Photographs from a small group of islands
There is certainly no shortage of breast-enlarging concoctions on the Japanese market, with the considerably bold claims of these biscuits probably the best known.
However, for those who like to marry their mushrooming mammaries with onomatopoeias, then BoinBoin is without doubt the only boob booster worth bothering with.
(click images for bigger bounciness)
Just like their counterparts in other countries, Japanese supermarkets offer a dizzying variety of vegetables of both domestic and more distant derivation. Yet although foreign foodstuff is often far cheaper, my personal preference is the stuff picked in Iwate Prefecture, as I like mine both gullible and green.
Hailing from a land where the fart is fantastically funny, whether it be one that’s forced out at full throttle or cheekily chirped between the cheeks, it’s decidedly disappointing to find that the Japanese don’t seem to share such a fondness for flatulence, as, more often than not, it is sadly seen as simply wind rather than a work of wonder. And, although there are a few fart-related fetishes along with even a poll concerning a partner’s pumping, the laughter is largely lacking.
That said, the reverse is arguably true for other rear end releases, with rib-tickling turds turning up as summery snacks and well-polished pendants. A frankness about faeces that also means it is perfectly acceptable to almost playfully enquire if a passer-by poos prodigiously?
Or even extol the pleasures of never having pooed so much.
The animated fervour of the folks nearby suggesting that they may well be regular customers and were therefore feeling a little frisky having just evacuated a veritable vat full.
Or not as the case may be.
Well ok, maybe not wrath, but how about ruin?
Actually, poor pun and crumbling car aside, it still amazes me that in a little over an hour from Tokyo — or at least its western suburbs — a city dweller can be far from the clutter and commotion of the capital, and in this fairly fetching valley.
Plus, if that’s not enough, the area is positively packed to the gunwales with grapes.
Perhaps the only problem being that while a lot of the wine produced there may not exactly warrant a wine drinker’s wrath, repulsion is often far from a rare response.
On a hot and humid day, a nice ice-coffee is certainly not to be sniffed at, as not only is it refreshing, but also revitalising. Yet what if the drink’s considerable cooling qualities were enhanced more with a bit of menthol?
‘No!’ you say?
Well, it’s too late I’m afraid, as Kirin obviously considers mixing in a modicum of menthol a mighty fine idea indeed, making its Fire brand a little less ferocious — maybe.
Actually, it isn’t quite as bad as one would imagine, but an idea that definitely works with tobacco and toothpaste, doesn’t quite cut it with coffee. Passable, but at the same time, not exactly palatable.
With mentions of Metabolic Syndrome now a media mainstay, drink makers would appear to be pulling out all the stops to make their beverages seem beneficial, with even knocking back the booze offering at least a nod towards nutritiousness.
For drinks giant Suntory, however, sensing that there’s at least some sustenance in what one is supping is obviously nowhere near as good as seeing it, so Capsela is crammed full of capsules, that in turn are packed with a veritable plethora of vitamins — making it both wholesome and hypnotic.
Sort of.
And, what’s more, it doesn’t taste too bad either, in its weak, lemon-like way. The only problem being, for me at least, is that the capsules remind me of fish eggs, which I’m not overly fond off at the best off times, and especially not when bunged in a beverage. Otherwise it’s fairly good, in a floating fish egg fashion.
Young Keiko Kitagawa on the other hand seemingly has no such concerns.