This week’s WordPress Weekly Photo Challenge theme is ‘quest‘, which immediately made me think of a number of adventures I’ve had in Japan. Often, both whilst living there and during my other trips, I’ve felt like I am on some kind of quest or mission. Sometimes I’m searching for the perfect photo opportunity, sometimes I’m searching for … Continue reading
On Friday 18th December I set off on a mission. My plan was to visit Mount Shosha (書写山), the site of the temple Engyoji (円教寺) which was partially used in the filming of the Last Samurai. (I know, I know, most of it was filmed in New Zealand, some people really don’t like this movie … Continue reading
On Saturday 28th November I strapped my hiking shoes on once again and set off for an autumnal hike in the northern mountains of Kyoto. My plan was to take the train from Kyoto to Kurama (鞍馬), then hike to Kibune (貴船) before returning to Kyoto by train. Kyoto is a great city, but in … Continue reading
Whilst walking the Kumano Kodo I discovered a number of things. One was that I really like hiking, the other was the Camino de Santiago, or the Way of St James. The Kumano Kodo and the Camino de Santiago are the only two pilgrimage routes in the world to be registered as UNESCO World Heritage … Continue reading
When I left you last I was settling in for the night in Yunomine Onsen, listening to the rain as I laid my head on the futon, praying for a brighter day tomorrow. Fortunately, I woke the following day, Tuesday 26th November, to find the rain had stopped. It was a dull start to the … Continue reading
It’s been a while since I wrote. As predicted, real life is getting in the way of me writing about my great adventures. But I have so many stories to tell – I mustn’t let time pass too quickly. So, in my last post I had just begun my Kumano Kodo (熊野古道) adventure and had … Continue reading
My trip originally started out as just a holiday with no work element, and one of the main focusses of the holiday was always doing the Kumano Kodo (熊野古道). The Kumano Kodo is a series of pilgrimage trails that criss-cross the Kii Peninsula (紀伊半島), and the routes have collectively been designated a World Heritage Site. … Continue reading
Back when I was a teacher at AEON we used to use these textbooks that had conversations in them for the students to practice. I can still recite bits of some of the more memorable conversations, and one that has always stuck in my mind is this one: It was a bit of a ridiculous … Continue reading
Greetings from Kawayu Onsen (川湯温泉)! I had planned to write sooner, but I’ve just been so damn busy having fun and catching up with everyone in Nagoya. I already have lots of stories to share, but they will come later when I eventually upload all of my photos and write proper blog posts. For now, … Continue reading
My time in Japan was drawing to an end, but on Saturday 7th June I was on a mission. Back in 2011 when I was having my last trip before leaving Japan I was gutted to have to cancel my plans to visit Nokogiri-yama (鋸山) in Chiba Prefecture. I had planned to go in April, but … Continue reading
Haikugirl's Japan 