Introduction  The earliest known castle built in Japan is Inuyama Castle, which dates back to 1440, located in present-day Inuyama, Aichi Prefecture.  The need for castles in Japan increased during the 15th century when the country’s central government began to weaken and Japan entered the “Warring States”, also known as the Sengoku Period, which lasted from 1467 to 1615. Up to 5,000 castles were built from this era onwards, …

Introduction  The history of astronomical observations in Japan is scattered and vague but records show that the first continuous, methodical celestial observations began during the late Edo Era in 1782 at Asakusa Observatory. Such observations were established under the direction of the Shogun with the purpose of observing the stars in order to determine longitude and latitude, calculate the calendar, and determine the time.  During the Meiji Era, an …

Introduction  In the Japanese language, there is a delightful word that describes the autumnal leaf color change (notice how in English we have to say “autumnal leaf color change” because there is no one word for this natural phenomenon) and that is Koyo.  Literally translating to “red leaves”, koyo is an intrinsic part of Japanese culture – as significant as the blooming of cherry blossoms in spring. As a …

Introduction Japan is home to approximately 35,000 rivers (and Village House has over 1,000 properties across the island’s 47 prefectures!), most of which start from a mountainous area, flow down to farmland, and then eventually empty out into the ocean or sea. Many of these rivers are short and flow quickly due to the island’s narrow and mountainous terrain. In this article, we’ll explore 5 of Japan’s most beautiful …