TOKYOMANGO

Why older couples are getting divorced

I was reading a woman's weekly on the airplane that analyzed why the divorce rate among Japanese couples over 55 is on the rise. (The overall divorce rate is on the decline.)

- Greater life expectancy means more life to live. Back in the day when people only lived until they were sixty-something, it seemed reasonable to stick around even after the kids grew up, since there wasn't much time to start over anyway. Now, with the average life expectancy in Japan being much higher, people see the post-child-rearing era as an opportunity to start over, to find romance again, or to travel, or whatever it is they haven't gotten out of their system.

- A couple years ago, in my very first TokyoMango blog post ever, I wrote about a new law offering half of the husband's pension to his divorcee. This, of course, enables housewives to survive financially without being at their husbands' beck and call.

- Women forget that men need to be babied. One woman expert commented that women take care of the men in the early days of marriage, but by the time their husbands are getting ready to retire, they aren't as enthusiastic about it anymore. Treat your husband as you would your son, she suggests.

- Women are sick of being disrespected. One male expert commented that many husbands are super rude to their wives, not treating them as equals and shunning their efforts to make things work as a couple. It serves them right that the woman finally feel empowered to get up and leave.

- One woman expert, divorced, reminds older couples to try everything possible to make amends before making the final split.

Serial purse snatcher caught after 11 years

Tomoki Matsuyama, 32, is a master purse snatcher. Since 1997, he is thought to have stolen 1,025 purses in Saitama prefecture with a total of 79 million yen in them. That means he started when he was 21! He's jobless and has no fixed address, but he did carefully log each theft in a little notebook so that he could avoid hitting up the same spots when cops might be on the lookout for him. Seriously wow. He finally got caught and is now on trial for robbery, inflicting bodily in jury, and theft.

Link

Bottle Keep

In Japan, there's a custom called bottle keep. Frequent customers to a bar or restaurant get to keep a bottle of sake at the establishment with their name on it—that way, if they just want a couple of glasses without the commitment of drinking a whole bottle, they can just save the rest for later. It's a good way to keep customers coming back, but it's also really great for the customers. It almost feels like coming home—they officially become regulars there, and they don't even have to bring cash. I went to a restaurant the other night that had a rack overloaded with bottle keeps. Each name is neatly labeled on a wooden panel hung over the neck of the sake bottle.

Gyoza kaikan, old ramen shop in Karuizawa

This past weekend, we went to Karuizawa, a popular vacation spot in the mountains that's about an hour train ride from Tokyo. It was the first time in 15+ years that I had gone there, but not much had changed. One of my fave spots from childhood is this little hole-in-the-wall ramen shop called "Gyoza Kaikan." It's at the edge of town, tucked into a tiny alley that you could very easily miss if you didn't know what you were looking for. I remember going there and lining up to get a seat when I was a kid. The food tasted  the same = pretty damn good. Afterwards we went to see a waterfall.

The 10 commandments of a maid cafe

A maid cafe is not an excuse for you to be naughty. Here's a list of 10 things that are totally illegal, as clearly stated on the door of a maid cafe in Akiba:

1. Touching a maid's body.
2. Asking for a maid's phone number.
3. Asking for a maid's email address.
4. Infringing on a maid's privacy. Ask what time she gets off work.
5. Stalking or persistently picking up a maid.
6. Waiting for her to come in and out, or lingering outside the cafe.
7. Harming the employees, guests, or neighbors of this cafe.
8. Taking photos of the maids or the interior and exterior of the cafe.
9. Bringing outside food or drink into the cafe.
10. Smoking on the stairs outside the cafe.

The sign at the bottom claims that the cafe has teamed up with the secret service for surveillance and enforcement of these rules.