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The month of February used to be called Kisaragi in Japan. February was the second month of winter under the lunar calendar, which Japan used before the Heian Period. Under this calendar, Winter was the period from January to end of [...]
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I visited Suzumushi Temple in Arashiyama, Kyoto in Summer and enjoyed the speech given by the monks there. It was not a large Temple and the grounds were not extensive, but many people were queued up to get inside and the monks [...]
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Kodaiji Temple (高台寺) established in Kyoto in 1606 is a beautiful Temple located near Yasaka Hokanji Temple. I visited Kodaiji in the evening when it was lit up and enjoyed seeing the gardens in a different way to normal.
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Dazaifu Tenmangu is a Shrine built over the grave of Michizane Sugawara, also known as the God of calligraphy. It is located near the Bay of Hakata in Fukuoka. It is well known as a Shrine to visit in order to wish for success in exams [...]
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Eiheiji Temple, located in Fukui-ken, was founded over 800 years ago, although the temple was rebuilt a number of times over the years. It is still an active temple today training monks in its teachings. It is possible for anyone to [...]
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Jishu Shrine is located in the Kiyomizu Temple area of Kyoto. It is a Shrine for those praying for good fortune in love. There are a number of good luck charms that can be bought here to help you find your best partner.
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There are 2 sets of gardens at Ryoanji Temple, the dry rock garden and the wet gardens. There are fifteen rocks in the dry garden raked with white gravel. There are many stories about the meaning behind these rocks and how they are [...]
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Toshogu Shrine, erected in 1651, is dedicated to Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Edo shogunate, which ruled Japan from 1603 to 1867, making Tokyo the seat of government. It is the only shrine in Tokyo that's been designated a National [...]
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Last year I took a trip to Sendai and visited Matsushima which is said to be one of Japan’s three great views along with Miyajima and Amanohashidate. I found more photos of my trip and resized some others to provide this gallery of [...]
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Moe has been used to advertise many products in Japan. It is said to have created economic value of over YEN 90,000,000 (about $100 million$1 billion) for the economy. Now a novel idea that is not so commercially driven has surfaced, [...]
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A warm sunny day in Kyoto made a great backdrop to these photos which include some Temples, Kimono, Yukata, and the general peaceful nature of Kyoto. A great place to visit.
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Yatsuhashi is a Japanese desert sweet. It is particularly well known as a product of Kyoto and can be bought at many of the tourist stores around the Temples. Yatsuhashi is made from rice flour and sugar and has a soft, mochi-like [...]
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The photos I took in Kyoto are going to take quite a bit of sorting out. Whilst I am still on the laptop and with the memory cards filling up quickly, I’ll share a few of the photos as best I can over the next few days. Once I [...]
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A while ago I visited a number of different magic show “spots” in Tokyo. I recently saw two of the places I visited advertised in this guide book (TOKYO 夜遊び達人), Experts Guide to Tokyo Night Life. This book is for sale for [...]
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I took a trip to Sendai last week and visited Matsushima which is said to be one of Japan’s three great views along with Miyajima and Amanohashidate. Matsushima is a group of over 200 small, pine tree islands which provide an [...]