Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
July, 2013 (Page 5)
Apparently, if you could taste fear, it would taste like cool lemonade.
Starting July 27, Japanese burger chain Lotteria will offer a limited-time lemonade shake flavor themed after classic Japanese horror icon Sadako – the unmistakable and absolutely horrifying long-haired ghost girl from The Ring.
A quick glance at the name of Japanese cake maker Priroll should tell you that they specialize in roll cakes. What might not be so readily apparent is that the “Pri” stands for “printing.” Customers can include a photo when ordering, which Priroll will then reproduce on the side of one of its desserts, making it a great choice for birthdays, graduations, or other celebrations.
Being able to reproduce any image on this sweet, spongy canvas, though, means that the folks at Priroll aren’t limited to using just photographs, though. If you want, they can also whip you up an anime cake.
‘Tis the season of the “Summer Gentei” (“Summer Specialties”) in Japan; an exciting time of year where near every food vendor in the country offers up some sort of cold, frozen, or energy-packed limited edition summer-themed menu. And even the foreign chains are getting into it, with Krispy Kreme Japan currently offering three new summer-only doughnuts and two summer-themed drinks. Because we love you, we went and stuffed our faces.
For students and professionals just starting their careers in pricey Tokyo, finding ways to economize is a must. Unfortunately, the cost of housing in the city means a lot of young singles end up in pretty cramped living quarters. In my old apartment, the only refrigerator I could cram into the place was so small there wasn’t enough room to keep both my beer and my drinking water chilled. For the record, it takes about two months to get used to drinking lukewarm H2O.
This lack of space also makes it difficult to stock up on groceries to use in cooking your own lunch to bring to school or the office. As a result, many people buy bento, boxed lunches with rice and some sort of side dish. You can get passable bento at any convenience store, and in recent years even some full-fledged restaurants have started selling them on the sidewalks of business districts in the afternoons.
Bento tend to be somewhere in the range of 500-1,000 yen (US$5-10) though, so the cost really adds up if you’re buying one a day. Trying to cut our expenses even further, we sent our reporter out with 500 yen and a mission: go get lunch, and bring back change.
Japan loves ice cream, so when Ben and Jerry’s started opening locations here in 2012, it was welcomed with open arms.
But the Vermont-based company didn’t just bring its assortment of tasty flavors with untranslatable pun-based names. It also brought its well-known commitment to social activism with it. In keeping with those values, Ben & Jerry’s Japan is offering free ice cream to encourage people to vote in the country’s upcoming election.
Under normal circumstances, Japanese people have an open aversion to unnaturally colored foods, especially blue. This is true even of sports drinks and birthday cakes. Without even addressing the never-ending debates over artificial food colorings and health, something about the color blue appears unappetizing to their taste buds.
However, in the overwhelming heat of summer, the color blue also carries with it the connotation of something cool and calm. Could the implicative promise of a refreshing counter to the summer sun override this instinctual revulsion against imbibing something blue? After hearing about a certain Thai food restaurant that serves bright blue dishes, we decided to send one of our more adventurous culinary reporters to check it out.
We’re still searching for that perfect way to survive summer, whether it be by eating cow tongue ice cream or tossing water onto the street. However, Burger King claims they have the answer we’ve all been looking for: grilled meat, fried garlic, and lots of both.
Starting on 26 July they will be releasing two sandwiches as part of their Summer Stamina series dubbed the Garlic Meat Monster and Garlic Double Cheese.
On Wednesday, July 16, reports came from the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department announcing that two women had been arrested on suspicion of violating the Japanese Anti-Prostitution Law of 1956. Those apprehended are thought to have been running a prostitution ring for men with a fetish for fleshy females. The average weight of the women they dispatched to paying customers was a good 100 kg (220 pounds)!
I’m sure taking a trip across Japan is a thought that has crossed the minds of many, whether they’ve already visited the country or not. However, unless you’re enjoying a gap year or have an extremely understanding boss, taking enough time off to see it all in one go isn’t easy. Experiencing the change in climates as you travel between the different regions of the country or admiring the scenery particular to a specific area carries an undeniable charm. If only there were a way to experience Japan in its full glory without being restricted by the factor of time.
