The Nippon Domannaka Festival, commonly known as Domatsuri, is one of the most energetic and vibrant festivals in Japan. It’s a multi-day festival held in Nagoya at the end of August, when the summer heat reaches its peak, and it fills the city and its surroundings with hundreds of Yosakoi dancers coming from all over...Read More

For over 1300 years, local fishermen in Japan have used an unusual technique to catch river fish during the summer. Japanese cormorants, called “u” in Japanese, are trained for up to three years by their owners to help catch fish. Known as “ukai” in Japanese, cormorant fishing is a unique traditional method that is rare...Read More

Sumo wrestling is an integral part of Japan’s culture and has been practiced in one form or another for around 2000 years. In part 1 of this series, we shared everything you need to know if you are new to Sumo, and want to attend the Nagoya Grand Sumo Tournament. If you haven’t read it...Read More

When people think about Japan, one of the first things they think of is Sumo Wrestling. So when people plan their trips to Japan, they often want to see a Sumo tournament. But what most people don’t realize is that getting to see a Sumo tournament or even a morning Sumo practice is normally quite...Read More

Cosplay — the art of dressing up as characters from anime, manga, video games, TV shows, or any other media — has become a global phenomenon over the years. Once dressed in their cosplay, cosplayers attend conventions to take photos, enter competitions, or perform theatrical routines. The World Cosplay Summit is a perfect occasion to...Read More

Hydrangea is a flower with a long history and tradition in Japan. Because of its beauty and special significance, Japanese people adore hydrangea flowers the same way that they do Sakura flowers during spring.  If the plum blossom is a sign of early spring, the hydrangea (Ajisai in Japanese) is a sign that summer is...Read More

Of the roughly 70 festivals each year held at Atsuta Shrine, the Atsuta Festival (Atsuta Matsuri or Shobu-sai) is by far the biggest and most important. This festival is held every June 5th and signals the arrival of summer. Summer in Japan is the season of summer festivals and fireworks! Atsuta Jingu, also called Atsuta-san...Read More

Arimatsu, located just about 20 minutes by train from Nagoya Station, is a town well known for being the home of the traditional Arimatsu-Narumi Shibori technique, a fabric dyeing method that has been skillfully crafted over the last 400 years. Edo Period traditional black wooden houses along the Tokaido Road During the Edo Period (1603...Read More

Atsuta Shrine, also called, Atsuta-san or Atsuta-sama, is the second most important Shinto shrine in Japan, after the Ise Grand Shrine. The venerated sun goddess Amaterasu is enshrined here as well as being home to the sacred sword Kusanagi-no-tsurugi, which is one of the three Japanese imperial treasures. Legend has it that Amaterasu gave the...Read More

With the arrival of spring, all of Japan is dyed in pink. This is because at the end of March Sakura (cherry blossoms) begin blooming. You can see the cherry tree flowers all across Japan: in parks and botanical gardens, around temples and shrines, on the banks of rivers, or covering mountains. The season of...Read More