Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
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Everyone, do you know where the world’s northernmost McDonald’s is? Here’s a hint: you can sometimes spot the aurora borealis from there. Our Japanese reporter recently headed up north to check it out and brought back some very cool photos that we wanted to share with you.
With the winter days getter ever so colder, many Japanese people take refuge in onsen (hot springs) or sento (bath houses). Slipping into a pool of warm water and letting it soak deep into your body is a great way to beat the cold weather.
Even though Japan has thousands of onsen and sento, the experience might get a little tedious after repeated use. So, to take a dip in something totally new, our reporter went to the Szechenyi Thermal Bath in Budapest, Hungary to see how its done on the other side of the world and whether it can compare to Japan’s own incredible offerings.
It appears that Turkey is one of the few parts of the world that gets so cold it’s not an exaggeration to say, “It’s freezing out here.”
The video below depicts some donkeys found in a small village that have cartoonishly frozen in place due to the extreme cold weather and snow – a phenomena we thought only possible in Christmas-time claymation films, and the closest thing we know of to the exact opposite of China’s hellish summer heatwave that caused cars to explode.
Until now, we never really understood what all the fuss was about roses. Women seem to love them, and men seem to spend inordinate amounts of money to purchase them for their sweethearts. But now that we’ve seen the pitch-black Turkish Halfeti Rose, we’re starting to understand that roses can be not only dangerous, kind of smelly and enchanting all at the same time, they can also be the perfect centerpiece of the most hardcore heavy metal album or low fantasy book cover of all time.
If love is a numbers game, we’d say there’s no better place for men to play the odds than Latvia. In the formerly communist Baltic-region country, there are only 84 men for every 100 women, making the country the most gender-divided in the world – a fact that has a lot of single men here in Japan paying great attention.
As if that weren’t enough for men fed up with being “friend-zoned” by the women of their own countries to start researching ways to smuggle themselves into some Latvian tourist’s return luggage, Latvian ladies are apparently gaga over foreign men with college educations.
There’s been a lot of unsettling news coming out of the Ukraine this week, so we are pleased to offer you a much happier story from the city of Dnipropetrovsk, southeast of Kiev, about a singing dog and a street musician.
If you’ve ever yearned for an authentic potato chip in Tokyo, then it’s time to get excited because specialist french fry shop, “And the Friet”, is set to open in the Hiroo district today!
The Belgian-style stand will offer six types of cut, half a dozen potato varieties including a Belgian variety flown in especially, and a choice of seasonal dips and sauces. It’s time to get your friet on!
Sony has boasted over a million PlayStation 4 consoles sold during the new machine’s first day of sale alone, and that figure is climbing ever higher by the day, but it’s important to remember that these are just the numbers for North America, and European gamers still have a little while (make that a long while if you’re Japanese, but let’s not rub salt in the wound) to wait until they get to throw cash in Sony’s direction and make the PS4 their own.
It turns out, though, that unlike the millions of units shipped to the US in recent weeks, which were mostly made in China, there’s a good chance that the consoles European gamers will be snapping up come November 29 were in fact made in Sony’s homeland, Japan.
As you can undoubtedly tell from the number of cat-related articles on our site, we’re quite fond of furry little felines here at RocketNews24. Now, while we firmly believe that “all cats are created equal and that they are endowed by their creator with certain undeniable charms”, we have to admit that a series of photos of uniquely marked cats found by a fellow reporter at our sister site Pouch was particularly delightful — so delightful, in fact, that we felt we had to introduce them here for all the cat lovers among our readers. So come in for a closer look, and get ready for a load of feline cute!
From elementary school all the way through high school, Japanese kids are required to study the convoluted subject of English as a second language. It’s an enormous struggle for many, as Japanese natives must familiarize themselves with not only the vocabulary and grammar points, they must adjust their ears to pick up on the plethora of sounds that do not exist in their mother tongue. To top it all off, when the existence of various English accents is brought to light, their brains can become confused even further.
A recent post on a Japanese message board asked people to list the differences between British English and American English. The comments extended far over 100. Here’s what some of the respondents had to say.
In many countries around the world, Japanese cuisine has found a home. However, when one nation’s food culture lands in another’s backyard, things tend to get lost in translation. Deliciousness is always in the mouth of the beholder but Japanese people can often take issue with the way their food is prepared overseas.
