All the famous Japanese ramen franchises have a Shibuya store – Oreyu, Ippudo, Ichiran, Menya Musashi, Afuri, and just a cornucopia of deliciousness. While you can find these great ramens elsewhere too, here are some more or less one-of-a-kind Shibuya ramen joints to both satisfy your ramen hunger and thirst for new experiences. 5 Unique …

Before you travel to any new country, you should know a little about its history, food, art, language, and customs. Japan’s literature and culture are so rich and the best way to learn more is to tuck into a few Japanese novels by some of the best Japanese authors, as well as some fantastic travel …

A lot of us who devour media like things to be put in brackets: as a music-lover, I need to know what sub-genre of heavy metal an album comfortably sits in before I hear it. But life doesn’t exist in a vacuum or a series of vacuums. And so, it is very possible – refreshingly, …

Discover Japan’s Love of Literature in Jimbocho If you’re a fan of books and travel, and you find yourself in Tokyo then look no further. Jimbocho (神田古書店街) in the heart of Tokyo is a bookworm’s paradise with over 200 book stores to choose from that serve both Japanese and English readers.  The range of books …

The beloved and deeply historical world of Japanese tattoo is in perpetual danger today, as Japanese tattoo artists fight for their right to live and work in Japan. The Japanese government unfortunately turns a wary eye on tattooing, with its deep associations with the yakuza organised crime families. It’s an unfortunate situation, as much of …

Do you know one of the biggest reasons people visit Japan? It’s their traditional Japanese food and a plethora of varieties that make Japan one of the richest food cultures in the world. No wonder they have more Michelin star restaurants than even cities like Paris, London, and New York.  If you have to sample …

The Japanese language is very distinct from English, most notably in its grammar. To give an example, a sentence like “I eat rice without chopsticks” would be ordered grammatically in Japanese like “chopsticks without I rice eat”. However, this difference doesn’t make travelling across Japan impossible without being fluent. A few basic Japanese phrases can …

Japan City Guide: How to Spend 5 Days in Tokyo From the moment you master the sprawling train network that governs this city, the vast metropolis of Tokyo starts to unfurl before you. This is the city where you’ll find ancient shrines just moments away from drip coffee stores and boutiques, where women in kimono …

Tokyo, more than a city, is a metropolis; an overwhelming landscape that’s home to the world’s finest cuisine, quirkiest districts, kindest people and most ambitious art and architecture. It’s a city that inspires visitors to be adventurous and to discover its strangest secrets; it’s also a city that cannot be conquered, which makes it all …

Wondering where to find the best bars in Tokyo? Tokyo has it all when it comes to nightlife. There are cozy whiskey bars serving pours from rare bottles, quirky gamer bars with Nintendo systems, and glitzy cocktail bars where white-jacket bartenders serve balanced cocktails in the city’s high-rises. Most have some small snacks to keep …