When Osaka’s baseball stadium closed its doors, it opened the door to a prime redevelopment opportunity in a new commercial district adjacent to Namba Train Station, the first stop from Kansai Airport. Given the location, owner Nankai Electric Railway asked Jon Jerde to create a gateway that would redefine Osaka’s identity. Jerde conceived Namba…
Located in Kuwana City (Mie Prefecture) is Nabano No Sato, a flower-focused park featuring sprawling gardens and giant greenhouses. Running annually from mid November to mid March is one of Japan’s finest Winter Illuminations, including the famous tunnel of light. The park also features an onsen (hot spring) and a variety of restaurants including…
The RX-78 Gundam is a fictional manned robot, introduced in 1979 in Yoshiyuki Tomino’s and Sunrise’s anime series Mobile Suit Gundam. In the series, it is a testbed weapon for the Earth Federation when it falls into the hands of Amuro Ray, the son of a weapons designer, who goes on to pilot it…
MOUNT FUJI FROM ABOVE Photograph via news.mydrivers.com In this jaw-dropping photograph we see the majestic Mount Fuji soaring above the clouds. The picture, along with two others (that are equally amazing), was posted to the Chinese website news.mydrivers.com. I was unable to find the name of the photographer but this aerial…
Swimming Pool by Leandro Erlich is an art installation with a permanent home at the 21st Century Museum of Art of Kanzawa, Japan. It has also had temporary installations at MoMAPS1 and the Venice Biennale. Conceived in 1999, Swimming Pool allows visitors to look down into a seemingly full pool of water with fully…
Located in the mountains of Nagano live a group of snow monkeys in an area called Jigokudani (Hell Valley). You can see the famous snow monkeys in Jigokudani Yaen-koen (Hell Valley Wild Monkey Park). These particular snow monkeys are used to being around people and living as if they are humans. There is an…
Photograph by Digital Photo Blog @ digitalphoto.cocolog-nifty.com Japanese photographer Yuki Karo captured these stunning long exposure photographs of mating fireflies in and around the Maniwa and Okayama Prefectures in Japan between 2008 – 2011. Shooting long exposures at night can be challenging, but Yuki has done well to capture this beautiful moment in…
Photograph by TREY RATCLIFF (Stuck in Customs on Flickr) In the western outskirts of Kyoto, Japan there is a popular tourist district called Arashiyama. The area has been a frequent destination since the Heian Period (794-1185), when nobles would enjoy its natural setting. Arashiyama is particularly popular during the cherry blossom and fall…
Photograph via Japan Sotheby’s International Realty Listed at a cool 1.8 billion yen ($21.8 million USD), the Sifter’s jaw dropped when the listing stated an apartment called The House, in the exclusive Minami-Azabu district of Tokyo (the most expensive neighbourhood in Tokyo), was a 4,434 square foot (411.932 sq m) 1-Bedroom apartment. At…
Photograph by SIEMA @ Panoramio.com The Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route is an international mountain sightseeing route some 90 kilometers (56 miles) long. The route goes across the 3,000-meter-high North Alpine mountains, the so-called “roof of Japan,” and connects Toyama and Shinano Omachi. You can enjoy the panorama by taking a train, highland bus,…