Places to explore while in Japan.
The Sumo Museum is wheelchair accessible, and can be an interesting place to pop into while visiting the Edo-Tokyo Museum next door – but, being very small, is not something that should be a destination on its own. The museum is located on the first floor of the Ryogoku Kokugikan Read more…
Though settlements have existed in the Tokyo area since 3000 BCE, things really started in the 12th century CE when Edo Shigenaga, the military governor of a large Kanto province, erected his castle in present day Tokyo, calling it Edojuku. Celebrating Tokyo’s long past, the Edo-Tokyo Museum is an excellent Read more…
Feel like taking in something highbrow in Tokyo? Why not some art! The National Art Center (Kokuritsu Shin-Bijutsukan), Tokyo is an art museum located in the upscale Roppongi district. Opening on January 21, 2007, it is a unique and innovative art exhibition facility: instead of maintaining a permanent collection, it Read more…
Sensoji (Sensō-ji) is an ancient Buddhist temple located in Tokyo’s cultural capital, Asakusa. Not only is Sensoji Tokyo’s oldest temple, it is one of the most significant. The area is very wheelchair accessible and definitely a must-visit! The temple is dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon (Goddess of mercy and compassion). Read more…
After the end of the shogunate and the Meiji Restoration, the shogun and inhabitants of Edo castle were required to leave. The emperor arrived from Kyoto at the Edo Castle to make it to his new residence and renamed it to Tokei Castle (at this time Tokyo had also been Read more…
Live at the Budokan! While the Budokan is famous abroad for hosting acts like the Beatles, Cheap Trick, and Bob Dylan, it was originaly built to house the judo events for the 1964 Summer Olympics and is officially called the Nippon Budokan (“Japan Martial Arts Hall”). Though many opposed the Read more…
