Awa Odori 2024 schedule in Tokyo-Kanto
Compiled by Philbert Ono, Updated: Aug. 25, 2024 This is the 2024 schedule of Awa Odori dance festivals to be held in the Tokyo/Kanto area (Tokyo, Saitama, Kanagawa, and Chiba…
Japan’s tourist crowds in spring 2024
Japan is seeing record numbers of foreign tourists ever since Japan fully reopened to overseas tourists in Oct. 2022. The pent-up demand for Japan together with the favorable currency exchange…
Big Three plum blossoms in eastern Tokyo
In eastern Tokyo (the area near Tokyo Skytree), there is a trio of major plum blossom spots: Kameido Tenjin Shrine (亀戸天神社), Omurai Katori Shrine Kobaien Plum Garden (小村井香取神社 香梅園), and…
Origin of Tokyo prefectural name
TOKYO – East Imperial Capital 東京都 Out of all the 47 prefectural names, Tokyo (東京) and Kyoto (京都) are the easiest to understand in meaning. The 京 (kyo) kanji character…
Dragons in Japan
Wishing you the best in 2024, the Year of the Dragon. My heart goes out to people in Ishikawa (especially Noto Peninsula) and Toyama Prefectures starting off the new year…
Asakusa Sensoji New Year’s Day worship 2024
🎍On January 1, 2024, I went to Sensoji Temple (浅草寺) in Asakusa, Tokyo’s most famous Buddhist temple and one of the most popular places in Japan for hatsumode (初詣) or…
Illustrated guide to Harry Potter Studio Tour Tokyo
Went to see the huge Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo – The Making of Harry Potter in Oct. 2023, four months after it opened in June 16, 2023. It was…
Musical: The Dream of John Manjiro
“The Dream of John Manjiro” or John Manjirō no Yume (ジョン万次郎の夢) is the title of a Japanese musical being staged in Japan nationwide from March 2023 to March 2024 by…
Tokyo Marathon 2023 best costumes
Welcome back Tokyo Marathon! It was finally held at full scale (38,000 runners) on March 5, 2023 for the first time since 2019. Runners from overseas also ran en masse…
Digital Gallery of Hōryūji Treasures at Tokyo National Museum
Updated: Feb. 18, 2024 Tokyo National Museum (東京国立博物館) in Ueno Park, Tokyo is one of Japan’s most prominent museums. Clustered in six museum buildings, one is the swank-looking Gallery of…