Author: Traveling Rockhopper

There are two main religions in Japan (Shinto and Buddhism) that coexist together and complement each other.

Buddhism was introduced in Japan in the 6th century, but Shinto is the indigenous faith of the Japanese people. At the beginning, there were many conflicts between both religions. These days, it doesn’t seem to be a problem any longer; what’s more, some ceremonies (e.g., weddings) are often held in Shinto style, the others (e.g., funerals) in Buddhist style.

Apparently, Shinto is more popular in Japan. However, it looks to me like Shinto and Buddhism are “mixed” and people don’t really follow any of these two religious, but rather “follow the traditions”.

Kimono (literally a thing to wear) is a traditional Japanese outfit, for women and men.
Kimono is rather a very formal clothing for special occasions, so you won’t see Japanese people wearing it everyday.

I was lucky to be in Japan during holidays, when many Japanese were wearing kimono. It was also great to observe weddings with all of these beautiful, traditional clothes. Moreover, I met a person fascinated with a Japanese culture who let us try kimono on; of course without her help I wouldn’t be able to “tied” it correctly (it’s like an art…).
I heard, there are also stores that offer renting a kimono, dressing you up with all make-up; I guess it also can be funny.

Sakura is the name of a Japanese cherry blossom. Of course, beautiful spring flowers can be seen in many places around the world, but in Japan, watching them, painting, etc., it’s part of the culture.

The most spectacular trees you’ll see somewhere in March, however, even in December it’s possible to spot cherry blossom (depending on the region).
I was visiting Japan in winter and still had a chance to see “a few” flowers in different cities. Today’s picture was taken in Himeji, close to the great castle.

Japan is a modern and high tech country. However, the tradition (in total) still plays an important role in everyday life (at least it’s my impression…). What’s more, in fancy cities there are always nice parks and gardens, so people have places to relax and enjoy nature while still being in a city.

Today’s picture was taken nearby the Okayama Castle, but easily could be taken in any other Japanese town. I think it’s very important (and positive) to keep “a small piece of nature” in cities. 🙂

Miyajima is the name usually used while referring to this small island. However, its official name is Itsukushima.

Besides the beautiful giant torii gate you can find there many cute deer. 😉 And many other attractions. Of course, while being in Itsukushima island you should also visit the Itsukushima Shrine, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. And simply take a walk exploring this small romantic island. 🙂

If you travel to Hiroshima, don’t forget to visit Miyajima. It’s a small island outside Hiroshima.
Its iconic red giant torii gate you see in today’s picture.

And tomorrow, I’ll tell you something more about this island. 🙂

In Hiroshima you can also see places not connected with the war. One of them is Hiroshima Castle (Hiroshima-jō). Well, the 16th century castle was actually destroyed by the atomic bomb, but it was reconstructed in 1958; and today it looks very beautiful.

The city of Hiroshima is probably the best known as the first city in history that was attacked with an atomic bomb. You’ll find in Hiroshima many monuments, memorials or buildings that remind us about this horror.

Visit the Peace Memorial Park in Hiroshima to learn a bit more about that tragic day.

I already wrote a few posts about my profession. I’m an astrophysicist and had a chance to visit astronomical observatories in many places in the world. One of them is Nobeyama Radio Observatory in Japan. Today, you see two Japanese antennas in a winter scenery.

I believe it’s not really a touristic destination, however I just want to mention that Nobeyama Observatory is a place with a huge number of telescopes and the biggest radio telescope has a diameter of 45m.

The Japanese macaque is a native to Japan monkey species.
People call them as snow monkeys, because they can be found in the north part, where it snows every year.

It’s also possible to see macaques bathing in hot springs – you can find some pictures in internet; that looks super funny.

Jizo Statues are very popular in Japan and you’ll see them in many places in the country.

On of the examples where you can find them is Kanmangafuchi Abyss in Nikko.
It’s a lovely riverside walking trail with about 70 stone statues of Jizo. A few of the statues are presented in today’s picture; aren’t they nice?

Yesterday, I promised to show you something famous from Nikko. So here it is – three wise monkeys. 🙂
“Hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil.”

Did you know they come from Japan?

You can find them in the beautiful Tōshō-gū shrine (one of the UNESCO World Heritage Sites).

“Never Say Kekko Until You’ve Seen Nikko” – it’s an old Japanese saying, so no wonder Nikko is a popular destination for Japanese and international tourists.
(“Kekko” means beautiful.)

I’ve visited Nikko and indeed, it’s a lovely place!
There are very special temples plus amazing nature is around (mountainous, lakes, waterfalls, hot springs, wild monkeys).

