Interesting article from September 2009 and still relevant to today (2016)


The Japan Times recently covered the suspended sister city relationship between the coastal towns of Broome in Western Australia and Taiji, in Wakayama prefecture, Japan. Their ties date back at least 100 years to the pearling industry in Broome. At that time, Broome was the biggest pearling center in the world, and many Japanese worked there as divers. Diving deep below the surface was...

A whale and a calf being loaded aboard a factory ship, the Nisshin Maru. The sign above the slipway reads, "Legal research under the ICRW". Australia released this photo to challenge that claim.

Tony Press, University of Tasmania and Indi Hodgson-Johnston, University of Tasmania


Japan’s whaling fleet will leave port today to resume whaling in the Southern Ocean as part of its new scientific program, NEWREP-A.

Under the...

Naohiko Omata, University of Oxford

After an online outcry, a Japanese manga artist has been forced to take down a rendering of a Syrian refugee girl she posted on Facebook. Based on a photo of a real girl, the cartoon came with a caption sarcastically suggesting the girl was grasping for refugee status to grab herself a cushy, luxurious existence in an affluent host nation.

This may seem like par-for-the-course anti-refugee sentiment, the kind of casual...

Shinto is an adopted word from the Chinese meaning "Way of the Gods". It is the indigenous spirituality of the Japanese. Shinto's spirituality was initially recorded in written form of the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki in the 8th century. The Kojiki is the oldest chronicle and a collection of numerous myths of Japan. The myths concern the origin of the four islands of Japan. These myths are responsible for the inspiration that sparked the religion of Shinto. The written...

If there is one thing I would highly recommend for your travels around Japan, it’s the Japan Rail Pass. While the initial cost may seem high, you will more than save big dollars if your Japan plan is to have a good look around the place. If you intend to travel more than 5-6 hours on a Shinkansen bullet train it will cost you more (probably a lot more!) without a Japan Rail Pass. Let me start with a few facts about the pass then I will get into the practical benefits. Firstly, you have to...

One of the first things I noticed, as a schoolteacher in Japan, is that so many countries start their school year in a different month. I come from Australia, where the school year is the same as the calendar year, and so the students begin their classes in January. Being in the southern hemisphere, Australia's summer holidays start around the 15th of December and finish on January 26th, which is Australia Day. (Summer itself doesn't end until March). The United States also...

What is a capsule hotel?
A capsule hotel can be described as a hotel system that provides densely populated accommodation which contains rooms of a relatively standardized size based on modular plastic or fibreglass sleeping quarters. Other than your own room, all other facilities are shared.

History Although capsule hotels are quintessentially Japanese, the first capsule hotel was only built in 1979 by a chap in Osaka by the name of Kisho Kurokawa. The r...

Come the hallowed season of spring all off Japan waits with bated breath as one of the country's most stunning natural transformations takes place in plain sight. Beloved and revered for its breathtaking beauty cherry blossoms are no ordinary flowering plants in Japan. In fact since time immemorial, these trees and their delicate pink shaded blossoms have captivated the hearts and minds of the Japanese people who consider the flower to be a national icon of sorts....

A ryokan contrasts a typical hotel in many ways. These traditional Japanese inns were first constructed around the 15th century, alongside the country’s highways. The hotel saw its beginnings in the early 20th century. A ryokan is usually located in the midst of scenic landscapes, contrary to the setting of any typical hotel which favors accessibility to airports, train stations, tourist attractions and other places of importance. A typical hotel differs fro...