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Oct 13, 2025

Dark sky near you and easy to access?

Where do you go to see the Milky Way? Is the location easy to get to without a car? I'm thinking about late autumn and winter getaways when the skies are likely to be clear. The last time I had a good view was in the Izu Islands in winter. I got there by overnight ferry and rambled around on a rented bicycle.

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TonetoEdo

TonetoEdo

Living between the Tone and Edo Rivers in Higashi Katsushika area of Chiba Prefecture.

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2 Answers

  • genkidesu

    genkidesu

    15 hours ago

    I read that Kozushima is a great place for stargazing. This JNTO page (https://www.japan.travel/en/guide/a-guide-to-stargazing-in-japan/) mentioned there are three places that have been designated as international dark sky spots in Japan, and they are Bisei Town (Okayama), Kozushima (Tokyo), and Iriomote-Ishigaki National Park (Okinawa). More locally, the Tainai Nature Observatory is meant to be a good spot for all things night sky and stargazing, and they hold regular events for that purpose. Living in the countryside though means that the sky views are pretty good on any given day as long as it's not overcast.

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  • genkidesu

    genkidesu

    15 hours ago

    I should clarify that some of the designated places aren't what I would call easy to access, but still thought it was interesting that they had received that designation!

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Your favorite ways to unwind in Japan

A few little stressors have been popping up in my life lately, so I was wondering about your favorite ways to unwind here -- the big and the small. One of mine is definitely onsen when I have the chance to go, but that's not always an "easy to do everyday" thing. Let me know in the comments so I can incorporate some of them into my routine!

genkidesu

genkidesu

8 hours ago

2 Answers

Dark sky near you and easy to access?

Where do you go to see the Milky Way? Is the location easy to get to without a car? I'm thinking about late autumn and winter getaways when the skies are likely to be clear. The last time I had a good view was in the Izu Islands in winter. I got there by overnight ferry and rambled around on a rented bicycle.

TonetoEdo

TonetoEdo

16 hours ago

3 Answers

Are you happier in Japan than your home country?

Saw a list today via TimeOut which covered their "Happiest Cities" for 2025. (https://www.timeout.com/news/the-20-happiest-cities-in-the-world-in-2025-according-to-locals-101025) A couple of cities in my home country made the Top 20 (Melbourne and Sydney), but Japan was noticeably absent. It got me thinking. Would you say you're happier here than you were in your country of origin? Would love to hear your arguments for or against, and why that's the case.

genkidesu

genkidesu

on Oct 11

1 Answer

Do you see dekotora in recent years?

I feel like in the last 20 years I see dekotora less and less. The only place I see dekotora regularly now is at two festivals I tend annually where they have a dekotora display. But the number of dekotora participating in those events also seems to be dwindling in recent years. So my question; do you still see dekotora in the wild, so to speak? Or do you only see them at special events?

BigfamJapan

BigfamJapan

on Oct 10