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Japan Today
2 days ago
- General
- Japan Today
Elementary and junior high students speak out on Japan's strangest school rules
By Elliot Hale, SoraNews24 The Japanese schooling system has an ongoing problem, being rife with outlandish rules that simply don't make sense in the modern day: elementary school students not being allowed to put on underwear beneath their gym clothes, or junior high and high school students only being allowed to sneeze three times during class. Despite the many, many complaints that find their way to the boards of education, many of these outdated and oppressive rules persist even today. A recent online survey gathered responses from 1,749 elementary and junior high school students from across Japan to find out what other strange rules schools have that kids are baffled by. You might think that only a minority of the schools cling on to backwards school rules, but you'd be mistaken. A whopping 79.1 percent of respondents answered that their school has rules that are just plain bizarre. For elementary students, the ones that had them the most confused were the ones regarding stationery, with bans being put on items that have a scent or decorated by characters. Above all, though, is the ban on mechanical pencils, despite many junior high schools allowing the use of them. Clearly mechanical pencils are too deadly for young children to wield correctly. ▼ After all, they do look positively lethal. Image: Pakutaso Junior high students, on the other hand, are left more perplexed when it comes to rules about their hair, such as having to tie it up if it touches your shoulders, or only being allowed to have hair ties in specified colors. Dyeing your hair is also completely out of the question at many schools. ▼ Sadly, the common anime setting of a class full of members with vivid hair colors is unlikely to be seen in reality. Image: Pakutaso It doesn't stop there though, with kids highlighting other rules they have to put up with in their daily lives, like socks needing to be of a certain color and length, or underwear having a specific color or pattern. The issue with underwear and gym clothes persists, with several elementary schools prohibiting them from being worn at the same time, and even some junior high schools doing the same. Other rules mentioned were restrictions on keychains, phones, and food and drinks. There were even some students who answered that there were limits on bringing mirrors and brushes to school, as well as some who answered that they weren't allowed to bring sunscreen to school. Rules are only effective if there are appropriate consequences for breaking them, so what happens if a student dares to rebel, and brings some abhorrent sticky notes into the sacred hall of learning? Some responses include a three-warning system, where you get sent to a student guidance counsellor after three warnings, and should you be sent there three times, you're expelled. Others include being forced to write reflection essays, having something confiscated, or being sent home to fix the problem, only being allowed to return once they have done so. However, some of these consequences can end up creating unfortunate or unintended results. One student had their favorite mechanical pencil thrown away that they had brought by mistake, and another couldn't contact their parents after a late club activity due to a smartphone ban. Perhaps the most humiliating of all is having to show your underwear in front of everyone to prove that you're in compliance with the rules. While the effectiveness and necessity of these rules is certainly debatable, the survey brings forth a valuable point: students are able to question the rules that make up their everyday lives and recognize when something doesn't seem to sit quite right with them. Whether it's about their socks, pencils, or hairstyles, children want their voices to be heard. Although many schools seem to be rather reluctant to cast aside these long-held rules, change is happening gradually. So, it might take a while, but hopefully public displays of the underwear young students have got on will become a relic of the past. Source: PR Times Read more stories from SoraNews24. -- Line up in the hall, open your shirts, show your bras – Real instructions from one Japanese school -- Public schools in Japan's Saga Prefecture will no longer regulate/check students' underwear color -- Tokyo junior high school demands students wear white underwear as part of dress code External Link © SoraNews24
Japan Today
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Japan Today
Brad Pitt reveals his favorite Japanese food, many Japanese people say they've never eaten it
