Castella cakes have been in Japan since the 16th Century when Portuguese missionaries arrived in Nagasaki. The delectable sponge like cake made its way to mainland Japan, and flourished with exciting variations, flavors and shapes.

Even though there’s no apple tree with blue fruit, there is gorgeous blue apple jam from rustic Aomori Prefecture!  A combination of Japanese apples and Thai flowers, this jam is both trendy and holistic.

Koyo (紅葉) is Japanese for red leaves and denotes the autumn-viewing season. Many Japanese people take this time to admire the changing leaves. 

Every year, in Kyoto, they celebrate tsukimi. Though Kyoto is very much a modern place, it has retained a great amount of its pastoral charm. 

Aichi is a perfect example of traditional beauty and modern technology in Japan. Let’s take a stroll the heart of Japan, to discover more.

One of the best things about the fall is the ginkgo leaves in Japanese gardens and icho namiki (ginkgo avenues). We will walk you through the history of Japanese gardens and the best places for ginkgo tree viewing!