Japan - Ishikawa Prefecture - 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art at Kanazawa

21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa.

Sent by Makiko from Toyo, Japan.

The 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art, Kanazawa (金沢21世紀美術館, Kanazawa Nijūisseiki Bijutsukan) is a museum of contemporary art located in Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan.

The museum was designed by Japanese architects Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa of the architectural office SANAA in 2004. In October 2005, one year after its opening, the Museum marked 1,570,000 visitors. In 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic it attracted only 971,256 visitors, a drop of 63 percent from 2019, but it still ranked tenth on the list of most-visited art museums in the world.

The Museum is located in the center of Kanazawa, near Kenroku-en garden and the Ishikawa Prefectural Museum of Art. The building has a circular form, with a diameter of 112.5 metres. This shape aims to keep the appearance of the overall building volume low, to mitigate the scale of the project and allows access from multiple points of entry. The transparency of the building further manifests the wish to avoid the museum being perceived as a large, introverted mass (read more).

Japan - Kōchi Prefecture - Kōchi Castle

Kōchi Castle, in Kōchi City, Kōchi Prefecture, on the island of Shikoku, Japan.

Sent by Sayaka who lives in Kōchi Prefecture, Japan.

Kōchi Castle (高知城, Kōchi-jō) is an Edo Period Japanese castle in the city of Kōchi, Kōchi Prefecture, Japan. It is located at Otakayama hill, at the center of Kōchi city, which in turn is located at the center of the Kōchi Plain, the most prosperous area of former Tosa Province on the island of Shikoku. From 1601 to 1871, it was the center of Tosa Domain, ruled by the tozama Yamauchi clan under the Tokugawa Shogunate. The castle site has been protected as a National Historic Site since 1959, with the area under protection expanded in 2014.

During the Sengoku period, Tosa Province was dominated by Chōsokabe Motochika, who conquered most of Shikoku from stronghold at Okō Castle. However, Okō Castle was a mountain stronghold with little room for the development of a castle town. After his defeat by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1585, Motochika decided to construct a new castle at Otakayama hill and the ruins of an ancient fortification which had been constructed by Otakasa Matsuomaru sometime during the late Heian or Kamakura period. Although the new castle had the advantages of space and a central location, the area around the hill at this time was extremely swampy, due to the influx of alluvial sediments from the Kagami River, and was prone to flooding. Motochika shortly afterwards moved once again to a new location at Urado Castle on the coast, which also had the advantage of being closer to his fleet (read more).

Japan - Himeji-jo (2)

Himeji Castle (World Cultural Heritage) in Spring / Hyogo / Japan.

Seny by Yukino from Ōta, Japan.

Himeji-jo is the finest surviving example of early 17th-century Japanese castle architecture. It is located in Himeji City, in the Hyogo Prefecture, an area that has been an important transportation hub in West Japan since ancient times. The castle property, situated on a hill summit in the central part of the Harima Plain, covers 107 hectares and comprises eighty-two buildings. It is centred on the Tenshu-gun, a complex made up of the donjon, keeps and connecting structures that are part of a highly developed system of defence and ingenious protection devices dating from the beginning of the Shogun period. The castle functioned continuously as the centre of a feudal domain for almost three centuries, until 1868 when the Shogun fell and a new national government was created.

The principal complex　of these structures is a masterpiece of construction in wood, combining function with aesthetic appeal, both in its elegant appearance unified by the white plastered earthen walls – that has earned it the name Shirasagi-jo (White Heron Castle) – and in the subtlety of the relationships between the building masses and the multiple roof layers visible from almost any point in the city read more).

Japan - Tokyo Rainbow Bridge

Rainbow Bridge/Statue of Liberty

From the observation deck of Odaiba Seaside Park, you can see a grand panorama of Tokyo Port, including a Statue of Liberty, Rainbow Bridge, and beyond that, the city center and Tokyo Tower.

Sent by Thais from Kazo in Japan.

The Rainbow Bridge (レインボーブリッジ, Reinbō Buridji) is a suspension bridge crossing northern Tokyo Bay between Shibaura Pier and the Odaiba waterfront development in Minato, Tokyo, Japan.

It is named Tōkyō Kō Renrakukyō (東京港連絡橋) as the official name in Japanese.