Tomorrow, I’ll show you something from Nikko, that I’m sure almost all of you’ve seen it before. I saw it before I went to Japan, however I didn’t know it’s from Japan…

Traditional Japanese houses consist of a few typical things like special flooring, “walls/doors”, “tables” etc. Each of them have their own names, they are a bit complicated (for me) so I’ll mention only 2 of them that you can see in today’s picture. The typical mat on the floor is called tatami. Nice sliding doors made of wood and paper are called shōji or fusuma (they are not synonyms just a bit different kinds of “doors”).

I stayed overnight in this place you see today. And it’s definitely another great experience from Japan. A traditional Japanese house looks much more beautiful than a capsule hotel, but both are worth visiting! 🙂

A capsule hotel is a kind of Japanese accommodation where guests stay in a small capsule (like in today’s picture).
Does it sound crazy? Maybe a bit…

The idea was to provide a basic and cheap overnight stay for men. These days you’ll find capsules for men and separately for women. Each capsule is more or less of the size of bed, but you don’t really feel claustrophobic. There are common rooms to relax, lockers for luggage, washrooms or even sauna, swimming pool etc. So they can be “quite” luxurious!

I stayed in a capsule hotel only once, when I was visiting Japan, and I can recommend it as a very unique experience! Try it while being in Japan! 🙂

Japan is famous from high-speed trains. They reach the speed of around 300 km/h, but test runs have reached even over 600 km/h – isn’t it crazy?!?

Japanese high-speed trains are called Shinkansen or simply bullet trains. While being in Japan, you have to take a ride! These trains are very nice, safe and very reliable. If I’m correct, each year the Japan Railways companies make statistics about average delay from schedule and these results are pretty impressive.
However, as you see in today’s picture, the delay can be also quite big (5 minutes is a lot! – seriously! people were very confused because of that!).
Actually, I took this photo on the 31st of December, so the last day of that year destroyed yearly statistics… 😉

Today you see two of my first pictures taken in Japan. 😀
Yes, I couldn’t resist not to take a photo of a Japanese fancy toilet. 😀

Fortunately, their manuals are also in English, otherwise I’d be lost…

What’s funny, there is even a separate article on Wikipedia called “Toilets in Japan”! 😀

Welcome in March!
This month is going to be all about the Land of the Rising Sun – Japan.

Have you been to Japan? What are your impressions?
I have very positive memories from Japan and hope to visit this interesting country again! 🙂

In March, I’ll show you a few nice places I’ve visited in Japan. I’ll also try to share some interesting facts about Japan. Stay tuned! 🙂

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Witajcie w marcu! Tym razem zapraszam na miesiąc poświęcony Japonii.

Uwaga! Od dzisiaj wstrzymuję publikowanie postów w języku polskim.
Tymczasowo (póki co bezterminowo) będą się pojawiać tylko posty po angielsku – jeżeli nie podoba Wam ten pomysł – dajcie mi znać w komentarzach albo napiszcie do mnie używając formularza z zakładki “Contact”.

Today, the last day of February, so we’ll finish a series about the Åland Islands.
How did you like it?

Some people may say it’s a boring place, well, it’s kind of boring or nothing-special place, but these kind of places are also charming, and lazy holidays are not the worst options from time to time. 😉
When you spend holidays in Sweden or Finland, consider visiting the Aland Islands; even a weekend there is a good idea. 🙂

And tomorrow, a more “exotic” place on my blog. 🙂

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Dzisiaj, już ostatni dzień lutego, więc kończymy posty o Wyspach Alandzkich.
Jak Wam się podobały?

Niektórzy powiedzą, że jest to nudne miejsce. Trochę w tym prawdy, jednak czasem warto odwiedzić takie “nudne” wysepki – one też mają swój urok, a leniwe wakacje od czasu do czasu nikomu nie zaszkodzą. 😉
Więc jeżeli planujecie dłuższe wakacje w Szwecji lub Finlandii – pomyślcie o odwiedzeniu (chociażby na weekend) Wysp Alandzkich. 🙂

A jutro, trochę bardziej “egzotyczny” kraj na moim blogu. 🙂

I was quite surprised reading that almost 70% (about 3.5 million of kg) of apples produced in Finland are grown in the Aland Islands.
(other curios you’ll find in http://www.visitaland.com/)

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I jeszcze jedna ciekawostka na temat jedzenia. Prawie 70% jabłek produkowanych w Finlandii pochodzi z Wysp Alandzkich; jest to około 3,5 miliona kg – całkiem duża ilość!
(więcej ciekawostek znajdziecie na stronie http://www.visitaland.com/)