Practical and horrifying!
Usually when we’re talking about Japanese lifestyle brand Felissimo, we’re highlighting one of their animal-themed creations, like the Shiba Inu-shaped hot water bottle cover or red panda nap cushion. But Felissimo also has a “Museum Division” that draws inspiration from the arts, and who’ve come up with something a little less cute and cuddly looking.
Felissimo has entered into a creative partnership with the Kyoto Kanze Kaikan, or Kyoto Kanze Noh Theater. Noh is Ja
Usually when we’re talking about Japanese lifestyle brand Felissimo, we’re highlighting one of their animal-themed creations, like the Shiba Inu-shaped hot water bottle cover or red panda nap cushion. But Felissimo also has a “Museum Division” that draws inspiration from the arts, and who’ve come up with something a little less cute and cuddly looking.
Felissimo has entered into a creative partnership with the Kyoto Kanze Kaikan, or Kyoto Kanze Noh Theater. Noh is Japan’s oldest form of stage theater that’s still performed today, with its origins predating kabuki by more than a century. Noh performers wear masks while on stage, and with many of the stories dealing with demonic possession, madness, and other such chilling topics, the masks too are often unnerving in design, but the amount of undeniably skilled craftsmanship that goes into them also makes them, one could argue, in a way, beautiful.
Of course, Felissimo realizes that the average person doesn’t really have many occasions on which to slip on a Noh mask, so they’ve instead applied three classical designs as motifs for organizer pouches. With help from Kyoto Kanze Kaikan, Felissimo has produced a hannya mask pouch, showing a female demon consumed by jealously and sporting intimidating horns, and also a Okina mask, showing an old man with a long beard.
Being roughly the same size as a person’s face, they can actually hold quite a bit of stuff, with interior zippered sections and pockets to keep everything nice and organized.
Also part of the lineup is a pouch styled after a Kasei mask. Also known as a manbi mask, this type of mask is meant to create different atmosphere depending on the angle it’s viewed from, switching from a beautiful woman with a demure smile to something bolder or even sinister. The Kasei mask pouch was actually created by Felissimo’s designers prior to the start of their collaboration with Kyoto Kanze Kaikan, but as you can see, they were still able to achieve some terrifying results.
As further proof of just how committed Felissimo was to authenticity, even the backsides of the pouches mimic the interior surface of Noh masks.
The whole lineup is available from Felissimo online store here, priced at 2,860 yen (US$18.50) each. And should you find yourself instead in the mood for something that’s still strange but not quite so scary, don’t forget about Felissimo’s steamy Myaku-Myaku photo album.
Mr. Sato steps into the SoraKitchen with a bold idea.
Food, as a broad topic, is pretty much always on our mind here at SoraNews24, but recently our ace reporter Mr. Sato found himself thinking about toast sandwiches in particular. Like many people who grew up outside the U.K., Mr. Sato initially found the concept of a sandwich where the inside and outside are made of the same thing to be kind of bizarre. And yet, the toast sandwich has been part of British cuisine for more than 150 years, so
Mr. Sato steps into the SoraKitchen with a bold idea.
Food, as a broad topic, is pretty much always on our mind here at SoraNews24, but recently our ace reporter Mr. Sato found himself thinking about toast sandwiches in particular. Like many people who grew up outside the U.K., Mr. Sato initially found the concept of a sandwich where the inside and outside are made of the same thing to be kind of bizarre. And yet, the toast sandwich has been part of British cuisine for more than 150 years, so it must have a lot of fans, right?
As a matter of fact, we’ve got at least one of those fans among our born-in-Japan staff, as Mr. Sato’s colleague K. Masami made and taste-tested a toast sandwich a while back, and found it very tasty.
And it’s not like Japan has anything against carbs, what with rice being the national dietary staple. So this got Mr. Sato thinking…could he create the Japanese food equivalent to the U.K.’s toast sandwich?
The first thing that came to mind for a rice-rice combo was okayu rice, made by pouring okayu (rice porridge) over steamed rice.
However, okayu rice had two strikes against it. First, okayu itself is generally something you’re supposed to eat when you’re sick, whereas toast sandwiches are more of a straight comfort food. Second, the idea of okayu rice was already floated in Kyukyoku Chojin R, a somewhat obscure gag manga from the ‘80s. That means okayu rice already had it’s chance to become a thing, and so Mr. Sato, bold pioneer that he is, wanted to try something else.
