YJPT Japan travel news & blog post index

Going to Japan, in many ways, is like going to another planet. The French, believe it or not, refer to Japan as "Planet Japon!" Going to a challenging and extremely exotic destination like Japan requires preparation. The more you know in advance the better. Most of what you need is easy enough to find & book on the internet: hotels in big cities, tickets for major events, etc. But there are other things worth reading up on and learning about. Did you know that Japan was first society in history to fire ceramics and produce a narrative novel? Learn more!

I have been writing for over 40 years. Everything from books and newspaper articles to poetry and startup culture handbooks. And as a Japan travel designer, I am always tring to publish great new deep content for foreign travelers interested in Japan. Learn more!

My Japan news & travel blog, see posts & articles below, is worth checking out for new Japan travel ideas and also, of course, to learn more about Japan!

And I have posted many essays on Japanese society and culture on this website. And season by season there will be more! To see them all go to my old-new Japanese culture essays index.

Enjoy the reads . . . Best, Ian Martin Ropke

• Maach Ecute retro mall, manga comic books, kendo, maneki neko
• Okazaki district, Teramachi Street, Shuzan village, and Shimabara
• Lanterns, the obi sash & more people & tales
• Shirakawa stream interlude, Japanese folklore & gardens
• Ohara village, Kyoto secret spots, fall foods, Shiga & Otsu
• Kameoka castle town, Sennyuji to Tofukuji walk, old Fushimi town.
• Interviews with a geisha teahouse owner & a Buddhist sculptor.
• The worlds of ikebana, washi paper & wax paper umbrellas.
• New temple decoration & architect in training interviews.
• Tofu treats, Ajiro high-class veg, fu wheat gluten.
• Kura storehouses, Kyoto geomancy, Rakkudo Temple, Heian poets.
• Kyoto's thatch houses, Kamigamo, Honganji, 5-yen coins, Daitokuji.
• Architecture, talismans, early samurai, soroban, Zen meditation temples.
• Learn all about the Japanese language from odd to poetic.
• Four famous Japanese people: a poet, a playwright, a tea master, and a stowaway!
• Three Kyoto area temples & one shrine that are different or super special!
• Japanese art restoration interview & an essay on the Japanese elderly!
• Japanese handicrafts for your home & kitchen, and antique shopping expressions!
• Basho haiku & Zen master Dogen; a ryokan tale; Ryoanji Zen garden; Lady Chiyono; tea ceremony.
• Kyoto's Imamiya Shrine; izakaya restaurants; sumo wrestler stews; harvest moon; Daigo-ji Temple.
• Trad footwear; foreign words; furoshiki wrapping cloths; the world of Go or Othello.
• Japan's new entry system, farming, moss, bonsai, marathon monks, Kyoto's oldest buildings!
• Travel news, sumo wrestling, Japanese combs & hairstyles.
• The history and evolution of private travel & how it is misunderstood.
• Irises, Kamigamo Shrine, samurai armor, Tenryuji Zen temple
• An overview of May seasonal themes
• Indexed full list of all my blog posts | articles.