Well, we might have just the solution for all you busy people out there. It comes in the form of a special Google Street View movie which boasts footage of the whole journey across the country, from the northernmost tip of mainland Japan right down to the south.
In Japan, there are roughly 450 national highways wandering their way through the country, connecting the various cities and prefectures.
Their sizes and conditions obviously vary widely depending on location and usage, but for the most-part they all share one thing in common: cars can drive on them. But on 338.2 meters (about 425 yards) of National Highway 339 in Aomori Prefecture, not a single car, truck, scooter, or motorcycle is allowed.
Why? Because it’s actually a staircase!
A lot of world records are inherently silly. Sure, you could set a record for the most mascot characters dancing in sync, but why would you? Because you are Japan, that’s why! And now Nippon has grabbed another who-even-thinks-of-that world record: largest mailbox.
While the official release date of Ghibli’s new feature anime film, The Wind Rises (Kaze Tachinu), is still a few short days away, numerous preview screenings have already taken place across Japan. We too, went to a screening earlier this month and offered you our impressions after seeing the movie, and now, with all the reviews from luckier members off the public trickling in, it seems that not everyone is happy with Ghibli’s new creation, especially the younger audience.
We’re sure many of you readers are as sick of hearing about the Japan heat as we are suffering it, so let’s talk about some different weather! In specific: Rainy days and umbrellas!
Posting on Japanese news and community site My Navi News, a university student has asked the online community for its take on his somewhat unique predicament he found himself in after using everyone’s most hated insect to prevent his umbrella from being stolen.
Regular readers may be aware that we’ve done a fair amount of reporting recently on the unrelenting heat here in Japan and on ways to battle the sweltering temperatures. Naturally, eating cold or frozen snacks is one way to cool down, but now major Japanese dairy manufacturer Morinaga Milk Industry Co., Ltd. has now come out with an ice cream with a special ingredient that does more than keep you cool. The secret is a special ingredient that, although commonly used in cooking, is not what you would typically expect to find in an ice cream!
Teaming up in a collaborative effort for the first time, the Yokohama Grand Intercontinental Hotel and the nearby Nissin Cup Noodles Museum have created two Chicken Ramen-themed rooms for connoisseurs who just can’t get enough of those tantalizingly delicious instant noodles and their irritating lovable chicken mascot Hiyoko.
Nintendo has announced that it will be giving visitors to this year’s San Diego Comic-Con event the chance to get their hands on a number of as-yet-unreleased Nintendo games for Wii U and 3DS.
Being based in Japan, the spiritual home of video games, we’re used to feeling smug about getting our sticky fingers on most of Nintendo’s titles before many in the West, so you can be sure this news has left us greener than Luigi’s cap with envy!
Just because playing video games is the preferred hobby of many nerds and otaku-types (like us!) doesn’t mean they lack class. Game music in particular has improved in leaps and bounds over the years, almost as much as the graphics themselves. These days, many big-budget games contain fully orchestrated scores by famous movie composers, and even those that don’t can be arranged to fit a symphony.
This weekend at San Diego Comic Con, a performance of symphonic video game music called Video Games Live will be taking place. And, for the first time ever, this highly anticipated show will be broadcast around the world, thanks to the live streaming web services at Twitch.
Japan is facing a potential crisis. While the rest of the world has been readying itself for the zombie apocalypse for years now thanks to the likes of author Max Brooks and his The Zombie Survival Guide, the inhabitants of the land of the rising sun have been given precious little to prepare them for life after society has been torn to shreds by the flesh-hungry living dead.
Thankfully, with World War Z–a movie loosely based on Brooks’ 2006 novel of the same name–finally hitting Japanese cinemas on August 10, the powers that be have decided it is time to arm the nation with the knowledge it’ll need to survive. Arriving in bookstores next month, a Japanese language version of The Zombie Survival Guide might just keep the country going until we can start rebuilding society.
