Travel-Write.com: News On Japan

Homeless man from Osaka finds his place on pitch:

November 21st, 2009

A 52-year-old homeless man who spent nine years on Osaka's streets after being fired from his job was in Italy in September as captain of Japan's soccer delegation to the Homeless World Cup. A total of eight men from Tokyo and Osaka who lost their jobs due to corporate restructuring or saw their temporary work dry up were selected to represent Japan in the competition, which ran from Sept. 6 to 13 and brought together teams from 48 countries. (Japan Times)

Japan Times

Manga fascination: An interview with translator Simona Stanzani:

November 21st, 2009

Simona Stanzani has translated a number of hit manga titles, including 'Jojo's Bizarre Adventure' and 'NANA' (both published by Shueisha), and believes that manga and anime are important parts of Japan's culture. The following interview took place, not in a maid cafe, but in a 'megane & suits cafe,' where the male waiters all wear suits and glasses. (Mainichi)

Mainichi

Japan may use postal savings for rural firms:

November 21st, 2009

Japan's government and ruling parties are considering using money from state-owned Japan Post's [JP.UL] massive savings and insurance units to make loans to regional businesses, a Japanese newspaper said on Saturday. Japan Post Bank and Japan Post Insurance together hold around 300 trillion yen ($3,376 billion) in assets, a large portion of which is held in Japanese government bonds (JGBs). (Reuters)

Reuters

Talks to free Japanese abducted in Yemen stall in final stage:

November 20th, 2009

Negotiations to release a Japanese engineer kidnapped by armed tribesmen in Yemen have fallen into difficulty in the final stage, sources close to the talks said Thursday. The negotiations moved closer to an agreement, with local tribal leaders pledging to the captors that they will ask the Yemeni government to free a jailed relative, as demanded by the tribesmen, in exchange for the Japanese engineer and his driver, the sources said. (AP)

AP

Japan embarks on annual whale hunt--can Sea Shepherd be far behind?:

November 20th, 2009

Whaling ships from Japan left today for Antarctic waters on an annual five-month voyage in pursuit of about 1,000 minke whales and a small number of endangered fin whales. The seasonal hunts, during the Antarctic summer, are highly controversial. They're carried out in the name of research but the meat is sold in Japanese markets and restaurants and whatever research is conducted has been deemed questionable and unnecessary by many scientists outside Japan. (Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles Times

New hope for plucky Japanese asteroid mission:

November 20th, 2009

Japanese engineers have devised a plan to combine parts from two partially-failed ion engines to resume the Hayabusa asteroid probe's journey back to Earth. In a press release Thursday, officials said they will use the neutralizer of Thruster A and the ion source of Thruster B to provide enough power to guide the 950-pound spacecraft home next June. (spaceflightnow.com)

spaceflightnow.com

Baseball: Tough times for Japanese baseball:

November 20th, 2009

Facing losses of US$3.3 million in 2010, Japanese professional baseball is considering a series of international games involving Japan's national team to bring in revenue. Under the proposal being discussed, Japan's national team would play as many as 20 international exhibition games in February, March, July and November. (canoe.ca)

canoe.ca

Woman linked to Tottori deaths, partner indicted on fraud charges:

November 20th, 2009

A 35-year-old woman with links to six men whose suspicious deaths were recently uncovered in Tottori Prefecture and her 46-year- old male roommate were served fresh arrest warrants Friday for fraud after previously being indicted on separate fraud charges. The six deceased had been acquainted with or had financial troubles with the woman, who was an employee of a bar in the city of Tottori, and police are investigating their deaths with a view to building murder cases. (AP)

AP

Maria Ozawa, other acclaimed AV actresses on auction as stagnation sticks:

November 20th, 2009

Buried in the back of Weekly Playboy (Nov. 23) is a report claiming that the lingering recession is resulting in popular adult video (AV) actresses increasingly being auctioned off at top-class sex establishments with none other than starlet Maria Ozawa appearing on the block. A conventional deri heru (out-call) sex service, the tabloid explains, has an image of being inexpensive, but one staffed with AV ladies is quite the opposite, commanding fees between 30,000 and 50,000 yen a pop for run-of-the-mill actresses and three or four times those figures for top-name talents. (Tokyo Reporter)

