Like this post? Help us by sharing it! With a major samurai exhibition coming to the British Museum this year, and a new Shōgun series is on the way, The Telegraph writer John Gimlette went looking for the real thing in Japan. He travelled on our Samurai Footsteps itinerary – and found the samurai legacy […]
Culture & History
How to hanami: Our guide to cherry blossom season in Japan
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! Cherry blossoms – or sakura – are one of Japan’s most recognisable seasonal markers, rich in symbolism as well as beauty. What began as a pastime for Heian-era nobles later became a symbol of impermanence for the samurai – a metaphor for dying young in battle, […]
Perspectives of Hiroshima: through its people
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! Four different views of the city, through four different guides. Hiroshima is a place with many stories to tell: those of a city devastated by the world’s first atomic bombing, those of its victims, its survivors, and its aftermath. There are the stories of Hiroshima’s recovery and […]
Shipbuilding, lemons, salt: Exploring Setoda Town, Hiroshima
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! A stepping stone across the Seto Inland Sea between Honshu and Shikoku, Ikuchijima is an island where the gentle pace of life gets you the moment you arrive: you can’t help but slow down. Freelance writer and editor Kate Crockett recently explored Ikuchijima as part of her […]
The places in-between: Nagoya
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! The places in-between: Nagoya Most visitors to Japan could point out Tokyo and Kyoto blindfolded. But Nagoya? Many speed through on the Shinkansen bullet train without even noticing. Yet this is a city that has shaped Japan’s past and present far more than its modest profile suggests. […]
The places in-between: Nagasaki
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! The places in-between: Nagasaki For 220 years, Japan was largely closed to the outside world. Only those the Shogunate permitted could trade, visit or leave. All trading ports closed – except Nagasaki. The city was one of Japan’s few cultural and commercial exchange points for over two […]
Like this post? Help us by sharing it! The places in-between: Nagasaki For 220 years, Japan was largely closed to the outside world. Only those the Shogunate permitted could trade, visit or leave. All trading ports closed – except Nagasaki. The city was one of Japan’s few cultural and commercial exchange points for over two […]