Nijo-jo

Playing Japanese

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September 7th 2011
We landed in Tokyo and made our way to our hostel with the help of some friendly locals and checked in to a dorm for the night. We spent the morning lazing around and sorting our bags out before taking a Shinkansen (bullet train) down to Kyoto – 2.45 hours!! We had booked ourselves into a traditional Japanese Ryokan for the night with sliding paper shutters, and roll-out mattresses for beds. We ... read more

Asia » Japan » Kyoto » Kyoto

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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