February came in like a lamb. The unseasonably warm weather continues, so I paid a visit to Tsukishima today. It’s the 120 year-old man-made island across the Sumida River from Tsukiji, but you may know is as the setting for Umino Chica’s marvelous manga 3-gatsu no Lion. I’d never been […] Read more
More photos? Oh, why the hell not – it is a holiday weekend… Just a few pics today from my old haunt, Kanda Myojin. They’re holding their Daikoku Matsuri this weekend. Folks line up by the hundred to symbolically get bonked on the head by the guy on the right […] Read more
The last gasp of freedom was a good one. School starts up again tomorrow, so I thought I’d make one last foray to some of Kanto’s special places before the grind begins anew and puts a halt to that. Kamakura has been a subject of posts for me before but […] Read more
Cats everywhere. Just another lazy day of wandering about Shitamachi. This time it’s Gokokuji, which of all Tokyo’s most important temples is the closest to me. I took the 25-minute walk up there today and snapped some more pics (along with a few at a small but picturesque temple I […] Read more
I love the newly born year in Japan. Hatsumode is the tradition of visiting a shrine or temple to pray during the first three days of the year, and one which Japanese folks overwhelmingly observe, irrespective of their daily spiritual inclinations. There’s a strong element of family and community to […] Read more
Well – mostly. Hard to believe it’s my second New Year’s in Tokyo already. I actually have a TV this time, so I decided to start out with the classic Japanese New Year’s Eve tradition – the Kouhaku Uta Gassen (Red and White Song Competition) on NTV. It would be […] Read more
Boy, does that suck the life out of you. The “choose your own adventure book for fetishes” is back for it’s Winter incarnation. Maybe it was because I went on the first day this time (for 83 and 84 I never did) but the crowds were even more insane last […] Read more
Chalk one up for patience. Zenkouji is not a tremendously well-known temple on the tourist circuit, but to the Japanese it’s among the two or three most important religious sites in the country. This is still a true pilgrimage temple to this very day – to visit it’s magnificent main […] Read more
This was one of those days where you’re glad the camera has a good battery. Jidokudani (known to most of the world as “The Snow Monkey Park”) is one of those places I’ve wanted to visit since long before I ever made it to Japan. Is it a tourist trap? […] Read more
The weather outside is frightful. Nagano (home of the 1998 Winter Olympics) is only about 85 minutes from Tokyo by the fastest Shinkanesen. I’d always wanted to go there, but after Red Data Girl so spectacularly showed off Togakushi (P.A. Works should really just do travel advertisements as their main […] Read more