More glimpses of unfamiliar Japan

The first few miles of the pilgrimage path, from temple 1 to temple 3, are along asphalt, but not long after temple 3 the way follows a sm...

The seventh day of our trek across the Jebel Sahro in southern Morocco began with a crystal clear sky. We were coming down into the Dra...

Ushioni, demons with the head of a cow, appear in legends and stories all over western Japan. Probably the most well-known nowadays are...

The Steel Hut, along with the Silver Hut , make up the Toyo Ito Museum of Architecture. Unsurprisingly it was designed by architect Toy...

This is the biggest (tallest) torii made of stone in Japan. It is located in front of Warei Shrine in Uwajima, Ehime, on Shikoku. It is 12...

Only one kilometer from temple 6, Jurakuji is the eighth temple on the Shikoku Pilgrimage. The name means "temple of ten Joys" a...

It is impossible to walk the Shikoku Pilgrimage without walking through a variety of tunnels. I haven't sat down and calculated how...

So, it's about one-thirty in the morning and the sixth dance of the matsuri begins, Daikoku and Ebisu. There is not really a story, ...

Jinpukaku is a European-style mansion originally planned as a villa for the Ikeda family, the former Lords of Tottori. It was built in the...

There are several kagura dances that have women who become demons, and the Kijo mask is one used in the transformation. Momijigari (sho...