If you’re like us and want to travel Japan but not sure where to go, let art guide you. Here are 5 art exhibitions (and destinations) worth travelling for. spoon-tamago.com/five-art-exh...

Japan once again wins the IG Nobel Prize, this year for research showing that painting a cow to look like a zebra decreases bug bites by close to 50% www.asahi.com/sp/ajw/artic...

“golden hour” at the Osaka Expo really lives up to its name www.sankei.com/article/2025...

Japan’s hottest summer on record finally losing steam. Expect temperatures in Tokyo to drop starting Thursday weathernews.jp/news/202509/...

Perfect fall activity: a ride on the Suigun Line, which traverses the rice paddies of Fukushima www.sankei.com/article/2025...

Now open: the Toilet Culture Museum is a fitting tribute to humanity’s essential ritual spoon-tamago.com/toilet-cultu...

We love how some train stations in Japan have their own character. Hachioji 八王子 in the western suburbs of Tokyo gives its 八 a pair of seasonal, rotating boots that align with certain community events going on. Does your station do anything like this?

A fan jumps into the Dotonbori River in Osaka to celebrate the Hanshin Tigers’ Central League Championship win (Photo by Hikono Kotaro / Sankei)

Japanese business email can be annoying with all the お世話になりますs and よろしくお願いいたしますs but one jargon that is oddly poetic: 五月雨式に恐れ入ります Lit. “sorry for the May rains” and used to apologize for sending numerous emails, one after the other.

The “Imakumano House” is named after its dwelling: the Imakumano district of Kyoto. It’s a residential area where civilization meets wild mountain slopes. spoon-tamago.com/imakumano-ho...

amid a surge in bear-related attacks, Japan's revised hunting law goes into effect today. It allows those with hunting licenses to shoot wild animals in populated areas. Insurance companies have been quick to spot the opportunity

Shut up, Japan study. Just STFU

"are you carrying the-" "the chikazawa lace tamago kake gohan handkerchief? why yes, yes I am" spoon-tamago.com/tkg-tamago-k...

Japanese start-up Scent Fest has managed to replicate and bottle the scent of newborn babies. scentfest.base.shop/items/107051...

If you’re looking for a unique way to beat the summer heat in Tokyo, Tenkoji, a Buddhist temple in Okutama, offers half-day (6000 yen) and full-day (8500) waterfall training. Cold off and cleanse your soul! www.sankei.com/article/2025...

Here are some photos from last night’s Akita Kanto Festival (秋田竿燈まつり) It’s 1 of the 3 main festivals in the region and features bamboo poles hoisted with candle-lit paper lanterns, all meant to chase away evil spirits www.sankei.com/article/2025...

“Are you wearing th—“ “The Tsuchiya Kaban skipping stone belt hand-made by Japanese artisans using vegetable tanned leather? Yes I am”

A cat-themed art show in Tokyo opens tomorrow with proceeds going to animal shelters spoon-tamago.com/cat-power-2025

official estimates say 930k people showed up for last night's Sumidagawa fireworks festival, a tradition that dates back over 280 years www.sankei.com/article/2025...

July 21, 1951 - tourists gather in boats on the Sumidagawa River for the fireworks festival. www.asahi.com/and/m/articl...

Japanese toilet giant Toto is rolling out the country’s first home-use toilet with an integrated stool scanner spoon-tamago.com/toto-stool-s...

Klein-Dytham Architecture's Home for All project in the small, remote town of Noroshimachi opened this weekend. A community-centred project on the most distant tip of the Noto Peninsula, it offers a safe, welcoming hub supporting residents affected by the 2024 Noto earthquake:

Shibuya Parco is becoming a mini-mecca for Japanese gaming and anime. New Sega and JoJo's Bizarre Adventure flagships both opened this week:

Originally composed as the main theme for Takeshi Kitano’s 1999 film Kikujiro, Joe Hisaishi’s timeless piece “Summer” has been reimagined as a short film. spoon-tamago.com/joe-hisaishi...

In a New Pop-Up Exhibition, Erica Ward Presents Tokyo as a Living, Breathing Organism spoon-tamago.com/erica-ward-t...

In her latest exhibition in Shibuya, Haneno Suzuki turns paper into playful lines: spoon-tamago.com/haneno-suzuk...