And what he decided to try is a rice onigiri, or rice rice ball.
The more he thought about it, the more convinced he became that this could be Japan’s toast sandwich, because in addition to regular rice balls, Japan also loves toasted rice balls, which are called yakionigiri. Feeling fired up about his idea, Mr. Sato fired up his rice cooker and made a pot of white rice.
He then set aside a portion of it to use for the outer sections of his rice rice ball. That left the rest to become the toasted filling, to which Mr. Sato added soy sauce and then formed into triangles.
After heating some sesame oil in a frying pan, he put the rice in to let it flat grill. This step felt a lot like cooking up some hamburger patties, especially when he flipped the rice rice and gave it a press with his spatula on each side to create crispness on the surface.
After taking his toasted rice out of the pan and letting it cool for a bit, the only thing left to do was to slap it between upper and lower layers of untoasted white rice…
…and his toasted rice rice ball was done!
Taking a bite, he was met by the inviting fluffiness of the untoasted rice, and as he passed through it the fragrant, savory saltiness of the toasted rice emanated from within, which in turn helped draw out more of the untoasted rice’s natural sweetness.
It was, simply put, delicious, but Mr. Sato already has some ideas to help the toasted rice rice ball achieve even more of its potential. For starters, he realized that if he formed the for-filling rice first and spread the soy sauce across it with a brush, the sauce would be distributed more uniformly and help the rice toast more evenly. He’s also thinking of swapping out the soy sauce and using miso paste instead, which would add some extra complexity to the flavor and texture.
For now, though, he’s very happy with how his Japanese-version toast sandwich turned out, and recommends trying it for yourself too.
Japanese convenience store food, like you’ve never seen it before.
If you’re looking for value-for-money on your next convenience store run, then Lawson is the place to go right now, because the chain is holding a special “Super Happy Too Much! Challenge” campaign, where select products are being upsized for free.
This is the second week of the campaign, which brings us a new lineup of 10 larger-than-usual products, and the standouts for us turned out to be two products in the bread aisle.
▼
Japanese convenience store food, like you’ve never seen it before.
If you’re looking for value-for-money on your next convenience store run, then Lawson is the place to go right now, because the chain is holding a special “Super Happy Too Much! Challenge” campaign, where select products are being upsized for free.
This is the second week of the campaign, which brings us a new lineup of 10 larger-than-usual products, and the standouts for us turned out to be two products in the bread aisle.
▼ The 51-percent upsized Shrimp Crackers with Sweet Rice Wine got a second look from us as well.
While we ended up bypassing the crackers, we couldn’t resist purchasing the Too Much! Menchi Burger (387 yen [US$2.41])…
▼ … and the Curry Bread and Minced Meat Cutlet (192 yen).
These wildly inventive creations have been causing a buzz since they were released on 9 June, and when we saw them in person, we immediately understood why.
Firstly, the Too Much! Menchi Burger is visually stunning, as the weight of the menchi katsu (miced meat cutlet) has been increased by more than 51 percent compared to the regular version.
▼ The cutlet is now so big it juts out the sides like a meaty moustache.
While the menchi-to-bun ratio is now drastically outweighed, the taste remains outstanding. Since it’s prepared in-store, as part of Lawson’s “Machikado Kitchen” prepared food lineup, the menchi katsu comes out hot and crispy, with an irresistible, freshly fried crunch.
▼ The inside of the cutlet is plump and generous, with onion adding extra flavour to the juicy meat.
Next, we move on to the curry bread, which has a Japanese name that translates as: “Too Much Pairing! European-Style Curry Bread & Jutting-out Menchi Katsu“.
Curry bread, or “Kare Pan” as it’s known in Japanese, is usually served on its own, as a rounded morsel of battered, fried bread with a curry filling in the centre. This new product, however, changes everything we thought we knew about curry bread by using them as buns, and sandwiching a fried meat cutlet between them.
▼ A triple-fry burger, with a menchi katsu jutting out from the centre.
Despite the fry-heavy elements, this “burger” was actually less greasy than we thought it would be. Both the curry bread and the menchi katsu did have strong, distinctive flavors, though, so there were moments when we found ourselves thinking, “Wait, what exactly am I eating right now?” To be honest, the combination is so intense that it can leave your taste buds feeling a little overwhelmed as the two main ingredients compete for your attention, and it’s seriously filling so you might want to eat it in two sittings.
