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Japan Times
LIFE
May 8, 2011

A volunteer's journal of hope for Tohoku

When the magnitude 9 megaquake hit northeastern Japan in the early afternoon of Friday, March 11, I was at work in The Japan Times office some 250 km to the south in Tokyo.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 29, 2011

Wright, Cera get 1-up in 'Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World'

"Scott in the comics almost reminds me of Homer Simpson; you get to see what's going on in his head, and there's not much going on," says Hollywood indie poster-boy Michael Cera when asked about his role as the title character in the adrenaline-soaked action comedy "Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World."
Japan Times
ENVIRONMENT / BACKSTREET STORIES
Apr 24, 2011

Gaming Moto Azabu

Rather than dwell on the dark side of life at this time, I decide to get my game on by heading to a store just off Azabu-Juban's main shopping street in central Tokyo's Minato Ward. Max Game, at the foot of Kurayamizaka (Dark Slope), is surrounded by kids of all ages sitting at tables, strategizing and...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 22, 2011

'Unknown'

Life as you know it can shatter and change in just a few short minutes — ain't that the truth. For Dr. Martin Harris (Liam Neeson) in "Unknown," the shock comes twofold: Although he can remember his own identity and life prior to his taxi accident, no one else recognizes him — not even his wife....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Apr 22, 2011

'Gantz: Perfect Answer'

Reviewing a two-part movie is an awkward business. For part one, I end up writing a midterm progress report, with no thumbs up or down for whole shebang. Part one may be bad, but prejudging part two would be wrong.
COMMENTARY
Apr 17, 2011

The confidence to look out again

The tragic events in Japan continue to attract general sympathy here, and contributions toward relief of the sufferers are still pouring in. But even the problems at the Fukushima nuclear reactors have ceased to be front-page news. Attention in Britain has focused on Libya, problems in Syria and other...
JAPAN
Apr 14, 2011

Fisheries hit by safety fears

The nuclear crisis has spread fear among people all over the world, but fishermen in areas around the Fukushima No. 1 atomic plant say the perception of danger is unfairly affecting their livelihoods.
EDITORIALS
Apr 10, 2011

To 'hanami' or not hanami

As the annual hanami season arrives in the Japanese archipelago, cherry-blossom lovers are wondering whether they should go out and enjoy them. After the devastation of the March 11 earthquake and tsunami in the Tohoku-Pacific region, many have suggested that this year's hanami parties should be prohibited....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 8, 2011

Takubo's building renovations turn art outside-in

A lot of the restlessness and energy in contemporary art actually stems from a sense of emptiness and frustration that young artists feel as they flail around trying to find their true artistic voice. This certainly seems to have been the case in the career of Kyoji Takubo, a 62-year-old artist, who...
Japan Times
JAPAN
Apr 5, 2011

Smiles belie traumatized kids

KARAKUWA, Miyagi Pref. — Zoom in for a snapshot of apparent normalcy: children sitting in a circle, clasping playing cards tightly in their hands. They laugh, chat and occasionally hop up to break into a goofy dance.
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Apr 3, 2011

Tragic echoes from the past

Prior to the Tohoku-Kanto earthquake and tsunami of March 11, two similar seismic events — both followed by tsunami — have recently wrought destruction on the northeastern coast of Japan's main island of Honshu. This week and next, we dig into the archives of The Japan Times and a forerunner later...
CULTURE / Books
Apr 3, 2011

Sojourner of the mystical realm

THE PASSING SUMMERS, The Japanese Mystique: Charm and Consequence, by Ivy C. Machida. Printed Matter Press, 2010, 280 pp., $20 (paper) The 21st century has seen a proliferation of memoirs entering the book market — from James Frey's memoir-fiction "A Million Little Pieces" to the slew of ghosted celebrity...
CULTURE / Books
Mar 27, 2011

Love, war and betrayal in old Siam

THE TALE OF KHUN CHANG AND KHUN PHAEN: Siam's Great Folk Epic of Love and War. Translated and edited by Chris Baker and Pasuk Phongpaichit. Silkworm Books, 2010, 970 pp., $60 (hardcover) Those who like their novice monks prim and proper, taming desires, meditating and selflessly engaging in good deeds...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 20, 2011

Japanese lessons on reducing disaster risk

MANILA — The March 11 earthquake-tsunami is the worst natural disaster to hit Japan in modern times. Nobody who has watched the events of recent days can fail to be moved by the unprecedented scope of the tragedy and its toll on human lives and property — a toll that continues to climb.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Q&A
Mar 19, 2011

