INSIDE JAPAN

An investigation by the Association of Japanese Private Railways has shown that in fiscal 2009, there were 869 cases of violence committed against train station employees and train crew members. This marked a rise of 117 cases from the 2008 fiscal year, and the most number of cases since the association began compiling such records in fiscal 2005. In response to the recent surge in cases of violence perpetrated against railway workers, the association decided to put up posters to raise awareness and call for a stop to such violence on trains and at train stations. Violence toward station attendants tended to occur late at night on weekends, and nearly 60 percent of perpetrators were reported to have been drinking alcohol before the incidents. Considering the fact that these cases increased in the month of December -- when end-of-the-year parties take place -- the majority was likely committed by those who had been drinking. (Mainichi)

If you visited the Japanese hot springs resort of Atami recently and spotted a disproportionate number of men gazing longingly at their smartphones, it probably wasn't because they were playing Angry Birds. This summer, the beach town became a vacation hub for guys who like to treat their girlfriends to sun-and-fun holidays. Girlfriends, that is, who only exist on-screen. And yes, there are such men, particularly those enthralled with Konami's Love Plus, a popular dating sim for Nintendo DS that also comes as an augmented-reality application for iPhones. Players of the game know that to keep their virtual gals happy, they'd best spend quality time with them, throw them birthday parties, take them on dates, and yes, shell out yen for beach getaways. After all, at $84, a return fare from Tokyo to Atami on the Shinkansen bullet train ain't cheap (fortunately virtual girlfriends travel free). (CNET)

Pickles of all kinds were recently gathered from different parts of Japan and brought to Aichi Prefecture, where the "god of pickles" is enshrined. Kayatsu Shrine in the city of Ama is known as the "birthplace of pickles". According to priest Tomoharu Aoki, 43, pickles were born by accident when vegetables offered to the shrine fermented with salt that was also being offered. Facing the ocean, Aichi has always harvested salt and was a stopping point where merchants from both east and west brought goods for sale. (Japan Times)

Tattoos have long been relegated to the shadows of society. People often connect them to the yakuza and there is an automatic fear against people sporting body art. Tattoos have a long history in Japan, believed to date back to the Jomon Period (10,000 to around 300 B.C.). They became widely popular in the Edo Period (1603-1867), particularly among firefighters and builders. Tattoos were also a part of the culture of the ethnic Ainu and Okinawan women, who had them on their faces or hands as a sign of adulthood. And at the same time, tattoos were part of punishment. Criminals' arms and foreheads were marked. The Meiji government banned tattoos, denouncing them as barbarous and unsuitable for the "civilization and enlightenment" movement. Even though the ban was lifted in 1948 under the Allied Occupation, tattoos to this day still have negative connotations. (Japan Times)

Weddings and the parties that follow usually leave a mountain of waste in their wake. Now an increasing number of couples are seeking ways to make their nuptials more environmentally friendly. Some are trying to reduce leftover food and giving "hikidemono" presents featuring organic materials. Hikidemono is the customary thank-you gift to be taken home by wedding guests. Many couples dispense with gift-wrapping in presenting hikidemono and present them in reusable tote bags or cover them with pieces of Japanese "furoshiki" fabric. Others provide guests with reusable chopsticks they can take home instead of putting on their tables the disposable variety still widely used in Japan. Some ask guests in advance how much food they wish to consume and adjust serving sizes for each individual. (Japan Times)

Rebecca Flint, or Beckii Cruel as she renamed herself, has big eyes, a sharp chin, fluffy hair and slender limbs. It's a look that, in the cartoon worlds of anime and manga, is about as cute as it gets. So when Beckii posted a video of herself dancing to a Japanese pop song in her bedroom at home on the Isle of Man, she became an instant internet sensation 6,000 miles away in Japan. She's the subject of Beckii: Schoolgirl Superstar at 14 (BBC3), a fascinating but worrying documentary. Beckii's parents' first thought was: "Hang on, what's going on here then?" But then a couple of things persuaded them that it was all actually OK. First of all, there's the fact that in Japan it's perfectly acceptable for pretty young girls to be worshipped in a way that is a bit creepy anywhere else. Cultural differences: you've got to accept them, haven't you? And when you factor in Beckii's earning potential, suddenly it all becomes absolutely fine. (guardian.co.uk)

