Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
Japan (Page 1573)
Aside from being an upscale shopping center, Tokyo’s Roppongi Hills complex is also home to the Mori Art Museum and a 54th-floor observation deck. We recently paid the building a visit to check out two concurrently running events, the LOVE Exhibition and Hatsune Miku Café.
On 7 July, Tanabata kicks off in many parts of Japan. It’s an annual festival season which celebrates the stars Orihime and Hikoboshi, two lovers who are separated by the Milky Way except for this brief moment on the seventh day of the seventh month.
A popular custom during this time for young and old is to write down a wish on a strip of paper and hang it from a bamboo plant. However, as the years go by it seems that fewer and fewer people are going out to make wishes. This is why Calpis Co. Ltd. has decided to spark up interest in bamboo wishes by launching a study of their effectiveness.
Just over an hour south of downtown Tokyo, Kanagawa Prefecture’s Enoshima Island and the nearby coastline are a prime summer destination. There’s a little something for everyone, whether you want to frolic in the water or on the sandy beach, visit a shrine hidden deep inside a cave and learn about the legend of the fearsome dragon who fell in love with a beautiful local girl, or just try out your pick-up lines at the numerous oceanfront bars.
This spring, the Aloha Beach Café opened up on Enoshima island. The restaurant specializes in the Hawaiian-style pancakes that are all the rage in Japan right now, but also offers one menu item you could only find on the Kanagawa coast.
In Chinese restaurants from America to Brazil, Britain, Australia, and much of the western world in between, there’s one thing we’ve all come to expect at the end of our meals. Aside from heartburn and maybe an upset tummy, we expect a tray full of fortune cookies to be delivered with the check. You know, those crisp, folded cookies with a paper slip inside telling you your lucky lotto numbers and the importance of friendship in your life. But did you realize that you’ll never encounter these kinds of cookies at restaurants within China itself? Investigations show that Chinese fortune cookies have absolutely nothing to do with China! The truth, it would seem, lies a little bit further east.
Westerners who come to Japan may be taken aback by the sheer numbers of bicycles in use in cities. Equally impressive is the degree to which people load their bicycles with shopping bags, children, boyfriends, and/or garbage bags full of aluminum cans for recycling. And yet, with all this, it’s a rare sight to see anyone besides tiny kids wearing a helmet.
Ehime Prefecture, known for its scenic bike paths and wide use of bicycles for commuting, is hoping to change that by enacting a law instructing cyclists of all ages to wear a helmet, or else.
Bringing commuters to Tokyo from neighboring Saitama Prefecture, the Saikyo Line, operated by the East Japan Railway Company (JR East), is one of the busiest in the metropolitan area. During morning rush hour its trains are packed to 200 percent capacity. On June 30, however, E233 Series trains were introduced to the line, and officials are hoping the new carriages, which are a whole 15cm wider, will reduce crowding by ten percent.
That’s right. Now instead of having to endure bone-crushing, suffocating, sucking-the-will-to-live commutes in trains packed to 200 percent capacity, riders will be able to breathe, and perhaps move just a little, while enjoying the relative luxury of a train crammed to just 190 percent capacity!
Now, we all know better than to trust promises of easy money, right? Well, apparently not everyone does, as a recent piece of news involving an unsuccessful scam attempt here in Japan clearly demonstrates. The whole affair actually has Japanese internet users shaking their heads in disbelief, and one thing is clear — there’s not going to be much public sympathy for the intended victim in this particular case. Once you hear the story, you’ll probably understand why.
On 18 June in Ichihara City, Chiba Prefecture, 48-year-old Kaoru Kurosawa came home to find a 1.5-meter Japanese rat snake on the second floor. Kurosawa quickly took a picture of the serpent before it slithered down a gutter and escaped.
Now, netizens across Japan are heralding this event as a sign of good things to come for Japan or at least for Kurosawa.
This Tuesday, Nintendo announced via Japan’s economics newspaper, Nikkei, that they will soon begin releasing e-books geared toward children on their 3DS platform. Over the years, Nintendo has had notable success with the grade school demographic within Japan, and so, in order to take advantage of this popularity, they have amassed a collection of approximately 300 Japanese children’s books and will begin releasing them this fall.
