history
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Nomura Samurai Home, Kanazawa | Would you like to take a peek into the life of the Samurai?
In Kanazawa, you can find the old home of the samurai Nomura clan. The building is almost intact and is a good example of how the samurai warriors who protected the city lived at that time.
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Hirosaki Castle, Aomori | One of the few castles where you can see beautiful scenery with snow
Hirosaki Castle stands in Aomori prefecture. It is a very important castle because it has one of the only 12 original main keeps which exist in Japan. It is one of the best places to view cherry blossoms in Japan.
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Aizuwakamatsu Castle (Tsuruga-jo Castle) | Beautiful scenery from season to season
Aizuwakamatsu Castle, also known as Tsuruga Castle, is a traditional fortress located in Fukushima Prefecture. It now houses a museum and, at the top, a lookout point with views of the entire city.
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Aizuwakamatsu, Fukushima | Kingdom of Agriculture
Aizu-Wakamatsu in Fukushima is especially known for its delicious sake and long history of samurai culture.
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Hiraizumi | Origin of Zipang, the Land of Gold
Hiraizumi flourished for nearly one hundred years, during a peaceful era of prosperity. Today, you can still see remnants of this rich legacy.
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Historical Village of Hokkaido, Hokkaido | Travel back in time 100 years
The Historical Village of Hokkaido is an open-air museum in Sapporo with buildings from the Meiji and Taisho periods, during which Hokkaido developed rapidly.
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Hakodate, Hokkaido | An important port town connecting Japan and other countries
Hakodate is well-loved by domestic tourists but often overlooked by foreign tourists which makes it a hidden gem. If you like green cities surrounded by beautiful nature, then Hakodate is a great place to visit.
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Otaru, Hokkaido | Wall Street of the North
Otaru makes for a great day trip from Sapporo, or a nice stop along the way for those traveling to ski resort Niseko. The glassworks shops, coffee shops, restaurants, and shops are located in traditional buildings.
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Removing Shoes in Japan | One of the unique rules of Japan
Removing your shoes before entering a house or building is not only hygienic, in Japan, it is much more than a simple custom. Learn more about the history behind this rule, and the right way to go about it.
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Energy Generation in Japan
Japan has historically relied heavily on nuclear energy generation until the 2011 disaster has shown the need for alternative power sources. Is renewable energy on Japan’s agenda? And what other resources are (still) used?
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Shinto Goddess Amaterasu Omikami who is considered the Creator
Amaterasu is the incarnate goddess as the Sun that governs the Universe and the main deity of Japanese Shinto. It is believed that the royal family of Japan descends directly from this important goddess.
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Pheasant | Japan’s beautiful national bird
The national bird of Japan is the green pheasant, named ‘Kiji’ in Japanese. It was declared the National Bird in 1947. The Kiji has been featured in many legends, mythology, poetry, and paintings.
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Flag of Japan, Land of the Rising Sun
The national flag of Japan is officially called ‘Nisshoki’, which means ‘Flag of the Sun symbol’, although colloquially it is known as ‘Hinomaru’ which means ‘Circle of the Sun’. It is the most important symbol of Japan.
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The National Flower of Japan | Culture Guide
Chrysanthemums first came to Japan from China in the fifth century. Chrysanthemum cultivation began in Japan during the Nara and Heian periods (710-1185) when the flower was planted throughout Japan.
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Beautiful and cool notation of kanji and hiragana
Japanese writing consists of three systems, kanji, hiragana, and katakana. Here’s a simple overview of how the Japanese writing system works.
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Kabuki | A comprehensive art form of Japanese tradition
Kabuki theater is a popular performance art that you can only see in Japan. It is performed by only male actors, and traditionally the trade has mainly been inherited by sons from their fathers.
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Japanese Tanka Poetry | Beautiful Japanese Music
Tanka is uniquely Japanese poetry that was perfected at the beginning of the seventh century.
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The great Emperor | The symbol of Japan
Japan has the oldest continuous monarchy in the world. According to mythology, the first Emperor of Japan, Emperor Jimmu, is descended from the Goddess of the Sun Amaterasu and he was enthroned in 660 BC.
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Yokoamicho Park, Tokyo | Center of the Sumo wrestling world
Due to the firestorm that tore through the eastern side of Tokyo after the great Tokyo earthquake in 1923, thousands of people died in the area that is now Yokoamicho Park.
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Shinobazunoike Bentendo Ueno | Guardian of music and performing arts
In Tokyo you can find endless wonderful places of historical and current nature. One of them is Ueno Park, famous for its cherry blossoms in spring. The Bentendo temple and Shinobazunoike lake are interesting landmarks here.