Hidden gem in Ikebukuro sells unique flavours of nikuman you’d never find in a convenience store.
Chinese
Colorful costumes and elegant poses guide passengers through safety instructions with remarkable style and finesse.
Chinese swimmer Fu Yuanhui has won herself plenty of new fans from around the globe with her delightfully candid interview at the Rio Olympics.
A new Chinese commercial features claims of an electric fan that generates an air pocket of wind that feels like a pair of breasts. Ingenious invention or just marketing?
Dayside Productions is about to drop a hot new release that Zelda fans never knew they wanted.
The various related but often unintelligible Chinese language varieties collectively have 1.2 billion first-language speakers. Of those varieties, Mandarin, also known as Standard Chinese or Putonghua, has 848 million native speakers, which is higher than any other language on Earth. It’s no wonder that more and more people around the world are seeing the practicality of learning Chinese as a second language.
However, learning a second language takes time and effort, especially if the intrinsic features of your target language differ significantly from those of your native language. A recent YouTube video titled “Foreigners’ Difficulties of Learning Chinese” explores this exact scenario by asking four Westerners about their own experiences studying the language.
Whether you’ve already dabbled in Chinese yourself or are thinking about it, the short clip makes for an interesting watch for anyone looking to expand their linguistic horizons.
After a controversial Halloween stunt landed them in some hot water, Shanghai prankster group Monkey Kingz is back and at it again–and this time, with a decidedly less-gory theme.
Their latest video is titled “Single Chinese Guy vs Single White Guy,” which pokes fun at the predicaments of two available guys, one Chinese and one white, on Singles’ Day in China. In a hilarious sequence of short clips, the two men try busting out all the moves to win over a girl using exceptionally different tactics. Will they find true love, or will they be forced to spend Singles’ Day wallowing in total rejection? Watch the video and see the funny progression of events for yourself!
With their complex writing systems, getting around in Japan or China can be stressful for even the most seasoned of tourists. Sure, you could carry a travel dictionary in your pocket while you go sightseeing, but how are you supposed to look up all those funny looking sticks and squiggles when you don’t even know how to pronounce them? Often the locals try to be helpful by providing an English translation, but there are reasons why that doesn’t always work out. If only there was a way to just wave your magic smartphone over some unintelligible text and have it provide a reliable translation on the spot. Well, as we discovered over at Shanghai List, there’s an app for that.
We’ve all seen a strange work of public art at some point while traveling–you know, that piece that makes you scratch your head and look at it upside-down to try to figure out just what the heck is going on. Fortunately for the residents of San Francisco, they have their very own bizarre–and ginormous–piece of public art to contemplate whenever they feel like it.
Japanese internet users recently stumbled across photos of this particular sculpture created by Chinese artist Zhang Huan and were quick to comment on its unique appearance. One fan even decided that it resembled nothing other than the final boss of a video game. While we’re pretty sure that’s not the interpretation that the artist was going for, the fan’s cleverly manipulated photo still gave us a chuckle.
The Chinese language is widely regarded as one of the most difficult languages to learn.
There are more than 80,000 Chinese characters in existence, although a non-native speaker can get by with 1,000 of the most frequently used.
To make matters more complicated, the characters that make up each word or phrase individually carry different meanings based on the context in which they’re used. For example, the Chinese character 吃 could mean “eat,” “drink,” “bear,” or “take,” depending on the phrase that surrounds it.
As hard as the language is, it can also be incredibly poetic when translated character by character into English, and sometimes hilarious.
Everyone loves a good tongue twister, especially when getting to grips with a new language. I’ve had fun being challenged by Japanese coworkers at drinking parties to get my mouth around phrases like basu gasu bakuhatsu (“the bus gas explodes”) five times in a row, or aka-makigami ao-makigami ki-makigami (“red paper roll, blue paper roll, yellow paper roll”) on many occasions, but this Chinese tongue twister blows them all out of the water.
MOST POPULAR
Now
Uniqlo announces new T-shirts for One Piece, Naruto and more for manga publisher’s 100th birthday
Fatal stabbing at Pokémon Center in Tokyo reignites concern over rising stalking cases in Japan
Japan now has a special desk for people who work at home with a pet cat[Photos]
Japan now has a “for foreign tourists only” Mt. Fuji sightseeing train[Video]
Japanese kindness restores our faith in humanity after a highway bus accident in Tokyo
Starbucks Japan releases new My Fruit³ Frappuccino at only 34 stores around the country
Japan’s ministry of economy reminds us to “use sound judgment” before buying toilet paper
Totoro and Calcifer become little light-up lanterns for Ghibli-style excursions or at-home decor
A look back on 40 years of Japanese schools banning stuff
Better living through gambling at Japan’s “Day Service Las Vegas”
Weekly
Krispy Kreme releases Super Mario doughnuts in Japan for a limited time
7-Eleven Japan releases a crazy new viral sandwich: Chocolate Sprinkles and Whipped Cream- Starbucks Japan releases new My Fruit³ Frappuccino at only 34 stores around the country
- Japan now has a “for foreign tourists only” Mt. Fuji sightseeing train[Video]
- Uniqlo announces new T-shirts for One Piece, Naruto and more for manga publisher’s 100th birthday
Nine amazing off-the-beaten-path cherry blossom spots in Japan for yaezakura and shidarezakura
Stunning central Japan wisteria festival is like a purple fantasy straight out of a Ghibli movie
Studio Ghibli releases the My Neighbour Totoro tea caddy, with a magical self-closing lid
Create a tiny Ghibli anime world on your bookshelf with new miniature papercraft art kits
Studio Ghibli unveils new Rollbahn notebook in honour of Howl’s Moving Castle
Monthly
Starbucks Japan unveils new sakura cherry blossom collection for hanami season 2026
Train station platform ramen store closes its doors on half a century of history in Tokyo- Starbucks Japan releases new My Fruit³ Frappuccino at only 34 stores around the country
Studio Ghibli releases Catbus pullback keychain that runs like the anime character
Japanese onsen egg maker from 100-yen store Daiso needs to be on your shopping list
Nine great places to see spring flowers in Japan, as chosen by travelers (with almost no sakura)
Starbucks Japan releases first-ever Hinamatsuri Girls’ Day Frappuccino- Krispy Kreme releases Super Mario doughnuts in Japan for a limited time
Cherry blossoms begin blooming in Japan with record-early starts for sakura season- 7-Eleven Japan releases a crazy new viral sandwich: Chocolate Sprinkles and Whipped Cream
Yearly
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
Starbucks Japan releases new drinkware and goods for Valentine’s Day
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
Starbucks Japan releases new sakura goods and drinkware for cherry blossom season 2026
Japan’s newest Shinkansen has no seats…or passengers [Video]
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 says
RECOMMENDED STORIES
Starbucks Japan releases new My Fruit³ Frappuccino at only 34 stores around the country
Japan’s ministry of economy reminds us to “use sound judgment” before buying toilet paper
Totoro and Calcifer become little light-up lanterns for Ghibli-style excursions or at-home decor
A look back on 40 years of Japanese schools banning stuff
Better living through gambling at Japan’s “Day Service Las Vegas”
Japan’s cherry blossom season predicted to start earlier than we’d thought, especially in Tokyo
Studio Ghibli releases new Howl’s Moving Castle goods that capture the magic from the anime movie
Studio Ghibli unleashes Turnip Head on the world
Criminals of Japan’s Edo Period Were Often Punished by Getting Face Tattoos
Domino’s releases new “Crispizzaburger” in Japan
One of Tokyo’s most useful subway lines for travelers is about to get more convenient
Japanese vending machines now sell pearl jewellery
-
