Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
Twitter user @sazaki0 recently got an unpleasant surprise when she discovered a mouse had taken up residence in her house, but this particular mouse had far better manners than your average rodent, offering a gift of chocolate to the lady of the house. Her full story after the jump.
For those of us up in the northern hemisphere, winter is already in full swing. And for skiers and snowboarders, that can mean only one thing: the snow-covered mountains are calling and it’s a race against the clock to get the most out of them.
Treated to generous snow dumps each winter and coupled with the fact that so much of the country is mountainous, Japan is one of the best locations in the world for ski and snowboarding fun, not to mention some of the best powder snow in the world. But which resorts should you be sure to visit before the powder turns to slush? Check out this list of five of Japan’s greatest, and our favourite, places to ski and snowboard!
As we saw earlier today, some girls in Japan celebrate turning the big two-oh with some rather elaborate outfits. However, most young women on Coming-of-Age Day in Japan opt for a more traditional-looking kimono.
Another aspect of Coming-of-Age Day is the ceremony held in each region of the land. In each of them, large numbers of young men and women gather to celebrate, during which time it’s only natural for at least some of them to hook up, which is perhaps why the love hotel industry sees an annual spike on this particular holiday.
If you put these two things together, though, you have a big problem.
Cuteness sells, even if what you’re selling is recruitment for the Japan Self-Defense Force (JSDF) and the National Defense Academy (NDA). Since last July, the JSDF’s Okayama Provincial Cooperation Office has been using three adorable mascot girls to raise awareness for the JSDF. The girls represent each military branch of the forces, sporting the uniforms for each. Momoe Kibi represents the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force (Army), Mizuho Seto represents the Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (Navy), while Airi Bizen represents the Japan Air Self Defense Force (Air Force). If the design aesthetic looks familiar, it’s because the girls were created by Humikane Shimada, the original character designer behind such military-inspired moe series like Strike Witches and Girls und Panzer.
Snowboarding is fairly popular in Japan and there’s no doubt that anime and manga are deeply ingrained in the psyche of many people across the nation. So we suppose this ita-board, or “painfully nerdy snowboard” event isn’t too much of a surprise considering the constant appearance of ita-sha (painful cars), ita-suit (painful suit), and even ita-heli (painful helicopters). What did surprise us is the national association dedicated to nerdy snowboards and the annual event that hosts them.
It was perhaps inevitable that games industry giants should start taking an interest in China the moment the country’s laws changed, permitting the production and sale of video games consoles for the first time in almost a decade and a half, but tech sites and analysts in China are now suggesting that talks held late last year between the Shanghai Oriental Pearl Group and Japan’s Sony Corporation very likely herald the official arrival of PlayStation 4 in China.
Have you taken a close look lately at the knives you use every day when preparing food? If you’ve been using them for many years, they are no doubt dull and in need of a sharper replacement, especially if you want to do any fancy knife work. While it may seem easier to just go out and buy a new set, you might be inspired to learn how to sharpen and polish them yourselves when you hear about the ancient Japanese art of blade sharpening and the few remaining craftsmen practicing it. Click below to read about our visit to one such sharpening master in Tokyo!
Buying a fukubukuro (lucky bag) is one of the most anticipated thrills during New Year’s in Japan. Although what’s in the bag is a mystery until you’ve paid for it, the goods in the bag are usually worth more than the price you pay for the fukubukuro, so most of the time it is indeed a “lucky” buy.
Depending on your luck, you might not get something you desperately want or need in the bag, but even that wouldn’t dampen your day as much as what this Japanese Twitter user found in her slightly “unlucky” My Melody fukubukuro.
As mentioned many times before on this site, the modern Japanese language uses a set of characters to represent foreign words called katakana. Such characters are used for foreign place names such a Beverly Hills (ビバリーヒルズ) or people like Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (マフムード・アフマディーネジャード).
However, this feature of Japanese has been criticized by some for allowing the purity of the language to be polluted by foreign influences. It can also cause confusion by creating English words that have different meanings than the original.
That being said, for foreigners visiting Japan with a limited knowledge of the language this list may prove invaluable. Excluding the obvious classics like “OK” (オケ) and “McDonald’s” (マクドナルド) here are some relatively newer loan words ranked by understandability in Japanese.
