This enormous "shamoji" means more to the people of Miyajima than just a way getting rice onto a plate.

Peace Park and the Atomic Bomb Dome.

Home to the world's oldest wooden building.

Devoted Buddhists can earn enlightenment in the next life by crawling through this symbolic nostril.

Surreal giant face-pillars welcome visitors from across the globe to this hotel.

A moss-covered statue of a Japanese Buddhist deity stands at a quiet temple in downtown Osaka.

Model trains whizz around an extensive room-sized diorama of Kyoto City.

The groundbreaking Japanese shrine maiden who invented the art of kabuki.

Legend has it that centuries ago, a ghost once frequented this candy shop to feed her still-living baby.

These turtle-shaped concrete stepping stones provide a unique river crossing in central Kyoto.

This kitsch-forward diner is dedicated to an almost-forgotten “one-cent” prototype of okonomiyaki.

Visitors to this museum will discover that kaleidoscopes are much more than toys.

Have a soak at this retro bathhouse, where you will find Japan's first electric bath, tiling from Spain, and wood carvings representing the Japanese invasion of Manchuria.

This 400-year-old sweet shop serves a delicacy some have described as "edible incense."

The first location of the eventual video game giant.

This 14th-century temple is also known as the "Temple of the Golden Pavilion" for its gorgeous gilded reliquary hall.

Established over a thousand years ago, this family-run teahouse continues to serve skewers of sweet rice cake to this day.

The cutest shrine in Kyoto is dedicated to bunnies.

A beautiful bamboo trail tucked in this famous Japanese Shrine.

1,001 carved statues of the Buddhist God of Mercy, each with a unique face.

Twelve hundred stone carvings guard this off-the-beaten-path Buddhist temple.

This neighborhood thoroughfare is haunted by dozens of homemade monsters.

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

Giant animal sculptures are created with the rice straw leftover from the fall harvest each year.