Kilted in Japan!

[Norm]

I was impressed to see some all Japanese pipe bands while living in Tokyo. They were quite proficient and worn the kilt well.

I went on YouTube and sure enough, there was a Japanese piping band in red kilts marching down the street and playing excellently. I never heard of something like that, but it was great to see. I guess our answer to that would be a skinny Scottish sumo team... hmmm... I don't think so.

[Norm]

Looking quite good.

My wife and I are heading out on a long road trip next weekend - literally coast to coast. It will be similar to one we did last September and will like be about three weeks. I plan to take one pair of shorts, no jeans or pants and four kilts - 2 Utility (black and black/gray tartan) and two casual kilts (one by USA Kilts and one by SportKilt, with pockets).

I wore short pants I think twice on our trip to Japan and regretted it both times. They were experiencing an all time whopping heat wave. After the second time of wearing pants, I ditched those puppies and wore the one green kilt I had the rest of the trip.
Kilts are awesome to wear on road trips, rock hunting trips and everywhere, except at work where there are fork trucks and cat walks (grating that you can see through to people below, and, um... the other way around).

Have a fun trip!

[COScotsman]

I guess our answer to that would be a skinny Scottish sumo team... hmmm... I don't think so.

Now there is a picture!

[Son of the Rock]

Amazing. Glad you enjoyed it. Japan is such an incredible country. I'd go back yearly if it wasn't the other side of the world. Did you try chankonabe, when you were in Ryōgoku for the sumo?

I lived in Japan for 3 years. I actually did a presentation about highland dress in Japanese for a public event in Chiba. I also kilted up over there sometimes, although the only pictures I have are these ones from a Scotland vs Japan rugby match I attended in 2016. My kilt was in general a little too warm for the summer months over there, which were brutal, at least for a Scottish person like me.

[Norm]

Amazing. Glad you enjoyed it. Japan is such an incredible country. I'd go back yearly if it wasn't the other side of the world. Did you try chankonabe, when you were in Ryōgoku for the sumo?

I lived in Japan for 3 years. I actually did a presentation about highland dress in Japanese for a public event in Chiba. I also kilted up over there sometimes, although the only pictures I have are these ones from a Scotland vs Japan rugby match I attended in 2016. My kilt was in general a little too warm for the summer months over there, which were brutal, at least for a Scottish person like me.

Unfortunately, the sumo season did not start until September, so we did not see any matches. I had never heard of chankonabe, so did not get to try it. But it looks like a healthy meal (I had a look on the internet). The kilt I wore was a light, ripstop utility kilt so it really did help with the heat, as well as utilizing a fundoshi with it. So how did the Japanese people respond to your wearing a kilt? It would be nice to start a trend with the Japanese adopting the kilt for their very hot and humid climate. Yet I know that it is very hard for any of them to step out of the mold and try something unique or different. Your kilt is nice; great color scheme. So, how long did it take you to learn Japanese? I did manage to learn hiragana and katakana, but kanji was a brick wall. Thank you for your post!

[User]

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It would be nice to start a trend with the Japanese adopting the kilt for their very hot and humid climate. Yet I know that it is very hard for any of them to step out of the mold and try something unique or different.
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Harajuku? I get what you're saying, but I feel like it's a stereotype. And like all stereotypes, it's not universally true. It's hard for most people, Japanese or not, to do things outside cultural norms. You can find plenty of people in the kilt world talking about getting over the hurdle of beginning to wear a kilt outside of cultural events.

[Son of the Rock]

Unfortunately, the sumo season did not start until September, so we did not see any matches. I had never heard of chankonabe, so did not get to try it. But it looks like a healthy meal (I had a look on the internet). The kilt I wore was a light, ripstop utility kilt so it really did help with the heat, as well as utilizing a fundoshi with it. So how did the Japanese people respond to your wearing a kilt? It would be nice to start a trend with the Japanese adopting the kilt for their very hot and humid climate. Yet I know that it is very hard for any of them to step out of the mold and try something unique or different. Your kilt is nice; great color scheme. So, how long did it take you to learn Japanese? I did manage to learn hiragana and katakana, but kanji was a brick wall. Thank you for your post!

Chankonabe is the staple of the sumo diet. So it's worth trying, if you're ever in Ryōgoku again.

The kilt is a Craig ancient. I like that it's our family tartan, as it's definitely different from the most common tartans.

Japanese people would normally react with interest to the kilt. I've had a reaction or two in public before, which is fairly rare for Japanese people, who are more likely to not want to bother other people. I feel like to many of them it's an interesting piece of foreign culture. I can't see it becoming too much of a trend over there, though, as they feel strongly connected to their own culture.

As far as learning Japanese. I have a university degree in Japanese Studies, so that's where a lot of my Japanese comes from.