Once the main gateway to Tokyo, sneaking through this checkpoint was a capital offense in feudal times.

This museum is dedicated to the cultural history of tobacco and salt, once monopolized in Japan.

"Bug Bug" Land, a natural park for beetle watching, still hasn't fully recovered from Fukushima's nuclear disaster.

If you forgot something to read during your trip to Tokyo, this hostel has you covered.

Sidle into a side alley for a taste of sumo wrestlers' traditional hot-pot soup, in a tiny restaurant founded by a former competitor.

You can still find treasures on the pebbly beaches of one of the world's oldest jade-producing areas.

A calico cat named Tama was the wildly popular Super Station Master at this train stop in southeast Japan.

Blowtorches, tuna, and a jolly, chain-smoking proprietor mark this beloved street-food stand.

A bibliophile's heaven that contains hundreds of bookstores, offering over a third of secondhand books for sale in Tokyo.

The cutest shrine in Kyoto is dedicated to bunnies.

One of Kyoto's oldest food establishments has supplied soba noodles to temple priests and the Imperial Palace.

Oddly touching memorial to a little-remembered nuclear tragedy.

An unlikely hit, this museum is dedicated to the inventor of instant ramen and cup noodles.

One of the world's largest tanks mimics the experience of watching rare whale sharks, giant rays, and deep sea creatures from the ocean floor.

Crawl through the hole in the middle of this stone to break off a bad relationship or initiate a good one.

People from around the world visit the shrine of Japan’s legendarily loyal dog.

A rare festival blending religion, blacksmiths, vagina dentata, sex workers, and the straight-up facts of life.

Unusual hexagonal rocks formed by cooling lava named for their resemblance to traditional Japanese tatami mats.

Abandoned Japanese ghost town gives a glimpse into what our own metropolises may leave behind.

A Japanese cat island also populated by the descendants of a band of banished samurai.

Legend holds eating just one of these black eggs can add seven years to one's life.

Meet the world's longest tapeworm in a collection that really gets under your skin.

The only thing sweeter than the potatoes is the canine proprietor of this roadside stall.

After a profound show of devotion for his master, a dog becomes the symbol of loyalty for an entire nation.