As the cherry blossoms begin blooming, let’s look at a unique hanafuda set featuring the heritage of Kyoto. Visually this is one of the more stunning sets in my collection, but it’s best to compare it to a standard deck to see the artistic license taken. Most hanafuda follow these traditional motifs. The red borders […]
I hate shopping most of the time. That’s a tough position to take living here in Japan, with its long shopping arcades, both above ground and below. But there is one shop in this country I can honestly say I love. Love! It’s in Tokyo, in Kanda, and it sells traditional Japanese hanafuda, karuta, and […]
For many years I have been an avid collector of 花札 (hanafuda, traditional Japanese flower cards). I first became familiar with this unique card game years ago in South Korea, where the game is still intensely played on a regular basis, even on the sidewalks in more rural areas. When I first began living in […]