Discoveries from around the archipelago
It's time for another look at the various shrine prayer plaques around Japan. I've found some interesting ones in recent months, and the more you know about the story you tell, the more fascinating that random shrine can become. 1. Hachiman Shrine (Shirakawa-go) - The Hachiman shrine in the UNESCO World Heritage Village of Shirakawa-go has... Continue Reading →
I'm not quite sure how we got to the end of the month already but here we are. Christmas is gone and the New Year is almost upon us. As the mother to a toddler, I clearly recall counting down all the days to Christmas on our advent calendar and yet I still am not sure... Continue Reading →
Sifting through my photos for the 5 Faves posts I did at the end of last year (you can see them here and here) made me realize a few things: 1. I take a lot of photos. They're not all great (not by a long shot) but they certainly are numerous. 🙂 2. Most of... Continue Reading →
Well, January hasn't even ended yet and I was already fortunate enough to check off one of my travel goals for 2014 the other weekend. My family and I made the rather reasonable drive to Kagoshima for a few days of exploration. We took the ferry over to Sakurajima to see the smoking volcano, hiked... Continue Reading →
I know I blogged about visiting the wintering cranes in Izumi back at the beginning of the New Year but I didn't have a chance to share Izumi's manhole covers. That's right - manhole covers in the plural sense. Not only does Izumi pay homage to its feathered inhabitants, as seen on this cover: They also commissioned... Continue Reading →