It was built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries, with construction starting in 1987 and completed in 1993. Officially called the "Shuto Expressway No. 11 Daiba Route - Port of Tokyo Connector Bridge", the double-decker bridge is 798 m (2,618 ft) long with a main span of 580 m (1,903 ft). The name "Rainbow Bridge" was decided by the public.

The towers supporting the bridge are white in color, designed to harmonize with the skyline of central Tokyo seen from Odaiba. There are lamps placed on the wires supporting the bridge, which are illuminated into three different colors, red, white and green every night using solar energy obtained during the day.

The bridge can be accessed by foot from Tamachi Station (JR East) or Shibaura-futō Station (Yurikamome) on the mainland side (read more).

Japan - Traditional Japanese Gate (Torii)

Traditional Japanese Gate (torii), Tachiki Kannon Temple, Utagahama Beach.

Utagahama, Chuzenji lakeside.

Utagahama is located on the eastern shore of Lake Chuzenji, from where you can see the entirety of Mount Nantai (2,480 meters above sea level), and the area around the large torii gate of Tachiki Kannon, which is associated with Shodo Shonin, is a famous scenic spot.

Sent by Ayu from Tokyo, Japan.

A torii (Japanese: 鳥居; [to.ɾi.i]) is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the mundane to the sacred, and a spot where kami are welcomed and thought to travel through.

The presence of a torii at the entrance is usually the simplest way to identify Shinto shrines, and a small torii icon represents them on Japanese road maps and on Google Maps.

The first appearance of torii gates in Japan can be reliably pinpointed to at least the mid-Heian period; they are mentioned in a text written in 922. The oldest existing stone torii was built in the 12th century and belongs to a Hachiman shrine in Yamagata Prefecture. The oldest existing wooden torii is a ryōbu torii (see description below) at Kubō Hachiman Shrine in Yamanashi Prefecture built in 1535 (read more).

Japan - Mount Fuji (5)

Bright autumn leaves will begin to change color in the lake of Mount Fuji near fall. Of autumn leaves Mount Fuji in the superb view, many people visit to guide this landscape.

Sent by Kevin from Saga, a small city in South Japan.

My other postcards of Mount Fuji are here, here, here, and here.

Japan - Mount Fuji (4)

Majestic image of the snow-capped Mount Fuji, a prominent symbol of Japan and a UNESCO World Heritage site, with a postal stamp and a special postmark. Last eruption was in 1707.

Sent by Yuko who mentioned that she can see the Mount Fuji from her house.

My other postcards of Mount Fuji are here, here, and here.

Japan - Hokkaido - Hakodate Christmas Fantasy

Hakodate Christmas Fantasy.

Sent by Erika from Hokkaido, Japan.

A traditional harbinger of happiness, the fir tree plays a central role in Christmas in Hakodate. Every winter, a splendid fir tree—a gift from Halifax, Hakodate’s Canadian sister city—is shipped across the North American continent and the Pacific Ocean to the Hokkaidō city.

The great fir, soaring more than 20 meters high, is set up on a barge in the harbor and lavishly decorated with lights, after which it is pulled by a tug boat to the bay area, where it stays through Christmas day.

Japan - "Double Diamond Fuji"

"Double Diamond Fuji" is a phenomenon wherethe morning sun overlaps the summit of Mt. Fuji and its reflection is cast on the surface of the lake.

Sent by Eriko from Kanagawa, Japan.

As a spiritual symbol of Japan, Mt. Fuji is one of only three sacred mountains of the country and its tallest at 3,776 meters. Its designation as a UNESCO world heritage site further exemplifies its importance to not only the people of Japan but to the world as well.

When my wife and I went to Japan in the Spring of 2017, I had the opportunity to capture a widely known event called diamond Fuji — the time when the sun rises behind the apex of Mt. Fuji, creating a sparkle on top, much like a diamond would on top of a ring.

The term double diamond Fuji refers to this event and its reflection caught in a body of water in the foreground. This happens around April 20 and August 20 of every year (give or take a few days) at Lake Tanuki (read more).

Japan - Kyoto - Kyoto Tower

Kyoto Tower - Located at the entrance to Kyoto Miyako Tower Building has 3 basement floors, 9 floors above ground, and a rooftop. There is a candlestick-shaped observation tower131 meters above ground. The observation room can accomodate about 400 peopleand offers a panoramic view of the ancient capital.

