Overview (History, Features, and Attractions) The former foreign settlement is a historic district in Chuo Ward, Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture. It was developed as a foreign settlement after the opening of Kobe Port in 1868 (the first year of the Meiji era). It features orderly grid-like streets, modern stone and brick architecture, and...

Overview (History, Features, and Appeal) Kitano Ijinkan is the collective name for a group of historic Western-style buildings spread across Kitano-cho, Chuo Ward, Kobe City, Hyogo Prefecture. Many of the residences (ijinkan) built by foreigners who settled in Kobe following the opening of the port from the Meiji to Taisho periods remain, allowing visitors to get up close and personal with the lifestyles and Western architectural design of the time...

Cape Ashizuri (Tosashimizu City, Kochi Prefecture) Overview (History, Features, and Attractions) Cape Ashizuri is located near the southernmost tip of Shikoku, and boasts a magnificent landscape of cliffs jutting out into the Pacific Ocean and a vast horizon. It has long been considered an important navigational landmark, and a lighthouse and observation deck have been built at the tip of the cape.

Overview (History, Features, and Attractions) Sefa Utaki is a representative sacred site (utaki) located in Chinen, Nanjo City, in the southern part of Okinawa Island, dating back to the Ryukyu Kingdom era. It has been a place where Ryukyu rituals have been performed since ancient times, and is home to female religious leaders, Noro (prayer women), and important ceremonies related to the legitimacy of the royal family.

Overview (History, Features, and Attractions) The Toro Ruins, located in Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture, are the remains of a representative Yayoi period settlement. The ruins include remains of dwellings and restored raised-floor storehouses that offer insight into life in the era when rice cultivation was established, as well as remains of moats and rice paddies, and numerous excavated artifacts, including pottery and wooden products, revealing a Yayoi period...

Overview (History, Features, and Attractions) Ryuokyo Gorge is a scenic valley located in Nikko City, Tochigi Prefecture. Created over many years by erosion from a tributary of the Kinugawa River, the deep valley features unusual rock formations and rapids. Its unique scenery changes with the seasons, particularly with the vibrant greenery of new leaves and the colorful autumn leaves...

Overview (History, Features, and Attractions) Nasu Animal Kingdom is an interactive zoo and petting park located in the Nasu Highlands in Tochigi Prefecture. Taking advantage of the nature-rich hills, the spacious grounds are characterized by exhibits and interactive programs that emphasize closeness to the animals. Inside the zoo, visitors can interact with animals in a nearly free-roaming environment...

Overview (History, Features, and Appeal) Katsura Imperial Villa, located in Katsura, Nishikyo Ward, Kyoto City, is a renowned garden featuring sukiya-style architecture and a strolling pond garden, representative of the Edo period. Construction began in the 17th century and, having been developed by the Imperial Family (the Katsura family), it is managed by the Imperial Household Agency. The architecture displays a delicate blend of shoin-zukuri and sukiya-zukuri styles...

Kodokan (Mito City, Ibaraki Prefecture) Overview (History, Features, and Attractions) Kodokan is an educational facility established by the Mito Domain as a domain school in the late Edo period. Developed by the feudal lord of Mito, Tokugawa Nariaki, and others, it functioned as a place to teach both academics and martial arts. It is known as the "Mito...".

Overview (History, Features, and Attractions) Kagurazaka is a charming neighborhood in Tokyo's Shinjuku Ward, where remnants of the restaurant and entertainment district (kagaya) district that dates back to the Edo period remain. Originally located near feudal lord and samurai residences, the area saw the geisha and restaurant culture flourish from the Meiji period onwards, and the cobblestone slopes...