Discoveries from around the archipelago
Tokyo has no shortage of museums and cultural institutions to explore. For most visitors passing through the city in just a few short days, these excellent, well-curated displays compete for time with other muse-see sites and experiences, often coming out on the short end of the stick. But for those planning to be in Tokyo... Continue Reading →
Whenever possible, reading forms a large part of my day. And I admit to being a throwback to the "age of paper". I always have an actual, printed book with me. Though it would be more convenient - and easier on my back muscles when toting books while traveling - I still haven't made that... Continue Reading →
I'm currently in Kochi Prefecture for a few days, a place I visited several years ago but not to any great extent. On that visit, we of course enjoyed an obligatory castle stop - Kochi-jo is one of the twelve original castles remaining in Japan - and ate some excellent tataki (seared bonito). Aside from... Continue Reading →
Don't laugh, but I adore tofu. I didn't until I moved to Japan and learned that those large strained blocks of mush could actually be turned into something delectable. Since then, however, I detour for good tofu, which is how I found myself at Sasanoyuki in Tokyo's Uguisudani neighborhood, a short walk from Ueno. Sasanoyuki has... Continue Reading →
Japan has a host of unique festivals, but I'll admit my eye was caught by this particular celebration's other name … the Warabi Naked Festival. Babies, mud, men in underwear and chicken fights all seem to play a part in this harvest festival in Chiba Prefecture, a short train ride from Tokyo. The festival takes... Continue Reading →
A handful of new art museums opened in Tokyo this past year, and one that immediately went to the top of my list was the Mori Building Digital Art Museum Epson teamLab Borderless … whew. Let's just call it teamLab from here on out, as most people do, and make all our lives easier. teamLab... Continue Reading →
A few years ago, my brother and sister-in-law gifted us with the board game Tokaido, a game based on the old "highway" that linked Kyoto and the shogun's capital of Edo. The game sat in our cabinet for entirely too long (5 year olds don't listen to complicated game explanations) until guilt ate away too... Continue Reading →
While I missed the bulk of the New Years celebrations this year, thanks to a timely announcement from my good friend and comrade-in-travel Excursions Japan, I attended my first ever hashigo-nori performance at Tokyo's Ikegami Honmonji Temple. Hashigo-nori is essentially a series of acrobatic contortions performed at the top of a 6-meter high bamboo ladder. The... Continue Reading →
I've only been away from Japan for slightly over two years, and even since my last visit to Tokyo a year ago, a lot has changed in the city. Development has ramped up, perhaps in preparation for the upcoming 2020 Olympic Games, and large scale complexes are making appearances in areas of the city that... Continue Reading →
