Holly's Reviews Page 4/5

Yasui Konpiragu

Located in Kyoto's Higashiyama district, the shrine venerates Emperor Sutoku, Minamoto no Yorimasa, and the major deity from Kotohira Shrine in Sanuki. It has long been affectionately known as "Yasui no Konpira-san."

• Kyoto
• Shrines & Temples

I’ve been to Yasui Konpiragu three times, and I have to say, at least from my own experience, it really does feel quite powerful. Because of that, I think it’s important to be very clear when making a wish here. It’s best to write down exactly what bad ties you want to cut, and what kind of outcome you hope to welcome afterward.

The first two times I visited, I happened to be in situations where I wanted to leave my job but couldn’t seem to make it happen. After visiting the shrine, I was able to resign successfully in about two weeks. Of course, it may have just been a coincidence in timing, but having similar experiences twice in a row left a strong impression on me.

That said, Emperor Sutoku, who is enshrined at Yasui Konpiragu, is also strongly associated with vengeful spirits in Japanese history and legend, so the atmosphere of the shrine definitely feels unique. If you’re sensitive to the energy or atmosphere of shrines and spaces, it may be worth checking in with yourself before visiting.

For me, Yasui Konpiragu is not just Kyoto’s famous “shrine for cutting ties.” It’s also a place to visit when you want to end a relationship, job, or phase of life and open the door to new connections. So whenever I have time in my Kyoto itinerary, I make a point of going there to pray.

Izu Teddy Bear Museum

A museum showcasing teddy bears collected from around the world. Meet rare and adorable bears, including “Teddy Girl,” listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the most expensive teddy bear. Popular highlights include the Teddy Bear Factory, where you can make a one-of-a-kind plush, and the long-running special exhibition “My Neighbor Totoro Plush Exhibition Part 3.”

• Shizuoka
• Museums

The most special part of the Izu Teddy Bear Museum is the My Neighbor Totoro-themed exhibit on the second floor, officially licensed by Studio Ghibli. It recreates many classic scenes from the movie. I originally came for the Catbus. The Ghibli Museum also has a Catbus, but only kids can go inside. Here, even adults can sit in it and take photos, which is awesome!
Near the exit, there’s also a whole row of “Teddy Bear Shrine” displays. From the torii gate and worship hall to the shrine maiden teddy bears, everything is really well done. It’s a fun mix of foreign teddy bear culture and Japanese shrine elements.
The first floor mainly introduces the history of teddy bears and displays collections from around the world. The highlight is the “Teddy Bear Train.” The scene inside the train car feels a bit like the banquet in Titanic, just set on a train. At certain times, the bears even dance together. When I visited, it happened to be Girls’ Day, so they also had a teddy bear version of a traditional hina doll display.
The museum isn’t huge, but everything from the indoor exhibits to the outdoor decorations is put together with a lot of care. The ticket price is a little on the high side, but overall, it’s still well worth visiting.

Ohara Museum of Art

Ohara Museum of Art is housed in the Kurashiki Bikan Historical Quarter and has on display a collection of modern and contemporary art works. In 1930, Ohara Magozaburo, a local businessman, established this nation’s first private museum for western arts.

• Okayama
• Museums

I originally planned my visit to the Ohara Museum of Art just to see Monet’s Water Lilies. But once I stepped inside, I realized that what makes this museum truly captivating isn’t just its famous collection, but the different feelings each work evokes in person. From Torajiro Kojima’s oil paintings capturing the beauty of kimono, to the quiet, almost absent atmosphere of Little Table at Dusk, the bright and lively colors of Canal in Auvers, and a large painting of death that felt deeply unsettling yet impossible to forget, the Ohara Museum of Art left a much stronger impression than I expected.

The museum building has a classical feel, almost like a Greek temple. Surprisingly, it blends beautifully with Kurashiki’s white-walled streetscape. After visiting, you can also sit down and relax with coffee at the nearby café thoughtfully opened by the founder. For anyone who loves Western art, this museum is absolutely worth a visit.

Naminoue Shrine

As the name implies, this ancient shrine stands on a quay overhanging the blue sea, and is affectionately known as "Nanmin-san" by the local people.

