Enoura Observatory in Odawara Huge apologies for sending you an email with a broken link this morning! Here’s the piece you were supposed to get (>_<;;) All my friends told me I should run—not walk—to see the Enoura Observatory. Not one of them could quite explain why. Or even really describe what it was. OnceContinueContinue reading “Let’s explore an amazing Japanese design site that turns landscape into art”
Category Archives: June
JUNE 2025
Click on photo or link to read the feature • Beyond TokyoLet’s explore an amazing Japanese design site that turns landscape into art! All my friends told me I should run—not walk—to see the Enoura Observatory. Not one of them could quite explain why. Or even describe what it was. Once I got there, though, IContinueContinue reading “JUNE 2025”
Links to fun stuff you might have missed
If you don’t subscribe to my Japan travel site or the blog where I write about stuff you’d never see anywhere else, here are links to a couple of other things you might enjoy… • From Only In JapanPay your respects to the ancestors like it’s 2050 Tell me more! • From Only In JapanStunningContinueContinue reading “Links to fun stuff you might have missed”
The May-June Japan Swag Giveaway: Japanese Goldfish Wind Chime
The Japanese have been beating the summer heat for centuries by gazing at goldfish swimming in cool water and hanging little glass bells known as fūrin. This month I’m giving away a lovely bit of Japan swag that delivers both! This handpainted bell from the Kawasaki Daishi Shrine has a slip of paper tied toContinueContinue reading “The May-June Japan Swag Giveaway: Japanese Goldfish Wind Chime”
Pet treat or human snack? You decide.
The pet product aisles of Japan never fail to deliver new levels of animal pampering, and no product category is more over-the-top than treats. Can you guess which ones are for pets and which are for humans? They all of them claim to be… Dripping with flavor! Crunchy and snackable! Filled with tasty goodness! DrizzledContinueContinue reading “Pet treat or human snack? You decide.”
Let’s explore an amazing Japanese design site that turns landscape into art
Enoura Observatory in Odawara All my friends told me I should run—not walk—to see the Enoura Observatory. Not one of them could quite explain why. Or even really describe what it was. Once I was there, though, I understood. It’s such an immersive and utterly visual experience, trying to explain it in words is likeContinueContinue reading “Let’s explore an amazing Japanese design site that turns landscape into art”
Perfect Day in Tokyo #7
Like all good travelers, you arrive in Japan clutching your must-see list, but one of the best things about Tokyo is the great experiences you can have just roaming around. The neighborhoods around the star attractions often deliver delights that are just as memorable as the thing that brought you there. Here are the otherContinueContinue reading “Perfect Day in Tokyo #7”
JUN 2024
Click on photo or link to read the feature • The Thing I Learned Today:The Mingei Movement celebrates the high art of ordinary things in all new ways From brooms to lamps to dishware, what makes Mingei art so different from all others is that every piece is useful—not merely decorative—and is made by ordinaryContinueContinue reading “JUN 2024”
The Kamogawa Food Detectives
By Hisashi Kashiwai If you loved Midnight Diner, you’ll like this book. Setting & details: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Authenticity of Japanese characters & dialogue: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Translation quality: ⭐⭐⭐⭐Entertainment value: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐My recommendation: If you loved Midnight Diner as much as I did, this book is for you. By recreating special dishes remembered by his customers, a retired police detective andContinueContinue reading “The Kamogawa Food Detectives”
The Mingei Movement celebrates the high art of ordinary things
Discovering the sublime in objects that areordinary,useful,imperfect,become more beautiful when well-used,andare made by anonymous artists The first display at the Setagaya Art Museum’s “Mingei: The Beauty of Everyday Things” recreates the inaugural exhibit at the Mingeikan Folk Crafts Museum, and features some of the pieces from Soetsu Yanagi’s seminal collection that inspired the Mingei Movement.ContinueContinue reading “The Mingei Movement celebrates the high art of ordinary things”
Let’s climb a thousand stone steps to Japan’s famous Mountain Temple!
