January 21, 2019

2018 in Review

Hello!

Remember me?

I’m still here! Between working full-time and allowing myself time to relax, my ol’ website got pushed to the wayside.

If you’re sticking around and reading my posts – I appreciate you!

I’m going to start the year off with a fun post, looking back on 2018. I’m a sucker for memories. I’m perpetually reminiscing about the past while also teetering between enjoying the moment and constantly hurtling myself towards the future. I’m always planning the next trip while on the current trip while thinking about the last trip. Yep, that’s me!

In this post, I’m mostly going to meditate and reflect on my new years resolution for 2018 which was to travel more of Japan.

I set myself two goals which was to:

  • go on at least one day trip a month
  • go on an overnight trip each season

My definition of day trip is pretty vague. If it gets me out of the house from morning till evening and if I took a bit of time (1 hour ~) to travel to the spot – it’s a day trip!

Without further ado, let’s see how I did!

January

Day Trip to Kawagoe

Less than an hour by train from Tokyo, Kawagoe is a lovely spot for a historic day trip. I especially had a great time visiting the old school penny candy alley and stocking up on nostalgic sweets!


Strolling among Edo era kurazukuri warehouse buildings

February

No Day Trip

Overnight Trip to Kusatsu Onsen

Kusatsu Onsen served as a lovely winter getaway for a day trip-less month. About 2 hours by bus from Tokyo, it’s a charming mountain town known for healing hot spring onsen. Perfect for a relaxing weekend.

Milky white, mineral enriched hot spring waters of Kusatsu.
Watch a yumomi performance – a traditional way of paddling and stirring boiling hot water to cool it down.

March

Multinight Trip to Kyoto

During spring vacation, we went to Kansai for a week with Kyoto as our base city. While it rained most of the time we were there, we took the excuse of the weather to do some indoor activities that we hadn’t done before. We also went a couple day trips out of the city. Oh, and we ate a tonne of food to warm ourselves up too!

Burnt miso ramen from Gogyo – one of my favorite bowls of ramen in Japan. I go here every time I’m in Kyoto.
Stewed whole octopus with quail egg stuffed in the head at Nishiki Market.
Climbing Fushimi Inari at night. Avoided the crowds but it was really eerie at night.
Kyoto Railway Museum. A good place to duck into for the afternoon if it’s raining. Even if it’s not raining, it’s an informative and fun museum.
Early cherry blossoms.

Day Trips from Kyoto

Awajishima

Awajishima is an island about the size of Singapore just south of Kyoto, closer to Kobe. Being a fan of Tadao Ando, the architect, I wanted to make a pilgrimage to visit some of his works on Awajishima including Honpukuji (the Water Temple) and Yume Butai, a sprawling multi-use luxury hotel/conference venue.

This is a must visit island if you are in the area. You do not need to be a fan of architecture to appreciate the nature and stillness of Awajishima.

The entrance to Honpukuji (the Water Temple). When in season, lilies bloom in the concrete edged pond. The center of the pond leads underground to an austere Buddhist temple.
A view of Yume Butai – a concrete playground that will capture the eye of anyone who enjoys design and architecture.
Stoic concrete. Just one of the many design-focused communal spaces in Yume Butai.
Hyakudanen, or the One Hundred Step garden. A tiered garden eco-system showcasing local flora.
Awajishima is famous for onions. Stewed onion smothered in bolognese.

Amanohashidate

On the northern side of Kyoto prefecture, land meets the sea. Amanohashidate is a naturally occurring land bridge in between Miyazu Bay. In the past, it was known as the “path to heaven,” as people found that if you looked at the sandbar upside and in-between your legs it looked as if the land was connected to the sky.

If you’ve been to Kyoto a few times, and you’re looking for something new to do in the Kansai area, I recommend heading up to Amanohashidate. It’s extremely beautiful, especially on a sunny day.

The spot to look in between your legs and make a fool of yourself for everyone around you 🙂
You can rent a bike and ride from one end of the sand bar to the other.

April

No Day Trip

No Overnight Trip

I spent a lot of money and was ultra-tired from the Kyoto trip, so took a break from traveling this month!

May

Day Trip to Mt. Mitake

By taking a train, bus, and a cable car, you can get up close to the summit of Mt. Mitake in about an hour and a half from Tokyo. It’s located in the Chichibu-Kai-Tama national park and makes a lovely day trip that can be adapted for a variety of paces. You could do some sweaty hiking or you can leisurely make your way up to Mitake shrine which is known for selling protection charms for pets!

Along the stairs leading up to Mitake shrine, you can find special stone steps with engravings carved into them.

June

Day Trip to Kamakura

Kamakura is a beach side town hugging the coast south of Tokyo. It’s a popular spot for day trips from Tokyo as it’s only about an hour by local train.

I went during June to check out the hydrangea flowers that were blooming and to also hike along the north part of Kamakura. Along the Tenen Hiking trail, you can find a few yagura which are ancient tomb caves. You can hike the trail at a leisurely pace and it’s really interesting to be able to casually pop into the caves and explore them.

Hydrangea flowers are in full bloom during June in the Tokyo area.
Entrance to one of the yagura, tomb caves.

July – August

Month long trip around Tohoku

During the summer vacation, I took a month long trip around Tohoku. I’ve written a few travel guides of the places that I went to and a guide to WWOOFing in Japan as well.

