Bunkagame — August 31, 2026

Question 1

Themed cafés featuring this famous Sanrio character have opened in cities around the world, including Seoul, Bangkok and Las Vegas. A dedicated dessert restaurant featuring her, called Sweets, opened in Taipei in 2008. Which Japanese pop-culture cartoon cat connects the two capitals?

Accepted Answer

Hello Kitty debuted in 1974 as a design by Yuko Shimizu for the Japanese company Sanrio. Her character has anchored one of the highest-grossing entertainment franchises in history.

Question 2

This Brazilian playmaker famously earned a standing ovation from Real Madrid fans at the Bernabéu for his hat trick in a 3 to 0 Barcelona win in 2005. He later scored his first Milan goal in a 1 to 0 derby victory over Inter Milan on 28 September. Which player connects the two cities?

Accepted Answer

Ronaldinho (Ronaldo de Assis Moreira) won the FIFA World Player of the Year in 2004 and 2005 while at Barcelona. He is one of only a handful of players to win the Champions League with two different clubs (Barcelona and, earlier, PSG).

Question 3

In the Philippines, unripe versions of this large tropical fruit (called langka) are cooked in coconut milk to make ginataang langka. Thailand is a major producer of the same fruit, exporting it canned in syrup to North America and Europe. Which giant sweet-fleshed fruit connects them?

Accepted Answer

Jackfruit (Artocarpus heterophyllus) is the largest fruit that grows on a tree, with individual specimens sometimes weighing over 100 pounds. Its shredded green flesh has become popular as a vegan meat substitute in the West.

Question 4

This Glico brand of chocolate-dipped biscuit sticks, hugely popular among teenagers in Japan, is now sold widely in the United States (found at World Market, H-E-B, Costco, and Walmart) as well as in Malaysia. Which Japanese snack connects the two countries?

Accepted Answer

Pocky launched in Japan in 1966 and now sells in over 30 countries. Its name inspired 'Pocky Day' on November 11, celebrated for the four 1s that resemble the sticks lined up.

Question 5

This upscale fast-food chain, which grew from a modest hot dog cart in New York's Madison Square Park in 2001, had expanded by August 2014 to California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and New Jersey. Which chain connects them?

Accepted Answer

Shake Shack was founded by restaurateur Danny Meyer as part of his Union Square Hospitality Group. It went public in 2015 and now has hundreds of locations across the United States and internationally.

Question 6

A minor league team in Tucson, Arizona once served as the AAA affiliate of this Major League Baseball club. The Lake Elsinore Storm, in Southern California, is a lower-level minor league affiliate of the same team. Which MLB club, based in a southern California coastal city, connects them?

Accepted Answer

The San Diego Padres joined the National League as an expansion team in 1969. Their brown-and-gold color scheme, briefly abandoned in the 1990s, was restored for the 2020 season.

Question 7

Eight of the ten CONMEBOL national teams have won this continental football trophy at least once across 48 stagings since 1916, but Ecuador is one of only two nations yet to lift it, and Argentina has helped organize the tournament since CONMEBOL's founding in 1916. Which South American football competition is this?

Accepted Answer

The Copa America is the main international football tournament contested by CONMEBOL's South American national teams, first held in 1916, making it the world's oldest continental football competition. Argentina and Uruguay share the record with 15 titles apiece, while Ecuador and Venezuela have never won.

Question 8

The main indoor arena in Leeuwarden, the Netherlands, is used for speed skating, ice hockey and this ice sport (in which teams slide granite stones toward a bullseye). A park in Wausau, Wisconsin, includes hockey rinks and a dedicated barn for the same sport. Which sport connects them?

Accepted Answer

Curling originated in medieval Scotland and became a permanent Winter Olympic sport in 1998. The Netherlands and the US Midwest are both regions with strong recreational curling communities.

Question 9

This clear distilled Korean spirit, made from rice, wheat, barley or sweet potatoes, is one of the world's best-selling liquors by volume, with over 3 billion bottles consumed in South Korea in 2004 alone. It shares a family tree with China's baijiu. Which drink connects China and Korea?

Accepted Answer

Soju became Korea's signature drink after being popularized in the 20th century. A landmark 1996 Korean Supreme Court decision struck down regional restrictions on soju sales, opening the market to national brands like Jinro.

Question 10

The 10th-century Tomb of the Samanids in Bukhara is one of the oldest monumental tombs in the Islamic world and a masterpiece of this regional building tradition. The Jameh Mosque of Yazd, spanning the Isfahani style from the 16th century, is another key example. Which architectural tradition connects these two Silk Road cities?

Accepted Answer

Iranian architecture developed over two millennia and features distinctive elements like squinches, muqarnas (three-dimensional geometric vaulting), and glazed tile decoration. Its influence spread across Central Asia and into the Mughal architecture of India.