Places Kan Cho Wants to Go

In the oldest zen temple stands a descendant of the very tree that introduced tea to Japanese culture.

A remarkable lava formation encloses a line of Buddhist statues that can't be accurately counted, according to local mythology.

These sculptures were created by a 17th-century artist who had never seen an elephant.

A hidden gallery exhibits intricate, decades-old Buddhist reliefs.

This public bathroom takes the form of a 19th-century lighthouse that once stood on the spot.

The site where the famous city gate once stood, now in the middle of a playground.

Access to this hidden site of a 14th-century mass suicide is prohibited, unless it is to pray for the dead.

Home to herbal cosmetics, teas, and a unique set of dolls known as kitchen witches.

This statue of Buddha has a distinctive hairstyle meant to represent an unfathomably long period of meditation.

This bathhouse includes an option to soak in radioactive water.

This Metabolist, retro-futuristic residential complex resembles a cyberpunk space colony established on Earth.

It is believed that this Buddhist temple stands right on the gateway to the underworld.

At a Japanese train station, a goddess emerges from a dumpling.

Disused for decades, this freight railway bridge is finally being renovated into a scenic promenade.

This ancient burial cave along a roadside is also home to several Buddhist sculptures.

It is said that coins washed in the waters here will miraculously multiply.

Stretching for 22 miles, the world's longest tree-lined avenue dates back to the early 17th-century.

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

A cursed torii gate still stands on the edge of Haneda Airport, decades after its shrine's relocation.

Is this cat asleep or just pretending?

The site of a famous samurai duel.

Composed of scrap metal, a pair of platform-length murals chronicle Japan’s history, from the Big Bang to the development of modern Tokyo.

A small shrine dedicated to a god of lightning and electronics.

This massive, beautifully-lit underground quarry leaves visitors in awe.