TRAVEL

Ten years after serious volcanic activity began on Mount Oyama, located on Miyakejima island in the Izu island chain, residents are trying to utilize the island's dynamic landscape - sculpted by 13 eruptions over 500 years - to attract tourists and revitalize the community. Volcanic activity has mostly waned since beginning in earnest on June 26, 2000, and residents began returning five years ago. However, emissions of volcanic gas continue, and damage caused by eruptions can still be seen in parts of the landscape. In Miyakemura village, steel bars from a ruined building stand high, and part of a car buried in volcanic ash can be seen underfoot. (courier-journal.com)

Ten years after serious volcanic activity began on Mt. Oyama, located on Miyakejima island in the Izu island chain, residents are trying to utilize the island's dynamic landscape--sculpted by 13 eruptions over 500 years--to attract tourists and revitalize the local community. Volcanic activity has mostly waned since beginning in earnest on June 26, 2000, and residents of the island began returning five years ago. However, emissions of volcanic gas continue and damage caused by eruptions can still be seen in parts of the island's landscape. (Yomiuri)

Amid the booming popularity of visiting shrines and other ancient sanctuaries that the Japanese love to call "power spots," from Ise and Izumo shrines to Mount Fuji, perhaps a visit to the pilgrimage routes of Kumano Kodo seems a bit challenging. Nestled among the steep mountain ranges of the Kii Peninsula -- one of the world's only two pilgrimage routes designated as World Heritage sites, along with Spain's Santiago de Compostela -- Kumano Kodo is a 307.6-kilometer network of routes straddling Wakayama, Mie and Nara prefectures in western Japan. (Mainichi)

That bath, or ofuro, has a special place in Japanese history and culture - as well as in modern homes from Okinawa and Hokkaido to the towns of Karuizawa, Izu and Hakone, some of the favorite summer retreats for well-heeled residents of Tokyo and Osaka. Some are carefully designed outdoor baths, or roten, that overlook a garden, have sweeping views of the ocean or mountains. Others are made of prized materials like hinoki, a cypress wood, and urushi, a lacquer often used on soup bowls. (New York Times)

The new Izu Photo Museum opened over the weekend, and Raijin, the Japanese god of thunder and lightning, was evidently pleased by what he saw. The deity features prominently in the Shizuoka Prefecture facility's inaugural exhibition - a customarily exquisite presentation by Hiroshi Sugimoto - and he expressed his godly approval by drenching the opening party with rain. (Japan Times)

Seeking a sightseeing experience that delves deeper than cookie-cutter tours, a small but growing number of adventurers are heading underground to view eye-catching man-made sites. Underground tunnels, a power station built in a mountainside and a stone quarry no longer in use are just some of the subterranean environments accessible via guided tour. One tour begins at a platform of Doai Station on the JR Joetsu Line in Minakami, Gunma Prefecture. The station is located inside the Shin-Shimizu tunnel. (Asahi)

It's hard to fathom being able to dive among dolphins without ever leaving Tokyo, but the Izu Islands have always been one of the capital's best-kept secrets. Located a few hundred kilometers offshore, the islands - whose population would barely fill a city block - fall under the jurisdiction of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government, yet feel worlds apart from the frenzy of the city. Used as places of exile for criminals and other undesirables during the feudal Edo Period (1603-1867), the islands today are an ideal weekend retreat, boasting fascinating environments both on land and beneath the waves. (Japan Times)

An increasing number of travelers are enjoying small trips planned by regional organizations and companies, journeys that take them off the beaten path to find experiences and interactions unique to those regions. Such trips became possible when the enforcement regulations for the Travel Agency Law were revised in May 2007 to allow small and midsize travel companies to conduct package tours within their local areas. Conventional trips are planned by travel companies in their customers' place of departure, primarily in metropolitan areas. (Yomiuri)

A train to nowhere is fast becoming a cool destination among travelers seeking the serenity of the past. Secluded stations, or hikyo-eki, dot the JR Iida Line, which runs mainly through mountainous areas in Nagano, Shizuoka and Aichi prefectures. Literally in the middle of nowhere, the stations are often without a shop or house nearby. Some are even inaccessible by car. (Asahi)

Japan Airlines likely will stop flights to and from seven domestic airports, including Shizuoka, Matsumoto, Kobe and Hiroshima-Nishi, it was learned Wednesday. It also is likely to stop flying to and from Sapporo-Okadama and Okushiri in Hokkaido and Aguni in Okinawa Prefecture. As some of these airports depend on JAL for a good portion of their revenues, including landing fees, the decision is likely to have a serious impact on their operations. (Yomiuri)

A kanji test body embroiled in a fund-management scandal involving its former director and his family will go ahead with its annual yearend event announcing the Kanji of the Year, a Kyoto temple official said Tuesday. Shinko Onishi, a senior official at Kiyomizu Temple in Higashiyama Ward, a renowned Buddhist temple that provides the venue for the kanji ceremony, said the schedule will stay unchanged. (Japan Times)