Season 1
6 episodes
50 min. per episode
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James navigates Japan’s contrasts, connecting with locals and cultures while confronting his own understanding of tradition and modernity.
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James begins his journey at Cape Soya, the northernmost tip of Japan on the remote island of Hokkaido. This snowy wilderness is the least densely populated area of the country, and James tries his hand at dog sledding across the stunning landscape with some deceptively docile-looking canine pals. A few bumps and bruises later and it's time to brush up his language and origami skills in one of the smallest restaurants he's ever seen. This is a 'Yatai', or a tiny eating and drinking shack, where you're encouraged to cram around a small communal table and break noodles knee to knee with people who, until the beer starts flowing, are total strangers. But there are more winter sports on the horizon, as a day or so later James finds himself playing 'Yukigassen' - the world's only codified and refereed team snowball fight (complete with regulation sized balls). Despite James's natural athleticism, and the stern words of encouragement from his disappointed guide Massayo, he's not a natural in the cut and thrust of a grudge match where the snowballs are solid ice and crash helmets are obligatory. To escape from the bitter cold, the director gives James a chance to warm up and indulge his passion for metalwork. He meets Korehiro Watanabe, one of Japan's last samurai swordsmiths, who allows James to be his apprentice for a day (forgoing the usual ten-year commitment). After several hours spent learning the extraordinary secrets of the sword master's forge, James takes a handmade katana for a quick spin, showing how this ancient craft still yields fear-inducing results. By now it's definitely time for some food and drink, and James brews his own beer at one of the growing number of microbreweries springing up in Sapporo, Japan's beer capital. Then he heads out into Hokkaido's bountiful icy waters to catch an octopus, and learns the art of sashimi and tempura in a quayside cook off. At least James's efforts go down better than a dessert featuring sea urchin ice cream.
Honshu, Japan's main island, is a veritable cornucopia of different environments. While the main tourist draws - including Tokyo - lie further south, it's the beautiful Northern region of Tohoku where James finds himself. And he wastes no time in shattering that tranquil beauty by getting involved in a giant robot duel with his new guide, Maki. To atone for the fallout of this epic shootout with a woman he's only just met, James seeks wisdom on a pilgrimage through the snowy woods of a holy mountain with a very friendly monk. After the monk introduces James to the benefits of naked bathing in natural hot pools, it's time to trade spiritual reverence for an altogether more modern type of worship: screaming pop fandom, courtesy of a trip to watch the Zenryoku Boys, Sendai city's newest J-pop sensation. Although James is confident in his status as a global style icon, the boys insist on giving him a post-gig makeover, complete with a hip new wardrobe and trendy hairdo. This region is home to Matsushima, a stunning bay of pine-covered islands and one of Japan's historical 'Great Views'. Here James is moved to write a haiku, before committing it to paper with a valiant attempt at traditional Japanese calligraphy. But the beauty of the area hides the fact that it was these shores that bore the brunt of the 2011 earthquake, tsunami and nuclear meltdown. Eight years later many of the towns and villages in nearby Fukushima province remain uninhabited. James meets one of the pioneers who's recently moved back to the deserted town of Namie after the area was finally declared safe by the government. Next stop: Tokyo, and James decides to arrive in style on the Shiki-Shima, the world's most luxurious train. Of course, the train's on time, so what could possibly go wrong?
In an attempt to say sensei, James accidentally misspeaks to his Japanese teacher and calls him deodorant. James visits a penis festival in Kawasaki and the gadget district in Akihabara.
This time James is travelling from the megacity of Tokyo, to the ancient capital of Kyoto. And what better way to do this than on a motorbike, one of Japan's greatest contributions to the modern world. James joins a Japanese biker gang for a quick spin around the iconic Mount Fuji. The importance of this mountain to the people of Japan is hard to overstate; it's often described as the heart and soul of the country - but how can a lump of rock mean so much to the inhabitants? To discover its true meaning, James receives a lesson in philosophy and painting from an obsessive artist who's painted it every day for the past fifty years. But these lofty ambitions are brought swiftly back down to earth when a nearby tourist bus causes James - and the crew - to question the very nature of what they are doing. Next stop: Hamamatsu, home to the world's biggest grand piano factory. With its combination of exquisite craftsmanship and cutting-edge technology, this place typifies modern Japanese manufacturing. As a keen pianist and amateur engineer, James generously helps out with the construction process. But will he live up to their exacting standards? Spoiler alert: no, he won't. Kyoto beckons, and it's time for something a little more old-fashioned. James is entertained by a Geisha, a woman who follows a centuries-old vocation that is one of the defining symbols of a city rich in history. She treats him to a traditional tea ceremony, a dance, and a lesson in playing the shamisen - an instrument made from old pets. To add a modern twist to this ancient city, James hires a precocious robot guide to show him around Kyoto's famous temples and shrines, resulting in total cyber confusion. Returning to more familiar ground, James dips a toe back into modern Japan by taking a tiny car for a spin around a big track - Suzuka's Formula 1 circuit - before having his butt kicked by a woman half his size in an introduction to the martial art Aikido.
James arrives by speedboat in Osaka, Japan's de facto second city and a port with a reputation for great nightlife and delicious street food. With his manhole-obsessed local guide Hacchan, he has a go at Japan's national (and slightly shady) pastime, Pachinko, a sort of pinball fruit machine. In a land where gambling is frowned upon, James discovers the tricks the Japanese use to get their hands on their winnings- and then promptly blows all his money on Osaka's famous octopus balls and Japan's infamously expensive Kobe beef. Osaka is also the centre of Japanese stand-up comedy, a genre notorious for getting lost in translation. Since he started his journey, James seems to have provoked great mirth from the locals, so he calls on his trusty Tokyo guide, Yujiro, for a dangerous comedy experiment. To see if comedy can travel, they'll perform translated British jokes to a notoriously hard-bitten Osakan comedy audience. After that bruising encounter, James is in need of some light relief, but Yujiro takes James to a sumo wrestling stable... where Yujiro risks both his dignity and his nether regions by taking on the largest wrestler in the room. He leaves with neither intact. Time for something a bit more zen: meditation. In the Kōraku-en, arguably Japan's most famous ornamental garden, the duo seek guidance from a Buddhist sensei on how to achieve enlightenment. The concept is interesting, but James struggles to shake some harrowing memories from his mind. It does succeed, however, in putting him in a more reflective mood - something that seems pertinent as he arrives in the city of Hiroshima. This thriving, thoroughly modern metropolis will perhaps forever be known as the place where atomic warfare came of age. James visits the museum and meets a Japanese-American historian, to shed more light on this controversial legacy. Last but certainly not least, James visits the Itsukushima Shrine famous for its orange (or possibly red) Tori gate, and its ravenous deer.
James May embarks on a remarkable journey across Japan, from its icy north to its balmy south. He'll see the sights, meet the locals, and eat the noodles in a bid to truly understand the Land of the Rising Sun.