Dec 23 (Watercolor by Shibasaki) - This is Shibasaki, your painting instructor. Today, I tried drawing on a denim jacket using "Sharpie," an oil-based marker pen born in the United States.
After watching this video, you will be amazed at the possibilities of oil-based marker as a drawing medium.
Bear sightings across Japan have already climbed to nearly twice the level recorded during the same period last year, prompting entry bans in mountain areas behind Kyoto’s Ninna-ji Temple and the cancellation of hiking events in Kansai, while new research suggests that the key to reducing encounters may lie in understanding what bears eat in each region.
Copper roofing panels were stolen from several shrines in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, including a city-designated cultural property, in the latest case amid a nationwide surge in copper thefts targeting shrines and temples across Japan, where soaring metal prices have fueled crimes that leave historic religious buildings damaged, exposed to the elements, and facing repair costs of millions of yen.
Flames broke out on the morning of May 20th on Miyajima Island in Hiroshima Prefecture, home to one of Japan's World Heritage sites, destroying Reikado Hall near the summit of Mount Misen.
Uncertainty surrounding the situation in the Middle East is beginning to affect daily life in Japan, as concerns over crude oil supplies spread to restaurants, cleaning services and even household garbage disposal systems across the Kansai region.
A 25-year-old woman arrested as a suspected ringleader in a robbery-murder case in Tochigi Prefecture once posted cheerful dance videos on social media and was remembered by those who knew her as an energetic and outgoing young woman.
A mother wild boar was filmed on a university campus leaving five piglets to scale a wall on their own, offering a rare glimpse of what one lecturer described as "Spartan" parenting in the wild as baby animals appear across Japan with the arrival of the season.
A former instructor at a major cram school chain has been arrested for allegedly taking the Eiken English proficiency test on behalf of a student and using the score fraudulently in a university entrance examination, with investigators revealing an elaborate scheme involving manipulated facial photographs.
Getting consistent Japanese speaking practice has historically meant enrolling in a class, hiring a tutor, or finding a native speaker willing to meet on a regular schedule.
A previously unidentified landform believed to be a "square earthen platform" has been discovered in the front section of the Daisen Kofun in Sakai, Osaka Prefecture, the Imperial Household Agency revealed on May 17th, raising the possibility that the structure may have been used as a burial facility.
Changes are emerging within PTAs that support children's school lives as growing numbers of dual-income households make it increasingly difficult for parents to participate in traditional school activities.
As the number of foreign residents living in Japan continues to rise, so too does the number of foreign children attending Japanese schools, prompting educators to strengthen support not only for language learning but also for cultural adaptation.
The remains of Ainu people held at the Natural History Museum in London were returned to Japan, marking the fourth case of repatriation of remains taken overseas.
The rapid spread of artificial intelligence into classrooms is transforming how students learn and how teachers work, with pilot programs across Japan highlighting that the key lies not in relying entirely on AI but in using it effectively.