Tokyo Reporter

Japan's obesity association may revise controversial metabolic gauge:

November 18th, 2009

Japan's obesity research association is considering revising as early as next year the waistline threshold, a key gauge used to diagnose obesity and metabolic syndrome, to better reflect the reality of health conditions among the Japanese, sources close to the association said Wednesday. The Japan Society for the Study of Obesity currently sets the benchmark waist size at 85 centimeters or more for men, and 90 cm or more for women to diagnose obesity. Japan's health ministry has been using the criteria in metabolic syndrome check-ups. (AP)

AP

Acid mishap on Tokyo train injures passengers:

November 18th, 2009

Several people were injured when a stone worker riding on a Tokyo subway train accidentally broke a container of hydrochloric acid he was carrying, the fire department and media said Wednesday. Television showed emergency vehicles and rescue workers in protective gear at Nihonbashi station in the crowded center of the Japanese capital. The fire department said three people had been taken to hospital, while media reports said four were injured. (Reuters)

Reuters

Japanese curry, snubbed by Michelin, finds fans:

November 18th, 2009

The Michelin Guide's list of top Tokyo restaurants features French eateries, sushi shops and even blowfish specialists. Left entirely unrepresented is one of Japan's favorite foods: curry. Yet this gooey, affordable culinary transplant regularly tops surveys as the favorite food among Japanese school kids and adults. Introduced from India by way of English traders in the 19th century, curry has been adapted to local taste and has become as much a part of Japanese popular culture as baseball. (Bloomberg)

Bloomberg

Ichihashi given nutrient shot after staggering on way to questioning:

November 18th, 2009

Tatsuya Ichihashi, the prime suspect in the 2007 murder of British woman Lindsay Hawker, received a nutritional supplement shot Monday after staggering on his way to an interrogation room, his lawyer said Wednesday. Ichihashi, 30, who is believed not to have eaten anything since his arrest on Nov. 10, lost his balance when he was heading to the room from his cell, prompting the police to give him the injection, the lawyer said after meeting with him. (AP)

AP

Police determine U.S. serviceman involved in fatal Okinawa hit-and-run:

November 18th, 2009

Police have determined that a U.S. Army serviceman was involved in a fatal hit-and-run accident in Okinawa Prefecture and are seeking the U.S. military's cooperation in urging him to present himself to the Japanese authorities, police sources said Wednesday. The 27-year-old staff sergeant at the Torii communication station in Yomitan, Okinawa, has refused to face Japanese investigators, claiming their investigation is not being carried out fairly. (AP)

AP

Fewer Korean residents seek Japanese citizenship:

November 19th, 2009

Four out of five Koreans in Japan have no desire to become naturalized Japanese citizens, a straw poll suggests. Japanese Justice Ministry statistics show around 10,000 Koreans became naturalized between 2003 and 2009. Around 62,000 North Koreans and around 486,000 South Koreans have settled in Japan with permanent residency status as of July 2009. (chosun.com)

chosun.com

Man barred from China lives in Japanese airport:

November 19th, 2009

Feng Zhenghu's life resembles a movie, but it's not quite as glamorous. For one thing, he's an awful lot smellier than Tom Hanks was when he played the part of an airline passenger caught in the no man's land of an international airport. The environmentally friendly washrooms at Tokyo's Narita Airport are so stingy with the water they apportion at each sink that Feng says he has not been able to have anything resembling a bath for the two weeks he's been living in the international arrivals area, in the space between the airline gates and the immigration booths. (canada.com)

canada.com

Miss Universe 3some sex scandal:

November 19th, 2009

Cyberspace has erupted with talk of two Miss Universe contestants involved in a threesome with a fine arts photographer. Miss Universe Japan 2008 Hiroko Mima and Miss Universe Trinidad and Tobago 2008 Anya Ayoung-Chee are said to have had sex with Anya's boyfriend Wyatt Gallery, and with each other. Some websites even claim to have an intimate video of the alleged sexual escapades of the trio. One website claimed it had four videos, along with pictures, of the two girls and Wyatt "having a really good time." (AsiaOne)

