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News/Politics


Stay up to speed on the latest breaking news and current events in Japan - the weird, wacky and wonderful - with the Abroad in Japan Podcast, broadcast every Wednesday.

Featured Content

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Youtube

The Day Japan Fears The Most: $1 Trillion Disaster

Japan lives in the shadow of an unthinkable existential event. How prepared is Tokyo really for the worst case scenario? We go in search of answers....

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Youtube

The Awful Truth About Youtube's Biggest Influencers.

The older I get, the more unsettling I find all this. It seems the only way is down....

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These Foreigners Are Ruining Japan

Filming in public in Japan is about to get a whole lot more difficult. ...

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Why Japan Still BANS Foreigners After 2 Years

Japan is still closed to tourists after 2 long years. But why?...

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Youtube

The Biggest LIE about Japan

Japan is one of the world's most misunderstood cultures. How healthy is the food really? Is the country a technological marvel? And how friendly is everyone in everyday life? We explore the food, the etiquette and the technology to unravel the realit...

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Youtube

My Apartment vs. Japan's BIGGEST Earthquake in 10 Years

Living in Japan you get used to earthquakes pretty fast. But then there are the big ones. Yesterday a magnitude 7.4 quake struck - Japan's biggest in 10 years - off the coast of Sendai. Today, we inspect the damage....

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Being Rudely Awoken by a North Korean Missile

North Korea fired a missile and woke up half of north Japan. I then complain about being woken up for about 3 minutes, as the wailing siren goes on and on....

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Podcast

Stalker in Japan uses worrying method to locate victim

Pete and Chris are back with another slice of AIJ: The Podcast, as Japan recovers from Typhoon Hagibis....

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Podcast

How to ruin your reputation in Japan: Kim Kardashian's masterclass

Pete recommends a book about crime, Chris plugs Pete's brand new youtube channel and they both take a look at Kim Kardashians pants for reasons best kept to themselves... ...

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Podcast

Why Japan's $1bn mascot is banned from The Olympics…

Chris updates the world on his favourite dough-bothering vending machine, and we find out about Kumamoto’s favourite son. Or daughter. ...

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Podcast

Should travellers be worried about Fukushima?

The radiation may be lower than most people experience on an aeroplane, so why don't people visit Fukushima? ...

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Podcast

Can a foreigner ever *truly* be Japanese?

Can a foreigner ever truly feel Japanese? We're also reading some of your emails. ...

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Podcast

Japan's 40 year old virgins and a worrying population time-bomb

When a man and a woman love each other very much, they give one another a special hug......

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Podcast

You can buy popularity in Japan!

A poorly Chris gamely drags himself through another AIJ podcast, with wisdom to impart, and fevered sweat to...sweat....

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Podcast

Is Japan losing patience with foreign tourists?

Park rules: leave your Japan as you'd like to find it, or something like that. Ranger Chris says so....

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Podcast

Japanese company turns sex into renewable energy

White day rolls around once again...in the hay, it seems. ...

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Podcast

Gender equality in Japan - does it exist anywhere?

A topic that's been dominating Japan recently, the search for something approaching equal rights for women continues. Spoiler: they ain't even close. ...

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Japan Vs. Korea - 10 ways they're different

Chris and Pete are back together, and they're sharing their experiences on recent trips to Korea. It won't surprise you to hear that Coolish gets a mention. ...

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Podcast

Has Trump Saved Japan from North Korea?

Pete and Chris have returned and they're getting a little musical as they wax lyrical about some of their favourite bands. Also, Mr Broad has supped on the clear Coke goodness and is less than impressed... ...