parenting in japan with manami anabuki

Where do you live? Tell us about your community.

I live in Kagawa Prefecture, the smallest prefecture (by area) in Japan. I’m on the island of Shikoku, which you might know as the setting of Haruki Murakami’s novel Kafka on the Shore. My husband and I moved here from the countryside. We really enjoy living here. It’s safe and lively. Our community is pretty international with immigrants from China and South Korea.

Who is in your family? Tell us a bit about them.

Our family: Chilled-out papa, Bossy mama, Godzilla-loving Hinata (oldest son), Rebellious Ichika (daughter), Cheeky Sakuto (youngest son), Little Harisuke (hedgehog) and Baby Tes (French bulldog). What was your childhood like? Where did you grow up and what kind of a child were you?

I was born in Kochi, the southern prefecture on Shikoku Island. My family moved to Kagawa when I was in junior high. I was a restless kid who loved to constantly reorganise