Mysterious East

[mysteriouseast]

The Mystery of Beijing’s Midnight Bus 375

On the night of November 14th, 1995, in Beijing, China, at a dreary bus stop, a total of four passengers boarded the last bus bound for Xiangshan from Yuanmingyuan Station, near the old Summer Palace. This group of four consisted of a newlywed couple, an older man (in some stories, an older woman), a young man, and the female conductor. The young couple sat up front behind the conductor, the…

The Mystery of Beijing’s Midnight Bus 375

[mysteriouseast]

Masuda Iwafune: Japan’s Mysterious Rock Ship Hidden in Asuka

Hidden in the hills of Asuka, Nara Prefecture, lies a massive carved stone hidden among the bamboo and forests. This rock stands carved, but unfinished and forgotten—the reason for why it was carved or why it remains there. Masuda Iwafune (益田岩船), often translated as “The Rock Ship of Masuda,” is a giant piece of granite carved entirely from bedrock. Standing at roughly 5 meters tall, 11 meters…

Masuda Iwafune: Japan’s Mysterious Rock Ship Hidden in Asuka

[mysteriouseast]

The Mystery of Nana Sakuma: Disappearance in Japan

On October 27, Sakuma and three of her classmates decided to go on a late-night snack run, which resulted in the disappearance of Nana following an encounter with a man posing as a youth guidance counselor. Nearly 35 years later, Nana’s whereabouts remain unknown. Timeline of the Events On October 26, 1991, Nana Sakuma and her friends had just finished midterm exams. She and her three female…

The Mystery of Nana Sakuma: Disappearance in Japan

[mysteriouseast]

Yuki Onishi: The Search and Theories Behind Her 2005 Vanishing

On April 29, 2005, Yuki Onishi, a 5-year-old girl, went missing while participating in Greenery Day, a national holiday in Japan, with her mother and sister while digging bamboo shoots in the Goshikidai Forest in Kagawa. What is Greenery Day? Greenery Day is a public holiday in Japan that stems from the celebration of the birthday of Emperor Shōwa. And it is a day to commune with nature nd be…

Yuki Onishi: The Search and Theories Behind Her 2005 Vanishing

[mysteriouseast]

The Pai Hsiao-yen Tragedy

Pai Hsiao-yen, born on June 23, 1980, was the teenage daughter of Taiwanese television personality Pai Bing-Bing and Japanese manga author Ikki Kajiwara, of Ashita no Joe fame. Her life was tragically cut short in 1997 when she was kidnapped and became the center of one of Taiwan’s most shocking criminal cases. The Abduction of Pai Hsiao-yen On April 28, 1997, the severely mutilated body of Pai…

[mysteriouseast]

The Chinese Bermuda Triangle

In 1945, during the final years of the Republic of China, a 2,000 ton Japanese transport ship vanished near Payang Lake, Jiangxi Province. Hundreds of other ships disappeared in the same area near Noyamyo. This region became known as the Chinese Bermuda Triangle. A Disappearance in Enemy Waters On April 16, 1945, the 2,000 ton Japanese transport ship Kobe Maru, carrying about 200 soldiers, was…

View On WordPress

[mysteriouseast]

South Korean “Fan Death”

In South Korea, there is a superstition know as fan death, that suggests sleeping in a closed room with an electric fan running can result in death. The superstition is rumored to have been started by the government to curb energy consumption during the 1970s energy crisis. Where Did The Fear Begin? The origin of the superstition remains uncertain, but fear of electric fans in Korea began as…

South Korean “Fan Death”

[mysteriouseast]

What Happened to Nobuko Tanabe?

In 2001 a mysterious disappearance took place in Japan, later ruled as an escape of love. Timeline of Events On September 24th, 2001, Nobuko Tanabe, a 50 year old housewife, disappeared from her apartment in Fuchucho, Hiroshima Prefecture. She had made plans to dine with a friend that day. As her friend drove to the apartment she received a call but didn’t answer. When she arrived and called…

[mysteriouseast]

The Vanishing of Toshiyuki Adachi

On June 20, 1981, an 18 year old employee at Kanazawa International Hotel vanished alongside his girlfriend. Last Known Sightings That morning started routinely, he dropped his mother off at the dentist, then headed to his work. After his shift ended around 6pm, he and his girlfriend stopped by a friends home. “I’ll take her home.” he said, and he and his girlfriend drove off together. The last…

[mysteriouseast]

The Mysterious Disappearance of Yoshiyuki Nishiyasu

On March 15, 1987, 21 year old Yoshiyuki Nishiyasu disappeared from Arabella City, Kyoto. His disappearance is among those attributed to North Korean abductions, though no conclusive proof has ever been provided. Timeline of Events Yoshiyuki Nishiyasu was an unemployed man who struggled to find employment following his graduation from high school, though he was actively submitting applications…

[mysteriouseast]

Hit-and-Run Kidnapping Case of Sakunosuke Tabata

On a Sunday afternoon in 1979, a tragic event unfolded as a 3 year old boy was abducted and went missing following a hit and run incident. Despite police investigations, neither the driver nor Tabata were found. A Fateful Afternoon On March 3rd, 1979, at approximately 4:30pm, Sakunosuke Tabata, a 3 year old child, was struck by a vehicle while playing with a friend beneath an overpass on the…

[mysteriouseast]

The Heirloom Seal of the Realm

Crafted during the Qin Dynasty(221-206 BCE), the imperial jade seal was used a symbol of authority among Chinese emperors. Carved of precious Heshibi, and bearing the inscription “Having received the Mandate of Heaven, may (the emperor) lead a long and prosperous life” (受命于天，既寿永昌), the seal was passed down through multiple Chinese dynasties, last documented during the Five Dynasties and Ten…

View On WordPress

[mysteriouseast]

What Happened to Shinya Matsuoka?

On March 7th, 1989, I’m Tokushima Prefecture, Japan, the mysterious disappearance of a 4 year old child occurred after being out of sight from his father for a short period of time, and is still missing 36 years later. Shinya had been living in Ushikushi, Ibaraki Preftcure, with his family, but when Shinya’s maternal grandmother had passed away on March 5th, 1989, the entire family decided to…

What Happened to Shinya Matsuoka?

[mysteriouseast]

From Death Row to Tokyo’s Skyline, The Dark History of Sunshine 60

In Ikebukoro, Tokyo, Japan stands the Sunshine 60 tower. Completed in 1978, standing at 787 feet and 60 floors, it was the tallest building in Asian until it was surpassed by the 63 Building in Seoul. It also held the title for tallest building in Japan until the completion of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in 1991. The tower belongs to the Sunshine City complex, which includes…

From Death Row to Tokyo’s Skyline, The Dark History of Sunshine 60

[mysteriouseast]

The Hokkaido SOS Enigma: Who Left the Sign, and Why?

On the afternoon of July 25, 1989, rescue helicopters werre dispatched in search of two missing hikers near Mount Ashai. The wto lost hikers were located and rescued when search teams located a large SOS sign made from fallen birch trees.The hikers were rescued 2-3km from the SOS sign, however when asked about the sign the hikers responded they were unaware of any SOS sign. The Mystery of the…

View On WordPress

[mysteriouseast]

The “Balloon Man” of Japan

In 1992 a Japanese man named Yoshikazu Suzuki embarked on an a,bilious journey: to cross the Pacific Ocean from Japan to the United States using nothing but helium balloons. What started as another unconventional idea turned into one of the most baffling disappearances in Japanese history. Yoshikazu Suzuki, born 1940 in Tokyo, hailed from a family of piano repairmen. After graduating highschool…

View On WordPress