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May 04, 2024
 

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Mark Thompson
Mark Thompson is the managing editor of The Japan Times, where he has worked since the birth of HTML. Once upon a time, he was on the features desk and wrote regularly about culture and technology. He can be found on way too many social platforms, including Mastodon, Post.news, Bluesky and Threads.
For Mark Thompson's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices / FOREIGN AGENDA
Feb 8, 2015
Is Australia ready to import Japan’s revolving-door-style politics?
Australian politics has worked itself into a frenzy. Prime Minister Tony Abbott, after ridiculing the previous Labor government for its public infighting, faces a leadership challenge from inside his own Liberal Party.
Japan Times
Places
Jan 28, 2015
Tokyo's menagerie of pet cafes
Japan's animal cafes fill a very important niche, as many people, especially in urban areas, live in cramped apartments with strict no-pets policies. The pet cafe allows them to connect with the domesticated animal kingdom for the price of a cup of tea. Cat cafes got the ball rolling (after the first cat cafe landed in Osaka in 2004) and over the years that's expanded to a menagerie that includes rabbits, birds, goats and even penguins. Here is a selection of pet cafes in Tokyo.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jan 9, 2015
First taste of Noma in Tokyo
Top chef Rene Redzepi and the staff of his Copenhagen restaurant, Noma, which has been named "world's best" for the four of the past five years, are serving their groundbreaking fare in Tokyo until Feb. 14. Here are a few glimpes from the creators and the first guests.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jan 1, 2015
Most read domestic news stories for 2014
Ranging from scandal to tragedy to celebration, here are some of the most read Japan news stories from 2014.
BUSINESS / NOTEBOOK
Dec 16, 2014
Applications being accepted for pre-Tokyo Marathon 5K run
Applications are now being accepted for the Tokyo Marathon Friendship Run 2015, scheduled for Feb. 21. The 5K running event will take place one day before the 2015 Tokyo Marathon and aims to provide hospitality and promote exchanges with runners from overseas.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Nov 20, 2014
A personal invite to Planet Gondry
By coincidence, two tributes to baby-boomer auteurs are currently on display in Tokyo.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Nov 18, 2014
Renowned Japanese actor Ken Takakura dies at 83
Renowned Japanese actor Ken Takakura died of malignant lymphoma early on Nov. 10, media reported Tuesday. He was 83.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Voices
Nov 6, 2014
The campaign to take down pick-up artist Julien Blanc
Portrait of a pick-up artist, as seen on social media.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Oct 31, 2014
Halloween in Japan 2014
Halloween in Japan is a relatively new holiday, especially when it comes to adults. Real trick or treating for kids will probably never catch on, but the act of dressing up — be it cute or creepy — has caught on in a big way. Here is a sample of the sights leading up to All Hallows' Eve.
Japan Times
LIFE / Style & Design
Oct 26, 2014
Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo, as witnessed on social meda
The styles, the people, the looks of Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Tokyo ... as witnessed on social media
Japan Times
WORLD / Politics
Sep 19, 2014
Expats speak out on Scotland's independence referendum
Fxpats couldn't vote on Scotland's independence referendum but that didn't prevent it from being a topic of discussion, celebration and commiseration on Twitter. Here's a sampling of the voices from Japan.
Japan Times
Places
Aug 1, 2014
Along the Shonan Bay shore, all you do is beach, beach, beach, all day long
Every year in July and August, wooden beach huts (umi no ie) pop up along the shores of Shonan Bay in Kanagawa Prefecture. Here is a list of some of the events taking place at a few of the most popular umi no ie in Hayama, Kamakura and Zushi in August.
Japan Times
JAPAN
May 8, 2014
Most shared Japan Times stories from April
In case you missed them, here are the most shared stories from The Japan Times for April 2014.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 23, 2014
Sushi legend Jiro enlisted in bid to wow president
After arriving at Haneda airport, U.S. President Barack Obama is whisked to Ginza for a “casual dinner” with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe at the modest yet widely revered sushi restaurant Sukibayashi Jiro.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Mar 26, 2014
[PHOTOS] Spring begins in Tokyo with the annual pink parade of cherry blossoms
Spring officially arrived in Tokyo on Tuesday when Japan's weather agency announced the start of the cherry blossom season.
Japan Times
MULTIMEDIA
Feb 27, 2014
[VIDEO] Historic cage match between fully armored knights and samurai
Nov 1, 2013
会員仮登録の手続きをしましたが、仮登録用のメールが届きません
現在、お客様から弊社システムから送信するメールが届かないとのご指摘をいただいており、大変ご迷惑をおかけしております
Nov 1, 2013
Why have I not received my registration email yet?
In some cases, our mail might have been routed to your spam folder.
Oct 16, 2013
I’m a Digital Lite subscriber. What do I do if I run out of stories?
You can extend your monthly story allotment by purchasing booster packs in quantities of 80 or 40 stories.
Oct 16, 2013
I found a bug. What should I do?
Tell us about it, please.
Biden calls ally Japan ‘xenophobic’ along with rivals China and Russia
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks in Syracuse, New York, on April 25.
Yen swings stir talk that Japan is in the FX market once again
An electronic screen in Tokyo displays the yen exchange rate against the U.S. dollar and the graph showing its recent swings, on Thursday.
Harajuku strives to reclaim its former glory — and surpass it
Laforet Harajuku, which celebrated its 45th anniversary last year, has been a witness to the district's evolution over the years.
Weak yen fattens tourist wallets in Japan
People visit the Ameya Yokocho market in Tokyo's Ueno district during the Golden Week holiday on Tuesday.
Japan's May 1 intervention may have cost ¥3.66 trillion, BOJ data suggests
An electronic screen displays a graph showing Japanese yen exchange rates surging against the dollar amid signs of intervention by authorities, in Tokyo on Thursday.
Kishida sets sights on energy and climate in South America trip
Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will use a policy speech in Sao Paulo to set out his vision for ties between Japan and South America, almost 10 years after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe advocated for stronger ties between the two in the same city.
Yellow sand allergy: A health issue made worse by climate change
A screenshot of the Meteorological Agency's satellite image of clouds and yellow sand (in pink) on Sunday.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.

Podcast

From easily navigable train stations to the helpfulness of its municipal staff, Tokyo has earned high praise for its commitment to accessibility for disabled travelers.
[Rebroadcast] Japan is doing better on accessibility than you may think

Longform

Rows of irises resemble a rice field at the Peter Walker-designed Toyota Municipal Museum of Art.
The 'outsiders' creating some of Japan's greenest spaces
By Stephen Mansfield

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