Today we get exclusive access to what just might be Japan's coolest and craziest store. A shop focused on finding the most interesting products, both Japanese, and from abroad, and gathering them all in one place. Welcome... to Village Vanguard! (Tokyo Lens)

Foreign students in Japan will no longer be permitted access to duty-free purchases in response to suspected cases of reselling and complaints of cumbersome eligibility checks. (lokmat.com)

In this day and age, it's so difficult to earn money enough to pay back student loans which many college students here don't realize, so they borrow a lot. (Nobita from Japan)

Japan has decided to accept a U.S. request to pay more for hosting its military forces from fiscal 2022, diplomatic sources said Sunday. (Japan Times)

A 47-year-old man was arrested Sunday for allegedly threatening an organizer of a Tokyo art exhibition that was to feature a statue symbolizing "comfort women," who worked in Japan's wartime military brothels, but was canceled due to protests, police said. (Japan Today)

Japanese snowboarder Iwabuchi Reira has won her first World Cup Big Air title of the season. (NHK)

Why are there many chikan in Japan? What should we do to fix this chikan problem? (Japanese Comedian Meshida)

Japan’s Government Pension Investment Fund (GPIF) has announced that it will not invest in Chinese government bonds. (TODAY NEWS)

Recently retired pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka bid farewell in a speech Saturday at the Seibu Lions' fan appreciation day, where Ichiro Suzuki surprised him and presented his former opponent and Japan teammate with a bouquet of flowers. (Kyodo)

Japan's transport ministry has asked each air carrier to submit data every day on bookings for inbound international flights as the country steps up efforts to keep out the Omicron coronavirus variant, sources with knowledge of the situation said Saturday. (Kyodo)

Japan is entering its end-of-year party season with most COVID-19 restrictions lifted based on low numbers of cases, but concerns about the emergence of the omicron coronavirus variant are likely to keep the festive mood restrained once again. (Japan Times)

India, Greece and Romania, as well as four U.S. states, will be added Sunday to Japan's list of places from which returning Japanese nationals and foreign residents will be subject to stricter quarantine requirements as part of efforts to prevent the spread of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus. (Kyodo)

Japan plans to step up its support for the delivery of coronavirus vaccines to developing countries in response to global spread of the Omicron variant. (NHK)

N700S Series went into service in July 2020. This time, I took First Class seat(green seat) from Tokyo to Shin-Osaka. (Kuga's Travel)

Facing an ageing and shrinking population, Japan - one of the most closed countries to immigration - is trying to entice migrant workers to join its labor force. But there are challenges, like no path to permanent residence. (CGTN America)

History, the orphan child of Japanese education, will acquire new status next year. “Modern global history” is to be made a compulsory subject in senior high schools. (Japan Times)

We went to Japanese traditional market to buy the good luck charm for coming year! (Kimono Mom)

Major Japanese air carriers Japan Airlines (JAL) and All Nippon Airways (ANA ) said they will resume accepting new bookings for inbound flights to Japan from Saturday, NHK reported Friday. (Japan Times)

The health ministry has presented an outline for new pharmaceutical approval rules in emergencies, in what it says would make the procedure as speedy as those in Europe and the United States. (Japan Times)

A brewery in Japan’s eastern Fukushima prefecture has created a one-of-a-kind sake using yeast that came from space. (South China Morning Post)

One of the big winners of the Oct. 31 Lower House election was the Osaka-based Nippon Ishin no Kai, which tripled the number of seats it occupies in parliament, thus making it the second biggest opposition force after the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan. (Japan Times)

Sony Group Corp.’s PlayStation division is planning a new subscription service to compete with rival Microsoft Corp.’s popular Xbox Game Pass, according to people familiar with Sony’s plans and documents reviewed by Bloomberg. (Japan Times)

Sumo elder Magaki, the 36-year-old recently retired former yokozuna Hakuho, has had five records recognized by Guinness World Records, the Japan Sumo Association announced Friday. (Kyodo)

A toy poodle has been selected as a commissioned police dog in Okayama, western Japan. (Nippon TV News 24 Japan)

We sometimes can be tricked by our own eyes. This delicate octopus artwork is one among the cases when we may initially mistake it as a drawing before realizing it as a masterpiece of hand-crafted paper artwork (The BL)