Namiki

The idea of planting trees along the roadside to provide shade for travelers had occurred to the Chinese when they developed their highway system more than 2000 years ago. Almost... Read more...
The Ashita Honjin

Although only a small town, Ashita boasts the oldest surviving honjin on the Nakasendo. It has also been owned by the same family since its' original construction in the late... Read more...
Castle Towns

At the time of the Meiji Restoration, in 1868, some 250 castle towns (jokamachi) formed the core of a well developed urban network in Japan. Although constructed primarily as defended... Read more...
The Shinkansen

The Shinkansen is commonly known outside Japan as the 'bullet train' but the word actually means 'new trunk line'. It is a high-speed passenger train system which now stretches from... Read more...
Kyoto Development Issues

Kyoto holds a unique position in Japan as the ancient, imperial capital and the cultural center of the nation. It was because of these reasons that the Japan specialists who... Read more...
Pilgrimage

The idea of making a pilgrimage to visit religious places is present in nearly every culture and religion. In Japan, it is typical of both major religions, Buddhism and Shinto... Read more...
Landslides

The mountains in Japan are very steep and the rocks unstable due to weathering. Landslides are common whenever there are heavy rains. Many rural villages have established themselves along the... Read more...
Omote-ura - Public and Private Faces

Omote (the public face) and ura (the private face) are twin concepts that are applied to almost any aspect of Japan or life in Japan. Omote refers to the image... Read more...

Futuristic Railways

The Shinkansen

The Shinkansen is commonly known outside Japan as the ‘bullet train’ but the word actually means ‘new trunk line’. It is a high-speed passenger train system which now stretches from the southern island of Kyushu to the main island of Honshu with Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto and Tokyo connected. A new line stretches north from… [Read more]

Future Railways

Given the size of the country and its geography, trains are the best form of transport between most points: only a traveler moving between the extreme ends of the country would save time taking a plane instead of a train. The Shinkansen lines which are still being built are based on technology which is fundamentally… [Read more]

Provinces
Prior to the creation of the present system of prefectures (1871), Japan’s administrative sub-divisions were called provinces. The 60-odd provinces were established on the Chinese model in the 7th and 8th century, each with a governor and an administrative bureaucracy. The system slowly broke down and was replaced by feudal domains as power flowed away from the imperial court at Kyoto and into the hands of the samurai class. The names of provinces continued to be used, however and some of the positions such as governor were continued as honors with little or no reality.

Namiki

The Ashita Honjin

Castle Towns

The Shinkansen

Kyoto Development Issues

Pilgrimage

Landslides

Omote-ura - Public and Private Faces

The Shinkansen

Future Railways

Mon - Family Crests

Descent from the gods

Climatic Disasters

Rural Depopulation

Karuizawa

Futuristic Railways

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