Places Zesra Wants to Go

This sawtooth mountain range still bears the strangely lovely marks of its history as a medieval quarry.

One of Kyoto's oldest food establishments has supplied soba noodles to temple priests and the Imperial Palace.

The world's largest drain sits below the city of Kasukabe, Japan.

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

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

Inside the columbarium, thousands of colorful, high-tech Buddhas guard the ashes of the dead.

Peace Park and the Atomic Bomb Dome.

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

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

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

A King Kong-like gorilla hangs from the top of this commercial building in Tokyo.

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

Abandoned Japanese ghost town gives a glimpse into what our own metropolises may leave behind.

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

People from around the world visit the shrine of Japan’s legendarily loyal dog.

This retro underwater observation tower would make the perfect lair for a sea-loving villain.

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

This sprawling scenic burial ground is the final resting place of Japan's last shogun.

Starship-temple contains 400 tons of drinking water and offers free Japanese lessons.

Shells collected from over a hundred different countries line the walls, floors and ceilings of this fantasy museum.

Thirty architectural gems from the 19th- and early 20th-century Tokyo were restored and relocated to this space.

A Japanese cat island also populated by the descendants of a band of banished samurai.

Meet the world's longest tapeworm in a collection that really gets under your skin.

A Buddhist temple to honor insects that died for science.