Yamadera in Yamagata Prefecture The hydrangeas are in bloom and it’s the perfect time of year to climb those thousand steps to Yamadera (literally “mountain temple”), a famed pilgrimage spot since the year 860. The view that will reward us after climbing the thousand stone steps to the top is pretty spectacular… …but it’s theContinueContinue reading “Let’s climb a thousand stone steps to Japan’s famous Mountain Temple!”
MAY-JUN 2023
Click on photo or link to read the feature • Seasonal Secret:It’s Fluttering Fish Flag Season! Few sights are more delightful than a school of fish flags fluttering against the spring sky. They only appear in the month before Children’s Day on May 5, so now is the time to seek out the biggest andContinueContinue reading “MAY-JUN 2023”
What the heckin’ heck is THIS?
The Japanese are the masters of the kind of weird inventions that make you burst out laughing…then you realize you need one. I love discovering these things, and I hope you’ll enjoy guessing what they’re used for too! Every month I’ll post a photo of something that I didn’t have any idea what it wasContinueContinue reading “What the heckin’ heck is THIS?”
Did you win the Mar-Apr Book Giveaway?
If you recognize your email, congratulations! You just won a copy of Dead-End Memories by Banana Yoshimoto! If you think this is you, shoot a message to JapanagramJonelle@gmail.com and tell me if you’d like an ebook or paperback, and where you’d like me to send it. (I’ll need an email address for the ebook or a mailingContinueContinue reading “Did you win the Mar-Apr Book Giveaway?”
Time travel to a samurai village, check out Westminster Abbey, then swoon over the most opulent golden shrine in Japan
Nikko in Tochigi Prefecture Nikko not only hosts my favorite must-see World Heritage Site in all of Japan, it’s home to two eye-popping theme parks—one that lets you wander around an authentically recreated samurai village dressed as the period character of your choice, and another that seems like it would be the acme of camp,ContinueContinue reading “Time travel to a samurai village, check out Westminster Abbey, then swoon over the most opulent golden shrine in Japan”
Japanese Chicken Sliders with a Tasty Trio of Toppings
These juicy chicken sliders with a hint of ginger can be topped with any combination of the toppings, depending on whether you’re in the mood for spicy, savory, creamy or tangy. There’s something for everyone, and the small size means you don’t have to decide which is your favorite until you’ve tried them all! •ContinueContinue reading “Japanese Chicken Sliders with a Tasty Trio of Toppings”
Look up! It’s koi nobori season!
In Japan ’tis the season to look to the sky for swimming fish! May 5th is the holiday formerly known as Boys’ Day, but now the charming flags called koi nobori fly for girls too. On Children’s Day, any child can be the carp that climbs the waterfall to become a dragon. Legend has itContinueContinue reading “Look up! It’s koi nobori season!”
Seven reasons not to fall in love with that $25,000 Japanese farmhouse
The New York Times is only the latest media outlet to jump on the “you can buy a fabulous farmhouse in Japan for cheap” bandwagon, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. To sum up this latest piece of clickbait, Japan’s famously shrinking population has left millions of vintage farmhouses sitting empty and unwanted,ContinueContinue reading “Seven reasons not to fall in love with that $25,000 Japanese farmhouse”
Japan Swag Giveaway
This set of threeSee-no-evil, hear-no-evil, speak-no-evil cats! In honor of our visit to the famous trio of monkeys at the Nikkō Toshogu Shrine this month, I’m giving away this limited edition set of three cats who will out-cute those monkeys in a heartbeat! On the last day of June, I’ll randomly pick one lucky JapanagramContinueContinue reading “Japan Swag Giveaway”
Did you win the Mar-Apr book giveaway?
If you recognize your email, congratulations! You just won a copy of All I asking for is my body by Milton Murayama If you think this is you, shoot a message to JapanagramJonelle@gmail.com and give me a mailing address you’d like it sent to (this one is only available in paperback) and I’ll get it to youContinueContinue reading “Did you win the Mar-Apr book giveaway?”
