It’s always fascinating to take a look back in time to newsreel footage from Japan’s earlier years, particularly footage in vibrant cultural areas such as Kyoto. Unfortunately, we must often do so without the benefit of sound. Thankfully videographer Guy Jones, who compiles and restores rare and old historical film footage, has uploaded footage of Kyoto from 1929 featuring sound that provides added audio insight into bustling Japanese city life from all those years back. According to Global Voices, the original footage was provided by University of South Carolina Moving Image Research Collections (MIRC), caretaker of the Fox Movietone News Collection. Among the the many interesting scenes brought to life…

Baby Chanco’s hair isn’t the only thing growing. It seems the 1-year-old baby sensation’s career prospects are as well. View this post on Instagram 髪記録 / hair diaryさん(@babychanco)がシェアした投稿 – 2018年 5月月14日午後3時38分PDT View this post on Instagram 髪記録 / hair diaryさん(@babychanco)がシェアした投稿 – 2018年 5月月16日午後4時41分PDT At just four months old, Baby Chanco was already a viral hit on Instagram thanks to her unusually thick and beautiful hair. Quickly, her “hair diary” (run by her mother) exploded to the tune of 377,000 followers and now a modeling career with Pantene as part of their “#HairWeGo My Hair Moves Me Forward” campaign. Modeling with Japanese TV announcer Sato Kondo. Admiring her work. View this…

Unless you’re a regular customer of their products, you may be familiar with Japan’s most recognizable masturbatory aid maker TENGA due to their promotional campaigns such as opening up their own curry stand, or their interesting model names such as Deep Throat, Rolling Head, Premium Vacuum, and even a tea ceremony vibrator. Or perhaps you’ve sampled their “Night Charge” energy drink. TENGA’s latest product might be interpreted as a humorous alternative to the Japanese Valentine’s Day tradition of “giri choco”, or obligatory chocolates. Giri choco are chocolates customarily given by women to men casually with no romantic intent (men typically reciprocate by gifting chocolate on White Day). While fairly innocuous,…

If you’ve traveled enough around Japan, you’ve likely spotted the ceramic figures of the maneki neko (beckoning cat), a Japanese good luck charm that is said to bring good fortune and prosperity to its owner. Shop owners often display one at the front of their business, as the upraised paw moving in a beckoning motion is believed to summon good fortune. What you probably haven’t seen, however, is a maneki neko summoning good luck to your crotch. The “Good Fortune Maneki Neko Pants” are being mad available from Izavell, and are said to use the powers of a very peculiarly placed maneki neko and the good luck color of red…

Whether it’s ramen-topped ice cream cups, vanilla ice-cream creamy seafood ramen, or the world’s most intense matcha ice cream, you’ll find no lack of variety when it comes to ice cream in Japan. If you’ve been searching for poop-emoji shaped soft serve for whatever reason, then you’re in luck. SweetXO Good Grief in Harajuku will scratch your itch with “Unchi-kun Soft Serve”! Each Unchi-kun will be served in a miniature Japanese-style toilet (as shown below by Harajuku YouTuber “Shinako”.), with customizable accessories as SweetXO Good Grief wants customers to decorate their poo emoji to their liking. So feel free to turn your poop emoji into a king, flower, or bunny….

The traditional Japanese art of papercutting, or kirie, can truly be a beautiful sight to behold. 25-year veteran Masayo Fukuda, however, may have produced one of the most intricately gorgeous cutting yet. She recently took to Twitter to post what she is calling her masterpiece of 2018 in the form of a stunning kirie octopus! Source: Masayo Fukudaa Source: Masayo Fukuda The super detailed octopus is actually cut from a single sheet of paper, and it took Masayo two months to painstakingly craft and brilliantly make use of negative space. Source: Masayo Fukuda Source: Masayo Fukuda While it may appear as a finely drawn illustration, videos below prove that it’s…

If you’re familiar with Japanese online retailer Felissimo and their YOU+MORE! series (a play on the pronunciation of “humor” in Japanese), you may have noticed that one of their biggest hits was a cuddly pillow version of one of Japan’s popular social media memes–the sexy daikon radish. The “sexy daikon” is a hastag used to refer to harvested daikon that appear to be sexily crossing their “legs” or posing suggestively, as pictured below: View this post on Instagram ryon ryonさん(@ryon.coco)がシェアした投稿 – 2018年 9月月3日午前4時46分PDT View this post on Instagram Emiさん(@thhimehykw)がシェアした投稿 – 2018年 2月月8日午後1時21分PST After the sexy daikon pillow was given an outfit upgrade, Felissimo has decided to release a pouch version…

