Hokkaido Shinkansen prepares for spring 2016 launch

Hokkaido Shinkansen prepares for spring 2016 launch

An H5 series bullet train for the Hokkaido Shinkansen Line exits the Seikan Tunnel in Imabetsu, Aomori Prefecture, for the first time during a trial run on Dec. 7, 2014, ahead of the line's spring 2016 launch. The undersea railway tunnel connects Aomori on the northern tip of Japan's Honshu main island with the northernmost main island of Hokkaido. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Hokkaido Shinkansen Line opens for travel

Hokkaido Shinkansen Line opens for travel

A family, sporting headwear resembling a Hokkaido Shinkansen bullet train, pose for a souvenir photo at JR Okutsugaru-Imabetsu Station in Aomori Prefecture on March 26, 2016, the opening day of the Hokkaido Shinkansen Line directly linking Japan's northernmost island Hokkaido with Tokyo. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Aomori town signs deal to host Mongolian fencing camp for 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Aomori town signs deal to host Mongolian fencing camp for 2020 Tokyo Olympics

Yoshiharu Abe, mayor of Aomori Prefecture's Imabetsu town, shakes hands with Mongolian Fencing Association deputy head Ganpurev Lkhagva during a signing ceremony in the northeastern Japanese town on Oct. 19, 2015. The two sides agreed for Imabetsu to be the venue for the association's training camp leading up to the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo

Coming-of-age ceremony held at new Shinkansen station in Aomori

Coming-of-age ceremony held at new Shinkansen station in Aomori

Participants in a coming-of-age ceremony in the town of Imabetsu, Aomori Prefecture, Japan, on Aug. 14, 2015, pose for photos outside Okutsugaru Imabetsu Station. The town held a ceremony for "new adults" at the station, which will open next spring on the Hokkaido Shinkansen bullet train line. (Kyodo) ==Kyodo