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This Week in Asia /

Lifestyle & Culture

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K-pop, Mandopop and other Asian pop
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Vehicles travel across the causeway from Malaysia’s southern state of Johor to the Woodlands immigration checkpoint in Singapore on October 10, 2025. Photo: AFP
Singapore

Cross-border trips to Johor push Singapore checkpoint traffic to new high

About three-quarters of the record 245 million travellers who crossed Singapore’s checkpoints last year went via the land border.

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Malaysia

Bikini-clad mermaid sales stunt triggers religious probe in Malaysia

The Philippines

Art as advocacy: Philippine mural contest adds to South China Sea messaging push

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Japan

Clocking off: is Japan’s culture of overwork finally dying?

The average hours put in by Japanese workers are lower than those of their American and Italian counterparts.

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People cross a road in Tokyo, Japan. Government reforms over the past two decades had helped reduce average working hours. Photo: AFP
People cross a road in Tokyo, Japan. Government reforms over the past two decades had helped reduce average working hours. Photo: AFP
Thailand

Thailand ‘buzzing’ with travel boom as Chinese tourists back in droves

The country’s heavy investment in wooing Chinese visitors appears to have paid off as it overcomes safety fears to secure holiday growth.

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Chinese culture

Ancient Chinese astrology gets a Gen Z rebrand in Southeast Asia

Forget rituals and superstitions, today’s young professionals are using ‘bazi’ 10-year luck forecasts to plan their next career pivot.

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Malaysia

‘Just ask for it’: Malaysia’s vape crackdown fails to break the habit

An estimated 1.4 million Malaysian adults vape, despite existing curbs. Many say new laws will simply push them back to cigarettes.

A person vapes during a hike in Negeri Sembilan state, Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock
A person vapes during a hike in Negeri Sembilan state, Malaysia. Photo: Shutterstock
Nepal

Unearthed temple in Nepal sheds new light on Buddha’s early life

Archaeologists hope the newly discovered ruins at Siddhartha Gautam’s childhood palace will help secure Unesco World Heritage status.

Indonesia

Why Indonesia’s president wants clay roofs on all homes

The president says tourists are put off by Indonesia’s ‘rusty zinc’ roofs, and its image would improve with wider use of clay tiles.

Singapore

Is Singapore’s plan to regulate blind boxes ‘paternalistic’ or ‘harm reduction’?

The mystery surrounding the purchase of blind boxes has prompted concerns of gambling-style risks faced by consumers, especially minors.

Blind boxes sold in a store in Tampines 1 mall, Singapore. Photo: Kolette Lim
Japan

‘Enormous failure’: naked man exposes gaps in Japan’s royal security

Princess Kako reportedly witnessed the chaos firsthand as a shrieking intruder stripped off and scaled a barrier below the royal balcony.

(From left) Japan’s Crown Prince Akishino, Crown Princess Kiko, Princess Kako, Prince Hisahito, Princess Nobuko and Princess Akiko attend the traditional new year’s greeting ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on January 2. Photo: AFP
(From left) Japan’s Crown Prince Akishino, Crown Princess Kiko, Princess Kako, Prince Hisahito, Princess Nobuko and Princess Akiko attend the traditional new year’s greeting ceremony at the Imperial Palace in Tokyo on January 2. Photo: AFP
Singapore

A match made in Singapore? ‘Aunties, not algorithms’ aims to woo US singles

Burnt-out US-based singles could win a free luxury trip if they ditch the dating apps and opt to let outspoken older women play Cupid.

Indonesia

Indonesians weigh peril and promise of Jakarta – the world’s most populous city

Extreme heat, floods, pollution, congested traffic and a tough job market are some of the major challenges faced by the city’s residents.

South Korea

Why do South Korea’s Hallyu heroes find taxes so … taxing?

As K-culture conquers the world, its wealthy stars keep falling foul of a tax system ‘that has not yet fully caught up’.

South Korean actor Kim Seon-ho stars in the Netflix series “Can This Love Be Translated?”. Photo: No Ju-han/Netflix
Thailand

Thailand plays down ‘too expensive’ concerns from South Korean visitors

The perceived squeeze on the wallet is a result of exchange rate volatility rather than the kingdom’s inflation, tourism officials say.

Tourists dressed in traditional Thai attire visit the Temple of Dawn (Wat Arun) in Bangkok, Thailand, in January. Photo: EPA
Tourists dressed in traditional Thai attire visit the Temple of Dawn (Wat Arun) in Bangkok, Thailand, in January. Photo: EPA
The Philippines

Almost half of Filipinos willing to trust cheating partners again, survey says

The survey covers six types of cheating: physical, emotional, cyber, object and financial infidelity, as well as micro-cheating.

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The Philippines

‘We didn’t cry easily’: Philippine senator slammed for calling Gen Z ‘weak’

Robin Padilla was criticised for downplaying depression and not being sensitive to the social and economic problems faced by young Filipinos.

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Artificial intelligence

Dopamine over babies: Asia’s births crisis worsens in the age of AI

AI is putting pressure on Asian workers to upgrade their skills, while the technology also provides ‘cheap fun’ diversions.

A health worker checks on newborn babies at a hospital in Chennai, India. Photo: EPA-EFE
A health worker checks on newborn babies at a hospital in Chennai, India. Photo: EPA-EFE
Indonesia

Indonesia’s 68,000-year-old handprint: the birth of human art?

Found hiding beneath a chicken sketch, the faded outline proves ancient humans were capable of reflecting on their existence, scientists say.

Nepal

‘Tip of the iceberg’: arrests in Nepal over fake mountain rescues welcomed

The suspects are believed to be among a network of scammers who have cheated insurers by staging fake rescue operations for years.

South Korea

Outrage in South Korea over ‘importing virgins’ proposal to raise birth rate

Critics slammed a governor’s ‘crude’ suggestion to marry ‘Sri Lankan and Vietnamese virgins’ to local men as a fix for population decline.

Nurses take care of babies at a postnatal care centre in Seoul. South Korea has the lowest birth rate in the world. Photo: EPA-EFE
Thailand

Thai funeral ‘food court’ blunder: tourists looking for buffet attend wake

The tourists who were served food by a family at the funeral were impressed with the kindness of the people in Thailand.

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A Thai family offering food to a group of tourists who are searching for a restaurant and wander into a funeral by mistake in the city of Nakhon Si Thammarat. Photo: Facebook/Charantorn Chaloemkiad
A Thai family offering food to a group of tourists who are searching for a restaurant and wander into a funeral by mistake in the city of Nakhon Si Thammarat. Photo: Facebook/Charantorn Chaloemkiad
Indonesia

Indonesian woman collapses after 140 lashes for sex and alcohol

Three female officers took turns striking the woman with a rattan cane before she lost consciousness, witnesses said.

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South Korea

SKY’s the limit: behind push to end academic elitism in South Korean hiring

Hiring practices have traditionally been centred around which school a candidate attended, with higher-paying jobs going to elite alumni.

Malaysia

Can Malaysian football ‘reset’? Mass resignations kick off reboot debate

Nothing will change if the same officials are re-elected with no one held accountable for the ‘heritage players’ fiasco, observers say.

The Football Association of Malaysia’s logo is displayed at its headquarters in Petaling Jaya on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters
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