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Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHY DID YOU LEAVE JAPAN?
Dec 31, 2018

Akira Satake: From handmade banjos to vases

When the music industry became too stressful to bear in the U.S., Akira Satake found a new vocation in pottery.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Dec 22, 2018

Ayako Minase can put a song in your heart

Singer-songwriter Ayako Minase's 'mature pop,' with its fun retro-influences and contemporary sensibilities, comes from the heart.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Dec 12, 2018

In 2018, art came via many anniversaries in Japan

This year saw a lot of anniversaries in Japan. It was 1868 when Crown Prince Mutsuhito became the Emperor Meiji, the official policy of national isolation ended and the country was set on a course to become a modern industrialized nation-state. This birthday seems like it could have been a great time...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
Nov 24, 2018

Max Goshko-Dankov: Public art returns lost personal connections

Russian artist Max Goshko-Dankov on his talent for combining incompatible colors, the role of art in modern society and how adult coloring helps you get in touch with yourself.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel / A Weekend In
Nov 10, 2018

A weekend in Sapporo: Fresh crab, craft beer and sculpture gardens

For more than a third of the year, Sapporo is buried beneath thick snow. During its warmer months, however, the city shrugs off its winter coat and bursts into life.
Japan Times
Figure Skating / ICE TIME
Nov 6, 2018

Yuzuru Hanyu amazes again in Helsinki win

Just when you didn't think he could go one better, he did.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Oct 30, 2018

Kichizaemon Raku reads between Wols' lines

Kichizaemon Raku, the eldest son of Kakunyu XIV, succeeded to the role as the 15th head of the revered Raku family of tea bowl craftsmen in 1981, a tradition founded in the Momoyama Period (1573-1603) by Tanaka Chojiro (d. 1592). His latest exhibition, "Raku Kichizaemon × Wols" at the Sagawa Art Museum...
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Oct 19, 2018

The Akinada Tobishima Kaido: An alternative route across the Seto Inland Sea

Although less well-known than the nearby Shimanami Kaido, the 96-kilometer-roundtrip Akinada Tobishima Kaido route is gaining in popularity. Starting at the Akinada Bridge, the Tobishima route spans a network of seven bridges seven islands that can be traversed on car, bike or foot down to Okamura Island, north of Shikoku.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Oct 18, 2018

The meteoric rise of Mayu Matsuoka

As a film critic, I occasionally come across something on the screen that sets off fireworks in my brain. It happened with Sakura Ando's explosive performance as a desperate boxer in "100 Yen Love" and with the funny, surprising and moving zombie comedy "One Cut of the Dead." And last year it also happened...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Oct 3, 2018

When Ami Yamasaki begins to sing, brooks, birds and barks emerge

I first heard Ami Yamasaki's voice in 2016 at a studio where I hosted a radio show in New York. She popped by to promote an upcoming performance at the Japan Society with composer Mamoru Fujieda, koto player Kayoko Nakagawa and shō (free reed mouth organ) player Ko Ishikawa.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Music
Sep 25, 2018

Electronic artist Tim Hecker delves into ancient Japanese court music and negative space on 'Konoyo'

For the first decade of his career, the Canadian composer and sound artist Tim Hecker specialized in transmuting digital audio into thick miasmas of sound that combined orchestral richness with the sensory assault of noise music. But after reaching an apotheosis — and his largest audience to date —...
Japan Times
JAPAN / Politics
Sep 16, 2018

Abe-Ishiba debate highlights candidates' lack of concrete plans to tackle fundamental problems

A debate illustrates Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's and former Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba's differences on how to overcome some of the most fundamental problems Japan faces.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Sep 2, 2018

Kazunori Hamana: Simple vessels of complex self-reflection

Inspired by a love for the craftsmanship of traditional items, Kazunori Hamana abandoned his vintage clothing business in Tokyo to make clay tsubo jars that have since won him critical acclaim.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Aug 10, 2018

Taking the path once trodden by Ian Fleming and James Bond

In 1962, Ian Fleming, the author of James Bond, visited Japan. His journey here, and the characters he met, would go on to inspire 007's adventures in 'You Only Live Twice.' But in 2018, how possible is it to retrace the author's footsteps across Japan?
Japan Times
ASIA PACIFIC / Society / FOCUS
Aug 10, 2018

