Honshu Archives - Viki Pandit

Night walk at Fushimi Inari Taisha

Today we go for a night photo-walk to Fushimi Inari-taisha, the head shrine of the kami Inari, located just a train stop away from the bustling city of Kyoto.

The first time I visited Fushimi Inari-taisha was way back in January of 2016 Since then I have been to the heritage site a couple of times but I never came around to writing about it Fushimi Inari-taisha (伏見稲荷大社) is the head shrine of the Kami Inari, located in Fushimi-ku area of Kyoto The shrine sits at the base of a mountain, also named Inari, which is roundabout 230 meters in height Most of the shrine’s prominent structures are located right at the base of the mountain However, for the adventurous types there are numerous trails that lead right up to the summit of the Inari mountain, where you can find some very old

Praying for love at Izumo Taisha

Izumo-taisha, officially Izumo Ōyashiro, is one of the most ancient and important Shinto shrines in Japan.

Izumo-taisha, also known as Izumo Ōyashiro, is one of the most ancient and important Shinto shrines in Japan No record gives the exact date of its establishment, but some of the oldest mythological stories of the country originate at this very place Located in Izumo of Shimane Prefecture, the shrine is dedicated to the god of nation-building, Okuninushi-no-okami, and it is said that, if you visit the shrine, you will have great luck when it comes to your love life and personal relationships How to reach Izumo-taisha I and my wife, Ranita, were staying at the Dormy Inn, just beside the Izumoshi Station Dormy Inn is a

Hinomisaki Shrine

Hinomisaki Shrine is an ancient shrine encircled by a grove of old pine trees near Cape Hino in the Izumo city of Shimane Prefecture. The vermillion-lacquered shrine, described as “Misa Gisha” in the ancient text of the Izumo no Kuni Fudoki, was built in honor of two sibling deities with a prominent presence in Japanese mythology; Amaterasu, goddess of the sun, and her younger sibling Susano, god of storms and the sea.

After spending a beautiful breezy morning at the Hinomisaki lighthouse, we walked down to the Hinomisaki Shrine, which is just about 15 minutes away It was pretty easy following the markers leading towards the shrine Hinomisaki Shrine was built in honor of two deities with a prominent presence in Japanese mythology: Amaterasu, the goddess of the Sun, and Susano, the god of storms and the sea The temple is believed to bring luck in business & travelling The weather had greatly improved and the dark grey clouds had scattered away At the entrance of the shrine grounds a white stone Torii welcomed us into the temple grounds

An evening at Kiyosu Castle

Today we explore Kiyosu Castle 清須城 – a place that the ruthless warlord Oda Nobunaga called home. Today the castle sits quietly in the mundane town of Kiyosu, but as once the capital of the powerful Owari province, its influence may have waned, but its importance to history has not.

Today we explore one of the hidden gems of Japanese heritage located just about 6 km northwest of Nagoya I am talking about Kiyosu Castle 清須城, a small castle with a long history, that the ruthless warlord Oda Nobunaga once called home Kiyosu Castle The stories of Kiyosu Castle is smeared in blood No surprises there as it played an important role in Nobunaga’s initiative for the unification of JapanAfter a violent takeover, with the assassination of Oda Nobutomo, the then clan leader of Kiyosu, Oda Nobunaga snatched the reigns of the province in 1555 CE At that time Nagoya used to be the capital city Following his ascent to the

Photowalk along Osanbashi Pier

We go on a photo-walk to capture the famous Yokohama skyline from Osanbashi, the oldest pier in Yokohama. The creatively designed wooden deck with steps, slopes, and benches are perfect for a relaxing evening among gentle sea breeze.

Today we dropped by at one of the most photographed areas in Yokohama – Osanbashi Pier(大さん橋) The pier was originally built in 1894, but was reconstructed in 2002 as a passenger terminal Its bold new design incorporates floor boards, with no stairs, beams or posts making it a unique experience with great views of the city We were in the Kanto region for a few days The weather had been a big disappointment We spent the early part of the day inside malls surrounding Shin-Osaka Station We found a Book-off store nearby Its a great place to find old series that are not in publication anymore and, I may add in pretty good

The thrilling Tojinbo Cliffs

Tojinbo Cliffs enjoy the dubious distinction of being the most loved suicide spot in Japan. For the wandering souls like me, the enthralling, rugged cliffs eroded by the raging waves of the Sea of Japan combined with the mesmerizing sunset is certainly more than likely to cause skipped heartbeats.

This day is special to me, today I can safely proclaim to be the second Indian to visit all 47 prefectures of Japan The first Indian to explore all 47 prefectures is obviously my wife Ranita san I had been wanting to visit the cliffs since the day I witnessed the thrilling cliffs of Sandanbeki in Wakayama My JR Pass was going to expire soon, so I made up my mind to drop in at Tojinbo today Tojinbo is a series of basaltic cliffs located within the Echizen-Kaga Quasi-National Park in Sakai, northern Fukui, bordering Ishikawa Pronounced Toujinbou, the rugged, precipitous cliffs stretch for over a kilometer, and is

The shrines of Nikko

Today Mani & I visit the temples of Nikko in Tochigi. The vibrant temples at this World Heritage site are strikingly different in appearance from other temples I have witnessed in Japan. The lavishly decorated pillars and other structures are covered in a gold leaves and multitude carvings conveying expressions of religious belief as well as scholarship and philosophy.

It was a sudden rush of the moment when I decided to visit the shrines of Nikko The day before I was shuffling through some souvenirs at the Tougyoku Doll museum, when I chanced upon a set of hand painted cards of popular UNESCO sites in Japan The box contained a set of six UNESCO sites, of which I had visited all, barring Nikko So it was decided right then that we were going to Nikko the next day The “Shrines and Temples of Nikko” refer to the Toshogu and Futarasan-jinja shrines, the Rinnoji temple and the surrounding sacred forest located in Tochigi Prefecture, in the northern part of Japan’s Kanto region

An evening along Bandai Bridge

Bandai Bridge is considered as the symbol of Niigata and is one of the city’s most scenic spots, especially at night. After dropping our luggage at the hotel, we walked down to the bridge from the Showa period, lit up like a Christmas tree over the Shinano River. The 1964 quake shattered Niigata, but the arch shaped, stone bridge stood strong among the rubble even as everything around it crumbled.

It was almost 8 pm by the time we arrived in Niigata The JR Station, operated by East Japan Railway Company lies at the centre of Niigata city We had our reservations at the Hotel Lungwood It’s right beside the JR Station In fact one doesn’t even need to go out of the station building There is a corridor that connects directly to the hotel Niigata is the largest city on the Sea of Japan coast The city is blessed with an abundance of nature, surrounded by sea on one side and mountains on the

Ruins of Sannai-Maruyama

We step back in time to the Jōmon period at the Sannai-Maruyama Ruins. The ruins in the southwest of Aomori is the largest ruins of a Jōmon-period village in Japan. Most of the excavated items have been reburied for preservation, but a few excavation sites and artifacts are on display along with reconstructed dwellings, giving us a sense of the daily life of ancient times.

Today I visit the ruins of Sannai Maruyama in Aomori Discovered in 1992, the Sannai Maruyama Archaeological Site is the largest and one of the most complete and best-preserved Jōmon Period (13000-300 BC) village in Japan Morioka to Aomori I and my wife, Ranita were on a short tour of Tohoku region We were thoroughly refreshed from our previous day at Jōdogahama beach in Iwate The day was bright and sunny as we checked out of our hotel and walked down to Morioka Station to catch the train to Aomori As we entered the JR Station, we were quite pleased to see it was still decorated, in lieu of

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