Tohoku is the travel destination for those looking to get off the beaten path and experience the rich local history that Japan has. In the summer time especially you can experience the local culture by partaking in the fervor of the famous summer festivals that occur throughout Tohoku.

Fukushima

I volunteered at a local poultry farm for a week while in Soma, Fukushima. Although, I was only on eggplant picking and packaging duty the entire time…
The chickens on the farm.
Going to Soma town’s first summer beach festival since 2011’s Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami disaster.

Iwate

I stayed in Morioka, Iwate for a couple nights and ate a lot of local food including Morioka cold ramen! (Note the watermelon in the soup.)

Aomori

I stayed at Lake Towada for a few nights to explore the lake, Oirase valley, and Towada town.
Rushing stream in the Oirase valley.
Towada Art Center – Towada town is known as one of the most walkable streets in Japan due to the amount of public art on display.
Made a day trip to Mt. Osore, or also known as one of the gates to hell.
In Aomori city during the famous Nebuta Matsuri. The Nebuta Matsuri is a 3 day festival frenzy where elaborately crafted paper floats are paraded throughout the city.
We linked up in Aomori and had the best seats in the house during the festival courtesy of a kind gentleman!

Akita

Akita city for the Kanto Matsuri. Another one of the most famous festivals in Tohoku where men balance multitiered, 12 ft high and 50 kg lanterns on all parts of their bodies!

Yamagata

We initially went to Yamamgata with the plan to climb the Three Mountains of Dewa (Dewasanzan), a trio of ultra holy mountains in the region. However, we were only able to climb one mountain, Hagurosan, due to a huge thunderstorm rolling in the day we were going to climb the next two, Gassan and Yudonosan.

I’ll be back soon to climb all three mountains of Dewa!

Climbing up the stone stairs to the summit of Hagurosan.

Sendai

Sendai was the last stop on the Tohoku trip. We went to Sendai to see the Tanabata Matsuri, another legendary summer festival in the Tohoku region.

Bonus Overnight Trip to Ito

Shortly after returning from the Tohoku trip, we set off for a quick overnight trip to Ito on the Izu Peninsula with friends.

Ito is a chill beach side town that has a lot of old-world charm. We stayed at K’s House Ito Onsen which is a technically a hostel, but it feels like you’re staying in a luxurious ryokan. They have shared rooms for cheap hostel prices, but also private rooms for reasonable rates! If you grab some friends together, this is a great place for a quick getaway from Tokyo.

A view of our hostel along the riverside.

September

No Day Trip

Multinight trip to Okazaki/Toyohashi/Hamamatsu

A visit to my old stomping grounds, I went to hang out with friends and eat all the food I miss! The areas in between Nagoya – Hamamatsu feature a large Brazilian population which means it is THE place to eat delicious Brazilian food in Japan.

A Brazilian feast at my friend’s house.

October

No Day Trip

Overnight Trip to Hakone

My mom came to visit Japan this month, and we went to Hakone for a mother daughter trip! It was my first time going to Hakone and while it would be arguably be do-able as a day trip, I was glad we stayed overnight at Nest Inn. You can explore Hakone at a much more relaxed place and it’s nice to treat yo’self once in a while!

With a large egg at the Hakone Open Air Sculpture museum.

It’s my mom! At the Venetian glass museum.
Nest Inn offered marshmallow roasting – simple sweet nostalgia.
Owakudani crater.

November

No Day Trips

No Overnight Trip

Another month where I took a break from travelling!

December

Day Trip to Namie town and Tomioka town, Fukushima

Japan Wonder Travel put together a very thoughtful and educational tour showcasing areas in Fukushima that were affected by the Great East Japan Earthquake and Tsunami disaster on March 3, 2011 and the subsequent nuclear explosion at Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

On the tour, we were taken to areas that have been decontaminated and cleared for habitation. We were able to see how reconstruction efforts were coming along and meet some residents who were affected by the disaster.

This was a really moving way for me to close out my new years resolution of wanting to travel more. For me, it is so important to travel to places that may not be as popular, a bit more difficult to get to, or may be affected by negative stigma. The money from tourism benefits the town economically, and by traveling there, I am able to learn some of the stories and histories of the area. While I can’t experience it as a local resident would, I am so grateful to be able to drop in for a brief time and pass on my experience to someone else. I hope I can inspire you to visit some of the places I’ve been to!

When embarking on the Fukushima day tour, we were given Geiger counters so we could check the radiation levels around us. We were within normal radiation levels pretty much all day while on the tour.
The “cowboy terrorist” and his “pineapple cows.” A farmer who refused to abandon his cows during the evacuation order imposed on his area.
An elementary school in the distance. What was once a bustling town by the sea, fields of grass surround an abandoned elementary school.
Some areas have not been cleared for habitation and are still in the exclusion zone.

Final Numbers

In 2018, I went on:

Day Trips 6
Overnight Trips 3
Multinight Trips 3
Months Without Any Travel 2
Number of Prefectures Visited in Japan in 2018 14

And there you have it! My 2018 travel round up. I feel really proud to have traveled so much of Japan in 2018. I am so grateful I had the funds and time to be able to accomplish last year’s new years resolution.

I am also so grateful to anyone who as read my blog over the past year.

I hope these travel guides have been helpful to you, and as always, if you ever have a question or would like to chat travel in Japan, drop me a comment! I’d love to hear from you.

Thanks for sticking around.

No new years resolutions yet for 2019, but I want to write more guides and essays on my travels. Perhaps, it’ll be just as simple as that! (“simple”)

Till next time!

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