing season...

While most of you probably won't get the chance to scale Japan's most iconic peak this summer, fret not as there's always next year! In the meantime however, here is a list of fun facts about Mount Fuji (富士山, Fuji-san) to get you excited about the climb...

Did you know?

- The Japanese characters for Fuji, 富 and 士, mean 'wealth' or 'abundance' and 'a man with a high status,' respectively.

- Every summer, more than 200,000 people climb to the top of Fuji. Some years, about a quarter of all of the climbers on the mountain are foreign residents and tourists.

- In the Japanese language, there is a dedicated word that describes the sunrise at the top of Fuji, namely goraiko (御来光).

- The summit of Fuji is high enough to induce altitude sickness (高山病, kouzanbyou), though it's possible to buy bottles of oxygen along the climbing route.

The list goes on, so keep reading!

There is only another week or so left in the Fuji climbing season...

If you're living or traveling in Japan, and you haven't yet climbed the country's most famous peak, get to it!! And of course, if you happen to need a little inspiration for the 12,388 foot (3776 meter) climb, then hopefully today's Big in Japan will fit the bill.

There are few images more iconic of Japan than Mount Fuji (富士山, Fuji-san), the country's highest mountain, which also happens to be a near-perfect volcanic cone. In a country obsessed with order and harmony, Fuji is a natural manifestation of Japanese ideals.

Straddling the borders of Shizuoka and Yamanashi prefectures, Fuji is located just west of Tokyo, and is visible from the city on a clear day. Considering that the mountain is within easy striking distance of the world's largest megalopolis, it should come as no surprise that Fuji attracts legions of would-be climbers every summer.

While you certainly need to be in reasonable shape to attempt a summit of the mountain, you needn't be a professional climber. Want more info? Keep on reading (^_^)

While a good number of Japanese anime flicks are certainly not everyone's cup of green tea, one exception to this rule is anything produced by Studio Ghibli and written by Hayao Miyazaki.

While Ghibli and Miyazaki might not immediately ring any bells, these two powerhouse names in the world of anime were responsible for films such as the cult classic Princess Mononoke, the academy award winning Spirited Away, and the recent popular hit Howl's Moving Castle.

More hardcore fans of Japanese anime also attribute a few other hits to Ghibli and Miyazaki, especially My Neighbour Totoro, Castle in the Sky and Nausica, which together illustrate a variety of themes ranging from Japanese nostalgia for country living to striking a delicate balance between environment and technology.

So, if you've seen any of these films, then keep on reading as today's post offers a sneak peak at Studio Ghibli's newest anime, Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea (崖の上のポニョ, Gake no Ue no Ponyo).

(If you haven't seen any of these films, head to Blockbuster ASAP and see what you've been missing!!)

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, which is certainly a good thing given that the human form comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes...

Indeed, first-timers in Japan quickly realize that Japanese standards of beauty are very, very different than those in the West. While individual tastes certainly vary, Japanese men - if you'll permit me to broadly generalize for a moment - prize cuteness and innocence over sexiness and poise.

In fact, you don't have to look very hard to find evidence of this statement. Don't believe me? Just turn on any Japanese anime, and take a good look at the female protagonists. While their bodily dimensions are certainly not based in reality, their physical attributes are nevertheless striking, particularly those big watery eyes set against tiny faces.

Of course, no real woman could ever hope to mirror these graphical representations of idealized beauty...or could they?

On that note, allow me to introduce you to the newest fashion craze over here in Japan, namely contact lens that give you the much sought after 'anime eyes.'

Location: it's Tokyo time! Bourdain finally makes his pilgrimage to every food host's favorite culinary destination, the capital of Japan and one of the world's largest cities.

Episode Rating: Three bloody meat cleavers out of five. Bourdain made a concerted effort not to do the traditional "this is Japan" food show. It made for interesting subject matter, but the episode also seemed a bit disjointed as well.

Summary: In Anthony Bourdain's mind, Japan is all about the relentless pursuit of perfection. No matter if it's food, art or sport, the Japanese are almost religious in their attention to quality and detail. It is through this lens that Bourdain takes us on a tour of Tokyo, one of the most famous but also most confusing places to visit on earth (after visiting earlier this year, I would have to agree). After an earlier No Reservations visit to Osaka, where Tony proclaimed he was not going to "do the traditional" Japan visit to Tokyo, it was interesting to get an entirely different Bourdain perspective on the country, one which was noticeably more subdued than his previous visit.

Let's be 'blunt' for a moment...

While Gadling does not in any capacity promote the smoking of copious amounts of ganja, a good number of us know that sometimes you need a little toke of Mother Nature's sweet, sweet herb to get you through day.

Of course, wrapping your salivating lips around a hand-blown glass water pipe packed to the brim with Pineapple Express is something of a difficult proposition in Japan, especially since there are some incredibly Draconian drug laws on the books here.

While a good number of people in North America and Europe tend to have a relaxed attitude towards smoking a bit of reefer from time to time, the Japanese are extremely averse to drugs of any kind.

Indeed, all of us resident foreigners here in Japan are used to hearing that drug use is something of 'Western problem.'

Or so we were led to believe (^_^)

According to a recent report by the Associated Press (AP), it seems that a good number of Japanese have been tuning in and dropping out, thanks to the easy availability of marijuana seeds on the Internet for home cultivation.

Ah so! The plot begins to thicken...

Think that the politicians in your country make ridiculous statements?

The tabloids here in Japan are buzzing this week following the latest verbal gaffe by Taro Aso, the Secretary-General of the ruling party. Believed by many to be Japan's next Prime Minster, Mr. Aso recently offended pretty much everybody by likening the main opposition party to a bunch of Nazis.

During talks with the opposition, an MP stated that the Japanese electorate was shifting its support away from the governing party. Apparently, this impending reality was a bit much for Mr. Aso to handle, who replied by saying that when people move away from the party of the government, regimes like the Nazis come to power.

Wow.

Needless to say, people aren't very impressed at the moment with Mr. Aso, though it's likely that this little scandal will blow over in good time. After all, this isn't exactly the first ridiculous public statement made by the future Japanese Prime Minister.

What else has the colorful Mr. Aso said over the years?

Today's somewhat politically leaning blog presents a concise little list of notable quotables.