An alternative guide to Japan

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Fushimi Hakuseki Inari, 50 Torii Under the Hydrangeas

In a valley of Yokosuka, more than fifty torii climb between cedars and hydrangeas. Fushimi Hakuseki Inari is the wild cousin of Kyoto's great shrine: damper, lonelier, almost absorbed by the mountain.

Urban Exploration

We slip through Japan’s forgotten corridors; silent rooftops, rusted tunnels, and cities paused in time.

@jordymeow

@jordymeow

This week in Japan

291 festivals and events, Nov 7 to Nov 13

Sat 7 Nov Event Now Gionza Village Kabuki Takamatsu (Kagawa-cho), Kagawa · until Nov 8 In the hills south of Takamatsu, villagers stage kabuki at a shrine theatre, keeping a farmers' tradition alive. Sat 7 Nov Matsuri Now Horowasan Shimotsuki Kagura Yokote (Omori), Akita · until Nov 8 A whole night of sacred dances thanking the gods for the harvest, in a priest's house deep in the hills. Sat 7 Nov Illumination Last day Izumo windbreak pines lit at night Izumo (Hikawa), Shimane The tall clipped pine walls that shield Izumo farmhouses from the wind, found nowhere else, glow for a single night. Sat 7 Nov Illumination Now Kingonji's giant ginkgo lit at night Okuizumo, Shimane · until Nov 14 A 600-year-old ginkgo blazes gold against the black night of Okuizumo, alone above the harvested fields. Sat 7 Nov Matsuri Now Aguni Island Festival Aguni, Okinawa · until Nov 8 On an island of seven hundred people, two nights of music by the harbour and fireworks over the bay. Sat 7 Nov Illumination Now Bonto Lamp Evenings at Torin-in Kyoto (Ukyo, Myoshinji), Kyoto · until Nov 8 Hundreds of small lamps trace patterns in the garden of a Myoshin-ji sub-temple. Sat 7 Nov Illumination Now Suo Kokubunji by Night Hofu, Yamaguchi · until Nov 8 The golden hall of one of the few provincial temples still standing on its Nara-era site glows at night, with concerts. Sat 7 Nov Art festival Now Kyoto Modern Architecture Festival Kyoto, Kyoto · until Nov 8 Meiji to Showa-era banks, schools and cafes open their usually closed doors over two weekends. Sat 7 Nov Illumination Now Hori Garden autumn night opening Tsuwano, Shimane · until Nov 8 The garden of a copper-mining dynasty opens for three nights, its maples reflected in the pond below the old house. Sat 7 Nov Matsuri Now Tochigi Autumn Float Festival Tochigi, Tochigi · until Nov 8 Every other year, Meiji-era floats topped with tall dolls roll between the town's old warehouses.

+281 more festivals and shows this week All on the app’s map, day by day. iPhone Android

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Offbeat

Dates estimated from past years: check the official site before you go.

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