In recent years, many American retailers have struggled to survive for a wide variety of reasons, including competition from other brands, high real estate prices, and a change in the way consumers spent their money and went shopping. by Martin Danker Japan is not immune to these changes, but they do tend to happen far…

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to severely affect countries across the world, Japan has found itself in a very bad situation that has made politicians consider what to do to aid the economy. by Martin Danker Japan Enters Recession View this post on Instagram A post shared by *:°:.\ ᴄʜɪᴋᴀ /.:°:* (@chi_olt) on May 6,…

If you ever plan to go hiking in Japan, chances are that you will never encounter a Japanese wolf despite its depiction in art and appearances in shrines like Mitsumine Shrine. “Why’s that?” you may ask. Sadly, the Japanese wolf has been extinct for quite some time, though not so long ago. In fact, the…

As summer nears, Japan’s most dangerous animal will start appearing in many places. We are not talking about bears, who roam Hokkaido and the northern part of Honshu. We are also not talking about the dangerous box jellyfish that shows up around Okinawa when waters start to warm. Oh, no. The beast we are talking…

Now that Prime Minister Abe Shinzo has declared a nationwide state of emergency, many people are now under self-quarantines and working from home. Naturally, this is not the case for everyone since there are still many companies that have not allowed their employees to telework, while other people have jobs that are categorized as essential.…

Picture this. It’s 8 AM and you are taking the Tozai Line to work. The train is packed. Absolutely packed. People are so close to each other they could morph and become a new creature. For some, having someone glued to their bodies like that represents a level of intimacy that is often reserved to…

Japan is generally well-regarded because of the country’s infrastructure that puts pedestrians first. One of the most striking things when visiting cities like Tokyo, is the prevalence of tactile pavings. These tactile tiles can be found across Japan, and their predominance has made them become one of the things people associate Japan with. With that…

Prime Minister Abe Shinzo has declared a state of emergency, which he announced on Tuesday, April 7. The prefectures affected are Tokyo, Chiba, Kanagawa, Saitama, Osaka, Hyogo, and Fukuoka. The state of emergency, which takes effect immediately and continues until May 6, allows prefectural governors to set rules and strong guidelines to fight the pandemic.…

Tourists visiting Japan tend to flock to the same spots, these being popular destinations that appear in every guidebook and website that recommends places to the millions of visitors that come to Japan each year. One of these places is Asakusa, where people stroll past multiple traditional restaurants and souvenir shops until they reach Senso-ji,…

Is Tokyo heading a heading for a lockdown? That’s the question that many Tokyoites are struggling with this week. However, for many weeks, Tokyoites had been living their lives as if the coronavirs pandemic were not affecting many countries and overwhelming their health care systems; and while cases skyrocketed in countries like South Korea, Iran,…