Where Globe-Trotting meets Beach-Combing
花鳥風月 or “Kachou Fuugetsu,” translates literally to: Flower, Bird, Wind, Moon. The general idea is that by experiencing nature’s beauty we learn about ourselves. This area seemed enchanting every time I rode by it. Yes well, that’s because it’s a park. Koryo Park is about a 45-minute walk (the long way. Maybe a 20-minute walk…
Last week’s FREEZING weather must have signaled all the leaves to change, because this week, despite the balmy 60-degree weather, they’ve been gorgeous! Chris started doing actual work last Thursday. Until now we’ve been in orientation and driving class and doing unending stacks of paperwork. And I got a haircut from a nice Japanese lady….
This year, I have no idea what the heck is going on. Where am I? What am I doing here? How long will I be around? These are pointless questions because the answers do not stay the same. Most recent example: Chris was told on his second day of work that he should expect to…
Fuji-San peeked over the Tanzawa Mountain Range as the train zipped toward Odawara and the third-best castle in Japan! Some kind of flower show filled the castle grounds with colorful displays. Odawara’s gates, motes and hill are now an expansive park containing a mini zoo, museums and koi pond. Did I move to the right…
Shibuya Station’s ‘scramble’ intersection (the super-crowded one in Lost in Translation) started our first evening in Tokyo. [Practical info: we accepted the house in Yamato and from our train station there it will take $7 and an easy 45 minutes—four stops north then 9 stops on the Tokyu or Den-en-Toshi express train—to get to the…
It’s like you’re here! A bundle of incense costs less than a dollar and the entire shrine smells spicy and exotic. Waving the smoke is supposed to bring relief from pain to that part of the body. A narrow stone path lead up the mountain a short way to another shrine atop a waterfall and…
With this large Buddha as our goal, Chris, Rebecca and I set off on our International Cultural Relations class self-guided field trip. When we switched trains in Fugisawa we smelled sugary heaven in the form of donuts. We followed our noses to the Little Mermaid for a mid-morning pastry. The historic Enoden line took us…
