Sakura cherry blossom season is over but spring has not. Tokyo and its surrounding offer plenty of flowers to see: wisteria, azalea, shibazakura.
Golden Week is a series of public holidays in Japan. It is one of the busiest time in Japan. Learn more about the Golden Week in the blog.
Sanmitsu, Covid-safe buzzword to keep in mind. Sanmitsu in English is known as three Cs: confined (spaces), crowded (places) and close-contact setting. The three magic words to remember to keep us safe this pandemic time. Because of sanmitsu, media have been radio silent about places of interests for autumn foliage sighting. There was a time …
“At our heart is the 800-year-od Shakusui-en, a pond garden that firmly grounds our contemporary Hotel in tradition, artistry and natural beauty” The Four Seasons Hotel Kyoto boasts its traditional pond garden, “Shakusui-en” that was once owned by samurai family. It’s more than a traditional garden, it’s a garden that bears a significant history. It …
Hundreds of people walking down the most iconic historical alleys in Kyoto, a queue formed in front of the pictures-taking spots, shopkeepers were busy attending customers, offering food tester and the street buzzing with chatters in different languages. Those were all a distant past. Kyoto nowadays does not feel like Kyoto anymore. Before the pandemic, …
In our recent visit to Hakone, we found a tiny restaurant named Kandachiya Soba that offers soba, buckwheat noodle. The restaurant was a full house when we arrived. Its narrow place can only fit about 10 people. It only took us less than five minutes to get a table. These days people don’t spend a …