Japan enjoyed something of a travel boom in the late Edo Period (1603-1868). This was no doubt a key impetus behind the famous ukiyo-e landscape series ¡°Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji¡± created by Katsushika Hokusai around 1830, depicting the beauty of the iconic mountain from a variety of locations. A short while later, Utagawa Hiroshige came out with his series ¡°Famous Views of the Eastern Capital,¡± featuring landscapes in Edo (present-day Tokyo).
Inspiring wanderlust
Hiroshige followed in 1833 with the series that became one of the greatest ukiyo-e hits of all time, ¡°Fifty-Three Stations of the Tokaido Road.¡± Not long before, a comical adventure novel, ¡°Tokaidochu Hizakurige¡± (¡°Hoofing It Along the Tokaido Road¡±; 1802-14) by Jippensha Ikku, had also become widely popular.
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