Today, the Kawagoe Tea Festival in Rinsinji Temple is running until 3:00 PM. I bought Chabudai’s chai and a Taiwanese castella from Sweets Workshop Hiro. 😊☕️

Event Announcement📣 On Sunday, December 14th, the 56th Hiroo Hair Crab Festival will take place😊 This is a gourmet event where you can savor plenty of Hiroo’s fresh seafood!! The main attraction is a live sale of boiled hair crab prepared in a two-meter cauldron!! You can also enjoy a hair crab speed-eating contest and delicious stalls offering snow crab miso soup, deep-fried shishamo smelt, seafood curry, and more🎵 At the direct-from-producer market you’ll find seasonal hair crab and shishamo, autumn salmon and hachikaku (sagefish), vegetables, and specialty products from Hiroo as well as local specialties from our sister cities Memuro Town and Saikai City in Nagasaki Prefecture, so please stop by if you like😀 The event’s finale is a fun raffle where Hiroo specialty products are awarded by lottery😍 Come and enjoy the flavors of the season🎶 It’s getting colder, so please dress warmly for the day🤗 https://hiroo-kanko.jp/2025/12/01/56-keganimatsuri/...

Photographed on December 8, 2025. This is the hanachozu (flower-filled basin) at Kawagoe Hachimangu Shrine.

Kankyo Geijutsu No Mori is located in Karatsu City, Saga Prefecture. A breathtaking view of autumn leaves reflected on a lacquer table 🍁🍁 It’s a moving, beautiful scene. In autumn the leaves turn a vivid red. The Japanese-style garden is beautiful year-round, and the meticulously tended, picture-perfect pond makes this place one of Japan’s most delightful spots.

Photographed on December 8, 2025. This is the flower-filled hand-washing basin (hanachozu) at Kawagoe Hachimangu Shrine. It features Christmas colors. 🎄

Photographed on December 8, 2025. This is the hanachozu (flower water basin) at Kawagoe Hachimangu Shrine.

Autumn in Japan is very beautiful but the view of 1st sun kissed metasequoia forest in Mizumoto park looks completely different. To see this view I went there very early in the morning by taking the first train and first bus. The view I got was completely worthy. Also it is paradise for bird watchers. Location: Mizumoto park, Tokyo

On November 19, we held the fourth workshop to develop a sightseeing walking route that lets visitors enjoy “Reihoku’s Literary Treasures,” turning the literary spots and heritage remaining in Reihoku into new tourism resources. This workshop was the final session. Based on the feedback and ideas we have received so far, we reviewed the proposed route and the draft guide manual again and exchanged opinions with the participants. We also read works related to Reihoku—Fumiko Hayashi’s Amakusa Nada and Ryōtarō Shiba’s Kaidō o Yuku 17—so participants could feel how the literature still connects with Reihoku today. Going forward, we aim to develop this into an actual sightseeing tour. We will post progress updates on our website, so please look forward to them. Note: We are also collecting ideas and useful tips from people who could not attend the workshop to help shape the walking route. Please take part in the survey on our company website’s news section. Contact: Amakusa Reihoku Tourism Association (Incorporated Association), Ogata ☎0969-31-1136 This workshop was held as part of the FY2025 Kumamoto Future Creation Startup Grant project.

Photographed on December 4, 2025. This is the lunch plate from le bilboquet in Akasaka. It includes salad, carrot râpé, quiche, and roast pork.

[Reihoku Sunset Marche] December Announcement📣 This is an announcement for the Reihoku Sunset Marche in December♪ 👀Highlights of this Sunset Marche👀 ❣Reihoku Sunset Marche sells agricultural products, processed goods, and prepared foods from Reihoku, and this event marks its first anniversary since it began🎊 To celebrate the first anniversary, we will hold a lottery for the first customers who spend 700 yen or more! A Veg Check screening that awards health points will also be available, so please come by❣ We look forward to seeing you😊 Don’t forget to bring your own shopping bag🛍✨ [Planned produce for sale] ・Turnips🫜 ・Pumpkin🎃 ・Cabbage ・Cucumbers🥒 ・Rice (new harvest)🌾 ・Red leaf lettuce (sunny lettuce) ・Potatoes🥔 ・Garland chrysanthemum (shungiku) ・Zucchini ・Daikon radish ・Carrots🥕 ・Chinese cabbage ・One-character scallion (wakegi) ・Green peppers🫑 ・Beni Haruka sweet potato ・Spinach ・Mandarin oranges🍊 ・Mizuna ・Cherry tomatoes (Aiko, fruit types) ・Lettuce 🥦🍅🥕🍠🥬🧅🫑🌽🌶🫛🍆🫚🥔 Reihoku Sunset Marche [Date] Sunday, December 14, 1:00 PM–3:30 PM ※Veg Check screening: 12:30 PM–3:30 PM [Location] Amakusa Reihoku Tourism Association (Reihoku Town Product Center facility: 4535-1 Kozufukae, Reihoku)

Photographed on December 4, 2025. After the exam, I visited Akasaka Hikawa Shrine. I was fortunate to be able to pay my respects, so I offered a katashiro (paper doll) for the year-end purification ritual.

In winter, some tourist facilities in Shimoda City are scheduled to close or suspend operations for maintenance and inspections. Please take care when visiting. The Izu Cruise "Shimoda Port Sightseeing" had been scheduled for inspection until December 12, but it finished earlier than planned and resumed service yesterday ⚓✨ https://www.shimoda-city.info/post/20251125...

