Topics

The major topics, sub-topics and post-towns are listed below. (We have taken some literary license in this project in that we have omitted some of the post-towns and substituted places, such as mountain passes or fictional inns. We have, however, honored the historic reality of 69 post-towns by having 69 places, post-towns, passes and inns.)

General subject	Topics	Post-town (or place)
Kyoto Development	Kyoto Development Issues	Kyoto
Politics in the 19th Century: Shogun vs Emperor	Takayama Hikokuro Shogunate Tokugawa Political System Emperor and Shogun: The Political Scene in the 1860s The Journey to Osaka Toge	Sanjo Ohashi
Climate and Geography	The Japanese Landscape Seasons and Climate The Journey to Otsu	Osaka-toge (pass)
Post-Towns	Hiroshige The Function of Post-Towns The Journey to Seta	Otsu
The Imperial Dynasty	Descent from the Gods The Origins of the Japanese People Dynastic Struggles The Journey to Omi Kokufu	Seta
Early History	Chinese Influence The First Cities The Early Road System Korean Influence The Journey to Kusatsu	Omi Kokufu
Go-Kaido(The Five Highways)	Sankin kotai and the Hostage System The Five Roads Express Post The Journey to Takamiya	Kusatsu
Omi Merchants and Commerce	Commerce Omi Merchants The Journey to Hikone	Takamiya
Castle Towns	Ii Naosuke Castle Towns The Story of Hikone Castle Town The Journey to Toriimoto	Hikone
Artisans	The Japanese Family System Craft Industry The Journey to Surihari-toge	Toriimoto
Fire	Tea Houses Fire The Journey to Bamba	Surihari-toge (pass)
Road Transportation	Road Transport Porters and Carriers The Journey to Sekigahara	Bamba
The Economy	The Japanese Economy	An Inn near Sekigahara
The Battle of Sekigahara	The Battleground at Sekigahara The Story of the Battle of Sekigahara The Outcome of the Battle of Sekigahara The Warring States Period The Journey to Tarui	Sekigahara
Rivers and Water	River Crossings River and Sea Transport Hydro-electric Power The Journey to Mieji	Tarui
Agriculture	Agriculture Rice Farming Upland Farming Market Gardening The Journey to Gifu	Mieji
The Military	Self Defense Forces Oda Nobunaga Prefectural Capitals The Journey to Mitake	Gifu
Road and Wayside Features	Namiki Ichirizuka Dosojin Ishidatami The Journey to Saito	Mitake
Religions	Christianity Shinto Buddhism The Journey to Hosokute	Saito
Rural Problems	Rural Depopulation The Graying of Japan The Journey to Biwa-toge	Hosokute
Travelers on the Nakasendo	The Story of Princess Kazunomiya Who Traveled the Nakasendo? The Journey to Okute	Biwa-toge (pass)
Post-town Layout	Post-town Layout Honjin (primary inn) Waki-honjin (assistant principal inn) Kosatsuba (official notice boards) Masugata (right-angle turns) Toiya/Tonya (shipping agent) Bansho (guard stations) Joyato (all-night lanterns) The Journey to Jusan-toge	Okute
Rural Sports	Golf Rural Sports The Journey to Nakatsugawa	Jusan-toge (pass)
Education	The Education System	An Inn near Nakatsugawa
Elections and Modern Politics	Political Campaigning The Present Political Structure Political Parties The 1992 Upper House Election The Journey to Shinchaya	Nakatsugawa
Basho and Poetry	Haiku/Haikai Poems Basho’s Life and Work The Journey to Magome	Shinchaya
Shimazaki Toson and Novels	The Novel in Japan Toson’s Life and Work The Journey to Odaki-Medaki	Magome
Samurai	The Way of the Sword Ronin (masterless samurai) Miyamoto Musashi The Journey to O-tsumago	Odaki-Medaki
Traditional Architecture	The Traditional Inn Traditional House Architecture Gardens The Kura (storehouse) The Journey to Tsumago	O-tsumago
