honshu
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Motsuji Temple and Kanjiziao-in, Hiraizumi – a Pure Land temple and noble pleasure garden
Located slightly north of Ichinoseki （一関), Hiraizumi is a small, unassuming town. Mostly consisting of houses and small businesses, you might easily overlook this town in the Tohoku region of Japan. However, if you did, you would be missing out on a lot. That is because it is home to the UNESCO World Heritage Historic…
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Matsumoto Castle Grand Taiko Festival – Japanese Drumming
Picture this: you are studying Japanese intensively at a language school in Japan. It is the end of July and you have a couple of weeks off. What do you do? Where do you go? Well one possibility is the Matsumoto Castle Grand Taiko Festival. The best part (apart from the drumming) – it is…
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Visiting Matsumoto Castle (松本城), Japan
Matsumoto Castle in Matsumoto, Japan, is one of the most impressive castles in Japan. If you search for Japanese castles, you will likely find images of Matsumoto Castle (along with places like Osaka Castle) and you can find it in many lists of the top castles to visit in Japan. It is easy to see…
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Tofuku-Ji Temple and Tsuten-Kyo Bridge, Kyoto, Japan
After visiting Fushimi Inari and Mt. Inari, the next stop on my trip to Kyoto was Tofuku-ji Temple (東福寺) and Tsuten-Kyo Bridge. Tofuku-Ji is one of the “Five Great Zen Temples in Kyoto” and it is easy to see why. Combined with its garden, which contains the Tsuten-Kyo (covered) bridge, it is easy to see…
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Oshi Sushi (押し寿司) – Making sushi in a box
Before coming to Japan, I wasn’t very knowledgeable about sushi. I had eaten sushi in “Japanese” restaurants (Chinese people, not Japanese people, run most of the ones in western countries). I had eaten “sushi rolls” (makizushi, 巻き寿司) and “sashimi” (nigirizushi, 握り寿司) but I couldn’t really tell you what was typical. You couldn’t expect me to…
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Toji Temple, Kyoto – The Temple for the Defence of the Nation by Means of the King of Doctrines
I recently posted about Fushimi Inari and Mt. Inari, Kyoto – The path of 1000 gates, which I visited during my trip to Kyoto. However, it was not the first place I went to in Kyoto. After getting off the Shinkansen (bullet train) at Kyoto station, I split up with my host family and went…
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Fushimi Inari and Mt. Inari, Kyoto – The path of 1000 gates
If you are travelling to Kyoto on a budget, you don’t like spending money or you just like hiking, then Fushimi Inari is for you. Fushimi Inari Taisha (伏見稲荷大社) is a Shinto Shrine in Kyoto that is dedicated to Inari, the god of rice. It is free to visit and is open 24/7. Fushimi Inari…