• Naha, Shuri, Itoman, Nanjo
• Shrines & Temples

Naminoue Shrine is located on a seaside hill in Naha. Inside the grounds, you’ll see plenty of banyan trees, Okinawan-style tiled roofs, and tropical greenery. The overall atmosphere feels completely different from the shrines commonly seen on Japan’s main islands. The banyan trees, sea breeze, Okinawan roof tiles, and coastal setting give this shrine a distinct southern island character.

You do have to climb a rather unappealing slope on the way there, but I still thought it was a great visit. No wonder Japanese visitors feel like they’re traveling abroad when they come to Okinawa. It really has a completely different charm from mainland shrines.

Himeji Castle

This castle is a World Heritage Site and a Japanese castle masterpiece. The main keep, built by Ikeda Terumasa in the early Edo period, has a five-story exterior, one basement level, and six stories above ground on the inside, making it the largest Edo period castle tower still standing.

• Hyogo
• Tourist Attractions

I originally thought the main difference between Himeji Castle and other Japanese castles was simply its beautiful white exterior. But once I went inside, I realized its scale, state of preservation, and architectural details were far beyond what I had expected. After entering from Sakuramon Bridge, it already takes a while just to cross Sannomaru Square and reach the ticket gate. Once officially inside the castle grounds, I was drawn in by the layered views of the main keeps, smaller keeps, connecting corridors, and multiple gates. I kept stopping to walk, take photos, and look around, so there was no way I could finish the visit in the two hours I had originally planned.

Compared with the main keep, which gets the most attention, I really liked the Hyakken Corridor and Keshō Yagura in Nishinomaru. This area preserves a rare glimpse of women’s living spaces within a Japanese castle. As I walked along the wooden corridor and looked at the small rooms used by attendants, household items, and exhibits related to Princess Sen, I realized that castles were not only places for lords, samurai, and war. They also once held the everyday lives of women. Princess Sen spent some rare peaceful years at Himeji Castle, but in the end she lost both her child and husband one after another. It gave that seemingly glamorous life a sense of fated sadness.

The main keep area has a completely different atmosphere. The low gates, steep stone steps, winding passages, and sudden corners are already quite tiring for ordinary visitors, so it’s hard to imagine how enemy soldiers in armor would have advanced through them. After entering the keep and seeing the many weapon racks, shooting holes, stone-dropping openings, and hidden rooms, I finally understood that beneath Himeji Castle’s elegant white appearance lies an extremely cold, warlike nature. I’m also grateful to live in a peaceful era, when this castle built for defense can finally be appreciated for its most beautiful side.

Osaka Kizu Wholesale Market

One of the largest privately-operated regional wholesale markets in Japan, Osaka Kizu Wholesale Market draws droves of professional chefs seeking top-quality ingredients. With a history spanning nearly 300 years, the market originated in the Edo period as a “nodachi-uri” (open-air trade market) where people brought their goods to sell.

• Shinsaibashi, Namba, Nipponbashi (Minami)
• Shopping Streets

Osaka Kizu Wholesale Market mainly serves restaurant industry professionals and local residents. Inside, you’ll find seafood, fruits and vegetables, dried goods, and eateries. The sections are clearly organized, and the market is cleaner than I expected.

Aside from popular dining spots serving seafood bowls and other dishes, many fresh items are now sold in smaller portions, so travelers can easily buy something too. There’s also a dining area on-site. Since most shops start closing up around noon, I’d recommend going between 8 and 10 in the morning to have the best selection of fresh foods.

What I felt most after walking around was that this place constantly makes you choose between “I want to eat” and “I want to buy.” If you start with a seafood bowl at one of the popular shops around the market, you won’t have room for the seafood inside. But if you buy seafood inside the market first, it’s hard to try many different items at once, especially when you’re visiting alone. At moments like that, I really wished my stomach were bigger.

Tokugawaen

This Japanese garden was established in the ruins that used to be called “Ōzone Yashiki ” for Tokugawa Mitsutomo (1625-1700), the second lord of the Owari branch of the Tokugawa clan, to spend his retired life in 1695. The ground is said to have about 44 ha.

• Nagoya
• Parks & Gardens

I first stopped by a nearby kissaten for a classic Nagoya breakfast, so I decided to walk into Tokugawaen afterward. To my surprise, I happened to catch a winter peony exhibition. I honestly didn’t expect to see so many peonies in winter. Their delicate petals were layered beautifully, and the colors were so rich. After seeing them all, I understood why people in the past were so fascinated by peonies.

