Ryokan (inn) Ryokan (inn) A is a type of traditional Japanese inn that has existed since the eighth century A.D. during the Keiun period, in which the oldest hotel in the world, Nishiyama Onsen Keiunkan, was created in 705 A.D. Another old ryokan called Hōshi Ryokan was founded in 718 A.D and was also known as the world's second oldest hotel. Such inns also served travelers along Japan's highways. They typically feature "tatami"-matted rooms, communal baths, and other public areas where visitors may wear yukata and talk with the owner. Ryokan are difficult to find in Tokyo and other large cities because
Death in a Strange Country Death in a Strange Country Death in a Strange Country (1993) is the second novel in Donna Leon's Commissario Brunetti mysteries set in Venice and the sequel to "Death at La Fenice" (1992). Early one morning Brunetti is confronted with the body of a young American serviceman fished out of a fetid Venetian canal. All clues point to a mugging, but robbery seems too convenient a motive. Then something incriminating is found in the dead man's flat, and Brunetti becomes convinced that somebody is taking great pains to provide an easy solution to the crime. When he uncovers collusion between