Nakagin Capsule Tower in Tokyo is scheduled to be demolished, needs your help

22:16 cherishe 0 Comments

Architectural landmark will soon be gone forever, but there’s still a chance of preserving its history for the future.

Like many cities around Japan, Tokyo does a great job of preserving traditional buildings while building modern skyscrapers up around them. However, when a building isn’t steeped in centuries of cultural heritage, falling into disuse and disrepair makes for a shaky future, as the land it takes up is often viewed as being more valuable than the structure itself.

That’s the situation Tokyo’s Nakagin Capsule Tower has been in for much of the last decade. Located near Shimbashi Station, within walking distance of the fashionable Ginza district, this complex was designed by Japanese architect Kisho Kurokawa and built in 1972 as a futuristic marvel of modern architecture, housing 140 self-contained prefabricated capsule apartments designed to provide Tokyo office workers with a place to stay during the week to avoid long commutes back home.

▼ Nakagin Capsule Tower (right) is a famous architectural landmark in the capital.


Photo ©SoraNews24

However, despite its architectural acclaim, in recent years Nakagin has only managed to lease around 30 of its 140 self-contained capsule apartments to the public on a monthly basis. It’s also in need of repairs and has been fighting off threats of demolition since 2007, when the majority of capsule owners voted to tear the complex down and replace it with a more modern tower.

Kurokawa himself opposed the demolition, instead proposing that the capsules inside the complex be replaced with more modern ones, which is what the prefabricated design was made for. A number of capsule owners supported this idea, forming the “Save Nakagin Tower” project to make it happen, however, hurdles like cost and the problem of asbestos in the building proved to be too great for the project to be successful.

▼ One of the capsule apartments inside the building.

Photo ©SoraNews24

After years of fighting against demolition, these insurmountable problems now mean that Nakagin Capsule Tower is set to be demolished in March 2022. Those involved in the project still haven’t given up hope of preserving Kurokawa’s visionary design, though, as they recently set up a crowdfunding campaign in May called the “Nakagin Capsule Tower Building A606 Project“. Support for the project has been overwhelming, with backers providing enough funds to help them achieve their first target amount of 1.5 million yen (US$13,564.10) in just one week.

The project name is tied to Capsule A606, which is the specific part of the building they’re attempting to preserve. Architect Akiko Ishimaru, the project representative, lived in Nakagin for about a year in 2013, and after moving out she returned to the building in 2017 to use capsule A606 as a shared office with seven other people.

Ishimaru and the other members helped to restore capsule A606 to the way it would’ve looked in 1972 when the Nakagin Capsule Tower Building was first completed.

▼ Capsule A606

▼ The original bathroom, furniture, and equipment were also restored.

After it was decided that the building would be demolished, Ishikawa contacted the owner of capsule A606 to ask that it be taken out of the building for preservation. Mediation was concluded in the courts, with permission eventually granted for the removal of the capsule.

The project has uploaded a series of videos that show the retro appliances inside the capsule are still in fine working condition.

▼ The clock still keeps time perfectly.

▼ There’s a once-state-of-the art Sony TV…

▼ And an open-reel tape deck that’s also worth preserving.

With the paperwork complete for the handover of the capsule, the team now had to find a way to cover the costs of removing the unit from the building without damaging the exterior walls of the module. To keep costs down, Ishikawa even became a qualified asbestos removal worker, but even if she completes the work, there’s still the cost of removing the hazardous material and the removal of the unit itself that needs to be considered.

The crowdfunding project aims to help cover these costs, and the team is being transparent with every detail, providing a breakdown of the amount required for each stage of the work. Their next hurdle is securing 5 million yen to remove the capsule, and supporters have so far pledged enough to cover 2.466 million yen, with 29 days remaining on the project.

The Nakagin Capsule Tower Building A606 Project is asking for everyone’s support to help preserve an important part of Tokyo’s architectural history, either through funds or by spreading the word for assistance on social media.

