The Japanese do, of course, enjoy drinks in private with friends, but going out is far more common than holding parties at your home. In Tokyo alone, there are 18,000 pubs and beer halls. In the evenings, these places are crowded with colleagues enjo... (more)ying after-work drinks. Recently, some companies have begun subsidizing the costs of parties held by their employees, and even opening bars on their own premises. On this edition of BEGIN Japanology, our theme is parties and gatherings.

Peter Barakan, Stuart Varnam-Atkin