Chinese women create WeChat group in wake of wave of sex harassment cases

Battling censorship and stereotypes, Chinese women are organizing online to harness the momentum of the country's nascent #MeToo movement in a push for authorities and businesses to end sexual misconduct.
Japan Times
JAPAN
Jun 29, 2018

Officials discuss water quality hopes at home, abroad

Water is a basic need for humans, the environment and the Earth. Governments, engineers and researchers have worked together toward securing water supplies and managing water quality around the world. The International Water Association is one of the biggest international organizations working to achieve...
JAPAN / Politics
May 31, 2018

Japan's ruling bloc pushes labor bill through the Lower House amid worries over karōshi

The government says the comprehensive legal package will represent the biggest shake-up of labor laws in Japan's postwar history, but some believe it could make problems worse.
Japan Times
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
May 28, 2018

The 'Mao suit': One outfit for the people, but with many names

The English-language media recently described North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un as wearing a 'Mao suit,' but no one in East Asia would refer to it this way.
MORE SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
May 27, 2018

Disgraced football coach Masato Uchida unfit to follow in legend's footsteps

The 21-time national champion Nihon University Phoenix have always been one of the most respected teams in the 80-plus years of American football in Japan. But the school's elite status is currently in jeopardy because of a fallout from the scandal caused by a dirty tackle.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / WORKS BY JAPANESE WOMEN
May 12, 2018

Where would we be without the words of Japanese women?

Often overlooked, female writers in Japan, such as Ichiyo Higuchi and Raicho Hiratsuka, have a staying power that surpasses their male contemporaries. To help amplify these female voices, over the next few months we'll be highlighting some of the lesser read in translation but equally deserving Japanese female writers.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / 20 QUESTIONS
May 12, 2018

Iona McIntosh: Keep calm about volcanoes

Volcanologist on what would happen to Kanto if Mount Fuji actually erupted.
Japan Times
BASKETBALL / NBA
May 7, 2018

Saitama housewife catches NBA's eye with cute illustrations of Oklahoma City Thunder players

Sometimes nonverbal means of communication can connect you to the world.
JAPAN / Society
Apr 30, 2018

Banning women from the sumo ring: centuries-old tradition, straight-up sexism or something more complex?

In a life-threatening moment, Maizuru Mayor Ryozo Tatami suddenly collapsed while delivering a speech during a sumo exhibition in Kyoto.
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / How-tos / LIFELINES
Apr 25, 2018

A primer on navigating your ID landscape

A number of changes to Japanese ID registration systems have been implemented in recent years, some of them for everyone in Japan and others pertinent only to foreign nationals. The ins and outs can be a bit confusing, particularly for those who have been used to living under the old systems for many...
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / BLACK EYE
Apr 22, 2018

The hoops worth going through

The challenges of coaching basketball in Japan keep Samir St. Clair on a winning streak
Japan Times
COMMUNITY / Our Lives / WHY DID YOU LEAVE JAPAN?
Apr 21, 2018

Naoyuki Kawahara: Helping Sudan heal with medicine and more

Naoyuki Kawahara quit his job as a medical attache for the Embassy of Japan in Sudan to set up a non-profit organization, Rociantes, and provide much-needed medical care in Sudan.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Art
Apr 17, 2018

Legacy of genius: Kyosai and Kyosui

Kawanabe Kyosui might not be as well-known as her father Kyosai, but the prolific painter helped pave the way for women artists in early 20th-century Japan.
Japan Times
LIFE / Travel
Apr 13, 2018

Decompress from Tokyo in picturesque Ito

An ideal trade-off between city and nature, with its rich history, relative ease of access from Tokyo and abundance of hot springs, Ito is a go-to spot for respite from the hyper-hustle of Tokyo city life.
Japan Times
JAPAN / History / JAPAN TIMES GONE BY
Mar 31, 2018

Japan Times 1918: Japan now has female street car conductors

A private street-car company, the Mino Denki Kido Kaisha, in the Nagoya district, following the example in other belligerent countries has made the interesting experiment of employing women conductors.

Longform

Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji