15 Days in Kanagawa & Hokkaido – Day 12 – Goryokaku Tower

Up the 107m tall Goryokaku Tower next  – the only easily accessible way to see the five-point star-shaped former fort of Goryokaku. The park seems ordinary on the ground, but viewed from above, it takes on a completely different perspective.

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15 Days in Kanagawa & Hokkaido – Day 07 – Sapporo – Former Hokkaidō Government Office and Sapporo Clock Tower

Armed with the new Tamron 28-75mm f2.8 lens from the Yodabashi camera outlet near Hokkaido University, and also this time I was checking every couple minutes to make sure that the BlackRapid sling swivel was still firmly attached to the

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15 Days in Kanagawa & Hokkaido – Day 06 – Asahiyama Zoo – Part 1

We booked for two day outings this trip – one to Asahikawa, and the other to Lakes Toya and Shikotsu. Sure, the places are fairly on the map and well-traveled to places for both of these day trip days, and

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15 Days in Kanagawa & Hokkaido – Day 04 – Hakone – Mishima Skywalk and Sightseeing Cruise

The Mishima Skywalk is a relatively new construction: it was completed just three years ago, and its sole purpose is as a visitor attraction for Hakone: this longest in Japan suspension bridge offers visitors panoramic views of Mt. Fuji and

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5 Days in Shanghai – Holiday Inn Express Shanghai Tourism Zone

I stayed at the same property over the four nights in the city: the Holiday Inn Express Shanghai Tourism Zone. During the earlier months before the trip, there was scant information about this property – but more recently, the hotel

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 10 – Yanagawa

Unlike Dazaifu, the other interesting bits of Yanagawa town aside from the river boat punting tour are spread out. The small town didn’t feel crowded at all, compared to the crowd masses in Dazaifu later in the afternoon. It’s an

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 09 – Fukuoka

Almost exactly a year ago, I was heading to Hong Kong for the 2018 iteration of the conference. On that occasion, Super Typhoon Mangkhut had just hit the city, and I witnessed its aftermath as the city’s services were in

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 08 – Hiroshima – Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum was established in 1955 to document the atomic bombing of the city on 6 August 1945. In truth and for decades now, I’ve had conflicted feelings about the allied bombing campaign over occupied Nazi territory

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 07 – Kurashiki – Bikan Historical Quarter – Traditional Boat Ride

You shouldn’t leave Kurashiki until you’ve tried the traditional boat tour. That is, unless if you’re already also going to do the same thing on a larger scale at Yanagawa too. I would indeed be as part of my planned

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 07 – Kurashiki – Bikan Historical Quarter

Then most important spot in Kurashiki is the Bikan Historical Quarter, which surrounds the first stretch of the Kurashiki river. The district was once an important location for the transportation of goods, and today is a popular place for visitors

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11 Days in Chūgoku & Kyushu – Day 07 – Okayama – Okayama Castle

Besides the Korakuen, the other of the two most popular places to visit when in the city is Okayama Cstle. The two places were very near each other as they sit on opposite sides of Asahi River, and you can

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