I’m in high gear planning travel. Made the first reservation for a summer 2022 backpacking trip to Japan with our nephews (they’ll be 12 and 13) and their dad. We’ll explore less popular, more remote areas. On the way home, we’ll spend time in Hawaii where their mom will join us.
Category: Asia
Cliffhangers
Found a cure for exercycle boredom: a TV drama series, made in Japan, set in an industrial Hokkaido town. It snows a lot, people get murdered, and the protagonist, manga-style, periodically gets sent back in time to put things right. The cliffhangers bring me back. Deep.
A Place Where Masks Are Apolitical
Posted A Place Where Masks Are Apolitical.
A Place Where Masks Are Apolitical
I’ve been searching through my photographs for crowd scenes in Japan. Here’s one at a Tokyo train station: A woman, bottom right, is wearing a face mask. Perhaps she has a cold and wants to protect others, or maybe she’s protecting herself from airborne pathogens. If you look more closely, you’ll find other people wearing… Continue reading A Place Where Masks Are Apolitical
Traveling via Food
Tonkotsu ramen (a Fukuoka, Japan dish) and gyoza, outside, at Zen Box Izakaya, my first restaurant meal since March. I’d planned a trip to Japan, departing in a few days, but it was not to be. I can still travel via food.
Happy Places
Posted Happy Places.
Happy Places
Happy place. A memory, situation, or activity that makes you feel happy. Cambridge Dictionary. November 2019. I’m on a nonstop Delta flight from Seoul ICN to Minneapolis MSP on a brand new Airbus A350. I’m contented, sipping wine, snacking on nuts, and anticipating the Korean dinner I’ve preordered. I look out the window and see… Continue reading Happy Places
Hiking the Seoul Wall
Spent much of the day hiking the Seoul City Wall. Originally built in 1396, two-thirds of it still exists today. The wall snakes up and down mountains around Seoul, so we enjoyed a decent hike.
Wolchulsan National Park
Rode the Seoul subway to Wolchulsan National Park then started climbing. The trail was gnarly in parts, but it felt good.
Seoul Fall Color Walk
Took a short flight from Fukuoka, southern Japan, to Seoul, South Korea. We have hiking plans for each day in Seoul, starting today with a Fall-color walk up Nam Mountain. On Tuesday we fly on a brand new Delta Airbus A350 nonstop from Seoul to Minneapolis.