Author: Philbert Ono

Ashikaga Flower Park is insanely awesome for its massive and numerous wisteria that bloom from late April to mid-May. It also has colorful azaleas and rhododendron. Eye-popping flower park with…

Every spring in April, we hear on the news that the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route has been cleared of snow to create these snow walls on the mountain road (upper left…

“Goshiki-numa” means “Five-Color Ponds,” a very appropriate name for these colorful, volcanic ponds near Mt. Bandai (磐梯山) in Bandai-Asahi National Park. An eruption by Mt. Bandai in 1888 created landslides…

About an hour by express train from Tokyo (Kinshicho), Satte is on the way to Nikko in Tochigi Prefecture. Satte is famous for these cherry blossoms (sakura) and rapeseed flowers…

Odaiba is Tokyo’s foremost waterfront area with large shopping malls, luxury hotels, beaches, park areas, Giant Unicorn Gundam, and Tokyo 2020 Olympic venues. Pleasant place to hang out. In the…

Years ago, my very first trip to Wakayama Prefecture included a visit to Minabe Plum Grove, Japan’s largest ume plum grove. It was fabulous. Plum blossoms covered the hills as…

by Philbert Ono Updated: Jan. 26, 2021 Part of an article series on Yaeyama folklore in scenic Okinawa, Japan. (八重山名勝の民話・民謡の英語訳シリーズ記事) On a recent trip to Japan’s most remote islands, the…

by Philbert Ono Updated: Jan. 6, 2021 Part of an article series on Yaeyama folklore in scenic Okinawa, Japan.(八重山名勝の民話・民謡の英語訳シリーズ記事) “Tinsagu nu Hana” (てぃんさぐぬ花) is one of the most famous and…

by Philbert Ono Updated: January 6, 2021 Part of an article series on Yaeyama folklore in scenic Okinawa, Japan.(八重山名勝の民話・民謡の英語訳シリーズ記事) Called tsukimi (月見) in Japanese, moon viewing has long been a…

by Philbert Ono Updated: Jan. 6, 2020 Part of an article series on Yaeyama folklore in scenic Okinawa, Japan.(八重山名勝の民話・民謡の英語訳シリーズ記事) Mt. Nosokodake (野底岳), north of central Ishigaki, is Ishigaki’s second highest…