▼ The curry bread and cutlet were a full-on pairing, so it lived up to its name.
While Week One of the campaign went overboard with drinks that were extremely salty and extremely sweet, our choices for Week Two challenged our bellies and our preconceptions of what convenience store food can be.
We learned that too much menchi katsu can be well matched for a burger, while the too-much pairing of curry bread and menchi katsu can be too much for the taste buds. In the end, though, we were left with full bellies and a new appreciation for Lawson, who dared to take convenience store food to new realms with such bold, attention-grabbing creations.
We find out if this new limited-edition Chocolixir really tastes like corn potage soup.
With summer now upon us, stores all over Japan are releasing limited-edition seasonal products to keep us feeling cool and refreshed. Over at Godiva, though, the focus is more on seasonal produce, with a new release that’s like nothing we’ve ever seen before.
Called the Sweet Corn Chocolixir, this new take on the chain’s signature chocolate-based Chocolixir drink is said to taste like sweet corn potage sou
We find out if this new limited-edition Chocolixir really tastes like corn potage soup.
With summer now upon us, stores all over Japan are releasing limited-edition seasonal products to keep us feeling cool and refreshed. Over at Godiva, though, the focus is more on seasonal produce, with a new release that’s like nothing we’ve ever seen before.
Called the Sweet Corn Chocolixir, this new take on the chain’s signature chocolate-based Chocolixir drink is said to taste like sweet corn potage soup. Although corn potage is incredibly popular throughout Japan, it’s more commonly associated with the colder months, as you can buy the soup hot in cans at vending machines.
Corn is actually harvested in summer, though, so Godiva’s new Chocolixir celebrates the new harvest, and while the flavour sounds intriguing enough on its own, what’s even more surprising is the unusual topping.
▼ It’s not every day you see whole corn kernels sitting on top of a chocolate drink.
According to Godiva, the new Chocolixer combines the natural sweetness of sweet corn with white chocolate and honey butter sauce. It’s then topped with a generous swirl of whipped cream and finished with roasted corn.
▼ Released on 29 May, the drink is on the menu from 830 yen (US$5.18) for a regular size and 940 yen for a large.
It took us a long time to tear our eyes away from the corn topping when we bought the new drink to try it, but when we did, we were able to appreciate the finer details. Nibbling on the corn revealed it to be wonderfully fresh, sweet and juicy, making it a lovely entree for the drink to follow, while the rich yet light and fluffy cream accompaniment was a fun accent, easing our palate into the deeper flavour combinations. The first sip highlighted the deliciousness of the corn, and we instantly likened it to a slightly sweet chilled corn potage, where you could taste the natural sweetness and subtle saltiness of the ingredients.
Delving further, the combination of white chocolate and rich honey butter sauce was absolutely delicious. This is where the drink truly shines, as the white chocolate brings the whole drink together and elevates the flavour, showcasing the skill of Godiva and reminding us of its chocolate prowess.
Though we’d been slightly cautious about the corn drink at first, by the end we were seriously impressed. Godiva’s cold chocolate take on corn potage is bursting with sweetness, and the refreshing crunch of ice is a delightful addition, making it the perfect summer beverage.
The only problem is finding a store where you can buy it, as the drink is so popular it was sold out at every participating branch we visited when we first went on the hunt for it. As a general rule, if it’s not listed on the menu at a participating store (see link below for locations) it’s likely to be sold out, but from our experience it would be best to visit a branch as soon as it opens, and a store that’s large but still slightly out of the way, like the one we visited in Tokyo’s Hibiya, will give you a better chance of finding it.
“Super Happy Too Much! Challenge” campaign has all the right ingredients for happiness.
The month of June is a happy one at Lawson, or to be precise, a “Chou Happy Sugi”one, as that’s the name of the so-called “challenge” campaign currently being held at the chain for four weeks, which sees some of its most popular products getting the upsize treatment, at no extra cost to customers.
With a name that translates as “Super Happy Too Much! Challenge” or “Super Happy Overload! Challenge”, size is
“Super Happy Too Much! Challenge” campaign has all the right ingredients for happiness.
The month of June is a happy one at Lawson, or to be precise, a “Chou Happy Sugi”one, as that’s the name of the so-called “challenge” campaign currently being held at the chain for four weeks, which sees some of its most popular products getting the upsize treatment, at no extra cost to customers.
