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Cola made from the island that inspired Princess Mononoke begins crowdfunding
“Natural” and “world heritage” aren’t words often used to describe cola. Cola is a beverage often associated with junk food and large corporations, but in recent years the trend of “craft cola” has...
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Hyogo man arrested for stealing 13 tiny fish valued at 52,000 yen
More medaka mischief. On 15 April, Hyogo Prefectural Police arrested a 57-year-old Tatsuno City resident for stealing 13 fish from a local dealer. Upon hearing this news, you might be thinking “Oh...
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Fukuoka man arrested for breaking into store, putting on female staff’s apron...
Suspect admits it was a crime of passion. From shoes to tennis rackets, everything seems to have some innate erotic quality to one person or another out there. And that’s fine, but it’s when these...
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Complaints of foul play surrounding fried chicken grand prix results
Now that that pun is out of the way, let’s get to the heart of the batter. Well, another year is upon us, and you all know what that means: the 12th Karaage Grand Prix was held by the Japan Karaage...
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Cultural Affairs Commissioner thinks some Japanese music sucks, angers many
Newly appointed commissioner bringing a little X Factor to cultural promotion. This month Shunichi Tokura was appointed the Commissioner of the Agency for Cultural Affairs, a division of the Ministry...
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Kansai man arrested for defrauding his 35 girlfriends
He would have gotten away with it too, if it weren’t for his 35 girlfriends. Time and time again we see cases of criminal breaking the cardinal rule of getting too greedy and blowing the lid off their...
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Pooping in supermarket checkout lands Kitakyushu man 300,000 yen fine
This might be a really gross start to a brighter future for the man. At about 4 a.m. on 18 February in Kitakyushu City, Fukuoka Prefecture, a heavily intoxicated man wandered into a 24-hour...
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Kyoto police investigating cream puff attack on Bentley
Pastry may or may not have been weaponized by attackers. Cream-puff-related crime has been on the rise in Japan. Since I haven’t seen one since 2013, the incident that happened on 18 April, 2021...
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Aichi man who stole and replaced women’s shoes set free, victims too...
A rare example of someone being below the law. About two weeks ago, a man in Nagakuta City, Aichi Prefecture was arrested for stealing a pair of pumps that belonged to a music teacher. What made this...
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Altercation between train otaku leaves one with fractured skull, other in...
Suspect may be saved by his own age. The idea of train photography seems like an idyllic pastime spent on romantic rural landscapes watching majestic machines glide into their appointed stops. But...
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Dom Dom Burger sells chicken sandwich sandwiched in two egg sandwiches
Sandwinception. Often overshadowed by chains like McDonald’s and Mos Burger in terms of business, Japan’s plucky fast food restaurant Dom Dom Burger is a beast when it comes to originality and daring,...
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New dinosaur fossil discovered on Awaji Island, named after Japanese god
Well, new to us at least. Being the relatively small country it is, Japan doesn’t come across dinosaur fossils as easily as other places like neighboring China, so it’s always a special treat when one...
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Georgian diplomats like to kick back with a can of Georgia Coffee
A can of joe keeps Georgia on their minds. A treat fairly unique to Japan is the vast array of canned coffee sold in vending machines, convenience stores, and supermarkets everywhere. Available in hot...
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En garde! Fencer Taxi begins in Tokyo, Saitama, and Kanagawa
“Pointless” you say? Touché… Even before the pandemic had kneecapped much of their business, Japanese taxi companies have long embraced novel theme cabs as a way to drum up extra business. From...
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7-Eleven in parking lot of other 7-Eleven opens for business in Japan
Owner of lot’s first 7-Eleven goes shopping at the new one, talks to reporters on opening day. About a month ago we reported the construction of a 7-Eleven convenience store in the parking lot of an...
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The results are in! One Piece World Top 100 characters chosen in global poll
The world has spoken and the best pirates were chosen. Last January Shueisha, publisher of the manga behemoth One Piece, kicked off the World Top 100 poll asking everyone from all over the world to...
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Quaint robot ninja virtual sightseeing tours to be held in Kochi Prefecture
Probably the only time you’ll hear the phrase “quaint robot ninja.” One of Japan’s biggest vacation periods, Golden Week, has come and gone but was once again hampered by rising coronavirus infection...
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Osaka man finds stranger eating in his kitchen at night, stranger dies...
Truth is once again stranger than fiction. A mystery of the most unusual kind occurred in Sakai City, Osaka Prefecture in the late evening of 5 May. At approximately 11 p.m. a 60-year-old man got out...
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Sports cake developed by legendary Japanese castella company
Let them run with cake. I like working out as much as the next guy, but find that it really eats into my daily allotted cake time. With both cake and exercise being the cornerstones of my mental and...
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Make your own Japanese manju snacks with hotcake mix【SoraKitchen】
The most delicious manju is the one you make yourself. One of the most quintessential Japanese sweets is the manju. They come in many varieties but at their core, they’re a ball of mellow sweet bean...
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