Results of an analysis by the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST) and others released on the July 16, suggests that force generated by a large-scale earthquake could cause internal cracks within Mt. Fuji, leading to a major eruption of the recently listed UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site.
Bear breaks into house in Japan, quickly begins spending winter exactly like Japanese people do
Ramen restaurant etiquette reminder follows altercation with angry couple: One person, one bowl
Starbucks Japan releases cute new zodiac goods for Year of the Snake
McDonald’s Japan announces Evangelion burger line, releases crazy anime video for them【Video】
This downtown Tokyo cafe is like a time machine that takes you back 50 years into the past
Foreign resident of Japan sentenced to eight months in prison for vandalizing Tokyo shrine
Dangly Totoro Japanese sweets charms are every bit as sweet and charming as you’d imagine【Photos】
Starbucks Japan reveals new winter holiday goods to wrap up 2024
Studio Ghibli serves up new anime food at Ghibli Park
Bando Taro proves family restaurants in Japan are on a whole other levelThis downtown Tokyo cafe is like a time machine that takes you back 50 years into the past
Station of despair: What to do if you get stuck at the end of Tokyo’s Chuo Rapid LineStarbucks Japan reveals new winter holiday goods to wrap up 2024Bear breaks into house in Japan, quickly begins spending winter exactly like Japanese people doRamen restaurant etiquette reminder follows altercation with angry couple: One person, one bowl
Japanese train station vending machine has the best souvenirs for rail otaku
Japanese government will check and judge new baby name pronunciations, presents guidelines
Tokyo’s Super Mario Christmas decoration displays are super cool【Photos】
Japanese company develops classy heavy metal band frames for glasses
Totoro towels gently glow in the dark to set the Ghibli nighttime mood in your home【Photos】
Possessing Harry Potter’s Sword of Godric Gryffindor is now illegal in Japan
Uniqlo announces first-ever collaboration with horror manga master Junji Ito【Photos】
J-pop mega star Ado reveals she’s been living in the U.S., may not understand language acquisition
Starbucks Japan is calling it quits with paper straws
Japan’s most popular castle raising ticket prices by up to 200 percent for non-local touristsJapanese company develops classy heavy metal band frames for glasses
Furikake rice seasoning sales are soaring, which is bad news for Japan as a wholeThis downtown Tokyo cafe is like a time machine that takes you back 50 years into the past
Studio Ghibli heroine cardigans give you warmth and strength to face everyday challengesStation of despair: What to do if you get stuck at the end of Tokyo’s Chuo Rapid Line
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Foreign tourists on Shinkansen bullet train break suitcase etiquette, angering local passengersPossessing Harry Potter’s Sword of Godric Gryffindor is now illegal in Japan
[Deleted] Article written for April Fool’s Day 2018
Japanese government to make first change to romanization spelling rules since the 1950s
Foreigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of society
Japanese convenience store Family Mart announces abolishment of eat-in spaces
Life-size vibrating Legend of Zelda Master Sword for sale from Nintendo【Photos】
Princesses, fruits, and blacksmiths: Study reveals the 30 most unusual family names in Japan
Studio Ghibli releases free-download board game — Here’s how to play it without reading Japanese
Foreign resident of Japan sentenced to eight months in prison for vandalizing Tokyo shrine
Dangly Totoro Japanese sweets charms are every bit as sweet and charming as you’d imagine【Photos】
Starbucks Japan reveals new winter holiday goods to wrap up 2024
Studio Ghibli serves up new anime food at Ghibli Park
Bando Taro proves family restaurants in Japan are on a whole other level
The little-known inspiration for Princess Mononoke: A manga about a tribe in Papua New Guinea
Starbucks Japan releases a new Frappuccino that looks and tastes like a floral bouquet
The Pokémon Mister Donut lucky bag is even better than we’d hoped!【Photos】
Ultra-retro cafe in Tokyo is like a hidden hideout, serves up cheap breakfasts with great coffee
East Japan Railway abolishes skirts, ribbons in women’s uniforms to “eliminate gender difference”
Churros at Japanese family restaurant chain are designed to enslave you