Anyway, Japanese humor is really different. For one thing, the Japanese language is very conducive to puns. Also, characters or mascots are very popular in Japan. Hello Kitty is probably the most famous. But there are others. One that I encountered was Mameshiba.
"Mame" means "bean". Shiba is a breed of dog. And "mamechishiki" means "trivia".
Pictured above is a Mameshiba key chain. It looks like an edamame (soybean) pod. The little beans inside are attached so you can pop them out an infinite number of times. The company that makes them also makes a bubble wrap key chain that you can pop infinitely, and one that is like ripping open a Fedex envelope.
Anyway, besides keychains and plushies, there are some cute mameshiba videos. The first is here, subtitled in English. I really like them, but I guess it will depend on your taste. So, go take a look.
There are some language tidbits for those of you studying Japanese. Before anyone starts to eat a sit down meal, for example, they say "Itadakemasu!". This is said before meals, like grace. The after meal phrase is "Gochisosama deshita", which the girl in the second video says. It means, literally, "It was a feast," although she doesn't mean that! The man in the fifth video also says it.
In the fourth video, the woman is stirring natto. Natto is fermented soybean and either you like it, or you don't. I tried, honestly, but I don't like it. It's supposed to be very good for you, but I'm afraid it's something you have to have eaten from childhood. It seems that people in Kanto (the area around Tokyo) like it, but people further south don't like it as much.
Anyway, enjoy the cute videos!
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