After we recently lived inside one of the capsules inside the tower for a month, even without hot running water, we’ve developed a soft spot for this architectural marvel and will definitely be doing what we can to help support the campaign. Because although it’s great that Tokyo is pushing the envelope with innovative new skyscrapers, like the world’s tallest wooden tower, it’s important to ensure innovative ’70s architecture has a chance to be preserved too.

Location information
Nakagin Capsule Tower Building / 中銀カプセルタワー
Address: Tokyo-to, Chuo0ku, Ginza 8-16-10
東京都中央区銀座8-16-10
Website

Source: Ready For/Nakagin Capsule Tower Building A606 Project via Net Lab
Featured image ©SoraNews24
Insert images: Ready For/Nakagin Capsule Tower Building A606 Project unless otherwise stated

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Mysterious hand figures turn out to be our new favourite Japanese capsule toys

21:14 cherishe 0 Comments

Confusing? Yes. Cool? Very.

There are few things better in life than the simple joy of opening up a capsule toy. The thrill as the coin slides into the slot, the wheel is turned and the capsule comes tumbling out. What treasures await inside? Will you get something tender and sweet? Or something creepy and gross?

Usually, once the capsule is opened, the adventure into the unknown ends and the rush of excitement subsides as you find out which collectable you have received. But for our Japanese-language reporter Saya Togashi, the excitement continued, as even after she paid her 300 yen (US$2.70) and opened the capsule, she was none the wiser as to what was supposed to be inside.

As Saya opened the capsule, two ghostly white hands popped out, each in an unnerving pose. What on earth had she ended up buying? Was this a capsule toy or was this a murder scene?

As she looked closer, the hands were smooth and beautiful, with intricate detail, with even the fingernails carved into them. And there was something else in the capsule too…

The capsule also contained what looked like a plinth for a statue, with ‘pigeon‘ emblazoned on it. While pigeon is a word all of our SoraNews24 readers understand, it is a pretty tough word for someone who isn’t familiar with English, and Saya was left scratching her head as to what the statue was representing.

Saya quickly figured out how to assemble the piece, thanks to the small grooves along the edge of the hands. But even as the two hands joined together, Saya was still at a loss. Just what was this figurine supposed to represent?

But as she positioned the figure in front of a light, it all became clear. An absolute textbook shadow puppet pigeon! A staple of many a childhood, the pigeon can also easily be transformed into a butterfly with just the wave of your fingers.

You see, Saya had bought a capsule toy for shadow puppet figurines.

Feeling nostalgic for her youth, Saya tried to recreate the pigeon shadow using her own hands.

▼ A pretty faithful recreation from Saya!

Pigeons are pretty much entry-level in the world of shadow puppetry, so even a child could make one. Saya wanted to challenge herself more with the next capsule toy. We’ll crop out the name of the figurine so you can try and guess what it will be, just as Saya did!

▼ Can you figure out what it is?

▼ Maybe the assembled piece might help…

▼ Ta-da!

Yes, that’s right — the second toy to come out of the machine was a goat! Saya marvelled once more at the attention to detail — the horns, the ears, the eyes — even the little goat beard. Goats are slightly higher on the difficulty scale for shadow puppetry, but Saya wanted to try it out anyway!

▼ Sadly, Saya’s attempt with her own hands wasn’t quite as crisp as the figurine.

The third and final figurine from Saya’s capsule collection started out looking like this. Can you figure out what animal it will become?

▼ How about now?

▼ Oh?

The third capsule toy was a cute little rabbit! Everything about this capsule toy was absolutely spot on, from the shape of the body right down to the nose. This was a shadow puppet move those faint of heart would never even dream of attempting.

So Saya had to give it a go.

▼ Uh…

▼ Well, you can certainly say she gave it a go.

The rabbit may be a technique that alludes both novices and pros alike, as the intricate finger positioning is quite difficult for a regular person to achieve. Even though it looks simple enough, give it a go and see how rabbit-like your creation ends up looking.

All in all, Saya had fun returning to her childhood days of shadow puppets, and is hoping to collect the whole set of five (the missing figurines being ‘wolf’ and ‘deer’). Whether you’re a shadow puppet master or just want an original and unique capsule toy to keep you amused, grab one of these and the torch from your cellphone and have some finger fun!

