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Pope Francis’ fascination with the devil took on remarkable new twists Tuesday, with a well-known exorcist insisting Francis helped “liberate” a Mexican man possessed by four different demons despite the Vatican’s insistence that no such papal exorcism took place. The case concerns a 43-year-old ...
Kazuhiro Shiraishi, 66, is a guest-house manager in the Izu-kogen Highlands, a famous resort area on the Izu Peninsula of Shizuoka Prefecture. Looking out onto the Pacific Ocean, and just 90 minutes by train from Tokyo, Izu has a warm climate all year round ...
“I was stopped by two men in a government-registered vehicle, blindfolded and dragged off the street. They took me away to a house in a place I did not know. I was forced into a room with blood all over the walls and floor, ...
Guitarist Dustin Wong hesitates for a split second. It’s a pause that would go unnoticed during most other sets, but Wong has spent the last 40 minutes seemingly in a trance while playing guitar and looping the notes via an array of pedals in ...
Tim Duncan saves the day as the Spurs hold off the Grizzlies in overtime
New to Tokyo, T.B. is trying to make friends and wants to know if there are any clubs that he can join to meet new people and get involved with the international community. There are, but it very much depends on what kind of ...
Rail on the cheap In Japan for only a limited time, J.K. is desperate to travel and see as much as possible. But there’s a problem. “Cash is pretty limited. Are there any money-saving ways of traveling by train in Japan?” The deal most ...
Easter absence Brenda and family wonder why Easter has been ignored by Japanese commercial interests. “All those chocolate eggs and cards with bunnies! I would have thought Japan would have lapped up the possibilities for making money, as it has with Christmas and Valentine’s ...
Reader S.B. seeks advice on how to deal with arrangements following the death of a foreign relative in Japan. This process can be very complicated for family and friends, especially if they are non-Japanese. You will need two documents: The first is the death ...
‘Contemplating neko-cide’ writes, “There is a cat next door that in meowing all night causes me to lose sleep, which then hurts my performance at work.” The cat is not in CN’s building, but the one next-door, with a balcony alongside his bedroom window. ...
With 2009 so far looking bleak, here are some queries from around the world that take us into the past with the hope of finding positive solutions for the present. T o start, two letters concerning war memorabilia. The first is from R.B. in ...
Reader TJ writes: “I have been in Japan for a while and am stuck in the Japanese National Health Insurance plan. It is extremely expensive and as I cannot use it outside Japan I have to purchase separate travel insurance for while I am ...
Reader BJ is having trouble communicating with his landlord. “I have tried to go through the real estate agency, but they will not help me. Is there somewhere I can go to get help — someone that can help me negotiate with my landlord?” ...
Gaijin on a bike! “I have been harassed by the police while riding my bicycle,” writes FC. “I happened to get the bike from a friend and it turns out it actually belonged to someone else. The bicycle is very, very old and worthless, ...
Heading home HB has been teaching English in Aomori Prefecture for over 20 years and is planning to retire in the U.S. “Are there international moving companies in Japan that can come to a home, pick up items to be shipped, and deliver them ...
Mrs. P has stopped paying her fees to national broadcaster NHK. “I am at my wit’s end. I have been staying in this particular building for the last six years now. I have actually paid regularly the last six years to the NHK person ...
Max Phillips Jr. wrote in after getting a nasty shock from his local travel agency. “My wife (Japanese) and I are going to Hawaii in September. Since we are arranging to meet my (mid-60s) parents there, we thought it best to plan as far ...