Blogs from Hokkaido, Japan, Asia - page 27

So, seeing as it keeps raining in Tokyo, I decided to go ahead with my plans to goto Hokkaido. Turns out that I basically only had 1 day and a half to spend in The Way to the Northern Ocean. So I decided that I will spend that day in Sapporo. Three things that I really care about from Hokkaido. 1) Their famous Ramen 2) Their famous beer 3) Their abundance of fresh sea food So on arrival, at 9PM, I checked into a Ryokan and quickly ran to the closest Ramen establishment. Actually it's called Ramen Republic, and it's basically a group of stalls representing some of the most famous Ramen restaurants in the city, and yes, it's in a mall. Speaking of malls... I've definitely got my share of malls in Japan. The Underground ... read more

After spending four nights in Sapporo at two different hostels, we rented a car and made our way to the first leg of our Hokkaido tour: central Hokkaido. driving is an adventure in itself. We are not used to driving on the left side of the road, and most of the signs are in Kanji. We are thrilled about our GPS however, as it speaks with an english voice. It's funny though because the text and all of the streets on the GPS are Kanji so we have no idea if we're going in the right direction! Every time the computer lady tells us to turn left, we turn left and so far she has not led us astray. We enter destinations via their phone number, so if we have a destination without a phone number ... read more

It's just life. I am back in Sapporo and it all seems so natural. It doesn't seem so foreign, even after spending a month and a half back home. I keep going around thinking like I can communicate no problem, then everyone speaks Japanese. And I'm like "oh yeah that's how it is." It is raining, so who knows about the Beer Festival. I don't mind though. After eating some papaya and melon in it is time for a nap. It's great to run into what are now familiar faces and reconnect. I have discovered that I am no longer concerned or anxious about social dates and receiving texts. This year should be much more relaxed.... read more

Five days after I arrived in Japan, I was ready to give my tender foot some R&R. Since Beijing I had little time or interest in ‘taking it easy.’ There were just too many fascinations to stay still. But now that I was in Japan I had reason to both stay off my feet and experience some authentic Japanese experiences. The 'Native' in this blog's title doesn't refer to 'going tribal.' No, I opted for a traditional Japanese lodging and traditional robes on the north island of Hokkaido. In Japan, the ‘onsen’ has a special role. Like the Turkish bath house or Thai massage, this is how the locals relax if they’re lucky. The ‘onsen’ are natural thermal baths dotted throughout the country. I suppose it is one of the few upsides to living on ... read more

Hey guys! Since I've now decided that I'm going to be overseas and away from you all for a while longer yet, I decided to start a blog so you can all keep up with where I'm at and what I'm doing. And so that I can use the same blog for when I do eventually start to travel, I thought a travel blog with all the extra added thingamybobs would be the way to go. And besides you could argue that I have already started my travels, I just decided to stop off here in Japan for a while on my way. (I also transported some of my blogs from my travels in Japan back in 2005 to keep them all together). 4 days left here in Niseko, and I have mixed feelings about it ... read more