Sake bar
A single paper lantern glows in a dark alley near Kiyamachi Street, in one of Kyoto’s oldest entertainment districts. How many generations …
Ride the Lightning at Kodaiji Temple
Kodaiji Temple has one of the best projection mapping shows accompanied by music and sound effects. It tells the story of Nene, the wife of …
Quiet spring in Miyagawacho
Miyagawacho is a much quieter part of Gion, but word has gotten around and now that Japan is open to tourists again, this neighborhood of geiko and maiko …
Kiyomizu Temple spring illuminations
One of many cool things about Kiyomizu Temple’s illuminations is the spotlight that cuts across the night sky like a lightsaber. There are so many …
Yodo River cityscape
Like many rivers running through Japanese cities, the Yodo River has parks running along much of its banks as part of a flood control system …
Under the bridge in Osaka
Of course, I know that trains are loud, but I didn’t expect it to be as loud as it was standing under these rail bridges along the Yodo River. This is …
UFO launch pad
Hiroshi Hara, the architect behind the Kyoto Tower, also designed the Umeda Sky Building. There is nothing else like it anywhere. Do you see …
Osaka Castle and white cherry blossoms
The company that hired me for my first job in Japan, as an English teacher, had schools across the country. They gave me two options for where …
Osaka Monorail and Ferris wheel
Japan, a country of around 125 million people, has all sorts of transportation: regular commuter trains, bullet trains, airplanes, expressways …
Drums under the Sky Building
Here under architect Hiroshi Hara’s representation of a UFO launch pad is another creative work. One Japanese blog from 2012 refers to this art installation …
The Sapporo tram
The Sapporo tram has been in operation since 1918. The history of the streetcar system is almost the same as the history of the city’s …
Driving through the Ginza sky
An elevated expressway built 63 years ago runs through the center of the Ginza and Yurakucho areas. My favorite, the Tokyo Expressway KK Line …