Two half-hour shows featuring:

Tokyo, Japan: An urban marriage of high tech and age-old customs makes Tokyo a fascinating destination, from teenagers playing “cos,” or costume games, to adults taking dinner at tiny yakatori restaurants, where the kitchen is a small grill dedicated to cooking skewers of meat. Tour the city’s massive wholesale fish market, Tsukiji Market, before dawn to watch the daily auction of massive torsos of tuna fish destined for sushi restaurants around the world. Check out space-age toilets at the showroom of Toto as proof that cutting edge technology permeates every aspect of Japanese life. Go shopping in a department store with more than 100 shops catering to young Japanese women to whom fashion is all important. From bathing in the neon lights of the Shibuya neighborhood at night, to marveling at the city’s spring explosion of cherry blossoms, to learning your fortune by consulting a joss-stick at a Buddhist temple, Tokyo offers a rainbow of experiences guaranteed to fascinate.

Kyoto, Japan: The spiritual heart of Japan, Kyoto offers a glimpse of Japanese life as it used to be, primarily because it was never bombed during World War II. Tiny streets with wooden homes, impressive temples, and a dedication to ancient Japanese traditions make Kyoto one of Japan’s most visited cities. We check into a ryokan, or Japanese inn, and talk with one of Japan’s best-known designers of kimonos to learn why his craft is still thriving. Rudy invites viewers to join him at a tea ceremony and learns that the Japanese attention to detail even extends to incense that locals use for a variety of purposes. Experience the tranquility of not only a rock garden but also a moss garden, retreats that help lend this city in a valley its Zen-like peacefulness.