Korakukan is an old wooden theatre created to entertain a mining community in Yamagata Prefecture, northern Japan

Photos showing an anti-nuclear power plant demonstration in Tokyo, Japan

Photos of German bonsai tree artist Valentin Brose in Tokyo, Japan

On a clear day it is visible from miles around. Located on a prominent or lofty place, it is often dramatic, picturesque, mysterious-looking and last, but not least, almost completely useless. The folly is as representative a symbol of Great Britain as fish and chips or Lennon and McCartney. Text available in English and Japanese.

Gallery of photos pf renowned French chef Alain Ducasse

Portrait photos of French chef Pierre Gagnaire

Photos showing cherry trees and blossom in Tokyo, Japan

Photos of red carpet event attended by Christina Aguilera in Tokyo where she was promoting her film Burlesque

Gallery of photos of a site in northern Japan where some people believe Jesus Christ is buried. Text also available

Photos of writer and environmentalist CW Nicol at his Afan woodland trust -- a tract of woodland he bought up to use as an educational tool in forestry preservation in Nagano, Japan

Images of quakes in Japan over past 5 years

Echizen is a district in Fukui Prefecture that is famous for the production of washi paper.

Gallery of photos of glass wind chimes and a Tokyo-based make of the chimes that can be seen and heard throughout Japan during the summer

Portrait photos of Japanese economist Eisuke Sakakibara

Gallery of images related to environment and energy-related issues, including those of a nuclear power station and electric vehicles

One of the most unusual purification rituals that take place across Japan, particularly in the winter and early spring, is the "Hiwatari Matsuri," or fire-walking festival, where mountain priests walk across hot embers in order to purify themselves. Text also available

Photos showing a fire-walking ritual that takes place in Takao, western Tokyo each year

Images of Kyushu's colorful city of Fukuoka, Japan

This ritual, where men run naked through icy streets in mid-winter, is held in Japan's far North each year

Gallery of photos showing life, or lack of it, inside the nuclear evacuation zone in Fukushima, Japan. Some photos of cherry trees --a potent symbol for Japanese -- inside the zone

Some photos of Japan's fabled geisha

Photos of Yuko Tojo, the granddaughter of Japan's wartime prime minister, Hideki Tojo. Among the images is a rare picture of her posing with a photo of her grandfather at Yasukuni Shrine, where the general is interred. Text also available

A gallery of photos about the famous Hakata ramen noodles, a well-known dish in Fukuoka City, Japan

Gallery of photos of the hotly disputed Hamaoka Power Plant, which Japan Prime Minister Naoto Kan ordered the suspension of operations on May 6, 2011. Experts say that the chance of a powerful earthquake hitting the region in which the plant is located in the near future are high.

Photos from the first city to be destroyed by atomic warfare. Text also available

Photos showing the Nissin instant noodle/cup noodle museum in Osaka, Japan

Photos of the rapidly changing Itaewon entertainment district in Seoul, South Korea.

Portrait photos of Tokyo Vice author and crime mafia/crime journalist Jake Adelstein

Photos of a bar in Tokyo where a doctor administers HIV tests free of charge

Gallery of photos of the Ginza area of Tokyo. Included are pictures of Chinese shoppers at places such as the Mitsukoshi department store

Collection of photos from Osaka, Japan, of a district where homeless and jobless people gather daily in search of day labor jobs. Text also available

Japan has not always had a good reputation when it comes to attitudes toward the disabled. But in recent years, spurred by a new initiative to promote active participation in society of disabled individuals, a number of unique events targeting disabled people have been inaugurated. One is the Doglegs Wrestling. Text also available

Photos showing the dolphin slaughter in Taiji, Japan Sept. 10 2009.

Portraits of 77-year-old Japanese porn star Shigeo Tokuda

Photos of brewing Japan's famed sake rice wine

General photos of Japan, including geisha,business, trade and commerce-related images, pets, working poor, homeless, Tokyo architecture, etc

Despite the economic downturn, one sector that seems to be doing well in Japan is the "Live House" concert scene. The number of Live House gig halls has been rising in the past few years. Text also available

The Japanese are known worldwide for their impeccable manners. But times are changing to the extent that posters are being hung in Tokyo's subways telling people to refrain from lewd behavior. Text also available

Photos relating to the theme of nationalism in Japan. Text also available

Japanese authorities are unable to dispose of much of the debris created by the March 11 disasters due to fears of radiation contamination, leading to giant mounds of waste that are becoming increasingly more toxic. The disaster is estimated to have left behind some 25 million tons of waste.

Photos showing Japanese people dressed in traditional garb planting rice in rice paddies on top of a high-rise building in the Roppongi entertainment district of Tokyo, Japan

Gallery of photos of Japan's only known foreign geisha, Fukutaro from Romania. By definition in Japan, in order to be officially recognized as a geisha you should be registered with a geisha association. There are several foreigners living in Japan who claim to be geisha but they fail to meet this criteria. Fukutaro is a fully fledged geisha. Previously an Australian woman, Fiona Graham, had been accepted into a geisha association in Tokyo via other associations, but reportedly has since left.

