Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
October, 2014 (Page 3)
It looks like wasabi, feels like wasabi, and tastes like wasabi, but this small green tube is actually filled with toothpaste. Wasabi flavored toothpaste. Yes, the popular Japanese condiment that accompanies sushi can now be enjoyed while brushing your teeth – as long as you don’t mind a few extra tears in the morning.
There’s a stereotype about women and games. We can’t aim, we have no attention span, we only like cutesy games, we have to get our brothers/boyfriends/guy friends to clear the hard missions for us.
Well, this incredible advert for PlayStation 4’s Share Play – a new feature which allows PS4 owners to hop in and out of their friends’ games and even take full control without having to own a copy of the game – is set to smash those misconceptions like the proverbial glass ceiling! Watch as this Japanese girl gamer goes from zero to hero on her path to becoming the Goddess of Aiming!
Last summer the international pop-star Pharrell Williams rocked Japan with his single, “Happy,” which launched countless fan-made remakes across the country. Joining in with the “happy” Japanese people, he has since collaborated with renowned artist Takashi Murakami to make a remix of virtual star Hatsune Miku’s video “Last Night, Good Night (Re:Dialed).” This time around, however, Pharrell is trying to bring fun Japanese culture to the rest of the world.
Did you as a child ever fantasize about snuggling up to a soft stuffed toy bigger than your wildest dreams? I certainly did! (Heck, a part of me probably still does even now, when I’m old enough to be on the wrong side of … never mind, I really shouldn’t go there, should I?) So, anyway, for anyone who’s ever had an interest in cute stuffed toys, international retailer and warehouse club chain Costco brings you this amazing plush bear that’s larger than life — the 93-inch (2.36m) HugFun Bear! That’s right, he’s absolutely HUGE, and if the idea of a giant teddy bear hasn’t already won you over, they’ve even made a darling video which is guaranteed to melt your heart. Just take a look and see if you don’t fall utterly in love! And lucky for us, the bear happens to be available in Japan too!
OK Go, the alternative rock band who blew us away with their unique treadmill choreography in the music video for their 2006 hit Here It Goes Again, have come out with an even more impressive video, this time featuring dozens of Japanese girls, a drone and a motorised unicycle from Honda.
Filmed in Japan and inspired by the group’s trip to the Robot Restaurant in Tokyo, this latest music video was released on October 27 and has already reached close to two million views on YouTube. Check out the video after the break to see just how awesome these boys can be when they team up with a leading director and choreographer from Japan.
The Super Mario Bros. theme song has got to be among the most covered melodies online. From guitars to ancient Chinese shengs, it’s hard for anyone to not want to knock out those opening notes: d-do do d-do DO do.
So with all the videos of people playing the song online, it’s hard to stand out. Hard unless you’re Teppei Okada (a.k.a. Teppei Sensei) of Fukuoka Prefecture. This guy not only does a subtly beautiful rendition of the classic platformer’s background music, but he recreates the sound effects of the game such as collecting coins and breaking blocks.
And Mario is only the tip of the video game iceberg for Teppei Sensei. His skills reach out to a variety of titles on generations of Nintendo consoles and beyond.
In perhaps the one case in which broadly dismissing an entire group of exotic-looking people by saying, “Eh, they all look the same to me,” maybe isn’t all that offensive, the 2014 Miss Korea contestant lineup once again looks eerily like a lineup of I, Robot-style doppelgangers.
This year saw around 50 finalists, whom the agency holding the competition saw fit to line up in a photo roster for our viewing pleasure:
Back before Halloween became as popular in Japan as it is today, Tokyo expats looking to celebrate the holiday would stage impromptu costume parties on the last car of the JR Yamanote loop line. At the time, though, most Japanese people weren’t familiar with Halloween, and this tended to freak the indigenous locals out, leading Japan Railways to eventually crack down on the festivities.
Things have changed a lot in the last 15 years, though. Tokyo is starting to seriously get into the Halloween spirit, so much so that another rail company, Tokyu, actually held a Halloween costume contest onboard one of its trains, and we went to check it out.
Disney has a pretty long-standing endorsement deal with Kirin Beverage in Japan, in which the studio’s animated characters appear on bottles of Gogo no Koucha tea. Right now, the two companies are taking their partnership one step further, by offering a special Disney mug to anyone who buys four bottles from Kirin’s popular tea line.
