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Krista Rogers

Starting with a love of J-Pop and J-dramas when she was 13, Krista Rogers has left her quiet New England hometown in the States both to study abroad in Tokyo and to work on the JET Program in beautiful Yamagata prefecture. She misses chatting in the local dialect and staging Kamehameha battles in the hallway with her students. Although she's currently working on her master's degree in Boston, she will without a doubt be back in Japan before long and buying way too much at Book-Off and Tower Records again. When she needs a break from schoolwork, Krista enjoys eating yakiniku, figure skating, finding cute cafes, watching Big Bang MVs, and continuing on her quest to catch 'em all.

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Posted by Krista Rogers (Page 56)

Seven amazing things our Japanese reporter learned while visiting Cuba

Krista Rogers
Aug 28, 2015
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RocketNews24’s Japanese-language reporter Yuichiro visited Cuba a few months ago and had an amazing time in the Caribbean nation. Although he’s already shared several of his travel adventures such as sampling sushi at a five-star hotel and getting a haircut in the popular local style, Wasai recently compiled a list of the top seven things that impressed or surprised him about Cuba.

C America
(Cuba • Havana • list • travel)

We tried torching sushi with a “flamethrower” to increase its flavor! 【Video】

Krista Rogers
Aug 14, 2015

Okay class, who’s ever tried aburi sushi, or seared sushi before? Sushi prepared in this manner has its own unique savoriness that’s different from that of the raw kind.

Our Japanese reporters recently got it in their heads that they wanted to try preparing some roasted sushi for themselves…and when they do something, they go all out. In other words, forget regular kitchen tools–a flamethrower was obviously called for in this situation! Would they find that bigger flames equal bigger flavor?

Japan
(crazy • experiment • flamethrower • food • sushi • weed burner)

An extremely simple trick to spice up plain rice for a refreshing, citrusy summer treat

Krista Rogers
Aug 10, 2015

Recently, our Japanese reporter Aya Ayabe went out to an izakaya [Japanese pub] and finished her revelries with an order of sudachi rice, sudachi being a type of sour Japanese citrus fruit. The slightly bitter flavor really hit the spot in the midst of the nighttime summer heat, and it got her thinking: “What would happen if I cooked rice with some ponzu sauce [a citrus-based sauce which mixes sudachi with other citrus fruits and soy sauce]?” Still curious, the next day she tried making a batch for herself, and the results were apparently quite epic: “This is the most exciting thing that’s happened to me all summer! I’ll never forget this day as long as I live.”

In any case, Ayabe would like to share her extremely simple recipe for creating ponzu rice with you–a delightfully refreshing treat for the dog days of summer which can be enjoyed either hot or cold.

Japan
(Ponzu • recipe • refreshing • rice • summer)

Will whiskey aged in space taste smoother? Suntory is set to experiment this month

Krista Rogers
Aug 3, 2015

Japanese brewing and distilling company Suntory Holdings Limited recently announced their plans to send samples of whiskey to the International Space Station in order to investigate the effects of zero gravity on the aging process.

Japan
(alcohol • drinks • JAXA • science • space • Suntory • Whiskey)

We bought a piece of a real, launched rocket for only 500 yen, and you can too! 【Pics】

Krista Rogers
Jul 30, 2015

Do you have any aspiring astronauts, astronomers, aeronauts, or cosmologists in the house? If so, you’ve just stumbled upon the perfect birthday gift for said person.

For only 500 yen (US$4.05), you can now purchase legitimate fragments of a Japan-launched rocket being sold under the moniker uchuu gacha (“space capsules”). In fact, it’s such a good deal that we just had to buy one for ourselves!

Japan
(capsule • collectible • fairing • JAXA • outer space • rocket • uchuu gacha)

Counting in Japanese just became a whole lot easier with this handy infographic

Krista Rogers
Jul 26, 2015

One of the beautiful (or painful, depending on how you look at it) aspects of the Japanese language is its complex system of numbers and counting methods. For starters, there are two commonly used systems of numbers–often referred to as the Sino-Japanese numbers and the native Japanese numbers–that are used in different contexts, as well as a seemingly limitless number of counter words. Confused yet?

So how the heck do you become a master of Japanese numbers? Well, a good way to start is by checking out this handy-dandy infographic put out by Japanese Video Cast!

Japan
(counters • counting • infographic • Japanese • numbers)

Four common workplace occurrences that could land you in hot water in Japan

Krista Rogers
Jul 25, 2015

A Japanese website recently published a list of four commonly occurring behaviors at work which are actually considered to be crimes by Japanese law. The scariest thing is that regardless of where you are in the world, you might have been doing them all along!

