by Philbert Ono
Compiled by Philbert Ono, Updated: Oct. 11, 2019 This is the 2019 schedule of Awa Odori dance festivals to be held in the Tokyo/Kanto area (Tokyo, Saitama, Kanagawa, and Chiba Prefectures) from June to October 2019. Nobody has compiled such a schedule so I did it myself. Most Awa Odori are held in the summer and a few are held
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Kameido Tenjin Shrine (亀戸天神社) is one of Tokyo’s most beloved Shinto shrines. It has pretty flowers, it’s photogenic, it’s historical, and it retains a local ambience. From late April to early May, the shrine grounds will be colored purple during its annual Wisteria Festival (Fuji Matsuri 藤まつり). The shrine is central Tokyo’s most famous spot for wisteria, and people crowd
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“Kyoto by the Sea” (海の京都) is a tourism catch phrase for northern Kyoto Prefecture that mainly faces the Sea of Japan. This region is most famous for Amanohashidate (天橋立), Ine fishing boat houses, Tango Peninsula, Tango chirimen silk fabrics, Kurotani washi paper, Maizuru navy town, and the castle town of Fukuchiyama. For a few days in October 2018, I visited
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After Amanohashidate, the next must-see place is Tango Peninsula, the main part of Kyoto by the Sea (northern Kyoto). On the east coast of the peninsula is Ine (伊根), a picturesque fishing village right on the water’s edge. The waterfront homes are unique for having built-in funaya “boat garages” (舟屋) to keep a boat next to the water. The Ine
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On a map, Tango Peninsula (Tango Hanto 丹後半島) in northern Kyoto Prefecture looks like a short thumb sticking into the Sea of Japan. Some parts of the coast are quite dramatic or scenic as I found out when I once bicycled around it years ago. It took a day, and it’s much easier to enjoy the coastal scenery on a
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On the northern and less crowded part of the JR Yamanote Line in Tokyo is Sugamo Station. Sugamo is famous for the Jizo-Dori shopping street near the train station. Dubbed the “Grandma’s Harajuku,” Jizo-Dori is supposedly where the elderly do their fashion shopping. Although shops do cater to the older generation, it is also lined with about 200 restaurants, confection
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In Oct. 2018, I visited Toyooka, Hyogo Prefecture for the first time. Famous for the Oriental white stork, Toyooka turned out to be a great tourist town with lots to see besides the beautiful storks. Toyooka is about a 2.5-hour express train ride north of Osaka or Kyoto Station. First on my list for Toyooka was the Hyogo Park of
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