Oh, Japan, we love you so much.
Morning stretches, or asa taisou, may look faintly ridiculous to many westerners, but it’s not uncommon for companies both large and small to have their entire staff standing up and performing a daily warmup routine each morning, often to music. Stroll past a construction site at around 8:30 a.m. and you’ll likely see a team of burly men wearing hard hats doing shoulder shrugs in unison or doing hip gyrations chanting one, two, three, four!
Just this morning, however, we at RocketNews24 witnessed perhaps the greatest example of morning stretch routines ever; a spectacle that had us chuckling, scratching out heads and finally nodding in agreement.
Prepare yourselves, ladies and gentlemen, for the Michinoku Librarian Union’s daily exercise routine!
Red light district sushi restaurant in Tokyo shows us just how wrong we were about it
Japanese ramen restaurants under pressure from new yen banknotes
Tokyo Tsukiji fish market site to be redeveloped with 50,000-seat stadium, hotel, shopping center
Beautiful Red and Blue Star luxury trains set to be Japan’s new Hokkaido travel stars
McDonald’s new Happy Meals offer up cute and practical Sanrio lifestyle goods
New private rooms on Tokaido Shinkansen change the way we travel from Tokyo to Kyoto
French Fries Bread in Tokyo’s Shibuya becomes a hit on social media
Pokémon Sleep camping suite and guestrooms coming to Tokyo Hyatt along with giant Snorlax burgers
Starbucks Japan adds a Motto Frappuccino to the menu for a limited time
Sakura tree falls on man at Sannenzaka near Kiyomizu temple in Kyoto 【Breaking News】
All-you-can-drink Starbucks and amazing views part of Tokyo’s new 170 meter-high sky lounge
More foreign tourists than ever before in history visited Japan last month
Studio Ghibli releases new action figures featuring Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind characters
Starbucks reopens at Shibuya Scramble Crossing with new look and design concept
Studio Ghibli glasses cases let anime characters keep an eye on your spectacles
Beautiful Ghibli sealing wax kits let you create accessories and elegant letter decorations【Pics】
Studio Ghibli releases Kiki’s Delivery Service chocolate cake pouches in Japan
New definition of “Japanese whiskey” goes into effect to prevent fakes from fooling overseas buyers
Our Japanese reporter visits Costco in the U.S., finds super American and very Japanese things
Studio Ghibli unveils Mother’s Day gift set that captures the love in My Neighbour Totoro
New Japanese KitKat flavour stars Sanrio characters, including Hello Kitty
New Pokémon cakes let you eat your way through Pikachu and all the Eevee evolutions
Disney princesses get official manga makeovers for Manga Princess Cafe opening in Tokyo
Sales of Japan’s most convenient train ticket/shopping payment cards suspended indefinitely
Sold-out Studio Ghibli desktop humidifiers are back so Totoro can help you through the dry season
Japanese government to make first change to romanization spelling rules since the 1950s
Ghibli founders Toshio Suzuki and Hayao Miyazaki contribute to Japanese whisky Totoro label design
Doraemon found buried at sea as scene from 1993 anime becomes real life【Photos】
Tokyo’s most famous Starbucks is closed
One Piece characters’ nationalities revealed, but fans have mixed opinions
We asked a Uniqlo employee what four things we should buy and their suggestions didn’t disappoint
Princesses, fruits, and blacksmiths: Study reveals the 30 most unusual family names in Japan
New private rooms on Tokaido Shinkansen change the way we travel from Tokyo to Kyoto
French Fries Bread in Tokyo’s Shibuya becomes a hit on social media
Pokémon Sleep camping suite and guestrooms coming to Tokyo Hyatt along with giant Snorlax burgers
Starbucks Japan adds a Motto Frappuccino to the menu for a limited time
Sakura tree falls on man at Sannenzaka near Kiyomizu temple in Kyoto 【Breaking News】
Kyoto’s 100 Demons yokai monster parade returns!
Osaka’s creepy cute mascot speaks for first time, adds more fuel the creepy OR cute debate【Video】
Cosplay in front of explosions and flames at the upcoming fiery Baku Festival
“The Evolution of the Lightsaber Duel” reveals true extent of kendo’s influence on Star Wars movies
Family Mart makes matcha dreams come true with new lineup of strong green tea sweets in Japan
Japan’s ultra-classy overnight bus gives you your own sleeping pod【Photos】
Grand Hyatt Tokyo teaming up with artist Takashi Murakami for adorable take-out afternoon tea set
Japanese fashion label’s samurai chino pants are on the move again with new colors