Japan’s Population Shrinking

Photo by tokyoform on Flickr

Interesting BBC article on how Japan’s population is predicted to shrink by one-third by 2060. There’s some interesting figures on what this will mean, but no exact reasons are given to why the trend is going on. Perhaps it has something to do with singleness being on the rise in Japan?

The research says that Japan’s population will keep declining by one million people every year in coming decades. – BBC

Spring in Japan

Photo by jasohill on Flickr

March to May brings on the spring season in Japan (be sure to check out our post on winter in Japan). With the weather starting to warm up and the flowers and trees starting to blossom and bud, spring in Japan is a photographers dream come true.

Here’s our rundown on things to do in Japan in spring and some outstanding spring photographs from Flickr.

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Bizarre Japan – Underwear that Helps you Lose Weight

I came across a video link on Twitter about a new underwear in Japan that claims to help you lose weight. Apparently it’s made of some sort of material that constricts so that it’s harder to move in. So does it really work?

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6 Months After the Tsunami

A friend sent me a link to an article in The Sacramento Bee about the clean up six months after the devastating tsunami that struck the Tōhoku region on Japan. It’s really inspiring.

Japan’s 10,000 Flight Giveaway

Photo by ykanazawa1999 on Flickr

It was actually my sister who first told me about this. It seems the Japanese Government may be looking at giving away 10,000 round-trip flights to Japan next year.

Here’s the details!

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Breaking the Myth: Japan is not that Expensive

Photo by Sprengben on Flickr

I was in a conversation today about the cost of living in different cities of the world. The general consensus was that most statistics we see about how expensive cities are can be way off the mark. Especially for people who actually live there.

Here’s my take on why I believe Japan is not nearly as expensive as we are led to believe.

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Our Fujiya Hotel Video

I was finally able to upload our short video we took from the Fujiya Hotel in Hakone Japan. For our full review click here.

Video Message from Japan

Japan has noticed a huge 62.5% drop in tourism after the great earthquake, and in a effort to get the word out that Japan is safe and still a great tourist destination, they’ve put out some videos to inform and hopefully draw more people.

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Anime Map of Japan

A friend just drew my attention to the Japan National Tourism Organization’s anime map to Japan. It lists some of the famous locations throughout Japan that have been depicted in various anime series. Well worth checking out if you’re a big anime fan!

Living it up in Hakone

Photo by /\ltus on FLickr

I actually thought I was going to have more time to write about Japan while we are here. As it turns out, I was idiot for thinking that :P

There are just too many things to see and experience that I find I have little time to write after the day is done. That’s bad news for readership, but the good news is we have plenty to talk about once we get back. For example, the brother-in-law and I just got back from a wonderful ryokan experience at the Fuji-Hakone Guest House and we just got an amazing room rate at the Fujiya Hotel, one of Hakone’s grandest and oldest historic hotels.

Expect detailed reviews of both.