This representative Japanese summer festival originated 400 years ago in “Awa,” what is now Tokushima Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. It is also performed in Tokyo, and attracts as many as three million spectators. The dancers sing and prance, chanting “Odoru aho ni miru aho, onaji aho nara odoranya son-son” (Dancers and watches alike are fools, so why not dance?). Numerous groups engage competitions. I never get tired of festivals like this one.
In northern Japan, there is a lot of snow and winter events. The most famous one is Sapporo Snow Festival. This year too, it was a big event. However, some of them didn’t have much snow and big ones were not made. Even so, the buildings made of powerful snow attracted many people.
Kyoto is beautifully lit up at night. There are a lot of people, but our guide knows the out-of-the-way spots. Please let us know and contact us for more information.
There are many fancy cafes in Kyoto. Many old Japanese houses have been renovated into cafes, which have a different atmosphere from chain stores like Starbucks. However, foreign cafes are expanding into Kyoto. This Blue Bottle Coffee is one of them, and they are using their financial resources to renovate a big Kyoto Machiya and open a new store. Due to the coronavirus, there are few people in the city, but cafes are relatively busy.
Hiroshima is famous as the world’s first place where an atomic bomb was dropped. The Atomic Bomb Dome is registered as a World Heritage Site, and I would like you to see it when you visit Hiroshima. You might have a dark image, but there are many fancy cafes and restaurants in the park around there, and the local oyster is also delicious.
Nikko is famous as a World Heritage Site, but there are many attractions. One is Lake Chuzenji, which is 1000 meters high. In winter, the temperature drops to minus 10 degrees, but the air is clear and you can see the stars clearly. The sunset is exceptionally beautiful. There is also a hot spring, so you can get warm even in winter.
Many people are refraining from sightseeing because of the new coronavirus. At least let’s enjoy with photos. This is the world’s largest wooden gate in Kyoto. It is in a temple called Chion-in. You can sometimes visit it at night. You can see the night view of Kyoto from the second floor of the gate.
Recently in Japan, news of coronavirus is reported almost every day. It’s a big blow to the tourist industry, but conversely, there are very few tourists, so you can walk around the city comfortably. The hotel rates are also very cheap! The fatality rate is 1% according to the US scientists, so you don’t have to worry so much.
There are temples and shrines in Japan. Do you know the difference? One big difference is that temples have a fixed closing time, but shrines are basically open all the time. That means you can enter 24 hours. (It’s a general story, not every place.) It’s a little scary at night, but Japan is a safe country, so you can hike at night and enjoy the night view from around the summit as shown in this photo. Let’s experience Japan at night with our guide!
Recently in Japan, evening entertainment has been enriched. With the increase in the number of visitors to Japan, events and festivals to entertain people at night are increasing. You can see it at night in temples like this.