Is Japan "the best" at fireworks? George Plimpton thinks so. In 1984, this unofficial fireworks commissioner of New York declared that "Japan is by far the most enlightened and enterprising nation when it comes to fireworks" in a book titled "Fireworks: A History and Celebration." More ...

Nagaya have been disappearing from downtown Tokyo for many decades, with row upon row of these "long houses" torn down to make way for more comfortable — and profitable — residential complexes and office blocks. However, it's still possible to find examples of nagaya from ...

A Los Angeles neighborhood is struggling to preserve its unique cultural identity.

As Takaratomy's popular toy celebrates its 50th birthday, we examine how it has evolved over the past five decades to reflect the times.

The breed is a fiercely loyal animal that has attracted growing interest from dog lovers in recent years

If local train rides, bucolic vistas, simple family-run ryokans and hot-spring baths overflowing with mineral-rich waters sounds like the perfect getaway, Naruko Onsen village in Miyagi Prefecture should be your next destination. Accessible by the Rikuu-East train line, the valley is flanked by wooded mountains ...

When most people think of scuba diving, they usually envision colorful coral reefs, turtles and countless schools of fish. At Chuuk Lagoon in the Federated States of Micronesia, however, the star attraction is not the abundance of life that exists beneath the waves, but ...

Who is only five apples high and has no mouth — yet is one of the country’s biggest cultural ambassadors?

Once an activity for the nobility of the Imperial court in Japan, hanami (cherry-blossom viewing) became a popular tradition among the elite ruling class during the Heian Period (794-1185), and then later, with the encouragement of Tokugawa Yoshimune (1684-1751), among commoners. Today, Japanese people typically ...

Cloaked in mystery and perhaps a certain degree of myth, the yakuza constitute one of the hardest subculture groups in Japan to infiltrate. But when Belgian photographer Anton Kusters and his brother, Malik, saw a gangster walk by as they were drinking at a ...