Unfortunately, Kirin has had to issue a recall of the cups, which have been found prone to cracking. We’re sure it’s an unpleasant surprise for the beverage company, but Disney fans are pointing out that Kirin should have seen this coming for one simple reason: the decision to put Frozen’s Elsa on one of the mugs.
Japan has come out with some pretty awesome ideas over the years. Pocket calculators, instant noodles, even CD players were all born here, and while they were developed in response to the needs of the local market, their popularity quickly spread far and wide around the globe.
Now Japan is set to revolutionise the way we travel with a new product called the Walking Bicycle Club. Touted as the first big breakthrough in 200 years of the cycling industry, the new vehicle is powered by stepping, rather than pedalling, and is designed to make walking more fun. But how does it feel to ride a bicycle that looks more like a mobile step machine? We dropped by the store to find out.
Latte art is all the rage in Japan right now, and as you might expect, it tends heavily towards the super-kawaii. But today, we spotted some super realistic-looking latte art from Twitter user @dongurinekobei and it looks both amazing and undrinkable.
Evangelion, one of the most popular anime series in Japanese history, is celebrating the 3rd anniversary of EVANGELION STORE TOKYO-01 with the 18th meeting of “Eva-Con in Ikebukuro”, a “goukon” (group dating event).
When looking for love, isn’t it important for that person to share your interests? Well “Eva-Con” is an event that looks to bring together people through their love of Evangelion! Isn’t that the dream? No more agonizing over trying to be the person you think would be popular because what you actually like might be considered strange! Let down your AT Field and make a connection without having to wait for Third Impact to happen!
Growing up, every year as Halloween approached, I could feel a sense of dread creeping up on me. It wasn’t the prospect of being hunted by werewolves or getting lost in a haunted house that frightened me, though.
I was terrified that someone would give me raisins when I went trick-or-treating.
Honestly, I understand that some people don’t approve of eating nothing but candy on Halloween, and there’s a valid point in trying to balance out your diet on All Hallows’ Eve. Do you have to do it with something as soulless as raisins, though, especially when you could use our recipe to whip up some tasty and jack-‘o-lantern steamed buns instead?
If the whole point of buying an anime box set is to have everything you want in one neat package, there must have been a lot of upset fans last summer when Studio Ghibli released the Directorial Works of Hayao Miyazaki. Sure it contained every theatrical feature the anime legend helmed while working for the industry’s most respected production house, but it was missing the Miyazaki-directed music video On Your Mark, which was pulled following the arrest of musician Aska, one of the song’s vocalists.
Three months after the box set went on sale, though, there’s good news for completionists, as Studio Ghibli itself has decided to distribute copies of the video, free of charge, to anyone who purchased the collection.
If you thought you’d have to travel to the African continent to rub ankles with a meerkat, you’ll be happy to know that they’re closer than you think. Just take a stroll down the Ginza boulevard on any given weekend and chances are you’ll run into three friendly meerkats soaking up the sun on the side of the street.
In many countries around the world, mandatory school uniforms are the bane of students’ lives, with their unflattering shape and drab color scheme. Their purpose seems to be to help pupils blend into a homogeneous mass of unfashionable conformity, and are often enforced under the logic that they “promote modesty” and “prevent distractions from learning”.
In Japan, however, it’s completely different. The Japanese tend to put a lot of stock in uniforms of all kinds, and school uniforms, which signify the wearer’s youth, are considered a prime status symbol. Now everyone’s favorite mute cat, Hello Kitty, is getting in on the action with her special snowy-white sailor suit for spring!
It feels too early to be writing about Christmas, and downright blasphemous to be writing about Valentine’s Day. Nevertheless, Sailor Moon Valentine’s Day chocolates have been announced, and despite their early arrival, they might be worth pre-ordering, because they look delightful.
The other day, my wife and I spent the day hanging out at the beautiful and awesome Hitachi Seaside Park. As we headed towards the exit at dusk, I pointed to a grove of trees with the sun setting behind them and got to bust out one of my favorite five-dollar Japanese vocabulary words: komorebi.
In retrospect, two things come to mind. First, shouldn’t a five-dollar Japanese word really be a 500-yen word? And second, why is it that the Japanese language has vocabulary as specific as komorebi, meaning “sunlight filtering though trees,” yet doesn’t have a good equivalent for *#&!, %?$!, or even &*!$?
Heads up! The following discussion of profanity contains language that might best be read when you’re not at work or school.