With a name that translates as “Super Happy Too Much! Challenge” or “Super Happy Overload! Challenge”, size is at the centre of the campaign, and with new lineups being released weekly, the week of 16 June saw a total of 13 new larger-than-usual products taking centre stage.
After perusing the new products in person, there were a few products that stood out, starting with the desserts, which are always a crowd pleaser.
▼ “Too Much! Large Chocolate Cream Puff” (194 yen [US$1.35])
▼ “Too Much! Rich and Fluffy Cheesecake” (329 yen)
▼ However, in true form as crowd pleasers, both these desserts had sold out when we visited.
We didn’t mind too much, though, because there are two other star players in the bento section: “Too Much! Sauce & Salt Yakisoba” (559 yen) and the “Too Much! Katsu × Frankfurter Curry” (697 yen). We managed to pick both of them up and take them back to the office for a taste test.
▼ Starting with the yakisoba, it displayed sauce yakisoba on one side and salt yakisoba on the other.
The beauty of this dish is that its size comes from combining two ordinarily separate types of yakisoba together. Being able to enjoy two meals in one dish is enough to make anyone super happy, and popping it on the scales revealed it weighed in at 645 grams (22.8 ounces), so we were getting good value for money.
Removing the lid allowed us to take in the true beauty of the two-variety yakisoba, and being able to enjoy a bite of each at varying moments throughout the meal made us want to cry out “Chou Super Happy!” Sure, it was a total carb overload, but for a special treat, it had all the right ingredients to make us super happy.
Even more satisfying than the yakisoba, however, was the “Too Much! Katsu × Frankfurter Curry”. Rather than doubling the serving of katsu (cutlet) curry, which we’ve seen in past mega-size promotions like this one, Lawson has decided to up the happiness factor by upsizing the meal with a frankfurter sausage instead.
While this might disappoint diehard fans of katsu curry, we actually loved the sausage element. It was impressive in both size and flavour, adding an extra air of decadence to the meal, and we particularly liked the way it gave us two different meaty ways to carry the curry to our taste buds.
As part of Lawson’s “Machikado Kitchen” range of instore cooked meals, the curry is relatively easy to get your hands on so you don’t have to worry too much about it selling out. If it isn’t on display, you can ask a staff member to prepare one for you, and if there’s stock available it shouldn’t be a problem, so it’s worth keeping that in mind when you visit.
Like all the other products in the Week 3 drop, it will only be available for a limited time though, so you’ll want to get in quick to join the super happy campaign. And if you have your heart set on trying one of the desserts, here’s an insider tip: the chain often restocks its products after midday, so that’s often the best time to visit.
Not quite as glamourous as a secret bank account.
For most people doing long-haul domestic travel in Japan, the Shinkansen is their default method of getting from Point A to far-away Point B. However, sometimes it’s just as quick, if not quicker, to fly, especially if you’re starting at one end of the country and going all the way to the other.
In addition, while Shinkansen tickets are more or less constant in price, airfares fluctuate, so if you time your trip right, flying can be quicker and
For most people doing long-haul domestic travel in Japan, the Shinkansen is their default method of getting from Point A to far-away Point B. However, sometimes it’s just as quick, if not quicker, to fly, especially if you’re starting at one end of the country and going all the way to the other.
In addition, while Shinkansen tickets are more or less constant in price, airfares fluctuate, so if you time your trip right, flying can be quicker and more economical than taking the train. Taking a plane starts to look like an even better option if you’re racking up frequent flyer miles…unless, that is, you’re a member of the yakuza, in which case trying to get frequent flyer miles can get you arrested.
On May 17, the Fukuoka Prefectural Police arrested Yuta Hirayama, a 42-year-old man from the town of Onojo, Fukuoka Prefecture. According to his arrest report, Hirayama has no officially designated job, but the police say he is a registered member of an organized crime syndicate that’s a subordinate group to the Kudo-kai, a Japanese mafia group based in Fukuoka.
Between June and November of 2023, Hirayama took nine domestic flights with a major Japanese airline, including flights between Fukuoka and Tokyo’s Haneda Airport to visit an acquaintance who was in prison in east Japan. In the process, he accrued 4,224 frequent flyer miles to an account registered in his name. However, the terms of service for the airline’s frequent flyer program includes a clause that members, by using the program, profess that they are not members of a criminal organization. Based on their assertion that Hirayama is a member of such a group, the police say that by using his account to accrue miles, he committed an act of fraud.
