Search - 2013

 
 
Japan Times
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 28, 2015

Other nations' troubles could slow U.S. growth

President Barack Obama has declared America's economic crisis over, but will global weakness infect the U.S. expansion?
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 28, 2015

Roppongi Kabuki cites sci-fi, punk

Known for its nightlife, its fleets of Ferraris and condos with sky-high prices, the affluent central Tokyo district of Roppongi will soon go where even that multinational neighborhood has never gone before — when the launch of a program named Roppongi Kabuki will see that ancient form of traditional...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Jan 28, 2015

Young gun Kinoshita takes aim at tradition

Though for more than 300 years it's only been performed by men and boys, kabuki exists in the public imagination as actors engulfed in hair and makeup, wearing elaborate costumes and striking ostentatious poses on a vast stage.
Japan Times
Places
Jan 28, 2015

Tokyo's menagerie of pet cafes

Japan's animal cafes fill a very important niche, as many people, especially in urban areas, live in cramped apartments with strict no-pets policies. The pet cafe allows them to connect with the domesticated animal kingdom for the price of a cup of tea. Cat cafes got the ball rolling (after the first cat cafe landed in Osaka in 2004) and over the years that's expanded to a menagerie that includes rabbits, birds, goats and even penguins. Here is a selection of pet cafes in Tokyo.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 27, 2015

Pommeke makes fries the main dish

Tokyo boasts plenty of Belgian culinary spots, from beer bars to chocolate shops. Chef Bart Sablon even points out that there is a Belgian waffle store right around the corner from Pommeke, a recently opened operation where the 39-year-old works as executive chef. "That's a total coincidence, though,"...
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society
Jan 27, 2015

In South Korea, women's careers take back seat to caring for kids

Ahn Ji-sun was looking forward to going back to work after she had given birth to her second child. But she had no one to baby-sit the kids.
BUSINESS / Companies
Jan 27, 2015

What a difference oil price makes, as Marubeni joins writedowns

"I couldn't believe that oil would drop this far," said Marubeni Corp. Chief Executive Officer Fumiya Kokubu.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL
Jan 26, 2015

'Helicopter' flies in for reunion with Bryant in Fukuoka

Veteran scoring standout John "Helicopter" Humphrey arrived in Fukuoka on Monday to join the bj-league's Rizing Fukuoka, a league source told The Japan Times.
Japan Times
BUSINESS / YEN FOR LIVING
Jan 26, 2015

Where's the milk? School lunches no longer sacred cows

The cost of a school lunch is now higher than the average salaryman's lunch.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 26, 2015

Amazon Japan says it's cooperating with police child porn probe

Amazon.com Inc.'s Japan unit is "fully cooperating" with a police investigation into possible sales of child pornography, the company said in an emailed statement.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 25, 2015

Families, acquaintances dismayed by latest video of Japanese hostage

Shock and confusion overwhelms the families and friends of the two Japanese men held captive in Syria by the Islamic State group.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 25, 2015

ASEAN captain Malaysia prepares to set sail into maritime disputes, 'democratic recession'

As Malaysia takes over the ASEAN chairmanship for 2015, it faces the challenges of intractable territorial disputes in the South China Sea and the 'democratic recession' in the region.
Japan Times
JAPAN / KANSAI PERSPECTIVE
Jan 25, 2015

Kansai spearheads campaign against hate speech

On Feb. 24, 2013, Osaka's Tsuruhashi district, home to one of Japan's largest concentrations of ethnic Koreans and in recent years a major tourist destination, was the scene of a shocking incident.
Japan Times
WORLD
Jan 25, 2015

Arab-American group says 'American Sniper' film spurs threats against Muslims

An Arab-American civil rights organization has asked "American Sniper" director Clint Eastwood and actor Bradley Cooper to denounce hateful language directed at U.S. Arabs and Muslims after the release of the film about a Navy marksman.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Jan 24, 2015

Mika Mifune gets ready for some serious 'me' time

Historian Daniel J. Boorstin once defined a celebrity as someone who is "known for his well-knownness" — a person famous for being famous. Though many celebrities have talent and other attributes that draw attention, it is easier to gain notoriety passively by being related to someone who already has...
EDITORIALS
Jan 24, 2015

Kepler still studying the skies

NASA's Kepler spacecraft, launched in 2009, continues to troll for planets in the Milky Way galaxy. Early this month, scientists announced it had made its 1,000th find.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 23, 2015

Hostages in limbo as deadline passes

The presumed 72-hour deadline for paying the exorbitant ransom demanded by the Islamic State group apparently expired at 2:50 p.m. Friday without any hint about what would happen to the two Japanese hostages in its grasp.
COMMENTARY / World
Jan 23, 2015

Address Pyongyang by listening to Beijing

Successive U.S. administrations have sought China's aid in restraining North Korea, yet have failed to listen to advice from Beijing officials. It's one of Washington's greatest policy failures.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Jan 23, 2015

Making babies makes a comeback in Japan

The slight rise in Japanese fertility since 2005 — despite the sharp recession and natural disasters that happened in the meantime — suggests there is hope that work-life balance will help to stabilize the populations of developed nations after all.
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Jan 23, 2015

Five things to keep you ahead of the game

Last year's monster hits "Pokemon Omega Ruby" and "Alpha Sapphire" are the theme to a new pop-up cafe in Shibuya. As Nintendo 3DS remakes of the 2002 Game Boy Advance titles "Pokemon Ruby" and "Sapphire," the new versions, with beefed-up graphics and new content, sold more than two million copies in...
Japan Times
BUSINESS
Jan 23, 2015

Chinese buy up overseas real estate

What do New York's most famous hotel, the Lloyd's of London building and the headquarters of the U.K.'s top law firm have in common? They are all owned by Chinese insurers.
WORLD / Politics
Jan 23, 2015

Sri Lanka to probe hidden foreign assets after Rajapaksa defeat

Sri Lanka's new government is to investigate "black money" transferred overseas by powerful figures in the administration of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, a Cabinet spokesman said on Thursday.

Longform

Totopa in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward was picked by consultants TTNE as the best sauna of the year.
Japan’s sauna movement: Relax, refresh, repeat