I like travelling alone. That way, I've only got one idiot to worry about.
I’m off to Seoul this coming weekend, which makes today’s blog post especially timely. Come along as I relive the sweet – and bitterly, bitterly cold – memories of another winter holiday in the Korean capital that took place almost exactly a year ago.
Today’s mission: an afternoon stroll around Seoul’s historic Dongdaemun gate.
Sometimes, it takes a bit of work to seek out the historic gems scattered across your typical Japanese metropolis, hidden as they are behind decades of unrestrained development and bland concrete modernity. But here in Takamatsu, a short stroll from the central railway station is all a visitor needs to discover one of the city’s most precious cultural treasures.
Continue reading “Field Report: Takamatsu Castle, Japan (10 July 2015)”
Sunny summer Shikoku skies – whew, now that’s a tongue-twister right there – gave me the perfect excuse to go on a day trip from the hustle and bustle of Ōsaka to the relative peace and calm of Takamatsu, capital of Japan’s smallest prefecture.
Of course, the fact that the city had a splendid traditional garden and a well-known castle also helped tip the scales in favour of this lengthy detour.
Continue reading “Field Report: Ritsurin-kōen, Takamatsu, Japan (10 July 2015)”
Getting there is half the fun, or so the adage goes – and this very often rings true for a railway enthusiast who undertakes a long-distance journey in the train paradise that is Japan.
Today’s trip takes me from Ōsaka to Takamatsu, capital of Kagawa Prefecture on the island of Shikoku. We’ll have a look at the sightseeing I did there in a future post, but for the moment, let’s turn the spotlight on the trains that brought me to my destination.
Continue reading “Rail Report: Trainspotting my way from Ōsaka to Takamatsu, Japan (10 July 2015)”
Diego happily wishes you all the best in the year ahead. ~(‾⌣‾~)
…et exsúltet terra ante fáciem Dómini: quóniam venit.
Diego wishes you, your family, and all your loved ones a very happy Christmas.
Who on earth travels a great distance to see an onsen town and doesn’t even bother trying the onsen? (This is where I sheepishly raise my hand and attempt an explanation.)
Continue reading “Field Report: Kinosaki Onsen and Kyōto, Japan (09 July 2015)”
It takes an enormous fleet of trains to serve JR-West‘s sprawling territory, and one stands a good chance of encountering several different examples on even a single day’s worth of travel. Let’s have a look at some of them as we cut across western Japan.
Sand, in and of itself, seems to possess very little significance. But when gathered into massive dunes as tall as hills, or fashioned into huge and incredibly complex works of art, even these humble grains are enough to draw a chap like me all the way to a small city in western Japan – one that would have otherwise completely escaped my notice.
Continue reading “Field Report: A kingdom of sand by the seaside at Tottori, Japan (08 July 2015)”
Matsue’s eponymous castle might be its most famous attraction, but a single leisurely afternoon spent in this historic corner of Shimane Prefecture allowed me to sample a few other treasures that I’d completely missed on my first visit here.
Within striking distance