They say that languages bring people closer together and bridge distances. So, too, does the Internet.

Running up a mountain probably wouldn’t be most people’s idea of a pleasant weekend leisure activity, but Brit Colin Yarker thrives on the physical and mental challenge of trail running. “We take the same route as people who hike up a mountain, but we ...

“Please fill out this information sheet,” said the nurse. It had been several years since I had been to this hospital for a check-up. I noticed, with glee, they had done away with the plastic slippers at the genkan, where the masses had to ...

Sonia Romero de Hara was surprised years ago when she was woken by a phone call late at night from a Peruvian-Japanese friend living in Fussa, western Tokyo. The friend said that police officers had visited her after the local police station received a ...

Australian Ross Findlay is a doer. Name any outdoor sport and chances are he’s done it, from kayaking to rock climbing to snowcat skiing and snowshoeing. The ever-active Findlay, 48, was one of the first to bring the summer outdoor adventure business to Hokkaido ...

The back streets of Naha were dark, making it more difficult to find Shima-Umui, a music club run by Okinawan folk singer Misako Oshiro. The torpid air and smell of papaya rinds from a nearby bin spoke of the subtropics. A small sign, barely ...

Stranded for three days after March 11, 2011, with her mother-in-law and young children on the second floor of their home near the industrial port of Ishinomaki, Miyagi Prefecture, Naoko Nakayama fought panic by communicating the only way she could: scribbling on torn scraps ...