Tourism	The Japanese Tourist The Journey to Midono	Tsumago
Railways	Railways The Impact of the Railways The Romanticism of the Railways The Journey to Agematsu	Midono
Forestry	The Kiso Forest The Journey to Kiso-Fukushima	Agematsu
Constitutions	Personal Freedom and Civil Liberty The Meiji Constitution The Present Constitution and Political System Article 9	An Inn near Kiso-Fukushima
Pilgrimage	Ontake Pilgrimage Ise Shrines The Journey to Mienokoshi	Kiso-Fukushima
National Sports	Sumo Wrestling Baseball and other National Sports The Journey to Torii-toge	Mienokoshi
Mountain Passes	Toge – Mountain Passes Landslides The Journey to Narai	Torii-toge (pass)
Change in the Kiso Valley	A Century of Change in the Kiso Valley The Journey to Niegawa	Narai
Barrier Stations	Barrier Stations The Niegawa Barrier The Journey to Shiojiri	Niegawa
Family Crests	Mon (family crests) The Journey to Shiojiri-toge	Shiojiri
Lake Suwa and Mount Fuji	Lake Suwa Mount Fuji Takeda Shingen The Journey to Shimo-Suwa	Shiojiri Toge (pass)
Hot Springs and Shrines	Hot Springs Ichinomiya — Main Shinto Shrines The Journey to Wada-toge	Shimo-Suwa
Waste and Pollution	Waste Disposal Pollution The Journey to Nagakubo	Wada Toge (pass)
Baths and Bathing	Bathing	An Inn near Nagakubo
Festivals	The Boys’ Festival The Girls’ Festival Festivals The Journey to Ashita	Nagakubo
Old and New Roads	The Ashita Honjin (primary inn) The Old and New Highways The Journey to Mochizuki	Ashita
Food and Drink	Sake Beer, Whiskey and Drinking Habits Food The Journey to Shionada	Mochizuki
Volcanoes and Earthquakes	Mount Asama Volcanoes and Earthquakes Major Disasters The Journey to Otai	Shionada
Immigrant Workers	Immigrant Workers The Journey to Oiwake	Otai
Edo Period Night Life	Oiwake – Road Junctions Post-town Nightlife The Journey to Karuizawa	Oiwake
Marriage	The Marriage Ceremony	An Inn near Karuizawa
Western Influences	Karuizawa Western Influences Besso (country villas) Manga (cartoons and comics) The Journey to Sakamoto	Karuizawa
Travel Guides and Literature	Travel Guides and Literature The Journey to Annaka	Sakamoto
“Small” Castle Towns	Annaka Castle Town The Minor Daimyo (feudal lords) The Journey to Takasaki	Annaka
Household Guardians	Daruma Household Spirits The Journey to Honjo	Takasaki
Facades	Omote–Ura (inside–outside, the public face–private reality) The Journey to Okabe	Honjo
Travel	17th Century Travel 20th Century Travel The Journey to Fukaya	Okabe
Gambling	Pachinko (pinball game machines) Gambling The Yakuza (organized criminals) The Journey to Kumagaya	Fukaya
Protest and Revolt	Peasant Revolts Modern Protests The Journey to Fukiage	Kumagaya
Living Conditions	Living Conditions	An Inn near Fukiage
Climatic Disasters	Floods Climatic Disasters The Journey to Kitamoto	Fukiage
Rest Stops and Suburbs	Tateba (rest stops) Suburban Development The Journey to Omiya	Kitamoto
Futuristic Railways	The Shinkansen Future Railways The Journey to Urawa	Omiya
Urban Renewal	Urban Renewal The Inheritance Laws The Journey to Arakawa River	Urawa
Tokyo Prefecture	Tokyo Prefecture Administrative Boundaries The Journey to Itabashi	Arakawa River
Gentrified Post-towns	Gentrified Post-towns Modern Nightlife The Journey to the University of Tokyo	Itabashi
University Education	The University of Tokyo University Education The Journey to Kanda	University of Tokyo
“Village” Tokyo	High-rise Buildings “Village” Tokyo The Journey to Nihonbashi	Kanda
Nihonbashi	Nihonbashi Department Stores The 1923 Earthquake	Nihonbashi
Further Reading	Additional Reading Further Information on the Nakasendo	An Inn in Tokyo