For example, the website Madame Riri lays out their take of faux Japanese restaurants in Paris, a majority of which she claims is run by Chinese management. While we all might not share their hardline view of how Japanese food is prepared, they do have an interesting list of ways they believe can tell if a Japanese restaurant is truly run by Japanese people or not.
So without further ado: You might not be in a real Japanese restaurant when…
If you’re in Belfast before December, you might want to consider a helicopter ride.
That’s the only way you’ll truly able to appreciate a huge artwork that’s sitting in the city’s Titanic quarter.
Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II recently made a Mie Prefecture man an Honorary Member of the Order of the British Empire, which we think means he’s some kind of knight now or something. That or “Hand of the Queen” if standard Game of Thrones rules apply.
What did the lucky man, Sir Isao Toji, do to deserve such a distinction? Well, for the past 20 years, Toji has held an annual memorial service for 16 British servicemen who died in Japan as prisoners of war during World War II.
Electronics maker Sharp recently announced the prototype of a new, unlikely product that has set the Japanese Internet community abuzz …
This story actually has its beginning about six months ago, when Sharp Europe ran a competition called “#GetItDownOnPaper”, which invited students and graduates in Europe to submit ideas for solutions to everyday problems by sharing them on Twitter. The winner would be offered a two-week paid internship at Sharp Laboratories of Europe, a wonderful opportunity for any aspiring inventor.
The lucky winner was Siobhán Andrews, a student of Sustainable Product Design at Falmouth University, England, whose idea for an interactive chopping board apparently impressed the judges as well as the folks at Sharp Laboratories so much that they have come up with a prototype which has been named the Chop-Syc. But now that the prototype has been announced, the response, at least from Japanese Internet users, may not exactly be what the people at Sharp are hoping to hear. Read More
The new Nintendo 2DS is out and we got our greedy little paws on the first one we could! Mmm…we love the smell of new game systems in the morning!
It’s not foldable and it doesn’t have a 3-D screen. On the other hand, it’ll play 3DS games with no problem and it’s significantly cheaper.
But is it worth your cold, hard cash? Find out below!
The Coca-Cola Company recently launched a branding campaign in Spain, allowing consumers to personalize a Coca-Cola can or bottle with their name on it.
The global brand has achieved numerous marketing successes over the years, so it’s no surprise that the campaign received overwhelming response in just a couple of days. In fact, this award-winning “Share a Coke” campaign has been launched in several countries including Denmark, Australia, France and the UK, so some of you lucky people out there might already own one of those shiny red cans with your name on it. Nothing new, you might think, but there is a little twist behind the scenes this time.
These days, it’s not uncommon for Japanese soccer players to be placed on foreign teams. Shinji Kagawa with Manchester United and Yuto Nagatomo with Inter Milan are just two examples of Japanese athletes who play for teams abroad.
Now, the island country can lay claim to a new rising star, a nine-year-old soccer player who recently signed a contract with the world-famous Spanish soccer club, Real Madrid. Read on for a full introduction to this talented young player, as well as some videos of his amazing play style!
The old saying in Japanese gamer circles used to go “Bei game wa Kuso game” (“Western games are sh&%ty games”), but the tables may have turned in a big way if this year’s Tokyo Game Show turnout is any indication.
Western publishers were out in spades this year. In fact, the very first thing attendees saw when entering the gates of this year’s TGS were a bunch of armed soldiers and (tastefully) military-garbed booth girls promoting the newest entry in the Battlefield series of online multiplayer military shooter games.
As with any major business venture, presentation is very important when working in the music industry. Cool covers on brand new CD albums can inspire one to make a purchase without ever having heard the band. Granted, the Internet makes it easy to find a few demos before handing over your cash, but a well-designed jacket still makes a big difference. A great, eye-catching cover can make even the most mediocre album famous for its genre by drawing in attention from fans.
