Random Japan

KAWAII DIPLOMACY

Officials in Hikone, Shiga Prefecture, were beaming after Hikonyan, a “samurai cat” that serves as the city’s mascot, was chosen as the favorite character at the Japan Expo in France.

A Japanese woman was one of six people selected to become a temporary panda keeper in China’s Sichuan province.

A Toyama-based NPO called Dream of the Earth has embarked on an 18-month project to teach fishermen in southern Sri Lanka “a traditional Japanese fishing method using fixed nets.”

In an unusually poetic turn of phrase, a Fuji TV newscaster described the scene at last week’s rescue of miners in Copiapo, Chile, as kisu no arashi-“a storm of kisses.”

Meanwhile, Japan’s space agency revealed it had sent the miners a care package that included “antibacterial underwear” and brown-sugar candies that are used for “space food.”

STATS

803,000

Foreigners who visited Japan in August, a new record for the month, according to the Japan Tourism Agency

247,000, 172,000

Number of those visitors who came from South Korea and China, respectively

16

Members of newly formed pop group OJS48, made up of retired Tokyo police officers (“OJS” stands for ojisan)

30,000

Number of photographs, mostly dating from the Meiji era, being digitized by the Imperial Household Agency

ONLY IN JAPAN

Police in Niigata are on the lookout for two door-to-door futon salesmen who are accused of swindling a 75-year-old woman out of ¥10 million.

A group of Japanese researchers who used “slime molds for determining the optimal routes for railroad tracks” were among the winners of this year’s Ig Nobel Prizes.

Two men and a woman in London were sentenced to prison for committing over 100 thefts from Japanese tourists.

It was reported that Utsunomiya University will start a course in wildlife management to help farmers keep animals out of their fields.

Headline of the Week: “Nurse’s Acquittal Finalized over Patients’ Nail-clipping Injuries” (via The Mainichi Daily News)

Gone Fishing

Just, Not For Fish

Motoring

A Great Pass Time

Foreign People Get Out  

The Welcome Mat It Was Not  

China’s rare earth blockage taking a toll on businesses

2010/10/22

THE ASAHI SHIMBUN  

Only two of 30 Japanese importers have received rare earth material shipments from China since late last month, prompting concerns that the continued export blockage could put Japanese companies out of business.

Chinese suppliers of the materials have unilaterally told many Japanese companies that they intend to terminate contracts for dealing of the minerals, according to trade ministry officials.

The Chinese companies said new customs procedures, requiring thorough inspections of all shipments and the submission of paperwork in Chinese, have made it virtually impossible to ship the materials, which are crucial in the production of hybrid vehicles and other advanced products.

Tsukiji to relocate to Toyosu: Ishihara

DPJ ranks vow to block budget for shift to toxic site

By TAKAHIRO FUKADA

Staff writer Saturday, Oct. 23, 2010

The metropolitan government will spend ¥128.1 billion this fiscal year to relocate the Tsukiji fish market to the Toyosu district in Koto Ward, Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara said Friday.

His announcement drew an immediate outcry from the ruling Democratic Party of Japan, which holds a majority in the Tokyo Metropolitan Assembly and opposes the move to a site deemed highly toxic. The DPJ also threatened to block the budget for the move.