Kyoto team retains its seat in 'Isu-1' office chair grand prix
The rattle of tiny plastic wheels echoed through the normally sleepy streets of Hanyu, Saitama Prefecture, on Sunday morning as the small city about 60 kilometers (37 miles) north of Tokyo played host to the Japan office chair "Isu-1" Grand Prix. Founded 10 years ago ...
It was around 3 p.m. on a chilly day in December. The sky was overcast and the scent of rain hung in the air when Rina Kambayashi happened upon a creature she had never seen before. Opening the front door to her family's gracefully ...
Job seekers in their 70s could become Japan's new normal
At the age of 75, Mikiko Kuzuno found herself recently laid off and applying for a job at a factory near Tokyo. She insisted on making the application in person. "I asked them to please take a look at me," she said. "I wanted to ...
Japanese police officer quits after being busted for driving patrol cars without license
A police officer resigned Friday after it was revealed that she'd been driving patrol cars around the city of Kawagoe since November despite the fact she didn't have a driving license. "I thought I'd be forced to resign from the Criminal Investigations Bureau if I ...
A woman was arrested Monday for attempted murder over the abandonment of a newborn baby in a toilet bowl, after giving birth in a convenience-store bathroom in Saitama Prefecture, police said. Yuria Moriizumi, 24, delivered the baby girl in the bathroom of the store in ...
'Running Again': Solving problems with a good run
Running scenes have been a staple since the start of the movies, but in the silent days the fleet-footed hero was usually trying to outrun the police. Now, competitive running in its various forms, from the ekiden relay to the marathon, has become a ...
Moomins are settling in Saitama: Cuddly characters' first theme park in Japan to open March 16
An amusement park themed on the world of Finland's Moomin fairy-tale characters will open March 16 in Saitama Prefecture, near Tokyo, its operator said Tuesday. The 7.3-hectare Moominvalley Park — the first Moomin-themed amusement park in Japan — is located within Metsa Village, a Nordic-centric ...
Tokyo court raises sentence to 12 years for man who kept teenage girl captive for two years
The Tokyo High Court sentences Kabu Terauchi to 12 years in prison, rejecting his appeal and nullifying a lower court ruling that gave him a nine-year jail term.
Fifth-generation bonsai cultivator asks thieves to take good care of tiny trees they stole from him
A Japanese cultivator of bonsai trees has appealed for the thieves who made off with his expensive potted plants to take good care of them. Seiji Iimura, a fifth-generation bonsai cultivator who runs the Kirakuen garden store in Kawaguchi, Saitama Prefecture, said Tuesday the seven ...
Japan shoe sniffer admits sexual kicks drove him to steal 70 pairs of used footwear
A man on trial for the theft of a large number of shoes has admitted he committed the crimes because he gets his sexual kicks from sniffing people's used footwear, police said Tuesday. Makoto Endo, 40, is suspected of stealing 70 pairs of shoes worth ...
A 20-year-old man was arrested after he was found sleeping under a train platform at Omiya Station in the city of Saitama, the police said Thursday. Riku Kogure, who resides in Kuki, about 15 km north, was taken into custody for allegedly trespassing by going ...
With her edible organic roses, Saitama entrepreneur tastes success at an early age
The life of 25-year-old Ayaka Tanaka is busy, to say the least. As head of a fast-growing organic rose producer, Tanaka routinely checks her farms on the outskirts of Tokyo, picks rose petals herself at harvest time and meets prospective clients during her days in ...
