Moses was the first person to sell kebabs in Japan, and you can buy them in Shibuya until three in the morning. Our reporter Seiji Nakazawa recently made the move from Tokyo’s Okachimachi to Shibuya, and he’s been exploring everything the city has to offer ever since. ▼ Seiji is now a bonafide city boy who wears his love for Shibuya on his sleeve…and his T-shirt. Okachimachi is a mecca for kebab shops, and Seiji is no stranger to them, so when he came across a kebab store in Shibuya’s Center Gai district with the words “Best Kebab in Tokyo” on the signboard, he had to stop and try it out ..read more

While this park at the base of Mt. Fuji offers year-round fun, May is the best season for blooming flowers. Looking for something else to do in one of the main starting places for climbing Mt. Fuji besides, well, climbing Mt. Fuji? Fujinomiya City in Shizuoka Prefecture has got you covered with Fuji Kachoen Garden Park (富士花鳥園), whose name literally means “Fuji flowers and birds park.” Part indoor greenhouse, part outdoor gardens, and full of plenty of flowers for both admiring and purchasing, the garden park is a perfect place to allow yourself a moment of respite in the midst of busy travels ..read more

Lawson considering adding private security staff to unexpected tourist attraction. The most recently popularized Mt. Fuji viewing spot is also one of the most unexpected: the parking lot of a convenience store in the town of Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture. With a population of less than 30,000, Fujikawaguchiko doesn’t have many tall buildings, and travelers and photography fans have taken notice of the photogenic way that Mt. Fuji visually pops up from behind a local branch of the Lawson convenience store chain. However, despite the tourist-attracting view, this location wasn’t designe ..read more

Governor Kimura was accused of dealing pot…s of flowers. These days it feels like politicians all over the world are getting away with murder and acting like they’re above the law. Take Governor Takashi Kimura of Kumamoto for example. This guy thinks he can just put flowers anywhere and not be held accountable! Governor Kimura stands accused of giving gifts of large orchid arrangements to acquaintances and facilities such as hospitals and welfare offices. These orchids were originally given to him in celebration of his election victory last March. ▼ Large flower arrangements are common gifts ..read more

”I don’t like spoilers.” Just from its name, you’d expect the Kyoto District Legal Affairs Bureau Uji Branch to be somewhere in which all employees have a strong respect for law and order. The office handles things like maintaining family registries and processing the legal paperwork for things like real estate purchases and the establishment of new businesses, so following proper procedures should be pretty much baked into the atmosphere. And yet, a manager at the Uji Branch found one of his subordinate’s conduct so inexcusable, so utterly reprehensible, that he felt compelled to put a stop ..read more

When a paper bag becomes a fashion statement. Starbucks is constantly adding new products to its online store in Japan, so you never know what treasures you might find there. Our reporter Mai Tsubomi recently discovered a hidden gem in the form of the Kraft Paper Shopper, which looks just like the free paper bags given to customers, only with a sturdier construction, designed to be used again and again. Made out of kraft paper, produced using the kraft process, where wood is chemically converted into wood pulp, these bags are priced at 2,200 yen (US$14.37) for the small version that she purch ..read more

Master kaiju modeler creates wallet with two different Godzilla skin types. King of the Monsters isn’t the kind of title one obtains earns easily or overnight, it’s one that Godzilla has shown he deserves over the past 70 years of onscreen battles, And if Godzilla is strong enough to be the apex member of kaiju nobility, surely he’s powerful enough to keep your money and credit cards safe, right? That seems to be the logic behind the creation of the brand-new Godzilla wallet…or maybe it’s just that it looks awesome. Created to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the original Godzilla movie’s 1 ..read more

We try the edibile flowers that everyone’s talking about right now, and let you know where you can get them. The days are finally beginning to warm up in Tokyo, which means ice cream weather is now upon us, and if you’re looking for a variety that’ll wow all your friends and followers on social media, you’ll want to put Dolce Tacubo Caffe on your must-visit list. With locations in Daikanyama and Toranomon Hills, this sweets store has been building up a large following of fans, who come for the canelés, puddings, and cream puffs. However, at the Toranomon Hills location, they have something el ..read more

Bullet train travel in Japan just got a whole lot tastier.  It was a sad day on 31 October last year when Central Japan Railway Company (JR Tokai) ended cart sales on the Tokaido Shinkansen, the popular bullet train line that runs between Tokyo and Osaka and Kyoto. That meant passengers were no longer able to purchase drinks and snacks from the carts that staff would push through carriages during the journey, putting an end to traditional sales of the Shinkansen-exclusive Sujata mini ice cream tubs, a legendary frozen dessert that for many was synonymous with a trip on the bullet train ..read more

Okadera Temple is also known as the “Dragon Lid Temple.” If you’ve been following our recent travel reports from Nara, you’ll know that there’s a set of four sites known as the Four Great Temples of Yamato (Yamato being the historical name for the region). We’ve already told you about Hasedera, Muroji, and Abe Monjuin, and today we’re finishing off the pilgrimage to the last of the four, Okadera, located in Nara Prefecture’s Takaichi district. When visiting temples in Japan, it’s customary to stop at a fountain called the chozuya, or sometimes the temizuya, that’s located right inside th ..read more