Then again, ugly covers can be just as eye-catching and somewhat endearing in their own way. Here we have a collection of hideous, old CD and record jackets that were probably purchased out of pity alone. Get ready to laugh at this collection of music covers that really missed the mark. From a list initially provided by a French entertainment site, we now bring you 27 of the ugliest album covers from the former Yugoslavia. Read More
These past few days, the Internet has exploded with word of Italy’s new beer spread. For a land like Japan, where beer is more than just a popular choice of beverage and is more-or-less central to their lifestyle, the invention of spreadable beer is cause for great excitement. Soon, rather than have a handful of snacks with their mugs full of beer, they’ll be spreading blobs of beer over their favorite snacks!
Studio Ghibli releases new range of cardigans for anime fans
Starbucks Japan reveals new holiday goods for the 2024 festive season
Want some great ramen in Akihabara? Then head to this…karaoke joint?!?
Japanese burger chain no longer serves onion rings, but offers intriguing replacement【Taste test】
Celebrating Good Couple’s Day in Japan…by getting our significant others to dress us
How merry is Starbucks Japan’s new Merry Cream holiday Frappuccino?
The new Ranma 1/2 anime is here! So is it worth watching?【SoraReview】
Taking the Kyoto overnight bus for the first time
Is the Grimace shake worth the hype?
Kyoto Whopper divides customers at Burger King Japan
One of Japan’s most beautiful hot spring towns announces new limits on number of day trippers
Ghibli’s Princess Mononoke teams up with Foxfire for outdoor apparel collaboration【Photos】
Berserk T-shirts coming to Uniqlo for launch of new Manga Curation line【Photos】
Mario Kart Happy Meal toys arrive at McDonald’s Japan, and SoraNews24 has the whole set!【Photos】Kyoto Whopper divides customers at Burger King Japan
Flying dango: Unique tourist site where Japanese sweets are flown to you over a gorgeTaking the Kyoto overnight bus for the first timeJapanese burger chain no longer serves onion rings, but offers intriguing replacement【Taste test】
Yakuza vending machines coming to real-world Tokyo neighborhood that inspired Like a Dragon games
Starbucks Japan unveils second Holiday Frappuccino for 2024
Nintendo’s controller capsule toys are so cool, even the machine you buy them from is awesome【Pics】One of Japan’s most beautiful hot spring towns announces new limits on number of day trippers
Tokyo Disneyland loses top-attendance crown for Japanese theme parks for second year in a rowGhibli’s Princess Mononoke teams up with Foxfire for outdoor apparel collaboration【Photos】
Ghibli Park debuts first winter illumination display with Howl’s Moving Castle theme
Pringles releases a limited-edition sweet flavour in Japan
Sanrio and magical girl anime PreCure join forces for new merch line【Photos】
Japanese job-quitting service contacted by other job-quitting service because employee wants to quit
After cancelling Halloween, Tokyo’s Shibuya neighborhood cancels New Year’s Eve tooBerserk T-shirts coming to Uniqlo for launch of new Manga Curation line【Photos】
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Foreign tourists on Shinkansen bullet train break suitcase etiquette, angering local passengers
[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
Ghibli founders Toshio Suzuki and Hayao Miyazaki contribute to Japanese whisky Totoro label design
Japanese convenience store Family Mart announces abolishment of eat-in spaces
Princesses, fruits, and blacksmiths: Study reveals the 30 most unusual family names in Japan
Life-size vibrating Legend of Zelda Master Sword for sale from Nintendo【Photos】
Studio Ghibli releases free-download board game — Here’s how to play it without reading Japanese
How merry is Starbucks Japan’s new Merry Cream holiday Frappuccino?
The new Ranma 1/2 anime is here! So is it worth watching?【SoraReview】
Taking the Kyoto overnight bus for the first time
Is the Grimace shake worth the hype?
Kyoto Whopper divides customers at Burger King Japan
Nara man arrested for burying mother in his cemetery plot by himself
Domino’s erupts with a 1kg Cheese Volcano in Japan
100 years of Japanese women’s hair and makeup trends in less than a minute and a half【Video】
New Ghibli papercraft kit gives you a little Princess Mononoke forest on your desk【Photos】
Lotus root: the enlightened way to knock out hay fever
Japan’s Fake Black Stockings offer sheer looks and winter-cold protection
Japan’s caramel gacha machines offer sweet thrills, but do they deliver?
What’s the most popular way to prepare Japan’s beloved breakfast dish, Tamago Kake Gohan?