The mobile phone revolution came early to gadget-crazy Japan, and 80 percent of Japanese now own at least one. There are over 100 million users with advanced third generation handsets. But it was schoolgirls, not business men, who kicked phone technology into high gear. And it all started with pagers. Originally intended for salary men, pagers caught on with teens in the early nineties, and millions and millions of colorful versions called "Pocket Bell" were sold. Professor Mizuko Ito, a cultural anthropologist known for her research on how teens use technology, suggests that Pocket Bells were the first viral youth tech. Though basically just a pager, what made the Pocket Bell different was how teens starting using them. Instead of punching in a phone number for a call back, kids started sending each other primitive messages using numbers. (gizmodo.com)

Released in 2000 with much fanfare, the 2,000-yen ($23) bank note was quickly shunned by most people after its novelty value wore off. But not in Okinawa Prefecture. There, the people have been staging a campaign to save the beleaguered bill. Introduced to commemorate the 2000 Group of Eight summit, which was hosted in Kyushu and Okinawa, the bill has had a hard time establishing itself in the wallets of Japanese consumers. It currently accounts for only 1 percent of all the bank notes in circulation, apparently due to its reputation as being less useful than other bills. Some vending machines still do not accept 2,000-yen notes. In Okinawa Prefecture, however, it is regarded as a symbol of local pride, and its popularity is stronger than ever. An image of Shureimon, the main gate of Shuri Castle in Naha is printed on the bill. (Asahi)

With the world's fastest-aging population, Japan has a growing need for nurses and other caregivers to staff its elderly-care facilities. Asian nations have many well-trained nurses and other caregivers who need jobs. The solution: import more nurses and care workers from Southeast Asia to fill gaping holes in the health care system. A match made in heaven, one might think. Over the past two years Japan has attracted about 1,000 caregivers from the Philippines and Indonesia under separate Economic Partnership Agreements (EPA) with the two countries. They were to spend three or four years working in Japan, then pass a stiff qualifying exam to stay. The first exam results this summer were extremely embarrassing both to Japan and to the countries supplying the health workers. Of the approximately 1,000 Filipinos and Indonesians who took the exam, exactly three passed the test, a pass ratio of a little more than one percent! Those who failed had to go back to their home countries. (Asia Sentinel)

The Japanese have long endured crowded cities and scarce living space, with homes so humble a scornful European official once branded them rabbit hutches. But in recent years, Japanese architects have turned necessity into virtue, vying to design unorthodox and visually stunning houses on remarkably narrow pieces of land. In the process, they are also redefining the rules of home design. Few Americans would consider a parking-space-sized lot as an adequate site to build a house. But in Japan, homes are rising on odd parcels of land, some as tiny as 300 square feet. (NPR)

Thirty-one-year-old Jiang Xiaodong died screaming in the night a long way from home. His two roommates, also young Chinese men who left their homeland for the dream of a better future in wealthy Japan, woke in the early hours of June 6, 2008, to see their coworker and friend dying in his bed. When an ambulance arrived 15 minutes later at the small dorm in Itako City, Ibaraki Prefecture, where the men lived, Jiang was already dead. The autopsy that followed concluded Jiang had died of sudden heart failure, yet there was no apparent cause. There was no internal or external evidence of injury or disease, and no drugs were found in his system. Further investigation into Jiang's lifestyle and background revealed nothing suspect. His diet was better than average, he didn't drink alcohol, and his medical records showed no history of illness. (Japan Times)

Ever wanted to live in an egg-shaped spaceship? How about an old Japanese thatched-roof house or a Beatles-themed apartment? You're not alone. In Japan, real estate agencies specializing in 'kawatta bukken' - or 'odd properties' - are emerging to meet demand for something different to the modern, cramped apartments usually found in Tokyo and Osaka. One such agency, B-Mania, is advertising an 87m2 house for rent in Tokyo's trendy Shibuya district that looks more suited to deep space travel than life in the city. The smooth, white, egg-shaped house ("from another dimension," the company says) has two bedrooms and will set you back 350,000 yen per month. B-Mania promotes its listing for the house with the phrase (in English) 'The Truth Is Out There', and also suggests the futuristic kitchen is 'where experiments take place'. (Wall Street Journal)

There are approximately 230,000 people who almost constantly shut themselves in their rooms except to go to nearby convenience stores, according to a survey conducted by the Cabinet Office. The number increases to about 700,000 if those who only go out to do something hobby-related are included. Moreover, there are an estimated 1.55 million potential so-called 'hikikomori' who have felt like shutting themselves in their own rooms. Most of them are young people. As the population of young people declines due to falling birthrates, the statistics have raised questions about the future of Japan. Hikikomori are defined as those who shut themselves in their homes for at least six months but are not involved in child care or housework even though they are not sick. (Mainichi)

