In Japan’s food capital, an extra carby challenge awaits. The Gyoza Dog. Gyoza are a type of pan fried dumplings, commonly known as pot stickers in English. I thought that wantonly putting anything on a sandwich was a British thing (i.e. pies, crisps), but it turns out Japan are just as game when it comes to carb on carb action. A bread roll filled with yakisoba noodles is a convenience store staple. Gyoza chain Osaka Osho’s main store on Dotonbori are now using bread rolls as a new, inventive way to serve their namesake dish. The ‘plain’ option is 8 gyoza in a bread roll, nestled on some lettuce and…

Living in Tokyo, it’s hard to get a fix of the fluffy stuff. Pets are usually not allowed in apartments and hectic work schedules hold many prospective owners back. That’s probably why Tokyo is home to a plethora of animal cafes, ranging from cats to hedgehogs, dogs to owls, you can choose from a whole host of adorable creatures to get up close and personal with. If you’re from a country that doesn’t have pet themed cafes it’s definitely something cool to try out while visiting Japan. For tourists, an animal cafe could be the perfect chill out time during a hectic sightseeing schedule. Whether you like fluffy or feathered…

Japan’s Iga City, the birthplace of ninja, is running out of ninja in 2018. Iga City, located in Japan’s Mie prefecture, is believed to be the birthplace of ninja and home of the Iga school of ninjutsu. It also hosts Japan’s most famous ninja museum, where visitors can not only watch skilled ninja performers, but undergo training to pick up the skills themselves. Unfortunately, the city’s claim to fame is at risk as Iga is facing a shortage of skilled ninja performers for their annual ninja festival as the result of a nationwide depopulation problem, according to a recent episode of “Planet Money” on NPR. In the episode, Sally Herships…

Yuria Fujino is a proud otaku who is not only passionate about cosplaying, she has made efforts ever since her middle school days to reach out beyond Japan, in particular, to France, where her experiences meeting and interacting with local anime and manga fans were so inspirational that she made otaku culture in France her university thesis. In addition to cosplay and photo book production, Yuria also does some conventional model work. If you’re lucky, you might find her at sake bar Katsurada in Shinjuku where she has occasional part-time shifts. Interview grape Japan (gJ): Since when have you been cosplaying? Yuria Fujino (YF): Since around ten years ago. In…

© Japan Forward Text: Earl H. Kinmonth, Professor Emeritus, Taisho University This year is the 150th anniversary of the Meiji Restoration. In a narrow sense the Meiji Restoration meant restoring the imperial institution to a central position in the Japanese polity. In a broader sense, though, it meant renovation and restructuring. One key component of this was the construction of railroads. Whereas the pre-Meiji regime carried out limited road and bridge building and restricted the size of ships, the new Meiji government saw improved transportation in general—and railroads in particular—as of prime importance in making Japan a strong, modern country. Just five years after the overthrow of the Tokugawa regime…

You may have heard of the Pikachu Outbreak event which happens yearly in Japan. Year on year, every summer, the amount of Pikachu involved has been growing and this year 1500 are set to break out and wreak havoc on Yokohama. But this year, another Pokemon has decided that Pikachu has been hogging the limelight for too long. For the first time ever, Eevee will join the Outbreak. In a separate parade, a load of Eevees will strut their stuff around the port area. The amount of Eevees haven’t been announced so it will be a fun surprise to see how many come to represent. The event will be running…

If you’ve ever woken up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat after a nightmare of perishing away in a world submerged by rising sea-levels or conquered by aquatic alien overlords, you may have wondered how you would have been able to turn things around and lead the fight for humanity’s survival. While it may not be quite the answer just yet, Japanese biomimicry designer Jun Kamei‘s Amphibio, “a gill garment for our aquatic future,” is an underwater breathing device proposed to support life in “a future where humankind lives in very close proximity with water.” Mikito Tateisi Mikito Tateisi The 3D-printed garment (gills and respiratory mask)…

Beat the Summer Heat With a Subzero Drink In the hot summer months, there’s nothing more refreshing than an iced-cold drink. While water and iced tea surely hit the spot, carbonated beverages are a popular choice around the world. In Japan, Asahi Beverages has found a way to take refreshment one step further by developing a vending machine which not only sells its perennially popular Mitsuya Cider at ice-cold temperatures, it sells it at subzero temperatures, -5°C to be precise. © grape Japan © grape Japan Instant Freeze Mitsuya Cider If that’s not astonishing enough, you’ll get a thrill when you open the bottle and see the contents freeze before…

