25 August 2019
Japan's government has announced that ballistic missiles are believed to have been launched from North Korea on Saturday morning. (NHK)
Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Kono has summoned South Korea's ambassador and lodged a protest at Seoul's decision to end an intelligence-sharing agreement between the two countries. (NHK)
The US Department of Defense has expressed its "strong concern" and "disappointment" at South Korea's decision to terminate its intelligence-sharing pact with Japan. (NHK)
Japan's capital is set to lay claim to the country's tallest building in 2023, when developer Mori Building aims to complete a 330-meter tower as part of a major redevelopment.
(Nikkei)
Japan's space agency said Thursday its Hayabusa2 space probe returning to Earth late next year will drop its capsule containing asteroid samples in Australia's southern desert. (Kyodo)
Aug 23
Kanagawa Prefectural Police have arrested a woman and a man for allegedly introducing a teenage girl to men for prostitution last year, reports the Sankei Shimbun (Aug. 21). (tokyoreporter.com) Aug 23
A man affiliated with Japan's largest crime syndicate was shot Wednesday in Kobe apparently in connection with a feud among factions of the Yamaguchi-gumi organization in the western Japan city and surrounding areas, police said. (Japan Today) Aug 22
Tokyo Metropolitan Police have arrested a 50-year-old man over the alleged abduction of a middle school girl in order to molest her last month, reports TBS News (Aug. 21). (tokyoreporter.com) Aug 22
It has always been a mystery why Summer Sonic is not held in the relative cool of June or July, but at the very height of summer, when the August sun beats down upon the festival’s outdoor stages or typhoons power through the country, threatening disruption and cancellations to the event’s packed schedule. (Japan Times) Aug 21
Japan's Prince Hisahito has paid a courtesy call on the King and Queen of Bhutan. (NHK) [more society news…] [society blogs…]
Aug 23
Japan's capital is set to lay claim to the country's tallest building in 2023, when developer Mori Building aims to complete a 330-meter tower as part of a major redevelopment.
(Nikkei) Aug 23
Japan will include sharing activities like Airbnb-style vacation rentals in gross domestic product calculations as early as fiscal 2020, Nikkei has learned, as the government seeks a better picture of the growing sector. (Nikkei) Aug 21
Japan's current bubble tea craze has sent tapioca imports soaring to meet the demand for the drink made with cold milk and tapioca balls. (Asahi) Aug 21
Japan has approved shipments of a high-tech material to South Korea for the second time since imposing export curbs last month, two sources told Reuters news agency, ahead of talks between government officials this week to resolve a bitter dispute stemming from their wartime past. (aljazeera.com) Aug 21
Up to 3.41 million people, accounting for about 5 percent of Japan’s total labor force, are estimated to be working as freelancers, according to a recent survey conducted by the government. (Japan Times) [more business news…] [business blogs…]
Aug 23
Japan's Foreign Minister Taro Kono has summoned South Korea's ambassador and lodged a protest at Seoul's decision to end an intelligence-sharing agreement between the two countries. (NHK) Aug 23
The US Department of Defense has expressed its "strong concern" and "disappointment" at South Korea's decision to terminate its intelligence-sharing pact with Japan. (NHK) Aug 22
The South Korean government says it will not extend an intelligence-sharing pact with Japan. Bilateral relations are tense over issues including trade and wartime labor. (NHK) Aug 22
Japan's two largest opposition parties said Tuesday they will form a joint group in both houses of the Diet in an attempt to challenge the ruling bloc's dominance. (Japan Today) Aug 21
Immigration authorities revoked a record 832 visas in 2018, more than double the figure of a year earlier, Justice Ministry data showed Monday. (Japan Times) Aug 23
To boost the number of male employees taking paternity leave and promote female participation in the workforce, Japan's labor ministry decided to increase government subsidies for companies whose employees do so, sources close to the matter said Thursday. (Kyodo) Aug 08
With a rising number of sexual violence cases on and off campus in recent times, some university students have begun signature-collection campaigns to petition their schools to deliver safer learning environments. (Japan Times) Aug 03
The overwhelming majority of middle and high school students in Japan are required to wear uniforms, and so it’s no surprise that Japanese schools tend to have lots of other rules governing students’ personal appearance. One that’s been attracting controversy in recent years, though, is a requirement at some schools that all students must have black hair. (Japan Today) Aug 02
Third-year students in Japan’s junior high schools struggle with speaking and writing in English, according to the results of this year’s nationwide achievement test conducted by the education ministry. (Japan Times) Aug 02
Japan’s Immigration Services Agency said Thursday it will toughen eligibility standards for Japanese-language schools that can accept foreign students, effective Sept. 1.
