Interesting stuff on the WWW

Here is a smattering of interesting sites and blogs Ive come across recently

Walking Through Japan is a blog being written by I believe a Swiss gentleman who is partway along a walk from the northern tip of Hokkaido down to the southern tip of Kyushu. The blog is in English but I think there is also a german and a japanese version.

Kyoto Gardens , not surprisingly, is about temple gardens in Kyoto. Whats nice about it is that one can "walk" through and around the gardens

Shimane Mask maker is a recent article from the Japan Times about yours truly....

Ex-SKF is a great site for anyone wanting to keep up with the news (and disinformation) about the ongoing nuclear crisis. The author is Japanese and he translates all the Japanese news articles as well as tweets and blogs from workers at the nuclear plant. Most importantly he "connects the dots" between the scattered bits of information coming out as well as offering his readings of the meaning......

Andante Photography is an Osaka based Japanese photographer. Simply good photos.

Jenna Pollard is a young woman over here for a year teaching English in local schools so her blog does cover Iwami and surrounding areas.

Iwami Travel Guide is written by students at the University in Hamada.

Enjoy

Some other glimpses...

Here are a few more blogs that I've recently discovered and added to my links list. Enjoy!

Flightytemptress365
One photo a day from an island in Nagasaki


Osaka Insider
A blog that delves into Osaka and the Kansai area


Sendai-Shi
Lots of photos and interesting info from the Occupation era.


Spice of Life
One photo a day from Kyoto and environs.

more cool links!

I recently had my computer crash, and while I was able to retrieve most of my data, one thing I lost were my web bookmarks. In trying to refind them I've come across these useful websites that I have added to the links on the right of this page.

Contemporary Japanese Architects is a photographic database of modern architecture in Japan. Search is by an index of each architects name. The photos are excellent quality, though there is no other information other than location and date. The collection is mostly focussed on Tokyo. I found this site while researching for my own humble architecture posts.

JAANUS stands for Japanese Architecture and Art Net Users System, and calls itself a dictionary, but is more like an encyclopedia. The database is searched by keyword, and I often come to this site when researching obscure aspects of shrine architecture.

Japanese Old Photographs is a huge collection of photos of Japan from the library collection of Nagasaki University. You can search for photos by location, subject, or photographer.

Old Photos of Japan is a blog I found thanks to Quirky Japan Blog. There is a daily post of an old photos with extensive details and information about the subject of each photo

Recommended Japan web resources

These are five websites that I access regularly, and for those living in Japan, or those interested in visiting, they all offer valuable information.

Japan Map

This is the complete geologic survey map of Japan. From the home page, click either of these

and you are taken to a map of Japan. Click on the map where you want to see, and again at the next level. The contour map is zoomable, and scrollable. Train stations, Post Offices, schools, shrines, temples, etc are all marked. A word of warning.... Japan is building new roads constantly, and in some cases the map has not been recently enough updated to include the changes, also many of the footpaths that are marked have fallen into disuse and no longer exist. I sometimes double-check with Google Maps, but it is still the map I print out and refer to on my walks, wether in countryside or city.


Hyperdia timetable

For finding routes and times for train journeys in Japan, this site is excellent. Not only that, but it is simplicity itself. Enter start point, destination, date, and time, and hey presto the first 5 choices are shown. It works with all the private rail lines as well as JR, and also includes connecting buses. Completely detailed with changes, waiting times, and ticket prices.


ZNET Japan

In-depth articles by many good historians and journalists that cover the issues you won't read about in Japan's banal and incredibly non-controversial media. Labor issues, Japan's international relations, Article 9 and military, historical revisionism, etc. much of this material is translated from Japanese. There is also a small set of links to other alternate media sites on Japan.


Encyclopedia of Shinto

This is a huge site, and is the complete translation of the Encyclopedia of Shinto into English. Laid out in the original chapters, the online version has added short videos and an excellent search function. If there is anything you want to know about Shinto, this is the place. I write a lot about shrines and ceremonies, and often this is the only place to find information in English. Any shinto terminology in my blogs that you aren't sure about, definitions can be found here.


Gensyoushi

This is a directory of thousands of the older, major, Shinto shrines in Japan. The opening page gives you a clickable map of Japan. Choose your area, and the left of the page is a list of shrines organized by old province names. Each shrine page has many photos, all the relevant historical information, and a map link.