Japan travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises spa and resorts

The Kabira peninsula is located on the north-west part of the Island of Ishigaki, 20 kilometres from the town. Club Med Kabira is awarded as the Best resort in Japan for 2006. This Club Med Village stands opposite a white sandy beach where the sea is extremely clear and beautiful.

The sea here is extremely clear and beautiful. The beach and location are spectacular. The beach is furnished with deckchairs and parasols.

The restaurant features buffets with a diverse range of culinary delights.

Facilities: Shopping, tumble-drier, washing machine, internet corner with WLAN connection (all against payment).

 Activities: Archery, Circus School, Club Med Fitness, Kayaking, Snorkeling, Squash , Hiking, Tennis, Windsurfing.

Kyoto is an ancient mysterious city, once been Japan’s old capital and the emperor’s residence from 794 until 1868. Over the centuries wars and fires destroyed the city, but today Kyoto rises with its beautiful gardens, temples and shrines. Left, a purification ceremony with period costumes at the Jonengu shrine.

Kyoto is located in a valley, part of the Yamashiro (or Kyoto) Basin. The Yamashiro Basin is surrounded on three sides by mountains known as Higashiyama, Kitayama and Nishiyama, with a height just above 1000 meters above sea level. The picture displays Shosei-en Garden at Higashi Hongan-ji Temple.

A tea ceremony performed by local high school students at Shosei-en Garden was organized by the Tale of Genji Association

Kyoto sits atop a large natural water table that provides the city with freshwater wells. Due to large scale urbanization, the amount of rain draining into the table is dwindling and wells across the area are drying at an increasing rate.

The park surrounding the Kyoto Imperial Palace, where emperors and nobles once lived.

Kyoto is one of the most historical significant city in Japan. The city is impregnates with temples, shrines, imperial places and traditional wooden homes. As well as is nearby Nara, which is another more ancient city in beautiful Japan.

Kyoto is a place, where tourists will enjoy and experience on maximum the traditional inn. There’re a huge number of restaurants, bars and gardens. The gardens are spectacular Zen rock gardens used by Buddhist priests for meditation and relaxation. Visitors won’t find a slice of old Japan like this in other Japanese cities.

The central part of Kyoto west of the Kamo River and north of Shimogyo-ku, embraces Kyoto’s main shopping and nightlife districts with most of the action on Kawaramachi and Shijo Dori avenues. In addition to its many shopping arcades, restaurants, and bars, Nakagyo-ku also has a number of exclusive ryokan tucked away in delightful neighborhoods typical of old Kyoto, and it is home to Nijo Castle. Nakagyo-ku is one of the most desirable places to stay in terms of convenience and atmosphere.

Kyoto is hotter and more humid than Tokyo in summer and colder than Tokyo in winter. The city has villas than any other Japanese city. If you have time, visit the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Katsura Imperial Villa, or Shugakuin Imperial Villa with their splendid gardens.

The most romantic way to spend a summer’s evening than drifting down the river in a wooden boat decorated with paper lanterns, watching the fishermen and their cormorants at work. It’s amazing

Tokyo is another world with extremely different lifestyle from the other part of the world. Hidden night clubs have become all the range among a certain Tokyo set. One of these places is Le Baron- one of the few intimate dance clubs.

In Tokyo dress codes are rarely strict. Enterance fees to clubs are really high, but in the most cases include a couple of drinks. Drink prices also depend on the surroundings.If you are clubbing in one of the city’s many spectacular clubs be prepare that a beer can easily cost 10 000 yen. As well as Tokyo’s gay bars are clustered in the Shinjuku area. They are mostly taken of foreign customers and are most explored with a Japanese companion.

One of the good thing for bohemian lifestyle is that there aren’t specific licensing hours in Tokyo, despite the minimum drinking are 20 years.

About the music I would say, that jazz has a large influence and ever growing following in the city and there’re a wide variety of clubs offering excellent live jazz music. Let’s goooo clubbin’!!!

This is an absolutely stunning organic food market and cafe situated in the Omotesando area in Tokyo, Japan. When visitors come up inside they will feel the warm atmosphere and the exude freshness and comfort.

