Twentythree

Fushimi Inari Taisha asks visitors to show some respect after dance videos filmed beneath its famous torii gates spark criticism online.

One of the things that draws tourists to Kyoto is its shrines and temples, which have been beautifully preserved for centuries. However, as the world changes around these historic sites, new problems have cropped up, including overtourism and the desire for fame and likes on social media.

As a result, one of Kyoto’s most famous shrines, Fushimi Inari Taisha, has recently become the stage for a number of individuals who think it’s okay to perform dances on its sacred grounds, all in a bid to gain views. After these videos were widely circulated online, they received a fair amount of clapback from viewers who criticised the thoughtless acts, and now the shrine itself has come forward with a message in response to the social media storm.

One of the recent videos, shared on TikTok and Twitter in early September, showed foreign tourists dancing beneath the shrine’s famous torii gates, blocking the path of other visitors who could be seen waiting for the group to finish their routine. Not only were they blocking the path, but members of the group could be seen entering from outside the walkway, interfering with the natural environment, which according to Shinto religion, is considered sacred.

In fact, the entire grounds is considered sacred, including the approach, where a group of Maori women from New Zealand recently filmed themselves while performing a traditional poi dance. This clip was also met with criticism from the wider community, including from New Zealand-born professional wrestler Henare, who is of Maori heritage. He pointed out that dancing in sacred places also goes against Maori customs and apologised for the incident. He said he had tracked down the people involved and asked them to make a substantial donation to Fushimi Inari Taisha as an apology.

▼ The approach is said to be the pathway for the gods, and is so sacred that etiquette dictates visitors should walk on the sides rather than the very middle.

With other dance videos being filmed at the site and shared online, Fushimi Inari Taisha responded on 7 September with a notice in both Japanese and English reminding visitors to observe proper manners. It explained that the shrine grounds are a sacred area and place of prayer with more than 1,300 years of history.

In an interview with Japanese media outlet J-Cast News, the shrine confirmed that videos had indeed been filmed on its grounds and went on to say that staff will approach visitors whenever they spot prohibited or disruptive behaviour.

Although no damage had been reported in connection with the dancing, the shrine said it was disappointed that these visitors failed to understand the cultural significance of the site.

It’s worth remembering that although shrines like Fushimi Inari Taisha are places of beauty, they are not dance studios, and they are not spaces owned by tourists. They are places where spirits reside, gods are worshipped, and people come to pray. And as more people become familiar with temple and shrine etiquette in Japan, the video that you think will go viral might just land you in hot water and leave you being cancelled instead.

Sources: J-Cast News via Jin, Yahoo! Japan News
Featured image: Pakutaso
Insert images: Pakutaso  (1, 2)
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The fantasy of using Cloud’s sword every day can now become a reality.

There’s a whole lot of imagery in anime and video games that looks awesome but would be impractical in the real world. Even within that artistic subgenre, though, Final Fantasy VII’s Buster Sword is an especially extreme example.

Right off the bat, it’s a sword, something that most of us don’t have a use for in our daily lives. Should you somehow happen to have a melee weapon-intensive lifestyle, even then the Buster Sword isn’t a particularly viable choice, since while protagonist Cloud can swing the thing around with ease, it’d be too heavy and bulky to fight with for those of us who have to deal with actual weight and gravity without any assistance from an in-game physics engine.

And yet…the Buster Sword does look really cool, so thankfully Square Enix has come up with a version that can serve a useful purpose for those of us not living in the world of Final Fantasy.

Draped over that dude’s back is the Final Fantasy VII Buster Sword Muffler Towel. Muffler towels (muffler here being used to indicate a scarf, not a part of a car’s exhaust system) are essentially a long face towel, made of material that’s pliable enough to drape over your shoulders or wrap around your neck. A lot of muffler towels bear the names and insignias of sports teams, bands, or idol singers, but this one instead features a print of Cloud’s Buster Sword.

▼ The reverse-side has longer loops to better wick away moisture.

Muffler towels are especially popular at fan events, where dampening them with water before putting one on your shoulders is a great way to counteract the heat generated by large crowds. With a length of 128.5 centimeters (50.6 inches), though, the Buster Sword towel is large enough to make a striking statement as home décor, hung on a wall or next to a sink.

It’s available for preorder through the Square Enix online store here, priced at 1,980 yen (US$12.50) and with a release date of December 19. Just make sure your cat doesn’t get it mixed up with its Buster Sword scratching pad.

Source, images: Square Enix E-Store
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The Mapputatsu? Parfait tackles food waste without sacrificing visuals so that you can still happily feed both yourself and your phone.

Back in January, a new style of parfait appeared at Denny’s Japan. From the front it appears as a regular parfait, but from the side, it looks like it’s been split in two–leading to its name, the Mapputatsu? Parfait (“Two equal parts? Parfait”).

▼ Pictured below are versions with Shine Muscat grapes for 1,078 yen (US$6.87) and with chocolate for 748 yen.

