In our last blog post we talked about Takayama, one of our favourite cities in Japan. Located high in the Hida Mountains, its home to one of Japan’s most popular festivals. The Takayama Festival actually refers to two festivals, the Takayama Spring Festial, or Sanno-sama Festival, and the Takayama Autumn Festival, or Hachiman Festival. Though […]
The Kumano Kodo are a series of pilgrimage trails, located in the Kansai region of Japan, south of Kyoto and Nara. Kumano is the name of the area, and “kodo” means the “old ways”, so the name literally translates as the old ways of Kumano. The trails were, and still are, used by pilgrims visiting […]
Matsue is the capital of Shimane prefecture, located in the south western Honshu, the main island of Japan. Matsue sits on the banks of the Ohashi River, which connects the lakes of Lake Shinji and Nakaumi. Matsue is home to one of the 12 original castles in Japan, having survived wars, fires and earthquakes. The […]
With the Christmas holiday season coming to a close, we are approaching the close of the year and the celebration that entails. Where as Christmas in Japan is more of an excuse for couples to have another date, New Years (know in Japan as shougatsu or 正月) is more important. What does New Years look […]
