Oshibori Oshibori An or hot towel in English is a wet hand towel offered to customers in places such as restaurants or bars, and used to clean one's hands before eating. Oshibori has long been part of Hospitality Culture in Japan: in "The Tale of Genji" era it was used for visitors; during the Edo period it was used in Hatago (); later it started to be used in many restaurants. It eventually spread to worldwide use. Cold oshibori are used in summer, and hot oshibori in winter. In Japan, October 29 has been observed as the day of Oshibori since
Jimi's Book of Japanese: A Motivating Method to Learn Japanese essential Japanese vocabulary. The second book, "Jimi's Book of Japanese: A Motivating Method to Learn Japanese (Katakana) teaches readers 46 Katakana syllabary plus essential Japanese vocabulary (, ). Both books contain interactive exercises to improve basic Japanese comprehension. The books are aimed at a broader audience in North America and at a grade school audience in the rest of the world. In 2003, Takahashi & Black/PBJ Omnimedia (imprint) won a Parents' Choice Award for category "Doing and Learning." and an IPPY (Independent Publisher Book Award) in the category for Academic books. Jimi's Book of Japanese: A Motivating Method to Learn