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Studio Ghibli releases new anime envelopes in Japan with interactive features
Stationery goods allow you to animate the characters. Studio Ghibli is never short of clever ideas when it comes to character creation and storyline hooks, and that ingenuity is also evident in the official merchandise sold through affiliated retail chain Donguri Kyowakoku.With January on the horizon, the store is preparing a special range of New Year’s goods to help celebrate Japan’s most important holiday season, and one brand new offering is the Mado Tsuki Pochibukuro. “Mad
Duolingo to open first pop-up store Duomart in Japan for a very limited time next month
The store will be stylized after a typical Japanese convenience store and will feature goods of the beloved green owl mascot character and more. U.S.-based free language learning app Duolingo is about to expand its horizons by opening its first pop-up store in Japan called Duomart in Tokyo’s trendy Shibuya neighborhood. However, it will only be open for a very limited time between December 18 and 30, making it a shopping destination you’ll need to get to before the country more or le
Evangelion getting live-action kabuki adaptation, Shinji and Kaworu actors announced
Eva’s special friends take the stage for a special event at series 30th anniversary celebration.In February, the Evangelion:30+ ; 30th Anniversary of Evangelion fan event is set to take place at the Yokohama Arena indoor stadium in Yokohama, about half an hour south of downtown Tokyo. Some might say that the numbering is slightly off, seeing as how the Evangelion anime TV series premiered in 1995, making 2026 the 31st anniversary, but the TV series’ original run ended in 1996, so maybe that’s th
Japanese train company is letting fans buy its actual ticket gates for their homes
Sotetsu’s would-be scrap is going to be someone else’s treasure.Sometimes, when a train is being taken out of service in Japan, the rail operator will sell of parts of it as memorabilia. For rail fans, owning even something simple like a hand strap or destination plate can serve as a keepsake of a special trip they took on the train, or be a symbol of their local pride if it comes from the train they commuted on every morning.But Sotetsu, also known as Sagami Railway Company, had something a lit
Ikea Japan’s matcha sweets fair is back, and with all-new green tea desserts!
Matcha Fair is now underway at Ikea Japan with brand-new green tea sweets for the winter holiday season.In Japan, Ikea is arguably as popular as a place to fill your stomach with something nice at an affordable price as it is to do the same to furnish your home. Since its opening, the chain’s cafeteria and refreshment stands have been earning fans for their Swedish meatballs and ice cream, and right now is an especially great time to stop by an Ikea Japan branch for a bite to eat, since they’ve
Wakayama senior uses AI to identify wild mushrooms, gets poisoned shortly after
There’s mushroom for improvement.AI is certainly handy for a lot of things. For example, anytime I want to know what a life-sized pick-up truck made out of orange peels looks like, I can get it visualized in seconds. But I’d stop short at using it for anything important involving health or money, mostly because everyone knows it would be impossible to get orange peels of sheet metal size to realistically build a full-sized pick-up. An AI with true intelligence would understand that i
Hello Kitty says hello to Godzilla in new kaiju/Sanrio crossover collaboration
The King of the Monsters is the newest friend of the queen of cuteness.If someone makes friends quickly, easily, and joyously, we call that person a social butterfly…but maybe we should call them a social Kitty instead? After all, it’s hard to think of someone who expands her social circle with more energy and aplomb than Hello Kitty, who just within this autumn alome has been hanging out with the casts of the Evangelion and Sonic the Hedgehog franchises, as well as Japanese sign language
Sushi passed up by ramen in survey of foreign tourists’ favorite thing to eat in Japan, but why?
Foodies today might be the dishes in a very different light than they did a generation ago as sushi now sits in the number-three rank.The ramen restaurant industry is booming in Japan these days, with analysts estimating the size of the market to soon hit 7.9 billion yen (roughly US$52.65 million). That represents a growth of about 60 percent since 10 years ago,Ramen has been rising in popularity among pretty much all demographics. That includes inbound foreign tourists as well, and as proof of
Studio Ghibli adds “komorebi” Totoro plush toys to its anime merchandise range in Japan
The Small, Medium and Large Totoros finally get their time in the sun. Last month, Studio Ghiblispecialty retail chain Donguri Kyowakokuannounced the grand reveal of its “Komorebi Series“, a collection of plush toys that plays upon the charming word “komorebi“, or “dappled sunlight“.The range shines a light on Ghibli characters that tend to appear out of the shadows, but there was one type of character missing from the lineup: the Totoros from My Neighbour To
Is China’s don’t-go-to-Japan warning affecting tourist crowds in Tokyo’s Asakusa neighborhood?
With a diplomatic spat prompting a warning from the Chinese government, we go to see if it’s had any effect on Tokyo’s most popular historical neighborhood.On November 14, the Chinese government issued a travel advisory calling on its citizens to refrain from traveling to Japan. The condensed version of the spat is that Japanese prime minister Sanae Takaichi insinuated that, were China to attempt to occupy Taiwan through military force, Japan would provide aid to Taiwan in resisting an invasion.