Sent by Erina from Matsue, Japan.

Kyoto Tower (京都タワー, Kyōto-tawā) is an observation tower located in Kyoto, Japan. The steel tower is the tallest structure in Kyoto with its observation deck at 100 metres (328 ft) and its spire at 131 metres (430 ft). The 800-ton tower stands atop a 9-story building, which houses a 3-star hotel and several stores. The entire complex stands opposite Kyōto Station.

Kyoto Tower was proposed in the early 1960s, and it was planned to be constructed and completed in time to correspond with the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. Construction began in 1963 on the former site of Kyoto's central post office and was completed near the end of 1964. Unlike many other towers (such as Tokyo Tower) that are constructed using metal lattice frames, Kyoto Tower's interior structure consists of many steel rings stacked on top of each other. The structure was then covered with lightweight steel sheets with a thickness of 12–22 mm (0.47–0.87 in). The sheets were then welded together and painted white. The intended overall effect was for the tower to resemble a Japanese candle (read more).

Japan - Shizuoka Prefecture - Sunpu Castle

Sunpu Castle (Higashi-mikado Gate and Tatsumi Tower).

Sent by Maya from Fuefuki City in Japan.

Sunpu Castle (駿府城, Sunpu-jō) is a Japanese castle in Shizuoka City, Shizuoka Prefecture in Japan. The sobriquet of this feudal fortress was the "Castle of the Floating Isle". It was also referred to as Fuchu Castle (府中城, Fuchū-jō) or Shizuoka Castle (静岡城, Shizuoka-jō).

During the Muromachi period, the Imagawa clan ruled Suruga Province from their base at Sunpu (modern-day Shizuoka City). It is not certain exactly when an Imagawa Sunpu castle was built on this site (read more).

Japan - Tokyo Metropolis - Tsukiji Hongwanji Temple

Tsujiki Hongwanji Temple. Nighttime.

Sent by Sayaka who was born and raised in Tokyo, Japan.

Tsukiji Hongan-ji (築地本願寺), officially romanized Hongwan-ji, is a Jodo Shinshu Buddhist temple located in the Tsukiji district of Tokyo, Japan.

The temple is adjacent to Tsukiji Station on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line.

Tsukiji Hongan-ji's predecessor was the temple of Edo-Asakusa Gobo (江戸浅草御坊), built in Asakusa in 1617 at the behest of the 12th monshu, Junnyo Shōnin.

The temple burned during a citywide fire in 1657, and the shogunate refused to allow it to be rebuilt in Asakusa due to a prior project there. Instead, the temple was moved to a new parcel of land being reclaimed along the Sumida River—today's Tsukiji. This land was said to have been reclaimed by Jodo Shinshu followers themselves who lived at nearby Tsukudajima. The name Tsukiji comes from the kanji characters meaning "reclaimed land". This new temple, named Tsukiji Gobo (築地御坊), stood until it was leveled by the Great Kantō earthquake of 1923 (read more).

Japan - Hokanji Temple

Yasaka Pagoda is a landmark located in the Gion neigborhood. Its official name is Hokanji Temple, and the current five-storied pagoda was built in 1440.

Sent by Yumi from Fukuoka, Japan. 

The Yasaka Pagoda (Japanese: 八坂の塔, romanized: Yasaka-no-to), also known as the Tower of Yasaka, is a Buddhist pagoda located in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto, Japan. The 5-story tall pagoda is the last remaining structure of a 6th-century temple complex known as Hōkan-ji (法観寺). The pagoda is now a tourist attraction.

Archaeological evidence dates the foundation of the Yasaka Pagoda to the 7th Century. The founding date is disputed between the reign of Prince Shotoku and the sixth year of the Tenmu period (678 CE). The pagoda and the associated temple were destroyed and reconstructed several times up to 1440, of which the current pagoda stands to this day.
Control of the pagoda was historically disputed between the nearby Shinto Gion Shrine and the Buddhist temple of Kiyomizu-dera, to the point the pagoda was burnt down in May of 1179. It was later rebuilt in 1191 with funding from Kawachi Genji noble Minamoto no Yoritomo. In 1240, the head priest of the nearby Buddhist temple of Kennin-ji affiliated the pagoda with Zen Buddhism, which remains the official designation of the Yasaka Pagoda to the present day (read more).

