Fall colors (紅葉, "kouyou"), don't start in Kanto until early to mid November, and generally last until the beginning to the middle of December. It's a long, late stretch that seems really nice, because it makes winter itself feel much shorter. We were, however, very ready to see some beautiful colors, so Rani and I took a somewhat spontaneous two-day trip up to the northern-most part of the Honshu island, which is Aomori prefecture. The 9 hour trip by car took us only 3 hours by shinkansen, and I will never stop being amazed at how convenient it is. I always bring a train beer now, and I can sit and drink and listen to music as the bullet train whisks me off to faraway parts of the country. Technology at its finest! We left Friday
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