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Barack Obama inadvertently galvanizes anti-immigration sentiments in Japan

Confusion broke out online in Japan recently as people weren’t sure what to make of a comment uttered by US President Barack Obama on 25 November. During a speech regarding immigration reform in Chicago he cited Japan as an example of a country which doesn’t “have problems with certain folks being discriminated against.”

In Obama’s mind, the remark must have been an innocuous comment meant to lighten the crowd. Little did he know that it would wind up mentioned in the Japanese press and through a chain of misunderstandings would lead some to comment: “Look at that. So he admits the evils of immigration after all!” It’s as if Aaron Sorkin wrote an episode of Three’s Company.

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Socks with toes: The easy way to keep your feet smelling nice and looking fashionably quirky

Japanese customs dictate taking your shoes off when entering homes, and also some restaurants. But while this practice helps keep the floors clean, there’s a downside to it too, as kicking off your kicks means there’s one less layer between your possibly stinky feet and the people around you.

So when we heard about a method to reduce your feet’s bouquet, we decided to give it a shot, especially since it’s as simple as changing the type of socks you wear.

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“Let them eat furikake!” says Mayor Hashimoto as Osaka school lunch saga rumbles on

He’s known for his outspoken and often controversial opinions, from saying that civil servants who have tattoos should resign, to denying the forcible recruitment of South Korean “comfort women” during the second world war.

But it was an intense debate about whether students should be allowed to have furikake seasoning with their school lunch that left city mayor Tōru Hashimoto scratching his head this week as he asked the Osaka Board of Education: “What’s wrong with furikake?!”

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The Japanese work environment might qualify as a something of a business paradise because Japanese workers so rarely take a day off. They are instead known to put in tons of free overtime and often don’t use “sick leave“.  There is even a word in Japanese for “death from overwork”: karoshi.

Despite the health risks, many won’t take the day off if they are feeling a little under the weather. But what do Japanese people consider “a little sick” and “really sick”? A survey was conducted aiming to answer that question. Do their answers line up with your own, or would you file them away under “only in Japan”?

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Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building now accepting applications to watch first sunrise of 2015

With 2014 winding down, it’s time to make plans for the new year holidays. For many people in Japan this means finding a place to watch the first sunrise of the year, or hatsu hinode; a common custom of the season.

However, many Tokyoites may be unaware that the perfect spot to view the sunrise is standing in plain view: The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. This 243-meter (797 ft) building has a pair of observation rooms which offer the greatest views in the city and is a spot popular amongst tourists, though few ever think of when it comes to New Year’s Day, assuming that because it’s a government building it would shut down for the holidays.

But ever since 1995 the building has been opening its doors to a handful of visitors, giving them the chance to take in the first sunset of the year from high above the city. Here’s how to apply for a spot on the observation deck.

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Japan’s 10 best ryokan inns and top 10 hotels, as chosen by foreign visitors

Ask any member of the RocketNews24 team, and we’ll tell you: Japan is awesome. A lot of people seem to agree, too, seeing as how Japan gets more and more visitors from abroad every year.

But as much as we love all of our readers, and hope you all get a chance to come visit, our staff doesn’t quite have the collective living room floor space for you to crash at our apartments. Thankfully, the country has plenty of amazing accommodation, as shown by this list of the top 10 inns and hotels in Japan, as picked by foreign travelers.

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Timpani drummer’s crazy finale is startling, funny, more metal than you’d expect from a symphony

There’s not a whole lot of crossover between the worlds of sports and classical music. Concert pianists generally don’t play the piano with one hand while dribbling a basketball with the other, and I can’t recall the last time I saw a proper squad of cheerleaders accompanying an orchestra.

Likewise, even though “Get your head in the game!” is one of the most commonly shouted phrases in sports, I don’t think you have concert-goers yelling “Get your head in the symphony!” Not that this drummer needed to be told that, though, as shown by the startling flourish he put on the end of his performance.

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Twitter artist reimagines 64 pokémon as “Substitute” plushies to adorable results

If you ever played Pokémon as a kid (or even as an adult!), you’re probably familiar with the Substitute move and the adorable plush “decoy” your pocket monster could use to sop up some damage. But as cute as that little substitute was, didn’t you always kind of wish that it looked a little bit more like a plush version of the pokémon you were using?

Maybe not, but that didn’t stop one Japanese Twitter artist from drawing 64 Pokémon as Substitutes!

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  • Nov 28, 2014

Cats, dogs, pandas & more! An irresistible collection of photos and videos of animals in the snow

It seems only a short while ago that we were complaining about how unbearably hot the summer is here in Japan. Well, time sure does pass by quickly, and we’re now headed into winter, with parts of northern Japan already seeing a bit of snow. And while you can always expect small kids to be thrilled with the idea of a winter wonderland, it seems they’re not the only ones that thoroughly enjoy playing with the snow.

We’ve found a collection of photos and videos on Japanese information compilation site Naver Matome which clearly show that animals too get a kick out of jumping and rolling in the fluffy white stuff, and we wanted to share the images with you because, well … they simply looked so “cool” (and not just because of all the snow involved). So, get ready to enjoy some adorable animal snow action!

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Hadoken! The LINE stickers we’ve all been waiting for: Street Fighter II

LINE is Japan’s most popular instant messaging platform and it came to its place on top via cute emoji “stickers.” But maybe you’ve had enough of the cutesy bears and sparkling hearts. Maybe you need to let out some emoji anger when your girlfriend is being a bit clingy with her texts. Fear not! The LINE stickers of your dreams have been released and they are just as tough, and occasionally gruesome, as you want them to be! Welcome into the ring, Street Fighter II!