Perhaps take a moment to check whether you have explicit permission before doing any of the following four things at your place of employment, or else you could find yourself in a legal mess in the worst case scenario.

Japan
(crime • legality • office • workplace)

Our Japanese reporter cleans his childhood room, finds all kinds of nostalgic treasures

Krista Rogers
Jul 15, 2015

Recently, our Japanese reporter Yoshio visited his parents’ house and decided to finally take a stab at tidying up his childhood room, which had been left untouched ever since he moved out. In the process, he was surprised to find many lost relics and treasures from his childhood, and became caught up in a wave of nostalgia for several hours. Needless to say, he didn’t get much cleaning done in the end…

If you’re the nostalgic type, perhaps you’d like to take a peek at the treasures that Yoshio dug up, some from over 20 years ago!

Japan
(cards • childhood • cleaning • MDs • nostalgia • treasures)

Three fantastic Japan-themed exhibits at Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts set to end soon

Krista Rogers
Jul 10, 2015

2015 has been a good year for lovers of Japanese art in Boston. The city’s phenomenal Museum of Fine Arts has hosted not just one, but three special exhibitions of Japanese art so far this year, along with its newly restored Japanese garden outside. The most hyped of all of these is an exhibition dedicated solely to Katsushika Hokusai, one of the most important ukiyo-e painters and printmakers of the Edo period who’s best known as the creator of The Great Wave off Kanagawa.

Besides the Hokusai collection, the museum is also hosting a particularly powerful exhibit displaying the work of 17 photographers in the wake of the 2011 Tohoku triple disasters, along with a lighthearted exhibit showcasing prints of some whimsical Japanese toys and games. As all three of the exhibitions are preparing to wind down within the next few weeks after hosting thousands of visitors over the past months, we thought we’d take a moment to share some of their highlights with you!

Japan, USA
(3/11 • art • Boston • hokusai • MFA • tsunami • ukiyo-e)

Taxi driver’s tip to stay safe: “The one thing you should say if you run into yakuza”

Krista Rogers
Jul 9, 2015

When one of our Japanese-language reporters stepped into a taxi the other day, the driver suddenly turned to him and asked, “Sir, do you know what you should say if you have a run in with some yakuza?”

Our man was a bit taken aback by the sudden question out of nowhere, but he answered, “Shouldn’t you say you’ll call the police?”

“That’s the usual response, but there’s an even better one,” the driver replied. He then proceeded to share a bit of advice which an actual yakuza whom he had once driven had secretly shared with him.

Japan
(advice • crime • taxis • yakuza)

Need life advice? The Turtle Talk attraction at Tokyo DisneySea may be your best bet

Krista Rogers
Jul 6, 2015

At Tokyo DisneySea, there’s a special theater-style attraction called Turtle Talk where you can ask questions in real time to Crush, everybody’s favorite East Australian Current-surfing sea turtle from Finding Nemo.

Sounds fun, if not a bit like a generically staged Q&A session, right? However, audience members during a recent talk were in for a bit of a surprise when Crush shared an unexpectedly profound piece of wisdom in response to a young woman’s question**.**

Japan
(Disney • Finding Nemo • theme parks • Tokyo Disney Sea • Turtle Talk)

New uber-soft gel dog beds mimic the feeling of lying between owner’s legs for pet pooches

Krista Rogers
Jul 5, 2015

Despite our fondness of cats here at RocketNews24, we do still have a soft spot for pooches. So here’s something to appease the dog-loving readers of our site–a new line of gel dog beds sold by Japanese pet interior brand UNIHABITAT, which are designed to recreate the feeling of lying between a human’s legs.

Get ready, pampered pooches of the world, because you’re in for a treat–if your jealous humans don’t buy them all up for themselves first, that is!

Japan
(bed • comfy • dog • pet • Unihabitat)

We tried making edible jewels: One recipe gives you three delicious versions!

Krista Rogers
Jul 3, 2015

Remember those beautiful edible “jewels” that we shared with you a couple of weeks ago? Made simply from sugar, agar-agar, and a beverage of your choice, the jewels are both pretty to look at and make a cool – in both senses of the word – summer treat.

They’re still all the rage right now on Japanese social media, so our Japanese reporter Shimazu decided to try making some jewel flavor combinations for herself. She even experimented with three different manners of preparation–serving them right away, freezing them, and letting them sit for a few days to harden.

Which method of making them do you think she enjoyed the most?