Japan - Minakami Momoyamanagare

Hot Spring Inn Momoyama Style in Minakami, Gunma, Japan.
Sent by Franco from Minakami, Gunma, Japan.

It was approved and built as a hot spring inn in 1951. Closed in 2004. After about 20 years, the hotel has been renovated by Seagull Resort Innovation, the developer of the Gensen Yuno Yado Matsunoi, while preserving as much of the old-fashioned interior and exterior as possible (read more).

Japan - Mount Fuji

A view of Mount Fuji from Lake Motosu
National Park Mt. Fuji

Sent by Sumiko from Imari, Japan.

My other postcard of Mount Fuji is here.

Japan - Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art

Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art in Sakura, Japan.

Sent by Dora from Saitama, Japan.

The Kawamura Memorial DIC Museum of Art (DIC川村記念美術館, DIC Kawamura Kinen Bijutsukan) (often shortened to Kawamura Memorial Museum) was an art museum in Sakura, Japan, designed by Ichiro Ebihara (海老原一郎, Ebihara Ichiro).

The museum opened in 1990 and its collection now contains more than 1000 works collected by the Japanese resin and ink manufacturer DIC Corporation. The project was largely the brainchild of Katsumi Kawamura, the former president of DIC, founder and first director of the museum, who had been collecting art since the 1970s. The Kawamura Memorial Museum contains artwork by a wide selection of American, European and Japanese artists, including special exhibitions of the works of Mark Rothko and Frank Stella. The museum is set in a 30-hectare park with over 200 kinds of trees, 500 kinds of plants and inhabited by many wild birds and insects (read more).

Japan - Tōhoku History Museum

Tōhoku History Museum in Tagajō, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan.

Sent by Ayako from Tagajō, Japan.

The Tōhoku History Museum (東北歴史博物館, Tōhoku Rekishi Hakubutsukan) is a museum in Tagajō, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It houses finds from excavations at the site of Tagajō as well as from other archaeological sites in the Tōhoku region of northern Japan.
These include a Jōmon period jade axe excavated in Kizukuri, Aomori Prefecture, and designated an Important Cultural Property; and another Jōmon jade, excavated in Niisato, Iwate Prefecture, also designated an Important Cultural Property (read more).

Japan - Hokkaido - Blue Pond

Aoike on an autum night.

Sent by Marina from Kyoto, Japan.

Blue Pond (青い池, Aoi-ike) is a man-made pond feature in Biei, Hokkaido, Japan. It is the result of works on the Biei River (美瑛川), carried out after the 1988 eruption of Mount Tokachi, to protect the town of Biei from volcanic mudflows. The colour is thought to result from the accidental presence of colloidal aluminium hydroxide in the water. Damage caused by Typhoon Mindulle in August 2016 resulted in a temporary drop in the water level and in the colour briefly turning brown with mud and sand from the Biei River.

Japan - Tokyo

Tokyo night views.

Sent by Emiri from Saitama, Japan.

Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital city of Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is one of the most populous urban areas in the world. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes Tokyo and parts of six neighboring prefectures, is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, with 41 million residents as of 2024 (read further).

Japan - Five-Storey Pagoda

Five-storey pagoda (Nara period, national treasure)

A five-storey pagoda outdoors with a total standing of 16.7 meters tall.

It is the smallest standing pagoda. It is a masterpiece of Muro Mountains that exudes a dignified atmosphere.

Sent by Yuki who lives near Tokyo, Japan.

Kohfukuji’s Five-storied Pagoda was originally erected in 730 by Empress Kōmyō (701–760), the daughter of Kohfukuji’s founding patron, Fujiwara no Fuhito (659–720). Over its long history, the pagoda burned down a total of five times, with the current reconstruction dating to 1426. At 50.1 meters, it is the second-tallest wooden pagoda in Japan today. Famous for its deep eaves, the structure successfully blends references to the architecture of the Nara Period (710–794) with the dynamic architectural style of the Muromachi Period (1136–1573) during which it was last rebuilt (read further).