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Guy asks Twitter to decode late uncle’s encrypted message, gets results in matter of hours

Call us jaded, but usually when we think of the Internet, we think of a cesspit of erotic fan fiction, toxic message boards and comments sections filled with ignorance, anger and bad grammar, punctuated by the very occasional glimmer of the web’s potential for greatness, usually in the form of reddit AMAs.

One of those glimmers came a few days ago when a Japanese Twitter user posted a plea for help from fellow net users in decoding a message left behind in his late uncle’s diary.

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Japan’s pet kitties are reportedly spellbound by recent NHK wildlife documentary 【Photos】

Netizens on Twitter recently reported that a rather strange phenomenon was affecting their pet cats during the broadcast of NHK’s “Mitsuaki Iwago’s World Catwalk”, a documentary by prominent wildlife photographer and documentary filmmaker Mitsuaki Iwago.

Apparently, the scenes of furry felines in their natural habitat completely captured the attention of household moggies watching at home, to the extent that their owners felt compelled to tweet photographic evidence of the event. Join us after the jump for images of cute kitties viewing images of other cute kitties!

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Japanese man crowned World’s Best Santa at 2014 Santa Winter Games

In the mining town of Gällivare, located in the Swedish section of Lapland, the contestants have gathered. These men and women gritted their teeth as they walked through the streets in their heavy boots on the morning of 22 November with the frosty wind biting at their quickly reddening cheeks.

Red cheeks would serve them well, however. As would eyes that twinkle and a round belly that shakes when they laugh like a bowlful of jelly, for these world warriors were here to determine who was the World’s Best Santa.

And so, when the blood was mopped up and visions of sugar plums danced through the heads of little ones, it was Japan’s very own Kohei Yamashita who emerged victorious bringing his nation its first ever World’s Best Santa title.

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We test the mayonnaise hair pack, plus give vegetable and olive oil a shot, and the winner is…

Recently, do-it-yourself mayonnaise hair packs have caught the attention of people who want to look their best, save a little cash, and maybe find a second use for that jumbo-sized jar of the condiment they picked up at Costco. And while we don’t know where she sources her mayo from, our Japanese-language correspondent Shimazu was one of those intrigued by this possible meeting of the beauty and culinary worlds.

So to see if it’s really as good for your hair as its fans say, Shimazu hopped in the shower, lathered up, and slapped on a coat of mayo. She didn’t stop there, though, as she also grabbed a couple of other bottles from her kitchen so she could compare the results versus treating her hair with vegetable and olive oil.

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Cute snowman-pan will bring a little sweet joy to your dreary winter

France may have delicious bread, but Japan has cute bread (even if it doesn’t always turn out as planned). I mean, they are the creators of Anpan-man, after all!

Adding yet another almost-too-cute-to-eat bread treat to the already long list, a bakery called “Cafe Blue Jean” located in the Hotel New Hankyu Osaka, brings us “Snowman-pan.” These seasonal treats are breads, shaped and decorated to look like darling, little snowmen.

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Japanese film pros ranked their top movies to show kids, with Ghibli titles sweeping the top 3

Kodomo Eiga Plus, an entertainment web portal that specializes in children’s films and children’s film events, asked 132 film industry pros which movies they’d recommend the most for children to watch before they turn 13. Unsurprisingly, Ghibli movies took the top three spots, as well as many positions on the Top 15.

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Japan may not be that big on a world map, but there’s a surprising number of distinct regional cultures you’ll find as you make your way from one end of the country to another. Sometimes, taking the train just a few hours in one direction will put you in a spot where people eat different foods, celebrate holidays on different days, or even talk differently from where you just came from.

So, just to be prepared to communicate as effectively as possible with the locals, you might want to take a few minutes to review these videos of women saying “I love you” in the dialects of each of Japan’s 47 prefectures.

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Learn to love the taste of raw daikon with this simple recipe 【RocketKitchen】

Daikon is one of the cornerstones of Japanese cuisine. It has a firm yet yielding texture and ability to meld with any flavors it comes in contact with such as oden broth. However, most ways of eating daikon involve cooking which largely squanders the precious vitamin C that it contains.

You could eat it raw, but on its own daikon has a bitter and bland flavor suitable for no one. At least, it did until now thanks to a recipe posted on Cookpad, Japan’s premier recipe site, by a user with the handle of ayureo. This recipe is certifiably delicious, cheap, and so simple that anyone can do it — even us!

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Free to download Japanese marriage applications are cute, stylish, and legally binding

In Japan, the act of getting married isn’t really all that exciting. I don’t mean that weddings here aren’t memorable affairs, as they’re packed with all the joy and emotion you’d expect (and sometimes the video game references and crazy cakes you wouldn’t). The ceremonies held at churches, shrines, and wedding halls in Japan don’t constitute a legal union, though.

The only way to be officially hitched is to turn in a marriage application, called a konintodoke, to your local ward office or city hall, where you and your beloved will be pronounced husband and wife with all the stirring pageantry that goes along with a clerk stamping his authorization on the paperwork. When my wife and I submitted ours, the clerk offhandedly told us “Otsukaresama,” more or less “Thanks for stopping by,” instead of “Congratulations.”

Thankfully, there’s now a way to add a little color to the otherwise bland proceedings, with a new line of artistic marriage applications that’re not only approved for official use across Japan, but also free!

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Young man’s clever use of an umbrella saves injured kitten

We love a good rescue story, especially when it involves cute kitties! Find out who this rescuer is and why the kitten found himself stuck in a ditch after the jump!

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