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Matsuyama Castle watches over Shikoku's largest city from its mountaintop, as it has for centuries. Matsuyama Castle watches over Shikoku's largest city from...

The pilgrimage path between Temples 2 and 3 traces ancient routes through rice fields and past country homes. Stone signposts with carved hands point the way...

Just off a busy prefectural highway, a brilliant vermillion gate leads into an oasis of calm. Welcome to Gokuraku-ji, the Temple of Profound Bliss, Temple 2 ...

The north peak of Yashima, as seen from the south. The north peak of Yashima, as seen from the south. Mt. Yashima, the anvil-shaped mesa that stretches out o...

Tucked away in the misty mountains of Tokushima, Biwa Falls is the kind of place that makes you feel as though you have stepped into a movie.Located in the r...

There are places in Japan that feel like they were designed for slowing down.Garyu Sanso, tucked beside the Hijikawa River in the historic town of Ozu, Ehime...

Shikoku is known for its mountains, rivers, and slow, gentle way of life—but along the coast, there is a dish that burns with dramatic energy: Katsuo no Tata...

Most travelers to Japan follow the same line between Tokyo and Kyoto. The Shimanto River runs somewhere else entirely — deep into rural Shikoku, where a rive...

No place does a Sunday Market quite like Kochi. In fact, it’s the biggest in Japan!  Just when you thought Kochi couldn't get any more wholesome, Kochi ...

Some pilgrimages you make on a train. This one you make on your knees, more or less — a stone staircase climbing up the side of a sleepy Kagawa mountain towa...