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Japanese soccer fans show excellent manners as World Cup opens[Pics, video]

Chants and headbands aren’t the only tradition supporters of Japan’s sports teams bring with them when attending events overseas.The World Cup is underway, and while Japan always gets excited when it has a team or players in an international sports contest, it doesn’t seem like the hype is quite as palpable this time around. Part of that might be due to the Japanese men’s team not looking quite as competitive as they did a few tournaments ago, and the booming popularity of baseball in Japan thes

Studio Ghibli adds My Neighbour Totoro futon bedding to its anime store in Japan

Famous character plays strawberry thief in this new bedtime adventure.Studio Ghibli’s 1988 animated feature film My Neighbour Totoro is not unlike a bedtime story. There’s the mysterious forest setting, magical character encounters and a story arc that ends with a happily-ever-after, so when you fall asleep, any dreams you have are likely to be filled with fun adventures.▼ If that’s the kind of slumber you want for your child, then you’ll want to take a look at Studio Ghi

Studio Ghibli store Donguri Republic announces opening of first-ever store in America

Giant Totoro heads across the Pacific as Ghibli specialty shop opens up in California.For Studio Ghibli fans, visiting Donguri Kyowakoku, a.k.a. Donguri Republic, is a must while traveling in Japan. The Ghibli specialty shop is filled with an amazing array of merch, and in addition to the expected Totoro and Catbus plushies and keychains they also have items such as No Face soy sauce dispensers, Calcifer lanterns, and other creatively cute interior and fashion items.Actually, visiting the store

Reinvented traditional Japanese hearths may be coming to a restaurant near you

Toss another shrimp on the rotating irori forged in an ancient kiln town!Cooking with an open fire is a rapidly growing trend among high-end restaurants in Japan, and that gives way to all kinds of experiential dining concepts and new flavors. It’s also great news for traditional craftspeople in Japan who suddenly have new opportunities to sell their finely forged wares.One such business in the field of traditional Japanese hearths called “irori” is Osaka-based Chirori. In the spirit of creating

Japan’s Pokémon Slowpoke Train goes on hiatus, but a mini version could be yours to own

With the full-scale train needing to take a break, toymaker Takara Tomy is here to pick up the Slowpoke slack.Much like how every Pokémon fan has their favorite Pocket Monster, so too do various parts of Japan have special relationships with certain species. In the case of Kagawa, that special relationship is with Slowpoke, who’s become such an active goodwill ambassador for the prefecture that he was briefly named governor.Aside from his brief political career, other highlights of the Slowpoke/

Japanese Sakuranbo Mochi goes viral online with millions of views, but is it worth the hype?

Seasonal fruit gets a Japanese makeover, but only for a very limited time.When it comes to high-value, affordable sweets, Japanese chain Chateraise is one of the true champions of the dessert world. Known for low prices and a wide range of goods, covering everything from Western sweets, to Japanese confections, ice cream, bread, and even alcohol, Chateraise represents great value for money, and is incredibly popular throughout the country.Right now the chain has become even more popular, thanks

When is miso ramen not miso ramen? When it’s the new ramen at one of Japan’s top beef bowl chains

Sukiya serves up a unique interpretation of miso ramen.Along with Yoshinoya and Matsuya, Sukiya is one of Japan’s big-three gyudon/beef bowl chains. But while Sukiya has always been a great place to grab a bowl of beef over rice, as of this month it’s also a place where you can get ramen…kind of.At the start of June, Sukiya added three different ramen options to its menu, and sure enough, when we paid a visit to our local branch we found them on the touch-screen order panel.The らーめん part o

Japanese university welcomes birth of baby deer on campus, president waives entrance exam[Videos]

Educator in Nara’s most famous deer town fast tracks admission to institute of higher learning.Ordinarily, there are three major paths to university admission in Japan. The first is taking and passing the school’s entrance exam. Sitting for an interview and winning over the admissions board is another. The third method, being admitted in recognition of outstanding abilities in athletics, the arts, or other respected fields, is less common, but still a possibility.However, the president of Nara P

Mos Burger adds Kandy Tea Milk to the menu and Japanese social media is here for it

A milk tea so milky it’s called Tea Milk.Milk teas are incredibly popular in Japan, but now there’s one so milky it’s causing a stir online, with Japanese social media lighting up with praise for it. Exclusive to Japanese-born fast food chain Mos Burger, this new drink goes by the name “Tea Milk“, because the dairy component is so strong – the ratio of tea to milk is said to be 1:9 – that it’s more like having tea with your milk, rather than milk with your tea

Tokyo’s life-size Gundam is getting a new look before its end-of-summer removal

Farewell celebration includes giveaways to help fans look a little more like Gundam themselves.We’re sadly down to the last few months before it’ll be time to say goodbye to Tokyo’s life-size Gundam statue. The 19.7-meter (64.6-foot) tall RX-0 Unicorn Gundam, which has been standing stalwartly outside the Diver City shopping center in the city’s Odaiba district, will be removed at the end of August, vacating the plaza it’s been located in since September of 2017.But a special sendoff is planned,

