?????#206Kyoto city bus #206 runs from Kitaoji Bus Terminal (Subway Kitaoji Station) to Kyoto Station and then back to Karasuma Kitaoji and Kita ...
Thick chewy noodles served in soy sauce based dashi broth, this simple Udon Noodle Soup is called Kake Udon in Tokyo and Su Udon in Osaka. READ: Udon ...
Early spring is the best time to be in Tokyo — you can take advantage of all the events and festivals dedicated to spring flowers, among other ...
Japan is home to one of the world’s most venerable tea cultures, and is a tea lover’s paradise. Though best known for green tea, while tra ...
Hi, I will like to plan a winter trip to Hokkaido with my family next year. Will like to seek your advise how many days is sufficient for Hokkaido. ...
Japan has a sales tax (sometimes known as VAT) of 8%, going up to 10% in the future, but those with a tourist visa are eligible for tax-free shopping. ...
Want to head up north to Hokkaido for the Autumn leaves this year" The vast nature here, unspoiled by all the concrete and construction of more p ...
Don’t forget Tohoku when planning your Autumn colours trip! There are some amazing places to visit, with cheap access and unspoiled views. Be su ...
If you are lucky enough to be in Japan in the holiday season, there are some stunning illuminations and displays in Osaka and Kyoto. While not quite a ...
Welcome to Japan, an outdoor wonderland! From the mountains to the sea, Japan offers unforgettable experiences for every kind of season and outdoor a ...
From New Year?s surprises, to matcha flavored munchies, tax-free bargains and more, Japan is a shopper?s paradise! To help create your shopping list, ...
Foreign visitors to Japan can now conveniently make withdrawals in Japanese yen using debit cards, credit cards and other cards issued overseas thank ...
One of the best ways to take in the unparalleled sights of Kyoto is to participate in an open top Sky Bus tour. In operation every day between Octobe ...
I love ramen. Not the instant stuff served in Styrofoam cups, but the fresh noodles served in a bowl of rich soup stock topped with fresh vegetables ...
As our taxi driver missed the entrance and proceeded to do a U-turn in the middle of the road, I thought the gorgeous fall colors enveloping the high ...
JR East has a great variety of value rail passes for foreign visitors to take advantage of travelling around Japan in a convenient and economical man ...
I was drinking with Sandy in the park recently. It was dark and naturally we were on the swing set. ?I?ll just never be happy here,? she said. ?Congra ...
The airplane is parked at the far end of a runway, the airport clear outside the portal, the name of my city, Fukuoka, in clear red letters. The mount ...
I live on Tabard Street in London, one of the original streets leading into the city proper, a site where pilgrims gathered before departing the city ...
One of the most useful discoveries of a recent trip to Italy was that I had remembered some Italian curse words overheard during my childhood at my gr ...
If nobody in Japan thinks a racist video about the Japanese is racist, can anyone be offended" The children’s novelty act known as ‘A ...
Last week, Ayaka Shiomura, a 35-year-old lawmaker in Tokyo, was raising questions about the role of working mothers in Japan when someone started jeer ...
In my previous post (part 1) I discussed the history of sexual harassment law in Japan, and the struggles women continue to face today. But in truth ...
I have been overwhelmed by the support from readers of my posts, On Sexual Harassment in Japan (Part 1) and (Part 2). I’m also stunned at ...
Words are social creatures, with every word defined by other words, and dictionaries are a party. Interactions define things: words can?t write thems ...
It’s been about a year since I left Japan, and I know many friends and readers (those in the JET Program) are coming up on saying goodbye to a c ...
I haven’t written in over a year, but I wanted to share my photographs from the month I spent in Kathmandu. It was my liminal phase between Japa ...
The Japanese eat somen noodles a lot, especially in the summer time. If we have cold somen noodles for lunch, my mom usually makes this recipe ...
This is a very simple grilled chicken recipe. I often put it in my lunch box. It is also good for larger pieces of chicken on the BBQ! Yie ...
This is a very common way to eat mochi. It is also called kinako (soy powder) mochi. This may be an unusual taste for the Western palate, but I ...
Japanese steakhouses serve garlic rice after the meal, and many of them cook teppanyaki style (preparing the meal on a grill in front of you). ...
Spaghetti salad is very popular in Japan. You can find ready made spaghetti salad everywhere (super market, store, delis, convenience stores, ...