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From tea field to teacup: How do you make green tea from freshly picked tea leaves?

20:14 cherishe 0 Comments

We spend a day on the farm learning how much work goes into a single cup of tea.

Most people who grew up in Japan drink a lot of green tea, and our reporter P.K. Sanjun is no exception. But also like a lot of people who grew up here, P.K. has never made green tea from scratch.

Every single supermarket and convenience store in Japan, and just about every vending machine too, is stocked with bottles of pre-made green tea. You’ll find an assortment of tea bags in the cupboard of most homes and offices, and some aficionados buy canisters of loose leaf tea, but even in those cases, the leaves have already been processed and packaged. Starting out in the fields, though, picking the tea leaves with your own hands and turning them into a cup of tea? That’s a rare experience, and one that the opportunity for came to P.K. by way of our boss, SoraNews24 founder Yoshio.

“We received a letter from Itoen,” Yoshio explained, invoking the name of one of Japan’s biggest tea makers, and the company behind the popular Oi Oicha brand of green tea. “They’re inviting you to come make tea with freshly picked leaves. Their representative, Katsuno-san, will meet you at the farm.”

And with that, P.K. was off to the town of Sayama, in Saitama Prefecture. As he walked up to the farm’s office facility to meet with Katsuno, he imagined that anyone working for a tea maker would have an aura as refined and gentle as a perfectly brewed cup of tea. Drawing close to the entrance, he spotted a solitary figure out front waiting for him, and called out “Katsuno-san! Hello, Katsuno-san! It’s me, P.K. Sanjun from SoraNews24!”

However, Katsuno replied to this greeting with a stern expression.

▼ He remained completely silent, with his shirt’s “ocha” (the Japanese word for “tea”) saying more than the man himself.

“So, uh, should we get started, Katsuno-san?” P.K. asked, to which Katsuno nodded and began walking with him towards the field. The Sayama site is one of many tea farms Itoen manages across Japan, helping to keep distribution routes short and its products fresh.

One of the farmers explained to P.K. how to pick the leaves, stressing that the key was to remove them carefully one at a time in order to prevent unnecessary tearing or bruising. This was P.K.’s first time to pick tea, and he was impressed by their soft, pliable texture in the palm of his hands, where they had a seemingly palpable freshness. Unaccustomed to field work, though, it wasn’t long before his lower back started to ache. Still, he felt quite proud of himself for filling up both hands with leaves, expecting it to be enough to make several pots’ worth of tea.

▼ Something about it made his paternal instincts kick in and he started thinking of them as his precious tea leaf children.

This, however, was the first of several times P.K. realized he had a lot to learn. “That’s probably enough to brew one cup,” explained his farmer mentor. “Compared to the weight of the raw leaves, you end up with only about one-fifth of that after they’re processed and ready to brew.”

So it was back to harvesting, with P.K. feeling a renewed sense of gratitude for the hard work of Japan’s tea farmers.

Eventually, Katsuno nodded that P.K. had picked enough. Since tea leaves begin to oxidize in the open air shortly after picking, they need to be processed right away before their flavor diminishes, and so Katsuno led P.K. inside for the next step from tea field to teacup.

Inside the processing room were a hot plate and a microwave oven. “Is this really all the equipment I need, Katsuno-san?” P.K. asked, to which he nodded again, said “Brew the tea,” and left P.K. to figure out what to do next on his own.

P.K. knew that you have to remove the moisture from the tea leaves before steeping them, so he started with the hot plate. Figuring that singeing them would make them taste bad, he used a low heat setting. A pleasant tea aroma began to rise from the plate as the leaves warmed, but he noticed that they weren’t really drying very much, so he decided to pop the leaves in the microwave for three minutes instead.

All the while, Katsuno was watching with a stony expression.

When P.K. took the leaves out of the microwave, they were nice and dry. Next, he grabbed a mortar and gently crushed the leaves into smaller pieces, and his original P.K.-style tea was ready for brewing!

And how did it taste?

Bad. Really, really, bad. It smelled nice enough, but the flavor was mercilessly bitter, so harsh that it was barely drinkable.

