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November 22, 2024
 

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Alex K.T. Martin

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Alex K.T. Martin
Alex K.T. Martin is a Tokyo-based journalist and senior writer at The Japan Times, primarily focusing on feature stories. Previously he was a Tokyo correspondent for The Wall Street Journal.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Mar 21, 2020
In bloom? Celebrating Japan’s iconic cherry trees in a time of pandemic
Blossoms are beginning to open in Tokyo, but will this year's celebrations wither due to concern over the new coronavirus?
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Mar 14, 2020
In the footsteps of Okinawa's forgotten priestesses
Utaki (sacred sites) are scattered throughout the islands of Okinawa. Historically the purview of priestesses and kings, these sites have recently seen an uptick in visitors interested in exploring their own history.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Feb 22, 2020
Michi no eki: Japan's rest areas are kings of the road
This isn't your modest highway truck stop with parking, public toilets, a few vending machines and a kiosk.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Feb 8, 2020
What's Japan's next food trend? It might finally be pulled pork
Barbecue pulled pork might not have taken off in Japan just yet, but thanks to restaurants like Fatz's The San Franciscan, which aserve up the real slow-smoked deal, that might be about to change.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / The Climate Crisis
Jan 18, 2020
Balance of power: Redefining Japan's energy needs
Sitting silently among the rolling pastures, rice paddies and lush forests of the idyllic village of Otama are rows upon rows of photovoltaic solar panels — vast swaths of dark gray injecting dissonance into the postcard-like landscape local residents pride themselves on.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Jan 13, 2020
Japan's rockin' pastor: Counseling those living on a prayer
No ordinary pastor, Kazuhiro Sekino wields a bass guitar like a rock star to bring his congregation together.
Japan Times
JAPAN / New Year's Special
Jan 2, 2020
Can Tokyo's soft power push ensure a positive Olympic legacy?
When the capital hosted the Olympic Games over half a century ago, it was heralded as a symbol of Japan's postwar recovery. This time around, Tokyo appears keen on trading brick and mortar for hearts and minds.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Dec 21, 2019
Jomon revival: Interest in Japan's indigenous hunter-gathers grows
From his hilltop studio in the suburbs of Tokyo, Taku Oshima is reviving an ancient form of body art tradition he believes was practiced by the indigenous hunter-gatherers that inhabited Japan thousands of years ago.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Nov 25, 2019
One diorama at a time, miniaturist reconstructs aftermaths of ‘lonely deaths’
Miyu Kojima's models of the apartments she has help clean after the deaths of their tenants can be hard to look at, but they also reveal the empathy needed to be able to continue in such a difficult line of work.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Society / 2010s: Decade in Review
Nov 16, 2019
The gray wave: Japan attempts to deal with its increasingly elderly population
Eighty-one-year-old Sachiko Miura wakes up at 6 a.m. every day to prepare breakfast at her newly renovated apartment located near a large supermarket, spa and a hospital in the suburbs of Japan's third largest city.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 27, 2019
Rare views of Mount Fuji: Japan's last sentō artists
A dying craft, sentu014d (public bathhouse) painting now has just three artisans continuing the art form. Can interest in Japanese culture, sparked by the 2020 Olympics, help renew an appreciation for the stunning murals?
Japan Times
JAPAN / FOCUS
Oct 23, 2019
The new norm: Japanese experts warn of more rain, raging rivers and submerged homes
The nation should expect the frequency of powerful typhoons and heavy rains to grow with global warming, says a professor at the Institute for Space-Earth Environmental Research at Nagoya University.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Oct 19, 2019
Food for the soul: Traditional gyōza makers and eaters in Utsunomiya try to keep the dumplings rolling
Albert Kuwano Bakonyvari beckons me inside his factory's steam chamber, where hundreds of plump, white, crescent-shaped gyōza dumplings are neatly lined on stacks of trays fitted in steel racks, waiting to be sent to the freezer.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Oct 6, 2019
The white rose that blossoms in the rain
White Rose Co. invented the plastic umbrella in the 1950s when Mitsuo Sudo was inspired by vinyl tablecloths brought to Japan by occupation forces. Now it's just one of few makers weathering the storm of cheap, mass-produced imports.
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Sep 15, 2019
The hot topic of Western saunas in Japan
Onsen hot spring baths may reign in Japan, but the Western sauna could be the next health and wellness trend.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Sep 14, 2019
In the shadow of giants: Are high-rise condominiums in Japan destroying local communities?
Tsukishima is among many districts being gentrified by giant condominium projects popping up in the most populous city in the world.
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT
Sep 13, 2019
Debate over Japan's extinct wolf grows
An unidentified animal howl recorded in the Okuchichibu mountains bears a strong resemblance to a wolf howl, according to an analysis of audio samples provided by Hiroshi Yagi, an independent researcher who has been working to prove the existence of the officially extinct Japanese wolf.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Sep 7, 2019
Death notes: Traditional rituals associated with curses persist in 21st-century Japan
It's a scorching summer afternoon with temperatures crawling toward 37 degrees Celsius. Kadota Inari Shrine is empty except for a chorus of screeching cicadas and the smooth stone statues of foxes guarding its entrance.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Aug 4, 2019
Spectral sightings at Zenshoan Temple
Tokyo's Yanaka district ghosts are back to haunt the public via rakugo storyteller Sanyutei Encho's collection of spooky paintings.
Japan Times
CULTURE
Aug 3, 2019
Chindonya: The beat goes on
Once a dying profession, chindonya troupes are passing their knowledge on to the next generation
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
Ruling coalition and DPP strike last-minute deal over economic policy
DPP policy chief Makoto Mahaguchi speaks at the party's policy gathering in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.
For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
Though he didn't win the recent gubernatorial election in Tokyo, the 96-year-old Dr. Nakamats' run was seen as inspirational in Japan's aging society.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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