Help! I’ve been mogged!! As some of you Hyogo folk may have heard, about 3 months ago I acquired a new friend; a little 2 year old kitty called Clio. Her story began when she was hit by a car and rescued by Japan Cat Network. Japan Cat Network was founded in 1993 by Susan…
Western Australia is home to the most isolated state capital in the world and, being a cool 5 hour flight from Sydney, is often overlooked. The south west of Western Australia is one of the few lucky places outside of the Mediterranean to be blessed with a Mediterranean climate; hot, dry summers and wet, mild winters. WA…
About this time last year, I’d been hearing stories of this epic bike ride called the ‘Shimanami Kaido’, seven bridges that span between the islands from Onomichi in Hiroshima Prefecture to Imabari in Ehime Prefecture. After further research I found out that the first bridge (if you start in Onomichi) is usually bypassed as it…
If you’re anything like me, by the time spring rolls around you’ll be itching to get outside to pay homage to the return of the warmer weather. One of my favourite Japan holidays to date was one such outing. Hiking through the vast ancient forests that escaped the ravages of the Second World War in…
In April, when the snow has melted away, there is one place you can count on for a mountain of snow. The Northern Japanese alps are the steepest and considered by some to be the most beautiful in Japan. The Alpine Route, as its highest point, has an altitude of 2500 metres. The route can…
Maximum travel and minimum leave, the upcoming spring holidays are the perfect time to visit Hong Kong and Macau. You can cover a lot within a few days using the MTR system that puts Japan’s train network to shame. Food, culture, architecture, shopping, and gambling make China’s two ‘Special Administrative Regions’ very exciting and international…
It’s about that time, eh folks! Feb 6th to 12th is Sapporo’s Snow Festival or Yuki Matsuri! We’ve all heard about it: amazing snow sculptures that tower over the crowds as the snow falls all around… it’s pretty impressive and a little magical. I hear what you are saying… “It’s such a long way to…
In a world not so far away lies Gero Onsen, a hot spring resort in the middle of Gifu Prefecture. It has been named one of the top three hot spring resorts since the Edo Period. As long as I have been in Japan, I had been wanting to head up to Gifu prefecture to…
Of all of the Momiji trips I have gone on, the place that impressed me the most has to be Koya-san, Wakayama. In mid-November, 2010, I joined the Wakayama JET contingent on a weekend tour of Mt Koya (aka Koya-san), the home of Shingon Buddhism which was introduced to Japan by Kobo Daishi in the early 800’s….