Post earthquake, Wajima lacquerware find new homes
A project to find new owners for recovered Wajima lacquerware is underway in areas affected by the Noto Peninsula earthquake on Jan. 1. Read more
Focus on Japan
The latest news, trends and photo galleries from Japan by Japan News and Yomiuri Shimbun, a Japanese newspaper founded in 1874.
Bottlenose dolphins are doing their part in ocean cleanup
Three bottlenose dolphins kept in an oceanfront facility in Sanuki, Kagawa prefecture, have gone viral for picking up trash drifting in the ocean. Read more
PHOTO: Flying a giant
Flying a giant: Participants flew Japan’s largest kite, measuring approximately 48 square feet and weighing about 2,094 pounds, during the Oodako Matsuri on May 4. Read more
New tsunami detection system to undergo tests
A new drone-based tsunami detection system is launching this year in Namie, Fukushima prefecture, to streamline the evacuation of residents in the event of a massive tsunami. Read more
U.S.-made sake hit shelves in Japan
In April, Japanese sake manufacturer Asahi Shuzo Co., known for its flagship Dassai sake, released Dassai Blue in Japan. The release is notable because the special Junmai Daiginjo sake is produced at a brewery in the United States. Read more
Famed architect’s housing complex facilitates community
Hotakubo Housing, a 1991 complex in Kumamoto City, was a new concept in housing for Japan that was introduced by Japanese architect Riken Yamamoto. Read more
Amid sinking birth rate, women struggle to balance family and work
To curb Japan’s declines in birth rate and population, it’s crucial to overcome the so-called “second child barrier,” the reluctance to have more than one child. Read more
New hydrogen station serves former Olympic village condos
A hydrogen station has opened near Harumi Flag, the extensive condominium complex that was originally the Athletes Village for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games. Read more
PHOTO: Top tea tradition
A tea leaf-picking event to mark the 88th day since the first day of spring was held in Nishio, Aichi prefecture, on May 1, with festive kimono-clad women handpicking green tea leaves. Read more
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Washi-making techniques evolve in a small town
Kawakami Gozen, the goddess of paper, continues to inspire craftspeople in the Goka area of Echizen, Fukui prefecture, where the streets are lined with papermaking workshops. Read more
Japan turning to seagrass in climate battle
On a recent Saturday, some 100 volunteers gathered on a popular beach in the Japanese port city of Yokohama, wading in the shallows to plant strands of light green eelgrass on the seabed. Read more
New libraries boost withering downtown areas
Local governments are turning more and more to public libraries as they try to revive the hollowed-out downtowns of regional cities. Read more
Museum honoring late Sen. Inouye opens in Japan
A museum dedicated to the late U.S. Sen. Daniel Inouye, the first Japanese American member of Congress, who devoted his career to promoting Japanese-U.S. friendship, opened Thursday in Fukuoka prefecture. Read more
Ramen in Japan proves more than just a tourist attraction
In Tokyo, long lines circle around blocks, and waiting an hour for your ramen is normal. Read more
Japan creating its own version of the CDC
The Japanese government has decided to establish its own version of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention next April as part of efforts to improve the mitigation of infectious diseases. Read more
Hot spring inns offer office space to remote workers
Working remotely from tourist resorts and other vacation destinations is attracting attention, and efforts are growing to turn hot spring inns into offices. Read more
New, ultra-hot pepper makes for a sweet and versatile syrup
A collaboration between industry, government and academic partners has led to a syrup featuring a new variety of pepper developed in the city of Kawasaki. Read more
PHOTO: Japan’s Legoland blossoms with 880,000-brick cherry tree
A giant cherry blossom tree made of hundreds of thousands of Lego bricks is attracting visitors to the Legoland Japan Resort theme park in Minato ward, Nagoya. Read more
‘Spiciest town in Japan’ makes most of reputation
Lively versions of beer and karinto, a deep-fried flour and brown sugar snack, both made using habanero and other extremely spicy chiles, hit the shelves at Michi-no-Eki Hirata, a roadside rest area in Hirata, Fukushima prefecture, in January. Read more
‘Oppenheimer’ opens in nuclear-scarred Japan
Watching “Oppenheimer,” the Oscar-winning biopic about the father of the atomic bomb that opened in Japan in late March, Kako Okuno was stunned by a scene in which scientists celebrated the explosion over Hiroshima with thunderous foot stomping and the waving of American flags. Read more
Japanese films’ U.S. success spurs overseas strategy
The Oscar successes of “Godzilla Minus One” and “The Boy and the Heron” are likely to push the Japanese film industry further toward an international strategy. Read more
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