As we’ve discussed before, transactions and service contracts with no-yakuza clauses are common in Japan. It’s illegal, for example, for yakuza members to make mobile phone contracts or attend professional baseball games, as telecom providers and sports leagues don’t want to be associated with criminal organizations. Businesses are especially leery of having yakuza as members of loyalty programs that offer any sort of customer credit, since it could be construed as providing them with financial benefits. That’s why, for example, there are supermarket point programs with no-yakuza clauses, and with 4,224 miles within the frequent flyer program that Hirayama was a member of being exchangeable for 4,224 yen (US$27) in flight credit, the airline has a no-yakuza clause as well.
There is an additional wrinkle to this case, though, in that Hirayama had been a member of the frequent flyer program since 2013, but the airline only added its no-yakuza clause in 2022. As such, even if proven to be a member of a criminal organization, Hirayama’s initial entry into the program wasn’t fraudulent. However, the 2022 no-yakuza clause was ostensibly among the periodic terms of service updates that such programs require users to agree to when logging into their account, placing the legal responsibility on yakuza members to read through the new terms and withdraw from the program. So while many people simply scroll down to where they can click “OK” on such updates, if you’re a gangster, you really should read through them.
It’s unclear whether prosecutors will seek jail time for Hirayama, but if he is confirmed to be a yakuza member, his frequent flyer miles will be forfeited.
Super Happy! Challenge gives us two unforgettable products that deserve a place in convenience store history.
If you’re hungry and in the mood to try convenience store food, Lawson is the place to go right now as the chain is currently upsizing some of its most popular products for free.
▼ Popular items in the “Super Happy! Challenge” lineup include oversized versions of onigiri, sandwiches, and the Premium Roll Cake.
In amongst the offerings are two surprises we weren’t expecting, and rather
Super Happy! Challenge gives us two unforgettable products that deserve a place in convenience store history.
If you’re hungry and in the mood to try convenience store food, Lawson is the place to go right now as the chain is currently upsizing some of its most popular products for free.
▼ Popular items in the “Super Happy! Challenge” lineup include oversized versions of onigiri, sandwiches, and the Premium Roll Cake.
In amongst the offerings are two surprises we weren’t expecting, and rather than being happy to see them, we had a hunch they might be too extreme for anyone’s liking.
▼ The “Too Sour” Salted Lemonade (228 yen [US$1.43]) and the “Too Sweet” Drinkable Chilled Zenzai (298 yen).
According to Lawson’s official website, the Too Sour version of the chain’s Salted Lemonade contains twice as much lemon juice as the previous version, while the Too Sweet version of the Drinkable Chilled Zenzai is made with twice as much red bean paste as the original product.
▼ Zenzai is is a traditional Japanese sweet made from sweetened red beans and usually served with mochi (rice cakes).
Reading the descriptions alone, it’s hard to tell just how extreme these drinks really are, so our reporter P.K. Sanjun bought both the regular and upsized versions of each for a taste test back in the office.
▼ Starting with the regular Salted Lemonade, it wasn’t especially sour – in fact, it tasted more like a lightly salted lemonade than anything intensely citrusy.
Then he took a sip of the Too Sour Salted Lemonade…
▼ Waaaaa!
P.K. could hardly get his words out, but when he finally unpuckered his lips he managed to say, “Wow. This stuff is unbelievable.“
It wasn’t just that it was more sour – the entire flavor profile felt completely different. To try and describe it, P.K. says it’s like tasting the difference between water and tea and then tasting the difference between water and cola, which is where the Too Sour Lemonade sits. The taste, texture and intensity is on a whole other scale compared to the regular version.
▼ It was so intense he couldn’t even finish the drink, so he moved on to the regular Drinkable Chilled Zenzai.
It had a pleasantly balanced sweetness that was fairly refined and P.K. had absolutely no complaints about the flavour. Then he took a sip of the Too Sweet Drinkable Chilled Zenzai…
▼ Tooooooo sweeeeeet!!!!!!!!
The sweetness was absolutely relentless. It was the kind of sweetness that burns its way down your throat in an aggressive manner and it was so strong that P.K. dare not take another sip.
After trying the drinks, P.K. was surprised to find that in both cases, he actually preferred the original versions. They felt more balanced and, frankly, more enjoyable to drink.
▼ P.K. gives both of these two thumbs down.
