What once was a popular sento (bathhouse) in the center of Yuasa city in Wakayama, Jinburo is today a free to visit open-air museum where you will not only have the chance to discover an old Japanese sento looked, but also enjoy Jinburo’s annex full of memorabilia of […]
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Essential to Japanese cuisine, shoyu, or soy sauce originated from the city of Yuasa in Wakayama. Legend has it that in the 13th century, the Zen Buddhist monk Shinichi Kakushin discovered the wonders of soy sauce totally by accident while making kinzanji miso, a type of bean paste. [...]
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One of Wakayama’s geological wonders, the Sandanbeki rock formation, known as the Sandanbeki Cliffs hide one of Wakayama’s most interesting secret temples in a cave full of history and pirates! [...]
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Osaka Castle was built by Daimyo Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1583 on the former site of the Ishiyama Honganji Temple. It was originally intended to be the center of Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s vision where he would rule a unified Japan. As such Osaka Castle was, at the time, Japan’s largest castle. [...]
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Located in the outskirts of Osaka city, Sumiyoshi Taisha, also known as Sumiyoshi Grand Shrine is actually one of Japan’s oldest shrines. Founded in the 3rd century, Sumiyoshi Taisha displays a unique style of shrine architecture, called Sumiyoshi-zukuri, that is free of influence from the Asian mainland. [...]
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Located in the city of Sakkai in Osaka prefecture, JIKKO Kitchen Knives Cutlery is one of the best and most famous companies for anyone looking for the finest Japanese cutlery. JIKKO started relatively recently in 1901. Sakkai has been known for the past 600 years for its knife craftwork […]
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The Dotonbori area in Osaka needs no introduction. It’s one of Japan's most famous tourist destinations thanks to its unique and frankly, gaudy neons. Dotonbori is one spot you should not miss when traveling in Japan. [...]
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Simply meaning “New World” Shinsekai was a district developed before the second world war which unfortunately was left neglected for decades afterward and only became popular years later. Built in 1912 just after the Eiffel Tower, the Tsutenkaku now features an open-air deck on top of the main […]
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A remnant of a once larger temple from the Jodo sect and first built during the 8th century, Tamba Kokubun-ji is one of many Kameoka City major cultural properties as well as been designated a national historical site. Too often ignore by tourists, foreign or not, Tamba Kokubun-ji is a gorgeous little temple where […]
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ocated in Kameoka in Kyoto prefecture just 12 minutes away by train from Arashiyama (also known as Kyoto’s bamboo forest). Ryotan-ji or Ryotanji is among the three major temples of the Rinzai Myoshin-ji sect. According to the temple owner, Ryotan-ji’s history goes as far back as 1480 when Sekkososhin VI of Myoshinji Temple in the […]
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ocated in the center of Kameoka (Kyoto) you will find the ruins of the Tamba Kameyama Castle. It was built in 1578 by Akechi Mitsuhide as the headquarters for his attacks on the Tanba area. In 1609, Tokugawa Ieyasu, who controlled the area, worked in renovating this castle and used it as well as his […]
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anpuku-ji (萬福寺) is the head temple of the Zen Obaku sect and also located in in Uji, near the center of Kyoto. While extremely popular among Japanese people, Manpakuji was created fairly recently in 1661, only 7 years after the Obaku sect, originally from China, came to Japan. Because of its Obaku sect origins, Manpuku-ji’s […]
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