This is simple, quick-stir fry recipe! It’s a great anytime dish, best served with salad and steamed rice. Enjoy! Yield: 2 servings ...
This is a nitsuke recipe using a white fish fillet. Nitsuke means boiled fish (or vegetables) in soy sauce. You can use any white fish (I bough ...
This recipe is gyoza (dumplings) in chicken soup. Boiled gyoza is very common in Japan. Sometimes we add dumplings in nabe (hot pot). You can us ...
?Nimono? is the Japanese word for food that is boiled and seasoned. The taste is very mild and the aroma reminds me of the way my childhood home us ...
This recipe is also called “tori nanban”. You can order it at any soba restaurant in Japan (it’s very popular recipe). It is g ...
This recipe is uses ground chicken and tofu, so it is very light and low in calories. Tofu is much cheaper than meat in Japan, so I use that oft ...
Gobo is known as burdock root in English. It is a fibrous vegetable seldom used in North America and Australia, but you can find it at most Asia ...
Kinki is “rockfish” in English and nitsuke means boiled fish (or vegetables) in soy sauce. Winter is the best season for rockfish, a ...
Japanese: Tougan to Gyuniku no nimono. Tougan (winter melon) gets soft when you boil it, and it’s good either hot or cold. Winter melon has ...
Nira is a green vegetable called “chives” in English and tama means egg in Japanese. I used fresh, organic nira that my teacher, Do ...
This recipe is pretty simple but there are many ways to prepare it. Nikumiso is great with steamed rice, fried rice, fried noodles, pasta, sand ...
Ozouni is a Japanese New Year traditional soup. Each family or prefecture have their own style of ozouni, suited to their particular tastes. We ...
When pureed soybeans are filtered in the production of soy milk, the resulting pulp is called okara. This side dish is also called “unohan ...
The teriyaki burger is an original Japanese recipe, and a popular menu item at fast-food restaurants. McDonalds is famous for their teriyaki bu ...
Daigaku Imo is a traditional Japanese recipe. The word “daigaku” means university and “imo” is Japanese for potato. It ...
Bean sprouts are called moyashi in Japanese. It takes less than 10 min to prepare this recipe, so it is great when you need a quick side dish! Yi ...
Japanese: Spinach sesame salad. Spinach is loaded with calcium and iron, and is a great source of fiber. We like this recipe because spina ...
Japanese: Green beans and sesame salad. This recipe is similar to the spinach sesame salad I posted yesterday, and is a fine alternative t ...
Karei is a kind of flat, tasty white fish; “nitsuke” is a popular simmering technique used in many Japanese dishes which infuses the ma ...
The Japanese people love corn soup. Almost every family style restaurant serves corn soup and many varieties can be found in grocery stores. Co ...
Here’s a great way to use your leftover corn soup. Sometimes I’ll even make an extra batch just so I can make this recipe. It’ ...
Chicken is low in calories so it’s very good if you’re on a diet. Also, vinegar is a great antidote for fatigue, so this recipe is a pe ...
?Hourensou? is the Japanese word for spinach. This is a quick, healthy side dish or appetizer. The dashi gives it a unique Japanese flavor. Enjoy! ...
“Tako” means octopus in Japanese. I know many of you can’t believe we eat octopus but it’s incredibly popular in Japan. It ...
Kinpira is a Japanese cooking style in which sliced vegetables are stir-fried and seasoned with sugar and soy sauce. Renkon (lotus root) has a ...
This is a quick recipe to make, and is great for cold weather, paired with a Sapporo or even some sake for a comfortable night at home. Yi ...
In Japan, we call Vietnamese spring rolls “Nama Harumaki”. As in the U.S. and other countries, it is a common dish in Japanese rest ...
Hiyashi Chuka is a cold noodle dish most often served in the summer months in Japan. We use Chinese-style noodles as a base and mix in vegetabl ...
This is a simple and delicious Japanese desert. Japanese sweet potatoes are called “satsumaimo”. They are very sweet and soft. Sats ...
A beef bowl is called “gyudon” in Japanese. “Gyu” means beef and don is short for “donburi” which is food s ...
Chicken Karaage is a very common Japanese home cooking recipe and many Japanese restaurants in countries all over the world have it on the menu ...
