PM Abe plays golf in Chigasaki

PM Abe plays golf in Chigasaki

CHIGASAKI, Japan - Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (R) plays golf with his wife Akie on Jan. 4, 2015, in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, south of Tokyo. Abe played golf for two consecutive days before returning to work on Jan. 5.

Japan PM Abe enjoys golf for 1st time in 4 months

Japan PM Abe enjoys golf for 1st time in 4 months

CHIGASAKI, Japan - Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe plays golf for the first time in about four months at a golf course in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Dec. 21, 2014, ahead of a special parliamentary session on Dec. 24, during which he will be re-elected as premier.

Astronaut Noguchi receives hero's welcome in hometown

Astronaut Noguchi receives hero's welcome in hometown

CHIGASAKI, Japan - Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi waves to well-wishers as he received a hero's welcome during a parade in a convertible car on Aug. 9, 2010, in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, where he spent his childhood, following his completion in June of a nearly half-year stay aboard the International Space Station.

Residents cheer Noguchi's liftoff from Kazakhstan

Residents cheer Noguchi's liftoff from Kazakhstan

CHIGASAKI, Japan - Residents of the hometown of Japanese astronaut Soichi Noguchi applaud after seeing Russia's Soyoz TMA-17's liftoff from Baikonur space center in Kazakhstan through a live broadcast in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, on Dec. 21, 2009. Some 400 residents, including many students, gathered at the city hall early in the morning to watch the launch of the space capsule carrying Noguchi and two others, heading for the International Space Station.

Business storyteller Shiroyama dies at 79

Business storyteller Shiroyama dies at 79

TOKYO, Japan - Saburo Shiroyama (in photo taken in May 2003), a leading Japanese writer of business and biographical novels, died on March 22 of interstitial lung disease at a hospital in Chigasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, his agent said. He was 79. Brought up in Nagoya, Shiroyama, whose real name is Eiichi Sugiura, pioneered a style of business novel featuring inside stories of corporate Japan in the early 1970s, and also authored a number of books often modeled on existing personalities.