Studio Ghibli fans were overjoyed last year when the famed animation studio announced that it would be opening their first official theme park in Japan, even unveiling charming concept art. The venture is a collaboration between Studio Ghibli and the Aichi prefectural government to transform Aichi’s EXPO Park into a full-blown Ghibli attraction in 2022. Now Aichi prefecture and Studio Ghibli have released further details on five “zones” of the park that will recreate the worlds of some of Studio Ghibli’s most popular films and even allow fans to experience traditional cultural activities. Source: Aichi Prefecture Government Source: Aichi Prefecture Government “Hill of Youth Area” Source: Aichi Prefecture Government In…

We’ve seen cat cafes with cosplaying kitty staff, a cat who teaches about Japanese food and culture through cosplay, and even a cat with a creepily perfect Demogorgon costume. However, an unfortunate reality is that sometimes comfort (and more often, cooperation) concerns keep many owners from having their pets dress up. Fortunately, Bandai and Japanese pet goods maker Petio have teamed up for a lineup of comfortable costumes and pet beds that let your cats and dogs become Sailor Moon and Dragon Ball Z characters. Super Saiyan Shiba Source: Bandai Namco Sailor Moon Kitty Source: Bandai Namco The series, called Chara-petty, includes five different Sailor Moon outfits (Moon, Mars, Mercury,…

When you think of Japanese robotics, it’s easy to be distracted by some of the more eccentric and outlandish examples such as robot-staffed hotels or even the demonic poop robot that sprays diarrhea. However, Japan boasts several impressive more practical robotic developments, such as an anime girl hologram assistant and domestic service robot Pepper–who can even perform funeral services. The newly developed LOVOT, which takes its name from the words “Love” and “Robot”, however, seems to be a branch in a different direction. Headed by former Pepper developer Kaname Hayashi at Groove X, LOVOT was designed to enhance human comfort and provide affection as a reactionary and life-like robot that…

If you keep a tab on some of the stranger flavored foods that get released in Japan, you may be familiar with the work of karaage (Japanese style fried chicken) chain Tenka Torimasu. In the past they’ve collaborated with Kamen Joshi, an idol unit from Akihabara who wear masks like the tokusatsu superheros–who you may be familiar with thanks to the viral campaigning of Kamina Erina, who once tried to break a stack of roof tiles with her breasts. Collaborations between the idol group and chicken chain have resulted in creatively using ingredients to make girl’s sweat and soles of girl’s feet flavored fried chicken. Now Tenka Torimasu claims they’ve…

Travelers from around the world have a habit of seeking out and filling their suitcases with the various flavors of Kit Kats available in Japan, but perhaps one of the biggest hits with the Japanese market has been the Tokyo Banana Kit Kat. That’s because Tokyo Banana, a banana and milk flavored sponge cake, might just be the most popular souvenir in Tokyo, and is a well sought after gift to bring back for family, friends, and co-workers of those who make trips to the Tokyo area. Nestle Japan and Tokyo Banana are teaming up once again, this time to release a new premium version of the mega-popular flavor. The…

While one appeal of Japan’s boxed bento lunch boxes is the ability to get an assortment of great food for an affordable price on the go, sometimes one might find oneself splurging on a high-end gourmet bento that packs premium delicacies together. A clear standout in that category is the now famous ultimate meat lover’s bento, featuring the best quality wagyu from Tottori prefecture (Wagyu Registry Association) as well as sweet and silky Kinu Musume rice! The top quality meat monstrosity bento produced by Gokuriku clocks in at 4.5 kilograms, but aside from it’s size and offering of arguably the very best quality Japanese meat, it grabbed headlines with its…

At the end of every year, the Japan Kanji Aptitude Testing Foundation announces the selection of a kanji, or Japanese character, that embodies the national mood and sums up the atmosphere and major events of the year known as the Kanji of the Year. 2017’s kanji was “North” due mostly to heightened tensions with North Korea (as well as potato shortage in Hokkaido) and “Gold” was selected for 2016 because of Japan’s performance at the 2016 Rio Olympics and a shift in interest rates. After all votes from the general public were tallied, Chief Buddhist priest Seihan Mori unveiled 2018’s kanji by writing it on a sheet of paper with…

In Japan, depending on where you live, owning a car can be more of a burden than a convenience. Having a car in the city typically means the additional cost of a parking space, and conveniently and speedy public transportation often discourages many from purchasing an automobile. This has created a receptive market for car sharing services, which offer an affordable alternative for those who simply want access to a car for short periods of time–such as used for picking up one’s children or running errands–for a matter of a few hundred yen. Source: metamorworks / PIXTA(ピクスタ) But it seems the convenient service is actually being used for a lot…