The annual Mamada-no Jaga Maita was held Sunday in Oyama, Tochigi, where locals carry a giant snake made of bamboo and adorned with fern leaves to pray for favorable weather, abundant harvests, and protection from plagues.
Toyota Motor Corp. is conducting trials of a vehicle powered by a hydrogen engine in Australia, making it the Japanese automaker's first such test of the environmentally friendly car on public roads toward its commercial use.