Sharing favorite finds from across the archipelago
I haven't done a Manhole Monday post in quite some time, so I took a cruise through my photo archives today to try to find a unique one. I stumbled across this colorful one from a trip to Niigata a few winters ago: I usually do a little write-up on the scene that graces each... 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 →
Oh, summertime. You have arrived with a vengeance. My plans for the week include leaving the comfort of my air-conditioned apartment purely to seek out chilled noodles (hiyashi) and shaved ice (kakigori) before returning once more to the bearable temperature of my apartment. This, of course, is a good thing for all of you readers out there,... Continue Reading →
While I was in Shikoku this past week, I spent some time exploring Kotohira, a small town (no more than a village, really) in the western part of Takamatsu Prefecture. Kotohira is best known for its shrine, Kotohira-jingu or Kompira-san. This Shinto shrine has allegedly been around since the 1st century, and enshrines a kami (god)... 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 →
Right before the New Year, my family and I took a trip to Niigata. Our time in a ryokan in the snowy mountains was wonderful, our time in Niigata City less so. I'm not blaming Niigata, mind you. It was merely because we'd arrived in a week when nearly everything closes for the holidays. While... 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 →
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 →
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