I’ll start this post off a little serious, as I can’t be the only person vexed by this issue. What do you do when you love a place, when a place is absolutely dear to your heart, but that place is filled with history with someone with whom you no longer share such feelings (to […]
One of the prize games in Japanese arcades is a variation of the quarter games you sometimes find in American carnivals. The concept is to push a stack of goodies over a ledge into a bin that you open during play. Like many well-designed, profitable, and therefore infuriating prize games, the game provides an illusion […]
Once again, catching up on the last trip, right before we head out on another. This is a picture gallery from a family trip to Tokyo last fall. After touring Taipei for a few days, we spent about a week in Tokyo. As usual… long aimless days and no time to post any updates. The […]
Ok look… better late than never on this post. We’re about to start on a new trip, so, you know, now is the time to finish posting from the last one. Seriously though, I’ve said it before, and it’s still true: Every time we visit Japan we end up staying in smaller and smaller areas […]
On the last couple of visits to Japan, our exploration has narrowed in on a few specific stomping grounds. A week in Tokyo can blast by fast… As you’re getting ready to go, bags stuffed beyond capacity, you realize you have taken very few pictures, slept very little, and had an absolutely amazing time. You […]
What draws us back to Japan again and again is difficult to pin down. It’s certainly not the sights. To be sure, there are beautiful shrines and temples in Kyoto, sweeping views that span Lake Kawaguchiko to the Pacific Ocean atop Mt. Fuji, and beautiful parks around Tokyo. But if revisiting seemingly postcard-perfect attractions were […]
*Full Japan picture gallery below* Regrettably, the Japan segment of this trip has nearly come to a close. We had a great time, but four days was just far too short. Honestly though, if it were four weeks, or even four months, we’d probably leave feeling like we needed more time here. It’s been a […]
Temple fatigue…. can it become a chronic condition? Can a bad case of it be permanent? We’re not certain, but it sure seems possible. We’ve got a few temples left on this trip yet, so, who knows…. but hopefully the cure for temple fatigue is more temples and different temples. Today we took a little […]
It’s not really practical…. ok, maybe not really even possible, to be a “crazy cat lady” in a city as crowded as Tokyo. Even still, Japan has plenty of people obsessed with cats (do a Google search on “namennayo”), even while living in conditions crowded enough to make ownership of a cat or cats, at […]
Our winter break has officially begun… We arrived (3 pm Sunday, here) after a pretty uneventful flight. Korean Airlines was great! So, after checking into Toyoko Inn in the fading daylight, we tried to run around a bit to see at least a few things. On the agenda: 1: The Monzen-nakacho Kaiten sushi restaurant. Reaffirmed […]