“Historical” markers commemorating the sites of fictional events depicted in a popular jidaigeki novel series.

This retro café is a remnant of Japan’s post-war Argentine tango craze.

Exploring crime and punishment in feudal and pre-modern Japan.

This 400-year-old noodle joint was once frequented by a fox-turned-monk, according to local folklore.

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

This surreal thumbs-up monument commemorates a shiatsu legend.

A few hidden stones are said to bring fortune and love.

Designed by a computer, this intricate network of fluorescent green pipes has taken over a subway station.

Order cookies baked by cloistered nuns in a 400-year-old monastery.

A Japanese train station built around a 700-year-old camphor tree.

This quaint mountain pass with centuries-old cobblestones is known as Japan's steepest slope.

A 59-ft. robot statue looks over the citizens of earthquake-ravaged Kobe.

This massive section of quay destroyed by an earthquake is preserved to remember the past.

A relatively young Buddhist temple on hilltop, dedicated to a statue relocated from Mount Atago.

Visitors to this temple are greeted by a massive collection of wooden dolls said to bring good fortune.

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

A shrine contains nearly 200 statues of the Buddhist deity Jizo, dressed in bibs by parents who have lost a child.

This Kyoto Starbucks takes coffee drinkers back in time.

A train ride to the middle of nowhere gives its passengers some of the most iconic views of Japan's seasons.

A beautiful bamboo trail tucked in this famous Japanese shrine.

This garden located inside a bamboo forest once belonged to a famous Japanese actor.

The sound of swaying stalks in this stunning grove has been named a governmentally recognized sound.

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

With over 12,000 different species of plants, this botanical garden is Japan's oldest and most diverse.