P.K.’s shoulders slumped in disappointment, and also guilt at the ignoble fate of his tea leaf babies. It was at this point that Katsuno came in with a batch of tea leaves that he had prepared.

With a gracefulness in stark contrast to his gruff expression, Katsuno paced the leaves in a teapot, steeped them, and poured P.K. a cup.

This was how tea should be.

The tea tasted fresh and smooth, with just the right balance of bracing astringency and comforting sweetness characteristic of Japanese green tea. P.K. was startled that Katsuno’s tea, which came from leaves picked in the same field as P.K.’s, could taste so different from his own sub-par batch. Katsuno’s tea was so good that P.K. believed it could put a smile on anyone’s face…

…even Katsuno’s!

“So what made the difference, Katsuno-san?” asked P.K. It was all the in the way the leaves were treated post-picking, he explained.  Katsuno started with the microwave, wrapped the tea leaves in plastic to essentially steam them, and heated them for just one minute instead of three, since over-heating them will produce excess bitterness.

Next, the leaves should be laid out flat on paper towels and cooled with a paper hand fan, much like you’d cool yourself off with on a hot afternoon, to help remove more moisture. Then it’s time to put them on the hot plate, set at low heat.

You don’t want to leave the leaves on the hot plate too long, though. After they’ve warmed, Katsuno says to put them back on paper towels and gently knead them, a process called chamomi, or “tea massaging,” in Japanese. This helps draw out their full flavor and aroma, and you should cycle through the hot plate heating and tea massaging about 10 times. Once that’s done, leave the leaves out to dry for 10 more minutes, and only then are they ready to be steeped, ideally in hot water that’s 80 degrees Celsius (176 degree Fahrenheit).

P.K. was amazed, not just because of how much effort goes into making a truly good cup of tea, but also because of how talkative the previously taciturn Katsuno had become. “Was there something that was upsetting you before, Katsuno-san?” asked P.K., thinking that maybe his lack of prior knowledge of tea production had offended the Itoen representative.

“Well, actually I just thought it was weird that you kept calling me Katsuno, since my name is Kakuno,” he revealed.

P.K. gulped with embarrassment at his faux pas. “I’m very sorry about that,” he said, and Kakuno seemed to forgive him. He even gave P.K. a bag of freshly picked tea leaves to take home, and explained that right now Itoen is running a promotion where if you follow their official Twitter account, retweet the tweet below, and fill out the form here, you’ll be entered into a drawing to win a bag of your own.

Still, P.K. felt kind of guilty about the name screw-up for his entire trip back home, until he remembered

…the exact words our boss had told him:

“Their representative, Katsuno-san, will meet you at the farm.”

“Their representative, Katsuno-san, will meet you at the farm.”

So on this day, P.K. learned two things. One: every time you drink a good cup of tea, there’s a lot of work that went into it. And two: when Yoshio gives you a work assignment, you’ll probably want to double-check the details.

Source: Itoen tea leaf campaign site
Photos ©SoraNews24
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World Record? Japanese trainer holds gym for 1,422 days and counting in Pokémon GO

19:14 cherishe 0 Comments

We hear the tragic tale of a Blissey sent to fight overseas for nearly four years.

Long time readers of the site are probably aware that our writer P.K. Sanjun has fully immersed himself in Pokémon GO. In fact, on our Japanese-language site he runs a regular column discussing all the news and latest techniques to catching and battling Pokémon through smartphones.

▼ P.K. Is willing to put all dignity on the line for Pokémon glory.

One day, P.K. was approached by another trainer with a miraculous accomplishment. For those unfamiliar with the game, one gameplay aspect is to claim gyms by defeating all occupying Pokémon and making it your own. Because of the many people playing, you might expect to hold a gym for a few hours, or maybe a whole day if you’re lucky.

However, this trainer has had his gym for a whopping 1,422 days, which breaks down to three years and 325 days since he originally placed his Blissey. To put that in another perspective, Pokémon GO was released in Japan on 22 July, 2016 which was 1,804 days before this writing, which means that this trainer has been holding the same gym for about 79 percent of the time the game has been running.