Despite the scorching heat, there is one particular characteristic of Japanese summer which is worth celebrating. During this time of year you can see dramatically beautiful and colourful sunsets. This stunning photo was taken outside Yoshida Shrine in Kyoto by a university student, surprisingly on a smartphone. Source: chai_kyoto She uploaded the photo with the caption, ‘without thinking I stopped and took this.’ The breathtaking photo gained over 81,000 retweets and over 406,000 likes, with many replies agreeing that the sky is so striking that anyone would have stopped to capture the moment. The looming torii gate gives the photo a definite sense of place and many commenters compared the…

With adorably stubborn cuties like Hana-chan to compete with, it can be hard to stand out when it comes to shiba inu internet stardom, but good boy brothers Hinata, Aoi, and Sora have made their claim to fame recently with a video that could be considered a chorus of cute. In it, the three siblings bunch their faces up against each other in a formation being affectionately called the “Shiba inu Cerberus” on Japanese Twitter, and proceed to smack their lips in rhythmic order. 柴犬むぎゅむぎゅ #柴犬 #shiba pic.twitter.com/pTLwsttcQH — 柴犬3兄弟ひなあおそら (@yumatsuyamas) 2018年7月11日 We’re not sure if there has been much practice put into this synchronized lip-smacking take on the hound…

Just a few years ago, one could make the argument that Saya was the most popular schoolgirl in Japan, although a good amount of her viral fame is owed to the fact that she isn’t actually human. Saya is actually the stunningly realistic 3-D computer-generated product of Yuka Ishikawa, who works as a freelance CG Artist and her husband Teruyuki Ishikawa, and she gained a very dedicated following of fans who fell in love with her after initially thinking her to be a beautiful (as well as living) schoolgirl. Sayaの2016verです(•̀ᴗ•́)。去年の発表から色々な皆さんの反応を頂きつつコツコツと改良を重ねてきました。既に動きのシステムも稼動していて秋の展示会へのお披露目に向けて制作中です、詳細は今後アナウンス予定です。 pic.twitter.com/kOGcMx96co — TELYUKA_Saya (@mojeyuka) 2016年9月9日 With her secret revealed, however, her internet fame hasn’t waned one bit. Instead, many have…

Raised in Yokosuka, Chamomile is a multicultural cosplayer with Japanese and Filipino-American heritage. Her range of activities stretches very wide across the gamut of cosplay, encompassing everything from cosplay modeling, event modeling, modeling for color contact lenses, performing on stage and creating photo books. She’s also active as a cosplay makeup artist. Chamomile is very keen on making international connections, and she hopes she can serve as a bridge between countries through her various talents and activities. You can call her Chamomile or Chami! Interview grape Japan (gJ): Since when have you been cosplaying? Chamomile: I started cosplaying four years ago. gJ: Why do you cosplay? Chamomile: I love anime,…

Anything can become art. Recently we’ve seen apples among other things transformed into beautiful works worthy of being placed in a gallery. On his Instagram, @mikyoui00 posts photos of his elegant and delicious looking arrangements that wouldn’t look out of place in the most upmarket of restaurants. @mikyoui00がシェアした投稿 – 2018年 5月月9日午前5時34分PDT But he also produces delicate and beautiful images using his sashimi arrangement skills. It was recently Tanabata, the star festival, and these plates of raw fish beautifully show characters from the story the festival is based on. Using silver seabream and amberjack, he created Orihime, the princess from the story who weaves beautiful clothes in the Milky Way. Source:…

While Japan’s fascination with all things “kawaii” has expanded into a culture of cute that covers aesthetics, merchandise, and fashion, one might suspect that horror movies to be the stopping point, but even that would be too strong an assumption. As today marks the ominous Friday the 13th in Japan, many are taking to Twitter to celebrate the classic horror film of the same name. What may surprise some, however, is the unapologetically adorable way in which people are tipping their hat to the iconic hockey-mask wearing slasher, Jason. Below are a few highlights of Japanese Twitter’s take on “celebrating” Friday the 13th, whether it be cat cafe cosplay, sexy…

Summer is here and as usual, Tokyo is going to be sweltering hot. It’s time to escape it all and relax by the sea. Problem is, there are no (real) beaches in the Tokyo area. As a general rule the further away from Tokyo you go the prettier the beach will be, but for those without the luxury of time or travel money these are the easiest beaches to get to. Just one or two hours out of Tokyo, and you could be lying on the sand sipping a chuhai… Beaches in Easy Distance From Tokyo 1. Odaiba, Tokyo yasu_tokyo_japanさん(@uta_photograph)がシェアした投稿 – 2018年 7月月9日午後10時12分PDT The closest you’ll get to the seaside…