Japan's largest and oldest annual procession of floats, begun in 869.

Up on the iconic Tsutenkaku Tower sits an American mascot that became Osaka’s own lucky god.

Nine Gardens in one—with tea service.

Peace Park and the Atomic Bomb Dome.

This Japanese national treasure was originally built in 593.

In 806, Kobo Daishi began meditating on Mount Misen. The Buddhist monk lit this holy fire, which has been kept burning for 1,200 years.

Tragic reminders of the 1945 firebombing campaign over Tokyo still haunt this bridge.

This little replica of Lady Liberty provides a bit of NYC in a Japanese city.

A 20-meter (65-foot) robot towers over Tokyo Bay.

After being lost for decades, this striking mural depicting the atomic bomb covers the wall of a busy Tokyo metro station.

The legendary birthplace of the Japanese maneki-neko is dotted with hundreds of lucky beckoning cats.

Not quite the menace it once was, this monster still has some chops.

Colloquially known as “piss alley,” this narrow street filled with tiny bars and barbecue stands looks like it was pulled straight out of “Blade Runner.”

These unique toilets feature transparent glass covered in PDLC film.

Tokyo’s only Vaudeville-cuckoo clock–steampunk-Victorian curio cabinet time piece.

Steampunk, humanoid sculptures crawl on all fours in a Tokyo plaza.

Mythical beasts symbolizing the city of Tokyo guard a historic bridge.

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

Once a black market electronics marketplace, now an otaku shopper's paradise.

A Buddhist temple on an artificial island that houses a monument to the fugu fish.

Stuck in a bygone era, the oldest subterranean shopping street in Japan hides beneath the popular Asakusa district of Tokyo.

An enormous pair of straw sandals woven in the traditional way—to keep demons at bay.

This enormous monument is one of the most iconic structures in Tokyo, rudely nicknamed "The Golden Turd."

Every year, a sparkling cave is sculpted in the icy heart of a glacier.