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J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK

Flying start suggests Frontale finally mean business

Received wisdom dictates that a league table is not even worth looking at until two months of a new season have passed, but one glance after just two weeks of this year's J. League campaign says plenty about Kawasaki Frontale.

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BOJ doubles loan program to ¥20 trillion

By HIROKO NAKATA

Responding to the government's call for deflation-fighting steps, the Bank of Japan says it will expand liquidity by doubling its three-month loans to banks, introduced in December, to about ¥20 trillion.

Residency requirement eyed for child allowance

The government will consider requiring the children of foreign parents living in Japan to also live here to qualify for child allowances, health minister Akira Nagatsuma says.

Include pro-North schools in tuition waiver: U.N. panel

A U.N. panel monitoring racial equality and nondiscrimination expresses concern about Japan's possible exclusion of pro-Pyongyang schools for Korean residents from its planned tuition waiver program for public high school students.

TOKYO (8 p.m.)

13°C

Cloudy

Humidity: 50%

Winds: WSW at 17 kph

Pressure: 1011 hpa

Total weather coverage >>

Japan Info Guide
Links for living in Japan

Language study

The Japanese-Language Proficiency Test

Upgrade your nihongo before the next proficiency test

Business

Business support in Tokyo for foreign affiliated firms

Guidance and info from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government

Transportation

Tokyo Transfer Guide

Metro resource for fares, travel time and transfers

Special Supplements

Wisdom of Entrepreneurs

Learn about innovative strategies and successful business philosophies from Japanese executives in our new series, Wisdom of Entrepreneurs

Japanese Language School Directory

Check and compare what each school has to offer before you choose: directory of major Japanese schools in Tokyo, their features and class schedules.

通訳・翻訳キャリアガイド・オンライン

通訳・翻訳業界の総合ガイドブック2010年度版が誕生！一部コンテンツをウェブで公開中。

ジャパンタイムズの転職サイト

外資・グローバル企業の求人が満載。英語を活かして転職するならジャパンタイムズジョブ！

Celebrating the world

Learn about foreign countries with our National Day specials and see which world leaders have visited Japan.

International Reports

WER: Denmark

Trust binds one of the world's most progressive

WER: Hong Kong

Hong Kong navigates through rough seas

International Reports

Ready to expand your horizons and study in Japan?

Here's your resource for locating the educational institutions and curriculum best suited to you and your goals.

Real Estate Guide

Find apartment and homes that best suit your lifestyle, income and time frame in Japan.

The Japan Times Online Updates

Japan in focus: Have photos of Japan that you'd like to show off? It's a snap to have them published in Weekend Scene's Pixel Pictures of Japan. Click for more information

Shukan ST Digital Version: Read the digital version of Shukan ST in full color. Click for more information (in Japanese). 週刊STのデジタル版がスタートしました。デジタル版は全ページがカラーです。お申し込みはこちらから。

Hotline to Nagatacho: Need to vent at the government? We'd like to read what you have to say. Click for more information about Hotline to Nagatacho.

Woods to return at Augusta

After what he calls a "long and necessary time away from the game," the world's top golfer says he's ready to begin his season at the Masters.

BASEBALL

Playoff appearance whets Swallows' appetite for success

By JASON COSKREY

J. LEAGUE NOTEBOOK

Flying start suggests Frontale finally mean business

By ANDREW McKIRDY

SUNDAY FEATURES >>

LIFE IN JAPAN

In the land of the kami

By MICHAEL HOFFMAN

"In some rural areas even today, elderly villagers face the rising sun each morning, clap their hands together, and hail the appearance of the sun over the peaks of the nearby mountains as 'the coming of the kami,' " — ...

LIFE IN JAPAN

Buddhism's arrival, Shinto's endurance

By MICHAEL HOFFMAN

LIFE IN JAPAN

Symbols of heaven on Earth

By MICHAEL HOFFMAN

RE:VIEW >>

Regional resonance

By YUNG-HSIANG KAO

In a metropolis the size of Tokyo, it is no surprise that there are several large orchestras and a number of high-quality concert halls. But the number of orchestras performing daily can be hard to keep track of, particularly as ...

FILM >>

Sherlock Holmes

Elementary, my dear stud

By KAORI SHOJI

As with most other things in the modern world, "Sherlock Holmes" is kindly adapted to fit the "it's for everyone" format — you don't have to be an expert on Victorian London, on the whereabouts of Baker Street, on who ...

Sweet Little Lies

'Sweet Little Lies' goes behind marital facade

By MARK SCHILLING

Bruno

'Bruno' aims to expose homophobia, risks becoming antigay

By GIOVANNI FAZIO

Yazaki opens up about 'Lies'

By MARK SCHILLING

FOOD >>

Wine importers keep their cool

By FELICITY HUGHES

A few years ago, I enjoyed a chilled glass of wine while sitting on a cobbled street in the medieval French city of Chinon in the heart of Loire Valley; the wine was from the surrounding vineyards of Samur and ...

Brick Square is hip

By ROBBIE SWINNERTON

Butter boutique continues to draw in the crowds at the Marunouchi Brick Square

By ROBBIE SWINNERTON

TRAVEL >>

Empress of ennui beloved in Japan

By TOMOKO OTAKE

She was a caged wife with an insatiable thirst for love and freedom. She was a famed beauty and fitness freak. She defied royal protocol and was often at odds with conservatives around her, including her mother-in-law. ...

Way down south in Hateruma

By STEPHEN MANSFIELD

Bulking up in Bush Warbler Valley

By KIT NAGAMURA

EVENTS >>

Dancer Rizzi brings unique story to Japan

By NOBUKO TANAKA

"Why go to a performance instead of renting a DVD and staying at home?" ponders 44-year-old dancer, choreographer, actor and visual artist Antony Rizzi on the Boston Cyberarts Festival Web site. Rizzi feels that this is an exciting time for ...