LIFE IN JAPAN

Starting with 65 branches, cashless payment is coming to the Japanese postal service. Japan Post plans to expand the service to 85,000 post offices in May, and to all branches in the future.

If you're a true Tokyo hipster, you'd know that Shimokitazawa is the place to be for thrift shopping and fashion. And part of that reason is Toyo Department Store.

Every year, commuters participate in an annual survey to determine the most aggravating behaviors observed on trains and at stations. Learn what not to do on Japanese transportation with the 2019 poll results.

It's stressful being a civilized, polite human being. Sometimes you just want to let yourself go wild. That's why the Reeast Room was created—to release the beast and destroy all the things.

In Osaka, a Buddhist monk sat at the front of a large room chanting, surrounded by 300 lanterns. The chants, however, were not Buddhist scriptures. They were the regrets and remorse of individuals who had been unable to take their paid-time-off.

For more than 100 years, a town in Nara Prefecture has been using leftover, high-quality cypress wood from the home construction process to create disposable chopsticks. And now, you can make your own at home.

As the year comes to an end, we’re afforded several opportunities to reflect on the past 12 months, such as the Kansai Photojournalism Awards., where exceptional photojournalism and videography from 2019 were recognized by the association.

Leaving the country with a pocket full of yen coins? Visit a Pocket Change kiosk to transfer them into valuable digital currency!