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Japan (Page 1557)

Hatsune Miku sightings spring up during uphill bike race

On 29 September, the Third Maebashi Mt. Akagi Hill Climb was held in Maebashi City, Gunma Prefecture. It’s a grueling 20.8km (12.9mi) bicycle course climbing Mt. Akagi for a vertical difference of 1.3km (0.8mi) from start to finish.

This year 2,811 people participated and the fastest time was set by Kenichi Miyamoto, completing the course in an impressive 56 minutes and 23 seconds. However, the attention of many locals was grabbed by a rider bearing an uncanny resemblance to the virtual songstress Hatsune Miku. So just who was this turquoise-locked ita-bike rider?

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Sony uses radio controlled helicopters to record epic footage of massive reservoir drainage 【Video】

In April, we tagged along with a team from Sony on a trip to Gunkanjima, mecca for urban explorers and movie villains alike. While there, Sony’s engineers used the company’s new Action Cam video camera, mounted on a radio controlled helicopter, to film the island’s ruined ghost town from the sky.

Sony is at it again, this time using this technology to get up close and personal as Hokkaido’s enormous Hoheikyo Dam discharges two tons of water per second. This really is quite the sight.

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Surgical mask with your McMuffin, sir? McDonald’s Japan’s bizarre freebies are back!

Cheapskates and junk food lovers rejoice! McDonald’s Japan has recently announced that its bizarre freebies promotion, also known as the Morning Makku Present promo, is set to return!

Every Monday morning between October 7 and November 18, purchasers of a Morning Value Set will receive a free gift, with products ranging from packs of chewing gum and orange juice to surgical face-masks and band-aids.

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Even with the falling yen making Japan more affordable for international travelers, the country still isn’t exactly a bargain destination. Likewise, even local residents, who recently went through the double whammy of paying quarterly resident taxes and an announcement that sales tax will jump to 8 percent next year, are looking to stretch their entertainment budgets.

Thankfully, travel site Trip Advisor recently announced the results of its survey regarding the top 20 free sightseeing locations in Japan.

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“Live child” nets 50 yen discount for noodle shop customers

A popular udon noodle shop in Japan, “Hanamaru Udon,” is offering a 50 yen discount for each “live child” that customers bring to their stores starting on October 7. With talks of Tokyo hiking the consumption tax, parents can rest easier knowing their kids can be exchanged for delicious udon.

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“Nose Yakiniku” brings Smell-O-Vision to your smartphone, promises to replace actual meat

Have a hankering for some yakiniku (grilled meat) but don’t have enough money? Just supplement your meal with scented air. That’s what one Japanese company is suggesting with their new Hana Yakiniku, or “Nose Grilled Meat” system. Just plug the specially-made scent cartridge into your smartphone, download the app and you’re on your way to a cheap and (questionably) satisfying meal.

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This huge shank of anime meat is actually a sweet dessert

Anime meat looks delicious and grotesque at the same time. It almost always makes you hunger for a big turkey leg because of how perfectly it’s drawn – like how hamburgers look on the McDonald’s menu – but then it’s got the two bones sticking out of it, as though someone just savagely tore the leg off of some poor, frightened animal, bone and all.

Which seems entirely possible considering that everyone in an anime universe is as strong as an ox. Maybe they gain their power by killing and eating the hearts and leg bones of said oxen.

Anyway, a baumkuchen manufacturer in Japan realized that with the sweet, dense cake dessert popular throughout Europe and Japan, they could almost perfectly recreate a cartoony anime meat shank and the below “Manga Niku” baumkuchen was born.

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Grand Theft School Girl Outfit: 33-year-old man arrested for stealing high school uniforms

On 29 September, Kumamoto Prefectural Police announced the arrest of 33-year-old Akira Katayama for robbing a private high school in Kumamoto City. The intended score of this particular heist was three girls’ uniforms used by the school.

Although he nearly succeeded, Katayama’s plans were dashed when it became obvious mid-robbery that he didn’t come close to resembling a high school student.

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Before Dragon Ball: See the 1984 advertisements announcing the creation of this now classic manga

Anyone remotely familiar with Japan’s comic culture has likely seen or at least heard of the world-renowned adventure manga, Dragon Ball. Honestly, thanks to the anime, the TV specials, the films, and the Hollywood movie adaption, it’s hard to find anyone without at least some awareness of this awesome title. The impact that Dragon Ball has had on Japan’s comic industry is so great that a world without Super Saiyans is hard to even imagine. But, every series has to have begun somewhere, and before the 51st issue of Weekly Shonen Jump Magazine for the year 1984, there was no such thing as Dragon Ball!

…Actually, that’s a lie. Issue number 51 certainly contained the first chapter of the Dragon Ball manga, but the hype began a short time before that. After all, it’s hard to sell an all-new series without some form of advertising. We found this to be true when the Japanese side of our RocketNews24 staff managed to dig up a copy of 1984’s Weekly Shonen Jump volume 50, one issue prior to the release of Dragon Ball. Inside, we found some awesome illustrated spreads announcing the creation of this comic wonder. It’s fascinating to see just how highly the series was anticipated, though the comic’s branding might have been a little off the mark at first.

