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| | A rock from a karensansui in Nanzen-ji Temple, Kyoto |
Books on Japan
Hitchhiking in Japan
Hokkaido Highway Blues
Will Ferguson, a Canadian travel writer and English teacher takes a drunken bet and embarks on a journey from south to north Japan. He follows the progress of the cherry blossom front as it marches upwards, hitchhiking the entire way.
Hokkaido Highway Blues is a beautifully written and incredibly funny read. It includes a lot of dos and donts for any prospective hitchhiker in Japan. I read it on the road in Japan and passed it on to a fellow hitchhiker when I had finished. I highly recommend this book.
The Hitchhiker's Guide to Japan
An excellent guide for hitchhikers and budget travellers in Japan. Will Ferguson gives advice on etiquette and strategies for hitchhiking in Japan. There are helpful hitchhiking itineraries referenced with an English-language Japanese road atlas.
Japanese Language Books
Japanese: Lonely Planet Phrasebook
A very useful Japanese phrase book that came in handy time and again on our own trip to Japan; great size for your pocket.
Travel and Hiking Guides for Japan
Hiking in Japan (Lonely Planet Walking Guides)
Lonely Planet's Hiking Guide well-written and comprehensive. There are some fantastic routes detailed here with useful information on mountain huts too. This guide was very-well used for our own trip; for snow-covered hikes near Sapporo, walking in Daisetzu-zan, Yakushima, Aso-san and many more.
The Rough Guide to Japan Fourth Edition (Rough Guide Travel Guides)
The fourth edition of the Japan Rough Guide is out now. We used the third edition for our trip and found it very useful for basic travel information.
Places to visit
Zen Gardens: Kyoto's nature enclosed
A book of photographs detailing some of the more beautiful Karensansui in Kyoto. This book will inspire you to visit Kyoto and view these gardens firsthand.
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