▼ Screenshot of the trainer’s record gym holding status. The name of the gym is withheld.

The previous record is believed to be held by a trainer who goes by the Reddit handle of BootsMade4Walking who lasted 1,332 days and seven hours before having their gym tragically taken by someone faking their GPS coordinates.

Such underhandedness might be harder to do in the case of this trainer, whom P.K. spoke with to learn more about how the record was accomplished.

— Defending a gym for 1,422 days is amazing!

“It’s nice to talk to you! My name is Uchida and I’m a specially appointed professor for the Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Tokyo.”

— Wow, a University of Tokyo prof…or “specially appointed professor”?! I’m not sure what that is but you must be smart!

“I’m still only level 46, but I’m proud to call myself the ‘University of Tokyo’s strongest Pokémon GO player.’”

— Indeed. I think the University of Tokyo cred gives you an honorary level 72 in the game. So where is your record-earning Blissey?

In August of 2017, there was an international conference on solar cells in Xianyang, China, just outside Xi’an, Shanghai.”

— Oh, but you can’t play Pokémon GO in China, right?

“That’s right. I didn’t usually have free access to the Internet there, but for some reason I was able to access my Google account that morning.”

— I see.

During a lunch break I wandered out into a suburb with my iPhone set to roaming. After catching a few Pokémon I found a gym and left a Blissey there.”

— Okay. So, that’s why it hasn’t been disturbed.

“Yeah. Technically you can’t play Pokémon GO in China, but the roads were mapped out and there was a Pokémon in the gym when I arrived.”

— I heard about that. It’s pretty much just an empty map out there.

“Yes, there was a map, but I remember that the roads on the map and actual roads were off by dozens of meters in both directions. I had to make my way to the gym just by gauging my distance from it.”

▼ How a Pokémon GO screen might look in China

— I see. Well, it’s really amazing. It’s a miracle Blissey, but it must be really lonely out there all by itself.

“Yeah, China’s Internet is to tightly regulated that you can’t start up Pokémon GO normally. But I’m dreaming of the day that my Blissey will finally be set free.”

If the previous record is any indication, this trainer’s dream may soon come true. His gym has the added security of being in the GPS distorted map of China, but with the limited information he gave, surely some spoofers out there are going to take up the challenge.

But even if they do finally dislodge this Blissey, this trainer’s record will still be hard to beat. The bigger challenge will be helping the happiness Pokémon readjust to life in Japan after so long. When it left there wasn’t even online trainer battles or Raw Pepsi.

Screenshots: Pokémon GO (iOS)
Photo © SoraNews24
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Japanese basketball star Rui Hachimura joins with Nissin to make his own Cup Noodle ramen

18:14 cherishe 0 Comments

Hachimura said “I want you to make a product for me” and Nissin was happy to oblige.

What’s the best part of being a beloved sports figure? Is it the riches? The fame? The fact that your words will be given more weight even after you retire? That last one sounds especially sweet.

Basketball player Rui Hachimura, who plays for the NBA team the Washington Wizards when he isn’t representing Japan on the national scale, didn’t even have to retire in this case! He mentioned that he wanted noodle-making company Nissin to “make a product” for him and his wish has been granted in the form of their new product, the Cup Noodle Himi Curry Big.

▼ The container for the ramen is plastered with Hachimura’s smiling face.

The container for the ramen is plastered with Hachimura’s smiling face and promises a taste of “Hachimura’s recommended local comfort food from Toyama,” meaning Himi curry. Himi is the town in Toyama prefecture where Hachimura was born, and what makes Himi curry special is the addition of Japanese-style dashi stock, including processed sardines, that blends into the onion-based curry roux and grants it a distinct flavor.

In their official press release Nissin boasts of the cup ramen’s thick, supple noodles, the spicy chili-accented broth, and the included packet of Himi niboshi powder—a powder made from ground, dried sardines. You can savor some of the unique flavors that Hachimura grew up with, and even eat alongside his beautiful grin. What more could you want for a suggested retail price of 220 yen (US$1.99)?

