As 2013 comes to a close, all of us at RocketNews24 have been taking time to reflect on the past 12 months. We’ve gone through a lot of changes as a site and staff and we’re all so grateful for our steadily growing readership. Most of all, we’re proud to have brought you an entire year’s worth of funny, interesting, and at times downright crazy news from Japan and Asia. Looking back, 2013 was our biggest year yet and we hope for your continued support of our small site of translator/writers who just can’t get enough of Japan.
Wishing you all a wonderful 2014 and thanks for being the best bunch of readers our humble site could ever hope for! Here’s to a wonderful new year filled with even more dancing Tokyo grannies, otter handshakes, and Mr. Sato adventures…and of course a bit of Japanese language and culture sprinkled in for good measure!
Love always and forever,
The RocketNews24 Team
Image: 58 Pic
“Mt. Fuji convenience store” issues apology for bad tourist manners, adds multilingual signs
Is the absolute closest conveyor belt sushi to Akihabara Station any good? Let’s find out!
Tokyo sweets store sells beautiful soft serve ice creams that look like works of art
Japan has nearly 4 million abandoned homes, but where and why?
Starbucks Japan sells a paper tote bag that looks like a free bag…so should you buy it?
Kyoto government worker assaults coworker for spoiling popular manga series at the office
Randomly running into a great sushi lunch like this is one of the best things about eating in Tokyo
Japan’s massive matcha parfait weighs 6 kilos, contains hidden surprises for anyone who eats it
Sandwiches fit for a sumo served up in Osaka【Taste Test】
Cheap Japanese ryokan at Kusatsu Onsen is hidden at the back of a traditional store
McDonald’s Japan’s new pancake pie is a taste sensation
Bad tourist manners at Mt Fuji Lawson photo spot prompts Japanese town to block view with screens
FUK COFFEE?!? Japanese cafe has a perfectly innocent reason for its startling-looking name
Studio Ghibli unveils new goods that tip the hat to The Cat Returns
How to make a secret rice bowl at Ichiran ramen
One of Japan’s oldest castles now lets travelers spend night on the grounds, drink in its keep
Foreigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of society
Two things to do, and two things not to do, when leaving a traditional Japanese inn
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Our Japanese reporter visits Costco in the U.S., finds super American and very Japanese things
Japanese ramen restaurants under pressure from new yen banknotes
All-you-can-drink Starbucks and amazing views part of Tokyo’s new 170 meter-high sky lounge
More foreign tourists than ever before in history visited Japan last month
Disney princesses get official manga makeovers for Manga Princess Cafe opening in Tokyo
French Fries Bread in Tokyo’s Shibuya becomes a hit on social media
Sales of Japan’s most convenient train ticket/shopping payment cards suspended indefinitely
Sold-out Studio Ghibli desktop humidifiers are back so Totoro can help you through the dry season
Japanese government to make first change to romanization spelling rules since the 1950s
Ghibli founders Toshio Suzuki and Hayao Miyazaki contribute to Japanese whisky Totoro label design
Tokyo’s most famous Starbucks is closed
Doraemon found buried at sea as scene from 1993 anime becomes real life【Photos】
One Piece characters’ nationalities revealed, but fans have mixed opinions
We asked a Uniqlo employee what four things we should buy and their suggestions didn’t disappoint
Kyoto government worker assaults coworker for spoiling popular manga series at the office
Randomly running into a great sushi lunch like this is one of the best things about eating in Tokyo
Japan’s massive matcha parfait weighs 6 kilos, contains hidden surprises for anyone who eats it
Sandwiches fit for a sumo served up in Osaka【Taste Test】
Cheap Japanese ryokan at Kusatsu Onsen is hidden at the back of a traditional store
The 8 least crowded weekends and holidays at Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea
The oldest tunnel in Japan is believed to be haunted, and strange things happen when we go there
Burger King Japan’s Great King Yeti is the latest evolution of One Pounders
Anime girl English teacher Ellen-sensei becomes VTuber/VVTUber and NFT
We tried Korea’s way-too-big King Tonkatsu Burger at Lotteria 【Taste Test】
Our reporter takes her 71-year-old mother to a visual kei concert for the first time
Tokyo Banana Curry adds capital’s souvenir sweet’s sweetness to roux, but not in Tokyo
The 5 best Japanese bento to buy at Kyoto Station