Early in November in London, the Toyama Week event was held. Showcasing the beautiful craft and food of the prefecture, we got a taste of Japan, and a preview of all things Toyama. One popular aspect of the week was having the wagashi chef Yasuhiro Hikiami visit to conduct workshops on wagashi at Japan House, and his own wagashi pop-up at Pantechnicon, where he took live orders from customers. Chef Hikiami was kind enough to sit down with us and answer a couple of questions about both wagashi and his experience in London!

For the first time in the UK, discover the Ainu culture of today through personal stories from this indigenous community from the southern Hokkaido region of Biratori at Japan House London.

It’s autumn, and that means it’s time to go hunting for the best foliage viewing spots around. With an abundance of spot recommendations in the Kanto and other areas of Japan, it’s high time we headed south to see what we can find!

Starting from the 31st of October and lasting until the 5th of November, there will be a variety of Toyama Prefecture related activities going on in London! From a Toyama sake dinner to a wagashi (traditional Japanese confectionery) pop-up at Pantechnicon, this week will serve as a great introduction to the charms that Toyama has to offer. Just 2 hours by bullet train from Tokyo, the week will make you want to book your tickets as soon as possible!

Continuing in our series of travel Japanese, we introduce some more handy words and phrases to make your trip to Japan even easier - and even more memorable and enjoyable.