You know how it goes. “When in Rome…” Except, when the crunch comes and you are confronted with a cultural anomaly, do you revert to form? If you are an impatient, hot-headed individual, like me, with a fierce sense of personal freedom, and have a Japan trip coming up, read on. Visitor good behavior in … Continue reading A Visitor’s Guide to Good Behavior in Japan
Hodogaya was established in 1601 as the 4th stop westward of Edo (now called Tokyo) for weary Tokaido walkers to rest for the night
Take a day trip around Shizuoka's hill country and enjoy some of the finest liquid fruits of this fertile land. Shizuoka Distillery, Aoi Brewery, Utsurogi Wasabi Farm, and Chojiya Restaurant at Mariko.
Hakone Hachiri has just been declared a Japan Heritage Area. Hachiri literally means 8 Li, a distance of approximately 30 kilometers. It refers to the stretch of the old Tokaido between Odawara (Tokaido Sation #9) and Mishima (Station #11), via Hakone (Station #10). During the Edo Period this stretch was a two day walk over … Continue reading Hakone Hachiri, now a Japan Heritage Area
Four centuries ago exactly, the second Edo Period Shogun, Tokugawa Hidetada, ordered the planting of sugi (Japanese Ceder, Cryptomeria japonica) along both sides of Tokaido to shade travellers as they made their way around the shoreline of Lake Ashinoko towards Hakone Checkpoint. 420 of these magnificant specimens remain, towering straight, fat, and proud into the Hakone sky along Ceder Avenue.
