Scenes from Himeji-jo Castle

Himeji-jo, Hiroshima and Nara, Japan

---

November 1st 2006
After spending a week in Kyoto I brought a railpass and did a couple of day trips before heading up to Tokyo. The trains are so fast that you can cover a lot of ground in one day. My first trip was to a nearby town called Nara with Hannah, who I had met on the boat coming over. Nara is Japan's first capital and is the number two tourist attraction in the Kansai region of Japan after Kyoto. ... read more

Asia » Japan

---

In 1603, a Tokugawa shogunate (military dictatorship) ushered in a long period of isolation from foreign influence in order to secure its power. For 250 years this policy enabled Japan to enjoy stability and a flowering of its indigenous culture. Fol... ... read more