National / Science & Health Mar 23, 2020
Five people are reported to have passed away from complications related to COVID-19.
Travel Mar 7, 2020
Boat racing: Endearingly rubbish and genuinely dramatic
by Chris Russell
Kyōtei (boat racing) is a kind of slow, aquatic NASCAR that also happens to be one of the few things that you can legally gamble on in Japan.
National Mar 4, 2020
Some areas short of Japanese-language teachers for foreign youth
Some areas in Japan are struggling to secure enough public school staff to teach Japanese to children with foreign roots, amid a recent surge in the number of such students in the country, a Kyodo News survey showed Wednesday. The city of Yokohama, Saitama Prefecture ...
National Mar 2, 2020
Nearly all prefectures in Japan shut schools amid coronavirus outbreak
Some schools are leaving their facilities open so children will have a place to go if their parents are working.
National / Science & Health Feb 22, 2020
100 cabin mates of Diamond Princess patients disembark for new quarantine in Saitama
Passengers on the cruise ship Diamond Princess, currently quarantined in Yokohama, who shared cabins with COVID-19-infected people disembark. They will be kept for another two weeks of medical observation at a public institution in Saitama Prefecture.
National Feb 21, 2020
One is a preschooler in Saitama who returned from Wuhan with his dad, who tested positive earlier, and the other two are brothers in Hokkaido.
National Feb 10, 2020
Record-low snowfall puts Niigata city's plan to cool Tokyo Olympic venues in jeopardy
A city in Niigata Prefecture, known for its abundant snowfall every year, was planning to send snow to soccer stadiums and other facilities to be used at this year's Tokyo Olympic Games to tackle the heat. But amid record low snowfall this season, the city ...
National / Crime & Legal Feb 2, 2020
A government official involved in work to look after isolated returnees from the coronavirus-hit Chinese city of Wuhan at a lodging facility near Tokyo was found dead Saturday in what police say is a possible suicide. The 37-year-old man, who was dispatched from the Metropolitan ...
National Jan 21, 2020
Japan's sole doll museum unveils collection of more than 5,000 items
A museum devoted to dolls and other items from around the world, including Japanese dolls from the 17th to the 19th centuries, unveiled its extensive collection for the first time in the city of Saitama on Tuesday. The media were shown the collection a month ...
National Jan 20, 2020
Blind tours at Saitama temple teach about lifestyles of visually impaired
Every month, a unique event is held at a temple in Saitama Prefecture to help people get a better understanding of visual impairment by having them walk through the temple wearing eye masks and depend more on their senses of hearing and smell. The event ...
Travel Dec 28, 2019
Hatsuhinode: Where to see the first sunrise of the decade
by Russell Thomas
There's never a better time to catch sunrise in Japan than at new year. From Tokyo Tower to the coast of Chiba Prefecture, here are 10 of the best places to see the first sunrise of the year near Tokyo.
National / Crime & Legal Dec 6, 2019
Tokyo High Court changes Peruvian man's death sentence to life in prison
The Tokyo High Court overturned a lower court's death sentence and gave a Peruvian man life in prison Thursday over the 2015 murder of six people in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture. The court ruled that Vayron Jonathan Nakada Ludena, 34, who was found guilty of robbery ...