The Otsuka Museum of Art is a place of extremes. It’s the biggest exhibition space in Japan, housing masterpieces of Western art from antiquity to the modern day. The route around its 1,000 artworks is 4km long (2.5 miles), and it takes a full, tiring day to see it all. And with a 3,150 yen (US $29.22) adult admission fee, it’s also Japan’s most expensive gallery.
The works on show are, quite literally, too good to be true. The Mona Lisa, The Last Supper, Guernica, Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, Rembrandt’s self-portraits: everything is here. And every single one of them is a replica. But why are so many people prepared to pay through the nose to see prints of masterpieces?
Here’s a riddle for you: What do Gundam and black holes have in common? And, no, it has nothing to with giant robots or CERN-style technology gone crazy. It’s actually about…fashion.
Well, fashion might be a bit of an exaggeration, but we’ll give you a hint. What’s weird about the way Fumina Hoshino, from the new Gundam Build Fighters Try, wears her skirt?
Japanese avoiding domestic travel as foreign tourists increase, possibly creating vicious cycle
7-Eleven now sells rice burgers in Japan, blurring the line between fast and convenience store food
TikTok releases its Year in Music 2025 – Japan’s Top 10 Songs ranking
Street Fighter Hadouken Churros to be launched and eaten in Tokyo, Okami pudding on offer too
How to use the new floating hologram registers at 7-Eleven
Japanese public toilet becomes a tourist attraction in Tokyo
The meaning of the mandarin and 6 other Japanese New Year traditions explained
Japan’s 10 best Ferris wheels for beautiful views, as chosen by travelers【Survey】
Japanese parent finds a quick and easy way to get your kids to love reading from an early age
McDonald’s Japan adds first-ever shrimp rice burger to menu in gohan sandwich expansion
Tokyo considering law requiring more trash cans following litter increase in heavily touristed area
Tokyo event lets you travel back in time, for free, to celebrate 100 years since Showa era start
Sanrio theme park in Japan announces plans to expand into a Sanrio resort
This hot springs town in Japan sets fire across a mountain every winter in a beautiful tradition
Gundam and Reebok team up for new GQuuuuuuX Pumps【Photos】
More Shinkansen trains being added to Japan’s “golden route” to meet traveler demand
Japanese man who didn’t know how banks work defrauded out of 21 million yen
Japanese woman sues man for 1.5 million yen for violating her “right to chastity”
U.S.A. now the fastest-growing market for Japan’s high-tech toilets, now selling quicker than ever
Kyoto samurai house wants to share its history of seppuku, torture and gold coins with visitors
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan unveils new Christmas goods and a rhinestone tumbler that costs 19,500 yen
Real-world Nausicaa Ghibli anime glider completes its final flight in Japan【Video】
Japanese train company is letting fans buy its actual ticket gates for their homes
Is China’s don’t-go-to-Japan warning affecting tourist crowds in Tokyo’s Asakusa neighborhood?
The 10 best day trips from downtown Tokyo【Survey】Tokyo considering law requiring more trash cans following litter increase in heavily touristed area
Nintendo’s Kirby now delivering orders at Kura Sushi restaurants, but not in JapanTokyo event lets you travel back in time, for free, to celebrate 100 years since Showa era start
A guide to visiting Sagamiko Illumination, one of the three biggest light-ups in Kanto
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answerJapan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
Japan’s deadliest food claims more victims, but why do people keep eating it for New Year’s?
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of Japan
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
The top 10 annoying foreign tourist behaviors on trains, as chosen by Japanese people【Survey】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency says
Starbucks Japan reveals new sakura drinkware collection, inspired by evening cherry blossoms
Japanese public toilet becomes a tourist attraction in Tokyo
The meaning of the mandarin and 6 other Japanese New Year traditions explained
Japan’s 10 best Ferris wheels for beautiful views, as chosen by travelers【Survey】
Japanese parent finds a quick and easy way to get your kids to love reading from an early age
McDonald’s Japan adds first-ever shrimp rice burger to menu in gohan sandwich expansion
Starbucks Japan releases the new Soupuccino, but is it everything it’s cracked up to be?
Duolingo to open first pop-up store Duomart in Japan for a very limited time next month
Tokyo sex industry worker arrested for saying she needed tuition money, spending it on hosts
Exhibit featuring cutting-edge smell technology held at Tokyo Skytree
Everyday Japanese names that make English speakers chuckle
Japan’s top 10 travel experiences in the sky【Survey】
7-Eleven Japan now sells…matcha burritos?!?
Cutest rice balls ever? Adorable new onigiri shop opening in downtown Tokyo【Photos】