Archive

World Heritage in Kyoto, Japan In some ways, Kyoto is the cultural archives of Japan. The city, about an hour from Osaka, was central to Japanese history for well over a thousand years and the marks of that millennium are in every little corner you could possibly explore. If you come to Japan looking for ...

Khao Luang Cave, Phetchaburi, Thailand There’s a sudden commotion in the cave. A monkey has snuck in and is scurrying across the rock floor to the corner where the large Buddha sits. The monkey makes a grab at a bit of food that’s been left on the altar as an offering. Before it can make ...

Horyuji, Japan Have you ever wondered where the oldest wooden building in the world is? I know it’s a question that has kept me awake many a night. But don’t fear, today I have the answer. Not from the Japanese city of Nara, in the Kansai region, is a temple complex called Horyuji. In some ...

Koyasan, Japan To appreciate the beauty, you must endure the hardships of the journey. That seems to have been the ethos of the ancient Japanese who built the shrines and temples in the south of the Kansai region. These old strongholds of religion were the destinations for pilgrims of the time but there was much ...

The three wise monkeys The three wise monkeys look a little worse for wear. I would have thought that being shielded from evil would have had some kind of rejuvenating effect. But apparently not. Still, for more than three hundred years these apes have been seeing no evil, hearing no evil and speaking no evil. ...

Japan’s penis festival in Kawasaki The enormous pink penis catches the light as I approach it. There’s no glint of shame as it exposes itself to the crowd. It’s the centre of attention, with throngs of Japanese people pushing to get closer to the engorged phallus. In a country normally so obsessed with decorum, it’s ...

Japan’s Emperor Meiji The Japanese consider their 122nd leader, Emperor Meiji, to be the founder of modern Japan. Not in a political or geographical sense – the country was well and truly established by the first 121 emperors. But in a cultural sense, he laid the foundations for the country which we know today. It’s ...

Angkor, Siem Reap, Cambodia There is no doubt that the region of Angkor is one of the most important archaeological sites in the world. For more than 500 years it was the centre of the Khmer empire and still today it is the spiritual heart of Cambodia. That the national flag has the main temple ...

Beng Mealea temple, Cambodia The crowds who come to Cambodia’s Angkor region are spoiled for choice when it comes to temples to visit. Within kilometres of the tourist town of Siem Reap are dozens of sites which can take days to explore. It’s no great surprise that visitors feel there’s enough to see without venturing ...

Preah Vihear temple, Cambodia A temple should be a sanctuary of peace and harmony. It should not be a weapon of war. But for the temple of Preah Vihear, it seems inescapable. It is surrounded by soldiers. Built on top of a cliff more than 500 metres high, the best way to reach it is ...