The purpose of this unusual setup is to reduce food waste while still providing a visually attractive, photo-worthy treat for diners. The menu even provides statistics that 54 percent of diners have ordered food for the sake of posting photos on social media and one out of three have left their dessert unfinished at family-style restaurants in Japan. With parfaits typically looking like veritable works of food art but also being on the larger side, we can assume that they’re one of the more common menu items that diners order for the visual spectacle but aren’t able to finish.

Initially, the Mapputatsu? Parfait was only available at two Denny’s Japan locations, but it’s been slowly expanding onto menus across the country. We happened to be in the area of Saitama-Shintoshin’s Cocoon City shopping complex branch recently and decided to swing by to finally try it out.

Once we sat down and peeked at the digital tablet menu, we were excited to see it in all of its question-asking glory. It was a tough choice but we ordered the Shine Muscat version.

It arrived about 10 minutes later. We took a moment to admire its striking visuals from head-on, the way the waiter had placed it down on the table in front of us.

Unsuspecting diners would never know…

…that the reverse side held a big secret: the parfait glass indeed looked like it had been split straight down the middle!

▼ Even the grapes were cleanly sliced in half.

Thankfully, that didn’t mean the glass was in any danger of collapsing, but just that the vessel was only half the width of a regular one.

We had a train to catch soon, so it was time to dig in. It was still blowing our minds that even viewed from the top it looked like a perfectly ordinary parfait.

The Shine Muscat grapes were, as usual, tantalizingly sweet and refreshing. They meshed wonderfully with the layers of sorbet and jelly lining the inside of the glass. It felt good to know that we were still getting everything that we would from a normal parfait.

The sweet treat as a whole was truly the perfect size to feel full in a comfortable–not sickly–way.

Some readers might be asking, “Why not just order a mini parfait instead?” Mini parfaits in smaller glass dishes also exist at Denny’s Japan, so that’s always a possibility. However, we have to admit that there’s something special about the thrill of having a tall parfait placed in front of you that a shorter one just can’t replace.

Please note that not all Denny’s Japan locations may offer the Mapputatsu? Parfait. Those that do may not have all the same versions, either, so it’s best to check ahead of time if there’s a specific flavor that you want. We would strongly recommend the Shine Muscat variety–in fact, it was so good that we’re now hooked on anything with the same taste!

Restaurant information
Denny’s Cocoon City branch / デニーズ コクーンシティ店
Address: Saitama-ken, Saitama-shi, Omiya-ku, Kishiki-cho 4-263-8
埼玉県さいたま市大宮区吉敷町 4-263-8
Open: 6 a.m.-11:30 p.m. (last order at 11 p.m.)
Website

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A roadmap for starting your journey of eating your way through Family Mart’s sweet potato sweets lineup.

Though they usually have a little fruit and vegetable corner where you can pick up some bananas, a carrot, or half a head of lettuce, Japanese convenience stores aren’t really the best place to go if you’re looking for fresh seasonal produce. Japanese convenience stores are, on the other hand, exactly where you want to be if you’re looking for new seasonal sweets.

Sweet potato sweets season is here, and September 22 is essentially harvest day as Family Mart releases no fewer than 14 desserts that feature the flavor, and sometimes even the look, of sweet spuds. We realize that even the biggest sweets fans might have trouble fitting that many items into their snacking schedule, so our taste-testing reporter Natsuki Goto has sampled them all and prepared her personal list of the three she recommends eating first, then working your way to the rest if you have the time/stomach capacity.

3. Mocchi Oimo Bread (Beni Haruka) (185 yen [US$1.15])

This pillowy soft pastry visually mimics a roasted sweet potato that’s been sliced open, with an eye-catching contrast of colors to go with its hybrid design. While the outside has the texture of a soft bread bun, the inner section is a moist sponge cake, thanks to the use of sweet bean paste flavored with Beni Haruka, one of Japan’s sweetest varieties of sweet potato.

The sprinkling of black sesame seeds, a common addition to roasted sweet potatoes in Japan, adds a touch of mature sophistication, and the overall flavor is excellent. Family Mart brings out some sort of sweet potato bread pretty much every autumn, but this is one of their best yet, and anyone who likes sweet potatoes will find a lot to love here.

Before we move on to Natsuki’s number-two pick, let’s take a look at some of the also-rans in the lineup. Honestly, there wasn’t a bad-tasting treat in the bunch, so you can think of these as “not as amazing as the top three” rather than not being recommended.

▼ Caramel-scent Sweet Potato Croissant (185 yen)

▼ Satsuma Imo Sweet Potato Stick (180 yen per bag)

▼ Sweet Potato Dorayaki (216 yen)

▼ Sweet Potato Zakuhoro Cream Puff (254 yen)

▼ Sweet Potato Canelé with Caramel Sauce (285 yen)

▼ Beni Haruka Sweet Potato Terrine (298 yen)

OK, let’s get back to Natsuki’s top picks with…

2. Sweet Potato Florentine (195 yen)

Japan has a pretty broad palate in terms of desserts with overseas origins, but you don’t often see Florentines at convenience stores. For those unfamiliar with the term, Florentines are a kind of French biscuit-type cookie, coated with caramel and topped with nuts.

