More glimpses of unfamiliar Japan

  Karatsu Kunchi is the main festival of the coastal castle town of Karatsu on the coast of Saga in northern Kyushu. It takes place on Novem...

  Sagimai, the Dance of the Herons, is an elegant,  medieval dance that originates in the Gion Matsuri, the Kyoto festival that is  the most...

  When I saw the shimenawa on the torii to Yodohime Shrine I knew it was unusual, but only when I did the research for this post did I reali...

  By the 17th century there were Chinese settlements all over Kyushu engaged in trade. In 1635 the Japanese government restricted all trade ...

Hita Gion Matsuri Museum Hita, the historic town in the mountains of Oita, is one of many towns throughout Japan with their own Gion Matsu...

Yatsushiro I arrived at Yatsushiro Shrine in late November on the 44th day of my first walk around Kyushu. A few days earlier was the Yatsus...

After getting my hotel room in Hayato I set off the explore the local shrine, Kagoshima Jingu, and was delighted to discover that this e...