Steps to avoid exposure to fallout

Residents near the Fukushima No. 1 nuclear power plant in Fukushima Prefecture were ordered to evacuate Tuesday, raising concerns about radiation exposure.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHO'S WHO
Mar 15, 2011

Juggler of two professions in Japan

"My No. 1 hobby even now is still 'learning,' " says Peter Frankl, 58, who has been juggling two professions for over 30 years. Speaking with his eyes lit up like a little boy, the mathematician and street juggler says that through learning, he feels his world is expanding.
JAPAN / Media / MEDIA MIX
Mar 13, 2011

Cheat tests the exam system

A funny thing happened on the way to jail for the 19-year-old boy who was arrested Mar. 3 for allegedly cheating on a Kyoto University entrance exam: The media suddenly became all reflective of its coverage and sympathetic of his situation. Some may see this turnaround as a defensive reaction to the...
JAPAN
Mar 10, 2011

Pilot project's first refugees orientated

Poised to embark on a new life on their own, the five Myanmar families in Japan on a U.N.-sponsored third-country resettlement program finished their six-month training Wednesday.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY
Mar 10, 2011

Zen psychology: Daisetz Suzuki remembered

Despite the gloomy global economy, the field of positive psychology is booming. Often described simplistically by journalists as "the science of happiness," it's actually a broad focus on our strengths and talents, virtues and peak experiences in daily living. The name for this specialty originated with...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Mar 4, 2011

It takes innovation, imagination and perseverence to challenge contemporary theater

Recently, while looking through a handful of upcoming production flyers displayed in a cozy, small-scale theater, I noticed to my surprise that one name kept reappearing: Norihito Nakayashiki.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Mar 4, 2011

Punk icon Lydon shows fondness for Japan in book

"The best night I've ever had was to be accused of being a bad Johnny Rotten in Kyoto," laughs John Lydon, frontman of punk pioneers The Sex Pistols and groundbreaking postpunk band Public Image Ltd. Speaking on the phone from his adopted home of Los Angeles, the 55-year-old Irish-born, London-raised...
COMMENTARY / World
Mar 4, 2011

Justifying an intervention in Libya for justice' sake

MELBOURNE — The world has watched in horror as Libya's Colonel Moammar Gadhafi uses his military to attack protesters opposed to his rule, killing hundreds or possibly thousands of unarmed civilians.
Japan Times
LIFE / Food & Drink
Feb 25, 2011

Delicious dishes that are fit for a princess

Makiko Itoh SPECIAL TO THE JAPAN TIMES March 3 is Hina Matsuri, also known as Girls' Festival or Momo no Sekku (Peach Day). This day was a traditional seasonal and religious event on the lunar calendar, during the period when peach blossoms were in bloom — around early April on the Gregorian calendar....
Japan Times
Features / WEEK 3
Feb 20, 2011

Aspiring animator comes to Japan to chase her dreams

It's fun to walk down the street or get aboard a train with Tracey Seals and watch how Japanese people react. Once they notice the blue-eyed, bespectacled 21-year-old redhead from Mississippi in their midst, some break out in smiles. And others do double-takes, as if they've just seen an anime character...
COMMENTARY / World
Feb 17, 2011

Sumo will change or die

"Please hit hard at the faceoff and then go with the flow.''
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Issues / THE ZEIT GIST
Feb 15, 2011

Japan, be confident!

On the day of his departure from Hokkaido on April 16, 1877, at the end of his tenure as the first president of what later became Hokkaido University, William Smith Clark left his charges, and Japan, with a parting message: "Boys, be ambitious." For the next century plus, Japan was ambitious, creating...
JAPAN
Feb 11, 2011

Medvedev trip wins over Kunashiri locals

YUZHNO-SAKHALINSK, Russia (Kyodo) Just over three months ago, President Dmitry Medvedev paid a brief visit to Kunashiri Island, becoming the first Kremlin leader to visit one of four isles off Hokkaido controlled by Moscow and long claimed by Japan.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Feb 11, 2011

Playwright Noda asks, 'What is a Japanese?'

In the early 1980s, when he was a student at the University of Tokyo, Hideki Noda began to emerge as a standard bearer of something new in Japan: Contemporary theater by — and for — young people seeking to change their country.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Feb 11, 2011

'A Serious Man'

If you thought being Japanese is hard work, try the Jewish life for a taste of something gut-wrenching — or so implies "A Serious Man," created by brothers Joel and Ethan Coen.

Longform

Bear attacks have dominated Japanese news headlines in recent months, with 13 people so far having been killed by the animals.
Japan’s bears have been on their killing spree for more than 100 years