Hachimura’s tie-in ramen is only the latest in a proud line of Cup Noodle products, with the Big line, in particular, sporting an array of weird and wonderful flavors over the years. Slam dunk a cup of this Himi Curry version before it’s gone!

Source: Nissin via NariNari

Images: Nissin
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Statue of comedian Ken Shimura erected a year after death from COVID-19

11:14 cherishe 0 Comments

A tribute to his contributions to Japanese comedy and culture.

One of the most high-profile casualties of the COVID-19 pandemic in Japan was comedian Ken Shimura. A member of the famous music and comedy group The Drifters, Shimura had a history of pneumonia and had just underwent stomach surgery a few months prior to coming down with the coronavirus in March of last year, all of which made it much harder for him to bear.

His passing sent shockwaves through the entertainment community with an outpouring of tributes and heartfelt eulogies by comedians and other TV personalities. And now, a little over one year since then, a bronze statue of Shimura was erected in his hometown of Higashimurayama, Tokyo.

The statue was unveiled during a ceremony on 26 June attended by The Drifters member Boo Takagi and Ken’s brother Tomoyuki Shimura. It was placed outside the East Exit of Higashimurayama Station on the Seibu Line and near the Ken Shimura Trees, which are three Japanese zelkova trees planted in 1977 in honor of his cover of the city’s anthem “Higashimurayama Ondo.”

▼ The Ken Shimura Trees

Image: Wikipedia/Nishifutsu

The statue depicts Shimura wearing a traditional Japanese hakama and striking the pose he makes during his catchphrase of “aiiin.”

▼ Shimura doing the “aiiin” gesture with Kumamon

It’s an extremely well-made monument too, capturing both his likeness and warmth. Even comments online, which are always more than happy to point out faults in something, seemed to unanimously agree that this was a great statue.

“Wow! It looks just like him.”
“Mr. Shimura did a lot of fundraising and charity work, so this is a worthwhile [way] to honor him.”
“Because of the clothes he looks like a great historical figure too, LOL!”

“It’s like he’s alive. I’m definitely going to Higashimurayama!”
“It’s like it will come to life in the middle of the night and make people laugh.”
“It makes me cry because Shimura’s smile looks exactly like his brother’s.”
“It’s been a year already… It’s a really nice statue.”

It should be mentioned that although the city set up a committee to find a way to honor Shimura after his death, the statue itself was crowdfunded by fans across Japan who all chipped in a total of 27 million yen (US$244,000), well above the target budget of 24 million yen ($217,000).

That in itself is a testament to how many people he touched during his life. Although his comedy was not without controversy from time to time, Shimura’s mark on Japanese culture cannot be denied. Influences of his work pop up almost everywhere and he pretty much single-handedly shaped the way paper, rock, scissors is played in Japan, which is certainly no small feat.

Source: Yomiuri Shimbun Online, My Game News Flash
Top image: © SoraNews24
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All-frozen ramen restaurant appears in Tokyo, shows us we don’t really need the restaurant

08:14 cherishe 0 Comments

Ramen Journey Showroom does things a little differently.

If you’re running a ramen restaurant in Tokyo’s Ikebukuro neighborhood, you’d better bring your A-game. Ikebukuro is a ramen-loving neighborhood in a ramen-loving country, with a high-concentration of high-quality noodle joints resulting in fierce competition for customers.

So imagine our surprise when we spotted an Ikebukuro restaurant that proudly boasts that all of its ramen is frozen.

Equal parts intrigued and hungry, we stepped inside Ramen Journey Showroom and took a seat. An employee handed us a menu, and a quick glance at it revealed that the “Journey” part of the restaurant’s name isn’t just some stylish gratuitous English. Instead of a singular house ramen, Ramen Journey offers a variety of types of frozen ramen produced by popular and famous restaurants from different parts of Japan, which you can either take home and prepare or have the staff heat up so you can eat it right there.

In addition to ramen representatives from restaurants in Tokyo’s Shibuya and Nerima Wards, the options also included ramen from noodle houses in Yokohama and Osaka. With most prices hovering around 1,000 yen (US$9) they were a little on the pricy side, but not unreasonable for their pedigree.

