osaka
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Japan has taken up the mantle for Expo 2025, showcasing the design world’s brightest ideas
Expo 2025 aims to demonstrate the potential for both incremental and drastic change, bringing countries together to share ideas and innovations for a better future.
Socks appeal
If you're in Japan and need hosiery for any occasion, there's only one place to shop. Tabio have shaped the market in its own image.
Fashion
From the most chic suede looks for autumn to the best shops for upgrading your wardrobe.
Book your ticket
A children’s library housing 18,000 books has been gifted to Osaka by an architect who calls the city home.
Tiger barmy
Osaka’s Hanshin Tigers are the best-supported team in Japanese baseball despite not having won the league since 1985. And we don’t use the term ‘best-supported’ lightly: the romance of the sleeping giant draws fans…
Retail therapy
From covered arcades to century-old curtain shops, Osaka's shoppers favour face-to-face commerce over convenience — proof that Japan's second city still prizes conversation as much as consumption.
Tie the knot
The cracks are showing for this Japanese husband-and-wife duo. But that’s the point: they’ve built a career using natural wood.
Sports Expo
Sport and socialising are best combined. Monocle tried out three activities that value a friendly chat, and the odd beer, as highly as working up a sweat.
Media
Discovering the heart of Osaka's rare grooves, South Korean TV and a Middle Eastern print collective.
This jip is up
Dancing can lead to prostitution, according to a 1948 Japanese law. Police raids on unlicensed nightclubs have turned once-vibrant dance floors into dead zones, gutting Osaka’s late-night scene.
