Easy Japanese news in translation: 'Panda Kuroshio' express train to continue operations
Easy Japanese news is taken from the Mainichi Shogakusei Shimbun, a newspaper for children. This is perfect material for anyone studying Japanese who has learned hiragana and katakana. We encourage beginners to read the article in English followed by Japanese, or vice versa, to test their comprehension.
A fresh set will be published every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 4 p.m., Japan time. Click/tap here for past installments.
Intermediate learners who do not need English assistance can directly access the Mainichi Shogakusei Shimbun site here. Furigana (hiragana) is added to all kanji in the text.
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The Mainichi
4 hours ago
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Lawson to offer overnight stay at parking lots for people in vehicles
TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japanese convenience store operator Lawson Inc. said on Monday that it will launch a new paid service to offer its stores' parking lots to travelers spending the night in their vehicles amid soaring accommodation costs. The company will hold a trial at six outlets in Chiba Prefecture, near Tokyo, from July 14 through June next year, with plans to expand the service nationwide. Expecting young people to use the service, it plans to charge 2,500 yen ($17) to 3,000 yen per night. The parking lots, available from 6 p.m. to 9 a.m. the next day, can be reserved through the website run by the Japan Recreational Vehicle Association and paid for with a credit card. The company said that there are not enough places for people to stay overnight in vehicles amid the growing popularity of recreational vehicles and budget-minded travel. While public bath facilities and roadside stations also offer similar services, Lawson emphasizes the advantage of the outlets' around-the-clock operation, which enables users to buy food and drinks and use the bathroom in the store at any time. "We can also provide a sense of security since there are always staff in the store," an official of the company said.
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Japan's Dogo Onsen hot spring bathhouse adorned with star festival ornaments, wind chimes
MATSUYAMA -- The courtyard of Dogo Onsen Annex Asuka-no-Yu hot spring bathhouse in this west Japan city is adorned with decorations for the July 7 Tanabata star festival, exuding an illusionary atmosphere with illuminations at night. The installation, titled "Dogo Tanabata Story 2025," features wooden lanterns and Tanabata ornaments, and is lit up every evening between 7 and 11 p.m. until Aug. 7. In the corridor in front of the annex building, 288 wind chimes are hanging, ringing cool sounds as "tanzaku" slips of paper rustle in the wind. On the paper are quoted traditional Japanese "waka" poetry related to Tanabata from the 7-8th century "Manyoshu" anthology. A woman in her 20s visiting the annex with her two daughters, aged 4 and 2, wrote her wishes for her family's health on one of the paper slips. Her children also penned their respective wishes, including one for a toy, before attaching them to bamboo grass bearing Tanabata ornaments, with smiles on their faces. A representative at the Dogo Onsen Office commented, "We hope many people will enjoy strolling the town in Dogo in the evening." For inquiries, call the Dogo Onsen Consortium at 089-932-1126.
