Japanese Themed Gifts For Lovers Of Japan: Zen, Kendo and the Toyota Supra!

Do you know and love a Japan-o-phile? (I guess there’s probably a more technical word for that, but if you do then you know what I’m talking about!) Someone who goes crazy for martial arts, adores Zen gardens, bonsai trees, tea ceremonies, Japanese foods, kimonos, Japanese literature, you name it, and has spent years labouring to learn the language? When this person’s birthday rolls around, you know exactly what would really make their day – anything to do with Japan! But what exactly should you buy for them? Here are a few ideas for you!

Japanese Horticulture: Miniature Zen Gardens

These are great pocket presents when times are tight! You can locate one of these directly from runningpress.com or from other manufacturers also via Amazon. You get all the ingredients to make a traditional Zen rocks ‘n’ sand raked garden, with all its simplicity and beauty – and all in a box you can hold in one hand! Your Japan lover will have hours of fun, raking away with their miniature rake to get it all just perfect!

Martial Arts Memorabilia: Kanji Pendants

Traditional Japanese Kanji characters are fluid, graceful and beautiful – and they look just great on jewellery! You can get characters with all kinds of meanings if you look around at what’s on offer – romantic, funny, affectionate or serious. If you take a look on Etsy there are some beautiful examples, e.g. shops by sjengraving and CreativeArtandSoul. Or if you would like one in precious metals, there are some beautiful examples on Amazon.

Buy a Bento Box

Does your friend or loved one adore Japanese food? Then they’ll know all about bento boxes! These cute little items are designed to carry Japanese schoolchildren’s and office workers’ lunches for them – but these are lunches like no other! A traditional bento box lunch is a feast for the eye as well as the palate – just take a look!

Buy A Supra Present!

Is the person you’re buying a Japanese car enthusiast? (You’ll know if they are: Japanese care enthusiasts talk of nothing else!) Now, I’m not suggesting that you spring for a Skyline, Evo or Supra for your friend or relative! But there are lots of amusing Japanese car-related presents that you can choose from. You could even get a little model Japanese car of the model they’ve set their heart on for them as a jokey present! Alternatively a subscription to a magazine like Evo or Banzai, largely dedicated to Japanese perfomance cars would undoubtedly go down well.

Japanese Language Fluency: Learning the Language

Of course what nearly every lover of Japanese culture would really like to do is to become fluent in the language. Maybe you can find a gift to help with that! There are lots of good language learning aids out there such as the Rosetta Stone products: my other half (another lover of all things Japanese!) opted to buy Louis Aaron’s “Subliminal Japanese” and Ajalt’s ‘Japanese For Busy People’, with a set of kanji cards. Japanese isn’t an easy language to learn, but a life-long love affair with all things Japanese makes the effort wo