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Ice cream with Japanese dashi kelp stock shocks us enough to try it【Taste test】
A combination we’d never imagined, but is it one we’ll want to forget?The stock called dashi is one of the most ubiquitous ingredients in Japanese cooking. Made from kombu (kelp) and katsuobushi (bonito flakes), dashi can be found in miso soup, the broths for udon and soba noodles, and even as an ingredient in non-soups such as oyakodon (chicken and egg bowl) and gyudon (beef bowl).However, you usually won’t find dashi in ice cream. We say “usually,” though, because ice cream with dashi in it is
Rentschler Biopharma further expands its services in Japan and South Korea and will attend BioProcess International Asia
Members of Management and Business Development will be at BioProcess International Asia in Kyoto, Japan, October 20-22, 2025; Company will introduce the Rentschler Expression Plat ...
Almost arrested in Tokyo: Hentai Kamen cosplay leads to a brush with police in Shinjuku Ni-chome
Our boss tested the limits of Tokyo’s most liberated neighbourhood and was detained by police.Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ni-chome district is recognised as Japan’s most liberated and vibrant LGBTQ+ neighbourhood, and it’s an area that never sleeps, with an exciting vibe that lingers well into the morning. It’s a place where stories are born, myths are made…and our founder, Yoshio, was once almost arrested.The incident occurred eight years ago, when Yoshio was coaxed int
Starbucks celebrates Halloween with new Frappuccino, tea and drinkware in Japan
Join us as we find out if these new items live up to the hype.It’s not long now until Halloween…that is, unless you’re at Starbucks in Japan, where the festivities are already underway. At the centre of the celebrations is a special limited-edition beverage called the Acai Berry Frappuccino (730 yen [US$4.79]), which is dressed up to look like a mischievous black cat.▼ The chocolate ears make it seem like a cat is hiding out inside.The combination of cat ears and dark black and
Studio Ghibli releases cosy new anime socks to warm our toes and hearts this autumn
My Neighbour Totoro, Spirited Away, Howl’s Moving Castle and Kiki’s Delivery Service feature in this new collection.Now that the days are finally getting cooler, Studio Ghibli is here to keep our toes and hearts warm with a bumper new collection of socks featuring some of our favourite characters.With a wide variety of styles to suit your needs and preferences, it’ll be hard to choose just one pair to add to our sock drawer. Let’s take a look at everything available below
Hello Kitty Picnic Garden event comes to Tokyo’s swanky Roppongi district this month
Kitty-chan is celebrating her birthday in style.As we get deeper into autumn, picnicking opportunities usually start to dry up. What with the weather getting colder and the days shorter, it becomes tougher to plan one out and coordinate schedules with friends, and so oftentimes those picnic plans get pushed back to the following spring.However, this year’s picnic season isn’t quite over yet, and there’s an especially compelling invitation from none other than Hello Kitty.Coming October 29 to the
Ghibli Park making first update ever to its step-into-anime photo spots, some scenes going away
Hayao Miyazaki’s latest anime makes its photo spot debut, but a classic Castle in the Sky scene is bowing out.Ghibli Park isn’t a typical theme park. Instead of rides and parades, the focus is on art and atmosphere, with one of the biggest draws being Ghibli’s Grand Warehouse, which houses a variety of artistic artifacts and displays about how the famed studio creates its anime films.One of the highlights of the Warehouse is its Becoming Characters in Memorable Ghibli Scenes section, which invit
Studio Ghibli adds new Totoro and Spirited Away shirts to its GBL streetwear range in Japan
Maintain street cred with design details that true anime fans will appreciate. Studio Ghibli movies have wide-ranging appeal that covers pretty much all demographics in Japan, even hipster types who are more interested in cool streetwear than cutesy anime characters.This particular corner of the market is one the studio has been catering to with a special brand called “GBL“, which sells everything from cool skateboard clocks to L.L. Bean totes. Now, the focus on cool streetwear conti
Japanese hotel chain’s new service: A bed and pajamas for otaku travelers’ plushies
This oshi travel extra isn’t free, but that might be part of the point.One of the biggest changes in modern otaku-ism is how much more travel is involved. Anime and idol music used to be largely solitary, stay-at-home hobbies, but now you can easily fill your calendar with concerts, art exhibitions, meet-and-greets, and other fun fan events to travel to all across Japan.And if more otaku are traveling more often, Japanese hotel chain Toyoko Inn wants to make sure not only that they have a comfor
Non-Japanese babies make up more than 3 percent of births in Japan, a record high
Percentage is even higher in Tokyo and other areas attractive to foreign residents, and even then doesn’t tell the full story of how Japan is becoming more international.There are a number of reasons why Japan, for much of its history, has had a low percentage of non-ethnically Japanese residents. Island geography for one, plus that whole “close the country’s borders so no one gets in or out for a couple centuries” (with certain exceptions) thing that the shogunate tried. Even in the post
New Inuyasha figures are always adorably sitting, even if you don’t tell them “Osuwari!”【Pics】
You’ll still say it though, of course.The name of anime figure maker Mega House’s “Rukappu” line may sound like gibberish, but it’s actually a stylized riff on “look up.” Mega House’s designers realized that a lot of anime fans like to keep a figure of their favorite character on their desk, but that usually means you’re getting an awkward view of just the top of the character’s head. To address that, Rukappu figures are crafted so that they’re looking back up at you from a sitting, or osuwari,
Where are the most appealing parts of Japan? Prefecture survey investigates
A familiar place sits at the top.Japan might look like a tiny country on the world map, but zoom in and you’ll find that it’s made up of 47 different prefectures, each one with their own appeal. But which prefecture is the most appealing?That’s a question that Tokyo-based Brand Research Institute asks every year, in its annual Prefectural Attractiveness Ranking. This year’s data was compiled through an online survey conducted in June and July which asked 90 questions about people’s perceptions o
Why do tourists eat noodles with a green onion instead of chopsticks in this Edo town?