We were still a little apprehensive about paying so much for frozen ramen, but ultimately decided to order a bowl of shio (salt) ramen from Shinka, whose restaurant is located in Tokyo’s Machida City, with an added free topping of sliced onion, and this turned out to be a very smart choice.

The bowl of ramen the staff placed in front of us was immaculately beautiful, and also incredibly delicious. If we hadn’t known ahead of time that it was frozen, we never would have guessed from how it looked and tasted.

And that’s actually sort of the whole point of Ramen Journey Showroom. It turns out the place is an offshoot of the Ramen Journey online frozen ramen shop, and their main goal in opening the restaurant was to give people an opportunity to see that frozen ramen, when done right, can taste as good as the freshly made kind.

Unfortunately, Ramen Journey Showroom is a pop-up operation, and will only be open until July 1. On the plus side, the whole point was to show us that how good their frozen ramen tastes, and now that we know that, we can order it and eat it at home whenever we want.

Restaurant information
Ramen Journey Showroom / ラーメンJourney ショールーム
Address: Tokyo-to, Toshima-ku, Higashi Ikebukuro 1-23-5
東京都豊島区東池袋1丁目23-5
Open 11 a.m.-8 p.m.
In operation until July 1

Related: Ramen Journey
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Japanese TV show about women sprinting up hills and panting adds its first-ever male performers

06:14 cherishe 0 Comments

After 15 years of a very focused formula, Zenryokuzaka is making a change.

Japanese TV has a reputation for being pretty weird sometimes, and things don’t get any less unusual once you hit the late-night time slots. Even in that niche, one of the odder programs is broadcaster TV Asahi’s Zenryokuzaka, which translates to “Full-Power Hill” or “All-Out Hill.”

Airing at 1:20 a.m. Monday to Thursday, each episode Zenryokuzaka is only six minutes long, including the credits and commercials. That’s because the concept is extremely focused. Each episode, the program introduces a new steeply sloping street, usually somewhere in Tokyo or other nearby cities. After setting the scene, a stylish young woman, usually an actress, entertainer, or other media personality, runs up the hill as fast as she can. As she pumps her legs narrator Mitsuru Fukikoshi intones “This, too, is a hill that makes you want to run up it.”

▼ A clip from Zenryokuzaka

TV Asahi leaves the specific appeal of the program up to the viewer to decide. Japanese TV has several programs that introduce walking or urban exploring courses, so maybe some enjoy Zenryokuzaka as a showcase of picturesque backstreets. Others may appreciate the whimsical athleticism of running full-speed along the street, something just about everyone enjoys doing as a kid, but stops indulging in once they grow up. And, almost certainly, some Zenryokuzaka fans are there for the final seconds of each episode, when the camera lingers on close-ups of the woman, having just come to the top of the hill, panting and sweating post-exertion.

Whatever the secret to Zenryokuzaka’s success, the overall package has proven popular enough that the program recently celebrated 15 years on the air. However, TV Asahi has announced that this summer they’ll be tinkering with the program by, for the first time in its history, showing men running up hills as well, starting with actor Ryosuke Miura, perhaps best known for his role of Ankh/Shingo Izumi in Kamen Rider OOO.

“It’s an honor to be the first person chosen for this new initiative,” says Miura, who has already completed filming. “I work out regularly, but I don’t often sprint up hills like this, so it felt great. I’m really happy to have been able to appear on Zenryokuzaka, which I’ve been watching since I was little, and to be accompanied by Fukikoshi-san’s narration.”

With Miura currently being 34, his recollection of watching Zenryokuzaka “when I was little” seems like a liberal use of the term. His enthusiasm appears genuine, though, as he’ll be appearing on the show twice, both times to run up hills in Tokyo’s Chofu City district.

Zenryokuzaka still plans to feature predominantly female talent, but says that men will appear on the first and third Thursday of each month, with Miura’s debut on July 1 and his follow-up on August 5.

Source: Oricon News via Otakomu
Top image: Pakutaso
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Eel-fortified chocolate now on sale in Japan

22:16 cherishe 0 Comments

Just in time for the summertime heat, here comes unagi chocolate.

