On Aug. 6, the BBC aired a story about four Ussuri brown bears being successfully transported from a museum in Hokkaido to a wildlife park in England. In the story, a British organization called Wild Welfare said it had become "concerned" about the animals' ...

To give their staff a mid-August break, most magazines came out with special two-week issues. A few, waxing nostalgic, are describing this year as "the last summer of the Heisei Era." This doesn't portend anything ominous, of course; it just means that because the present ...

Few topics have proven to be more sensitive online than the present state of Fukushima Prefecture. Years after the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster wreaked havoc in the region, the topic of radiation continues to spark intense debate from all corners. A statue that ...

There's nothing quite like Japan's Heian Period (794-1185). Almost four centuries of peace and a governing aristocracy of culture set it apart.

Since the central bank isn’t propping up the stock market with ETF purchases on every dip anymore, many traders think the BOJ’s exit strategy is underway.

When the Diet passed a law governing the operation of integrated casino resorts last month, public celebrations were few. Media polls showed strong public opposition to casinos, with respondents citing worries about problem gamblers and more crime. But the champagne corks were popping in Osaka, ...

Kumamoto has seen so many foreign laborers lately that it is raising suspicions Japan’s internship recruits are again being exploited as cheap labor.

The government has been facing growing internal calls to overhaul its policy on North Korea by allowing talks on economic aid to precede the delayed effort to resolve the abduction issue, government sources said. While North Korea has shown no signs of backing down from ...

In Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, two things are certain: You're never far from the remains of dead people and you're never far from a knife. The two are connected, but not in the way you might think. Historically an important seaport with a current population of ...

For Tomoya Yamashiki, chief strategist of Dandelion Chocolate Japan, Inc., U.S. entrepreneurism opened doors to a new sweet way of life.

Over the course of nearly 60 years, the Tsuji Culinary Institute has turned out 140,000 chefs and patissiers, in the process becoming the largest culinary school in Japan.

The earthly delights are numerous and varied in Kabukicho, Shinjuku's notorious, though now mostly scrubbed-up, red-light district. The pleasures offered at Okinawa Paradise, though, are strictly wholesome. As the name proclaims, the focus at this laid-back, old-school izakaya tavern is on the food and drink ...

Farewell to Ginza's iconic (albeit dated) Sony Building. Once extolled by gourmets for housing the Tokyo outpost of Maxim's de Paris — at a time when few French restaurants or chefs had any interest in Japan — now all that's left is a hip ...

Known for his precise, classically French approach to cooking, Daniel Calvert will join Yusuke Namai of restaurant Ode in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward for a collaboration dinner on August 29.

The story of a young bear operating a sweets store has earned its own real-world merchandise, pop-up cafe and limited-edition desserts.

Kumiko Makihara's recently published memoir "Dear Diary Boy" might well come with a trigger warning for parents of school-aged children in Japan. Many will be able to relate to the references to heaps of homework, judgmental parents and teachers, long lists of things that ...

In the midst of Showa Era (1926-89) Japan, with patriarchy dominating and imperialism rising, a young female playwright, Fumiko Enchi (1905-86), started a literary career that would eventually lead her to become a passionate advocate for female empowerment, while casting a critical, penetrating eye ...

Asia's biggest multisport event, attracting more than 10,000 athletes from across the continent and offshore islands, got underway Saturday for two weeks of competition in 40 sports ranging from the mainstream to the esoteric. The 18th edition of the Asian Games, running through Sept. 2, ...

Right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano went the distance and threw a two-hit shutout on Saturday, earning his 10th win of the season as the Yomiuri Giants handed a 10-0 loss to the Chunichi Dragons. Sugano (10-7) struck out nine and only yielded two walks over the scoreless ...

Some of track and field's biggest names have lent their prominent voices toward an effort to honor Olympic icon Billy Mills in 2020, The Japan Times has learned. Edwin Moses and Ollan Cassell are staunch supporters of a bold plan to recognize Mills in Tokyo, ...