I also happened to come across a nagashi-bina ceremony, which added movement and life to the otherwise quiet Hinamatsuri atmosphere. I didn’t expect to see this ceremony anywhere other than Shimogamo Shrine, and this one even allowed the general public to participate. Unfortunately, I didn’t have time to join because I wanted to see the hina dolls at the art museum.

I had assumed a winter garden would feel plain, but the waterfall, water features, and peonies made the garden feel alive even in winter. It also helped me understand what books mean when they describe how daimyo gardens reflected control over technique, resources, and space.

Tokugawa Art Museum

This museum curates Owari Tokunaga family’s treasures. The 19th feudal lord Tokugawa Yoshichika opened it in 1935 to preserve the culture of lordship for the future generations.

• Nagoya
• Museums

I originally came because I was drawn to the Owari Tokugawa family's hina doll exhibition. But once I stepped inside, what impressed me most was the Noh stage. It was so huge that even an ultra-wide-angle lens could barely capture it all.

The tea rooms, study rooms, and artifacts are also reassembled in a way that helps fill in the missing atmosphere of the Honmaru Palace at Nagoya Castle. This museum doesn't just place cultural objects behind glass. It lets you see how they originally existed within samurai family life.

Even after political power has faded, these artifacts still carry on the lingering glow of the Tokugawa family through the way they are displayed in the space.

Kanazawa Confectionery Wooden Mold Museum

A museum of Kanazawa’s confectionery culture located on the second floor of the main store of Morihachi, a long-established Japanese sweets shop with over 400 years of history. Around 1,000 items, including wooden molds used to make sweets since the Edo period, are displayed in glass cases by era. The molds come in a wide range of sizes and designs, and part of the fun is imagining what kinds of sweets were made from them as you look around.

• Kanazawa
• Museums

I originally just wanted to make a pilgrimage to see the century-old wooden molds for wagashi, but the experience ended up being much richer than I expected. From shibugami and rakugan wooden molds to kinka-to, a type of sugar confection unique to the Hokuriku region, I was able to fill in a lot of knowledge I had only seen in bits and pieces in books. I also truly came to understand that the value of these wooden molds isn’t just in the carving, but also in the careful attention paid to selecting the wood, drying it, and preserving it.

What surprised me the most was the display of confectionery plates from the Meiji, Taisho, and Showa eras. The Taisho-era pieces, especially those with Western-style and romantic influences, made me stop and look closely at almost every single one. That section alone made the visit completely worth it. In the tea ceremony, confectionery plates are usually supporting players, but here they became the sole stars of the show.

After the visit, I went to the dining area next door and enjoyed a fresh wagashi with yellow bean paste, Kaga bocha, and kuzukiri. The mother-of-pearl lacquer tray and Kutani ware also made the whole experience feel even more distinctly Kanazawa. I hadn’t planned on buying souvenirs, but after seeing the video showing how Choseiden is made, I couldn’t resist and bought a small box to take back to Taiwan. Once I tried it after returning home, I was amazed by its light, crisp texture that quickly melted away. I immediately regretted not buying a bigger box QQ

Kiunkaku

Built in 1919 (Taisho 8), Kiunkaku is a modern villa and one of Atami's three great villas, alongside the private villas of the Mitsubishi Iwasaki family and the now-lost Sumitomo villa.

• Shizuoka
• Museums

Kiunkaku was bigger than I expected, and there was more to see than I had imagined. The Japanese-style corridors were quiet and bright, while the Western-style building’s stained glass and Roman bath were elegant without feeling gaudy. The two styles worked together surprisingly well. Personally, I thought they were the highlights of Kiunkaku.

I especially loved the stained glass. Even by today’s standards, it still feels timeless.

The café near the exit serves coffee and wagashi. The sofa was beautiful, but a little hard to sit on, so I ended up moving over near the counter. Unexpectedly, the retro space matched the colors of my kimono that day, and I got my favorite photo from the whole trip there.

Overall, the building is very well preserved. It isn’t just sealed off as an exhibit, either. You can see that it’s still being used, with classes offered for local residents, which makes it feel like the old building is truly still alive.