The function of the cafe and the usage of the space were revolved in the interior design since the ingredients offered at the market on the shelves are also used by the chefs for cooking the dishes available in the cafe restaurant. As well as the food being sold and served in the shop, it was important that pure and simple materials were chosen to create an environment that complimented the philosophy and earnestness of the organicity.

This tiny gallery house is located in Nakana, Tokyo. The building is very strange and is cut on the axis line to a front road by 63.02′.

In front of the fine sight of the structure are separeted beautifully cherry blossoms tree stands. This marvelous gallery have perfect interior and exterior, where great artists could exhibits their lovely paintings or presented stylish objects and fashion japanese cloths.

The shades of concrete heighten the effectiveness of the design and focus on straight lines and edges. The abstract of natural light through clinically inserted voids of glass is marvel, allowing pinpoint contrasts to the interior. This building is equally gallery and exhibition.

Kyoto Screen Hotel is a real example of modern Japanese design and it is located between many avant-guard shops and clubs of Sanjo-Shijo districts. Interesting history, exciting cocktail-bars are all within easy reach. There is something for everyone:)))

The hotel has unusual number of rooms- 13 individually decorated by a different artist, so that no two visitors will have the same experience on any given night.

Hotel facilities include a banquet hall, spa, chapel, open-air sky lounge and select shop, which sells, amongst other things, traditional Kyoto goods made by local craft artists as well as the Screen’s “soundtrack,” a specially-produced, hotel-inspired compilation album.

There is also a restaurant, where guests can enjoy Kyoto nouvelle cuisine made with fresh, organic ingredients from local growers. And once a week, they can relax at “Candle Night” in the lounge, part of Screen’s energy-saving eco-luxe concept of respecting the environment without forsaking comfort.

This is an impressive 630kW solar-collecting building, that contains over 5,000 solar pannels and produces over 500, 000kWh of energy a year. As far as I know the monocrystalline modules used on the Solar Ark were factory rejects headed to the scrap pile.

The Solar Ark is located in Gufu, Japan and it’s one of the best examples of building.The structure is created by Sanyo Company, which several years ago wanted to make the largest PV system in the world. They would use their very best technology, a hybrid system of crystal silicon and thin-film amorphous silicon with 14-15% efficiency.

This is an Undercover Lab building, which is undercover.Hihihihi. Not only is it tucked away in the back streets of Harajuku but the site is also very deceiving. The house is situated in Harajuku which is an area of Tokyo, Japan.

This crazy building creature is studio, press showroom, and office. Hmmm just 3 in 1- a very popular combination these days. The house is 20m long hanger rail to show the entire collection of one season was required. This is housed in a black tube running along the only 20m straight line on the site, which extends out over the entrance driveway. This cantilevered tube extends the building’s influence to the main street in a strong but stealth way.

The tube was made to look as secret as possible, almost like a shipping container where you have no idea of its contents. The tube also conjures up images of telescopes etc, which give the building a mysterious feel _ nobody knowing what quite is going on inside. So much so that some people may feel intimidated just walking under the tube if they are unannounced.

Narita Airport, is also known as New Tokyo International Airport, located in the city of Narita in Chiba Prefecture, about 60 km outside of Tokyo. It consists of two terminal buildings, terminal 1 and terminal 2, with each airline being assigned to one of the two terminals.

In this issuse I’ll present mostly Terminal 1, which is absolutely funky and magnificent place. Narita Terminal 1 handles mostly US and European airlines‘ flights plus Cathay Pacific, Korean Air and Singapore Airlines.

In the earily 60’s Tokyo International Airport was quickly becoming overcrowded. So Japenese government had decided to built a bran new airport with multufunctional terminal. On April 1, 2004, New Tokyo International Airport was opened its doors named as Narita International Airport.

Terminal 1 uses a satellite terminal design and it’s very stylish.Check-in is processed on the fourth floor, and departures and immigration control are on the third floor. Arriving passengers clear immigration on the second floor, then claim their baggage and clear customs on the first floor. Most shops and restaurants are located on the fourth floor of the Central Building and they are absolutly lovely and gorgeous. You can chillin and enjoy your timing there.

Heidi House is located in an up-central residential area of Tokyo. The house is keep back from the adjoining site boundaries by 3 meters so there is no fire proofing of the external wall was necessary. This offset from the boundary line established the plan of the building. This is an extremely example for low cost studio and office space.

