Archive for the ‘Only In Japan’ Category
2Pac Hologram Performance? Japan did it first.
By now, many of you have seen clips of 2Pac’s return (as a hologram) during Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg’s performance at this year’s Coachella Festival… You may not know, however, that they’ve already done this in Japan… with an anime cartoon character named Hatsune Miku! Haha. Amazing… Check out the videos below. Hat Tip: Joe Turman (of Spoken Thought)
Only In Japan: Hot Water Floor Prank
Ahh… what happens when an unsuspecting person falls through the floor into hot water? Yeh, they freak out… This is from a Japanese prank show. Pretty funny. Check it out below.
Only In Japan: Store Employs Colorful Language to Advertise Sale
via japansubculture. Hahaha… I remember I was in India once around Christmas time and saw a sign that said “Happy Christmas and Merry New Year!”… that made me laugh. It is not uncommon for people in foreign countries to misuse words or phrases in the English language. Recently in Japan, there was an advertisement for a “f*ckin’ sale” at Gallerie (which appears to sell handbags and women’s clothing)… too funny. Photos after the break.
Only In Japan: Itchy Commercial
Yes… another WTF moment from Japan. Gotta love it. Check out the commercial below.
Only In Japan: Goldfish Salvation
via thisiscolossal. Watch the video first. 
You can get a sneak peak at how Japanese artist Riusuke Fukahori “paints” these amazing (and realistic) three dimensional goldfish paintings. As you can imagine, the process is very detailed, meticulous, and painstakingly executed. More photos and video below.
The fish are painted layer by layer, to finally create a full 3-D painting that would look exactly like “real” and live goldfish. Only, these fish won’t move. The transparent resin gives an excellent appearance of water, making the painting appear all the more realistic. Fukahori displayed his work at a recent exhibition in London titled Goldfish Salvation.
Only In Japan: Mochi Master
Mochi is one of my favorite Japanese desserts… it is a Japanese rice cake made of glutinous rice pounded into paste and molded into its shape. It was traditionally made in a ceremony called Mochitsuki. The traditional process involves pounding the rice with wooden mallets in an usu (traditional mortar). Two people alternate the work: one pounds the cooked rice while the other wets the mochi. They must keep a steady rhythm or they may accidentally injure each other. Check out this process below. Amazing!
Only In Japan: Toilet Motorcycle Runs On… Ahem… Waste
via spoon-tamago. Toto is Japan’s biggest toilet bowl making company… Now the company just released its first hybrid toilet-motorcycle that runs entirely on… poop. As the person drives, he can poop into a bowl, and that poop will be turned into fuel for the car. It is actually part of a campaign that Toto is running in an effort to reduce its CO2 emissions by 50% in the next 6 years. The motorcycle (and driver) will make its way from Kyushu to Tokyo over the next month. How ridiculous!? More photos below.
Only In Japan: Pregnancy Simulator for Men
The Kanagawa Institute of Technology in Japan recently unveiled this pregnancy simulator for men called the “Mommy Tummy” which simulates baby weight, allows the father to feel the baby kicking, rolling around in the womb, and gradually increases the size of the abdomen and breast regions over time to mimic the body changes experienced over a nine month period. The simulation lasts for approximately 2 minutes… Check out the video below.
Only In Japan: The ‘Levitating’ Girl
via mymodernmet. This is pretty cool! More photos after the break.
Natsumi Hayashi is a sweet-looking Japanese girl who, one day, decided to take self-portraits… of herself levitating. She can be spotted in and around Tokyo, equipped with her SLR and her self-timer. When she feels the moment strike, she presses the shutter button down and then, quite literally, “jumps” into place.
What I love most about her shots is that they don’t feel forced. Natsumi has a way of making us feel as though she naturally levitates throughout life.
When I asked her how others react to her jumping around Tokyo, here is a funny story that she shared. “One day, when I was jumping at a famous sightseeing spot in western Tokyo, workers at a souvenir shop were frightened by how I was jumping. They were whispering things like ‘Is the girl mentally ill’ and ‘Do we need to call the police?’
“So I stopped jumping and apologized to them by saying, ‘I am taking jumping photos for my wedding party’s slide show.’ Their faces turned bright red, and they said things like ‘Oh dear!’ and ‘Congratulations!’ and even ‘Keep jumping!’
“Then, I took one of the best levitation shots of the entire series.”
Only In Japan: The Severed Hand iPhone Case
via geekosystem. Lol… wtf? Thank you Japan. If you’re normal iPhone case is not exciting enough for you, why not buy one with a severed hand attached to it instead? Sounds completely reasonable. The Dokkiri Hand Case is available in two models, a Kid’s hand, and a Lady’s hand modeled off of the hand of the company’s COO. You can buy it here.