Crane games are a type of arcade game played to win prizes and are mainly installed in game arcades. It is a transparent glass, plastic, or acrylic box with a crane attached to the ceiling, which contains stuffed animals, candy, and other prizes. Sometimes the ceiling allows one to see the crane’s physical range of […]
Traditional Japanese sport that combines horsemanship and archery, Yabusame.
Yabusame (horseback archery on horseback) is a traditional Japanese martial art that has been passed down through the ages, and is a Shinto ritual in which people make a wish. Yabusame has been passed down from the Heian period (794-1185) to the present, and is now so popular that it is practiced not only in […]
Musashi, the king of Ramen in Shinjuku.
Many of you are probably familiar with Ramen “Musashi”. It is a very famous ramen shop. It may have become so famous that it is no longer a rarity, but this ramen shop is still delicious! If you are looking for a regular ramen with a hot broth, the “Musashi Ramen” is probably the only […]
Daikon-no-Hana, a luxury onsen ryokan located in Miyagi Prefecture.
Daikon no Hana is a luxury ryokan nestled in a forest of about 10,000 tsubo in Miyagi Prefecture. The ryokan offers 12 buildings with 18 rooms in 5 areas. The rooms have a sense of openness with a vaulted ceiling to the roof, and the beams made of Kanayama cedar are impressive. The rooms’ private […]
Relaxing long-distance buses.
What is your mode of transportation between Tokyo and Osaka? Airplane? Train? Why not take a bus once in a while, and a very rich one at that? The bus fare between Tokyo and Osaka costs 20,000 yen, more than the 14,000 yen for an airplane, and the trip takes about 7.5 hours. In exchange, […]
Do you know what a Sento (public bath) is in Japan?
Sento is a public bathhouse found in every town in Japan. You may not often have the chance to enter a sento when you come to Japan as a tourist, but if you have the courage, give it a try! It is interesting to find out about the various types of bathhouses available in each […]
320km/h in the snow! Tohoku Shinkansen runs at full speed.
Have you ever ridden the Shinkansen in Japan? Japan is a long island stretching from north to south, and the climate is completely different between the northern and southern parts of the country. In the northern part of Japan, there is a great deal of snowfall, but even in such conditions, the Shinkansen runs normally […]
Gonpachi is a famous Japanese restaurant with a relaxed atmosphere.
Gonpachi became world-famous for the historic “Izakaya meeting” between former President George W. Bush and former Prime Minister Koizumi that took place at Gonpachi Nishi-Azabu, and for being the model for the scene in Quentin Tarantino’s “Kill Bill”. As a Japanese restaurant serving soba noodles, kushiyaki (skewers), tempura, and other dishes, Gonpachi attracts customers from […]
A course on how to apologize the Japanese way.
Now let’s learn about the Japanese way of expressing apologies (shazai). Every country has its own culture of apology, and the way it is expressed depends on the degree of apology, and Japan is no exception. In Japan, there are nine types of apology expressions. These nine types of apology expressions are the basic apology […]
Hey, hey, hey…don’t push me please!
This is the Japanese art of comedy! It may be difficult to understand for those who are not familiar with Japanese comedy tricks, but this is all calculated comedy. (1) The man in the purple jumper who casually sets up a system that allows him to fall into the bathtub at any time. (2) The […]
How to eat sushi.
Have you ever eaten sushi? Many of you reading this site may be sushi lovers. If you have eaten sushi several times in Japan, you may already be confident in your sushi eating style. However, your way of eating sushi is totally wrong. Here is what you need to know about how to eat sushi. […]
WEST EXPRESS Ginga” is a sleeper train that will make you feel the richest.
Why don’t you enjoy Osaka-Shimonoseki on the “WEST EXPRESS Ginga”, the sleeping car train that will make you feel the richest? I’m sure you’ll have great memories! WEST EXPRESS Ginga(Japanese) WEST EXPRESS Ginga(English) WEST EXPRESS Ginga(English) WEST EXPRESS Ginga(Google search/English) WEST EXPRESS Ginga(Google search/Japanese) […]
Shinjuku Station is an underground dungeon. Do you know the real Shinjuku Station?
Shinjuku Station is a very complex and vast place, because JR Shinjuku Station is connected underground to Shinjuku Stations of all nearby lines, subways and private railways. Shinjuku Station is an underground dungeon. Exploring Shinjuku Station underground can be a very interesting attraction. The main JR Shinjuku Station is connected to a total of 12 […]
A sake brewery in Nara.
Do you know what sake is? While most whiskey is made from grains such as barley, rye, and corn, sake is made from rice. The taste and price of sake depends on whether the rice is used as is or whether the outer part of the rice is scraped off and only the sweeter part […]
A high school student who is a master of the game “Taiko drum master(Taiko-no-Tatsujin)”.
He’s a master of the arcade game “Taiko no Tatsujin!” As you can see in the video, he is fast and accurate. To the untrained eye, it makes no sense how he can hit a given spot so quickly and so accurately… He also holds a Guinness record of 1241 single strokes per minute. There […]
Noh is a traditional Japanese performing art. Masks are scary, but also beautiful.
Noh has become a branch of Nohgaku, a traditional Japanese performing art, and It is a form of theater. However, Noh is a little different from the plays we see on TV and in movies, in that Noh is mainly dance and music. The story is told through dance-like movements accompanied by vocal music called […]
This looks delicious! Hakodate hotel with the best breakfast in Japan.
Hokkaido is a region of delicious seafood. It takes about 1 hour and 40 minutes by plane from Tokyo. Located in the north of Japan, it is the prefecture with the largest land area in Japan. In Tokyo, the ingredients can only be found in high-end sushi restaurants, but in Hokkaido, they can be found […]
100 yen portable toilet.
This video may look like a joke, but it is serious. Have you ever had to go to the bathroom while camping or on the road? In Japan, there are many clean toilets in town, but it is not so easy when you go camping. Many people who have traveled to various countries may have […]
An old coffee shop in Shinjuku and a cat.
This store is not based on the concept of cats. It is just a store with cats. Can you understand the difference? It is not fashionable, nor is it particularly beautiful. But for some reason, it is a cafe that makes you feel relaxed. Even though the café is located in the middle of Shinjuku […]
Ferry trip to enjoy vending machines, Fukuoka – Tokyo.
Why not take a leisurely 32-hour ferry trip between Tokyo and Kitakyushu? If you have time to spare, such a trip is good for you once in a while. But this ferry has a peculiarity. There is no restaurant on this ferry! Instead, there are vending machines! Interesting, isn’t it? The Shinkansen takes about 5 […]