This 13 January marked yet another Coming-of-Age Day in Japan. Every year on the second Monday of January, young adults who have turned 20 in the previous year congregate in city halls and community centers across the land.
These ceremonies honor the passage into adulthood and for such a once in a lifetime event, it’s not uncommon to see young women dress to the nines with an elegant kimono and elaborate hairstyle. Nails are an important feature too, but one young woman decided to accompany the event with some once-in-a-lifetime nails. In fact the image above is only about 45% of them.
Get ready to see the full picture, but beware! It’s kind of like staring into an Escher painting.
Music class can be pretty hit or miss. Some people really enjoy it and find a life-long passion–other fumble hopelessly with the drumsticks and just wish it were time to start math class. Either way, we all had to sit through it, right?
But as important as learning an instrument may be, it kind of seems like music class is still stuck in the 20th century–or even the 19th century. After all, the music industry today relies as much on Pro Tools as it does on an expert bass player. So while we’ll always need skilled musicians, it does seem prudent to introduce the more technologically advanced aspects of music to the classroom, doesn’t it?
Well, one Japanese school did just that by offering a vocaloid composition trial lesson to their curriculum!
Pop quiz, guys: Your girlfriend approaches you and says she’ll wear whatever panties you tell her to, and she won’t even get mad if you choose the ones that reveal too much or make her look fat. What do you do? Go for the safe, hip-level sailor stripes? How about the slightly creepy but non-offensive teddy bear print? Go for broke and tell her to go commando?
This is the kind of question men of the Internet apparently pore over, because this image with the above question popped up on a Japanese Internet forum recently.
Have you made that New Year’s resolution to be healthier but just can’t seem to make the commitment to work out? Is the only flexible thing in your life the elastic band around your sweatpants after you gorge yourself on cake? We think we can motivate you into a more active lifestyle by seeing a Chinese lady in her 50s doing her morning stretching routine that will be sure to shame you into eating healthier and exercising more!
Japan really loves to put its tourist spots into a top three list, such as the top three gardens or the top three hot springs. And a lot of tourists like to visit all three of the places to be able to say they’ve completed the set. But which of these famous trios do Japanese tourists want to visit the most? The website Web R25 recently surveyed 664 of their readers to ask them which of the top three lists they most want to visit. Click below to find out which trio of tourist hotspots topped the list and be sure to let us know which one you prefer in our RocketNews24 poll at the bottom!
The capital city of this island nation is said to be the most densely populated major city in the world, with a mind-boggling 35,000 people living per sq km. Can you guess which country it’s in?
The new year has arrived and it feels like we’ve already fallen into the same old routine. A well-known and comfortable routine, so we’re not complaining! But it is a bit sad to let the wintry festivities go.
Fortunately, there’s still a bit of fun to be had leftover from New Year’s Day: One enterprising Hokkaido resident took it upon himself to film the dawn of the new year–from the freaking stratosphere! He posted the video on YouTube and it is absolutely beautiful.
At the end of a long, cold winter day, have you ever found yourself craving a bowl of steaming hot miso soup to go? If you live in Tokyo, then you happen to be in luck. There’s a shop selling freeze-dried products that lets you customize your own miso soup, and even down it on site. Furthermore, you can try different varieties of miso soup from around Japan. Read on to learn more about this awesome jewel right outside Tokyo Station.
We may be in the dead of winter here in Japan, but no one wants to be left shivering with cold, right? Well, you can always buy a heater to solve that problem, which is what many people in Japan do, especially if they don’t want to freeze in the bathroom on a cold winter morning before getting into the shower (or bath), as most homes here don’t have central heating. Unfortunately, heaters can take up space, and they usually don’t make for attractive home decor. But, if you’re having second thoughts about purchasing a heater for those reasons, then this carbon heater may be the perfect product for you! Who would have thought that a simple heater could be … well, so darn cute?
On 10 January, confectionery dealer Komatsuya in Akita Prefecture is taking reservations for their annual Valentine’s Stag Beetle Larva Chocolates. As a perennially popular gift of the season for their highly detailed resemblance to actual immature insects, you can bet they’re going to sell fast. But fear not! There’s a whole line-up of insect related good to let that special someone know how you really feel.
