Giant Torayan, a huge aluminum robot, looks down on a puny human at the lobby of the Osaka City Hall. The robot, a statuesque 7.2 meters tall, responds only to instructions from children, according to its creator, Osaka native Kenji Yanobe. When feeling chipper, the robot can sing and make simple dance movements. But do not anger Giant Torayan: It spews fire when miffed. The robot's job is to promote Aqua Metropolis Osaka 2009, an event highlighting the city's water-related attractions that starts Saturday.

These days robot-loving Japanese are tinkering with screwdrivers and motors instead of heading to the beach or hot springs during the holidays. Tokyo's major store devoted to robots, Vstone Robot Center in the bustling Akihabara electronics district, sells robots of all sizes and shapes, including the tiny scuttling Robo-Q from Tomy Co. and the Pleo animatronic dinosaur toy from Ugobe Inc. of the U.S.

Tuesday marked the theatrical debut for the bot, which appeared onstage alongside real-life actors in a play that's being hailed as a first in robot-human artistic collaboration. Hataraku Watashi ("I, Worker"), by playwright Oriza Hirata, focuses on a couple who own two housekeeping robots, one of which loses its motivation to work.

A signature on a piece of paper in Japan this week means that the country can now start work on commercializing a new generation of high-tech trains that make the current bullet trains look like pedal-bikes.

Plan your travels by rail or air in Japan.

One Man’s Life With Cute Overload

Hello Kitty gear: rear view mirrors, laptop computers, bicycles, toasters...

Hos oss kan du hitta just det Japan som du söker. Vi visar dig vägen till smultronställena, på landsbygden såväl som mitt i jättemetropolen Tokyo.