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Tag - tokyo

 
 

TOKYO

Summer Sonic stalwarts Babymetal curated an eclectic lineup to celebrate the summer music festival's 25th anniversary.
CULTURE / Music
Aug 10, 2026
Too much music, not enough weekend: A guide to Summer Sonic 2026
From metal to 1990s dance nostalgia, this year¡¯s event packs an absurd amount of music into one long weekend.
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Aug 9, 2026
As Âé¶¹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
Increasing tree coverage in Japanese cities could have myriad benefits as the planet warms. But canopy coverage in Tokyo and beyond is headed in the wrong direction.
Tokyo Gov. Yuriko Koike shakes hands with Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi during a meeting Friday at the Prime Minister's Office in Tokyo.
JAPAN
Aug 8, 2026
Missile shelter to be built near Tokyo Station amid rising security concerns
The push to build more durable shelters comes amid North Korea¡¯s ramped-up pace of ballistic missile tests and China¡¯s growing arsenal of powerful weapons.
Prosecutors are also seeking a ?2 million fine for a former Tokyo massage parlor operator accused of making a 12-year-old Thai girl provide sexual services.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Aug 7, 2026
Six years sought for former massage parlor operator over Thai girl case
The operator allegedly forced the girl, then 12, to do sexual acts to male customers and himself last year without confirming her age, according to the indictment.
Traffic in Tokyo in April 2026. Prior to a fatal accident in Tokyo in April, the driver was involved in two other accidents this year.
JAPAN
Aug 6, 2026
Man with sleep apnea diagnosis involved in fatal Tokyo accident
Tokyo MPD revealed that the driver had stopped using a prescribed medical device to treat his condition and felt sleepy from the time he started driving on the day of the accident.
Haruhiko Kohri and Kayo Asai stand outside their meticulously re-created "bunka jutaku" home in Tokyo.
LIFE / Lifestyle
Aug 5, 2026
How one Japanese couple made the 1920s and ¡¯30s into a way of life
No refrigerator. No microwave. Just blocks of ice, records and a home built for another age.
Mugi, a female lion at Tama Zoo in Tokyo, has died following a heat wave in July.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Aug 4, 2026
Three lions die at Tokyo¡¯s Tama Zoo amid heat wave
Three other lions are currently ill and unable to stand up.
A homeless person near Shinjuku Station in Tokyo. Authorities have warned the public to avoid unnecessary outings and advised people to stay in air-conditioned spaces, but for people who are homeless this is often not an option.
ENVIRONMENT / Climate change / OUR PLANET
Aug 3, 2026
For Âé¶¹´«Ã½ aging homeless population, brutal summers are dangerously inescapable
At a time when temperatures are regularly reaching dangerous levels, people without homes are increasingly vulnerable to heatstroke.
Etc.books was named for those who appear as ¡°etc.¡± or footnotes in society.
CULTURE / Books
Aug 2, 2026
Etc.books: A lone bookstore in Tokyo pushes against sexism
Etc.books helped redefine feminist publishing in Japan. Now its greatest challenge is staying open.
People line up in front of a Tokyo shop promoting specialty products of Kumamoto Prefecture, which was hit by a major earthquake last Tuesday.
JAPAN
Aug 2, 2026
Long lines at Tokyo shop selling Kumamoto goods after quake
Customers at the shop say they want to support people in areas devastated by the 7.1 magnitude quake by purchasing specialty goods and making donations.
Tokyo¡¯s metropolitan government offers subsidies of up to ?100,000 for epidural childbirth at designated medical institutions.
JAPAN / FOCUS
Jul 31, 2026
Tokyo¡¯s subsidies for pain relief during childbirth see strong demand
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government received 12,059 applications in the six months through March for its subsidy program ¡ª well above its projection of about 9,500.
Tokyo's consumer price index excluding fresh food, considered a leading indicator for nationwide price trends, rose 1.9% in July from a year earlier.
BUSINESS / Economy
Jul 31, 2026
Tokyo inflation up on year for second month, keeping BOJ on rate hike path
The Tokyo consumer price index is considered a leading indicator for nationwide price trends.
The Kojimachi Post Office in Tokyo's Chiyoda Ward, where a rebuilding project has stalled, on Monday
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 30, 2026
Former Japan Post worker sent to prosecutors over alleged bribe-taking
Takahiro Kido is suspected of accepting benefits from Toa Tekko Kensetsu in return for giving the company favorable treatment in bidding related to rebuilding a post office.
Prosecutor Masahito Nishida, 48, was dismissed Wednesday over an inappropriate relationship he had with a woman he had investigated while serving on the Tokyo District Public Prosecutors Office's special investigation squad.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jul 30, 2026
Tokyo prosecutor dismissed for improper relations with subject of investigation
Before a summary order against the woman was finalized, Masahito Nishida engaged in sexual acts with her at a hotel paid for using public funds.
Japan's cocktail scene underperformed at the Asia's 50 Best Bars awards, announced Tuesday from Macau.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jul 29, 2026
Japan shut out of Asia¡¯s 50 Best Bars top 10 for first time
Âé¶¹´«Ã½ reduced showing reflects Asia¡¯s rapidly expanding cocktail scene, as standout bars emerge well beyond the region¡¯s traditional hubs.
A view of downtown Sapporo. Hokkaido Gov. Naomichi Suzuki is pushing Sapporo as a candidate for a second capital outside Tokyo.
JAPAN / Politics / FOCUS
Jul 28, 2026
With secondary-capital bill passed, competition between cities heats up
In addition to Osaka, others including Fukuoka, Sapporo and Nagoya have indicated interest in being the fallback if a disaster strikes Tokyo and renders it unable to function.
As of June 30 this year, the Tokyo Enmusubi matchmaking app had 16,000 registered members ¡ª whittled down from around 36,000 applicants ¡ª and 760 couples in "serious relationships," according to government data released this month.
JAPAN
Jul 28, 2026
¡¯Appy marriages: AI helps hundreds of Japanese wed
A total of 265 couples have married after meeting on an AI-powered dating app launched by the Tokyo government in 2024 to lift the low birth rate, according to official data.
Originally created as a sweeter improvement on existing traditional Japanese confectioneries, "anmitsu" has since become a symbol for the arrival of scorching summer days.
LIFE / Food & Drink
Jul 26, 2026
A symbol of summer, this Japanese dessert brings sweet relief
Not even 100 years old, ¡°anmitsu¡± has nonetheless become a symbol of Âé¶¹´«Ã½ oppressive summers ¡ª and the sweet relief that a spoonful of the dessert provides.
A large brown cicada. A Japanese research team has found that the species, known as <i>aburazemi,</i> called after dark at urban sites.
JAPAN / Science & Health
Jul 22, 2026
City lights and searing summer heat keep some cicadas singing after dark
New findings from Japanese researchers show how urbanization has affected the routines of some wildlife.
In Tokyo&#039;s 23 wards, the average price of a new condominium rose 9.1% to a record high of ?142.49 million.
BUSINESS
Jul 21, 2026
Tokyo-area condo prices hit record high in first half of 2026
The average price of new condominiums in the Tokyo metropolitan area rose 13.1% from a year before to ?101.35 million.

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Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Âé¶¹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness

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