(Japan Times) [more education news…] [education blogs…]
Aug 23
Japan's space agency said Thursday its Hayabusa2 space probe returning to Earth late next year will drop its capsule containing asteroid samples in Australia's southern desert. (Kyodo) Aug 16
People in Japan hoping to predict the next big earthquake should ignore mysterious deep-sea fish after experts said rare sightings of the creatures on the country's beaches did not, as some had believed, foretell a seismic calamity. (theguardian.com) Aug 08
Takehiko Fujita wouldn’t be able to do his job selling eye drops and pain relievers without his pocket translator.
(Japan Times) Aug 07
Well, there's no denying it any more: the size of Japanese mammaries have become larger. We know this thanks to a survey by lingerie manufacture Triumph International Japan, which recently made public the results of its research. (Japan Today) Jul 28
A small experimental rocket launched by a Japanese aerospace startup failed shortly after takeoff Saturday as its onboard computer detected an abnormality and shut off the engine. It then crashed into the sea. (Japan Times) [more sci-tech news…] [sci-tech blogs…]
Aug 23
Defending champions Naomi Osaka and Novak Djokovic are the No. 1 seeds for singles play in the U.S. Open, it was announced on Wednesday. (Japan Times) Aug 22
With the Rugby World Cup kicking off Sept. 20 in Japan, communities across the country are preparing for the 500,000-plus visitors expected to attend.
(Nikkei) Aug 08
The organizing committee for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games said Wednesday it will sell premium ticket packages including upscale food service and admission to the opening and closing ceremonies, with a top price tag of 6.35 million yen ($60,000). (Kyodo) Aug 08
Naomi Osaka almost topped the Forbes’ highest-earning female athlete list, slotting in at No. 2 behind fellow tennis star Serena Williams in the annual ranking of the top 10 paid sportswomen. (Japan Times) Aug 05
Hinako Shibuno, a rookie on Japan's LPGA tour, captured the Women's British Open on Sunday, becoming the second Japanese golfer to win an overseas major event. (Kyodo) Aug 22
A Shinkansen bullet train made an emergency stop after one of its doors opened while speeding through northeastern Japan.
(NHK) Aug 22
The number of South Korean tourists visiting Japan fell last month to its lowest in nearly a year as visitors canceled travel plans amid deteriorating relations between the neighbors, Japanese government data showed on Wednesday. (Japan Times) Aug 21
Korean Air says it will suspend more flights from South Korea to Japan, due to lower travel demand amid worsening bilateral ties between the two countries.
(NHK) Aug 21
People who traveled in Japan by rail, air and road decreased from a year earlier during the Bon summer holidays due to a heavy storm. (Japan Times) Aug 19
Japan's government is promoting private lodgings for tourists who will visit during the Olympic and Paralympic games next summer. (NHK) [more travel news…] [travel blogs…]
Aug 21
You've seen the YouTube vids and the Insta pics. Now it's your turn to be covered in adorable wild bunnies. So how do you actually get to Okunoshima, the “Rabbit Island”? And what can you do once you're there?
Japan's Rabbit Island
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...Aug 21
On my last trip to Japan, I queued with my friends Yoshie and Tatsu at Toridai, a decades-old food store in the Jujo Ginza shotengai (shopping street) in northern Tokyo. There's always a line at Toridai. It's a beloved neighborhood institution sel...
Aug 20
If you want to get the benefit of doing part-time work at multiple schools, when visa renewal rolls around you might want to self-sponsor your visa. But how do you do that?
It's hard to know what to do if you want to sponsor your own visa, as the...
Aug 20
The July 21 election revealed an exciting trend in Japanese politics—28 women were elected to the upper house of Parliament, tying the record set in 2016. Though women now only make up 23 percent of seats, this is the highest number of female po...
Aug 20
Hiroshima is known for one thing, and is on most people's Japan itinerary—but besides visiting the museums, what can you do there? Our Hiroshima guide will outline all that there is to do, see and eat for a full day of discovery.
While Hirosh...Aug 20
This ukiyo-e by Utagawa Hiroshige I (1797-1958) shows ‘Ashida' from his series ‘The Sixty-Nine Stations of the Kisokaidô' (木曾街道六拾九次之内 あし田). The woodblock-print was made about 1835-38. The depicted road was one of t...
Aug 19
Nothing lifts your spirits like a bouquet of fresh flowers, but did you know these pretty petals also pack a nutritional punch? You probably already know that certain types of flowers are indeed edible, from lavender and roses and even lesser-know...
Aug 18
Anyone with an Instagram or YouTube account can become a celebrity these days. And sometimes you don't even need to be human.
In fact, Japan has something of a tradition of turning animals into famous pop culture figures. This is especially the c...
Aug 16
A number of prepaid SIM cards are available for short-term visitors to Japan.
You land in Tokyo and ride the train into the big city. Maybe you stand in the middle of Shibuya's Scramble Crossing, delaying traffic while you take a selfie. Or you h...Aug 16
As we are increasingly relying on technical innovations to solve some of society's most complex problems, technological advancements such as artificial intelligence are contributing to new, modern modes of transportation, especially to enhancing...