Japan - In Shinkansen we trust

Across the country from west to east, visiting Shimonoseki, Hiroshima, Miyajima, Osaka, Kyoto and Takayama before finally arriving in Tokyo.

  • Ride the bullet

    Ride the bullet

    Time to board the Shinkansen, the high-speed train with speeds up to 300 km/h.

    [Kokura train station]

  • Way of the exploding fist

    Way of the exploding fist

    Miyajima has been worshiped as a divine island since ancient times. A shrine was built on the seashore in 593 AD, obeying the tide.

    [Torii gate at Miyajima island]

  • Master of magic

    Master of magic

    A sushi overdose is unavoidable during a visit to Japan. This man prepared amazing dishes.

    [Having sushi at Sushi-tei, Hiroshima]

  • Epicenter

    Epicenter

    The exhibition building with a beautiful green dome was completed in 1915. But in 1945, the first nuclear bomb to be used against mankind detonated above it.

    [Genbaku Dome, Hiroshima]

  • Southbound

    Southbound

    [Taking the tram in Hiroshima]

  • A moment of reflection

    A moment of reflection

    [Nishi Hongan-ji temple, Kyoto]

  • Shogun cribs

    Shogun cribs

    The construction of the castle was completed in 1603 by Tokugawa Ieyasu, the infamous founder of the Tokugawa shogunate which ruled Japan for 300 years.

    [Nijo castle in Kyoto]

  • Easy living

    Easy living

    Staying at a traditional ryokan means wearing tiny yukata robes and sleeping on futons upon the hard tatami mats. Lucky me.

    [Staying at a ryokan in Kyoto]

  • Waterfront

    Waterfront

    [Takano river in Gion, Kyoto]

  • Silence is golden

    Silence is golden

    Nobody will notice if I scratch off some of the gold.

    [Rokuon-ji Temple in Kinkaku, Kyoto]