top of page
Search


How Portuguese "soap" became Japanese "cactus"
A golden barrel cactus, known in Japanese as キンシャチ (kinshachi) or 金鯱 in kanji As the first Europeans to make contact with the Japanese,...
Spencer Low
Apr 202 min read
2,414 views
0 comments


Weirdest Japanese word borrowed from the Portuguese
As the first Europeans that the Japanese encountered, the Portuguese made a deep cultural impact on the Land of the Rising Sun. Many...
Spencer Low
Feb 232 min read
1,452 views
0 comments


More on Japanese pão de Castela
福砂屋 (Fukusaya) logo incorporates a Portuguese ship. I wrote last year about the delicious Japanese castella cake (カステラ) that originated...
Spencer Low
Feb 23 min read
528 views
0 comments


Jaggery or muscovado sugar, anyone?
I recently made a few trips to India, and drinking chai (tea) was definitely a highlight. [Here's an interesting post about the...
Spencer Low
Dec 7, 20242 min read
361 views
0 comments


The first flight from Portugal to Macau 100 years ago
It is a common lament among Portuguese people living in Asia why there aren't more direct flights to Portugal. Currently one can fly...
Spencer Low
Aug 17, 20244 min read
913 views
0 comments
bottom of page