Sailor Moon is among the most well-known anime in the world. Since their debut two decades ago, the “magical girls” have spawned thousands of toys, live action dramas, video games and even a musical. Needless to say, the series has incredible staying power and is still held dear by fans all over the world.
Unfortunately, the last new Sailor Moon anime episode was broadcast in 1997, leaving fans wishing for more animated magical adventures for well over a decade and a half.
Fortunately, the long wait is nearly over!
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
All-you-can-drink Starbucks and amazing views part of Tokyo’s new 170 meter-high sky lounge
More foreign tourists than ever before in history visited Japan last month
Beautiful Sailor Moon manhole cover coasters being given out for free by Tokyo tourist center
Studio Ghibli glasses cases let anime characters keep an eye on your spectacles
Hamster abandoned at Tokyo ramen restaurant gets new home
Mister Donut ready to make hojicha dreams come true in latest collab with Kyoto tea merchant
The oldest tunnel in Japan is believed to be haunted, and strange things happen when we go there
Randomly running into a great sushi lunch like this is one of the best things about eating in Tokyo
Is the new Shinkansen Train Desk ticket worth it?McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Disney princesses get official manga makeovers for Manga Princess Cafe opening in TokyoMore foreign tourists than ever before in history visited Japan last month
Starbucks reopens at Shibuya Scramble Crossing with new look and design concept
Beautiful new Final Fantasy T-shirt collection on the way from Uniqlo【Photos】Is the new Shinkansen Train Desk ticket worth it?
Foreign English teachers in Japan pick their favorite Japanese-language phrases【Survey】All-you-can-drink Starbucks and amazing views part of Tokyo’s new 170 meter-high sky lounge
Japanese convenience store packs a whole bento into an onigiri rice ball
We try out “Chan Ramen”, an underground type of ramen popular in the ramen communityMcDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Studio Ghibli releases Kiki’s Delivery Service chocolate cake pouches in Japan
Japan’s bone-breaking and record-breaking roller coaster is permanently shutting down
New definition of “Japanese whiskey” goes into effect to prevent fakes from fooling overseas buyers
Our Japanese reporter visits Costco in the U.S., finds super American and very Japanese things
Studio Ghibli unveils Mother’s Day gift set that captures the love in My Neighbour Totoro
Foreign passenger shoves conductor on one of the last full runs for Japan’s Thunderbird train
Domino’s Japan now sells…pizza ears?
New Japanese KitKat flavour stars Sanrio characters, including Hello Kitty
Kyoto creates new for-tourist buses to address overtourism with higher prices, faster rides
Sales of Japan’s most convenient train ticket/shopping payment cards suspended indefinitelyMcDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
Sold-out Studio Ghibli desktop humidifiers are back so Totoro can help you through the dry season
Japanese government to make first change to romanization spelling rules since the 1950s
Ghibli founders Toshio Suzuki and Hayao Miyazaki contribute to Japanese whisky Totoro label design
Doraemon found buried at sea as scene from 1993 anime becomes real life【Photos】
Tokyo’s most famous Starbucks is closed
One Piece characters’ nationalities revealed, but fans have mixed opinions
We asked a Uniqlo employee what four things we should buy and their suggestions didn’t disappoint
Princesses, fruits, and blacksmiths: Study reveals the 30 most unusual family names in Japan
Hamster abandoned at Tokyo ramen restaurant gets new home
Mister Donut ready to make hojicha dreams come true in latest collab with Kyoto tea merchant
The oldest tunnel in Japan is believed to be haunted, and strange things happen when we go there
Randomly running into a great sushi lunch like this is one of the best things about eating in Tokyo
Is the new Shinkansen Train Desk ticket worth it?
Arrest proves a common Japanese saying about apologies and police
Starbucks reopens at Shibuya Scramble Crossing with new look and design concept
We played RESIDENT EVII, aka Bioha7ard, aka Resident Evil 7, at Tokyo Game Show
Hey, Japanese taxi driver! Take us to your favorite restaurant in Tsuruga City!
Burger King Japan hits back at the competition with enormous sausage
Step back in time to the Edo period at this unusual highway rest stop in Japan
Pizza Hut releases a turtle pizza that looks like a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle
Starbucks Japan releases first-ever nationwide watermelon Frappuccino, and it’s a summer stunner