Japan
(edible • jewels • kohakutou • recipe • rock candy • sweets • wagashi)

Our Japanese reporter offers up some safety advice for anyone traveling to Southeast Asia

Krista Rogers
Jul 1, 2015

‘The other day, I felt a tap on my back while at a Japanese-style shopping mall in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. I turned around and there was a beautiful, wide-eyed woman smiling at me. She asked me a favor in broken English: “I don’t have any friends in this city, and I’d like to hear more about Japan. Won’t you get dinner with me?”

I was surprised at myself by my cold reaction–“Ah, not another one.” Despite my efforts to ignore her, she continued pestering me, this time asking how long I was planning to stay in Cambodia. When I responded, “I’ve lived here for over 15 years, she promptly disappeared with a creepy cackling noise.’

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Japan, SE Asia
(Cambodia • crime • fraud • Phnom Penh • scams • theft • travel)

Does how you dress affect what a sushi restaurant serves you? We experiment in Ginza

Krista Rogers
Jun 30, 2015

Take a stroll down the streets of Ginza and you’ll have no trouble realizing it’s Tokyo’s epicenter of everything posh and luxurious. The neighborhood is packed with shop after shop boasting high-end fashion, jewelry, and dining, so it’s only natural to think that any sushi restaurants in the area cater to an upscale clientele.

That being said, three reporters from our Japanese-language sister site began to wonder what would happen if they went to a Ginza sushi restaurant dressed to varying degrees of formality and ordered a special o-makase (“leave it to the chef”) course.

Would they each be offered different menu items depending on how they were dressed? Would their bills come out to be significantly different? With these burning questions in mind (and the prospect of eating sushi in the guise of journalism), they decided to conduct a little experiment to find out for themselves!

Japan
(Ginza • Mr. Sato • restaurants • sushi • Tokyo)

Japanese people share 11 amusing tales relating to pregnancy and childbirth

Krista Rogers
Jun 28, 2015

Ah, childbirth. That lovely moment when the child you’ve been waiting to meet for months finally comes into the world and brings with it all the joys that come with parenthood. If you’re a woman, that moment also equates to the feeling of your body being ripped into bits as you forcefully expel a new human being from your body. (Sorry if you’re drinking your morning tea as you read this!)

Like the rest of the female population around the world, Japanese women are no strangers to the pains of birthing a child. Below, we have gathered eleven of amusing anecdotes that have been shared over social media relating to their pregnancies, the hysterical states they were in during childbirth, and the time after their child’s birth. And don’t miss the one story at the end that will positively melt your heart.

Japan
(babies • children • comic • funny • pregnancy • stories)

All-female Takarazuka Revue set to perform Rurouni Kenshin musical early next year

Krista Rogers
Jun 22, 2015

In early 2016, the beloved Rurouni Kenshin series will be getting its first musical adaptation by the Takarazuka Revue, Japan’s all-female musical theater troupe! If you’re a fan of the manga and singing, check out when and where the musical will be performed and start planning accordingly.

Japan
(acting • drama • Meiji Era • musical • Rurouni Kenshin • takarazuka)

Is any “fowl” play involved? Nope, Morioka Zoo’s animals just like to sleep in weird positions

Krista Rogers
Jun 16, 2015

Morioka Zoo in Morioka City, Iwate Prefecture has a host of both fierce and cuddly animals on its premises. Among the zoo’s current highlights are opportunities to see a baby giraffe, make dinner for the elephants, and feed raw meat to a lion. Oh, and did we mention that the animals there seem to have a penchant for looking dead while simply taking a snooze?

Japan
(animals • ducks • Iwate • Morioka • Morioka Zoo • zoos)

What makes “Love Live!” so mega popular? We asked one passionate super fan

Krista Rogers
Jun 11, 2015

If you’re into anime and you haven’t been living under a rock for the past two years, you should have at least heard of the unstoppable, indomitable multimedia force known as Love Live! School Idol Project, which first aired in early 2013. The show took off and captured the hearts of Japanese and foreign viewers alike seemingly in the blink of an eye.

In fact, fans of the series are known for being so incredibly dedicated to the teenage troupe that we wanted to find out firsthand what attracted them to the series. Consequently, we had our Japanese reporter ask one enthusiastic fan, whom we’ll call Mr. K, for his personal opinion. What do you think he had to say about the draw of the series?

Japan
(anime • Idols • J-Pop • love live)

Artist reimagines alternate universe of Captain America: Civil Wok

Krista Rogers
Jun 10, 2015

In an alternate universe envisioned by Singaporean artist Tan Kwang Yang, it looks like the Avengers have ditched the whole “saving-the-world-act” and decided to pursue other lines of business.

Check out Tan’s neatly drawn little glimpse at such a world after the jump!