Bubble tea seems to have truly taken over in Japan, with boba stands popping up on every street corner, promising all kinds of delicious teas…

Photo by George Lloyd Head west from Yoyogi park on Inokashira-dori and you will come across an incongruous sight: a 40-metre tall minaret. It is…

In late May, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe declared an end to the state of emergency enacted in response to the coronavirus pandemic. The lockdown, considered…

I play the piano, and I can tell you it demands a lot of attention. Notes are deceptively laid out in a seemingly simple and…

Recently, the situation for Japanese people with disabilities seems to be improving. Disabled candidates Sawako Naito, (who has M.S.), Eiko Kimura (cerebral palsy), and Yahuhikio…

Two of the biggest international anime franchises are getting the Casio G-SHOCK treatment this summer. Both models are based on the GA-110 series. With its…

Anmitsu is a traditional summertime Japanese dessert made from anko red bean paste and agar jelly. It’s typically served with slices of fruit and a…

Where’s the Wasabeef? Those who visited a Gusto family restaurant last year may recall the Wasabeef fries on the menu. In fact, we’d be surprised…

An abundance of kanji Although most Japanese people only use a few thousand kanji in their daily lives—six thousand if they’re very knowledgeable—that’s only a…

There’s no slowing down the boba boom train in Japan. Recently the bubble tea craze has produced boba beer and even boba pizza. The latest…

We all like a good meal—going to specialty stores to get rare and expensive ingredients, spending hours preparing, half-a-day baking, and having friends over for…

Summer is upon us, and that means people in Japan are now in a battle against the season’s heat. If you’re a fan of Studio…

Now that the first season of demon-slaying anime Kimetsu no Yaiba has ended, fans are craving the same sense of satisfaction gained from watching the…

I remember the good ol’ days when I was an adolescent boy. Playing videos until five o’clock in the morning, eating hamburgers nearly every day,…

The COVID-19 crisis is pushing hospitals across the world to their limits. Even after the emergency declaration has ended, the same remains true in Japan….