By Casey Baseel, SoraNews24 Japan often gets Hollywood movies later than the rest of the world, but "F1," starring Brad Pitt, is fittingly, arriving in Japanese theaters as quickly as possible, premiering here on Friday, the same day as it does in the U.S. To promote the movie's opening, the producers have released a promotional video in which Kenyu Horiuchi and Shintaro Morimoto, who serve as the dub actors for Pitt and co-star Damson Idris, ask Pitt, Idris, and director Joseph Kosinski some questions on behalf of Japanese fans. The first question involves special training the on-screen cast undertook for their roles, and the next ones deal with special efforts made during filming and the cast's most memorable scenes. The three interviewees also express regret that while "F1" includes footage shot by a separate crew at Japan's Suzuka Circuit, none of them were able to travel to the country themselves for filming. The final question is a common one when overseas celebrities are making Japanese media appearances: What is you favorite Japanese food? Idris leads off with the predictable, but totally agreeable, answer of sushi, with an expression of bliss washing over his face as he fine-tunes his answer to toro, extra-fatty tuna. Kosinski goes a bit farther off the beaten path, saying 'I love a good hot shishito pepper,' a side-dish often found at yakitori restaurants, where they're usually grilled on a skewer over an open flame. But it's Pitt's answer that's truly unique, as he replies, and very confidently, that his favorite Japanese food is: 'Whitefish with ponzu sauce. Always.' Pitt's answer was surprising to a lot of Japanese people. Yes, ponzu, a sauce made from mirin, bonito stock, and citrus juice (such as lemon, lime or yuzu), and often mixed with soy sauce, is a popular condiment in Japan. However, ponzu is most commonly used as a condiment for hotpot or other simmered foods, or as a dipping sauce for sashimi or gyoza. It's generally treated like a substitute for soy sauce, and thus isn't something that Japanese people ordinarily pour on a slice of cooked fish. So not only is it unusual to hear someone say that whitefish with ponzu is their favorite Japanese food, the 'always' is an unexpected emphasizer for an unorthodox combination that you're not likely to encounter in Japanese restaurants or kitchens. Because of that, online reactions to Pitt's answer have largely been some sort of variation on the one embedded above: 'I don't think there are even many Japanese people who'd give that as their first choice.' Other have included: 'Now I wanna know where he tried that.' 'This is kind of like if someone asked 'What's your favorite American food?' and you said 'Alligator steak.'' 'Brad, someone pulled a fast one on you.' 'It's so specific. Was the person who cooked it Japanese? I can't ever remember eating whitefish with ponzu poured on it.' 'I wonder if the fish was grilled, steamed, or simmered.' 'It's got to be something he had with sake.' 'This would be good for a 'try not to laugh' challenge.'' 'Ponzu really does taste good when the flavor seeps into the other ingredients you're eating it with.' More than a few commenters theorized that when Pitt said 'whitefish' he was really talking about fugu, blowfish/pufferfish, which is often eaten with ponzu. That seems unlikely, though, since fugu's international fame as a Japanese delicacy that can kill you if it's not prepared correctly means that it rarely gets linguistically lumped in with whitefish by English-speakers. So odds are that Pitt really has eaten and enjoyed whitefish with ponzu sauce, and on more than one occasion. As for where he ate it, there are a couple possibilities. First, while it's not a standard or traditional combination, it is possible to find recipes, in Japanese, for whitefish with ponzu. There's one here, for example, on Cookpad, a website where home chefs can share recipes with one another. On the website of the UK division of soy sauce maker Kikkoman, which also produces ponzu, the company specifically recommends using ponzu 'as a marinade for fish, meat and vegetables.' If you run a search for recipes on Kikkoman's Japanese website for fish with ponzu, though, you won't find any. Likewise, Mizkan, another major ponzu maker, has 220 recipes for ponzu on its Japanese website, but not a single one that uses it as a sauce for cooked fish. With ponzu experiencing a recent surge in global popularity, it's possible that Pitt orders whitefish with ponzu at a nominally Japanese restaurant he frequents outside Japan, or that he's had it at restaurants in Japan with avant-garde sensibilities and a cosmopolitan, international clientele. 