Sushi Blog

Rachel and Jun take us on a tour of a digital art exhibition at Mifuneyama in Saga prefecture.  The digital art displays were created as part of "Digitized Nature" project by TeamLab, Japan's top digital art studio.

A delicious hot soup is on the mind of many in America as winter is around the corner.  The same can be said in Japan, but hot pot replaces soup in popularity among Japanese people.  Martina dives into this local favorite in the season and shares her recipe with us.

Who wouldn't love to have a house for free?  And it's not a fixer-upper, but a clean 3-bedroom home. The town's committee of Okutama, on the outskirts of Tokyo is giving away ready-to-move-in homes to young couples.  The catch is the new residents must live in the house for 15 years to be awarded an ownership.  This is a desperate measure taken by the committee to resuscitate the dying town due to dwindling population, revealing a glimpse of dreadful future that is becoming increasingly noticeable in rural communities.

When it comes to coffee, Starbucks has taken over the world including Japan, but small independently owned coffee shops still exist in Tokyo. These coffee shops have their own history as many of them opened decades ago to serve their customers locally roasted coffee.  John and Kanae visit a coffee shop unassumingly stands in a quiet residential area favored by the locals.

In this video, the video host takes us to Matsuo Kozan, an abandoned mining town in Iwate.  The town started mining sulfur and pyrite in 1911 and the mine quickly became known as the highest yield producer in Asia.  The town's population grew to 13,600 and so did its economy.  Large residential complex, schools, a hospital and entertainment facilities were soon built to accommodate its thriving community.  The building seen in the video was the most modern residential facility during the town's heyday in 1960 and the town was even called "A Paradise on Cloud," but after the town faced with a sharp drop in demand for sulfur, the mine was left with no options but to closed in 1972.