It’s that time of the year again when Nikkei Trendy releases a top 30 ranking of the hit products in Japan for the year, i.e. between October of the previous year and September of the current year, based on three aspects: sales, novelty, and influence. This ranking is a good indicator of what’s hot in…

Meiji is the pride of Japan as it produces some of the country’s best dairy and confectionery products. They recently introduced an all-new range of chocolate bars called “meiji THE Chocolate” under the category of “bean to bar.” The range has exciting new flavors and visually attractive packaging for each chocolate bar. Here are seven…

Traveling to another country with a baby in tow can be very difficult, especially for first-time parents. But this doesn’t necessarily mean that parenthood should be the end of exciting holidays. It could even be better as you get to share the experience with your child. Though babies need quite a lot of necessities when…

Tokyo may be the capital city of Japan but it doesn’t exempt it from natural phenomena. Some of these occurred in the past such as warfare, floods, and earthquakes which affected a lot of valuable and historical buildings in the area. In line with this, the Tokyo Metropolitan Government established the Edo-Tokyo Open-Air Architectural Museum…

One of the things I like most about living abroad is all the new things there are to eat. From traditional products of that country for example, in Japan, such as sushi, tempura, ramen and okonomiyaki, to famous local dishes such as Kumamoto’s horse meat sashimi, Kagoshima’s black pork hot pot and Osaka’s takoyaki, to…

Japan is world famous for many things. Sushi, Samurai, Geishas, the list goes on. But Japanese chocolate isn’t usually one of them. In fact, most visitors to Japan may not consider Japanese chocolate as something worth trying and definitely not a good gift or souvenir. If you are one of those people, think again! As…

In the western suburbs of Kyoto, lies a villa with associated gardens and outbuildings. It is called Katsura Imperial Villa and is regarded as an important large-scale cultural treasure in Japan. It is a perfect example of the essence of traditional Japanese designs. The History Katsura is a district in Kyoto and it has long…

Asian women, the Japanese in particular, are well known for typically having lovely skin. Some of this, of course, is due to genetics and their diet. However, there are many women in Japan who swear by certain products and materials that help them achieve seemingly flawless skin, such as vitamin C products and a careful…

Whether hot or cold, Japan still keeps getting more and more drawn to coffee as the years go by. With over 100 types of canned coffee sold in the market and more than five million vending machines nationwide, coffee and Japan remain inseparable. But before Starbucks and other coffee shops started serving Japanese their favorite…

Everyone has seen Tom Cruise`s Hollywood flick “The Last Samurai” but how many of us knew the true last samurai, “Saigo Takamori (西郷隆盛)”? Who is Saigo Takamori? Saigo Takamori`s actual name is ‘Saigo Kokichi’. Generally Samurais change their names when they become adults. ‘Takamori’ is added to his family name ‘Saigo’ and he is often…