Sharing favorite finds from across the archipelago
I'm currently in Kochi Prefecture for a few days, a place I visited several years ago but not to any great extent. On that visit, we of course enjoyed an obligatory castle stop - Kochi-jo is one of the twelve original castles remaining in Japan - and ate some excellent tataki (seared bonito). Aside from... Continue Reading →
Two years ago, my husband had a work event in Shikoku and as luck would have it, he could bring the family along. So we trekked off to Kochi, with a long winding sidetrip through Tokushima and Ehime on the way back to Kyushu. And while we took the ferry over, we decided to drive... Continue Reading →
Autumn is in the air in Japan. Typhoon season has been pretty wet this year, I heard, but cool temperatures and clear skies are starting to make their appearance. The first foliage reports from japan-guide are out and Hokkaido has started off the season with brilliant colors. Last year, looking to vary things a bit... Continue Reading →
The beginning of March involved a lot of traveling outside the Tokyo region. The latter half of the month, however, involved two friends in town who'd never been to Japan, so we covered a fair bit of ground in the city, as well as destinations not too far afield. While we did hit up the... Continue Reading →
Back in the height of summer, right after our move to Tokyo, a took a road trip to Tohoku with my family and good friends from Nara Prefecture. While we hit all of the festival highlights (Neputa Matsuri, Kanto Matsuri) that Japan is famous for, we also detoured a bit up to the tip of... Continue Reading →
Winter is finally starting to set in here in Tokyo ... sort of. It's unseasonably warm this year, it seems, and snow is a laughable thought at this point in winter. That doesn't stop us from heading out to Niigata this week in search of a little white powder and onsen. Yes, hot spring hopping... Continue Reading →
This past summer, part of my sojourn through Tohoku took me to Lake Towada. This large lake sits at the southern edge of Aomori prefecture and is a popular summer and autumn destination. It was where we arrived after our three-hour amble down the Oirase stream trail. When we finally got to the shores of... Continue Reading →
It's hard to believe that in a few months, my daughter will turn 5 years old. That's around the age when kids in Japan start to give up their Anpanman obsession, much like American kindergarten kids abandon Sesame Street and hide their Elmo dolls in the closet. We thankfully haven't quite gotten over Anpanman yet (I'm... Continue Reading →
One of the last stops on my trip to Tohoku this past summer was in the old samurai town of Kakunodate in central Akita prefecture. Both the friends I was traveling with and numerous travel sources had touted this town as having one of the most beautifully preserved Edo-era neighborhoods, and I must admit, I... Continue Reading →
Whew, this Tokyo heat is interminable. The calendar is inching its way into September and I am not the only one in my family willing it to go faster so we get to the cooler temperatures quicker! Yesterday, we braved the humidity and headed for the Shinagawa Aquarium with friends. While the aquarium itself was... Continue Reading →
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