The idea and construction of the house is very creative simple wooden framed structure was built and lined internally with plywood for lateral strength. An external layer of plywood was not needed structurally, so instead of this layer and a waterproof siding.

Long window openings were made in the plywood sheets in between the structural frame. Internally the plywood skin was painted white, while the wooden structural core of the building was wallpapered with black wallpaper. The wooden ceiling structure was left exposed. No insulation was used in the wall construction, the trapped air pockets used form a thermal buffer.

Many houses are made of wood in Japan, but because they are covered with metal or plastic siding, sometimes even fake bricks, you have no idea that the house is made of wood. It is very clear that this house is made of wood!It is a beautiful wooden-glass house.

Kyoto Station is one of the most important stations in Japan. The station is located in the Shimogyo Scgichjo district in Kyoto city, Japan. Kyoto Station is second largest train station in Japan after Nagoya Station.

Before current Kyoto Station there was another one opened in the early ages. Nowadays the current Kyoto Station opened in 1997. It is 70 meters high and 470 meters from east to west, with a total floor area of 238, 000 square meters. The design of the station is by Hiroshi Hara. He exhibits many characteristics of futurism, with a slightly irregular cubic facade off plate glass over a stell frame.

There’re a large shopping mall, hotels, theaters, specialty shops, restaurants and event venues.

Kyoto city is one of the least modern cities in Japan. Before it was capital of Japan for about 1,000 years. The city is known as the spirutal home of the Japanese people, it is said that without knowing Kyoto it is impossible to understand the real Japan. Despite of that Kyoto is old capital, it is also very modern anxious to develop new culture city. Kyoto now is flourishing as a center of traditional industries, art, scholarship and religion.

The Leaf Chapel is located in the Risonare hotel resort in Kobuchizawa, a refreshingly green setting with beautiful views to the southern Japanese Alps, Yatsugatuke peaks and Mt. Fuji.

The chapel is made of 2 levels- one glass, one steel which have seemingly fluttered to the ground. The glass leaf with its delicate lace pattern motif emulates a pergola and the structure holding it up reminds one of the veins of a leaf which slowly become thinner the further they get from the central stem.

The white steel leaf, perforated with 4700 holes, each of which hold an acrylic lens, is similar to bride’s veil made of delicate lace. Light filters through the lenses and projects a lace pattern onto the white fabric inside.

At the end of the ceremony when the groom lifts the bride’s veil for the legendary kiss the ‘steel veil’ magically opens too, revealing the pond and the enchanting nature beyond. The information of the building is copy write by Klein Architects.

Ai Cafe is located in the main tourist street in Naha capital of Okinawa, Japan. The cafe is four-storey building situated in Ukishima Dori which is also a home of many trendy boutiques and galleries where young people culture meet.

Ai Cafe is facing the side of a bland convenience store onto which all 4 retail units had to face including the cafe. The key elements of the building are: a 25m long, 5m high perforated concrete block screen, ubiquitous to Okinawa-which enclosed a balcony access to the 2^nd floor while screening off the convenience store, electricity and telephone wires running along the street. The screen with its pixelated pink orchid pattern creates an internal world for the cafe while letting the air and light into the building.

A four storey tower at one end of the building allows it to be seen from the main Kokusai Dori giving it a strong presence on the main road, while the low perforated concrete block screen gives the project a more comfortable scale on the narrower Ukishima street.

This is stylish salon for private investors from Trdares Holdings Co that is located on the 29^th floor of a Tokyo skycraper. This is a superb, magnificent place for the investors given to them space to place their trades next to a bar lounge commanding with amazing view of the city. The place is much like a lounge in exclusive hotel.

The primary business of the company is to control and manage its subsidiaries, which operate Securities trading business, foreign exchange trading business, and investment management business, by holding stock of subsidiaries. The present is Masatoshi Saito which is very good business man.

All the interior is created to give comfort and pleasure to all customers. There is also an office space which is so sophisticated and the atmosphere is very motive for the workers.

So If you are one of those guys that business is most important thing in their world and your business goal is in Tokyo, you can try to find your lucky number there.