As anyone who has ever taught or studied a second language will tell you, online translation software simply don’t work. Sure, you can throw in short phrases or key words and it’ll help you out from time to time, and languages that are grammatically similar escape more-or-less unscathed, but the rest of the time the sentences these programs spit out is absolute garbage.
With a keen eye for humour, online hub and original content creators Smosh put together the following hilarious video, ‘Japanese Titanic‘. The script is made up entirely of lines generated by an online translator after turning the original English into Japanese and back again, making this easily one of the funniest videos we’ve seen in weeks.
I should probably preface this by saying I have never held back on ordering the food I wanted on a date. My thinking is: if you can’t appreciate the hedonistic power of a delicious meal, I don’t really want to dine with you again, or at all, really.
However, I have heard girlfriends worry about what is and isn’t okay to order on a date, so I know some women do feel judged by what and how they eat. Turns out this concern isn’t just in their minds. A recent survey suggests that guys like to see a girl eat, but it depends what is on her plate.
Since 1999, Konami’s Silent Hill horror series has been spooking gamers with its mysterious, reality-bending setting and plotlines, not to mention its collection of grotesque, otherworldly creatures like the appropriately-named Pyramid Head, a giant with a large, triangular head who stalks the game’s protagonist while carrying an enormous blade.
Konami has recently formed a partnership with a number of ramen restaurants across Japan to serve Silent Hill ramen. But just what exactly happens when you use a horror story that’s dripping with gore as the inspiration for food? We headed to Hajime, a Tokyo restaurant that offers the terrifying noodles, to find out.
Hot on the heels of their hugely successful recreation of the zombies, characters, and pasta dishes from the hit video game and movie franchises Resident Evil, Universal Studios Japan (USJ) is teaming up with Capcom once again this summer to bring us an even more authentic survival horror experience in the form of Resident Evil: The Real (Biohazard: The Real in Japan).
Rather than simply walking around getting spooked by zombies, USJ is providing visitors with their own replica gun, a limited supply of ammo, and only a few minutes to survive an onslaught of zombies and other creatures from the Resident Evil series. Hear that? That’s the sound of millions of gamers’ day being made.
Here at RocketNews24, we like to keep abreast of the pioneering developments in the separate but equally important fields of technology and hamburgers. Having already marvelled at the fries holder from McDonald’s and recently hearing that Burger King had developed a hands-free Whopper Holder, we were immediately filled with a level of avarice that usually makes people buy a pair of overalls and move to the Yukon to pan for gold.
Unfortunately, Burger King’s shoulder and neck-mounted hamburger holder is only available as a giveaway for customers lucky enough to win one, and since the promotion isn’t being held in Japan, we were left with only one option: design and built one of our own.
Go to college, get a job, meet a guy or girl, and…don’t get married?
A recent survey suggests that almost one-third of Japanese people just can’t see the point in tying the knot and settling down. And after you see what some of them have to say about marriage, you might understand why!
There’s a fast food chain in a small number of the western states in the US that is popular among the locals for its ridiculously tasty burgers. It goes by the name of In-N-Out Burger and is a place that our Japanese reporter Yoshio makes a point of visiting whenever he’s in the US. Join us below as Yoshio lists four solid reasons why, even for a man who grew up on Japanese food, In-N-Out Burger shouldn’t be missed.
With the move to flash drives and cloud storage, CD trays may become a thing of the past, but don’t write yours off as a waste of space just yet. One Japanese Twitter user has found an excellent new use for his.
When leaving the house for days on end, whether it be for work or for pleasure, those who have pets face an additional problem in planning. Someone has to feed the critters and make certain that they don’t leave any stinky surprises. Japan offers a number of different services for traveling pet owners, but one man, Mr. Haruna from Okazaki City in Aichi Prefecture, hated to see how upset his pet became after being left in a pet hotel.
In order to limit the stress of lonely pets, Haruna quit his job as a salary man and started the Pet-Sitter Gentry. “It’s the pet version of a babysitter,” he explains, and although the business has seen some hardships, the recruitment of additional staff has now allowed him to expand his pet-sitting service area into eastern Nagoya City.
Start your engines, boys and girls! Long-running racing series Mario Kart is making its third entry into the arcade scene, with Mario Kart Arcade Grand Prix DX launching this July in Japanese video arcades!
In the Higashiyama area of Kyoto City stands a candy shop which boasts a unique regular customer, the specter of a woman who comes for their candy. The legend began in 1599 and has been handed down from generation to generation to the present day.
