Gorkhali World News

Man dead after setting himself on fire in bullet train; woman passenger also dies A man set himself on fire on a high-speed bullet train on Tuesday, killing himself and another passenger as the coach filled with smoke, a fire official said. At least 26 other people were injured, three seriously, mostly from smoke inhalation, Odawara Fire Department official Ikutaro Torii said. The man’s motive wasn’t clear. Police identified him from a copy of his driver’s license as a 71-year-old resident of Tokyo.  The passenger poured an oil-like substance over his head before setting himself on fire at around 11:30 a.m., authorities said. Kyodo News service reported that he used a lighter. Officials said the fire was at the front of the first car in the train, which was in between Shin-Yokohama and Odawawa stations heading from Tokyo to Osaka. “I said to myself, ‘This is bad!’” said Takeo Inariyama, a 54-year-old businessman traveling in the second car. “I saw everyone running toward me and smo...

Right now, I am visiting New York. There are not many vending machines here, like there are in Osaka, where I live. Surely, there must be a good reason for Japan having all those vending machines. Turns out, there are several. The Wild and Wonderful World of Japanese Vending M Read more Stroll through the cities. Stroll through the countryside. You'll see 'em. Known as "jidouhanbaiki" (自動販売機) or by the shorter "jihanki" (自販機), the machines are a feature of the landscape wherever you go in Japan. The country has the highest ratio of vending machines to landmass in the entire world. As the country's official tourist organization points out, Japan is currently home to 5.52 million vending machines. That's a lot. From bread in a can to crepes, the country is home to an array of unusual vending machines. Vending machines have been used to sell questionable items, like hallucinogens and piracy devices. (Though, the infamous panty vending machines are more ...

Japan is actually surprisingly easy to get around with just the few basic phrases in your travel guide or textbook, and, like in any country, Japanese people will appreciate a bit of effort to meet them halfway rather than you shouting “WHERE IS THE STATION. YOU KNOW, TRAINS, CHOO, AGATHA CHRISTIE, LIKE JE SUIS ZE DETECTIVE POIROT?!”  But getting past the basics can be a challenge that many of us (ahem…me) struggle with.  Japanese is hard. And it can be pretty awkward communicating with only the vocabulary of a very well-trained cat. So, after 2 years of language exposure and not enough studying, here are my 5 top phrases to help you sound fluent in Japanese so you can at least pretend to understand what’s going on around you until that elusive day when you finally do (one day guys, one day…). *Disclaimer: These phrases are powerful tools of fluency deception, so use at your own risk of ending up in a binding contract that may involve wearing strange underwear in public. だいじょう...

The last week has been horrible. I haven't been myself. I have felt horrible, I've had no motivation, I've been sad and really depressed. I don't know what to do. I really don't know if I should stay of if I should go. I have 18 days to decide. Right now I am not happy here. I don't actually know if I would be happy anywhere though. That is the problem. I trying to decided if it is Japan that is making me unhappy or if it's me. I have done a lot of thinking lately, about my life and about my future. I am going to have a rant to see if it makes me feel better. Hopefully it does. 1.  No one speaks English (not that they should). When JTE’s don’t speak English it is very frustrating. How can this country become better at English when the JTE DOESN’T SPEAK ENGLISH? 2.  People that spark up random conversations in the bus stop etc. This doesn’t happen back home – If would be rude and not done. These are the same people that ask “Can I practice my English on you?”...