Many old Japanese towns are famous for their castles, but the city of Iwakuni in Yamaguchi Prefecture is best known for something else: namely, its unique and splendidly beautiful wooden bridge. (The fact that it’s got a castle of its own is an added bonus, of course.)
Category Archives: Japan
Field Report: Hagi, Japan (15 November 2016)
Japan’s Chūgoku region is an incredibly rewarding destination, and I’ve resolved to explore it more thoroughly in the years to come. But for this particular trip, I was happy to allow myself only a brief taste of the area’s many attractions – laying the groundwork, as it were, for a longer and more comprehensive futureContinue reading “Field Report: Hagi, Japan (15 November 2016)”
Field Report: Autumn Colours at Daigo-ji and Sanbō-in, Kyōto, Japan (14 November 2016)
Having known from my previous autumn trips that late November is a better time for fall colours in large parts of central Honshū (except for higher elevations), I wasn’t expecting to see all that much at this early stage of my journey. Nonetheless, the kōyō wave had already begun to transform pockets of foliage inContinue reading “Field Report: Autumn Colours at Daigo-ji and Sanbō-in, Kyōto, Japan (14 November 2016)”
Field Report: Fukuchiyama Castle, Kyōto Prefecture, Japan (13 November 2016)
My love of Japanese castles takes me to the city of Fukuchiyama northwest of Kyōto, where an ancient fortress demolished during the Meiji Restoration now again stands proudly over the lands it once controlled.
Field Report: Kyōto Railway Museum, Japan (12 November 2016)
When it comes to Japan, my main areas of interest are castles and trains – and no visit is ever complete without me adding to my knowledge of one or the other (usually both). In this post, we turn the spotlight upon the country’s newest major railway museum: a veritable playground for train-obsessed chaps likeContinue reading “Field Report: Kyōto Railway Museum, Japan (12 November 2016)”
Field Report: Autumn Colours at Tōfuku-ji, Kyōto, Japan (12 November 2016)
Mid to late November is usually a good time to enjoy autumn colours in parts of the Kansai region, though the trees in some places tend to put on their gorgeous fall leaves a little earlier than others. On the second day of my 12th trip to Japan, I sought out an ancient temple inContinue reading “Field Report: Autumn Colours at Tōfuku-ji, Kyōto, Japan (12 November 2016)”
Field Report: Zōjō-ji, Tōkyō, Japan (11 November 2016)
As a rigidly conservative Catholic, I’m not drawn to Japanese temples for spiritual reasons, but I occasionally poke around them out of an interest in architecture and history. In the case of Tōkyō’s Zōjō-ji, there wasn’t much left to admire in terms of original architecture – most of the compound having burned down during theContinue reading “Field Report: Zōjō-ji, Tōkyō, Japan (11 November 2016)”
Rail-Air Report: The Keisei Skyliner and Narita Airport’s LCC Terminal, Tōkyō, Japan (02 October 2016)
I write about flights and interesting rail journeys from time to time, but I don’t normally give airports or ordinary train commutes the same treatment. As a postscript to the series documenting my October 2016 weekend holiday in Tōkyō, let’s make an exception and take a quick look at the terminal I flew home fromContinue reading “Rail-Air Report: The Keisei Skyliner and Narita Airport’s LCC Terminal, Tōkyō, Japan (02 October 2016)”
Field Report: Kyū-Iwasaki-tei Teien, Tōkyō, Japan (02 October 2016)
Relatively little has survived from Tōkyō’s golden age of Western-style architecture, when the rapid wave of modernisation that swept across Japan during the Meiji and Taishō eras triggered the construction of buildings that would not have looked out of place in the great capitals of Europe. Many of these later succumbed to war or redevelopment,Continue reading “Field Report: Kyū-Iwasaki-tei Teien, Tōkyō, Japan (02 October 2016)”
Food Report: Tonkotsu Rāmen at Kyūshū Jangara (Tōkyō, Japan)
As an unadventurous creature of unsophisticated habit, I have a go-to place – Ichiran by name – which I search for almost instinctively whenever I’m struck by rāmen cravings in Japan. That said, I do treat my taste buds to a bit of variety from time to time. On this particular lunch adventure, I trackedContinue reading “Food Report: Tonkotsu Rāmen at Kyūshū Jangara (Tōkyō, Japan)”
Within striking distance 