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Japan (Page 1291)

Craving cheese but on a diet? Try our “advanced tofu pickles!” 【Recipe】

Summer has a way of creeping up on us before we can shed those extra pounds in this, the season of skimpier clothing. As such many people take up diets including our own reporter, Hotaru. At one point during her weight management, Hotaru had decided to go to a vegan restaurant thinking it wouldn’t be as high in calories as other establishments.

However, when her curry arrived she noticed that there were little bits of what looked like cheese on top. They tasted kind of like cheese too. Confused by this non-vegan and diet-bending food, Hotaru asked the staff what it was. “Tofu pickles” they replied.

Hotaru also learned from them how to make this delectable topping and found it was actually incredibly easy. So easy, in fact, that she also developed her own “advanced tofu pickles” recipe. We’d now like to share these recipes with you so that you many enjoy some tofu pickles in your own home.

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Give your smartphone the rest it deserves with its very own Japanese futon

Your smartphone has a busy day, what with being called on to make phone calls, take pictures, play strange fashion-based touchscreen games, and surf the Internet in order to access mankind’s greatest font of knowledge. Doesn’t it deserve some rest? And we don’t mean a short little nap while you’re eating dinner, but a good night’s sleep, snug and comfy inside a Japanese futon.

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Japan’s pit toilets: An in-depth look

Like the aroma of fresh-baked bread or the sweet fragrance of a flower shop, the stench of a toilet can be just as memorable, albeit not in as nice a way.

Despite Japan’s reputation for high-tech toilets and Washlets that do everything except brush your teeth (thank God), a surprising number of households in Japan still have the old-style “pit toilets.” These toilets have a porcelain bowl, but no running water to flush in or out. You just squat over the hole and drop your goods into a cement pit waiting at the bottom. It’s basically an in-house outhouse.

Almost all the houses are this style on the islands in the Seto Inland Sea as well as many dwellings in Japan’s countryside. Our toilet reporter takes an in-depth look at how these pit toilet systems work. We bet you’re just dying to know!

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  • Jun 26, 2014

We try Häagen-Dazs Japanese-style — and the rich sweetness makes us swoon!【Taste Test】

Now, we may have a fondness for unique Kit Kat flavors here in Japan, but we also love original Häagen-Dazs flavors as well, from rose and sakura flower to vegetable flavors featuring carrots and tomatoes. Well, once again, Häagen-Dazs tempts us with an offering of cold, sweet goodness, and this time it’s the Häagen-Dazs Japonais “Vanilla and kinako soybean powder with brown sugar syrup”. That’s quite a name for an ice cream flavor, isn’t it?

It so happens they’re only available from the 7-Eleven convenience store chain, and naturally we had to try one when they came out earlier this week. So, how was the ice cream? Sweet, syrupy heaven!

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Man buys and remodels trashed home, astounds us with before and after pictures

There was a point in time when you could turn on the TV at any time of day and find at least three home remodeling shows playing. I personally had no idea why they were so freaking popular…but I think I’m finally starting to get it after seeing these photos.

One ambitious Japanese man, named Makoto, bought an old, junked-out house with rotten floorboards, clogged pipes, and filled with trash for 1,950,000 yen–about US$19,500–and over the course of six months turned into one of the most beautiful homes I’ve ever seen. And I’m not the only one who thinks so. Japanese Internet users were amazed by the transformation–and you will be too!

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Even though the numbered sequels in the Final Fantasy video game series stretch all the way up to 14, there are actually far more titles than that in the franchise. One of the most popular spinoffs to Square Enix’s massively successful role-playing game is Final Fantasy Tactics, thanks to its deep customization, complex and unpredictable plot, and stirring soundtrack.

The strategy role-playing game has been entertaining fans for the past 17 years, and as testament to its lasting appeal, this summer a symphony orchestra concert will be held dedicated to the music of Final Fantasy Tactics. And best of all, it’s free.

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Can’t get enough Funasshi? Here come Funa-shoes!

Japan is always on the lookout for a charismatic new character, and right now no one’s star is rising faster than Funasshi. The frenetic flailing and bubbly babbling of the anthropomorphic pear has been winning over fans across Japan and even overseas.

Soon, those who just can’t get enough of Funabashi City’s unofficial mascot can show their devotion with a pair of Funasshi shoes.

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The reason Tokyo Disneyland has no mosquitos (plus three other cool things about its water)

Tokyo Disneyland and Disney Sea can both make pretty strong claims for the “Happiest Place on Earth” title. Combining the cast of the animation pioneer’s collected works with Japanese sensibilities results in some of the most unbridled and deep-rooted enthusiasm for cartoon characters you’re likely to find anywhere. Adding to the experience is the attention to detail and hospitality that comes from the world’s preeminent amusement park operator and the country with the highest customer service standards on the planet.

But while all those things go a long way towards helping visitors enjoy their stay, the excitement they bring just might pale in comparison to the joy guests feel when they realize there’s something Japan’s Disney theme parks don’t have: mosquitos.

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The greatest “no parking” sign ever made

To many environmentalists, a city where most people get around by public transportation and bicycles may seem like a dream, but it’s also not without its share of daily nuisances.

The person who originally tweeted the above photo had said, “The area around this building is very tight due to illegally parked bikes… After I open shop I put out this sign and bikes don’t park here any more.” Over 15,000 Twitter users have agreed and called this the greatest “no parking” sign ever made.

