Sumiko Kajiyama - Cool Japan: A Guide to Tokyo, Kyoto, Tohoku and Japanese Culture Past and Present

2018 Sumiko Kajiyama

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be copied or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, recording or otherwise, except brief extracts for the purpose of review, and no part of this publication may be sold or hired without the express permission of the publisher.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Kajiyama, Sumiko, 1963- author.

Title: Cool Japan : a guide to Tokyo, Kyoto, Tohoku and Japanese culture past and present / Sumiko Kajiyama.

Description: 2nd edition. | New York : Museyon, 2018. | Series: Cool Japan series ; Book 1

Identifiers: LCCN 2017059883 (print) | LCCN 2017060689 (ebook) | ISBN 9781938450976 | ISBN 9781938450983 | ISBN 9781938450990 | ISBN 9781940842226 (paperback)

Subjects: LCSH: Tokyo (Japan)--Guidebooks. | Kyoto (Japan)--Guidebooks. | Tohoku Region (Japan)--Guidebooks. | Japan--Civilization--21st century. | BISAC: TRAVEL / Asia /Japan. | HISTORY / Asia / Japan.

Classification: LCC DS896.38 (ebook) | LCC DS896.38 .K35 2018 (print) | DDC 952.05--dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017059883

Published in the United States by:

Museyon Inc.

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New York, NY 10036

Museyon is a registered trademark.

Visit us online at www.museyon.com

ISBN 978-1-938450976

ISBN 978-1-938450983

ISBN 978-1-938450990

815110

May they not forget to keep pure the great heritage that puts them ahead of the West: the artistic configuration of life, the simplicity and modesty of personal needs, and the purity and serenity of the Japanese soul.

Albert Einstein, 1922

All names are shown in the Japanese style: Family name first, given name second

Kyotos Three Heroes: Murasaki Shikibu, Oda Nobunaga, and Sakamoto Ryoma

History and modern culture coexist in Japan.

The old capital city, Kyoto, is a prime example. Emperor Kammu decided to make this city his capital in 794. Even now, you can find remnants of those days when you walk around the city. The citys layout in a grid-like pattern is itself the very image of Heian-kyo (which means tranquility and peace capital), Kyotos old name.

The city has never stopped evolving in its 1,200-year history. Despite construction restrictions on building heights meant to preserve the citys famous vistas, there are modern buildings. Likewise, people walk about the streets dressed in contemporary fashions while sipping on Starbucks lattsjust as you would see in Ginza or Harajuku in Tokyo.

Modern Gion Matsuri celebrations; Gion Matsuri in Rakutyu Rakugai-zu, by Kano Eitoku, 1540-1560s, Uesugi Museum

Kyoto was the national capital for over 1,000 years, from 794 until 1868, and its landmarks have a wide range of historic backgrounds. One of the most popular places to visit in Kyoto, the dazzling Kinkaku-ji (The Golden Pavilion), was built at the end of the 14th century, during the Muromachi period, while the famous geisha district, Gion, was most prosperous in the beginning of the 19th century, the latter part of the Edo period.

People jokingly say that if an elderly Kyoto resident mentions the last war, he or she means the Onin War of the 15th century, not World War II. The center of Kyoto was burned down during the Onin War, while it was left untouched by WWII.

Fall foliage over Kiyomizu-dera with a view of Kyoto City

Because the city was spared during WWII, many of the cultural properties and faces of historic centers were saved and maintained to this day. It may be surprising to some people that a culture built with flammable wood and paper has been kept intact for such a long period of time.

You can find the footsteps of people who lived in a various periods in the past in this not-so-big city. In this way, you can easily travel through time as you travel through Kyoto.