Hiking Japan’s Hidden Sacred Mountains
Over two thirds of Japan is covered with mountains. These icons of the local landscape offer valuable resources and destinations for hikers, skiers and snowboarders, but also serve...
Culture
Traditional culture, or cultural tourist attractions incl. museums, temples, shrines, festivals, etc.
A Deeper Dive into Biwako at the Lake Biwa Museum
On a recent family weekend outing, I made my second visit to the Lake Biwa Museum ( 琵琶湖博物館 or Biwako Hakubutsukan ) which provided a fun afternoon for...
A Slice of the Sword Life
Shiga’s small town of Gokasho is famed for offering visitors a snap shot back in time to when wealthy merchants inhabited the area. Yet among the museums and...
Personalizing Your Hatsumode Experience at a Shrine or Temple
From omikuji to praying after a donation, there are many things to do during Hatsumode, your first Shinto shrine or Buddhist temple visit of the year. This first...
Shiga Enriched through English
As 2015 comes to a close, take a moment to stop and reflect over your Shiga highlights for the year. Where did you go? What did you do?...