Although the drinks themselves were too extreme for P.K.’s palate, he was impressed by Lawson’s marketing. In choosing to go overboard with the sourness and sweetness levels, this campaign serves to highlight just how good the original versions are. It also proves that you really can have too much of a good thing, and so sometimes, just sometimes, upsizing your favourite products or flavours may not be all it’s cracked up to be.
Everyone’s palate is different, though, so if you’d like to test yours against the extreme ends of the spectrum, the drinks will be on shelves for a limited four-week period from 2 June.
When you like a cat so much you want to eat its fur.
Cats are beloved the world over, but here in Japan they really love their cats. It’s a love so strong it’s given birth to everything from stickers that smell like cat beliies through to sunscreen that dispenes itself in the shape of a cat paw, and now, dear reader, let us introduce you to “edible cat fur“.
Known officially as “Delicious Cat Fur” by its creators, Necoichi, a company that specialises in cat products, this new offering is desi
Known officially as “Delicious Cat Fur” by its creators, Necoichi, a company that specialises in cat products, this new offering is designed to look like something that’s been plucked from the back of a calico cat. The cat-like colouring and fluffy texture looks incredibly realistic, but you can breathe a sigh of relief as this “fur” is actually…
▼ … cotton candy!
To be precise, this is said to be cotton candy for cat lovers, as it’s packed with beautiful details that “reflect a deep love for felines”. It’s such a fun and unique product that it’ll appeal to anyone with a fondness for cats, but if you’ve ever wanted to collect your pet’s fur and keep it in a container, or if you’ve ever liked a cat so much you’ve wanted to eat its fur, then this will tip the scales towards being a dream product. You can also share the love with a dedicated message section on the side for gift-giving.
▼ “Our dreams of eating cat fur are finally a reality!”
While the visuals are enough to put cat lovers into a tailspin, the product is also designed to be genuinely delicious. The cotton candy is said to melt lightly on the tongue, and hidden inside are popping candy pieces that crackle in your mouth as you eat it, creating a fun texture that comes with equally fun sound effects.
▼ The promo image for the product reads “We made cat hair”, alongside a speech bubble that says “We love cats too much…” and “This is cotton candy for humans. Cats can’t eat it” as a cautionary note.
With a sweet and sugary aroma, the Delicious Cat Fur is a multi-sensory experience that’ll engage more than just sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch – it’ll engage your sense of imagination as well.
It’s surprisingly realistic for something made of sugar, and is sure to bring a smile to all sorts of cat lovers, from the casual admirer to the full-on feline enthusiast. Released on 30 May, the “Delicious Cat Fur” is available exclusively at the Necoichi Store at Yokohama’s Lalaport shopping centre, priced at 980 yen (US$6.11).
Instant ramen maker shows that even hamsters will fall in love with Cup Noodle, if given the chance.
Pretty much everyone loves Cup Noodle, from hungry kids to busy college students to adults who don’t want to go through the hassle of cooking after a long day at the office. As a matter of fact, it turns out that the instant ramen brand’s appeal transcends humanity, as a new video shows the massive untapped potential of a new Cup Noodle fanbase: hamsters!
Now, we should be clear that the Cup No
Instant ramen maker shows that even hamsters will fall in love with Cup Noodle, if given the chance.
Pretty much everyone loves Cup Noodle, from hungry kids to busy college students to adults who don’t want to go through the hassle of cooking after a long day at the office. As a matter of fact, it turns out that the instant ramen brand’s appeal transcends humanity, as a new video shows the massive untapped potential of a new Cup Noodle fanbase: hamsters!
Now, we should be clear that the Cup Noodle manufacturer is not recommending letting your pet hamster eat instant ramen, as the nutritional needs of humans and hamsters are entirely different. Instead, they’ve created a Cup Noodle hamster wheel.
“We’ve made a Cup Noodle that hamsters love running in,” says the post from Nissin’s official Twitter account, along with an adorable video of a hamster taking it for a spin. However, look closely and you’ll see that isn’t a repurposed ramen container. To make the running motion as natural as possible, the apparatus is a straight cylinder, unlike Cup Noodle packages that widen as you move from the base to the brim. The interior of the cylinder also has little notches to give the hamster better traction as it runs.
The exterior design, though, is an exact match to the classic, iconic Cup Noodle packaging, and with the video representing a meeting point of Japan’s love of instant ramen and its love of cute animals, the online reaction has been overwhelmingly positive and envious.
