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...
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...
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 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...
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...
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...
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...
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...

Nihonbashi

Department Stores

The origins of department stores go back to 1673 when the Mitsui family established a dry-goods store in Edo, at the terminus of the Nakasendo. The shop was eventually renamed Mitsukoshi in 1928 and was the basis for the commercial success of the family; Mitsui became an extended corporation before World War II and has… [Read more]

Nihonbashi

Nihonbashi, which means ‘Bridge of Japan’, is less impressive than one would imagine. As the point from which all highway distances are measured, it seems that it should stand out in the urban landscape. Instead, it has a dirty, stagnant canal under it and a rumbling elevated expressway above, adding dark shadow to a peculiar bouquet, especially in summer…. [Read more]

Oyakata
An Oyakata is, literally, the ‘father’ or leader of others. In traditional social organizations, the most common form was that of a family. The leader or ‘father’ of the group was endowed with all the powers and strengths of a family’s father and the members of the group were as dependent on the Oyakata as infants would be on their father. Since there were traditionally no limits on a father’s authority over children, this type of relationship is viewed as traditional, authoritarian, and undemocratic, but it still persists in traditional settings such as sumo wrestling.

Landslides

The Shinkansen

Castle Towns

The Ashita Honjin

Pilgrimage

Kyoto Development Issues

Omote-ura - Public and Private Faces

Namiki

Department Stores

Nihonbashi

Gambling

Fire

Sumo Wrestling

Omi Merchants

The Kisoji Post-towns

Nihonbashi

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