'I bet he goes to some really fancy Japanese restaurants,' mused one commenter. Or it could be that he has a personal acquaintance or private chef who's made whitefish with yuzu a part of their cooking repertoire and presented it to him as a kind of 'Japanese food,' since ponzu is a Japanese condiment and whitefish is part of Japan's culinary culture too. 'I think more so than comparing it to many other kinds of Japanese foods that he's tried, whitefish with ponzu sauce is the dish that has the strongest place in his memories,' said one commenter, and while just about everyone was surprised as Pitt's pick for his favorite Japanese food, no one seems to think it'd taste bad, even if they're not 100-percent sure it's really Japanese. Sources: YouTube/ワーナー ブラザース 公式チャンネル via Hachima Kiko, Twitter/@zimkalee, Kikkoman, Mizkan, Cookpad Read more stories from SoraNews24. -- Japanese people reveal the six western foods they find most disgusting -- 5 common misconceptions most westerners have about Japanese food -- Should you add wasabi to your soy sauce at a sushi restaurant? External Link © SoraNews24
SoraNews24
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Investigating the mysterious 'Shake Pippi' at Marugame Seimen udon restaurants
It's only natural to want to shake your pippi. Hot off the huge success of their Udonuts, donuts made from leftover udon noodles, restaurant chain Marugame Seimen announced that a new product would be hitting stores this month. This was great news to our reporter P.K. Sanjun, who got an invitation to a pre-tasting and wondered whether it would be something cool for summer or more of their great piping hot dishes. ▼ Marugame Seimen The name, however, did little to clarify things for him. All he could do was stare at the promotional poster and try to comprehend what 'Marugame Shake Pippi' was supposed to be. Since a good chunk of his accumulated knowledge deals with Pokémon , he could only assume this had something to do with Clefairy, who's called 'Pippi' in Japanese. The information Marugame sent him made no mention of a collaboration with Pokémon , though. So he was left without a clue until he arrived at the tasting, where a table was set up with what looked like sacks of French fries and different seasonings. He was then given a bag that read, 'We went and fried some udon: Marugame Shake Pippi.' This shed a lot of light on the matter. Much like with their Udonuts, it appeared that Marugame was taking some of their excess noodles and deep frying them, much like one would with French fries. ▼ Here are some udon noodles as they're normally eaten as a frame of reference. The 'Shake' part of the name made sense too, since these are like shaker fries where you add in either consommé, salty seaweed, or sugar butter seasonings and shake the bag to spread it around. P.K. tried some salty seaweed Shake Pippi and enjoyed their light mouthfeel with a crispy texture. Since they're made of noodles, they don't have that easily identifiable flavor of fried corn or potato snacks, and felt a little alien at first. However, the fact that they were very freshly made and used very delicious seasonings more than made up for that and made these a very delightful dessert. It was so good it almost made P.K. forget what he came here to learn: What does 'Pippi' mean? According to a Marugame rep, 'pippi' means 'udon' in the dialect of Kagawa Prefecture (the part of Japan most famous for udon) and is often used when talking to children, like: 'Make sure you eat all your pippi!' It seems that they're targeting children with this snack in particular and are keeping prices low at 190 yen (US$1.30) a bag, so kids can enjoy it more easily. Having enjoyed this new food and learned what 'pippi' means, P.K. felt very satisfied with his trip to Marugame Seimen, and you can too since Marugame Shake Pippi is on sale nationwide as of 24 June. Photos ©SoraNews24 ©2025 Niantic, Inc. ©2025 Pokémon. ©2025 Nintendo / Creatures Inc. / GAME FREAK inc. ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter! [ Read in Japanese ]
Japan Today
2 days ago
- Japan Today
Father and son arrested for impersonating Shohei Ohtani to commit fraud
By SoraNews24 A father-son team have been arrested for their involvement in attempting to defraud a woman in her 80s out of 1 million yen. The two men, both Nepalese nationals living in Japan took turns impersonating none other than Los Angeles Dodgers' superstar Shohei Ohtani on messaging app Line and Facebook. They sent the victim messages saying, 'Because I'm the best baseball player in the world, my insurance premiums are too high. I've had to pay tens of millions of yen in insurance premiums, but it's still not enough. Can you help me pay 1 million yen in insurance premiums?' The elderly woman agreed and the son then pretended to be Ohtani's agent, saying he would travel to Tokyo to meet her and collect the money in cash. He actually lived in Tokyo too so didn't have to travel