Charming old post town serves up a culinary tradition you won’t find anywhere else in Japan. If you’ve ever wanted to step back in time to the Japanese feudal era, when merchants, pilgrims, and samurai stopped in picturesque post towns while travelling along major routes, then you’ll want to make the journey to the mountainous area of Minami-Aizu in Fukushima Prefecture.Here, you’ll find Ouchijuku (“大内宿”), a post-town with a beautifully preserved streetscape
Studio Ghibli releases new Gobelin tote bags that capture the beauty of two anime films
These totes are like works of wearable art. It can be hard to convey the true beauty of a Studio Ghibli film in an apparel range but specialty chain Donguri Kyowakoku manages to do that time and time again with its coveted “Donguri Closet” brand.After giving us heroine dresses and anime jewellery, the brand is now giving us two tote bags that look more like artworks that would be right at home in a museum.Made from Gobelin tapestry, a type of delicate woven fabric often used for upho
Eco Expo Asia Opens at AsiaWorld-Expo in Late October to Promote Green Technologies
Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation is leading 10 start-ups to participate in the Expo, including Formwork IO, ...
Mino City’s traditional paper lanterns illuminate its historic streets this fall
The annual exhibition creates an enchanting town of light amid the fiery colors of autumn trees.Nestled in the mountains of Gifu in central Japan are the charming old streets of Mino City, one of Japan’s three famous Japanese paper-producing regions. Every autumn, these traditional merchant houses bask in the gentle light emitting from hundreds of glowing paper lanterns as part of the Mino Washi Akari Art Exhibition, which has over 30 years of history. For nearly two months, this picturesque dis
Hokkaido Shinkansen apologizes for driver “spacing out” while operating bullet train
Space-out occurred in tunnel connecting Honshu and Hokkaido.Give someone the prompt “The Shinkansen is _____”, and they’re almost certain to complete it with “fast.” Sure, theoretically “awesome,” “convenient,” and “a surprisingly tasty source of ice cream” would also be valid responses, but speed really is the defining characteristic of Japan’s famous bullet train. If the Shinkansen isn’t fast, then it really doesn’t feel like the Shinkansen…which is why someone noticed when one dropped d
We recreate the legendary Fist of the North Star Hundred Rending Fists attack in analog style
We ditched AI for some good old-fashioned creative thinking…which required a few extra appendages.There’s never a dull moment in the SoraNews24 editorial offices in Tokyo. While boredom may plague the average salaryman out there, our team will always find something to do when the going gets slow–which isn’t that hard, considering that the world is still in desperate need of new fashion statements and original office sports.It was one such recent day when our zaniest Japan
Mobile battery starts emitting smoke inside airplane bound for Tokyo’s Haneda airport
Battery’s owner wasn’t the first to notice is was about to catch fire.Usually, flights between Okinawa and Tokyo are pretty unremarkable. It’s only about a two-and-a-half-hour trip, which is barely enough time to watch a movie or put a dent in a novel, and the flightpath is almost entirely over the open waters of the Pacific, meaning there’s little noteworthy scenery to gaze out the window at.However, things got unexpectedly eventful on ANA Flight 994 on Thursday morning, which left Naha Airport
HKTDC: Eco Expo Asia Opens at AsiaWorld-Expo in Late October to Promote Green Technologies
- Showcasing global solutions to accelerate carbon reduction goalsHONG KONG, Oct 9, 2025 - (ACN Newswire) - - The 20th edition of Eco Expo Asia, themed Green Innovations for Carbon Neutrality, will gather