Lit: Poppy/Mustard Priest Mountain; a mountain near Matsumoto which offers quiet hiking paths, camping, and a viewing platform at its summit from which one can see the Northern Japanese Alps.

Also known as: Kin-Nara, Kin-Na

The terminal train station of the Kintetsu Nara Line which houses four platforms with four tracks underground. It opened as a temporary station on the Osaka Electric Railway in 1914 and today serves close to 70,000 people per day.

Kirifuri Falls is a waterfall along the Kirifuri River. Its name, "Mist Falling", comes from the mist of spray formed during the waterfall's descent. Along with Kegon Falls and Urami Falls, it is one of Nikkou's three famous waterfalls.

The waterfall is split into two sections; the upper half is 82 feet (25 meters), while the lower half is 85 feet (26 meters). It spans 246 feet (75 meters). A path goes from the viewing platform on the south side to the basin.

Oda Nobunaga took control of this castle in 1555, which was constructed by an unknown daimyo, in his effort to unite all of Owari. The castle was reconstructed in 1989.

Komagatake is one of the lava domes in the central dome of the Hakone Volcano, formed around 400,000 years ago.

Komagatake can be reached via the Hakone Komagatake Ropeway from the eastern bank of Lake Ashi.

A railroad station located in central Kooriyama City, Fukushima Prefecture. It is a terminal station for many of the bullet train lines of Northeast Japan.

Also known as: Kouzuke-no-kuni, Joushuu (上州)

An ancient province of Japan governed by the Uesugi Clan which is now the prefecture of Gunma.

Lit: "Temple of Stern Light"

Kougen-ji is the temple belonging to the Tachibana family located in Utsunomiya. It is a branch of Shingon-shu Buzan-ha and is one of the leading family-run temples of the city.

Probably fictional; (there is a <a href="http://risshi.web.infoseek.co.jp/cubkh15.html" class="glossary">Kougonji Temple</a> written with the same Kanji, but it is located in Akirunoshi.)

A town near Nagano City in Nagano Prefecture which was merged with two other towns to form the city of Chikuma on Sept. 1, 2003.

A prefecture located on Kyuushuu Island, once Higo Province. Its capital is Kumamoto City.

Also known as: Kuuhachi Gohoudou (空鉢護法堂)

A shrine that stands at the summit of Mt. Shigi, devoted to the Dragon God, a protective deity and a servant of Bishamonten. Many offerings of eggs, the Dragon God's favorite food, are placed in the temple. The Dragon God is said to grant a wish to those who make a hundred pilgrimages to his shrine.

The path to the shrine is lined with red shrine arches, and takes around 35 minutes to climb. Since there is no water at the summit, visitors customarily take a container from the hand-washing place at the bottom of the path and carry it up.

Kyoto University is the second oldest university in Japan (behind the University of Tokyo). It is one of Japan's Imperial Universities and one of Asia's highest ranked universities, famed for producing world-class researchers. As such, it is one of the most selective universities in Japan with its entrance exams among the most difficult.

The imperial capital of Japan from 794 to 1868, located in Kyoto Prefecture.

Kyoto Station is a major railway station and transportation hub in Kyoto and was first opened for service by decree of Emperor Meiji on February 5, 1877. In its futuristic current iteration, which opened in 1997 to commemorate Kyoto's 1,200th anniversary, it has Japan's second-largest station building and at 15 stories and a total floor area of 238,000 square meters, is one of the country's largest buildings. It houses a shopping mall, hotel, movie theater, department store, and several local government facilities.

Also called "Kasouduka" or "cremation mound" (火葬塚), this is the burial shrine of Takeda Shingen in Iwakubo, Koufu in Yamanashi Prefecture.

Also known as: Kameyama Castle (亀山城), Horai Castle (蓬莱城)

The original fortifications of Marugame Castle were built by the Nara Clan during the Muromachi Period. During the Sengoku Period, Ikoma Chikamasa, daimyo of Sanuki Province (present-day Kagawa Prefecture, made it his residence. He later turned the castle over to his son Ikoma Kazumasa when he built Takamatsu Castle in 1597.

Lit.: "Pine River"; a tributary of the Jinzuu River in Toyama Prefecture which separates from the main river near Nunose Town. A line of pine trees once stood along its banks; sakura (cherry) trees have now replaced them. Many of the surrounding areas have "sakura" in their name, such as Sakura Bridge Avenue, Sakura Town, New Sakura Town and Sakura Tree Town.

Also known as: 深志城 (Fukashi-jou), 鴉城 (Karasu-jou)

A castle in Matsumoto which was built by the Ogasawara Clan during the Sengoku Period (then called Fukashi-jou). It was captured by Takeda Shingen in 1550 and recaptured by Ogasawara Sadayoshi in 1582, who changed the castle's name to Matsumoto Castle. Later it came under the rule of Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu.

Hideyoshi appointed Ishikawa Kazumasa the new lord of Matsumoto Castle, and he and his son, Ishikawa Yasunaga, maintained the castle and town. Yasunaga greatly expanded the castle probably around the years 1593-1594, adding the three towers tenshu (danjon tower), inui-kotenshu (small tower in the northwest), and watari-yagura (connecting scaffold), as well as the goten (residence), taikomon (drum gate), kuromon (black gate), yagura (scaffold), hori (trench), honmaru (the main wing), ninomaru (the second wing), and sannomaru (the third wing).

Matsumoto Castle is one of the best-preserved castles in Japan and is one of the designated national treasures. It is also called "Crow Castle (Karasu-jou)" for its black walls.

A prefectural high school located in Matsumoto, attended by Ougi Miya and her friend Kitahara Madoka. Its policy forbids students from getting part-time jobs unless given express permission.

Located in Shibuya, Tokyo, Meiji Shrine is a Shinto shrine dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shouken. Originally dedicated in 1920, the shrine was destroyed by air raids in World War II. It was rebuilt using funds raised from the public and completed in October 1958.

Lit. "female bird feather river"; a river that runs through Matsumoto City.

Son of Miike Tatsuya (Tetsuya's adopted father), brother of Tokihiko and cousin of Miike Haruya. Appears to be somewhat high-ranking in the Miike family.

He later gains the power to fly.

Lit.: Three-Province Mountain Pass

During the Sengoku Era, Mikuni Pass was one part of the three-province highway that was the shortest path between Echigo and Edo, but snow drifts and avalanches in winter and landslides in summer made it a difficult crossing. Uesugi Kenshin maintained it during his time as Kantou Kanrei in order to maintain his foothold in the Kantou.

It is now a major artery in the Japanese highway system, designated Highway 17 (Mikuni Tunnel).

One of Tokyo's twenty-three special wards (self-governing, special municipalities existing only in Tokyo) located in central Tokyo, southwest of the Imperial Palace. It contains some of Tokyo's most popular entertainment and nightlife districts, as well as upscale residential and commercial areas. Tokyo Tower is located in this ward.

Minato contains the most corporate headquarters of any area in Japan, and could be said to be its business center. It also contains many embassies and offices of foreign corporation, so foreign residents make up about 1 percent of its population.