Mount Fuji, the highest mountain in Japan stands at 3776 metres high. The dormant volcanic mountain soars from the ground, standing by its lonesome, daring the 400,000 people who attempt to climb each year to reach the summit to see the first rays of light, streak from the clouds to light up the day.
Continue reading “Climbing Mount Fuji”
The main reason we traveled to Aomori prefecture wasn’t for Lake Towada, which we wrote about in our last post, but to hike the 14 kilometre track along the Oirase river. This is the only river draining Lake Towada and is the most popular tourist spot in the prefecture. Continue reading “A guide to hiking Oirase River.”
Aomori prefecture seems to be a world apart from the hustle of Osaka. Aomori is raw, isolated but extremely beautiful. We spent four days in the prefecture staying on the tranquil Lake Towada, which fills the volcanic caldera, approximately three hours from the prefecture’s capital. Continue reading “Aomori’s Lake Towada”
Summertime in Japan can be hot and humid and this year temperatures soared to extreme highs making it nearly unbearable to live in. As well as the extreme heatwave Japan was hit by strong typhoons with the eye of the typhoon being Kobe, the city I live in. There’s also been strong earthquakes and torrential rainfall throughout the Kansai area, causing some anxious times over the Summer.
You may not have eaten much tofu before or even be tempted to go to a restaurant that specializes in the food unless you were vegetarian or vegan, I myself would not have if I hadn’t been living in Japan for the last 16 years. I do however after eating at Shoraian which serves set menus featuring Kyoto’s local tofu recommend this to anyone visiting Arashiyama.
Continue reading “Shoraian, serving Kyoto’s famous tofu”
Having lived in Osaka for 16 years and been to Kyoto many times as a tourist as well as guiding friends or relatives around Kyoto we thought we would share our favourite temples in this area.
The choice was difficult as the city as over 1600 temples. That makes it difficult for a foreigner to chose which is the best one for them to visit. Of course if you don’t visit these ones you’ll still have an amazing time searching and looking at the other fine temples that Kyoto has but we think these are the best.
We chose three that were all diverse from one another. One includes hiking, one includes quirky stone sculptures and the other for its historical background that is convenient to travellers who are staying in and around the main area of Kyoto.
Continue reading “Three of our Favourite temples in Kyoto”
Arashiyama is an outlying western district of Kyoto which is one of our favourite places in Japan. It is one of those places that are filled with various sightseeing attractions from wildlife such as viewing wild monkeys in the mountainside surrounding the area, to cormorant fishing on traditional boats. The various temples, the bamboo forests and the charming lane way of traditional buildings far from the touristy area make for a great day of exploring this area. Follow our itinerary as we show you how to enjoy this traditional district.
Continue reading “How to spend a day in Arashiyama”
