In a previous article, we introduced you to the rich Japanese tradition of tatami. Join us for a sneak peek inside a real tatami shop, and enjoy a step by step making of a mini-tatami!

One may visit Nihonbashi, a district found in Chuo Ward not far from Tokyo Station, which stretches towards Akihabara as well as alongside the Sumida River, to find many Japanese traditional items like the 'kimono' (Japanese garb) or the 'uchiwa'/'sensu' (fan that uses paper pasted on wooden skeleton, the latter type being foldable and usually made with durable Japanese paper).

Come to Iwate to experience a colorful dreamscape of crystals and light. At the Kenji Miyazawa Fairy Tale Village, you can jump into a world befitting of fairies.

Some of these varieties include: ceramic, glass, metal, bamboo, bronze, clay, crystal and so on. Kawasaki Daishi Temple, while not quite known to many tourists, has always beendedicated to the warding of evil through its ceremonies of purification, such as the Yakudoshi (unlucky or critical age in a person’s life), blessings of talismans and charms, burning rites during New Year, year-end cleaning ritual using long brooms, and others.

Softbank’s intelligent robot, Pepper and Honda’s humanoid robot, ASIMO are just two examples of Japan’s robot revolution that are known the world over. At first glance, Japan’s passion for robots may seem like a recent revolution, but did you know that Japan has been producing robots for hundreds of years?

It’s nothing like a making blankets or scarfs. Amigurumi is usually a 3-dimensional stuffed toy. What makes amigurumi so special? Almost every young girl will be tempted to make one because they are so cute and fun to make. It can be a present, for room decoration, or maybe as a phone strap.

Hakata Ori is a special type of weaving with silk textile used to make kimonos and obis (sashes). High quality Chinese silk matched with the weaving style of Hakata Ori was unmatched in the whole of Japan. Hakata Ori became the choice textile for wealthy merchants, samurai and the ruling class in Japan. Let’s look how Hakata Ori began and became so famous.

Okawachiyama, Saga. As soon as you get off the bus, sightseeing starts. You see the mountains in the background, narrow roads, pottery and porcelain everywhere, a stream and cute little bridges over it.

Join the Traditional Japanese Indigo Dyeing workshop at Nihon Minka-en in Kawasaki City for the one-of-a-kind experience of designing and dyeing your own unique handerchief, bandana or t-shirt. Even beginners can have lots of fun with this traditional Japanese craft.

Once the Kingdom of the Ryukyus, a distinct local culture flourished, with strong influences from China, Indonesia, and other neighbors, who traded dyes, tools, and techniques. Many of these beautiful handicrafts survive today, so when in Okinawa, skip the mass produced souvenirs, and have fun making your own instead.

A central town in Hokkaido known for its picturesque landscape, Furano holds one novel treasure: Ningle Terrace, a group of 15 cottages hidden in the woods next to one of Furano’s most popular resorts, New Furano Prince Hotel.

Knives used to carve them are specialized tools called “satou” or “hidari-ba” which are more like tiny scrapers than knives. They look like dental picks for mythical creatures to be used by monstrous dentists. I acquired my first set of satou knives from master carver Kazuaki Nakamura but I needed a knife suited to my individual needs: One that was curved in the opposite direction to the knife included in the set.