For sweets fans in Japan, Tirol Chocolate is an archetypal impulse purchase. Bite-sized, inexpensive, and available in just about every convenience store and supermarket in the country, deciding to buy one usually requires next to no cognitive self-convincing.

That said, the newest special flavor of Tirol is something you might need to spend some time mulling over before buying, because the special ingredient is eel.

Yes, following up on last month’s Peach Parfait Tirol, this month the company is going with the less conventional pairing of chocolate with unagi, or freshwater eel. In the above cross-section, the top right arrow is pointing to powdered unagi extract, a measure of which goes into each and every piece of the eel Tirol. The other ingredients are less eyebrow-raising/spine-chilling, being pie crust-flavored chocolate, coarse granulated brown sugar, and fiantine (baked crepe dough).

In some ways, the idea isn’t as crazy as it initially seems. Grilled unagi is a popular delicacy in Japan, and there’s even a pre-existing snack food from Shizuoka Prefecture called Unagi Pie that’s made with eel. However, Unagi Pie is dry, wafer-like, and not all that sweet, and it’s going to be interesting, to say the least, to see what happens on the taste buds when unagi extract mixes with something as sugary and creamy as chocolate (maybe even as interesting as when we tried Tirol’s cheese pizza chocolate).

For their part, at least, Tirol is promising a sweet, crunchy, and “fragrant” morsel, with the intended aroma ostensibly being that of the pie crust-inspired chocolate, not a bouquet of sizzling eel flesh. They’ve also timed its release to coincide with rising temperatures in Japan, as many Japanese people believe eating unagi is a good way to ward off summertime heat exhaustion, and Unagi Tirol is on sale now, priced at 162 yen (1.50) for a pack of seven pieces.

Source: PR Times via Hachima Kiko
Images: PR Times
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We try Starbucks’ new Strawberry Choux Cream Frappuccino

21:14 cherishe 0 Comments

Sure, we love puff pastry, but what’s it like to drink it?

One of the great things about our team having a reporter based in Taiwan is the fact that she’s able to give us a firsthand account of all the fantastic local Starbucks treats over there that we sadly miss out over here in Japan.

Now, she’s back to make us all green with envy once again, this time with Starbucks Taiwan’s newest limited-time offering: the Strawberry Choux Cream Frappuccino.

While this is the first time for the Frappuccino to land on Taiwanese shores, the Strawberry Choux Cream Frappuccino appeared in South Korea in 2017 and 2019 to huge acclaim. Now, it’s not only on the menu at Starbucks in Taiwan, but at a number of other Starbucks branches in east and southeast Asia as well.

The drink has been getting rave reviews from everyone who’s tried it so far, but our reporter Yui Imai wasn’t so sure if choux cream would make for a great Frappuccino, given that the milk bases they usually contain are already so creamy on their own.

Another potential problem was the fact that the drink doesn’t contain any cream puffs, which is the sweet Yui usually thinks of when she hears the words “choux cream”. Instead, the base is a blend of vanilla custard cream and milk, with plenty of strawberry pulp at the bottom.

Instead of cream puff pastry, the drink contains a topping of graham cracker pieces for a textural accent, and when Yui took her first sip of the drink, the initial flavour was similar to vanilla ice cream. A second or two later, the acidity and jelly-like texture from the strawberry pulp jumped into the flavour profile, providing a fruity refreshment to the creamy base.

Yui was almost upset to admit the beverage was actually amazing. And as for the missing cream puffs, the graham cracker pieces on top did a really good job of recreating the familiar pastry-and-cream combination. In fact, it was probably a better option than including real puff pastry pieces, which would have clumped together and created a cloying texture.

As she sipped through the drink, Yui was surprised to find that the crispy texture of the cookie, the mellow custard-flavoured Frappuccino base, and the strawberry pulp mix combined beautifully together to create an overall flavour that really tasted like a choux cream pastry.

This playful Frappuccino is available in three sizes, priced from 145-185 TWD (US$5.19-$6.63), and will be available for a limited time from 23 June.

Photos ©SoraNews24
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