Lotte’s canned water makes its convenience store debut. The first time you take a look at the drink section in a Japanese convenance store, you might be surprised by some of the... Read more »

Plus some surprising extra requirements, like having to say “thank you” at least 10 times a day.  Every school in Japan has its own set of rules, and while many of these... Read more »

A beautiful, highly customizable hike that’s an easy day-trip from Tokyo. We’re finally in that not-too-cold, not-too-hot sweet spot of spring weather in Japan, providing a prime window for all sorts of... Read more »

On an autumn morning in 1964, as Tokyo prepared to welcome the world for the Olympics, a white-and-blue streak cut across the farmland of the Tokaido plain. Though the train, Hikari No. 1, sped with... Read more »

Short answer: Yes, hantaviruses have been present in Japan historically — primarily Seoul virus (SEOV) carried by rats — but Japan has reported zero confirmed human hantavirus cases in over 20 years,... Read more »

Quick answer: Where to buy Pokémon cards in Tokyo? The best places are Hareruya 2 Akihabara (the world’s largest Pokémon TCG specialty store), Pokémon Center Mega Tokyo in Ikebukuro (official store with... Read more »

The Royal Oak debuted in 1972 as a luxury sports watch with an octagonal bezel and eight hexagonal screws that the industry thought were either brilliant or outrageous. Swatch’s POP line came... Read more »

Getting more convenience store food for our yen is always a fun time, but this campaign is bordering on ridiculous. On 12 May, 7-Eleven Japan kicked off its its “Founding Anniversary Sale”... Read more »

Ibaraki Prefecture now offers rewards to whistleblowers who lead them to companies illegally employing foreign workers. Ibaraki Prefecture doesn’t get a ton of international attention. Sure, it has cool places to visit,... Read more »