Frequently Asked (822) — page 5

Onsen & BathEssential yubune ni tsukaru湯船につかるsoaking in the tub rather than just showering

Onsen & BathEssential higaeri onsen日帰り温泉a day-use hot spring with no overnight stay

Onsen & BathEssential atsui furo o konomu bunka熱い風呂を好む文化the Japanese taste for baths hotter than most visitors expect

Onsen & BathEssential io no nioi硫黄のにおいthe rotten-egg smell of sulfur hot springs

Onsen & BathEssential rotenburo露天風呂open-air bath

PlacesEssential Kamakura no Daibutsu鎌倉の大仏the bronze Buddha that sits outdoors because its hall was destroyed

PlacesEssential Gion祇園と花街the old Kyoto quarter where geiko and maiko still work

PlacesEssential kyoto京都the capital for a thousand years, and how to explain it

PlacesEssential Kinkakuji金閣寺the Golden Pavilion in Kyoto

PlacesEssential Ginkakuji銀閣寺the Silver Pavilion in Kyoto, which has no silver on it

PlacesEssential Harajuku and Omotesando原宿と表参道the youth fashion street and the tree-lined avenue beside it

PlacesEssential Itsukushima Jinja厳島神社the shrine built over the sea, with a torii gate standing in the water

PlacesEssential Hiroshima to Heiwa Kinen Koen広島と平和記念公園the park in the middle of Hiroshima built where the city was destroyed

PlacesEssential Kokyo皇居と二重橋where the Emperor lives, on the site of Edo Castle

PlacesEssential Akihabara秋葉原the Tokyo district that went from radio parts to anime

PlacesEssential Shibuya sukuranburu kosaten渋谷スクランブル交差点the all-way pedestrian crossing outside Shibuya Station

PlacesEssential Shinjuku and Kabukicho新宿と歌舞伎町the world's busiest station and the entertainment district beside it

PlacesEssential Kiyomizudera清水寺the Kyoto temple with a wooden stage built out over a hillside

PlacesEssential Asakusa浅草the old temple district in eastern Tokyo

PlacesEssential osaka大阪the merchant city, and how it differs from Tokyo

PlacesEssential Tsukiji and Toyosu築地と豊洲the old fish market street and the new wholesale market

PlacesEssential Tokyo Tawa東京タワーthe red and white broadcasting tower built in 1958

PlacesEssential Todaiji東大寺と奈良の大仏the Nara temple housing a 15-meter bronze Buddha in a vast wooden hall

PlacesEssential Dotonbori道頓堀the canal-side street in Osaka with the running-man sign

PlacesEssential Nara Koen no shika奈良公園の鹿the wild deer that roam a city park in Nara

PlacesEssential Shirakawago白川郷the mountain village of steep thatched farmhouses

PlacesEssential Hakone箱根the hot spring area in the mountains west of Tokyo

PlacesEssential Himejijo姫路城the white castle in Hyogo, the best-preserved original keep in Japan

PlacesEssential Fujisan富士山Japan's highest mountain, an active volcano and a World Cultural Heritage site

PlacesEssential Fushimi Inari Taisha伏見稲荷大社the Kyoto shrine with thousands of vermilion torii gates up a mountain

PlacesEssential Meiji Jingu明治神宮the Tokyo shrine set in a forest that was planted from nothing

PlacesEssential Arashiyama嵐山the district of western Kyoto with the bridge, the temple garden and the bamboo path

Pop CultureEssential bui chubaVチューバーa performer who streams and posts videos as an animated character instead of showing their real face

Pop CultureEssential animeアニメJapanese animation

Pop CultureEssential karaokeカラオケsinging to a backing track

Pop CultureEssential kawaiiかわいいthe aesthetic of cuteness

Pop CultureEssential terebi gemuテレビゲームhome video games

Pop CultureEssential Doraemonドラえもんa cat-shaped robot from the future, star of a long-running children's manga and anime

Pop CultureEssential pokemonポケモンa Japanese game series about catching and raising creatures, later an anime and card game

Pop CultureEssential emoji絵文字picture characters

Pop CultureEssential manga漫画Japanese comics

School LifeEssential randoseruランドセルthe boxy, rigid backpack most primary school children carry

School LifeEssential natsuyasumi no shukudai夏休みの宿題the summer holiday homework, including the free research project

School LifeEssential maru to batsu丸とバツthe circle for "right" and the X for "wrong" used in Japan

School LifeEssential kyushoku給食school lunch

School LifeEssential kyushoku toban給食当番the student duty that serves lunch to the whole class

School LifeEssential kosoku校則school rules and how strict they are

School LifeEssential seifuku制服the school uniform

School LifeEssential soji掃除students cleaning their own school

School LifeEssential tokohan登校班children walking to school in groups

School LifeEssential bukatsu部活school club activities

ShintoEssential omamoriお守りa protective charm from a shrine or temple

ShintoEssential sando参道the approach to a shrine

ShintoEssential sanpai no saho参拝の作法the two bows, two claps, one bow routine

ShintoEssential chozuya手水舎the water pavilion where you rinse your hands before praying

ShintoEssential jinja to tera no chigai神社と寺の違いhow to tell a Shinto shrine from a Buddhist temple

ShintoEssential Shinto神道Japan's indigenous way of relating to spirits in nature and ancestors

ShintoEssential mikoshi神輿the portable shrine carried through the streets at a festival

ShintoEssential torii鳥居the gate at the entrance to a shrine

ShintoEssential mushukyo無宗教saying you have no religion while keeping its customs