The shop, now called Minatoya Ghost Child Care Candy Main Office, only sells its legendary Ghost Child Care Candy. RocketNews24’s Kuzo decided to head down to Kyoto to investigate the bittersweet story behind this candy shop’s connection to the other side.
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
Man with face covered in tattoos admits to repeatedly headbutting Tokyo store clerk【Video】
One Piece teaming up with 5 NCAA basketball teams
New Japanese menstrual product seeks to help women spot unidentified iron deficiencies
Is China’s don’t-go-to-Japan warning affecting tourist crowd sizes in Nara?
Entry to Tokyo’s Pokémon theme park zone has physical fitness requirement, will cost a lot
Totoro ocarinas on sale from Ghibli Museum online shop, and no two are exactly alike【Video】
Village Vanguard’s Blue Lucky Bag may have the most impressive piece of junk ever created
New virgin-killing sweater discovered, modeled in Japan【Photos】
Japan’s foreign tourist numbers projected to fall for first time in years in 2026Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
10 times to avoid traveling in Japan in 2026
Our 52-year-old pole dancing reporter shares his tips for achieving your New Year’s exercise goal
Starbucks Japan releases new Frappuccino and latte for Valentine’s Day
Ramen restaurant’s English menu prices are nearly double its Japanese ones, denies discriminating
Princess Mononoke magnets return just in time to treat yourself to awesome anime decorations
Umamusume anime girl plushie recalled for having parts she absolutely should not have【Pics】
Giant hotel rooms in Osaka reflect the new non-niche face of travel in Japan.
Japanese women showing rebounding interest in giving Valentine’s Day chocolate【Survey】
We ate sushi made from Japan’s most expensive tuna ever【Taste test】Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day10 times to avoid traveling in Japan in 2026
Starbucks Japan ready to get Year of the Horse started with adorable drinkware and plushies【Pics】
7-Eleven Japan starts new temporary luggage storage service in over 300 branchesOur 52-year-old pole dancing reporter shares his tips for achieving your New Year’s exercise goalStarbucks Japan releases new Frappuccino and latte for Valentine’s Day
Disillusionment at Tsukiji’s tourist-target prices led us to a great ramen restaurant in Tokyo
Starbucks teams up with 166-year-old Kyoto doll maker for Year of the Horse decorations【Photos】
Tokyo’s Tsukiji sushi neighborhood asks tour groups to stay away for the rest of the monthRamen restaurant’s English menu prices are nearly double its Japanese ones, denies discriminating
Survey asks foreign tourists what bothered them in Japan, more than half gave same answer
Japan’s human washing machines will go on sale to general public, demos to be held in Tokyo
We deeply regret going into this tunnel on our walk in the mountains of Japan
Studio Ghibli releases Kodama forest spirits from Princess Mononoke to light up your home
Major Japanese hotel chain says reservations via overseas booking sites may not be valid
Put sesame oil in your coffee? Japanese maker says it’s the best way to start your day【Taste test】
No more using real katana for tourism activities, Japan’s National Police Agency saysStarbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
Starbucks Japan reveals new sakura drinkware collection, inspired by evening cherry blossoms
Updated cherry blossom forecast shows extra-long sakura season for Japan this year
Entry to Tokyo’s Pokémon theme park zone has physical fitness requirement, will cost a lot
Totoro ocarinas on sale from Ghibli Museum online shop, and no two are exactly alike【Video】
Village Vanguard’s Blue Lucky Bag may have the most impressive piece of junk ever created
New virgin-killing sweater discovered, modeled in Japan【Photos】
Japan’s foreign tourist numbers projected to fall for first time in years in 2026
Pikachu is recharging as Pokémon and Uniqlo unveil adorable new Pokémon Sketch T-shirt line【Pics】
Making a traditional Japanese dessert from “heaven grass”【Photos】
Japan’s Poképark Kanto Pokémon theme park area shows first attraction photos
Chinese restaurant has the most epic English menu of all time
Japanese women asked what they would do if they had a man’s body for one day in survey
Is Starbucks Japan’s new Valentine’s Day Frappuccino worthy of your love?
Godzilla and Gap Japan team up for kaiju casual fashion collection【Photos】
Sanrio Pompompurin purin custard pudding sweets sound doubly delicious, look like pooch bottoms