Terrie's Take -- A weekly roundup of news & information from Terrie Lloyd.

The thing is, 500 Startups does have a SET methodology, so unless you fit their template and have the personality for the hype and chaos of an accelerator, they may not be able to help you.

The concept began in Sonoma Valley, with rides and food experiences called Gourmet Centuries. These are immensely popular, bringing in up to 300 riders per event.

I went to TechinAsia thinking this would be a good chance to see if the street talk I'd been hearing about how we're now in the "golden age" of Japanese venture investing was true or not.

Awajishima is popular with cyclists because it has a road system that mostly hugs the coastline, offering great views of Osaka's Kansai International Airport, and flaming red sunsets in the late afternoons.

Asken is a dieting assistant that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to help the user figure out how what they are eating, and what exercise they are doing, will affect their weight and health.

There is one inland gem, though, and that is Kakunodate, home to one of the best preserved samurai residential districts in the country. Kakunodate is an oasis of tranquility and beauty.

Linked In isn't popular because: a) when Japanese business people first establish a personal relationship, they do it with a face-to-face meeting, and b) because laying out your resume publicly is seen as "boasting".

As we continue the countdown to implementation of the new Minpaku Law (the Airbnb law as we like to call it), investors, sociologists, and little old ladies alike are all expecting the sector to become a major contributor to the economy.

Honestbee is a food and shopping delivery company that makes it even easier, as long as you have a working credit card. Their main differentiator is that they have personal shoppers located in or near their merchant partners.

Destination marketing organizations can help remote regions to improve their infrastructure and attractiveness, and thus help those areas bring home some tourist dollars.

One of Japan's Big 3 telcos, KDDI, announced that it would buy out a Japanese start-up company active in the Internet of Things (IoT) space, named Soracom, for an estimated JPY20bn.

With this latest intercontinental ballistic missile test, Kim Jong-Un is going from being an irrelevant annoyance to the U.S. who was only capable of hitting parts of Japan, to now being a major strategic threat.

Jean was nothing if not dedicated to helping others and during her more than 40 years in Japan, 36 of them were spent writing regular, meaning weekly, reader advice columns (1964-2000) for the Japan Times.

Let's just remind ourselves that the top activity foreign tourists want to do before coming to Japan is to try some particular type of food.

We heard a story a few years ago about just how autocratic and strict the management methods of Mr. Funai were, which in the beginning no doubt contributed significantly to his success.

What we do know is that out of roughly 1,183 travel agents who are members of the Japan Association of Travel Agents (JATA), only 105 (8.87%) are registered for Inbound business.