A sea of purple, delighting the populace for hundreds of years
Famous iris gardens near Tokyo In every shade, from grape to periwinkle, a Japanese iris garden in bloom is a feast of purple (these are at Meigetsu-in temple, in Kamakura) In the West, it’s rare to see more than a couple of delicate butterfly-like Japanese iris artfully ringing a pond at the local botanical garden,ContinueContinue reading “A sea of purple, delighting the populace for hundreds of years”
Mint-Cilantro Udon & Hamachi with Tomato-Ginger Sauce
Here are two recipes from this month’s book giveaway! Check back in July to see if you won this month’s drawing, but in the meantime please enjoy a delightful summertime supper of Japanese-flavored pesto noodles and seared fresh fish with a piquant tomato-ginger sauce, courtesy of chef and author Eric Gower. The recipes in thisContinueContinue reading “Mint-Cilantro Udon & Hamachi with Tomato-Ginger Sauce”
Why yes, that mold IS a National Living Treasure
Everything you ever wanted to know about making sake This is where the magic happens Japanese sake is surging in popularity as restaurants outside of Japan discover that it makes dishes from all over the world taste even better. My friend Mac—the Kanpai Planet YouTube channel host who delves into All Things Alcoholic in Japan—actuallyContinueContinue reading “Why yes, that mold IS a National Living Treasure”
The Breakaway Japanese Kitchen
The Breakaway Japanese Kitchen By Eric Gower Something different this month: a cookbook! Quality of recipes: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Japanese flavor: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Ease of preparation: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐My recommendation: This cookbook is a great favorite of mine, because the flavors are Japanese-inspired but geared to a Western kitchen and what’s available in Western supermarkets. Everything is a surprise and a delightContinueContinue reading “The Breakaway Japanese Kitchen”
International Food Fails of Japan
How can they get it so wrong? In a country where only 24% of the population even have a passport (compared to 45% of Americans and 78% of Brits), the closest most Japanese have ever been to “foreign” food is the restaurant down the block. Not surprisingly, this black hole of experience plays out inContinueContinue reading “International Food Fails of Japan”
MAY-JUN 2021
Click on photo or link to read the feature Seasonal Secret: Seven things you didn’t know about Japanese weddings From fake priests to Barbie princess gowns, Japanese weddings are a whole different ballgame…read more • Beyond Tokyo: Come for the purple, stay for the lights The Ashikaga Flower Park not only boasts insanely huge wisteria,ContinueContinue reading “MAY-JUN 2021”
Klara and the Sun
By Kazuo Ishiguro Setting & details: ⭐⭐⭐⭐Authenticity of Japanese characters & dialogue: N/ATranslation quality: N/AEntertainment value: ⭐⭐My recommendation: I did not love this book, but every respected professional reviewer did, so you decide… This story takes place in a near-future dystopia, in which children’s intelligence must be genetically enhanced in order to succeed in society.ContinueContinue reading “Klara and the Sun”
Come for the purple, stay for the lights
Ashikaga Flower Park in Tochigi prefecture You may not think wisteria is as travel-worthy as cherry blossoms, but…need I say more? There’s only one reason to trek all the way out to Ashikaga at the beginning of May, and that’s to see the astoundingly huge wisteria at the Ashikaga Flower Park. But guess what? It’sContinueContinue reading “Come for the purple, stay for the lights”
Seven things you didn’t know about Japanese weddings
‘Tis the season to get hitched, but they do things a little differently in Japan. Here are seven things I bet you didn’t know about Japanese weddings. 1 You don’t have to be there to get married The only way to get legally married in Japan is to fill out and stamp the bride andContinueContinue reading “Seven things you didn’t know about Japanese weddings”
How to live forever, Japan style
You know those “artist names” that get passed down from one generation to the next in Japan? I always assumed those were about art. That the passing of the torch from one generation to the next was about choosing the most gifted artist of the next generation to take their predecessor’s place at the topContinueContinue reading “How to live forever, Japan style “
Japanagram 