AsiaOne

'Nobu' fever: Japan falls for a blind piano prodigy:

November 19th, 2009

As Nobuyuki Tsujii finished the last note of Andante spianato et Grande Polonaise brillante by Chopin, the packed audience in Tokyo's Kioi Hall broke into an emotional applause. Executing each piece with energy and concentration, the 21-year-old classical pianist, who has been blind since birth, mesmerized the typically reserved Tokyo crowd in a two-hour solo performance on his latest tour. Kumi Araki, a 25-year-old from downtown Toyko, gushed. "I am so moved. Before I knew it, I was standing to applaud!" she says, wiping at tears. (Time)

Time

Lindsay Ann Hawker suspect attracts support from Japanese women:

November 19th, 2009

Tatsuya Ichihashi, the man suspected of killing the British teacher Lindsay Ann Hawker, has become a bizarre object of admiration among a number of online communities of Japanese women. Posting on social networking sites such as Mixi and 2Channel, some have even taken to referring to Ichihashi as The Fugitive Prince or Lord Ichi. Others have claimed that he could not possibly have committed the crime because he looks so kind. (telegraph.co.uk)

telegraph.co.uk

Scant welcome for refugees in Japan:

November 19th, 2009

In a cramped apartment in Tokyo, volunteers are teaching Burmese asylum seekers how to make clothes combining Japanese fashion with their own traditional embroidery. They hope the project will give women like Lu [not her real name] a way to make ends meet. It has been three years since Lu fled Burma, leaving her husband and children behind. She claimed asylum on arrival in Tokyo and was sent straight to an immigration detention centre where she spent almost a year. (BBC)

BBC

Abducted Japanese man still held by Yemeni tribesmen:

November 16th, 2009

A Japanese man held hostage in Yemen was not released late on Tuesday because of a last-minute dispute between Yemeni tribesmen and mediators, a provincial official said on Wednesday. The same official had told Reuters on Tuesday night that the tribesmen had handed the hostage to mediators and that the man, an engineer abducted in an area northeast of the capital Sanaa, was expected to arrive soon in Sanaa. (Reuters)

Reuters

Users of Net cafes on dangerous ground:

November 17th, 2009

From high school girls to foreign nationals, a growing number of people in downtown Tokyo are taking advantage of the anonymity of certain Internet cafes in dangerous ways. Some people want to conceal their identities and these cafes have given their tacit approval. Others just want to feel safe when using Internet cafes. Will confirming users' identities really become standard at Internet cafes? (Yomiuri)

Yomiuri

Internet cafes to name names / Anonymity leads to increased crime, hinders police investigations:

November 17th, 2009

Anonymous use of Internet cafes may soon be a thing of the past, partly due to the case of recently captured fugitive Tatsuya Ichihashi. Customers are not currently required to provide proof of identity at some Internet cafes--a situation that can hinder police investigations, as seen in the case of Ichihashi, who was arrested on Nov. 10 on suspicion of abandoning the body of an English language teacher. Ichihashi was on the run for more than two years and is believed to have used Internet cafes during that time. (Yomiuri)

Yomiuri

Suspect in murder of British woman administered nutrition:

November 17th, 2009

Tatsuya Ichihashi, the prime suspect in the 2007 murder of 22-year-old English language teacher Lindsay Hawker, was administered nutritional supplements Tuesday as he has not eaten anything since his arrest on Nov. 10, investigative sources said. The Chiba prefectural police called a doctor to Gyotoku police station in Chiba where Ichihashi, 22, is being held to administer nutritional supplements to him, fearing that he may become ill if he continues to eat nothing, the sources said. (AP)

AP

Soldier decries hit-and-run probe:

November 17th, 2009

A U.S. Army sergeant suspected of being involved in a fatal hit-and-run in Okinawa has claimed the investigation by Japanese police is not being carried out fairly, his lawyer said Tuesday. The 27-year-old staff sergeant at the Torii communications station in Yomitan has also refused to face Japanese investigators unless a video recording of the interrogation is permitted, his lawyer, Toshimitsu Takaesu, said. (Japan Times)

Japan Times