Richard Simmonds
Originally from Sussex in the UK, Richard came to Japan for the first time in 2011 to teach English. Deciding that only one stint as a student wasn’t enough he returned to go to university in Osaka where he still lives, working slowly towards his inevitable destiny of being killed in an avalanche of manga and textbooks, surrounded by the discarded wrappers of assorted matcha-flavour sweets and biscuits. Whilst continuing his love-hate- hate relationship with the Japanese language he works as a translator, writer and sometime bar pet gaijin.
Posted by Richard Simmonds (Page 2)
In our quest to find a cheese-laden pizza we can eat guilt-free, we’ve come across a Japanese-style concoction that’s surprisingly delicious.
Monkeys with typewriters can write Shakespeare but can machines create anime as well as humans?
If you wanna know, if he loves you so, it’s in his… political engagement, that’s where it is.
Japanese Twitter user’s methods work just as well (or not) with Hi-Chew as with any other kind of recalcitrant sweet or candy.
Loincloths make a comeback with the popularity of fundoshi dance videos and the oppressive heat of Japanese summer rearing its ugly head.
Remember the time we hired a lookalike and reenacted a classic Jackie Chan fight? Of course we do, we still have the video evidence!
Is Japan Lilliput? Chair company appealing to ‘short-legged and short-bodied’ Japanese seems to think so.
One parent and Twitter user experiences the joy of catching Pikachu in Pokémon GO, but it’s all too short-lived.
Like automotive magpies, we fall in love with something shiny. Now just to find a(nother) car to put it in.
Perplexing perspectives: when left is right, and right is right, our brains melt but we’re impressed nonetheless.
Model/celebrity finds confusing sign telling us to do, or not do, something involving small cats and big shoes.
The story of the man who brought us Pikachu and countless other fantastical creatures to feature in an educational manga next month.
Steak, dollars and men with guns (somewhere probably); we have a Las Vegas-lite experience at a U.S. military casino in Okinawa.
Thieves used machinery to steal flowering cherry blossom branches and tree trunks from a park in Osaka Prefecture.
Nothing makes for a cosier interior than a lizard spitting out radioactive heat rays over you and your house guests.
Japanese social media users fall in love as dog chases down Google Street View car many times its size.
It seems putting on rose-tinted spectacles not only makes you feel nostalgic, it also makes the ephemeral beauty of cherry blossoms even better.
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Foreigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of society
Seaside scenery, history, and so many desserts on Yokohama’s Akai Kutsu【Japan Loop Buses】
Japanese city loses residents’ personal data, which was on paper being transported on a windy day
Should you add tartar sauce to Japanese curry rice? CoCo Ichi makes diners an unusual offer
French Fries Bread in Tokyo’s Shibuya becomes a hit on social media
Osaka governor suggests lowering voting age to 0 to curb population decline
Akihabara pop-up shop sells goods made by Japanese prison inmates
Mt. Koya planning to instate visitor’s tax to cope with huge tourist numbers
Red light district sushi restaurant in Tokyo shows us just how wrong we were about it
Pokémon Sleep camping suite and guestrooms coming to Tokyo Hyatt along with giant Snorlax burgers
Weekly
- Foreigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of society
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Japanese ramen restaurants under pressure from new yen banknotes- French Fries Bread in Tokyo’s Shibuya becomes a hit on social media
Studio Ghibli releases new action figures featuring Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind characters- Red light district sushi restaurant in Tokyo shows us just how wrong we were about it
New private rooms on Tokaido Shinkansen change the way we travel from Tokyo to Kyoto
Tokyo Tsukiji fish market site to be redeveloped with 50,000-seat stadium, hotel, shopping center
Beautiful Ghibli sealing wax kits let you create accessories and elegant letter decorations【Pics】- Japanese city loses residents’ personal data, which was on paper being transported on a windy day
Monthly
- McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
- Foreigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of society
Studio Ghibli releases Kiki’s Delivery Service chocolate cake pouches in Japan
New definition of “Japanese whiskey” goes into effect to prevent fakes from fooling overseas buyers
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
New Pokémon cakes let you eat your way through Pikachu and all the Eevee evolutions
Disney princesses get official manga makeovers for Manga Princess Cafe opening in Tokyo
Yearly
- McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
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
Doraemon found buried at sea as scene from 1993 anime becomes real life【Photos】
Tokyo’s most famous Starbucks is closed
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
Princesses, fruits, and blacksmiths: Study reveals the 30 most unusual family names in Japan
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Osaka governor suggests lowering voting age to 0 to curb population decline
Akihabara pop-up shop sells goods made by Japanese prison inmates
Mt. Koya planning to instate visitor’s tax to cope with huge tourist numbers
Red light district sushi restaurant in Tokyo shows us just how wrong we were about it
Pokémon Sleep camping suite and guestrooms coming to Tokyo Hyatt along with giant Snorlax burgers
We try out “Chan Ramen”, an underground type of ramen popular in the ramen community
Harajuku Station’s beautiful old wooden building is set to return, with a new complex around it
Suntory x Super Mario collaboration creates a clever way to transform into Mario【Videos】
McDonald’s creates a dream Japanese bento for April Fools’ Day
One of Japan’s best ramen chains now has a VR game that lets you cook their noodles【Video】
New smartphone game turns car models into anime girls with model-worthy looks
New Totoro, Catbus, and other Ghibli plushies transform from cushions to blankets【Photos】
McDonald’s Japan celebrates Happy Meal 30th anniversary with awesome travel-size board games
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