“I want to let my pet ham-chan run on this too!” “This…this would be a huge seller!” “Please offer these for sale. I’ll do anything for one.” “Add a noodle pattern to the inside, and it’ll be perfect.” “I want to hook this up to a generator and use the power to boil water to cook my Cup Noodle with.”
As we’ve seen before, Nissin likes to let its design team share photos of its crazy and/or creative prototypes, and sometimes what starts out as just quirky fun actually does end up making it to market if the response is strong enough. That’s what happened with the Cup Noodle Measuring Cup and Cup Noodle Squid Fork, and considering that Japan is a country that has Final Fantasy scratching pads for cats and Dragon Quest dog houses, it seems like there’s probably a market for Cup Noodle hamster wheels too.
We find out just how devilish and angelic these 100-yen surprises are.
Our reporter Natsuno Futon was strolling the streets of Oyama City in Tochigi Prefecture the other day when she came across an unusual vending machine. The first thing that caught her eye was the huge “100 yen” (US$0.63) sign on the front, but then, as she stepped closer, she became even more intrigued.
There, in the window display, were the words “いろんなおもちゃ” (“various toys“), and beneath them: “Contains items worth between
We find out just how devilish and angelic these 100-yen surprises are.
Our reporter Natsuno Futon was strolling the streets of OyamaCity in Tochigi Prefecture the other day when she came across an unusual vending machine. The first thing that caught her eye was the huge “100 yen” (US$0.63) sign on the front, but then, as she stepped closer, she became even more intrigued.
There, in the window display, were the words “いろんなおもちゃ” (“various toys“), and beneath them: “Contains items worth between 20 and 300 yen“.
As her eyes moved down to scan the second row, she read the words: “平和と平等” (“Peace and Equality”) and then, on the third row, “天使と悪魔” (“Angels and Demons”).
Natsuno had never encountered a vending machine stocked with Peace and Equality and Angels and Demons before, and neither had her children who were with her on this outing. Needless to say, her children were excited to find out what these mystery items were, so Natsuno found herself reaching into her pocket for some 100-yen coins.
With a machine like this, part of the fun is randomly selecting a button to press, and her daughter started by pushing one of the buttons on the top row, which were marked “おもちゃ” (“toys“).
▼ A long cylinder immediately popped out into the tray at the bottom of the machine, and this is what came out of it.
A toy car and five toy coins. From Natsuno’s point-of-view, this was a bit of a disappointment, particularly as her daughter doesn’t have any interest in toy cars or fake coins.
▼ Hoping for something better, her daughter popped a real coin into the machine and pressed a button on the “Peace and Equality“row.
The buttons on the second and third rows read “お菓子” (“sweets“), so they knew this would be something edible. What that would be, however, remained a mystery until they popped the lid on the canister they received.
▼ Oh! That looks like Mochitaro.
Mochitaro is a classic Japanese “dagashi” (cheap snack) consisting of crunchy rice cracker chunks. It wasn’t the only thing in the canister, as it also contained some mango jelly and a small bag of Haribo gummy candies.
For 100 yen (US$0.63), this was a decent deal, and it gave Natsuno and her daughter hope that they might be able to encounter an angel on their next try.
▼ Time to press a button on the “Angels and Demons” row.
What came out, however, appeared to be neither an angel nor a demon, as the canister was ambiguous.
Even after looking inside, they weren’t sure whether they’d been visited by a demon or an angel, as they received six cheap candies that might’ve been worth around 100 yen. The dark hues on some of the packs, including the iconic Black Thunder chocolate, hinted at a devilish selection, but on the other hand, it was a pretty good deal.
▼ Curious to give it another try, Natsuno’s daughter pressed another button…
▼ …and out popped a canister with the word “Devil” printed on it in big red characters.
▼ What was inside?
▼ One puffed wheat snack.
This was definitely devilish – paying 100 yen to receive just one cheap puffed rice snack was a merciless move, and now they were more determined than ever to meet an angel.
▼ One more try.
▼ Success!
The progression from ambiguous canister through to devil and then angel was such a great progression that Natsuno felt it was almost as if there was someone inside the machine, reading the atmosphere and doling out excitement in increasing levels.
▼ The word “アタリ!” (“win!“) was also printed on the canister, adding to the sense of joy.
▼ So…let’s see what the angel delivered.
This was definitely a win, as it was the best result so far, with Natsuno estimating the total value to be more than 100 yen. Emboldened by this result, Natsuno and her daughter went for another try on the toy line, which seemed to present a better deal than the sweet options.