Sou Fujimoto’s newest project, Earth, is a vacation home that nearly disappears into the landscape of Ishigaki Island.

In addition to it being Tanabata, July 7th is also Yukata Day - a relatively recent day created in 1981. Staff at Mitsukoshi department store in Ginza celebrated by coming to work in the traditional summer garment: www.sankei.com/article/2025...

Happy Tanabata! Illustration by Marie Asaba.

Move over, Murakami. A Hokusai exhibition opened last week at the Nantes' history museum, in France and apparently tickets are sold out for 1 month in advance www.sankei.com/article/2025...

We’re obsessed with the Kuroneko Yamato booth at Osaka Expo. Hundreds of stickers on display that the company uses to indicate the content of packages. Who knew there were so many?? spoon-tamago.com/kuroneko-sti...

Sesame Street kakigori — available this summer at the official Sesame Street Market cafe in Ikebukuro sesamestreetmarket.jp/brand/Page/c...

10,000 rice seedlings were planted last month, which have now born fruit and turned the gyoda rice paddies into a living canvas spoon-tamago.com/tanjiro-gyod...

Don’t you love it when all the train advertisements are swapped for soothing Monet-inspired photos? Sorry - only in Japan:

Inspired by one of the Shosoin imperial treasures, artist Tomoe Shinohara has created a wearable dress. It’s part of a rare exhibition casting light on the highly guarded 1300-year old repository of treasures: spoon-tamago.com/tomoe-shinoh...

In a new study, researchers from Keio University found that there is a direct correlation between public libraries and mental health: the more public library books a municipality has, the fewer residents require long-term nursing care mainichi.jp/english/arti...

Contender for cutest packaging design (and best coffee) in Akita goes to 08coffee spoon-tamago.com/08coffee-aki...

In her latest exhibition ‘Face,’ Yokohama-based illustrator Marie Asaba points her gaze to the facial expressions of people, pets and even food spoon-tamago.com/illustrator-...

Ibaraki prefecture’s veteran toy poodle police dog Anzu was recognized yesterday for finding an elderly man who had gone missing in the woods at night. After being dispatched, Anzu located the man in 45 min just from the scent of his pajamas.

The MLB comissioned local Japanese artists to design manhole covers to celebrate the league's 12 active Japanese players Each cover will be installed at locations around Japan associated with that player’s roots and will feature AR movie shorts that can be viewed on mobile:

Saddened to hear that Kumiko Nishimoto, Japan's most-creative obachan, has passed away. She was 97. spoon-tamago.com/rip-kimiko-n...

Wielding just pencils and watercolors, and an eye for the small things in life, artist Yukiko Suto traverses Japan, capturing the nostalgia and beauty of residential neighborhoods spoon-tamago.com/yukiko-suto/

Heard there was a spot in Shizuoka called “sign that just looks like a person carrying a spear” (槍持った人にしか見えない看板) and decided to check it out on google maps. Was not disappointed.

Osaka Art & Design 2025 kicks off next week, transforming the city’s urban space into a public art museum. The event sees more than 60 venues across the city’s neighborhoods host more than 600 creators: spoon-tamago.com/osaka-art-de...

80 companies participated in a tug-of-war contest in the Marunouchi district of Tokyo today. The winner was Sony Life (1st pic) www.sankei.com/article/2025...

Some impressive bonsai on display at the Osaka Expo, many of which were shown at the 1970 Expo 55 years ago. 1st pic is the 350-year old Yoroi Kakenomatsu, which was cared for by Japan’s last shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu. www.sankei.com/article/2025...

French artist Olivier Grossetête has spent the last 5 days constructing a cardboard castle in Shizuoka’s Sumpu Castle Park. It was made from 1300 boxes with the help of 200 volunteers www.asahi.com/sp/articles/...

This wrapping paper turns everything into bread 🥖 Created by Japanese designer Ippei Tsujio

Kodansha, one of Japan’s leading manga publishers, has launched a campaign to educate visitors about Japanese etiquette through beloved manga characters: spoon-tamago.com/kodansha-man...

Set against the soft backdrop of Tochigi’s rural landscapes, ROOF HOUSE by Tamada & Wakimoto Architects reimagines how a home can engage with its environment. Rather than enclosing life within walls, this project opens it outward. spoon-tamago.com/roof-house-t...