We spent a night out on the town in Tokyo’s Shibuya this Halloween weekend to grab some incredible photos of cosplaying revelers.
pictures
We’re guessing that this is the only place where you can find a yukata featuring a Loch Ness Monster design!
Proving once again that anyone can get better as long as they practice, practice, practice!
Having 159,000 followers when you’re just eight months old has to be some kind of record, right?
When lying in bed at night, have you ever heard a weird noise — a creaking floorboard or the rustling of a piece of paper? Has food ever mysteriously disappeared? While it very well could have been a ghost, it could have just as easily been a ninja-cat hiding in the nooks and crannies of your home!
Some ninja-cats are more skilled than others, living in apartments and stealing food completely undetected by the owners. Others, however, are not so stealthy and occasionally get caught on camera. Observe!
If you’ve ever been to Thailand, you know that it can get really hot. It’s enough to make anyone look longingly at the nearest fountain, pond or puddle. Well, add a fur coat to that equation and I get why this Thai dog decided he wasn’t going to let a few guppies get in the way of a quick, cooling dip!
It will come as a surprise to many that the biggest online shopping day in the world is not Cyber Monday, but November 11.
China’s Singles Day, held on a date made up of auspicious number ones, has evolved into an online shopping bonanza for retailers (remember the guy who chose to declare his love by buying 99 new iPhones?). And Singles Day spending keeps going up and up: this year, Chinese consumers spent a record-breaking 57.1 billion yuan (US $9.3 billion) with Alibaba Group in 24 hours.
Not everyone was happy with their purchases, though, as disgruntled shoppers took to social networking sites to post sad selfies of clothes that weren’t quite as fabulous as they were expecting.
Just in case you haven’t had a dose of creepy in a while, we bring this to you to keep you sober and careful in the future.
Being an adult female and an avid reader of news, I’ve come to realize over the years that there are a lot of creepy people in this world of ours. Within the past two years in Japan alone, for example, two stories that made headlines involved a man who was arrested for throwing cups of urine on women and another for kidnapping a girl to raise as his “ideal wife.” And now, another similarly creepy case has come to light, with four men being arrested in Tokyo for activities that I would rank pretty high on the creepy scale.
Love it or hate it, every country has their own take on sushi. While some of the creations, such as the California roll, are fairly tame and are now accepted as part of a normal sushi menu, we’ve also seen some of the odder versions out there, such as Hong Kong’s ‘killer sushi’, Nutella sushi in France, and my personal favorite–the absolutely adorable but sadly inedible cat sushi!
The quintessential component of sushi is vinegared rice, so while these creations can’t technically be called sushi, they’ve definitely taken a stylistic cue from the rolled shape of makizushi. And we have to admit, some of those fillings do look tasty…
Which of the following creations do you find most intriguing?
You might have seen something—or someone?!—like the guy above prowling in the moonlight, but I’m afraid he’s not proof of the supernatural, he’s just a new breed of cat called a Lykoi, or “wolf” in Greek. Of course, most people are just calling the breed what it looks like: a werewolf cat!
This winter has seen some astonishingly low temps and heavy snow even in places that normally enjoy mild winter weather. In fact, the chilly weather has even stopped one finicky feline from pursuing her favorite pursuit: meowing to be let out and then meowing to be let back in.
While Japan is certainly home to a wide variety of animals, from adorable Shiba Inu to emotive puppies, one creature you don’t see too often is the horse. Sure, they’re out in the countryside doing horse stuff–eating, pooping, and running like the wind–but it’s not like you see a horse just hanging out in front of convenience stores. I mean, seriously, this isn’t The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.
Or is it??
When setting up shop around famous landmarks, it never hurts to blend in. Especially in Japan, where tourism accounts for roughly five percent of the GDP. You wouldn’t want to destroy the tourist attraction by ruining the ambiance, right?
On the other hand, there’s not really very much that’s “traditional” about Family Mart convenience stores, so we had to wonder what kind of disguise would get slapped on their store near Ise Grand Shrine…
The city of Dandong lies on the border of China and North Korea separated by the 900-meter wide Yalu River. Taking the China-North Korea Friendship Bridge would take you right into Sinuiju, North Korea, if you have the right permission.
