Staying in Sendai certainly has its advantages – find yourself with a free afternoon and you can easily jump on a train out of the city and be standing at the foot of one of Japan’s most beautiful mountain temples in less than one hour (not to mention the picturesque scenery of Tohoku’s countryside and […]
Sakurabito: 桜人/ An old word used since the 11th century, meaning a person enjoying cherry blossoms. This word is often used for haiku as a seasonal word expresses spring. I could not wait for spring after the cold snowy winter in Sendai. I enjoyed my first winter in Japan by going to Yamadera, Rifu, Yonezawa and […]
Hanami (花見), literally meaning flower (花 ‘hana’) viewing (見 ‘mi’ from 見る ‘miru’ – to look), is a part of Japanese culture with a long history. Practiced since the 7th century, people first enjoyed ‘hanami’ by viewing the blossoms of Japanese plum (梅 ‘ume’). It was in the Heian Period in the early 8th century when Hanami become analogous to cherry […]
Your visit to Japan is incomplete without seeing the lovely cherry blossoms, with its colors painted in different shades of pink and even sometimes appearing like flowing tears reaching to the ground. And whether you are just a casual enthusiast with a smart phone or a professional photographer, taking scenic pictures of Japan in spring should […]
When it comes to springtime there are plenty of choices view sakura near Sendai, be it inside the city in Nishi-kouen or Tsutsujigaoka-kouen, or outside, such as Ogawara. However of people always flock to those places, so if you would like to avoid crowds to enjoy sakura in your own relaxing bubble, I suggest you go to […]
Urabandai snow Festival in Fukushima Prefecture is one of the top ten most popular snow festivals in Japan. The events of Eco Night Fantasy begin as the sun goes down in the early evening. The view of warmly shining lanterns hangin from the tree shinning is very touching. The white snow on the ground was covered with […]
April is spring time! It is the time for flowers to present their charm; especially Sakura (cherry blossom), the symbol of Japan. Japanese people have a great culture of “Hanami”, or flower viewing. When the spring flowers, particularly Sakura, start to bloom, many Japanese people will get together with their family, friends or workmates to sit under the trees and eat some food (and […]
Conveniently located not so far away from Sendai, Futakuchi Canyon is an enchanting spot for a quick getaway from the hustle and bustle of the city – and it is relatively unknown to most people. NOTE: Access information will be provided at the end of the article. Last Autumn I was feeling a bit bored […]
Last time, I introduced you to 4 good places to eat in Sanjo-machi. They are cheap, close to the dormitories of Tohoku University, and delicious without doubt! But there are more than just 4 restaurants offering great cuisine hiding in the streets of Sanjo-machi. So now, I am going to tell let you in on some more well-kept secrets 🙂 1.千極煮干(Sengokuniboshi) […]
Your Japan experience will never be complete without indulging yourself with fresh high quality seafood. If you’re a picky eater like me (I usually don’t like to eat some kinds of seafood like awabi (abalone) tai (sea bream) sanma (pacific saury), etc) then ‘Nokke-don’ is perfect for you! Nokke-don (which means rice bowl with toppings) […]