Yawata maki uses either unagi (eel) or beef to wrap gobo and other vegetables in a little roll. Gobo is a root vegetable, which is a metaphor fo ...
Konbumaki is rolled seaweed. “Konbu” is a play on words with “yorokobu,” which means “to be happy,” so we ea ...
This is a very simple Japanese style omelette recipe, though difficult to master. It is a common item for bento boxes, and people love it. There ar ...
Chikuzenni is usually cooked at home in Japan. It features chicken and a variety of vegetables, including, carrots, renkon (lotus root), and konnyak ...
Kamaboko is a Japanese fish cake (kouhaku means red and white, and these two colors are typically associated with congratulatory sentiments). I us ...
Takenoko is the Japanese word for bamboo, and Tosani describes the taste of bonito and soy sauce. Bamboo is known for its rapid growth, an ...
Shrimp appear to have long beards and a hunched back, which some Japanese associate with a long and fruitful life. So eat your osechi ebi and en ...
Kouhakunamasu resembles traditional Japanese ribbons and kouhaku means red and white. Red and white are the colors typically associated with ce ...
Kuromame is the Japanese word for black beans and “mame” means good health. Yield: 6 shrimp Time: 7 hours Ingredients 1/4 lb ku ...
“Kuri” is the Japanese word for chesnuts and “kinton” means sweet potatoes. The color is is gold, and many Japanese bel ...
Osechi is the traditional Japanese New Year’s meal comprised of a number of small dishes into a single presentation. Each osechi dish has it ...
Satsumaage is a paste made from fish and vegetables. “Satsuma” is the old name for Kagoshima City, where satsumaage got its start, an ...
Japanese: Kabocha no nimono. “Nimono” is the word for food that is boiled and seasoned. Kabocha is a Japanese pumpkin. Kansai peopl ...
Ebichiri (lit. ”shrimp chili”) is grilled shrimp with doubanjiang, which may or may not contain chili peppers (based on which level ...
When visiting Japan there is nothing more relaxing than a short escape into the Japanese countryside, to complement days of exploring Tokyo and stroll ...
Our specialty is helping travelers who believe that travel is about unique, memorable experiences ? not just sightseeing or checking items off a list. ...
Japan offers an amazing variety of culinary experiences, but there?s nothing like eating and drinking at an izakaya. Going to an izakaya (a Japanese-s ...
Tokyo, the capital of Japan, is one of the world’s largest and most exciting cities. From perhaps the best food in the world – to neighbor ...
Do you love travel and spreadsheets" Note: Thank you to all who applied! Applications are now closed. If you?re obsessed with travel, ridiculousl ...
If you’re looking for the best ramen shop in all of Japan, you may be embarking on a lifelong quest. Tonkotsu gyokai ramen at Shono in Ichigaya ...
Japan has no shortage of charming mountain villages, and one of the best places to experience traditional rural Japan is deep in the Japanese Alps. I ...
We’re excited to welcome our first-ever guest contributor, travel writer Sophie Friedman. We hope you enjoy Sophie-san’s Kyoto travel tips ...
Tokyo is packed with some of the world’s top museums and galleries, but further afield in Japan are even more fantastic art hubs. From art islan ...
While Japan is best known for sake worldwide, it also has a killer whisky industry that’s lauded by spirit connoisseurs. Commercial whisky produ ...
Halfway between Tokyo and Osaka is Japan’s 3rd largest city, Nagoya. Nagoya Castle is the icon of the city, with a white walled and jade green ...
A showcase of photos from Hakone, Kyoto, Osaka and more, taken with the Nikon AF-S DX NIKKOR 35mm f/1.8G lens… Before my autumn 2013 traveling ...
This single building was what drew me to Daigo-ji ?Daigo Temple, ???? during one hot Kyoto summer (well that, plus I’m on a mission to see all o ...
Altough dwarfed by the much newer Tokyo Sky Tree, Tokyo Tower offers a unique view of this massive city – and has a long and romantic history th ...
It took just 6 months for 20 000 labourers to build the stone base and walls of Nagoya Castle’s main tower, led by the legendary samurai Kat? Ki ...
When Japanese tourists visit other countries on tours, the tour companies often educate the groups about local manners and customs. Japanese tourists ...
Mount Koya ?K?yasan, ???? is a 1200 year old sacred temple town in the mountains of northern Wakayama Prefecture. There are over 100 temples in Koyasa ...
