For Anna Masui's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
They looked like any other job recruiting seminar. Company officials asked job seekers their perceived strengths and in return were asked what kind of people they want to hire. But one seminar held in mid-September in Tokyo targeted people with disabilities, while another highlighted Asian ...
Foreign visitors to Japan looking to find out about tourist attractions and places to eat are able to access information from a growing array of multilingual apps and websites available on smartphones and computer terminals at hotels. Japan-based sites in English and other languages are ...
When a Japanese retiree who had settled in the northern Thai city of Chiang Mai died in June, his body lay undiscovered for a week at his home, where he had lived alone. The man, who was in his 70s, was among a number of ...
The face of share house living is changing in Japan as operators are stepping up efforts to meet a variety of needs among residents. A two-story share house in a residential area in the western Tokyo city of Chofu allows residents to keep pets. In late ...
Capsule hotels have long offered tiny spaces to sleep at rock-bottom prices, but they are now looking to attract a wider range of customer than the typical male office worker who has missed his train after a night's drinking. A new breed of lodging featuring ...
Consumers are looking for new ways to add a personal touch when it comes to gifts for birthdays, weddings or other special occasions. Over and above simply choosing the way gifts are wrapped or picking the color of ribbons, people can now include an original ...
Japanese companies are increasingly offering activities open to all, regardless of age, gender or disability. In late May, Tokyo-based pharmaceutical firm Biogen Japan Ltd. held an event for people with multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disorder that affects the nervous system. About 60 participants played karuta ...
In view of the increasing number of foreign visitors to Japan, Fujita Kanko Inc., a Tokyo-based hotel chain, is stepping up efforts to train female staff in providing service in the style of okami at Japanese ryokan (inns). The okami is the chief female manager ...
Corporate Japan is looking to conduct job interviews online in a move that could benefit both companies and job seekers. For job-hunting college students in rural areas, going to interviews in Tokyo, where the major companies are concentrated, is not easy: the transportation and accommodation ...
A website providing information about sento public bathhouses in parts of Japan is proving popular despite the decline in such communal baths, which have been a major part of Japanese culture. Tokyo Sento, launched in 2015, now attracts about 100,000 views a month, mainly from ...
