It may come as a surprise to hear that my present hometown Kobe is a popular tourist destination (more than 22 million annual visitors incl. day trippers)... but these are mainly Japanese tourists and they come in my view for the wrong places (and... -

"Japanese diet is like food\'s iPod: we kept food\'s energy value extremely compact and concentrated without sacrificing the taste. But to enjoy it, you do not need to cook only in Japanese style "- says Naomi Moriyama, author of the book... -

?????Jake DaviesHankyu Railways have introduced a new train specifically targeting foreign visitors. The aptly named Kyo Train operates on the limited express service between Umeda Station in Osaka and Kawaramachi Station in Kyoto.The exterior of... -

A Walk Around ShodoshimaDay 3 The Mito Peninsula Part IISaturday December 26Coming down the hillside I quickly arrive at a small, white shrine, the okunoin of temple number 29, Kazaana-An, which I find not far below. It is high on the hillside and... -

(English language with Japanese subtitles. Music arrangement by Prisca Molotsi)June 3rd?5th | Nagoya City Performing Arts Center, Shin SakaeThis summer, prepare for an explosion of magic, music and mayhem as Nameless Theatre brings Shakespeare?s... -

JP??????The new 195 meter tall JP Tower Nagoya adjacent to Nagoya Station is all set to partially open in June this year. Plans for a full opening are set for April 2017.Already parts of Kitte Nagoya - the Central Post Office and post office shop... -

?????Busta Shinjuku opened today - a brand new highway bus and taxi station across from the South Exit of Shinjuku Station that was completed after ten years of construction. "Busta" is short for "Bus & Taxicab Terminal."Busta ShinjukuBusta... -

????A man (face obscured for privacy) is randomly stopped and searched by a policeman outside Yotsuya Station I was witness a couple of days ago to a?stop and frisk?(shokumu shitsumon) incident by the Japanese police outside Yotsuya Station. It... -

???The Manyosen Light Rail system operates in the city of Takaoka in Toyama Prefecture. The Manyosen consists of two connected tram lines and runs from Takaoka Station to Rokudoji Station and then on to Koshinokata.The first line is the 7.9km long... -

?????Comments by Donald Trump Draw Fears of an Arms Race in Asia -

??????????Marugame, in Kagawa Prefecture, produces a very large percentage of the the uchiwa (round, flat type) style of paper fans in Japan.Cheap, colorful uchiwa, with advertisements printed on them, are a common sight at summer festivals... -

Animal Walk Tokyo (AWT) invites you to?Sanpo in the Park 2016Join us for our annual family event, Sanpo in the Park on Sunday, May 22, from 10am in Yoyogi Park to raise money for Dog Shelter.Founded in 2011, Animal Walk Tokyo is an animal-loving... -

???A tanuki is a raccoon dog in Japanese, and in Japanese culture the tanuki has become a symbol of chubby good cheer and fortune (a comparatively recent development, as the original image was of a shape-shifting trickster). In other words, the... -

?????????The Remnants of the Yamauchi Family Villa aka the Yamauchi Clan Tenement is a long wooden Edo period structure directly south of Kochi Castle in Kochi, southern Shikoku.The building once belonged to a retainer of the ruling Yamauchi clan... -

A Walk Around Shodoshima Part IIDay 4Sunday December 27th After coming down from the cave temples the next two stops on the pilgrimage, 35 Hayashi-an and 39 Matsukaze-an were simple, rudimentary structures, both surrounded by big cemeteries.I had a... -

TOTEM, the latest show by Canada\'s Cirque du Soleil, has been running here in Tokyo since February 3 and is due to finish here on June 26 (with a short break from April 11 to 18).My partner and I went to see it last night: a balmy spring evening... -

?????Junpei Yasuda, Japanese Journalist Missing in Syria, Surfaces in Video -

??????Yamachosuji Street is a row of preserved storehouses dating back to the early 1900\'s in Takaoka, Toyama Prefecture.Yamachosuji Street Takaoka, Toyama Prefecture.The houses were built by wealthy merchants on a major road through the town... -

?????A Champion of Japan?s Right Wing Is Jailed Over Campaign Payments -