Shibuya scramble crossing is one of the busiest crossings in Tokyo. The green light comes on from four directions at once, and several hundred people (during peak hours, the number can reach 1,000) rush simultaneously in all directions, managing to dodge each other with ease built up over the years.

For its picturesque yet orderly crowds, the crossing is beloved by filmmakers, and people worldwide are familiar with it from TV series, movies, and commercial videos. The best spot to watch the hypnotic flow of people is the Starbucks coffee shop on the 2nd floor of the building on the north side of the crossing.

There is also a statue of the faithful dog Hachiko near Shibuya Station, where he used to meet his master, a professor at Tokyo University, every day. After the professor’s sudden death, the dog came to the station every day for nine years, waiting for his master to return. Hachiko became the symbol of loyalty.

Ginza is Tokyo’s most luxurious shopping district, home to prestigious department stores, world-famous designer boutiques, coffee shops, and traditional Japanese restaurants. People come here to learn about the latest high fashion trends and enjoy the creations of the best architects worldwide.

At the same time, Ginza is an art lover’s paradise. There are about 200 art galleries and Kabukiza Theater, which still regularly hosts Kabuki theater performances.

Kinkaku-ji Temple, often called the Golden Temple, is one of Japan’s most famous temples and Kyoto’s main attractions. Built at the end of the 14th century, this complex, with its three-story pavilion covered with gold leaf, captivated the minds of its contemporaries. The famous Japanese writer Yukio Mishima captured its fate and glory in the novel “The Golden Temple.” Today Kinkaku-ji Temple is a must-see on any traveler’s itinerary in Japan. In addition to the famous pavilion, the UNESCO World Heritage Site also features a traditional walking garden, small waterfalls, and a tea house, representing the culture of the samurai era.

Zen Rock Garden, or dry garden, with its hidden meanings and allegories, is a beautiful place for contemplation and meditation. Each garden element has meaning, and no randomly placed pieces exist. A dry garden is an orderly system subject to well-established aesthetic rules. Sea waves spread before the viewers, the mountain peaks rise above the clouds, and animals freeze in different poses. This microcosm of Zen Buddhist aesthetics is created using stones of various shapes. The distinctive symbolism of rock gardens is a unique manifestation of the multifaceted Japanese culture.

The Pure Water Temple, or Kiyomizu-dera, is one of Kyoto’s most famous and most visited temples and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It was founded on a mountainside near a spring. Its clear water is said to bestow health, longevity, and wisdom. The temple’s main attraction is its main hall, with an open veranda built on stilts over a cliff. The structure, assembled without a single nail, towers over Kyoto, offering a beautiful view of the old capital. Cafes and stores lining the road to the temple sell Kyoto sweets, ceramics, and souvenirs for all tastes.

Geisha district Gion is Kyoto’s largest and most vivid geisha district. Its history dated to the Middle Ages when restaurants and tea houses for pilgrims began to open around Yasaka Shrine. The picturesque streets of the district are filled with traditional houses with wooden facades, running rickshaws, geisha, and their apprentices (maiko), who still live in Gion and entertain guests every night with their dancing, talking, and table games.

Tenryu-ji Temple is the largest temple complex in the Arashiyama area, one of the five most important Zen Buddhist temples in Kyoto, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Tenryu-ji was founded in 1339 by shogun Ashikaga Takauji in memory of Emperor Go-Daigo. The temple buildings burnt down and were rebuilt many times. The present ones date to the late 19th century, but the temple’s main attraction, the Tenryu-ji Garden, founded by the great master Muso Soseki, has survived in its original form to this day. The heart of the garden is a central pond with small islands covered by stones and pine trees. The forested mountains of Arashiyama serve as a backdrop to the garden.

Sagano-Arasiyama Bamboo Grove is one of Kyoto’s most popular and most photographed places. Everything here breathes with admiration for nature and love for detail. The path through the bamboo grove is carefully fenced off and cleared of dry leaves and branches. It’s an alley where you want to stroll, listening to the sounds of bamboo and the endless song of the wind. Bamboo doesn’t sleep; bamboo rustles and ceaselessly strives upwards. It’s a very hardy, fantastic plant!

Otagi Nenbutsu-ji Temple was founded in the middle of the 8th century. It was destroyed several times by floods, fires, and typhoons and was moved to its present location in the early 20th century. After the temple was rebuilt, its parishioners carved about 1,200 images of rakans (arhats) from stone and donated them to the temple. Most of the sculptures are made with humor, and all look different.

Todai-ji is a Buddhist temple complex whose main building is one of the largest wooden structures in the world. Built in the mid-8th century by order of the emperor with donations from all over the country, the temple features the biggest bronze statue of Buddha in Japan. Almost all the bronze produced in Japan at the time was used to cast the colossal sculpture. The complex also has several unique wooden structures, including the giant Nandaimon Gate with the famous Nio guard figures, the Bell Tower, and Nigatsu-do Hall. The entire complex is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Kasuga Taisha is one of Japan’s most ancient Shinto shrines, founded in the mid-8th century to protect the capital, Nara. A UNESCO World Heritage site, it is famous for its kasuga-zukuri architectural style, the thousands of stone and bronze lanterns decorating its grounds, and the pristine ancient forest where sacred deer, considered messengers of the deities, roam free.

Himeji Castle is one of Japan’s 12 historically preserved castles and is considered the most beautiful. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The castle was built in the early 17th century and was second in size and beauty only to the lost Edo Castle, the residence of the Tokugawa shoguns. Unscathed by wars, fires, and natural disasters for 400 years, the castle is often featured in movies about the samurai era. Fans of classic Japanese cinema remember it for Akira Kurosawa’s “Ran.” The impregnable castle holds secrets of Japanese military strategy and keeps stories of gods and ghosts. The name “White Heron Castle” reflects the beauty of its walls.

The name of the city of Kurashiki translates as “the place with rice barns.” This name accurately describes the city, which emerged at the beginning of the 17th century as a port for transporting rice from Western Japan to Central Japan. Many wealthy merchants of Western Japan built warehouses (“kura” in Japanese) in the port of Kurashiki to store rice before it was shipped to the port of Edo. During the Edo era, the city’s rulers dug a canal to quickly deliver rice from storage to the port.

With the modernization of Japan that began in the late 19th century and the construction of railroads, the river port of Kurashiki gradually lost its importance. Later, modern (early 20th century) businesses emerged there. The unique area around the canal, built up with traditional, white-walled buildings, was decided to be preserved. Now the Bikan area is a cultural treasure of Okayama Prefecture and Japan.

The old rice storage units have been modernized and converted into small museums, hotels, restaurants, and stores. You can take a ride on the canal in a traditional boat that was used to deliver goods two hundred years ago.