Japan Navigator

The other day, passing Mt Fuji, I saw traces of the first snow near the summit of the mighty mountain. Interestingly, the Fuji was covered in clouds and only the top, in an incredibly high position in the sky where you would never expect a mountain to be, was visible.

It reminded me of one of [...]

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There is more to Tsukiji, Tokyo’s huge fish market, than only tuna. It is a shocking early morning adventure to explore the dark, narrow alleys between the stands, and inspect all the uncanny creatures there that will haunt your dreams for days to come.

At an unholy early hour, the market already moves at an incredible, [...]

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What do you do when you are sitting alone in the Shinkansen (the Kodama, so empty) and feeling bored?

You take out your cellphone and start taking pictures.

A nice, gloomy winter day.
This is Kyoto’s Yamashina flashing past.

Stategically placed fences prevent travellers from seeing the dark secrets harbored in the local dwellings.

I am still looking for a [...]

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The first canned (or bottled) green tea was sold in Japan in 1985. Since then, the market has exploded. In recent years, real “tea wars” have been raging, it has become mandatory for beverage companies as Suntory, Asahi and Coca Cola Japan to have a bestseller in the tea field. So you get branded green [...]

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Talking about fish, a few weeks ago I had the chance to visit Tokyo’s Tsukiji market again. It was a cold grey morning and there were few tourists, but the market was bustling as usual. I was early enough to catch some of the action at the tuna auction. Is tuna running out? You would [...]

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This is an engaging book that reads like a page-turner, and on top of that it is also based also on solid research. Only the title The Zen of Fish: The Story of Sushi, from Samurai to Supermarket strikes the wrong note – it probably was tacked on by an editor who only knew two [...]

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The Way of Tea is going global and now a specialized tea dictionary has been published to help, and great are the mysteries it divulges. Did you know that the ashes in the brazier (used for boiling the tea water) must take twelve prescribed forms, neatly arranged, for example playfully depicting a mountain? [...]

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The publishing of the first Michelin guide for Asia, dedicated to Tokyo restaurants, has set tongues wagging in Japan. The first printing sold out in no time, many of the establishments treated in the guide are fully booked until far into the new year. Michelin has awarded more stars to Tokyo than to any other [...]

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In the front garden of Rengeji, in north-eastern Kyoto, a beautiful gingko tree showed the splendor of its yellow foliage.

As I wrote in my article on Zenpukuji Temple, the gingko or as it is called in English, “Maidenhair tree,” is a strange tree. It is prehistoric and has not changed in its 200 million-year history. [...]

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Last week autumn colors were at their best, especially on a perfect hazy fall day when I visited in Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto.

[Busy street leading to Kiyomizu temple, Kyoto. Photo © Ad Blankestijn]
It was a Monday and there were less people then ten days before, when the crowds jammed the view. At that time I [...]

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