For this version, though, Family Mart swaps out the crushed nuts and replaces them with imo kenpi, crisp, candied sweet potato chips.

The result is an understatedly classy confectionary, which still retains a bit of a nutty nuance thanks to the aromatic caramel, plus the crunch of a conventional Florentine while adding a strong sweet potato sensation. The only complaint Natsuki has is that the Sweet Potato Florentine is a little on the small side, but it’s photogenic and very tasty, so it still gets an enthusiastic thumbs-up from her.

And before we reach the king of this hill of sweet potato desserts, let’s look at some of the other items in the lineup.

▼ Sweet Potato and Cheese Pizza Wrap (330 yen)

▼ Imo Kenpi Chocolate (286 yen)

▼ Caramel Sweet Potato Chips (248 yen)

▼ Drinkable Dairy Roasted Sweet Potato shake (278 yen)

▼ Beni Haruka Sweet Potato Monaka (225 yen)

And now, we finally come to Natsuki’s absolute, can’t-miss, number-one Family Mart sweet potato sweets pick, which is…

1. Sweet Potato Pound Cake (198 yen)

Once again the Beni Haruka sweet potato shows up to elevate this simple dessert to an exalted level, with Beni Haruka paste kneaded into the dough before baking, and chopped pieces of sweet potato added in too.

Aside from the bright, inside-of-a-sweet-potato color, there’s nothing fancy about the visuals, but that’s fine because this cake is all about pleasing the taste buds, and it does that magnificently. Family Mart actually offered a similar item last year, but the 2026 version ups the amount of Beni Haruka paste to make the taste even more richly sweet, and every bite of the soft but dense cake is a moment of joy.

As is often the case with seasonal sweets in Japan, these are listed as being available while supplies last, so you’ll want to grab yours sooner rather than later.

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The mysterious god even has a moving mouth, to eat the tasty anime meals on the note pads.

As ardent lovers of both Studio Ghibli and Japanese stationery, we’re always very excited when the anime studio releases a stationery collection. So when Ghibli specialty chain Donguri Kyowakoku unveiled a brand new range of memo pads adorned in food from some of our favourite Ghibli anime, plus a stand designed to look like the River God from Spirited Away, we had to stop ourselves from immediately purchasing the whole collection and share the find with you straight away.

Starting with the memo pads, there are three to choose from, priced at 770 yen (US$4.93) each, and they all look delicious.

▼ Kiki’s Delivery Service Round Memo – Kiki’s Cake

As fans will know, the cake on this memo pad is the one that Kiki receives as a gift from Madame, and it’s been beautifully recreated.

Inside the cake, you’ll find a 100-sheet memo pad, with Kiki and Madame bringing a dash of joy and warmth to each page.

▼ Howl’s Moving Castle Round Memo – Calcifer’s Bacon and Eggs

This memo pad features the sizzling bacon and eggs from Howl’s Moving Castle, which is beautifully printed so you can even see the smoke rising from the pan.

Inside, you’ll find 100 pages of Markl, happily gobbling up the meal, just as we would if it were placed before us.

▼ Ponyo on the Cliff by the Sea Round Memo – Lisa’s Ramen

Sosuke’s mum Lisa makes this iconic meal for him and Ponyo, bringing them comfort during a heavy storm.

The instant noodles, topped with thick slices of ham, a boiled egg, and green onions is one of the most delicious-looking meals in the Ghibli cannon, and with this pad on the table, we’ll be reminded of its deliciousness every day.

All the memo pads above have a a distinctive round shape, which Donguri Kyowakoku says has been “born from the bookbinding techniques of skilled craftsmen”. Manufactured by Movic, which operates under the umbrella of the Animate Group, which handles the planning, manufacturing and distribution of merchandise covering the world of anime, manga and video games, each pad is carefully designed for quality and ease of use.

▼ The most exciting product in the lineup for us, though, is the Spirited Away River God Memo Stand (4,950 yen).

Also produced by Movic, this stand is like a figurine, capturing the quiet, mysterious presence of the River God who appears out of the water during a pivotal moment in the bathhouse in Spirited Away.

Here, the River God acts as a memo stand, holding memos in the clip behind its head.

Although you can clip any type of paper into the stand, we’re tempted to tear a note out of the round memo pads and write the character’s iconic words, “Well done” on it for dramatic effect.

Adding to the drama is the character’s jaw, which actually moves, so you really can feel like it’s saying “Well done” whenever you finish a difficult task.

The interactive element is a very nice touch, and as it’s made of metal and quite weighty, it’s designed to put up with all your character roleplays.

▼ The stand is as solid as the presence of the character.

So if you’ll excuse us now, we’re off to make our purchase, and if you’d like to do the same, you can click on the links below to grab your favourites before they sell out!

Source: Donguri Kyowakoku
Featured image: Donguri Kyowakoku
Insert images: Donguri Kyowakoku (1, 2, 3, 4)
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