Photographed on December 3, 2025. This is the lunch plate from Brasserie Catheri near Kawagoeshi Station in Kawagoe City. It’s packed with salad, gratin, quiche, and more. 😊

Notice of Trail Closures Due to Wildfire on Hinata Mountain A wildfire that started on Tuesday, December 9 has led to the closure of the hiking trails toward Hinata. We apologize for the inconvenience and ask for your understanding and cooperation. For more details, please check the city website. https://www.city.isehara.kanagawa.jp/kankou_guide/docs/2025121000010/...

The autumn leaves at Okuni Jinja Shrine in Shizuoka Prefecture. The vermilion bridge blends seamlessly into the fall scenery.

Autumn in Japan is very beautiful but the view of 1st sun kissed metasequoia forest in Mizumoto park looks completely different. To see this view I went there very early in the morning by taking the first train and first bus. The view I got was completely worthy. Location: Mizumoto park, Tokyo

Akizuki Castle Ruins in Asakura City, Fukuoka Prefecture I went to see the autumn leaves at Akizuki Castle Ruins The brilliant red foliage was beautiful. (୨୧❛ᴗ❛)📷💕🍁

Photographed on December 3, 2013. This is the Tori-no-ichi fair at Kawagoe Kumano Shrine. A kumade decorated with beckoning cat charms that looks auspicious.

Hiroshima Prefecture Shobara City's top spots for food and shopping! Blessed with vast land, Shobara offers farm-to-table gourmet delights. Surrounded by rich nature and marked by big temperature swings, Shobara is a treasure trove of delicious ingredients. As one of the prefecture's largest agricultural towns, it is home to the nationally acclaimed wagyu brand Hiba Beef 🥩, a specialty unique to Shobara. From these local ingredients come indulgent and exceptionally tasty treats. Be sure to try the exclusive specialties you can only taste in Shobara. For more details, visit the Shobara Tourism Navigation website 🔽 https://www.shobara-info.com/spot/4014...

I took this photo at Ritsurin Park during the autumn foliage season. A building appears across the pond, and a maple with red leaves fills the foreground, giving a strong sense of depth, so I pressed the shutter. It was a calming scene that warmed my heart. This fall I hardly got to capture autumn because of university exams and assignments, plus driving school, so Ritsurin Park was the only place I visited. It's an incredibly fun spot, though. I’m hoping to visit many different places next year.

An aerial composition of the four-season cherry blossoms along the Tashiro River in Obara Village. Obara Village, Toyota City, Aichi Prefecture December 2025

December 7th Azumino greeted a below-freezing morning The sendangusa, known locally in Nagano as "baka", was frosted by the river mist that formed in the early morning The frost will melt as the sun rises In the distance, the landscape of the Northern Alps

December 6th Azumino Cold Moon The full moon sinks behind the Northern Alps A December morning turned bitterly cold.

December 6th Good morning This morning in Azumino the sky is a crisply clear blue The summit of Mount Nagamine is minus 5 degrees… It’s a very cold morning, but the full moon, the alpenglow on the Northern Alps, and the sea of clouds together make an amazing sight!!

Photographed on December 3, Heisei 25. This is the Tori-no-Ichi fair at Kawagoe Kumano Shrine. Here is a kumade decorated for the Year of the Horse, the zodiac sign for next year. 🐎

This photo was taken at Ritsurin Garden in Takamatsu City, Kagawa Prefecture when the autumn leaves were at their peak. The crimson maple branches spread over the water like a cloak, and I captured the moment a sightseeing boat slowly passed through. Seeing the autumn colors reflected on the calm surface and the peaceful expressions of the passengers, I felt the gentle passage of the changing season. It was my second visit to Ritsurin Garden, and I was surprised to find that the scenery had changed dramatically since my first visit—two hours had passed before I knew it. I enjoyed seeing so many different scenes. Ritsurin Garden, where time drifts by in a tranquil space, felt so comfortable that I wanted to return.

Photographed on December 3, 2025. This is the Tori-no-Ichi fair at Kawagoe Kumano Shrine.

Frost lingering in Obara Village At minus 2 degrees, frost coated the plants, creating a scene I had never seen before. However, the autumn leaves were almost finished, and although I had heard the four-season cherry blossoms were about half in bloom, the recent snowfall seemed to have kept flowering from progressing. I’ll look forward to next year. Date: 2025/12/6 Location: Obara Village, Toyota City Shot on: DJI MAVIC 3 ※Flight application approved by Toyota City Hall ※Unmanned aircraft flight permission obtained from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism ※Flight plan reported and flight log created

Just after sunrise, I stood on Mt. Wagakuni as the city below disappeared beneath a quiet sea of clouds. From the soft white surface, hints of autumn gold and crimson treetops—peeked through like floating islands. As the sky shifted from deep blue to pale rose, the clouds began to glow and for a brief moment, everything felt perfectly still between night and morning.

Photographed on December 3, 2025. I relaxed at Maestro in Risona Coedo Terrace, open every Wednesday. I had a Winter Berry Mocha and a buckwheat and matcha financier. The Winter Berry Mocha blends strawberry and chocolate for a perfect balance of tartness and sweetness. The financier was freshly baked.