At least two people are dead and almost 70 injured following a 12-vehicle pileup inside a highway tunnel in Higashihiroshima, Hiroshima Prefecture, on Thursday. Five vehicles caught fire following the pileup, which was triggered after a truck slammed into a vehicle about 7:30 a.m. on the Sanyo Expressway, police and firefighters said. Of the two […]
The number of foreign tourists visiting Japan increased 36% from a year earlier in February, lifted by Chinese visitors even amid the yen’s climb against the yuan. Visitors arriving from overseas totaled an estimated 1.89 million for the month, the Japan National Tourism Organization said Wednesday. The figure was second only to the 1.91 million of […]
Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko have visited a memorial for people who perished in the massive tsunami that hit coastal areas of northeastern Japan in 2011.The imperial couple visited the monument in Ishinomaki City, Miyagi Prefecture, on Thursday morning. The visit is part of a tour of areas devastated by the March 2011 earthquake and […]
With competition on domestic routes eating into passenger traffic, Japanese low-cost carriers are shifting focus to the rest of Asia to capitalize on brisk inbound tourism. Jetstar Japan, a Japan Airlines affiliate, debuted service between Manila and Narita Airport on Tuesday, becoming the first Japanese budget carrier to fly to the Philippine capital. CEO Gerry […]
An investigation has been launched after a human skull and the skeletal remains of a headless body were found in a public park in the city of Yamaguchi in Yamaguchi Prefecture. According to police, a visitor to Kozan Park found the skull placed at the base of a stone lantern at around 2:30 p.m. on […]
Japanese experts are calling on pregnant women to refrain from traveling to areas with ongoing Zika virus outbreaks.The Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology issued the advisory on its website after several cases of Zika infection were reported in the country this year.These cases involve people who have come back to Japan after contracting the […]
Tokyo’s Shibuya ward has turned to a hawk in its effort to drive away troublesome crows from downtown areas.Crows pose a nuisance to the community as they peck on garbage bags and scatter trash on the streets.The ward introduced the hawk on a trial basis from Wednesday. Hawker Misato Ishibashi, based in Saga Prefecture in […]
North Korean media say the country has conducted a successful simulation of a ballistic missile’s re-entry into the earth’s atmosphere.The newspaper of the ruling Workers’ Party, Rodong Sinmun, reported on Tuesday that leader Kim Jong Un observed the test.The paper said the simulation was designed to evaluate the heat stability of a warhead, and that […]
Japan’s newest bullet train line, now a year old, has led to a better-than-expected threefold increase in the number of rail passengers traveling between Tokyo and Hokuriku and lifted that region’s tourism industry. Monday marked the first anniversary of the Hokuriku Shinkansen, which is jointly operated by East Japan Railway and West Japan Railway. It connects […]
The Philippines is the world’s second largest producer of coconuts. Last week, the Philippine coconut was showcased in the Food Philippines pavilion at Foodex Japan, the largest food and beverage trade show in Asia, held in Makuhari Messe, Chiba, Japan. Coconut is a top dollar earner in the agricultural export industry. Its products include coconut […]
