Newly opened in March 2017, Aeon Mall Shinkomatsu is the latest and the largest shopping mall in Hokuriku region (northwestern part of the main island of Japan). There are around 160 shops, cafes and restaurants and 3,400 parking space! The shopping mall is only 15 minutes away by car from Komatsu Airport. There are shuttle buses from JR Komatsu Station but it’s only twice every hour at the moment. Taking a taxi from the JR Komatsu station costs about ¥2,100 one way.
Established in 717 AD and as the head temple of the Shingon Sector of Buddhism, the Natadera Temple is an expansive temple with hundreds of years old trees, historic buildings designated as Important Cultural Property of Ishikawa Prefecture, and magnificent scenery. Mountains, rivers, waterfall, and other nature were considered indispensable in the lives of ancient people, and were respected and worshipped — nature itself was considered a god. For over a thousand years, the ancient cedar trees, plants, and the rock formation at Natadera Temple has made it a sacred place to pray to deities. In the old days, people also believed in reincarnation. The caves at Natadera Temple were considered wombs of mothers and places of Umarekiyomaru, the cycle of death, purification, and rebirth. That is also part of the experience when you visit the temple. Natadera Temple was also destroyed after experiencing 3 wars. In 1640, the third lord of the Kaga Domain rebuilt the temple. Seven of its buildings have been designated as important cultural properties, and two locations as places of scenic beauty. The temple has…
Locating in Kanazawa city, Nagamachi is an old samurai district where you can go back time to the Edo Period. There are narrow streets, mud walls, samurai residence, and the oldest canal in Kanazawa flows through the area. This is the place where people love to dress up in Kimono and stroll around to take photos.
The name Kanazawa, which literally means marsh of gold, is said to be originated from a legend that the peasant Imohori Togoro who washed gold dust in a local marsh. The history of gold leaf production dates back to the end of 16th century but it was restricted to be produced in Edo (Tokyo today) and Kyoto at the time. Kanazawa, with the suitable climate, temperature, humidity, water, and highly skilled craftsmen was only revived publicly in the second half of the 19th century. Today, over 98% of the gold leaf was produced in Kanazawa, Ishikawa Japan. When you visit Kanazawa, you will see a lot of gold leaf products and you may experience making a lacquer ware with gold leaf yourself. It’s fun!
Nakasendo (Central Mountain Road) is one of the five main roads built during the Edo Period and one of the two connected Edo (now Tokyo) and Kyoto. The other main road was Tokaido (East Sea Road). There is a saying the East Sea Road with nice views and shorter distance was designated for the rich and powerful people. Normal residence had to take the inland hilly path. There is another saying that some preferred to take Nakasendo to avoid fording rivers. Nakasendo runs through Saitama, Gunma, Nagano, Gifu and Shiga prefectures, stretching over 530km. There were 69 post stations along the route to provide accommodations, food supply and other things that travellers need. Kiso Fukushima was in the middle of the route and was one of the major check points for taxing the travellers, controlling the trafficking of guns into the Edo region and prohibiting women from feudal families to leave so that the feudal lords could not be heavily armed with guns and would always come back for the women. Today, Kiso Fukushima is an old town lined with…
Hida Beef is a specific name given to the black-haired cattle raised in Gifu Prefecture. There are stringent requirements to qualify for the recognized name: all cattle must be raised for at least 14 months and the meat texture must be grade 3, 4, 5 according to the grading system Japan Meat Grading Association. Visiting Hida Furukawa, don’t miss the chance to taste the high quality Hida Beef. Some farms have become so famous that they brand their own cattle. Yamayu Beef is one of the famous Hida Beef brands in the area, providing by Yamayuushi Ikkan which has its own farm at over 1,000 meters above sea level. Fresh air, pure mountain water and good pasture are all the good factors contributing to the quality of meat.
Want to pick up your last minute souvenirs in Nagoya Japan? No worries. Check out the departure hall in Chubu Centrair International Airport. There are lots of choices, including seasonal promotion of Japanese products, Hello Kitty and Pokemon goods, and more. Please make sure you check out this special souvenir shop called 「そらみせ」”Sorimase”. It’s a unique shop selling local design products in Nagoya.
In the ancient time, Emperors, aristocrats and pilgrims have to ride horses or walk all the way to visit the grand shrines in Kumano. It was a tough long journey that might take a month depending on the starting point. Today, you may take JR and buses and complete the pilgrimage journey in 5 days, visiting the Ise Grand Shrine, Kumano Sanzan which include Kumano Hayatama Grand Shrine, Kumano Nachi Grand Shrine and Kumano Hongu Grand Shrine; as well as stopping over Kawayu Onsen and visiting Nitama the Stationmaster cat at Kishi Station. The 5 days Ise-Kumano-Wakayama Area JR pass allows you to travel between Nagoya and Kansai, covering Ise, Kumano and Wakayama. Please note that you will have to buy the JR Pass before you arrive Japan and redeem it at Nagoya Station (not at Chubu Airport) or Kansai Airport. Activate (redeem) the pass on the day you start using it for the next 5 days.
Locating 50 minutes away by bus from Nagoya station or Central Japan International Airport, Mitsui Outlet Park Jazz Dream Nagashima is an outlet mall in the sub urban of Nagoya with around 180 shops at the time I visited. It is part of the Nagashima Resort which consists of an amusement park, a Spa Land, a garden called Nabana no Sato, and the outlet mall. Jazz Dream Nagashima is one of the largest outlet mall in Japan (some said it’s the largest but I think it all depends on the number of stores at a time).
The UNESCO World Heritage Shirakawa-go is one of the most beautiful winter wonderland in Japan. It is one of the snowiest place in Japan hence the creation of traditional farm houses (Gassho-zukuri) that feature steep roofs that look like palms together. Every winter, 6 days in January and February are selected as the special winter illumination dates, attracting lots of tourists from all over the world. There were thousands of tourists visited Shirakawa-go in 2016. It was very packed! If you do not manage to stay in Shirakawa-go, here’s a travel plan for staying in Takayama and visit Shirakawa-go on a day trip. Takayama city is a nice small city with a charming old town, Takayama Jinya, many museums and a Hida Folk Village where you can see a good collection of gassho-styled farm houses. Transportation: Nohi bus runs regularly between Takayama station and Shirakawa-go. Special chartered buses are available during the winter illumination. Bus tickets are sold 1 month before the illumination date and reservation can only be made by phone this year. Please check the website link.
