Tokyo noodle shop serves 'full-course meal' in 3,000-yen bowl

Tokyo noodle shop serves 'full-course meal' in 3,000-yen bowl

TOKYO, Japan - Shoichi Fujimaki dishes up a 3,000-yen ramen noodle bowl at his restaurant Fujimaki Gekijo in Tokyo's Meguro Ward on May 12.

Cheaper day laborers' inns in Osaka attract foreign tourists

Cheaper day laborers' inns in Osaka attract foreign tourists

OSAKA, Japan - A tourist information center opens in the Airin district in Osaka's Nishinari Ward, known as a day laborers' area, on Jan. 26 through Feb. 27. Accomodations in the district have been used by day laborers for an average 3,000 yen a day, but in recent years, the facilities have attracted foreign tourists looking for cheaper lodging places.

Sojitz arm to sell bargain-priced, 1-week-only DVD software

Sojitz arm to sell bargain-priced, 1-week-only DVD software

TOKYO, Japan - Photo shows some of the bargain-priced DVD software which Ebistrade Inc., a subsidiary of trading firm Sojitz Corp., will start marketing on Aug. 4. The company said on July 27 that its DVD movies and other software that can be played only for a week cost only 525 yen, compared with 2,000 yen-3,000 yen for conventional DVD products.

(1)45,000 turn up to watch Beckham and Real in practice

(1)45,000 turn up to watch Beckham and Real in practice

TOKYO, Japan - David Beckham is presented with flowers by two Japanese boys before he and his Real Madrid teammates go through a training session before a near-capacity crowd at Tokyo Dome on Aug. 3. Some 45,000 fans paid 3,000 yen (around $25) to scream, cheer, snap Beckham's every move as he worked out alongside superstar teammates Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo and Luis Figo.

2 Hungarians held over using forint coins in vending machines

2 Hungarians held over using forint coins in vending machines

TOKYO, Japan - Photo shows Hungarian forint coins recovered from vending machines in the Tokyo area. Police arrested two men Nov. 18 on suspicion of stealing 3,000 yen by placing these coins in a vending machine and operating the return-coin lever. The Hungarian coins worth about 22 yen each have been altered to make them the same size and weight as 500 yen coins.