Visit Japan - come join the sweating masses! Imagine 120 million people on a typical hot, humid summer's day. I've heard some tourists say that whenever they come to Japan they bring enough shirts to wear two per day. The second shirt they change into at midday. This is usually said by big burly men with beer bellies, but I can understand the sentiment. Carrying luggage up and down stairs in train stations makes you sweat like a racehorse. Then of course, there's the frothing at the mouth. While the Japanese perspire, they don't seem to do it to the proud degree that we foreigners do. While I've always attributed our sweating and ensuing body odor to the fact that we are the more hirsute of the species, the Japanese say body odor has more to do with food - you smell like what you eat. (Japan Times)

In the years following the Meiji Restoration of 1868, when Japan ended nearly 2 1/2 centuries of isolation, Tokyo, Yokohama and Kobe in particular saw a large influx of Western men in uniform, merchants, teachers and clerics. One of the first things many did upon arriving in Japan was make contact with fellow expatriates at social clubs modeled after those in Europe and the United States. Members could find food and drinks like those at home, catch up on news from outside Japan and take in a host of activities ranging from dancing to billiards to tennis and squash. The most prominent social clubs founded by Western expatriates include the Tokyo American Club and the Foreign Correspondents' Club of Japan, the Yokohama Country and Athletic Club, the Kobe Club, and the Kobe Regatta and Athletic Club. (Japan Times)

Say the word geisha and images of beautiful kimono-clad women serving green tea, reciting poetry and playing classical instruments may spring to mind. In Japan, outsiders typically pay hundreds of pounds to spend several hours with geisha in tea-houses, with activities including artful conversation, and dancing. But a downturn in the global economy appears to be forcing the world of geisha to seek more enterprising - and cheaper - ways of earning a living by setting up geisha beer gardens. At the traditional inn Gion Shinmonso, in the ancient capital of Japan, for the pounds 4 (530 yen) cost of a beer, visitors can raise toasts and make conversation with trainee geisha, called maiko, before they perform nightly traditional Kyotan dances known as "kyomai" on a special beer garden stage. (Vancouver Sun)

Tokyo's Ginza district is usually abuzz with shoppers and office workers, but high above its skyscrapers nature-lovers have created a home for real busy bees -- the ones that make honey. It's part of a project to bring a slice of natural life back to the centre of the world's largest urban sprawl, a cityscape home to more than 30 million people that stretches far beyond the horizon. Eleven storeys above the heart of the Tokyo concrete jungle -- with its beehive office partitions and swarms of suit-clad worker-bees -- enthusiasts have stacked up beehives dripping with golden honey. "Let's enjoy the harvest, but be careful you don't have an accident," urban beekeeper-in-chief Kazuo Takayasu tells his fellow volunteers from behind the protective fine-mesh net covering his face. Clad in white body suits, the crew gets to work, squeezing out the glistening syrup using a simple centrifugal machine they crank by hand as a cloud of bees breaks free from the honeycombs. (AFP)

The past month has seen a flurry of female firsts in Japan. The Bank of Japan this week appointed its first female branch manager in its 128-year history. Japan Airlines Corp. announced its first female pilot captain. East Japan Railway now has female station masters in Tokyo for the first time. Meanwhile, Renho, the mono-monickered member of parliament, garnered a record 1.7 million votes in Sunday's upper-house elections. The telegenic, 42-year-old former model, was the only candidate in the country to receive more than a million votes, even as her Democratic Party of Japan was getting crushed elsewhere. Her re-election cements her standing as one of the most popular politicians in Japan. These recent developments would indicate a wave of girl power is sweeping the country. But the reality lags behind the headlines. The advancement and promotion of women in the world's second-largest economy is debatable, and by some measures, has worsened in recent years. (Wall Street Journal)

Hide the booze and lock up your daughters: Charisma Man is back. The lovable loser who was constantly broke, dateless and swilling rotgut at home is back in Japan, with a pocket full of folding money, a girl on each arm and a chilled glass of first-class sake in his hand. Who is he, this mystery man, this lothario? Where does he get the dose of kryptonite that transforms him from a pathetic bungler into a suave and debonair man of the world? Perhaps the origins of Charisma Man can be traced back to the late '80s and early '90s, when emasculated Japanese males known as ashi-kun (guys used for their cars) and meshi-kun (guys who would fork out for fancy meals), and hapless foreign eigo-kun (guys exploited for their English) were supposedly being taken advantage of by women here in Japan. It was around this time that young Western men could be seen in major urban centers strutting about in suits and ties to impress the girls on a night out. (Japan Times)

