TOKYO, Dec 22 (News On Japan) - As the festive season of Christmas draws near, Japan has become a beacon for international tourists, drawn by the spectacular city illuminations, including the "Blue Cave" in Shibuya with over 700,000 bulbs illuminate the tree-lined streets.
Yokohama is offering a towering fir tree, bedecked with around 20,000 vibrant lights, becoming a hotspot for photography enthusiasts, who gather under a canopy of glistening lights.
More info: https://shibuya-aonodokutsu.jp/
Japan's Emperor and Empress appeared before the press with the Belgian royal family during their official visit to Belgium, joining King Philippe, Queen Mathilde and their children for a commemorative photograph at the royal residence of Ciergnon Castle.
Urakawa, a Hokkaido town of about 10,000 people known as one of Japan's leading thoroughbred breeding centers, is seeing a rapid increase in Indian residents as local farms turn to experienced overseas workers to offset a shrinking pool of Japanese horse trainers.
A damaged and badly decomposed body of an adult man was found inside a large freezer near the entrance of a locked apartment in Kobe on June 20, prompting police to investigate the case as a possible crime.
Typhoon No. 7 (Mekkhala) strengthened into a very strong typhoon east of the Philippines by noon on June 22, with a central pressure of 940 hectopascals and maximum sustained winds of 45 meters per second, as forecasts showed the storm approaching Okinawa later this week while very moist air from the typhoon threatens to activate the rainy-season front over western and eastern Japan.
Japan will begin a new system on June 23 to sell paint and thinner directly from manufacturers to construction firms and other businesses, aiming to ease supply bottlenecks and curb price increases as worsening conditions in the Middle East make such materials harder to obtain.
Three bear cubs were spotted climbing a tree in Hirogawa, Wakayama Prefecture, on the morning of June 22, prompting the town to put up warning signs and call on residents to stay alert, although no injuries or damage have been reported.
Mosquitoes are appearing earlier than usual this year, raising fears of a major summer outbreak as experts warn that warm May weather and repeated light rain have created ideal breeding conditions across residential areas.
Bear attacks and sightings are increasing across Japan, with multiple people injured on June 17 and experts warning that bears are becoming more accustomed to human environments, potentially leading to more dangerous and unpredictable encounters in the years ahead.