▼ If there’s a chance of winning something worth up to 300 yen, this is where they might get lucky.
▼ They were rewarded with two fun erasers from respected company Iwako, and a dinosaur egg.
Natsuno figured this bundle was worth over 200 yen. It wasn’t bad, but to be honest, she wouldn’t say it was worth 300 yen.
▼ After a total of six tries, here’s everything they received.
It may not have been a huge deal, but the real draw of the machine wasn’t a tangible product visible to the human eye. The real takeaway here was the fun and excitement of wondering what might come out of the machine, and that was worth way more than every deposit of 100 yen.
▼ There aren’t really any other places in the world where you can buy “peace and equality” for 100 yen.
▼ Judging by the containers in the return spot for reuse, there weren’t many angels that day either, so they felt extra blessed to have received one.
If you’d like to try your luck at the vending machine, it’s located under a sign for “NPO Aoringo” on a black building that reads “Ad Promote Co., Ltd.”and we’ve included the address for you below.
Ad Promote operates and stocks these machines, and according to its online shop, “Omoro Shokai” (“Fun Trading Company”), the Omoro vending machines ceased operations in January this year. That means this machine, which we visited in May, is the last of its kind in the country, so if you’re like us and love visiting weird and unusual machines, this is a stop worth putting on your itinerary.
Avast, here not be free mooring, declares Kawasaki.
Even without much of a background in Japanese geography, I’m willing to bet that a lot of people would assume, correctly, that Kawasaki Ward is inside the city of Kawasaki. What far fewer people would be able to guess, though, is that inside Kawasaki Ward is a pirate ship.
And yet…
▼ Yarrr!!!
That 24.7-meter (81-foot) long vessel is the Anniversary Cruise. Okay, maybe not as intimidating a name as the Queen Anne’s Revenge or Night R
Avast, here not be free mooring, declares Kawasaki.
Even without much of a background in Japanese geography, I’m willing to bet that a lot of people would assume, correctly, that Kawasaki Ward is inside the city of Kawasaki. What far fewer people would be able to guess, though, is that inside Kawasaki Ward is a pirate ship.
And yet…
▼ Yarrr!!!
That 24.7-meter (81-foot) long vessel is the Anniversary Cruise. Okay, maybe not as intimidating a name as the Queen Anne’s Revenge or Night Rambler, but still a fitting-enough moniker for a party boat rentable for excursions in Tokyo Bay or the waters of the capital’s neighboring coastal prefectures of Kanagawa and Chiba. Or at least the Anniversary Cruise was available for rent, until its owners docked it in the Port of Kawasaki, directly to the south of Tokyo, in October of 2018.
Now, you might be thinking that the building it’s moored at looks like neither a pirates’ den nor a cruise office, and you’re right. That building behind it is the facility of Nihon Dust, a recycling and industrial waste management company. And if you’re surprised that a pleasure boat would be docked there, so too was Nihon Dust. Not only does Nihon Dust not rent out mooring space to other companies, extended mooring at that part of the canal is prohibited under the port’s regulations.
And yet, the Anniversary Cruise’s owners decided to park there anyway, apparently in the hope that no one would notice, or mind, a giant pirate ship that had suddenly appeared. Things, of course, did not turn out that way, and in November of 2018, Kawasaki City ordered the ship’s owners and operating company to remove the ship, but economic and legal issues hindered swift enforcement. So for nearly eight years, the Anniversary Cruise has remained abandoned in front of Nihon Dust.
You may have also noticed, though, that the Anniversary Cruise seems rather dramatically angled for a vessel that’s been sitting idle for close to a decade. On a day this past February when especially fierce winds were blowing, the ship tipped far enough that it began to take on water, and with the owners not in the mood to come by with a bilge pump, the listing is getting worse, as photos taken since then show that it’s partially sinking.
— toshibo｜書籍『8月32日』｜廃墟と写真 (@JIYUKENKYU_jp) June 15, 2026
Should the ship capsize and or/drift away from its mooring, it could severely disrupt shipping lanes and other port traffic, and so now Kawasaki City has decided that enough is enough, announcing on June 16 that it will begin demolition and removal of the Anniversary Cruise, scheduled to begin the next day. The process is projected to take approximately one month and cost roughly 33 million yen (US$209,000), an amount the city plans to charge the owners with covering.
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