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File under "next time, hire a damn translator": A Korean restaurant in Japan used Google Translate to render "irasshaimase" (welcome) into Korean. However, GT for some reason translated it into "please don't come", leading to accusations the business was anti-Korean 🙃
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Late Xmas gift for y’all: General Affairs Vice Minister Sugita Mio resigned two days ago after months of controversy regarding her discriminatory statements towards LGBTQ people, indigenous people, Koreans, and…well, just about everyone except old powerful men.
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"This Shiba Inu starts off as a babysitter, but ends up as more of a younger brother"
twitter.com/ringoro119/sta…
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New Post: You may think you know what that word means in Japanese because you heard it in English. But don't be so sure! We dive into the most common "false friends" you're liable to encounter in your Japanese studies.
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LGBTQ groups in Japan are reminding people ahead of Hatsumode, the first shrine visit of the year, that the Shinto Association of Spiritual Leadership (神道政治連盟) considers same-sex attraction a mental illness - and that donating to member shrines supports them. twitter.com/shinto_lgbtq/s…
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Imagine thinking Japanese homeless people don’t exist. twitter.com/DaveAtherton20…
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Just two months ago, authorities in Shibuya sparked an outcry when they evicted unhoused people from Mitake Park. The unhoused problem may be more pronounced in the US but saying it doesn’t exist in Japan is rank ignorance.
unseenjapan.com/shibuya-unhous…
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There's a tradition dating from the Edo era of eating "toshikoshi soba" on New Year's Eve - "year-crossing soba." It's often said the long, thin noodles represent long life. Here, a soba seller poses with a towering delivery in a 1935 photo.
twitter.com/tokakudo/statu…
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Japan has the best passport in the world. Sadly, fewer people than ever are using it post-pandemic. The already low passport holder rate in Japan has fallen to 19%. One professor from Keio University called the trend “wasteful”.
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New Post: Death Note voice actress Hirano Aya talked recently about threats against her life. Sadly, her story isn't a rare case in the anime industry. We look at a phenomenon that some voice actors say is deterring talent from entering the profession.
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Voice actor Mitsuishi Kotono, the voice of Sailor Moon, has lent her voice to a 20 second video opposing the invoice system in Japan, a new taxation scheme that many say will drive voice actors out of the business.
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Ishikawa Yui, the voice of Mikasa Ackerman in Attack on Titan, received threats in 2020 that targeted her, her family, and an agency director. In 2019, police arrested two people for sending death threats about Ito Ayumi, the voice behind Final Fantasy‘s Tifa Lockhart.
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New Post: Wanna feel old? The Heisei Era just ended and it's already considered "retro". A look at loose socks, "garakei" phones, old gaming consoles, and other Heisei "throwbacks".
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Konishi Hiroko shared how her refusal to join Fruits Basket director Daichi Akitaro in a mixed onsen led to losing out on acting roles. She also spoke to the hustle culture and the expectation to “sell yourself” for roles — which often included providing “service” to male staff.
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Read more about harassment against voice actors in the anime industry in our latest article:
unseenjapan.com/hirano-aya-ani…
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An izakaya makes it clear it doesn’t want no single people, no families, and no damn foreigners. twitter.com/sho_in_bayern/…
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McDonald’s Japan is raising prices on 80% of its items, prompting one “fan” to proclaim their disapproval: “Oh my God. The worst. This sucks.”
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“Assassin’s pasta” (暗殺者のパスタ) is a recipe from Japan-resident Italian chef Marco Macri generating buzz on JP Twitter. It involves first frying the pasta in oil, garlic, and tomato sauce before boiling it slowly in a ladled tomato soup base until cooked through. twitter.com/c_chan1110/sta…
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Five people at a Turning 20 ceremony in Kitakyushu had their ceremonial dresses ruined by an assailant who surreptitiously splattered them with an “ink-like substance” during the proceedings. One women’s dress was a rental she booked year before last that cost 300K yen.
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“This dog sulking all day because no one at the Coming of Age ceremony gave them any attention” twitter.com/coo_nana03/sta…
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“I’m here for Coming of Age Day!!!” twitter.com/Katorisenkou_k…
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Reading this cost me brain cells I will never get back. twitter.com/PopCrave/statu…
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More on Gwen Stefani's "I'm Japanese" comments. She apparently made them multiple times in her interview with Allure. And she made them to an Asian reporter.
The cringe. It's over 9000.
unseenjapan.com/gwen-stefani-i…
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It’s college entrance exam time in Japan again which means disgusting men are flocking online - again - to declare it “Groping Day” bc students will be too distracted to file police complaints. Activists and authorities are gearing up to raise awareness and protect young women.
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Coming soon to a bookshelf near you: the ancient Japanese art of Semai twitter.com/FuckCarsReddit…
The Japan you don’t learn about in anime. Staff account.