300-tonne hose washes up on Japanese shore

Anybody lose 150 meters of gigantic hose by any chance?The ocean is a large and mysterious place where powerful forces of nature dictate global weather patterns and lifeforms still unknown to humans thrive. You really never know what you’re liable to find down there until it washes up on a beach near you.Earlier this month, residents of the town of Shiga in Ishikawa Prefecture were surprised to find a massive stretch of hose roughly two meters (6.6 feet) in diameter, 150 meters (164 feet) long,

Japan now has “edible cat fur” for people who really love felines

When you like a cat so much you want to eat its fur.Cats are beloved the world over, but here in Japan they really love their cats. It’s a love so strong it’s given birth to everything from stickers that smell like cat beliies through to sunscreen that dispenes itself in the shape of a cat paw, and now, dear reader, let us introduce you to “edible cat fur“.Known officially as “Delicious Cat Fur” by its creators, Necoichi, a company that specialises in cat products,

7-Eleven’s new green tea rice ball and sweets are only available in Japan’s top tea-growing area

And no, that’s not Kyoto.With green tea being the most culturally significant drink in Japan, and Kyoto being considered the heart of the country’s traditional culture, it’s easy to make the assumption that Kyoto must be where most of Japan’s green tea is grown. However, while Kyoto Prefecture does produce Japan’s most famous high-end matcha, the honor of Japan’s number-one green tea grower, in terms of amount grown, actually goes to Shizuoka Prefecture.So for its newest batch of special green t

Pachinko machines get new life and become big hit in Japanese assisted care facility

Better living through chrome-plated balls.A lot of negative things have been said about pachinko over the years. The pinball-like game’s parlors are noisy, garish blights on communities that encourage quasi-gambling and rudely told me to go away when I tried to use their free bicycle pump a few times. But they do have their positive points as well. For example, they weren’t nearly the vectors of contagious disease that everyone thought they were.Now the game is also changing the lives of people

7-Eleven Japan releases new “mix-and-drink” matcha latte… that comes with a risk of choking

A new style of Japanese dessert revolutionises convenience store sweets, but it comes with a safety warning.You’ll find a lot of matcha lattes in Japan, but over at 7-Eleven you’ll find one that comes with a risk of choking. It’s a drink so hazardous it comes with a safety warning, and it’s all due to one ingredient and the way it’s designed to be consumed.The latte is part of a new style of dessert called “Mazemaze Sweets“, which takes its name from the

Universal Studios Japan is giving Frieren anime fans the chance to make unforgettable memories.

Universal Studios Japan made our Frieren fan cry, and she’s very OK with that.The original concept for Universal Studios was to give theme park visitors a taste of Hollywood movie magic, but many of the biggest draws at Universal Studios Japan are its Japanese video game and anime partnerships. The latest entry into what’s collectively called Universal Cool Japan just kicked off and it gives fans a chance to step into, and walk around in, the world of fantasy anime Frieren: Beyond Journey’

7-Eleven Japan has a new Creamy Iced Cafe Latte that’s a hit on social media

How to buy the new viral convenience store coffee that locals are raving about.Ever since 7-Eleven introduced coffee-making machines at its branches in 2013, the chain has cemented itself in the convenience store landscape as the place to go for coffee. What became known as the “Seven Cafe” brand soon expanded to include other products like freshly brewed tea and smoothies, but now its coffee is back in the spotlight, after the chain released a super creamy version that locals have b

Sanrio Hotel Floria isn’t actually a hotel, but it’s still a must visit for fans traveling in Tokyo

Hello Kitty and friends imagined what their perfect hotel would be like, and they’re inviting you in.Sanrio fans planning to visit Tokyo later this summer will want to make sure to include the Hotel Floria in their plans. You’ll notice though, that we’re not saying that you should stay at the Hotel Floria, because it’s not actually a hotel, at least not in the traditional people-can-spend-the-night-there sort of way.Instead, Sanrio Characters Exhibition Hotel Floria Tokyo is an immersive art eve

Lawson transforms convenience store food with massive katsu burger and an insane curry bread

Japanese convenience store food, like you’ve never seen it before. If you’re looking for value-for-money on your next convenience store run, then Lawson is the place to go right now, because the chain is holding a special “Super Happy Too Much! Challenge” campaign, where select products are being upsized for free.This is the second week of the campaign, which brings us a new lineup of 10 larger-than-usual products, and the standouts for us turned out to be two products in the bread aisle.▼

Luxury houseplant fraud leads to arrest of Takamatsu man

Grand theft arbor.In this age of social media, it can be easy to get swept up in the lives of others and feel a pang of jealousy for those who have nicer things. Nevertheless, when it comes time to choose a plant to spruce up your home, it’s important to get one that fits your budget rather than splurging on the kind of high-end greenery all the famous celebrities are flaunting these days.But for one 26-year-old man in the city of Takamatsu, Kagawa Prefecture, the allure of a really nice l