In Tokyo, the place to go and take your fill of electronics, gadgets, hobbies, games and cosplay is a district called Akihabara (often abbreviated as Akiba).  Located around a major multi-storey local rail crossroads station, it is easy to access...

The sound of cicadas singing in the trees, the beauty of the lotus flowers in a temple compound – these are such vibrant memories still alive in memory from a recent visit to Kyoto and Kamakura in the late Japanese summer. The heat and humidity is...

In the grounds of the Zen Buddhist Temple of the heavenly dragon (Tenryuji) in Arashiyama I had a very special dining experience. Their vegetarian restaurant Shigetsu had the most artistically presented and tasty collection of dishes for their set...

Nara, a former capital city of Japan is home to free-ranging deer, and one of Japan’s largest statues of the Buddha.  The Buddha’s statue is housed in the world’s largest wooden building.  Yet this building, the temple Todaiji, is a reconstruction...

Gravel, Bark on Pine tree, red lacquered wood, brass, bamboo, rope, folded paper, ceramic tiles... All combined in a uniquely Japanese composition.  Photo taken at Heian Shrine, Kyoto January 2012.