Ama, or female divers, make their living diving to the bottom of the sea in search of seaweed and shellfish such as abalone and clams. They now exist only in limited areas; Mie, Iwate and Ishikawa and other prefectures. The cities of Shima and ...
Nagoya is home to many attractions, including the Higashiyama Zoo and Botanical Gardens and many parks. With Legoland set to open next year and the Linear Central Shinkansen planned for operation in fiscal 2027, Nagoya is expected to grow further as a hub for ...
Tokyo hotel gets into bed with local artists
When building a new hotel, designers would normally consider the artwork displayed on the walls as a finishing touch. But for BnA Hotel Koenji, which just opened in Tokyo's Koenji neighborhood, the artwork definitely comes first. BnA Hotel Koenji, produced by the Bed & Art ...
Exploring Tabaruzaka's idyllic but forgotten samurai battleground
The gray spring clouds have given way to a gentle drizzle by the time I pull my car into a spacious parking lot bordering the Tabaruzaka battlefield. It's fitting weather, considering the massive battle that took place here in 1877 in this rural corner ...
Saga touts unknown attractions in tourist drive
Saga Prefecture has long ranked low among domestic tourist destinations in Japan, but local officials and residents believe this is all down to a bad rap that is quite unearned. The prefecture in northwestern Kyushu, they argue, suffers because it lacks a signature image to ...
Battle of Sekigahara: a war set in stone
The open valley basins of Gifu Prefecture at the very center of Honshu, where the town of Sekigahara lies, were easily co-opted as theaters of war. It's no coincidence, given the martial history of the region, that the town of Seki was once known ...
Nagoya's big names, trains and automobiles
Mount Fuji whizzes by as I drive the Tokaido N700 series shinkansen from Tokyo to Nagoya. "Don't let the speed go above 270 kilometers per hour," warns Kaori Takagi. I heed the warning, though Takagi is not a shinkansen driver instructor. We are, in ...
Finding salt of the earth on Aguni Island
There had been a delay in our departure for Aguni Island as we waited for a typhoon to spend itself. Two hours later, we finally boarded the ferry at Naha's Tomari Port. As the wind picked up again, and more people retreated into the ...
When life deals a bad hand, be a tough cookie and visit Kyoto
"Some men dream of fortunes, others dream of cookies," goes an old saying from a fortune cookie. As for my good friend Dale, who has had a a mean case of winter malaise since he broke up with his girlfriend, he is still dreaming ...
Mount Nokogiri: a breathtaking climb to enlightenment
It's a moot point for those who live there that the name "Chiba" is, in many minds, synonymous with images of hot-rod gangs, peanut farms, car dealerships, pachinko emporiums, empty lots with chain-link fences and giant electric pylons marching across rice fields — a ...
Japan's picture ID before World War II
Last year, the number of tourists coming into Japan outnumbered those going out for the first time in 45 years. In absolute terms, it may be the first time that tourism has properly taken off for this country, despite numerous attempts by various ministries ...
The uplifting tones of Okinawan blues
The winter vocabulary of the majority of Japan residents doesn't include the color turquoise. Or aquamarine, azure or the somewhat intellectually pompous "cerulean." This, however, is the palette I attempt to describe with my husband as we turn our tiny rental car onto the ...
