GRAPHICS COURTESY OF THE OFFICE OF PROF. MASAYUKI MIURA, GRADUATE SCHOOL OF LETTERS, HIROSHIMA UNIVERSITY (RESTORATIVE DESIGN) / S. Corp. (COMPUTER GRAPHICS PRODUCTION) / EDO-JO SAIKEN WO MEZASU KAI

What does Tokyo have as a genuine landmark?

Well, there’s 52-year-old Tokyo Tower, but that’s not the draw it once was. Or there’s Tokyo Sky Tree, which, at 603 meters high, is set to be the world’s tallest broadcasting tower when it’s completed soon. But so what?

What Tokyo really needs is a historical monument symbolizing the essence of the Japanese spirit, culture and lifestyle, argues a Tokyo-based citizens’ group whose aim is to rebuild what it considers the ultimate symbol of Tokyo: the main tower of Edo Castle.

"Paris has the Palace of Versailles nearby, London has Buckingham Palace and Beijing has the Forbidden City," Shizuo Kigawa, one of the group’s executive members, told The Japan Times recently. "Tokyo has nothing that embodies Japan’s history. In this sense, Asakusa or Tokyo Tower don’t qualify."

Read the rest of the story: Will Edo Castle’s tower rise again?.

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Say the word geisha and images of beautiful kimono-clad women serving green tea, reciting poetry and playing classical instruments may spring to mind.

In Japan, outsiders typically pay hundreds of pounds to spend several hours with geisha in tea-houses, with activities including artful conversation, and dancing.

But a downturn in the global economy appears to be forcing the world of geisha to seek more enterprising – and cheaper – ways of earning a living by setting up geisha beer gardens.

Read the rest of the story: Struggling geisha swap tea and poetry for a glass of beer.

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It should come as no surprise that Japan is embracing burgeoning new social media outlets – like Twitter. Myspace and Facebook (News – Alert) have also tried to break into the market, but it’s Twitter that the Japanese love. Perhaps it’s the cute name or the on-the-go quick updating capabilities – who can say?! But the statistics express volumes – 16.3 percent of Japanese people Tweet, compared to 9.8 percent of Americans.

It’s most likely that it’s it’s all about mobile communication, especially text messaging. That is what the Japanese love about twitter. Twitter just gives you a space to save all your messages and should be an instant hit for any thumb novelist.

Read the rest of the story: Japan loves tweeting on Twitter>^..^<

Read even more: Twitter a hit in Japan as millions ‘mumble’ online

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Sake is gradually increasing its presence at banquets where Japanese government leaders play host to foreign dignitaries.

The Foreign Ministry has mainly used wine at such banquets because it is easy to handle and goes well with any dish.

However, sake has begun to be included among other beverages at dinners and receptions amid growing calls from within the ministry to actively push sake in the field of diplomacy.

In inviting foreign VIPs, the ministry checks on their likes and dislikes and whether they are allergic to any foods in deciding on menus and drinks.

Read the rest of the article: Presence of sake grows in diplomacy

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Japan has hosted the world’s first wedding to be conducted by a robot. The automated creature, known as the I-Fairy, oversaw the wedding of Tomohiro Shibata and Satoko Inoue in the capital, Tokyo. The couple decided to use the robot as they are both connected with Japan’s thriving robotics industry. Since robots had brought them together in the first place, they said, having one officiate at their wedding was a natural choice.

Read the rest of the story: Tokyo couple married by robot in rooftop wedding

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If you’ve lived in Japan, then you would know how odd, yet sensible these love hotels are for privacy. It’s a different world when space is limited and walls are paper thin. And, yes there is such a thing as an opportunity to invest in the love of discrete necessities…cause at that point it’s just practical. And that’s where the below holding company comes in with fancy.

The Alternative Investment Market(AIM) in London has a quotation that is basically a holding company for a fund that operates a portfolio of so-called love hotels in Japan.

The holding company describes the fund with a few words of their own that try to conjure up the market of the love hotel to foreigners with…

Love hotels are one of those Japanese idiosyncrasies that make sense when you live there. They act as a refuge for married couples who live with family, philanderers and those – often backpacking foreigners – looking for a cheap room for the night.

As the country has such a high population density for the available useful land, space and privacy for couples is at a premium. Demand for rooms is at a rate a normal hotel operator can only dream of.

About 2m Japanese visit a love hotel each day and most rooms are used twice a day during the week. As results from Japan Leisure this week showed, they appear to be insulated from the downturn.

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The nonprofit organization Japan Mothers Society honored five women on Thursday in its 3rd annual Best Mother Awards. This year’s recipients included actress Makiko Esumi in the entertainment category and singer Chisato Moritaka in the music category.

Diet member Renho Murata, freelance announcer Junko Kubo, and sports commentator and former synchronized swimmer Mikako Kotani were the other winners.

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The holiday exodus reached a peak at the Narita International Airport near Tokyo Thursday, with 46,200 people expected to leave Japan during the day to spend their Golden Week holidays overseas.

Resort areas, including Guam and Hawaii, as well as European countries attract many travelers from Japan during the holiday season through early May, according to the airport and travel agency officials.

Takahide Oshikawa, 32, from Tokyo said before leaving for Europe with his family, “I was concerned about cancellation (of the trip) following the volcanic eruption (in Iceland). I hope we could enjoy shopping and meals.”

At the Kansai International Airport near Osaka, meanwhile, some 17,000 people were expected to leave for their vacations Thursday.

Read more of the story: Holiday exodus reaches peak at Narita, Kansai airports

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This video never gets old. It’s amazing that anyone would want to go to work this badly or in this way every morning. I would definitely find another station, ride a bike to another one, or move if this was my everyday commute. Maybe they will make double-decker trains one day.

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A reconstruction of an imperial hall, Daigokuden, which once served as the emperor’s office and a venue for imperial ceremonies will open to the public April 24th as part of the main venue for a festival marking the 1,300th anniversary of the establishment of the ancient capital of Heijokyo.

Heijō-kyō (平城京, also Heizei-kyō, sometimes Nara no miyako), was the capital city of Japan (710-740 and 745-784) during most of the Nara period (710-794). The Palace site is a listed UNESCO World Heritage site together with other places in the city of Nara.

The Agency for Cultural Affairs rebuilt Daigokuden, the largest building of the eighth-century Heijokyu palace, at a cost of 18 billion yen ($191.8 million).

During the festival period, the hall is expected to be illuminated at night.

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