Stories about East Asia from February, 2014
Art Arises From Snow-Covered Tokyo
The heaviest snowfall in 45 years hit Tokyo over the weekend. The unusual amount of snow triggered traffic accidents, killing 11 and injuring thousands, and travel was disrupted across the country. However, amid the cold and white, some used the snow to create beautiful, fun and sometimes strange artwork. RocketNews24...
Why the Western Media Loves Hating on China
A shoddy but sexy report on pollution in Beijing was republished across news site around the world, exposing the bias that Western media has for bad news in China.
China Central TV Accused of Targeting Vulnerable Women With Prostitution Exposé
After the report, a 6,000-strong force reportedly raided 12 hotels and entertainment venues, leading to 67 arrests.
Tokyo Snowfall Sends Voter Turnout Plunging in Governor Election
Only 46.16 percent of voters went to the polls to cast their ballots for governor, the third lowest in history.
Why are Rice Farmers Protesting in Thailand?
Rice farmers have organized several protests in Thailand's capital after the government failed to pay them under the rice subsidy program. The opposition has expressed support to the farmers.
Public Buses Return To Cambodia’s Capital
Phnom Penh is embarking on a one-month bus trial to convince motorbike-riding residents to use public buses. The last time buses were deployed in the capital was in 2001
Chinese Dating Website’s TV Advertisement Backfires
Apparently smart and touching TV commercial by China’s dating website Baihe.com backfires, leading to an online protest.
Heavy Snowfall Brings Playtime to Tokyo
Heavy snowstorms hit Japan on Feb 8, 2014. Twenty seven centimeters of snow fell in central Tokyo, for the first time in 45 years. Moro Miya, a writer and a blogger who specializes in introducing Japanese culture to Chinese readers, collected the photos of snowmen and snow-animals that were posted...
Family Reunion and the Chinese New Year
Jocelyn Eikenburg describes how she spent the first few days of the Chinese New Year with her husband's family in China. I’ve already attended four huge dinners with family, where the dining tables often become a cacophony of laughing and shouting (often because of those drinking games involving baijiu). I’ve...
Why Young Chinese Flock to First Tier Cities?
Offbeat China explains why young Chinese want to migrate to first tier cities in spite of the polluted environment and expensive property price.
No Winners in Thailand Elections?
Chris Baker analyzed election statistics in Thailand and concluded that there are no clear winners in the elections: My overall impression is that nobody won. If full data are every released, Pheu Thai (ruling party) will probably have won a majority of the seats. But the party cannot have won...
Why Vietnam-made Game Flappy Bird is Popular
Vietnam-made game Flappy Bird is today's number one app in the iOS App Store in over 100 countries. It already has more than 50 million downloads and it even beat Facebook's Paper app. Anh-Minh Do of Tech in Asia explains the popularity of the game: It’s so hard that it’s...
Chinese Cuisine Documentary ‘Bite of China’ a Visual Feast
Archaeologist K.C. Chang observed that “Chinese people are especially preoccupied with food” and that “food is at the center of, or at least it accompanies or symbolizes, many social interactions.”
It Was Stinky for Days, but Cambodia's Garbage Strikers Won Their Battle
Workers are rising in Cambodia. After the garment workers, it is now the turn of garbage workers to launch a strike to demand a raise in their salaries
French Influence on Vietnamese Cooking
Writing for The Culture Trip, Melissa Pearce reviews the French impact on Vietnamese cooking: The French brought many ingredients and flavours to Vietnam, most popular and noticeable upon entering the country is probably the baguette, which the Vietnamese adapted and today create their own style of baguette using rice flour.
Singapore's Public Order Bill Threatens Human Rights
Teo Soh Lung from Singapore, writing for The Online Citizen, warns against the dangers of the proposed Public Order (Additional Temporary Measures) Bill 2014: Civil rights proponents should be wary of the unfettered rights of police officers to subject them to security searches and banning orders. Those who intend to...
North Korea Rips Off Mac OS X
North Korea has released its own operating system, Red Star Linux, which remarkably resembles Apple's Mac OS X. One tech writer calls it ‘basically a Linux distro skinned to look like OS X‘ and if you want to check yourself, visit North Korea Tech blog who explains in detail with many...
Top 10 Chinatowns in the World
THE WORLD OF CHINESE takes a look at some of the oldest and biggest Chinatowns in the world, including the ones in San Francisco, Vancouver, Lima (Peru), Havana (Cuba), London, Paris, Manila, Singapore and Melbourne.
China Reports That Snowden Claims Aliens Control America
China's Xinhua new agency reported on January 28 that Snowden had claimed aliens controlled America. Although the story was soon deleted, it had spread all over Sina Weibo. Weibo users didn't take the story seriously, they even created an image of Alien Obama.Mitchell Blatt from CHINA TRAVEL WRITER BLOG has translated part of the...
Photos: Wedding Photo Shoots in China
For most brides and grooms-to-be in China, wedding photo shoots are an important part of wedding planning. The photo shoots, usually require multiple outfit changes and various props, can cost up to $15,000. ChinaFile features photographer Guillaume Herbaut's wide-angle shots of soon-to-be newlyweds posing (or taking a break from posing) for...
Podcast: Taiwan
Sinica Podcast held a discussion about Taiwan from their personal experiences. The discussion explores Taiwanese's personal identity, their culture, media situation, health care system, as well as Taiwan's political relations with the mainland.
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