Issue 65

Umenishiki is an old-line sake brewery founded in the 5th year of the Meiji Period (1872). They received their license to brew be...

In the old days there were several routes from the land-locked ancient capital of Kyoto to the Japan Sea. These supply roots were...

Fans of the Tokyo markets will surely know the Aoyama Farmers Market. Each weekend nearly 100 vendors fill the generous sidewalk ...

About six years ago, I decided to steer my life in a new direction. I charted a path around the world, connecting bucket list adventures and destinations through 100 countries for a journey that would take me from my expatriate home in China to the U.S.

Recent movies such as “Wild” and “A Walk in the Woods” have popularized long-distance hiking, causing many of us who enjoy backpacking to wonder what it would be like to complete one of the legendary long distance hiking trails.

My journey was not an easy one. Temperatures were unusually high (exceeding 36°C at times), I was constantly on the lookout for bears and was delayed by severe weather.

An afternoon storm sends us scuttling under the eaves of a sari shop and clears the road in Besi Sahar. Only a few buses trundle over the uneven stone surface of the road in this mountain town, the starting point for many of Nepal’s most popular treks.

The elusive Okinawa dugong was once a symbol of the ocean. But after years of hunting, pollution and land expansion, the species have gone into hiding. Today a dangerously low number remains in the area.

In a world of evolving sport styles, it’s refreshing to see surfers like Hiroka Yoshikawa embracing the classics.

Mt. Fuji is silhouetted against a post-typhoon sunset, overlooking Yuno Village’s golden rice fields nearly ready for harvest. While Japan’s iconic volcano may seem cliché to some, for Masanori Shintani it is the source of inspiration for his lifework.

There’s arguably nowhere more breathtaking than Kamikochi in Japan’s Northern Alps.

Sweetness is one of the primary tastes and, in moderation, most people enjoy a bit of sweetness now and again. We have evolved th...