far to get the money and then deposit most of it into the bank account of his father who lived elsewhere in Japan. ▼ News report about the son's arrest The details on what led to the arrests aren't clearly reported, possibly because the investigation is still ongoing and police are looking to arrest other accomplices. However, it was reported that while the money was being collected, the woman asked to speak with Ohtani on the phone, but the man refused, saying that there was no time because his game was about to start. It would seem that was when she got wise to the scam and contacted police. However it went down, the father and son are now both in custody and have admitted to the charge of conspiracy to commit fraud. Readers of the news online were mostly amazed that someone could possibly believe Shohei Ohtani was struggling with cash, as others expressed in online comments that committing crime in the name of Ohtani was an especially heinous offence in Japan. 'They give Nepal a bad name.' 'If someone would fall for that, someone would fall for anything.' 'The woman probably has dementia. I hope they throw the book at these guys.' 'The idea that Ohtani has money trouble is hilarious.' 'I think we should all check on our elderly relatives.' 'How dare they use Ohtani's name like that!' It would seem that by committing fraud in the name of Japan's most beloved celebrity, these two and the others involved might have an especially hard time in a court of their peers. This particular type of fraud, known as 'special fraud' in Japan, is already considered a high priority for law enforcement and the legal system but special Ohtani fraud is a whole other league. Source: NHK, Mainichi Shimbun, NTV News Read more stories from SoraNews24. -- Pensioner pretends to be deceived by telephone fraud, helps catch criminals -- Osaka Prefecture bans seniors from talking on the phone while using ATMs -- Shohei Ohtani amazes Major League Baseball with his impeccable Japanese manners External Link © SoraNews24
SoraNews24
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- SoraNews24
Totoro travel bags, suitcase ready to take responsibility for inspiring your Japanese countryside trip
Hey, Totoro, can you hold our stuff while we go for a walk in the forest? It may not be a travelogue or official tourism promotion video, but it's safe to say that My Neighbor Totoro is a major reason for a whole lot of trips to Japan. For many people, the Studio Ghibli anime's depictions of the Japanese countryside are their first inkling of the bucolic beauty waiting outside the concrete jungles and neon thickets of the country's big cities, and 'Whoa, this looks like something out of Totoro!' is something countless visitors have thought to themselves when they see farm and forestland in Japan. So if Totoro is going to be inspiring people to travel to/in Japan, it's only fair that he help them carry their stuff, right? Ghibli specialty shop Donguri Kyowakoku has a whole line of Totoro travel bags, including a roller suitcase decked out with illustrations of the forest spirit frolicking in a clover patch, along with the white Little Totoro and some Soot Sprite friends. ▼ There don't appear to be any four-leaf clovers, but who needs luck when you've got this much cuteness? The rollers and TSA-compliant combination lock add convenience and security to the suitcase, which is 33 x 52 x 21 centimeters (13 x 20.5 x 8.3 inches) and has a carrying capacity of 30 liters. If you need more room, you'll be happy to know that with the handle extended… …you can slide it through a Totoro Boston bag. This one doesn't just show off Totoros on the fabric pattern, either, because the zipper pulls are little metallic Totoros too. Actually, the suitcase also has Totoro zipper pulls, but they're located inside, and a shiny silver color instead of the rustic bronze shade for the Boston bag's. Size-wise, these are both luggage pieces you'll want to leave in your hotel or inside a locker while doing your sightseeing, but there are two day-use bags in the line as well, a backpack… …and a 'town shoulder bag.' ▼ The shoulder bag is also sized to perch nicely on top of the suitcase. Prices start at 4,950 yen (US$34) for the shoulder bag, with the Boston bag 5,500, the backpack 5,940, and the suitcase 24,200 yen. The whole bunch is available through the Donguri Kyowakoku online store here following a restock, and if you'd like Totoro to help support your neck while you catch some Zs on the plane (and transform too), they've got you covered on that as well. Source: Donguri Kyowakoku Top image: Donguri Kyowakoku Insert images: Donguri Kyowakoku (1, 2, 3, 4) ● Want to hear about SoraNews24's latest articles as soon as they're published? Follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
