I journeyed to Matsumoto, a charming castle town located at the foothills of the majestic Japan Alps in Nagano Prefecture.

By John Offer Teishoku, pronounced "Tay-show-ku" means "meal set."

Many place names in Hokkaido are derived from the Ainu language, like "Sapporo," which means "dry, large river."

In Hokkaido, we met a traveling Buddhist monk who had been walking along the coast of Japan for the past 6 years, relying on handouts for meals and sleeping on a thin plastic mat.