Futatsumoriyama: Hiking in Japan
The names of most Japanese mountains give little idea of their actual appearance, often either referring to obscure historical arcana or suggesting an over-active, sake-enhanced visual imagination. Futatsumoriyama, however, is a perfectly apposite name for... more

Mie Prefecture... The Demon Spring
In Mie tourist information, you will not find much about cold weather. As spring arrives, you would also think you could forget gloves and frozen fingers while sketching, and so did I. That is until... more

The smile of Spring
Spring comes to Oyama. Today is one of those days when the world seems perfect. A day when, for an instant, decay and death seem to have disappeared. Everywhere is flowers and flower buds. And... more
World Cosplay Summit
Culture When Aichi was chosen to hold the 2005 World Exposition in Monaco on June 12th 1997, the then governor for Aichi Prefecture, Reiji Suzuki, announced that “It will be the culmination of efforts we make... more

Hiking in Japan: the Basics, Part One
My first article in these pages was in 1989, and in the eighty-plus pieces I have written on climbing Japanese mountains over the last twenty years since then, not once has it occurred to me... more
A good sort
A little dose of joy (and relief) for foreign mothers (and fathers) in Nagoya Bounmy (Boon-mee) Dao* from Laos came to Nagoya University in Japan for his graduate studies in law. His wife came with him... more
Disaster Information
Disaster Information in Multiple Languages To those who are suffering from the disaster that hit and has still been hitting Tohoku and Kanto area: our thoughts and prayers are with you and all those affected by... more