7 Ways To Feel Like You're On A Japan Holiday (Even Though You're Stuck In Singapore)
While Singapore may not be able to recreate all of Japan’s facets, there are still ways to experience the land of the rising sun from the little red dot.
By Jan Lee,
Japan is a country of contradictions.
Skyscrapers tower over the century-old garden with traditional Japanese structures from the Edo period. The most nondescript office building houses a world-famous sushi restaurant. Even in rural areas that are barely lit after nightfall, you can find public restrooms with high-tech toilet seats.
From the city of Tokyo, which never sleeps, to the calm serenity of natural hot springs in the countryside, Japan has many faces – exciting, relaxing, futuristic and traditional all at the same time.
While Singapore may not be able to recreate all of Japan’s facets, there are still ways to experience the land of the rising sun from the little red dot.
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Emiko Sakashita, communication director for Japanese fashion store Colony Clothing, keeps her Japanese recommendations simple. The mother of two, 42, moved to Singapore six years ago with her sushi chef husband Masaaki Sakashita, who recently opened fine-dining sushi restaurant Masaaki in South Beach Avenue.
She says shopping at Japanese department stores and supermarkets reminds her of home.
She says: "What really feels like home is Japanese service. In Japan, in department stores such as Isetan and Takashimaya, the staff bow deeply to the guests when their doors open in the morning. When I’m greeted politely in Japanese stores here, I feel the sense of being at home."
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“For groceries, the Japanese supermarket at the basement of Isetan Scotts and Meidi-ya at Great World City really feel like Japan. There’s a great variety of miso and natto (fermented soya bean) to choose from and those are staples in my cooking,” she adds.
The fashion-forward woman, who mixes menswear and womenswear in her own style, gets her sartorial fix where she works – at Colony Clothing, which also runs two more stores in Singapore, the perfume, bath and body products brand Santa Maria Novella’s counter at Isetan and American Shoe Store at Mandarin Gallery.
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“Our founder, Mr Kozo Kawamura, will sometimes go to Japanese bookstores like Kinokuniya to get inspiration from Japanese fashion magazines," she says.
“In Singapore, there are not as many fashion-focused magazines as there are in Japan, with different magazines focusing on different styles. So to get the latest style news, Japanese magazines are really helpful.”
Ahead, some ways you can experience that slice of Japan right in our own backyard.
A version of this article first appeared in The Straits Times
Perhaps the best way to feel in touch with Japan is to engage in some of its oldest customs. At En Japanese Tea Culture, Yasuko Norris (above, right) teaches students about the traditional tea ceremony and kimono dressing.
Her tea ceremony lessons are priced at $60 a person for a 90-minute class, while her kimono dressing lessons start at $240 for four lessons. The 53-year-old, who has been in Singapore for 10 years, is a qualified kimono teacher and dresser certified by the Hakubi Kyoto Kimono School in Japan.
Her Mohamed Sultan Road studio has a washitsu (Japanese-style room with tatami floors) and will transport one instantly to Japan. For more information, go to www.enteaculture.com.
Alternatively, find exquisite Japanese craftsmanship at Huls Gallery atop Duxton Hill, which sources homeware from around Japan, including porcelain, lacquerware, ceramic and glass pieces made by Japanese artisans. If you're venturing there, do note that the space will be closed from Dec 31 to Jan 3 and resume operations from Jan 4.
Japanese food is possibly one of the most popular cuisines in Singapore. Locals are spoilt for choice with izakayas, kaiseki restaurants, shabu-shabu and sushi ranging from affordable to high-end. Then there is, of course, ramen.
Enishi at International Plaza, a hole-in-the-wall joint which originates from Kobe, serves up flavourful bowls of dan dan noodles and Japanese dashi ramen.
It has only counter seats, from which customers can observe the chef at work – reminiscent of Japan’s many small yet popular ramen joints.
For more casual Japanese fare, check out cafes such as Grand Jete Cafe & Bar at Ngee Ann City or Baristart Coffee in Tras Street. Grand Jete Cafe & Bar has more teishoku (set meal) menus with popular items that include katsu don, curry rice, kakiage echizen soba, and the gelato and waffle.
In the mood to splurge and take a nice picture? Keyaki at Pan Pacific Singapore, which serves more upmarket kaiseki, sashimi and teppanyaki meals, is situated within a quaint Japanese garden with a traditional pavilion (pictured) perfect for that Instagram shot.
Baristart Coffee is famous for its coffee and sweets. The Hokkaido-based cafe chain, which uses Hokkaido dairy as a key ingredient in many of its items, has a deliciously sinful cream puff that is beloved by customers. Also worth trying are its soft-cream and coffee drinks made with Hokkaido’s Biei Jersey milk. Baristart Coffee also has a store along Siloso Beach, Sentosa.
For drinks, head to RPM by D.Bespoke (pictured). The Duxton Road bar, which has a dizzying selection of Japanese shochu, does traditional and shochu-based cocktails well. Vinyl records, which take pride of place in the bar’s decor and are played in the background, include signature hits from the Japanese city pop genre like Mariya Takeuchi’s Plastic Love (1984).
The episodic Midnight Diner and its sister series Midnight Diner: Tokyo Stories (pictured) on Netflix are both anchored by the same fictional chef and the diner he runs in the backstreets of Shinjuku.
Its opening theme, with its slow, panning camera shots of Shinjuku at night and the episodes – each of which centres on a particular food item the chef makes – has an authentic Japanese flavour that is comforting to indulge in.
On Amazon Prime Video, the series Tokyo Girl will also give a taste of the titular capital. It follows a woman named Aya from the countryside province of Akita, who heads to Tokyo with dreams of a successful career and happy marriage. Each episode tracks her career growth and love life in the city.
Episodes are named after Tokyo neighbourhoods that Aya lives in and the city itself is almost like a character that displays many aspects of its personality – the simple and friendly Sangen-jaya, the hip, fashionable Ebisu, the family-oriented Toyosu and the independent, spirited Yoyogi-Uehara.
For Japanese fashion that is not Uniqlo, check out Colony Clothing at UE Square, a shop which focuses on menswear but has womenswear as well from its own brand Colony Clothing and popular Japanese brands such as Beams and Ring Jacket. It also stocks foreign brands such as the Italian-crafted Felisi.
The clean, minimalist look of the store highlights its Japanese sensibilities.
Women can also go to Lumine at Clarke Quay Central for a selection of Japan’s most popular brands, such as the higher-end Tomorrowland and the more affordable Wego.
Japanese beauty services with top-notch service are aplenty in Singapore as well, with hair salons like Hair Studio Flamingo, which has two branches in Neil Road and Tiong Bahru, staffed with Japanese stylists.
While hot springs are rare in Singapore, the bathhouse experience can still be replicated here with Yunomori Onsen & Spa at Kallang Wave Mall. All-day access to the day spa’s onsen facilities costs $38 and there are add-on services such as Thai massage therapies,
Japanese beauty services with top-notch service are aplenty in Singapore as well, with hair salons like Hair Studio Flamingo, which has two branches in Neil Road and Tiong Bahru, staffed with Japanese stylists.
While hot springs are rare in Singapore, the bathhouse experience can still be replicated here with Yunomori Onsen & Spa at Kallang Wave Mall (pictured). All-day access to the day spa’s onsen facilities costs $38 and there are add-on services such as Thai massage therapies.