Friday, 8:00 a.m. Bullet train, Nagano to Tokyo. I’ll walk around Ueno Park, then continue to NRT (Tokyo-Narita).
Category: Living
Plain Views of Sado Island
Rice Field #1 Today, I explored part of the plain that bisects Sado Island (an island in the Sea of Japan, off northern Honshu, Japan). Walking on level ground gave my knees a rest after walking up a mountain the previous day. Beyond wanting to be in the countryside, I didn’t have a specific plan.…… Continue reading Plain Views of Sado Island
Snow Line
Tuesday, Sado Island. 360 degree views, 20+ mile hike. Got to the snow line, but didn’t wear my jacket.
Next up: Sado Island
Monday: Traveling to Sado, final “Island off Islands” I’ll stay in a ryokan and… walk.
Meeting Bashō
The moon and sun are eternal travelers. Even the years wander on. A lifetime adrift in a boat, or in old age leading a tired horse into the years, every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home. From the earliest times there have always been some who perished along the road. Still I have always been drawn by wind-blown clouds into dreams of a lifetime of wandering.
Basho’s Journey
Wrote about my second day of looking for traces of Matsuo Basho’s 1689 journey.
Exploring Matsuo Basho
Explored places Matsuo Basho visited 1689 traveling his “Narrow Road to the Deep North.” It’s fun figuring this out.
Destination Kanazawa
Saturday morning: a bullet train, then an express train to Kanazawa.
Temple Plumbing 2014
Just after you enter the grounds of a Japanese temple, there’s always a fountain for ritualistic rinsing of hands and sometimes the mouth. Here’s examples from the temples I visited April 2, 2014 when I walked the route of part of the Shikoku Henro pilgrimage (“Shikoku 88”). I wrote a similar post in 2013 when I visited…… Continue reading Temple Plumbing 2014
A Day to Forget
OK I admit it: I got tired of figuring out this place all on my own, so I signed up for a “Landmarks and Viewpoints” tour for foreign visitors. This was a day to forget.At exactly the appointed time the bus rolled up to my Okoyama (Honshu) $26 a night capsule hotel (Hotel River Side).…… Continue reading A Day to Forget