My affinity for Japan started when I was just a kid. The area in which I grew up was home to the oldest Japanese community in Canada, so I was exposed to the culture from a very young age through various cultural events and through the great number of classmates and eventual family members that … More Ōsaka and Kōbe (大阪市と神戸市)
I’ve been traveling to and from Japan for almost 25 years and in that time I’ve seen many parts of the country and have fallen in love with aspects of many of the cities, large and small. Were I to list all the places it would make this quite a long post. They can be … More Kyōto (京都市)
Let’s be honest, for most folk who visit Kansai, the city of Himeji isn’t very high on their list of places to go to since it’s a bit of a jaunt from Osaka/Kyoto. The main reason they go and visit is because of the castle and that’s about it. Himeji-jō is definitely a fine reason … More Himeji (姫路市)
The film has been retrieved and the scanning is complete. The process of editing is next. I realize it all sounds a bit much. Why not go fully digital if you’re going to scan them? Well, digital right out of the camera still has an overly clinical perfection to it that I still can’t get … More Hasedera (長谷寺)
OK, so no real offense meant but, fucking influencers! The increased level of postings all across social media about things to see and do in Japan has really ruined certain places, at least for the time being. What a difference a year makes. Last year, many of my little hidden spots around Kansai were still … More Easter in Kansai
Normally, I visit Japan a couple of times a year in order to visit with friends and get reacquainted with the culture. Easter break is one of the times that I really like to visit because the weather is great, it’s generally sakura season (cherry blossoms) so the energy around the country is elevated since … More What was supposed to be – Easter in Japan
As the next attempt at my catch-up posting from past travels, I thought I’d go with London from my Chinese New Year trip in 2018. I love London. Looking past all the recent issues with Brexit and various other problems the UK has been dealing with, London continues to be a brilliant city. Like other … More London Calling
Well, with all this staying at home, it’s a good time to head back through the archives in order to post on the trips I had been on after my Copenhagen trip, oh so long ago. Let’s start off with Madrid. Madrid es muy interesante (Madrid is very interesting.). Yep, since my trip to Spain … More Gracias, Madrid
At the turn of the millennium, I left behind family and friends for the first time in my life and headed East to Japan. To say that it was a big decision is a monumental understatement: it was wholly transformative. The other day it hit me that this year is the 20th “anniversary” of the … More Two decades of Japan
I entered a photo contest recently. The theme was “Architectutral Photography”. I didn’t win. I didn’t really expect to but it would have been nice as the top prize was a two-light Siros outdoor set (rechargeable and cordless) from Broncolor worth about $3500 USD. However, it did sort of inspire me to dig through my … More An Eye for Architecture
Perogies, Sushi & Bubble Tea 