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“Same sh*t different day” – Nice Japanese people swearing in English 【Video】

Hearing native Japanese people casually using English slang is a special kind of awesome. All too often, Japanese are taught straight-laced, borderline archaic phrases that, while grammatically sound, remove all trace of the speaker’s personality to the point that they end up sounding like stuffy university professors rather than they people they actually are. So when we spotted this video, which shows one English teacher’s students working their way through the recently released book F*ck no Tadashii Tsukaikata, or “How to Use ‘F**k’“, it brought huge smiles to our faces.

So, if you’d like to hear perfectly nice and respectable Japanese people saying things like “I’m trusting you with the drugs; don’t f**k me over” and “He’s going to sh*t a brick”, make sure there are no impressionable youngsters in the room and join us after the jump.

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Post World Cup cheer up: Shinji Kagawa and Hiroshi Kiyotake take on 55 kids at once

For anyone who’s still struggling to accept Japan’s elimination from the World Cup at the group stage, we’ve got a little video clip here to brighten your mood. While it was originally broadcast on New Year’s Eve half a year ago, it features two of Japan’s top football athletes finding themselves in an amusing situation with none of the stress from the World Cup.

How would you like to see international stars Shinji Kagawa and Hiroshi Kiyotake taking on 55 elementary school kids at once?

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NASA’s new leek-like supersonic jet design would be perfect for Hatsune Miku’s personal plane

I always feel a little sad whenever I stop and think that NASA’s Space Shuttles are no longer in service. For decades, they served as symbols not only for the pioneering spirit of their mission crews, but for NASA itself, an organization that serves as a gathering point for some of the brightest and boldest scientific minds on the planet.

NASA hasn’t completely gotten out of the high-tech transportation field, though, as it’s moving ahead with a project to develop a supersonic passenger jet. As impressive as its specs are, though, it looks like something quite a bit more down to earth: a root vegetable.

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Ivory Coast’s grass-eating goalie amuses Japanese fans after elimination

After Japan’s hopes of advancing in the World Cup were dashed by a 1-4 defeat to Colombia, Japanese football fans have been looking for something to get them smiling again. And Ivory Coast’s goalie provided just the opportunity.

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Beautiful hydrangea pattern adds a touch of elegance to traditional Japanese fish cake

Certain types of Japanese food, like tempura or grilled yakitori chicken skewers, are pretty agreeable to Western palates. In recent years, sushi has made inroads into the international dining scene, too.

Many non-Japanese diners, though, still feel a little hesitant about kamaboko, or fish cake. Despite its mild flavor, there’s just something incongruous about it in many people’s minds. It’s actually pretty tasty stuff, though, and if you’re on the fence about trying it, we should point out that it has a surprisingly mild flavor.

Or, perhaps we could entice you with this special variety of kamaboko that, when cut, reveals an elegant hydrangea pattern.

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Who shall I be today? The amazing makeup skills of Zawachin

“Through makeup I want to become unbelievably cute!” Hasn’t every girl had this thought at some point? In Japan there are words like “seikeikyuu meiku (cosmetic surgery-level makeup)” and countless features on makeup techniques designed to conceal problem areas. But now, the queen of makeup techniques, “Zawachin” has hit the big time.

Almost overnight, Zawachin was showered with attention for her monomane meiku (imitation makeup) which made her look exactly like popular former AKB48 member Tomomi Itano. Currently, there isn’t a day when one cannot see her on television or in magazines. Zawachin’s makeup techniques not only easily cross over the borders of “cute transformation”, but also those of ethnicity and gender, allowing her to become completely different people.

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The weather in Tokyo can be a little unpredictable in June. Spring still wasn’t that long ago, and sometimes we’ll get a day with a cool breeze or nighttime temperatures low enough that you’ll want a windbreaker, or at least a long-sleeved shirt.

On the other hand, midsummer is just around the corner, and steamy, sweltering days with high humidity and temperatures aren’t at all unusual. On just about any day the cloud layer has the potential to turn into a squall, too.

One thing Tokyo usually doesn’t see at this time of the year, though, is hailstorms.

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Frozen’s songs in regional Japanese dialects somehow work amazingly well【Videos】

It all started with the Japanese version of “Let it Go”, the hit song from Disney’s latest animated movie Frozen. But that wasn’t the only song to be localized, and now amateur singers are getting even more local with creative versions of Frozen’s songs in their own regional dialects. Join us after the jump for two of the best.

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We recently had a good chuckle at the dog that got itself comically trapped in its backyard in urban Japan. As silly as that Shiba inu may have looked though, the breed isn’t all poorly-thought-out curiosity and exploration-related hijinks. Recently, a Shiba in Akita Prefecture earned some positive publicity for its kin by saving its young owner from a bear.

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Amazon Japan adds regulations for deliveries to prisons, the internet wonders why

You no longer have to bake a file in a cake to get something to your buddy in prison; it seems Amazon Japan will do the delivering for you. Sharp-eyed netizens noticed a peculiar addition to the Help Page on the popular home shopping site titled “About shipping to prisons” and it has us all wondering what events transpired to warrant the new information.

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  • Jun 25, 2014

We went to the Ozashiki Cafe to see professional geisha perform — and we had an amazing time!

Last month, we ran a story about the Ozashiki Cafe, a one day event that would offer a unique opportunity for the Japanese public to take a look into the usually exclusive world of geisha and the traditional Japanese restaurants known as ryotei, where they perform. Much to our delight, we received comments from readers encouraging us to sign up and attend the event, so that’s exactly what we decided to do! And we were quite excited to do so too, since the average person in Japan usually doesn’t have the chance to interact with professional geisha. So, here’s our report on what we experienced at the Ozashiki Cafe, which took place at the ryotei Miyakodori in the Asakusa district of Tokyo — and we have to say, it was quite a treat to be entertained by professional geisha, even it was for just one fleeting hour!

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