Kurashiki, also known as the Venice of Japan completely won me over during a few-hour stopover in October 2023 between Onomichi and Himeji. From the moment I reached the old quarter, I was smitten. It’s unbelievably beautiful and quaint, so perfectly preserved it honestly feels like a movie set. I loved wandering the canals and side streets, popping into small shops, and just soaking up the atmosphere at an unhurried pace. It was also incredibly easy to stash my luggage at the JR station, which made exploring for the day totally stress-free.
The town is famously obsessed with denim, this is where Japanese denim originates, and that obsession is both serious and playful. Yes, they even have denim ice cream. I met up with my friend Shai, whom I’d met a week earlier at the Chabad of Kyoto, and who was staying in Kurashiki at the time to work on his denim brand, Ground Global (groundglobal.store). He appears in my photos below. I ended up buying a denim hat and a pair of jeans that are still my favorite pair to this day. The best part? The style was actually called “Lisa,” which felt like the universe winking and confirming that Kurashiki was exactly where I was supposed to be.
Walking from the JR station to the old quarter, you might walk through a classic Japanese shopping street
If you go to Japan in October, you'll smell this amazing scent everywhere! It's Kinmokusai, this orange blossom
My cute denim hat
