Starting from Hachioji in Tokyo's west, our journey takes us to Mt. Fuji, then into the mountains of Yamanashi and Nagano Prefectures. We watch traditional puppet theater. We alight at Mt. Fuji Station on the Fujikyu line, the closest railway to the peak, and enter a spiritual lava cave in the bowels of the mountain. As we make our way north, we stop by a Buddhist temple with a vineyard and a colossal radio telescope. Discover amazing scenery and sights deep in the mountains outside Tokyo.

The imperial steelworks established 120 years ago in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Pref., on the southern island of Kyushu, drove Japan's modernization. And coal mined in the nearby Chikuho area fueled this industry. We visit old ironworks and coal mines along the railways that transported the coal, and eat a bento that has delighted travelers for a century. We meet a retired mechanic working to invigorate the area with railroad history and an ex-coal miner preserving its coal mining past for posterity.

We start our journey at Fukuchiyama, a transport hub in central Kyoto Prefecture, and head north through valleys to the Sea of Japan and Toyooka, across the border in Hyogo Prefecture. The Kyoto Tango Railway boasts various carriages, with attractive interiors, operating on its 3 lines. We stop to admire the spectacular view of the sea, learn about the culture and history from local residents, and visit places that appear in legends.