January in Japan

I spent January 2012 in Japan as an intern for a Japanese advertising agency and wrote about my adventures on the blog Don't Touch my Moustache. Below are some highlights of the trip.

In late December 2011, I flew to Kansai, the region where I studied abroad, to visit friends. We traveled around the area and visited a ton of places.

Kiyomizudera 清水寺

Kiyomizu is one of the oldest, most beautiful, and most popular temples in Kyoto. It was constructed entirely without the use of nails. Legend has it that if you jump off the deck and survive the 13 meter fall, your life dream will come true. Link

Osaka Aquarium 海遊館

In Japanese, the Osaka Aquarium is called the ocean (海) play (遊) building (館), and it certainly lives up to its name. I went there with one of my friends I met while studying abroad and saw more sea creatures than I think I ever have in one place at a time. Link

Hatsumōde in Nara 奈良の初詣

For the ritual of Hatsumōde, the first shrine visiting of the year, my wonderfully generous friend Shintaro's family took me to Nara, home to the biggest Buddha statue in the world and an army of ill-tempered deer. Link

Fushimi Inari Taisha 伏見稲荷大社

A place I never got the chance to visit while I was studying abroad, Fushimi Inari is home to over 1000 tori gates. Link

Umeda Sky Building 梅田スカイビル

One of the tallest buildings in the Osaka skyline, it has a 360-degree observatory at the top. Link

Coming of Age Day 成人の日

On the 2nd Monday of January, everyone who turns 20 that year puts on formal dress and celebrates "Coming of Age Day," which involves visiting a local shrine. These girls were treated like rockstars at Meiji shrine, with a paparazzi of photographers following them everywhere they went. Link

Tokyo Un-Skyline

One day I traveled over to Odaiba, a man-made island in Tokyo bay that houses the Fuji TV Headquarters. Link

There's more on Don't Touch my Moustache.