japan Archive

Kobe, Japan and Arima Onsen

Posted on January 28, 2010 | No Comments
I was meeting my friend Jason, who was teaching English in Osaka for a year, in Shin-Kobe train station in the afternoon after a morning of sightseeing. One of the few things on my definite to do list was to soak up some R&R in a real hot springs.
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Himeji, Japan and the White Egret

Posted on January 27, 2010 | No Comments
Coming out of Himeji Train Station, I saw an orderly gathering of taxis to the right and a large main street that led to the goal of visiting Himeji, the castle. The castle is called Shirasagi (The White Egret) for its white walls that still shines after all these years.
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Nara, Japan and the Park

Posted on January 25, 2010 | No Comments
Collectively, the historic monuments of Nara are considered a UNESCO world heritage site. It is easy to see why once you step into Nara Park. The beautiful details of the dozen or a so different temples serve as a testament to Japanese spirituality and zen like calm.
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Nara, Japan and the Arcade

Posted on January 20, 2010 | No Comments
When the word arcade comes up in regards to Japan, I always think of the monumental buildings with level after level filled with video games. But a better connotation for arcade would be a shopping arcade. Shopping arcades in Japan are in every city. Every city has one and that includes Nara.
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Food: Unagi!

Posted on December 31, 2009 | No Comments
My last night here in Tokyo and I had a few thousand yens left to spend. During the day I took the day to go to the onsen in the mountains. I got back in the city just in time for dinner. Sitting in my hostel bed, I tried to figure out what to do from there.
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Tokyo, Japan and Tsukiji Fish Market

Posted on December 8, 2009 | No Comments
It probably would have been better if I woke up earlier than 6am to go to the Tsukiji Fish Market. But as it was a vacation, I crawled slowly out of bed.
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Food: Ikazaya Food in Osaka

Posted on December 7, 2009 | No Comments
On the very first day of my trip in Japan, I didn't know what to expect from my trip. My friend Adam and I just took our five hour flight from Beijing to Osaka. We exchanged some RMB to Japanese Yen and fumbled around with the Osaka subway system. Let's just say it took more than a few seconds to figure out how to get from point A to point B.
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Food: Kaiten-zushi (or conveyor belt sushi) in Tokyo’s Asakusa District

Posted on November 18, 2009 | 2 Comments
Staying in the Asakusa district of Tokyo makes you a bit isolated from the central hubbub of the downtown area. That is not to say that there is nothing to do. There is a sizable bar street and lots of neat small shops in the area. The hostel I stayed at was called Sakura Hostel.
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