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November 22, 2024
 

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Tomoko Otake

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Tomoko Otake
Tomoko Otake is a senior writer with a strong interest in health, medical and social issues. A native of Nara Prefecture, she obtained an M.A. in journalism from The University of Montana.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Oct 3, 2013
Ebizo rethinks kabuki's strategy
In the glitzy and gossipy world of Japanese celebrity, hardly a week goes by without revelations being made about — or made by — Ichikawa Ebizo XI.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Oct 3, 2013
German band to feature at Oktoberfest
In Japan, Oktoberfest tends to be a year-round celebration. Beer companies here will hold the traditional German party whenever they feel like a break. This month (or maybe we should say, this week) it's Yokohama's turn.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / Economy / ANALYSIS
Oct 2, 2013
Households to take hit from tax hike
The consumption tax increase will hit every household in Japan hard, with many people's financial future hanging on whether their wages rise enough to offset the hike's impact.
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Oct 2, 2013
IT startup barters its way into niche
At around noon on a recent weekday, the Roppongi branch of Shamrock by Abbot Choice, a Tokyo-based Irish-style pub chain, had a bustling lunchtime crowd.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Sep 23, 2013
The 'whole' brown-bread challenge in Japan
Whole-wheat and whole-grain products are hard to find in Japan, where most bakeries and supermarkets sell white bread products only.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Sep 21, 2013
Internet NPO links kids worldwide
Earlier this month, when the nation's Olympic bid ambassador Christel Takigawa referred to "omotenashi" (the spirit of Japanese-style hospitality) in her speech to the International Olympic Committee, the term quickly turned into a buzzword in Japan.
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 19, 2013
Festival brings old films out of storage
Every year, nearly 100 of the films produced in Japan are said to "go into storage."
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Sep 14, 2013
Rescuing gadgets from the golden age of 'Made in Japan'
Piles of old electronic gadgetry, most of it out of order, clutter Junichi Matsuzaki's "studio" on the first floor of an aging public apartment building in Adachi Ward in northeastern Tokyo. To visitors the outdated technology may look like junk, but to the 53-year-old self-proclaimed consumer electronics...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital
Sep 10, 2013
Anatomy app gives users a better understanding of the human body
Back in highschool, I was in the middle of basketball practice, when I suddenly felt an acute pain in my knee. I had no idea what had happened to me. After visits to several different clinics, none of which could identify the problem, I finally found an orthopedist who accurately guessed the cause of...
Japan Times
LIFE / Lifestyle
Sep 9, 2013
Renovating business and hope in Onomichi
The city of Onomichi in the southeastern part of Hiroshima Prefecture, which looks out to the Seto Inland Sea, has a rich and long tradition as a hub of trade. During the Edo Period (1603-1867), it prospered as a key docking point for domestic ships peddling goods, and from the early 20th century it...
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Sep 5, 2013
Pumpkins to go on show for Cinderella festival
It's more than a month before Halloween, but you can get in the spooky spirit at the Cinderella Yume Matsuri (Cinderella Dream Festival), where you'll get a rare chance to gawk at hundreds of pumpkins of various sizes and carved into different characters.
Japan Times
Events / Events In Tokyo
Aug 29, 2013
Asakusa gets ready to party Brazilian style
Tokyo's Asakusa neighborhood is one of the capital's top tourist destinations. Sensoji Temple and the shopping arcade nearby offer visitors a glimpse into traditional Japan. This coming weekend, though, the area will be full of Brazilian energy and the passionate rhythm and music of samba.
Japan Times
LIFE / WEEK 3
Aug 17, 2013
Image-flip for male rhythmic gymnasts
Smirks and snickering tend to greet any mention of "men's rhythmic gymnastics," as the phrase conjures up images of chaps in tights prancing around swinging ribbons or clutching squeezy balls to their chests like the sport's female exponents.
Japan Times
Events / Events In Tokyo
Aug 8, 2013
African group drums up a party
The African drumming theater is back, providing people with a fun and entertaining way of letting off some steam and experiencing a new culture.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Aug 7, 2013
Koki Mitani adds comedy to bunraku
Koki Mitani is Japan's top comedy writer, having written a number of stage plays, TV dramas and films. He also loves working with puppets, and has put together a serialized puppet drama for public broadcaster NHK. Despite a love of puppets, however, it was only about 10 years ago when he first saw a...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / CLOSE-UP
Aug 3, 2013
Toyohiro Akiyama: Cautionary tales from one not afraid to risk all
In December 1990, journalist Toyohiro Akiyama made headlines the world over when he blasted off aboard a Soviet rocket to become the very first "space correspondent" in history.
Japan Times
Events / Events Outside Tokyo
Jul 25, 2013
Hentai animation night at YCAM
The word "hentai" has two meanings in Japanese, referring both to "metamorphosis" and "abnormality/perversion." On Saturday, Yamaguchi Center for Arts and Media will screen a series of 13 hentai films — covering the wackiest, weirdest animated shorts in which the characters also undergo various kinds...
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / WEEK 3
Jul 20, 2013
On the trail of bear hunters' heritage
Takashi Yoshikawa is no easy man to figure out. Trim and well tanned, the 63-year-old owns a small ryokan (traditional inn) nestled in the foothills of the beautiful Shirakami Mountains which straddle 130,000 hectares of Aomori and Akita prefectures, and whose 17,000 hectares of beech forests were listed...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Jul 11, 2013
Experiments in the wild
Ten years ago, when a new cultural facility opened in the western Japan city of Yamaguchi, its founders sought to fulfill a role quite different from those museums in the countryside.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2013
Abe wants to gut public protections: expert
If the Liberal Democratic Party succeeds in rewriting the Constitution, it would severely scale back fundamental human rights and strip the public of various civil liberties, a prominent constitutional scholar warns.
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.
Tokyo Metro’s overseas efforts begin in earnest with London deal
Tokyo Metro will soon have a role in the running of London's Elizabeth Line, a major train route serving the U.K.’s capital city and environs.
Russia fired experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, Putin says
Ukrainian firefighters work on a spot following an airstrike in Dnipro on Thursday.
Ex-yokozuna Kitanofuji dies at 82
Yokozuna Kitanofuji enters the ring during the May 1970 grand sumo tournament in Tokyo.
Man charged with murder allegedly made victim date other men for money
A car carrying suspect Ryotaro Masuda, who was indicted for allegedly beating his 25-year-old girlfriend to death, leaves the Shibuya Police Station in Tokyo on Thursday.
Shohei Ohtani wins National League MVP award
Shohei Ohtani celebrates after hitting a three-run home run against the Padres during the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles last month.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
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.

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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