Places maxx310 Wants to Go

Nope, not the one in France. The only officially-recognized reproduction of Monet’s garden in Giverny is located in a remote corner of Japan.

A 14th-century European chapel sticks out of the facade of a Japanese hotel.

A sculpture that resurrected the only tree standing following the devastating 2011 tsunami.

This museum celebrates the history of Japanese advertising, from feudal business tricks to modern T.V. commercials.

One in a pair of subterranean caves created by an ancient eruption of Mount Fuji.

One of the largest producers of MSG in the world welcomes visitors to its Kawasaki factory with an albino panda named Aji-Kun.

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

This brothel-turned-restaurant features plenty of surprises and elaborate, extravagant architecture.

The largest of the Fuji Five Lakes is home to an impressive swan population—some real, some with paddles, and one with an observation deck.

Burial mound for the ears and noses of thousands of mutilated Korean soldiers.

A 17th-century Shinto shrine that is home to statues of Mickey Mouse and Pikachu.

Giant animal sculptures are created with the rice straw leftover from the fall harvest each year.

These Japanese gardens are blankets of light for dark winter nights.

White beach sands made of the remains of tiny, star shaped creatures.

Historical Japanese-Dutch relations are honored with haunted rides and flower fields in this replica town.

Kawaii meets poisonous at this unique art gallery.

An astounding annual light display honors the victims of one of Japan's most devastating earthquakes.

A rare festival blending religion, blacksmiths, vagina dentata, sex workers, and the straight-up facts of life.

It's bad manners to eat and drink on the subways of Tokyo, unless the train is this bar. 

A steaming, boiling hellscape sources Hokkaido's thermal baths.

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

A Japanese corporation has turned this small island town into living modern art gallery.

Cherry blossom season comes early in this Japanese town where pink flowers line the streets and riverbanks.

A museum dedicated to the history of Tokyo's often-overlooked working-class district.