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Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink / THE PERSISTENT VEGETARIAN
Apr 22, 2014

In search of the fruits of Okinawa's oceans

Seven years ago, I bit into a delicate variety of seaweed called umi-budō, or "sea grapes." I remember sampling a few dishes at Unjami, an Okinawan-style izakaya off Nakano Broadway in Tokyo (5-55-1 Nakano, Nakano-ku, Tokyo; 03-5345-5836), but the umi-budō stood out as something special. These tiny,...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Apr 22, 2014

'Jazz mecca' Osaka to host star-studded global concert

What comes to mind when you think of Osaka? Maybe takoyaki (octopus dumplings), the Hanshin Tigers, Universal Studios Japan, wacky comedy and down-to-earth, unpretentious people.
Japan Times
JAPAN / EXPLAINER
Apr 21, 2014

Tokyo's 'Champs Elysees': a business haven in the making?

The opening of a new section in Tokyo's Loop Road No. 2 project last month marked a major step toward the completion of an urban redevelopment project led by City Hall.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE FOREIGN ELEMENT
Apr 21, 2014

Adopting a child from Japan: one U.S. couple's story

Chicago residents Mari, a Japanese national, and Jonathon, an American, considered adopting from the U.S. or South Korea, but cultural and citizenship concerns sealed their decision to adopt from Japan. The new addition is one of only a handful of children adopted from Japan into the U.S. each year.
EDITORIALS
Apr 21, 2014

A need for special nursing homes

The number of elderly people suffering from senile dementia and other conditions that require critical nursing care is rising, yet Japan faces a serious shortage of facilities that can provide such care.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 21, 2014

Artists' mission to revitalize an onsen town

It begins with a long, slow hiss. The valves open, and a thick fog is released into the air, pouring from the roof of Dogo Onsen Honkan, the famous three-tiered bathhouse built in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, in 1894. It flows down the side of the building, past bathers in bathrobes on the open balcony...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / ON: GAMES
Apr 21, 2014

Mario returns on wheels and in plastic, and the gun of a giant "Macross" robot fits in your hand

Start your Mario Karts
COMMENTARY / COUNTERPOINT
Apr 19, 2014

Team Abe's alternate-reality Kool-Aid

Japan's relations with China and South Korea are in tatters, there has been no progress on dealing with North Korea's nuclear weapons program, strains with Washington persist, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) talks are at an impasse, whaling got harpooned and hopes for a deal with Russia on the northern...
Japan Times
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / NPB NOTEBOOK
Apr 19, 2014

Good health keys Pena's torrid start

After hitting his ninth home run of the year a few hours earlier, Wily Mo Pena insisted there was nothing special behind his hot start to the year.
CULTURE / TV & Streaming / CHANNEL SURF
Apr 19, 2014

Christel Takigawa gets Akita 'omotenashi'; a dandy drama; CM of the week: Nisshinbo

Former news anchor Christel Takigawa gets to sample some of that famous Japanese omotenashi (hospitality) she promoted during the bid process for the 2020 Summer Olympics. She is this week's guest on NHK's travel show "Tsurube no Kazoku ni Kampai" ("Tsurube Toasts Families"; NHK-G, Mon., 8 p.m.), the...
Japan Times
LIFE / Digital / JAPAN WEB WATCH
Apr 18, 2014

Apps take new lead from social games

On Japanese TV, you may notice that a lot of commercials for smartphone social games emphasize the word muryō (free). Consumers have been purchasing digital content on their phones for years, even since the clam-shell cellphone days. Now, more and more Japanese people are migrating to the sort of smartphones...
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 18, 2014

Putin runs a costume drama in eastern Ukraine

There's one ploy Russian President Vladimir Putin has mastered and perfected in his 14 years in power: If something appears to threaten your power, create its evil twin.
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 17, 2014

Putin warns against force in Ukraine, says trust with U.S. shattered

Russian President Vladimir Putin accused Ukraine's leaders on Thursday of committing a "grave crime" by using the army to try to quell unrest in the east of the country, and did not rule out sending in Russian troops.
EDITORIALS
Apr 17, 2014

Tread carefully on corporate tax cut

As the Abe administration considers cuts to corporate taxes as part of its growth strategy, it must ensure that it doesn't end up plugging the revenue hole by adding tax burdens to the household sector, already bearing the brunt of the April 1 consumption tax hike and rising prices.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 17, 2014

Confronting unending lies

Perhaps what is most amazing and regretful about the situation in Russia is the nearly complete absence of truth and objectivity in the mass media covering Ukrainian events.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / BJ-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK
Apr 16, 2014

Kyoto's success no surprise under coach Hamaguchi

Piece by piece, Kyoto Hannaryz coach Honoo Hamaguchi has cobbled together an impressive resume. He is the bj-league's only bench boss to be in charge of a team on opening day in all nine seasons.
COMMENTARY / World
Apr 16, 2014

Only one practical solution to Ukraine crisis

The only practical solution to the Ukraine crisis is administrative partition of the Ukrainian nation, and neutralization of the country in its international relations.
Reader Mail
Apr 16, 2014

High hopes for special schools

Regarding the April 10 article "Ministry funds programs to hone high schoolers": The idea of Japan's education ministry injecting money into specially designated schools in line with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's growth strategy is an interesting one that, I believe, has a great deal of potential.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / TRAVEL INSIDER
Apr 15, 2014

Fine dining in the sky; 'festival by Paul' gifts; Cathay adds H.K. flights

Fine dining in the sky
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Apr 15, 2014

Iran seeks meeting on banned U.N. envoy

Iran on Monday requested a special meeting of a U.N. committee on the United States' refusal to grant a visa to Tehran's new U.N. ambassador appointee, describing the decision as a dangerous precedent that could harm international diplomacy.
Japan Times
TENNIS / MATCH POINT
Apr 15, 2014

Nishikori confident he is closer to date with destiny

"Last year we knocked on the door. This year we pounded on it. Next year we're gonna kick it in."
Japan Times
MORE SPORTS
Apr 14, 2014

Murata to face Nerio in fourth pro fight

Middleweight boxer Ryota Murata will take on Mexico's Jesus Angel Nerio on May 22 in his fourth professional bout, his promotional team announced Monday.
Japan Times
WORLD
Apr 12, 2014

Gloves off as India's BJP woos Hindu vote

India's main opposition party, tipped to form the next government, appears to be returning to its Hindu nationalist roots at the start of a five-week general election, raking up divisive issues and using strong language in an area hit by religious riots.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Apr 12, 2014

Hitoyoshi: Kyushu's 'little Kyoto'

There are 24 tunnels on the expressway between Kumamoto and Hitoyoshi, 23 more than my claustrophobic mother is comfortable with. By the time we pull off at the small city in southern Kumamoto Prefecture that bills itself as a "little Kyoto," my navigator is more than ready to escape the confines of...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Media / BIG IN JAPAN
Apr 12, 2014

'Big Pharma' manipulating the market? Now that's depressing

You're the entrepreneurial type, let's say, ambitious but a little unsure of yourself. What field is ripe for your energy and enthusiasm?
BASKETBALL / ONE-ON-ONE WITH ...
Apr 11, 2014

Fields playing pivotal role in first season with Shiga

The Japan Times features periodic interviews with players in the bj-league. Brandon Fields of the Shiga Lakestars is the subject of this week's profile.

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