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Final homework assignment from dearly departed teacher will bring you to tears

Death is indeed the final departure, but that does not mean that the echoes of our lives can’t have some lasting effects on the lives of those who survive us. One Japanese school teacher understood that he was nearing the end of his time on earth and did what he could to dispel the certain grief of his beloved students the only way he knew how. He gave them one last homework assignment.

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“King of psychics” Ron Bard warns of terrible danger for Japan

US psychic Ron Bard has spoken out once again via his official Twitter account, warning that the world – specifically Japan – is in great peril, prompting chatter online. This new warning comes after Mr. Bard claimed back in mid-July this year to have foreseen a natural disaster that would occur in Japan “in the next two or three months”, urging people in Japan to follow him on Twitter and prepare for difficult times.

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Some of our US-based readers may not be especially familiar with German shaving brand Schick, but here in Japan the company is top dog when it comes to safety razors, and its products can be found in just about any supermarket or pharmacy. Recently, in order to promote its relaxing “dream shave” experience and newest model of disposable razor, the Quattro 5 Titanium, Schick Japan has released the following promotional video, which sees one lucky young man take a zero-gravity flight with two bikini-clad models in order to try the razor out.

Hmmm… Pretty girls tumbling about in slow motion while squirting foam. You think anyone would watch that?

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Don’t go, Pikachu! Pokemon-themed jumbo jet takes its final flight

If you haven’t been lucky enough to be inside a Pokemon jumbo jet, just imagine yourself immersed in a world of Pokemon while flying in the sky. The interior, flight attendant uniforms, food containers, souvenirs and in-flight entertainment all feature everyone’s favorite pocket monsters. But sadly, ANA, Japan’s largest airline, has just retired one of its Pikachu jumbo jets. As sad of an occasion as this is, ANA made sure to send the craft on its final voyage with a special presentation and an appearance from the Pokemon franchise’s most popular character.

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Still no arrests one year after Japan officially begins prosecuting Internet pirates

In the year since revisions to copyright law in Japan made illegal downloading a crime punishable with jail time and heavy fines, the music industry hasn’t experienced a significant increase in profits. In fact, police have yet to prosecute anyone for the crime! It kind of make you wonder if they know that Internet pirates don’t have peg-legs and eye patches…

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Sit back with a “relaxing” cup of tea

As the weather starts to cool down, there’s nothing better than cozying up with a nice hot cup of tea. But sometimes that plain old tea cup and bag isn’t enough to lift your spirits on a particularly gloomy day. That’s where this darling DIY tea bag design comes in. With a relaxed expression that seems to say “Aww, that’s the stuff,” this little tea cup bather will keep you company and warm your spirits on even the grayest of days.

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Possibly the greatest textbook doodles of all time

Remember back in high school when you’d opened up your textbook to find George Washington picking his nose and Joseph Stalin with a peg leg and eye patch. It was enough to make you bow down and thank the graffiti gods for giving you a much needed distraction from the incessant ramblings of your instructor.

Textbook doodles seem to transcend national borders and bored students from all over the world appear to have a penchant for defiling educational tools. We’ve already shown you some from Asia, a continent that seems to be home to an abundance of bored students with idle hands. Now let’s take a look at textbook doodles from Twitter user and Japanese high school student, Chanta, who takes it to a whole other level, actually erasing parts of his textbook to create entirely different, albeit twisted, pictures.

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Japanese netizens irate after bureaucrat blogs that “The elderly should hurry up and die”

Much to the  joy of political comedians, recent years have seen a sharp increase in international political gaffs thanks to the Internet and the ease with which stupid comments can go viral. And Japan is no stranger to this trend, with numerous politicians having resigned after letting inappropriate jokes slip to the wrong reporter.

Now one Japanese career bureaucrat in his 50s is in hot water for his inflammatory, supposedly anonymous blog posts. But many Japanese netizens feel his punishment is far too light.

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College students “go shoplifting,” document the act with Twitpics

Someone believed to be a college student recently posted an image of another college girl shoplifting food on Twitter. According to the photos, she girls stole some onigiri and what appear to be two cups of instant noodles.

This is just the latest installment in the recently growing fad of posting obnoxious or illegal behavior on Twitter with the apparent aim of receiving hate posts from other netizens. This tweet was no different, receiving scorn and speculation for scores of watchers.

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Handicapped man draws beautiful and detailed trains entirely from memory 【Photos】

Hisashi Fukushima, a 44-year-old man from Hidaka City, was born with a serious learning impediment, but this handicap has in no way gotten the better of him. This truly gifted individual is an awe-inspiring artist with an unbridled passion for the beauty of the railway system. Fukushima’s photographic memory and steady hands have allowed him to recreate many life-like scenes of trains upon their tracks in paintings as well as paper craft. His faithful renditions of Japan’s railways have earned him a number of prizes in art exhibitions, and one glance at his work makes it obvious why! Keep reading for a sample of Hisashi Fukushima’s stellar art portfolio.

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Expert mode “Rainbow Road” bridge found in Japan

Boredom on the road can lead to serious accidents as drivers become less alert or more reckless driving down straight and well lit roads. So perhaps there is some merit in the idea that more dangerous road conditions can lead to safer and more attentive driving.

Take this bridge which connects Japan’s Highway 194 with Highway 299 over the Niyodo River in Kochi Prefecture. Lacking any barriers or guard rails drivers must keep a steady wheel when crossing the Nagoya Low Water Bridge (no relation to the prefecture).

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