Wishy Washi
Paper making first arrived in Japan hundreds of years ago. It wasn’t theirs when it arrived, but like so many things, it was distinctly Japanese by the time it was being exported. The heavy, stiff paper, known as washi (literally meaning “Japanese paper”) was used for everything from armour to Shinto garbs to origami. Today it’s ...
One in a Dozen
When you grow up in the UK, castles are exciting for the first 10 years of your life. Until then you can run around fantasising about King Arthur, Merlin and chums, fending off hoards of villains from the ramparts. Then your adolescence approaches, the joy goes out of you, and you start to resent days ...