6 Nights In Izu: A Blackout, Birthday Celebrations, Over-Tourism, Star Wars Day, Walking Adventures, J3 Football & The Birthplace of Long-Distance Calls!

Posted on June 1, 2024 by tokyofox

Heavy rain, cooler temperatures and no electricity for 24 hours meant our latest trip to Izu didn’t get off to a good start at all but thankfully things did get much better and it actually ended up being quite an interesting holiday featuring some new places.

As soon as the electricity was back on mid-afternoon we went out to regular haunt Mount Komuro to enjoy the clear blue skies and sunshine. It was my wife’s birthday on day two of our trip and, following a stressful morning of dealing with electricians, she opted to ascend the mountain by Continue reading →

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Twists & Turns Aplenty At Japan’s Title-Deciding Rugby Play-Off Final

Posted on May 29, 2024 by tokyofox

At the end of a long league season, it is my opinion that the team finishing top should be crowned as champions. However, some sports have some money-spinning play-off matches to decide who the champions are. Since the turn of the century, my home country England has used this system in slightly different styles to end the rugby season which more often than not has seen the team that won the regular season losing out in the Play Offs. Would the same happen in Japan?

Cup final day at the National Stadium

The Rugby League One Championship Play-Off Final was contested between the top two sides at Japan National Stadium on a sunny afternoon last Sunday. Saitama Wild Knights finished on top of the regular season with a 100% Continue reading →

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Izu Coastal Adventures: A Uniquely Coloured Torii Gate, Northern Izu’s Finest Beach & The Real Life ‘Shogun’ Setting

Posted on May 26, 2024 by tokyofox

One of the nicest times to visit the Izu Peninsula is spring time when the climate is warm and pleasant without the ridiculous heat and humidity of the summer months. Coastal areas in particular make for good trips from our base in Ito and this post features three different places I explored on our most recent travels in this wonderful part of Shizuoka Prefecture.

First up is the bay just to the north of Continue reading →

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The Tokyo Derby You’ve Never Heard Of!

Posted on May 22, 2024 by tokyofox

Ask any fans of Japanese football what the Tokyo Derby is and the majority of people would probably say it’s FC Tokyo versus Tokyo Verdy although supporters of current J1 table toppers Machida Zelvia may suggest otherwise! Hipsters may suggest that it’s Tokyo Musashino against Criacao Shinjuku in the fourth tier of the football pyrmaid which is  known as the Japan Football League (JFL). However, there is actually another Tokyo Derby one league down from there and I recently witnessed it live and in person.

It may have been the Tokyo Derby but it was actually played in one of the Continue reading →

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Surviving Without Electricity For 24 Hours In The Modern Day Is More Difficult Than You Might Think!

Posted on May 18, 2024 by tokyofox

They say history doesn’t repeat itself but yet again our most recent trip to Izu got off to a very bad start.

This picture was from December 2023. Just imagine a similar situation but minus the candles!

With sunny days on the horizon I decided to travel light but that did mean I felt a bit stupid and out of place dressed in just shorts and a t-shirt on the day we went to Izu in Shizuoka Prefecture. That was because the temperature had dropped a fair bit from previous days. It was Continue reading →

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I Went To The Most Prestigious Club Final In Asian Football For The 2nd Year In A Row!

Posted on May 14, 2024 by tokyofox

After surprisingly getting a ticket for the Asian Champions League (ACL) Final last year (although technically it was the 2022 final) I really was not expecting to go to another one anytime soon. However, when I noticed that Yokohama F. Marinos had made it to the semi final of this year’s tournament I began to think it was a possibility.

Marinos just about squeezed their way through the semi-final against Korea’s Ulsan Hyundai and so I waited patiently for Continue reading →

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Is It Worth Visiting The Japanese Fishing Village Which Was The Setting For The TV Series Shogun?

Posted on May 10, 2024 by tokyofox

Whilst watching the recent Disney+ TV show ‘Shōgun‘ I was surprised to hear the name of a familiar fishing village mentioned throughout the ten-part series. It is located a short distance north of our holiday home on the east coast of the Izu Peninsula but despite making dozens and dozens of visits to this region of Shizuoka Prefecture over the years we have never done anything more than pass through it without ever even thinking of going there. That changed on our most recent holiday but is it actually worth a visit?

The aforementioned TV series is the critically acclaimed adaptation of James Clavell’s epnoymous 1975 novel which was set in the complex period leading up to the turn of the 17th century. This historical-fiction is told through the perspective of English navigator John Blackthorne (Cosmo Jarvis) after he is shipwrecked off the coast of a humble  Japanese fishing village called Continue reading →

Posted in Family, Japan Filming Locations, Japan Travel, TV Shows | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

TF Flashback: Travels Around Japan’s Most Southern Main Island With My In-Laws

Posted on May 5, 2024 by tokyofox

 

It’s been a decade since I last visited Kyushu; the most southern of Japan’s main four islands. Back in May 2014 my girlfriend (now wife) and I met up with her parents and Momiji the dog (god, rest her soul) to travel around Kumamoto Prefecture. First, we had a few days to ourselves in Nagasaki. When thinking of this city first thoughts often turn to the atomic bomb that was dropped on it in 1945. Urukami is the hypocentre of the explosion and there are a few bomb-blasted relics, monuments and paper cranes in the spacious concrete park.

The Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum was basically our first port of call and it was inevitably a chilling Continue reading →

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Show Your Star Wars Passion, Strength & Power By Visiting This Unique Collection of Artwork In Tokyo

Posted on May 1, 2024 by tokyofox

Before I knew all about the festivities taking place in Yokohama, my main focus for the ‘May the 4th be with you’ season (it’s no longer just a single day of celebrating one’s love of the sci-fi saga!) was just to visit a Star Wars art exhibition taking place in Tokyo.

Many Parco shopping centres in Japan have some kind of Star Wars related theme running through them at the moment but the one in Shibuya is holding a “Passion. Strength. Power” exhibition featuring a unique collection of work from about a dozen artists. Tokyo Fox was there on the opening day last Continue reading →

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The Countdown to Star Wars Day 2024 Has Begun With 11 Days of Festivities in Japan’s 2nd Biggest City!

Posted on April 27, 2024 by tokyofox

Way back in 1994 on a Bank Holiday Monday I was listening to the radio in the UK when I first heard the “May the 4th be with you” line which in the last decade or so has really taken off around the world with various Star Wars-related events taking place to mark the occasion. Japan has got in on the act in recent years and now one can expect to see some kind of event or celebration of the franchise every year.

The day does fall nicely for people living in Japan as it is in the middle of the annual Golden Week holiday which means the vast majority of people (outside of the service industry) are not at work and able to partake in any activities should they wish to do so. Mind you, there is competition from proper, more traditional holidays like Greenery Day and Children’s Day.

The Star Wars themed stuff used to be only for the big day itself but in the last few years it has Continue reading →

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