Kunio Yanagita, a scholar and folklorist who has been called the father of Japanese folklore studies, was born in this town of 20,000 people. The town has striking statues of Yokai ( supernatural ...

A 57m (187ft) Buddhist statue dedicated to the Goddess of Mercy, Kannon, in central Japan has been draped with a giant face covering. Temple managers in Aizuwakamatsu plan to keep the figure ...