Several hundred thousand people climb Japan's Mount Fuji every year, many of them in the peak period of July and August. But for an altogether more secluded and spiritual hiking experience, the Kumano Kodo region four hours south of Osaka offers an ancient network of pilgrimage trails and majestic shrines set among the densely forested mountains of the Kii Peninsula. The Kumano Kodo - meaning "Kumano old roads" - includes the Buddhist retreat of Mt. Koya and the temple area of Yoshino, sites that are relatively well-visited because of their proximity to Kyoto and Osaka. It also includes the three grand Shinto shrines, or "sanzen," near the southern tip of the peninsula - an appendage of the main Japanese island of Honshu - and the pilgrimage pathways that link all these locations. (Wall Street Journal)

The Japanese government has been accused of running slave labour working conditions after 27 foreign interns died in one year following months of working more than 16 hours a day. The majority of the victims were in their 20s or 30s and were among an estimated 200,000 trainees from developing countries that are working here under the Japanese International Training Corporation Organisation. Many were working 100 hours of overtime on top of regular working hours of 350 hours per month. Human rights organisations and a group of lawyers representing dozens of interns seeking compensation from their former employers say the state-run scheme has become open to abuses that make it a form of slave labour and that victims have few rights. (telegraph.co.uk)

Her moniker on YouTube says it all - born and raised in Kyoto, thatjapanesegirl has lived in Japan all her life, moving to Tokyo just this year. With more than 24,000 subscribers to her two YouTube channels, thatjapanese girl, who prefers to withhold her real name, is one of Japan's most viewed English-speaking vloggers. Since she started vlogging in January 2009, thatjapanesegirl has been profiled in Japanese media, including NHK. Entertaining both foreign and Japanese viewers with her bilingual videos, thatjapanesegirl become serious about her English-language studies by abandoning Japanese television shows and watching only English ones instead. (Japan Times)

Japan's ancient sport of sumo had already fallen on hard times from damaging scandals and declining popularity. Now, an even more sinister problem has been added to its list of woes: ties to the criminal underworld. On Sunday, the Japan Sumo Association, the sport's governing body, announced the firing of a top wrestler and a stable master - a powerful coach who controls a cluster of wrestlers - for betting on professional baseball games in a gambling ring run by organized crime. Two other stable masters were demoted, and 18 other wrestlers were barred from competing in the next tournament. This came after an apparently unrelated scandal two months ago over the sale of tickets for prized seats at the foot of the sport's raised dirt ring to around 50 members of the Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan's largest crime syndicate. The seats allowed the gangsters, known as yakuza, to be clearly visible during television broadcasts of the bouts, a brazen display that sumo experts said was aimed at cheering up an incarcerated syndicate boss watching from prison. (New York Times)

Anyone reading about the failure in letting married women use their maiden names in their family registers, or watching the latest to-do over whaling, could be forgiven for concluding that nothing ever changes in Japan. Quiet currents of change, however, are running under the surface. Not so many years ago, smoking was accepted as a matter of course everywhere, even in hospitals. Now Japan has largely become a smoke-free zone. On July 1, Osaka became the 40th of Japan's 47 prefectures to ban smoking in taxis, and Japan's universities are increasingly imposing a total ban throughout their campuses. (Japan Times)

The Japanese are legendary shoppers, paying top prices from Honolulu to Helsinki for gifts and adornments. In Tokyo, a walk through the department stores and Pritzker Prize-winner-designed boutiques in the Ginza and Omote-Sando districts is enough to make one wonder, "What Japanese recession?" Look closer, however, and you'll discover another breed of shop where consumers, from Japan and increasingly from overseas, hunt for everyday treasures. Maybe because of the recession, or maybe because even Japanese consumers know a good deal when they see one, 100-yen shops - Japan's equivalent of the dollar store - are booming. People may window-shop for fashions, but they actually shop at 100-yen stores. A single 100-yen coin (plus an additional 5 yen for tax, totaling about $1.15) buys you more than just plastic tchotchkes. At 100-yen shops you'll find ingenious, well-designed goods you probably didn't know you needed. (Los Angeles Times)