Blogs from Japan, Asia - page 793

Hey all, On Day 1 of our trip to Hiroshima, we did not arrive until later in the afternoon because it took nearly 4 hours to get there from Tokyo by Shinkansen. Once in Hiroshima, we walked to our nearby hotel (only about 5 minutes from the train station) to check in and dump off our stuff, before venturing out! First, we walked to the nearby Shukkeien Park and walked around in its beautiful garden grounds. Here we strolled around a pond, watched the turtles and crabs, and enjoyed the nice weather we had. Next, we walked over to Hiroshima Castle. Everything in Hiroshima was VERY accessible, mainly because the city wasn't that big, but also because there were so many modes of transportation - including old-fashioned streetcars (which were donated to the city of Hiroshima ... read more

06/7/22 This is going to be the most random post ever, because it was written when I just couldn’t sleep for whatever reason. You know, for all that the Japanese education system is supposed to be top-notch (until university) there is little or no emphasis placed on higher education here, especially for women. As a woman and a college graduate, this bothers me. Yes, I learned academically at college, but more importantly I grew as a person through the whole college thing. I think it’s an experience everyone should have. Maybe that’s my American bias, and I know the opportunity is there for the Japanese, but they have to work so ridiculously hard to get it. Shiyou ga nai, ne. I want to do some art and stuff. I need a paycheck, eh. No I don’t, ... read more

The Golden Week starts during the last week of April and goes on till early May. It starts from April 29 which is the greenery day and ends on May 5 which is the children’s day. Combined with weekends and kindly employers who give the remaining days of the week off it becomes a long set of holidays. The Japanese even have a word for it Renkyu, which means consecutive holidays. Earlier days people used to travel to their homes in the countryside, but with the progress of the Japanese economy record numbers travel abroad every year. So to make it easier for people to visit hometowns the holidays came consecutively giving enough time for people to spend with their families and travel back. However it is the best time to be in Japan. In between ... read more

Hello everybody! On this particular Saturday night, Larry, myself and a few friends decided to go out to Roppongi in search of the infamous Absolut Ice Bar.... We began the evening by having a quaint dinner at a Persian restaurant called Aladdin. Here, the food was a mixture of Arabic & Greek foods and was very delicious! Although it all tasted good though, Genia's dinner looked like a plate of poo, and so she kept us entertained throughout the entire meal with hilarious comments about her food!!! After dinner, we headed to the Absolut Ice Bar. No one really knew exactly how to get there, so we eventually just all hopped into some cabs. Once we saw it and walked inside, we were REALLY excited. We knew it would be cold in there and that our ... read more

Freddy finally got himself to Japan, despite that horrendous flight and vapid Air Canada food; he arrived in one piece, carrying enough Canadian paraphernalia to outfit a Mounties’s command centre. I think dad actually confused his Asian destination for one of his usual arrival cities, as he was dressed in a Hawaiian shirt when he walked through the gates. His exhausted yet delighted smile and nostalgic hug, made my trek down to Tokyo completely worth it, and we enjoyed our first beers together while we waiting for the bus to take us into the "over populated hell" which some call, Tokyo. We stayed at an incredibly swanky local by my standards, the Shinagawa Prince Hotel. Poor Melissa and David had to suffer through a closet sized room when they visited, but with dad footing the bill, ... read more