There has been exchange between Japan and Asia for more than 2,000 years. In the early part of what Westerners know as the first millennium, the objects and ideas introduced to Japan from China and Korea, in particular, enabled Japan to develop its own distinctive culture. The Asuka Period (538-710 CE) of Japanese history is … Continue reading Dazaifu, ancient Japan’s Western capital
This article describes an afternoon of tea tasting in Fukuoka's Hoshino-mura, not far from the place were tea was first cultivated in Japan some 800 years ago. (Archived article originally published by Japan Today)
Standing atop a hill, gazing southwest across the Chikugo River valley toward the Ariake Sea, stands the 62 meter tall Jobo Kannon (the motherly goddess of mercy), cradling a baby in her arms. Completed in early 1983, she is the tallest Kannon statue on the island of Kyushu. Jobo Kannon stands on the grounds of … Continue reading Kannon keeping watch in Kurume
