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Design Festa
Design Festa has been a leader in Tokyo’s DIY art scene for over a decade. The madhouse building itself is worth a visit; it’s always evolving. Inside there are a dozen small galleries rented by the day. Design Festa also sponsors a twice-yearly exhibition, actually Asia’s largest
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Byakui Dai
Built in 1936, this statue of Kannon (Goddess of Mercy) is one of the largest in Japan, standing at 41.8m tall and weighing over 6000 tons. You can walk inside the statue up to her shoulder for excellent views. To get here, take the gururin bus (¥200, 20 minutes) from JR Takasaki S
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Dembō
To the left of the Sensō-ji temple precinct lies garden Dembō-in, not usually open to the public. The garden adjoins the residence of the chief priest of Sensō-ji, with grounds thought to have been designed sometime in the late 18th century to resemble those of Katsura-rikyu, the s
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Foreigners Cemetery
The Foreigners Cemetery, an interesting slice of local history, contains the graves of sailors, clergy and others who died far away from their homelands. Many of the graves are marked with English, Russian or French inscriptions. The first to be buried here were two sailors from th
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Onomichi Literature Museum
Close to Hōdo-ji, the fourth temple along Onomichis temple walk, this museum features displays on the lives and works of Hayashi Fumiko and other writers connected with Onomichi. Its interesting for fans of Japanese literature, and if you can speak or read some Japanese, but there
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Kumamoto Prefectural Traditional Crafts Centre
Near the prefectural art museum annexe, this large facility displays local Higo inlay, Yamaga lanterns, porcelain and woodcarvings, many for sale in the excellent museum shop (free entry). Sakuranobaba Johsaien and the Kumamoto Prefectural Products Centre also sell craft items (plu
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Atago
Originally constructed at the behest of Tokugawa Ieyasu, Atagos main feature is its giant stone stairway at the entrance. The shrine itself sits at the top – a welcome reward for huffing visitors. In Edo times it doubled as a fire watchtower, and thus Homusubi no Mikoto, the Shintō
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Usa
The sprawling, wooded and water-crossed Usa-jingū, the original of which dates back some 1200 years, is the chief shrine among some 40,000 in Japan dedicated to the warrior-god Hachiman. It’s a 4km bus or taxi ride from Usa Station (get off at Usa-Hachiman-mae), on the JR Nippō lin
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Urakami Cathedral
Once the largest church in Asia (1914), the cathedral took three decades to complete and three seconds to flatten. This smaller replacement cathedral was completed in 1959 on the ruins of the original. Walk around the side of the hill to see a belfry lying in state where the origin
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Yonaha
On the southwest coast, beautiful Yonaha-Maehama is a 6km stretch of white sand that attracts a lot of families and young folks due to its shallow waters. Its a lovely beach, but it can get crowded and the presence of the occasional jet-ski is a drawback. Its just before the Kurima
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National Museum of Modern Art (MOMAT)
This collection of over 9000 works is one of the countrys best. All pieces date from the Meiji period onwards and impart a sense of a more modern Japan through portraits, photography and contemporary sculptures and video works. Theres a wonderful view from the museum towards the Im
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Old Hokkaidō Government Office Building
Known by all as Akarenga (red bricks), this magnificent neo-baroque building was constructed of bricks in 1888 and is surrounded by lovely lawns and gardens. There are various historical exhibits and art on show. While Akarenga closes at 6pm, the gardens are open until 9pm and are
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Tōkei
Across the railway tracks from Engaku-ji, Tōkei-ji is famed as having served as a womens refuge. A woman could be officially recognised as divorced after three years as a nun in the temple precincts. Today, there are no nuns; the grave of the last abbess can be found in the cemeter
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Tokyo Wonder Site Hongo
Operated by the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Tokyo Wonder Site comprises three floors of galleries with the aim of promoting new and emerging artists. There is a regularly changing program of exhibitions, competitions and lectures in media ranging from painting to video art. Chec
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Tsukuriyama
The 5th-century Tsukuriyama-kofun is the fourth-biggest kofun tomb in Japan, thought to mark the final resting place of a local king who ruled the Kibi region when this area was a rival power to the Yamato court (which eventually came to rule the country). This is one of the key si
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Umigame
This nonprofit organisation has displays and information about the turtles, mostly in Japanese. During nesting (June and July) and hatching (August) seasons, they arrange night tours on the beach. In order to protect the nesting turtles, eggs and hatchlings, it is imperative that v
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Sai
Built in 2006 on the site of historic thatched-roof houses washed away in a typhoon 40 years earlier, these reconstructed frames offer an insight into a forgotten time. There are demonstrations of silk and paper crafts as well as restaurants specialising in soba and hōtō . The Retr
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Kanzeon
Adjacent to the monastery, this temple dates from 746 but only the great bell (said to be Japans oldest) remains from the original construction. Its treasure hall has an impressive collection of statuary, most of it wood, dating from the 10th to 12th centuries. Many of the items sh
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Japan Ukiyo
Housing more than 100,000 wood-block prints, paintings, screens and old books, this renowned museum exhibits but a fraction of its collection. The museum is approximately 3km from JR Matsumoto Station, 15 minutes walk from Ōniwa Station on the Matsumoto Dentetsu line (¥180, six min
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Date Museum
The well-presented exhibits at the excellent Date Museum are dedicated to the Date family, who ruled Uwajima from the castle for 250 years during the Tokugawa period. The explanations are mostly in Japanese, but a lot of the stuff on display – swords, armour, palanquins and lacquer
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