Tokyo Restaurant Will pay You $438 if You Can Eat This Giant Bowl of Ramen in 20 Minutes
If you love ramen and want to get paid for eating lots of it, I suggest visiting the Umakara Ramen Hyouri restaurant, in Tokyo, Japan. They will pay a cool 50,000 yen ($438) to anyone who finishes their giant bowl of delicious ramen in under 20 minutes, Easy money, right? Well, they don’t call these things eating […]
This Japanese Restaurant Chain Is an Introvert’s Paradise
If your idea of a good restaurant experience includes a nice conversation and interaction with the waiting staff, then Ichiran Ramen is probably not a place you want to visit. The popular Japanese chain is all about solo dining, taking extraordinary measures to ensure that patrons avoid human interaction as much as possible. Manabu Yoshitomi, the founder […]
Japanese Skating Rink Freezes 5,000 Marine Creatures in Ice as Promotional Gimmick
Japan’s Space World theme park sparked worldwide controversy after it froze 5,000 fish, crabs and other shellfish in the ice of its newest skating rink, aptly-named ‘Freezing Port–Ice Museum’. On November 12, Space World, a popular theme park in the city of Kitakyushu, south-west Japan, opened its newest attraction – a skating ring embedded with 5,000 […]
‘Magic’ Megaphone Automatically Translates Speech into Various Languages
To help Japanese companies better deal with the increasing number of foreigners visiting the country, Panasonic has created an innovative megaphone capable of automatically translating Japanese into English, Chinese and Korean. Remember that cool universal translator the crew of the Enterprise used to break down language barriers with alien species? Such technology is not yet available in […]
Nearly All Phones in Japan Are Waterproof Because People Need to Use Them in the Shower
Waterproof smartphones are becoming more common in Western markets, but they are hardly the norm. In Japan however, almost all phones are waterproof, and have been for nearly a decade now. According to statistics, 90% to 95% of phones in Japan are waterproof, because people need to be able to use them while they are showering. […]
Japan’s Unique Museum of Stones Shaped Like Human Faces
Chinsekikan, or The Hall of Curious Rocks is a unique museum in the Japanese town Saitama, just outside Tokyo, where visitors can admire close to 1,000 rocks that resemble human faces. This outlandish tourist attraction is the work of the late Shozo Hayama, a rock enthusiast who spent 50 years of his life collecting strange-looking […]
Masked Speed Dating Hopes to Save Shy Japanese Singles
A Tokyo-based dating service is trying to make it easier for shy Japanese singles to interact with the opposite sex by organizing masked speed dating effects where participants wear surgical masks to help them be more outgoing. Surgical masks have been a big part of Japanese culture for many years. Some people wear them on the […]
Patient’s Fart Sparks Serious Fire During Laser Surgery
A report recently released by the Tokyo Medical University Hospital in Shinjuku Ward revealed that a patient suffered burns on most of her body after passing gas during laser surgery. The incident occurred back in April, but has only made news headlines after a team of external experts conducted a through investigation and concluded that it […]
Japanese Magic Shop Sells Love-Granting Apples at a Premium Price
If your special wish this Halloween is to have someone fall madly in love with you, making it a reality may be as easy as eating an apple. Not just any apple, mind you, but a special kind of love-granting apple sold by a magic shop in Japan. The Poison Apples of Love’s Desire may […]
World’s Best Dressed Farmer Works the Fields Wearing Fancy Suit
Kiyoto Saito, a young rice farmer from Kengo, Japan’s Yamagata prefecture, is trying to change people’s perception of agricultural work through his unusual attire. Whether he’s driving a tractor, or is standing up to his knees in the marshy rice fields, Kiyoto is always wearing an elegant suit complete with shirt and tie. Kiyoto’s family […]
Japan’s “Poop Man” Teaches People How to Not Give a Crap
For the past five years, Akihiko Koseki, has been putting on his bright yellow spandex suit and trademark poo-shaped hat, and going out on the streets of Tokyo to put a smile on people’s faces and teach them to be happier by not giving a crap. In the beginning, Poop Man was merely a cheap […]
Japanese Sewage Trucks Now Smell Like Chocolate Thanks to Innovative Deodorizer Oil
From now on, drivers in Osaka Japan will no longer have to keep their distance when driving behind local sewage trucks to avoid their foul odor. That’s because sewage trucks now smell like delicious chocolate. Apparently, four Osaka-based companies recently joined forces to come up with a solution to mask the disgusting smell of vacuum […]
Japanese Bar Replaces Seats and Tables with a Giant Ball Pit
If you ever feel like connecting with your inner child while sipping on your favorite alcoholic drink, the Ball Pool Bar Dive in Osaka, Japan, is probably the best place to do it. Kids love ball pits, and the masterminds behind Ball Pool Bar Dive seem to think adults do too, so they got rid […]
App Gives Japanese Drivers Free Coffee for Not Checking Their Phones at The Wheel
In a bid to convince drivers in Aichi Prefecture to keep their hands on the wheel and their eyes on the road, a new Japanese smartphone app offers free coffee coupons to drivers who don’t check their phones for at least 100 km. For the last 13 years, Aichi Prefecture has recorded the highest rate of traffic […]
Meet the Japanese Cheerleader Troupe with an Average Age of 70
Japan Pom Pom is a unique cheerleading troupe made up of 28 vivacious members whose ages range from 55 to late 80’s. These energetic grandmas have been engaging in their glamorous hobby for the last two decades and show no sign of stopping anytime soon. 84-year-old Fumie Tanako is the founder of Japan Pom Pom and an active […]