On the face of it, Hojo-in Temple seems like a fairly nondescript run-of-the-mill temple but there is an interesting feature lying within the place which is just a five minute walk from Monzen-Nakacho station on the Tozai Line or the Toei Oedo Line.
Inside one of the buildings sits a fearful (but slightly comical!) red-faced Enma Daio (a.k.a. King Yama) who is the Judge of the Underworld. He is supposedly the first Continue reading
In 2014 Barry Eisler penned a prequel book called ‘Graveyard Of Memories‘ which took us back to the Tokyo city of 1972 and the ninth John Rain novel ‘Zero Sum’ throws forward a decade to 1982. I’m not sure if Rain will return to modern day action again but for now there’s plenty of milage to be gained from dipping into his past.
The latest book was released at the end of June this year but I thought that it was Continue reading
When it comes to buddha statues, the ones in Kamakura and Nara are the most likely to be at the forefront of most peoples minds (and rightly so!) but there is an impressive one tucked away far from a station in the northern suburbs of Tokyo.
Despite the accolade of being the third largest bronze buddha in Japan, the not-so-originally named Tokyo Daibutsu doesn’t seem to feature in any guide books and is very much off the beaten track. It can be found at Continue reading
For all its good points, Tokyo ain’t half one ugly looking city with buildings pretty much erected (and pulled down) willy nilly without any thought to the environment around it. However, amid all the chaos of such a concrete jungle there are a fair few examples of modern architecture which I am ever keen to photograph. Now, I am certainly no expert on such a topic but have enjoyed going around capturing the interesting and weird designs of some of these buildings.
Earlier this year I posted ‘Tokyo Modern Architecture #2‘ as a long-waited follow up to the original ‘Tokyo Modern Architecture‘ post in July 2012. There are 20 buildings featured in those two posts and here, in no particular order, is the next volume of interesting looking Japanese buildings including the addresses:
1. Rissho Kosei-kai Headquarters, 2-11-1 Wada, Suginami-ku.
2. Dai 2 Ridō Building, 3-15 Sumiyoshicho, Shinjuku-ku. Continue reading
The Japanese have many customs and traditions when it comes to visiting shrines or temples and this one in Gunma prefecture helps Continue reading
Many of the parks and children’s playgrounds in Japan, particularly in Tokyo, are quite poor compared to other countries in terms of space, surroundings and a lack of grass. However, a handful of them do tend to possess extremely creative structures and they will be explored in this series.
Nickname: Red Boot (& White Horses)
Location: Continue reading
No doubt Gunma prefecture possesses a wide range of great and tasty local delicacies but sadly all I wanted to do was go to this quirky place in the middle of nowhere. I say that last bit based purely on the fact that there is no train station anywhere near it. This is very much a drive-thru style place but one that is worth the effort.
The vending machine stand in Shimbashi had whetted my appetite for going to this place but I had to bide my time as the idea of visiting Gunma just to dine out here was ridiculous. Thankfully, this trip gave me the chance to combine a few things including the J2 football match at Thespakusatsu Gunma.
We took the train to Honjo station (still in Saitama) and then took a bus from Continue reading
The idea of travelling over 100 kilometres north to watch a team rooted to the bottom of J2 play against a team floating in mid-table nothingness is probably not too appealing for many. However, with games running out this season it was one that Scottish Neil and I were keen to attend and thus tick another stadium off the list. Of course there’s next season but there’s no time like the present!
As with many other stadiums in Japan, this one has a fairly ridiculous name courtesy of a Soy sauce maker; the Shoda Shoyu Stadium Gunma! The team name is a bizzare one too and only very recently did I finally understand the simplicity of it. Three words have been Continue reading
The chance of seeing the beautiful and sacred Mount Fuji is one that can’t really be turned down so when my father-in-law suggested going there on a family trip I was delighted as it is quite far from our It0 base despite still being in Shizuoka prefecture.
It took just over two hours to drive there and Fuji-San was very clear and visible from the outset so we knew it was gonna be a fine day. I’ve been lucky enough to have Continue reading
As ever the aftermath of a typhoon brings about some glorious weather and so my father-in-law took us to Mount Omuro on the first full day of our recent trip to the Izu Peninsula. This mountain is a very picturesque and beautifully shaped volcano on the eastern side of the Izu Peninsula. I was quite surprised to later read that it is actually 580 metres high which is only a little shy of Mount Takao (599 metres) in Tokyo. Unlike that one though, the Continue reading
