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LIFE

Lifestyle

Momoka Matsui and her co-worker Saki Matsumoto take photos of acrylic stand figure models of their favorite idols with cakes and teas, which they ordered at a Tokyo cafe where Matsui’s favorite boy band stopped by.

LIFE / Lifestyle

Apr 5, 2025

Can Japan's take on fandom help drive spending?

By Satoshi Sugiyama

The explosion of "oshikatsu" (supporting favored celebrities or characters), which entered the mainstream during the pandemic, has economists and the Bank of Japan taking note.

Professional cleaner Hirofumi Sakurai takes a moment to appreciate some photographs in a Gotanda apartment whose occupant died alone.

LIFE / Lifestyle / Longform

Mar 31, 2025

The last cleanup: Life and death in a lonely Japan

By Johan Brooks

A growing industry quietly erases the final traces of those who die alone, exposing deep societal fractures.

Both priest and participant bow in recognition and readiness for the practice of zazen.

LIFE / Lifestyle

Mar 25, 2025

The art of taking a pause: Discover the 1,000-year-old meditation technique of zazen in Tokyo's temples

By Laura Pollacco

Thousands of years later, in Japan the practice continues under the name "zazen."

Rintaro Sekizuka runs a record store in both London and Tokyo’s Katsushika Ward.

LIFE / Lifestyle

Mar 8, 2025

Tokyo’s vinyl experts say overseas buyers are ‘sustaining the scene’

By Gabrielle Doman

A weak yen makes rare vinyls a steal for tourists, and locals say it's all part of a circular musical exchange.

Yarn shortages are a sign that hobbies like knitting and crochet are gaining in popularity.

LIFE / Lifestyle

Mar 4, 2025

‘Granny hobbies’ are the new self-care

By Yuko Tamura

Pastimes long associated with Japanese grandparents are booming on social media as young people look for new (old) ways to relax.

As peckish deer chase delighted tourists in Japan's temple-dotted Nara Park, a quiet but dedicated team of litter-pickers patrols the stone paths, collecting plastic waste that threatens the animals' health.

LIFE / Lifestyle

Feb 15, 2025

New street patrol helps Nara's deer clean up their act

By Tomohiro Osaki

Garbage dropped by tourists can pose a serious risk to Nara's famous deer, but a new group is cleaning up the town.

Artificial intelligence is fast becoming 'a new tool in the toolkit of scammers' preying on individuals looking for love online.

LIFE / Lifestyle

Feb 14, 2025

Got a digital crush this Valentine's? Beware of scams, says Meta.

By Glen Chapman

At a Feb. 12 briefing, Meta outlined a recently disrupted romance scam that originated in Cambodia and targeted people in Chinese and Japanese languages.

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.

Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Japan's growing ranks of centenarians are redefining what it means to live in a super-aging society.

What comes after 100?

By Tomoko Otake

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027

Looking ahead to Yokohama’s Green × Expo 2027

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