Places christacarroll Wants to Go

This bar is filled with Star Wars merchandise from around the world, all of it unlicensed knockoffs.

One of the tallest statues in the world, and the tallest statue of a goddess in Japan.

Tokyo’s only Ainu restaurant serves Indigenous food from northern Japan.

Roots and stumps that lay inundated for two millennia are on display in Japan's city of three mysteries.

Sulphuric gases inhabit a beautiful Japanese island.

Rows of stone statues are dressed up to mourn children that are lost before birth.

A sobering scientific reminder of the human damage caused by the advent of the nuclear age.

One of the world's largest tanks mimics the experience of watching rare whale sharks, giant rays, and deep sea creatures from the ocean floor.

The largest volcanic caldera in Japan holds an entire city in its maw.

Japan's largest area of "pink moss" turns the hillside bright pink every spring.

Unusual hexagonal rocks formed by cooling lava named for their resemblance to traditional Japanese tatami mats.

The only thing sweeter than the potatoes is the canine proprietor of this roadside stall.

We heard you like volcanoes so we put a volcano in your volcano so you can die for sure...

A bronze statue dating back as far as 1252, still has remnants of gold on its right cheek from ancient gilding.

This pond is so stunning it looks like you've stepped into one of Monet's masterpieces.

The self-mummified monks of Japan.

This mesmerizingly colorful pond looks like a scene straight out of a fairytale.

Go through the looking glass in Tokyo's Wonderland-themed shop.

A massive cave complex boasts some of the clearest water (and most charming bats) in the world.

Nine Gardens in one—with tea service.

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.

A 70-foot-deep ice cave formed by lava from Mt. Fuji on the edge of Japan's "Suicide Forest." 

This Buddhist temple is home to the graves of the Japanese national legends, the 47 Ronin.