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A sad Oden Day in Japan as stores seem to be steadily stopping self-service pots
Where has all the oden gone? Long time passing… Ever since 2007, 22 February has been celebrated as Oden Day by people who follow obscure Japanese holidays. We here at SoraNews proudly stand among...
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Japan’s new ATMs automatically play anti-fraud videos to people talking on...
Japanese police using the latest in AI and hand-enlarging technology. One of the most problematic side-effects of Japan’s steadily aging population has been the proliferation of “special fraud”...
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How well does canned fruit syrup-flavored drink match up to the real...
The great taste of canned mikan syrup from a carton. When our ace reporter Mr. Sato was a child growing up in the countryside, he didn’t have the plethora of colorful sweets on sale today. Back then a...
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300-year-old Japanese festival that curses all who see it permitted to be...
I’m going to lend the video to someone within a week anyway… just in case. Japan is home to all kinds of festivals from snow festivals and lantern festivals to fight festivals and naked festivals. But...
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We plastered our car!【SoraHouse】
You never know until you try it. While doing their regular repairs on the ridiculously cheap SoraHouse out in the countryside, Yoshio and Go Hatori bought a bucket of Moru Moru. This is a plaster-like...
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The disembodied arm on the shoulder prank in the office shows you can be too...
Overly smooth prank nearly costs us an arm and a leg. Our writer Masanuki Sunakoma has been trying out various viral pranks and experiments he came across on social media. This time it was the...
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It doesn’t get any fresher than raw-egg pudding!【SoraKitchen】
That probably depends on the egg you use, though. The English concepts of “fresh” and “raw” tend to overlap quite a bit in the Japanese term “nama.” Often the distinction can be made from context like...
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We talk about everything except music with visual kei rock legends Fantastic...
We stay firmly in our lane and talk about budgies instead. Our writer Ikuna Kamezawa grew up in a rural area with little in the way of entertainment and avenues to vent her teenage angst. One thing...
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Nagoya elementary students caught defrauding classmate for nearly 1 million yen
Money spent on souvenir tokens and Canadian currency. There’s a lot of talk about how seniors in Japan are a frequent target for scammers, but we shouldn’t overlook the dangers that prepubescent fraud...
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The Top 5 Boys’ Love Manga in English on digital content library MangaPlaza...
Readers are hungry, like the wolf. Another year has passed, which means it’s once again time to look back and see what Boys’ Love manga titles have been getting the most love from English readers. And...
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Seaweed Salt Potato Butter Bacon Teriyaki Egg Burgers from McDonald’s are a...
Is this enough to turn a McDonald’s teriyaki hater into a fan? At the risk of it getting him thrust out of celebrity circles, our writer P.K. Sanjun has to admit he doesn’t really like McDonald’s...
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Let’s light up some Disney-authorized Mickey Mouse incense
So that’s what Mickey smells like? Our Japanese writer Udonko has long been a fan of incense; having grown up in the countryside she puts a high value on being surrounded by soothing aromas. But one...
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CoCo Ichibanya now selling Taiwanese Lo Bah Spice Curry for a limited...
The bah is set pretty lo for this curry. CoCo Ichibanya is Japan’s largest curry chain, but like many huge chain restaurants, the emphasis tends to be on reliable flavors that are palatable to the...
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Toyota built a life-sized Miraidon Pokémon and are letting people test drive...
The Miraidon is now. One of the nice features added to the latest Pokémon games Violet and Scarlet is a partner Pokémon that converts into a rad motorcycle you can whiz around the idyllic countryside...
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Legendary Melon Bread by Tokyo Banana returns after 20-year absence【Taste Test】
It has awakened. Tokyo Banana is the go-to souvenir snack when visiting the Japanese metropolis. Its simple design of sponge cake around a banana-flavored custard is surprisingly delicious. I’m not...
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7-Eleven Japan teams up with two different curry restaurants for one curry dish
Putting two different restaurants’ foods side by side it a really innovative idea. Convenience store chain 7-Eleven is certainly no stranger to collaborations and often sells products created with the...
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Transforming some instant noodles to pizza with Shin Ramyun [SoraKitchen]
Instant noodles instantly become pizza. Korea’s Shin Ramyun lineup of instant noodles from Nongshim has been taking Japan by storm recently and winning over countless fans, such as our writer Yayoi...
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Hokkaido business will age your alcohol under the sea, let you watch it via...
Age your wine in an octopus’s garden in the shade. One of the great things about drinks like sake, wine, and whiskey is the vast range of nuances in tastes achieved through their ingredients and...
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Can slapping on some nose filters prevent the anguish of hay fever?
And is the illusion of snot better than actual snot? Spring is always a bittersweet time in Japan because despite the warmer weather a flood of Japanese sugi cedar pollen fills the air and torments...
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Japanese company uses “crow language” to keep them away from garbage 【Video】
Crow scare crow. Over the years, people in Japan have been having an increasingly hard time co-existing with the sizable crows here. I mean “sizable” both in terms of population and the fact that...
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