Bringing you yesterday's news from Japan and Asia, today.
Looking for something to do on Halloween? Ever wish you were one of the undead masses lumbering around the planet with a grudge long after you died? Get a thrill scaring the pee out of others? Well then you better get to Yamanashi Prefecture’s Fuji-Q Highland Amusement Park this month!
After years of living in Japan, I’ve noticed that the island nation has quite a few merry misconceptions about what it means to have a Western Christmas celebration. Replacing Santa’s cookies with a strawberry-topped Christmas cake is just one of their many mix-ups, though at least they have the gift-giving part right.
Now, you might be wondering why it is that we’re posting about Christmas when it’s barely even October! As it turns out, Japanese parents hoping to surprise their kids with a sweet treat from Bandai have to start planning for the holidays NOW. The Premium Bandai online store has just opened up reservations for their 2013 line of character-themed Christmas cakes called Chara Deco Christmas. These cakes come with toys and other neat treats suited to young fans of everything from Kamen Rider to Pokemon.
Despite its pronunciation in Japanese coming out unnervingly close to “shoe cream,” choux crème does not, in fact, refer to a product to keep your wingtips looking their shiniest. More commonly known in North America as cream puffs, choux crème are one of the many non-indigenous desserts popular in Japan.
In similarly confusing fashion, the popular chain Beard Papa sells neither razors, lawnmowers, easy chairs, nor any of the other trappings assorted with fatherhood and/or having facial hair. Beard Papa is instead Japan’s most prolific choux crème bakery, and for the next two months they’re bringing back their popular melon bread-inspired cream puffs.
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?
Owning a Roomba or other automated cleaning robot to take care of floor dust can be such an awesome convenience. But you’d better take care and show them some appreciation, because these handy tools have been known to escape when overworked and left unattended. Remember the rogue Roomba that restlessly cleaned the streets around Tokyo’s Kanda train station? Well, it’s happened again in a different part of the world, but this time it’s the owners who sounded the alarm.
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.
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.
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.
A tweet from Nintendo writer Chad Concelmo earlier today revealed that the Japanese video game giant will be adding a new bad guy character to its forthcoming Wii U title, Super Mario 3D World, and it is ridiculously cute.
We’ve been squishing walking mushroom Goomba characters for decades now, but this furry little guy is bound to make some gamers pause for thought before hitting the jump button and ending its pudgy little life. Say hello to the Cat Goomba!
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.
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.
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.
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.
For those who have lost a part of their body either through illness or after being involved in an accident, plastic surgery offers not only the hope of repairing any physical damage but also restoring self-confidence. One phenomenal case of life-altering plastic surgery currently receiving a lot of attention here in Asia is that of a surgeon in China who is growing a replacement nose on the forehead of a man who lost his during traffic accident.
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.
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.
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.
America throws the best linguistic hissy fits when political relationships sour. Remember when Congress tried to change French fries to “freedom fries” because France didn’t want to come along on the Iraq invasion? Or how about when sauerkraut became so unpopular during World War I that makers suggested changing the name to the less Germanic “liberty cabbage”? Good times.
Well, it may be that the Yanks aren’t the only ones who want suitably patriotic cabbage. In Korea, it looks like Chinese cabbage, the vegetable used to make the most common variety of kimchi, is now being referred to as “kimchi cabbage” or just “cabbage”.
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?
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.
Japanese cat island reveals all its cats will soon be gone
7-Eleven “Cream Box” is Japan’s newest must-try convenience store sweet
Studio Ghibli releases free-download board game — Here’s how to play it without reading Japanese
Japanese squirrel sweets are an adorable autumn-only nerikiri treat【Photos】
Some of the best Japanese fried chicken in Japan comes from this shack in the middle of nowhere
You want the whole crab? Japan’s Dom Dom will give it to you, and curry too, in Marugoto Kani Burger
Tokyo Skytree to be lit up in Jujutsu Kaisen colors on Halloween in months-long art collaboration
One of Tokyo’s most beautiful gardens gets its own moon for moon-viewing season
Super budget-friendly retro Tokyo hotel feels like having your own 1960s Asakusa apartment
Netflix reveals first look at Tony Tony Chopper in live-action One Piece【Video】
New Hello Kitty McDonald’s Japan Happy Meal toys are here, and Kitty’s sister is part of the set
Starbucks teams up with the oldest of Japan’s Six Ancient Kilns to create a Bizen ware coffee mugOne of Tokyo’s most beautiful gardens gets its own moon for moon-viewing seasonSuper budget-friendly retro Tokyo hotel feels like having your own 1960s Asakusa apartment
Abuse Cafe Japan: We get abused by waitresses in maids’ uniforms at Tokyo’s viral pop-up dinerSome of the best Japanese fried chicken in Japan comes from this shack in the middle of nowhereStudio Ghibli releases free-download board game — Here’s how to play it without reading Japanese
Night sky Studio Ghibli greeting cards are a beautiful reason to put pen to paper【Photos】Tokyo Skytree to be lit up in Jujutsu Kaisen colors on Halloween in months-long art collaboration
Studio Ghibli lets you cosplay as Howl from Howl’s Moving Castle with cosy anime fashion range
Foreign tourists on Shinkansen bullet train break suitcase etiquette, angering local passengersStudio Ghibli releases free-download board game — Here’s how to play it without reading JapaneseStudio Ghibli lets you cosplay as Howl from Howl’s Moving Castle with cosy anime fashion rangeNew Hello Kitty McDonald’s Japan Happy Meal toys are here, and Kitty’s sister is part of the set
Japanese government suspends plan to pay Tokyo women 600,000 to move away to get married
Japanese government wants to remove tax-exemption limit for foreign tourists on consumablesStarbucks teams up with the oldest of Japan’s Six Ancient Kilns to create a Bizen ware coffee mug
Starbucks Japan unveils new limited-edition Frappuccino for autumnOne of Tokyo’s most beautiful gardens gets its own moon for moon-viewing season
The heartwarming story of Japan’s “Weakling Gundam” and the fans who supported it in its hour of need
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goodsForeign tourists on Shinkansen bullet train break suitcase etiquette, angering local passengers
[Deleted] Article written for April Fool’s Day 2018
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
Foreigner’s request for help in Tokyo makes us sad for the state of society
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
Princesses, fruits, and blacksmiths: Study reveals the 30 most unusual family names in Japan
You want the whole crab? Japan’s Dom Dom will give it to you, and curry too, in Marugoto Kani Burger
Tokyo Skytree to be lit up in Jujutsu Kaisen colors on Halloween in months-long art collaboration
One of Tokyo’s most beautiful gardens gets its own moon for moon-viewing season
Super budget-friendly retro Tokyo hotel feels like having your own 1960s Asakusa apartment
Netflix reveals first look at Tony Tony Chopper in live-action One Piece【Video】
10 things you should buy at 7-Eleven in Japan
Japanese ramen cocktail uses tonkotsu pork broth for alcoholic noodle flavour
Do 7-Eleven Japan’s new back-to-budget-friendly-basics rice bowls make us happy?【Taste test】
Dining with Totoro — 400-year-old ceramics company makes Studio Ghibli chopstick rests【Photos】
Japan government makes cute illustrated version of radioactive isotope it plans to dump into sea
Magical train ride through Japan’s autumn leaves is like travelling to a different world【Video】
Starbucks Japan releases custom tumblers…that wear aprons
Train continues to stop at rural station for lone schoolgirl until she graduates in March