However, word has it that there’s a place upstream of the Yalu where it is only three or four meters across. The place is known as Yibu Kua (“a step across”) due to the fact that one could easily step into the other country by walking across the stones in the river. RocketNews24‘s Kuzo went to check it out.
















New Japanese overnight train coming to connect Tokyo with Tohoku in sleep-travel style
East Japan Railway announces plans to abolish magnetic-strip tickets
7-Eleven Japan joins the craze for Korean Gamja Cheese Balls
Japan’s cheap beef bowl chain goes upscale with Matsuya Premium, but is it worth the higher price?
Anne Hathaway creates PR frenzy in Japan after mentioning Tottori in Devil Wears Prada interview
Shakey’s Japan creates matcha mochi, Kyoto fish, and Kansai Chili Con Carne pizzas
New Square Enix Cafe reveals Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Nier, and Fullmetal Alchemist menu items
Date handsome cockroaches in a new dating sim from one of Japan’s leading pest control companies
Bears appear at one of Kyoto Prefecture’s most popular tourist spots[Video]
Super Mario Galaxy Happy Meal toys now available at McDonald’s Japan
Even at twice regular Daiso price, this handy item is still great for summer travel in Japan
Ghibli’s No Face continues to demonstrate his generous character growth by dispensing soy sauce
Japanese rice cooker recipe gives us a tasty new way to enjoy vegetables and wieners
New Tokyo sweets shop offers 648 different mochi ice cream dumpling combinations
Family Mart commits “reverse fraud” in new Giant All-Star Festival, and we couldn’t be happier
Colour Hunting: The hot new street photography trend changing how we see Japan
Japanese convenience store shows us how to dress for the rainy season
Body of missing American college student found in Kyoto mountains
Tokyo’s life-size Gundam anime mecha statue will be removed this summer
Ichiraku Ramen-inspired ramen sets from Naruto anime pay homage to Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura
Kanji ice cream becomes a sell-out hit in Japan
Uniqlo reveals third round of massive 100-year-anniversary manga T-shirts for Jump’s Shueisha
New official Ghibli anime food cookbook will teach you how to make Ponyo’s ramen and more
Japanese convenience store Lawson launches new “mini supermarket” chain, L Minimart
Japan’s real-world Pokémon hot spring’s first photos are here![Photos]
Kyoto public junior high school becomes first in Japan with a hoodie school uniform
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
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】
Japan reportedly adding Japanese language skill requirement to most common foreigner work visa
Japan’s 5.3 million beautiful Hitachi Nemophila flowers are now in full bloom[Photos]
Pokémon and Ikea Japan cross over into each other’s worlds with collaboration events
Shakey’s Japan creates matcha mochi, Kyoto fish, and Kansai Chili Con Carne pizzas
New Square Enix Cafe reveals Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Nier, and Fullmetal Alchemist menu items
Date handsome cockroaches in a new dating sim from one of Japan’s leading pest control companies
Bears appear at one of Kyoto Prefecture’s most popular tourist spots[Video]
Super Mario Galaxy Happy Meal toys now available at McDonald’s Japan
7-Eleven Japan reinvents convenience store fruit sandwiches with new salty pink sakura peach variety
Starbucks adds new Fruit Gummy sweets to stores in Japan
Trigun Legacy Cafe coming to two Japanese cities this summer to salute series’ original form
Family Mart commits “reverse fraud” in new Giant All-Star Festival, and we couldn’t be happier
Dragon Quest King Slime eye drops fly off shelves in less than a day
7-Eleven Japan releases a chocolate chip sandwich… that tastes like ice cream
Burger King Japan offering all-you-can-eat quad-burgers, whoever eats the most gets more in December
A Japanese toast sandwich remix: The toasted rice rice ball[SoraKitchen]
New Tokyo sweets shop offers 648 different mochi ice cream dumpling combinations