Here are the top ten foodie factory tours for the fall throughout Japan
Take a bite out of one of these popular places where you can see the behind-the-scenes manufacturing process of some of your favorite foods in Japan.Japanese travel site Jalan recently published its ranking of the top ten fall foodie factory tours throughout Japan. The results were compiled from a survey of 1,050 respondents in their 20s-50s from all 47 prefectures of Japan. When you’ve exhausted your cravings from Jalan’s previous list of the top ten most beautiful travel spots for
Awesome jumbo PlayStation 1 and 2 cushions are warm fuzzy nostalgia that has to be won, not bought
You’ll need skills at a different kind of game to get your hands on these video game plushies.There’s a lot to like about the design of the original PlayStation. Not only did Sony’s bet that the future of gaming would be polygonal and disc-based position the company for nearly instant success as it entered the video game console arena, the PS1’s form factor was pretty much perfect. A mix of hi-tech flourishes with invitingly soft lines to its disc lid and buttons, plus a playful splash of color
Japanese government considering raising foreign resident visa renewal fees by 400 percent or more
Proponents say they want to use extra money to improve quality of life for foreign residents, strengthen programs to find and deport illegal residents.Recently, the Japanese government indicated that it will likely be raising departure taxes by a considerable amount, requiring international travelers to pay more when flying out of Japan. Now it looks like it’s going to cost more to remain in the country too for Japan’s foreign residents.Currently, the Japanese government’s Immigration Services A
Chiba man arrested for putting urine-filled tea bottle on convenience store shelf
Suspect said he did it as a prank while stressed.It is sometimes said in Japan that if you ever find a drink just sitting in the bottom of a vending machine without anyone around, do not pick it up because it might have been injected with poison. Even though it sounds like an urban legend along the lines of razors in Halloween apples, incidents of drinks injected with poison actually have occurred in the past.It’s also important to check the caps of bottled drinks and make sure those littl
Sanrio lucky bag gives you cute My Melody and Kumori merch, all your money back in burgers coupons
If you like Sanrio and hamburgers, there’s really no reason not to snag this fukubukuro.With November winding down, it’s time to start getting serious about making plans for the New Year’s season. Most important of all, of course, is sorting out which lucky bags/fukubukuro to get, and Mos Burger is making a compelling case for picking theirs by teaming up with not one, but two Sanrio stars.My Melody and Kuromi, who respectively celebrating the 50th and 20th anniversaries of their debuts, are len
All-you-can-eat oboro tofu restaurant in Kyoto is a guilt-free experience
What the heck is oboro tofu, and why can you eat so much of it without feeling sick?Just seeing or hearing the words “all-you-can-eat” can make your heart beat faster. The freedom to eat to your heart’s content makes for an exciting dining experience, but the only downside is it’s usually limited to certain types of food like yakiniku (grilled meat), sweets, and Western-style buffets, with traditional Japanese foods, apart from sushi, being hard to find.In Kyoto, however,
Have you ever noticed how much Totoro looks like New Year’s mochi? This plushie’s designers did, and the result is adorable!
Spirited Away’s No Face also gets into the Japanese New Year’s spirit with a special kadomatsu.Traditionally, Japanese homes are decorated with something called kagami mochi at New Year’s. A stack of two thick mochi rice cake discs, usually with a mikan (mandarin orange on top, the kagami mochi symbolizes prosperity in the year to come, and the cakes are customarily broken up and eaten on January 11.The “kagami” part of kagami mochi is the Japanese word for mirror, since the round shape of the r
The 10 best day trips from downtown Tokyo【Survey】
10 great getaways from Japan’s crowded capital, all within two hours of Tokyo Station.With so much to see and do in downtown Tokyo, it’s no wonder that so many travelers choose it as their base when visiting Japan, and as Japan’s most populous city, it’s a popular choice for residents too, of course. However, there are times when the Tokyo city center can start to feel a little too hustling and bustling, or just general wanderlust starts to kick in, and you find yourself craving a day trip out o
7-Eleven Japan’s aged brown rice onigiri reveals a different side to convenience store food
If you’re worried about additives in convenience store food, this rice ball set is for you. When you eat out in Japan on a regular basis, you might find yourself looking for something lighter and simpler to counteract all the rich and salty meals. That’s where our newly established “Light Flavour Gourmet Exploration Team” steps in, with gourmet food finds for those seeking out lighter, healthier options.▼ For this instalment, the team would like to introduce the “N
Green onion baths return to Japanese bathhouse to celebrate Labor Day
You know, you really have been working hard, so why not treat yourself to a dip in a bath full of negi?In Japan, there’s a custom of putting foodstuffs into your bathwater. This isn’t an everyday practice, but the occasional addition of fruits or herbs to the bath is said to aid relaxation, beautify the skin, and provide a soothing aroma.Some of the most common special baths of this type are orange, apple, or yuzu citrus fruit baths, the last of which is pictured above. However, one bathhouse in