Suicide forest near to Mount Fuji, Japan, where dozens of suicides are committed each year. ALL NAMES OF PEOPLE IN PHOTOS AND FURTHER CAPTION DETAILS ARE AVAILABLE upon request. Text also available.

Aug. 15 marks the anniversary of Japan's surrender in the Pacific War. A number of commemorative events are held, the most prominent of which takes place at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo. Hundreds of thousands of people make the pilgrimage to the controversial shrine, including nationalists and right-wing groups dressed in military attire. The shrine's "Symbolic Registry of Divinities" lists 2.46 million names of people who served Imperial Japan, the majority of whom lost their lives during wartime service. Among them are 14 convicted World War II war criminals, including war-time leader General Hideki Tojo and visits here by political leaders are often condemned by China and South Korea as tacit approval of those leader's wartime endeavors. Yasukuni Shrine is often referred to as "the soul of Japan,"

Photos of the popular Kichijoji district of Tokyo

One of Japan's most celebrated architects, Kisho Kurokawa designed some of the globe's most fascinating structures

Photos of the 60th anniversary of start of Korean War. Also photos of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between the north and south of the Korean peninsula

Photos of Lord Green in Tokyo

Photos of Japan's ubiquitous love hotels

Photos of people buying thermos flasks, which have become popular with Japanese looking to save some yen and stop using PET bottles to help save the environment

Images relating to the city of Nagoya -- its castle, palace, art museum and Tokugawa gardens

Photos of Tokyo's stunning Asian arts museum

Photos of coral-restoration project in Okinawa

Images showing the tuna trail in Japan, from fishing aboard a tuna fishing vessel to auction at the market to eating at a sushi shop. Text also available

Photos showing the Otaru Beer brewery in Otaru, Hokkaido, Japan and the brewery's brewmeister Johannes Braun from Germany.

Japan's biggest pastime, pachinko i an arcade game that has been likened to pinball. text also available

Gallery of photos show the annual phallus festival in Kawasaki, Japan

Portraits of celebrities, artists, etc from former British Prime Minister Tony Blair and war photographer Tim Page to actress Cameron Diaz

Photos of the Praemium Imperiale award winner including Zaha Hadid and Hiroshi Sugimoto

Series of images of robots produced in Japan such as Sony's Aibo, Honda's Asimo and Mitsubishi's Wakamaru

Gallery of photos relating to the island of Saipan in the US Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands

A gallery of photos about Japan's coming-of-age day, when a range of events are held to celebrate the arrival of adulthood, which in Japan is officially age 20.

Gallery of photos of Butai Farm in Sendai. The company was established as Butai Farm in 2003 with the idea of developing a company that would work on the whole farming process -- from production to processing, distribution, and sales. The March 11 tsunami flooded about 60% of the company's 40-hectare farmland. While working toward the reconstruction of the land, they have also introduced a three-tier radiation testing system in an attempt to recover consumer

Photos from the food summit in Sendai on Nov. 30. The title of this year's summit was Eat and Energize the East, with specific emphasis on the rejuvenation of food-related industries in the Tohoku region that was devastated by the March 11 quake and tsunami and subsequent nuclear disaster in Fukushima

Gallery of photos of the trendy Shimokitazawa area of Tokyo

Impressionistic photos of life in a western Tokyo suburb

The Suehiro sake brewery in Aizu-wakamatsu city is one of the most successful exporters of Japan's national brew. Being located in central Fukushima has meant it has suffered some decline in sales, but is making efforts to convince consumers that Fukushima's products are in fact safe to drink and eat

A gallery of photos of former Thai prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra

Gallery of photos of hole-in-the-wall eateries and pubs in Tokyo

Gallery of photos of the so-called "kitchen town", a street of shops dealing entirely with the catering industry, including fake food, in Kappabashi, Tokyo, Japan

Photos from the 41st Tokyo Motor Show, 21 Oct. 2009

Yutaka Matsumoto is the creator of Toyota's ground-breaking plug-in hybrid

Photos from Bolivia, Chile, Peru etc

Photos from Burma (Myanmar), India, Lao Republic, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Australia, etc

Photos from The Czech Republic, Turkey, Spain, Italy, Portugal, U.K. etc

Gallery of photos showing Japan's ubiquitous vending machines

Photos of a horseback archery ritual held each September in which horseback archers dressed in a traditional hunting garb fire arrows at a target as his horse gallops along a 255-meter course at full pace. The Yabusame Shinji, is held at Tsurugaoka Hachimangu shrine in Kamakura, near Tokyo. The ritual, which dates back to the 12th century and is aimed at appeasing the numerous gods that guard Japan, was initiated by Kamakura shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo in an attempt to improve his samurai warrior's archery skills.

Gallery of photos of so-called yakata-bune pleasure boats that are popular in Tokyo especially during the spring, summer and autumn months.

Yubari in Japan's far north island of Hokkaido was once a venue for a well-respected annual international film festival. Today it is better known as the town that went bankrupt

A village in Shikoku, Japan, where residents are required to divide their waste into 34 different categories in a drive to become free of waste by 2020