Climbing the Sacred Mountain – China’s Emei Shan
Emei Shan, or Emei Mountain, was an unexpected highlight of the three-week tour I recently did in China with Intrepid …
Author Archives: Alison and Don
Gardens and Gold in Kanazawa
9 May 2018. In the grey early morning I wait outside the hostel in Shirakawa Village. I have a bus …
Where time stood still – the Gassho house villages of Shirakawa-gō and Gokayama.
6-8 May 2018. After eight days based in Tokyo I take a shinkansen to Kanazawa, and then a bus to …
Ohmygosh Omikoshi! Shinto festivals in Tokyo.
5 May 2018. It’s a family affair. Even the littlest are dressed in happi jackets.It’s a community affair – just …
Xi’an, China! Who knew?
My latest article for Intrepid Travel has just been published in their online journal. It’s about the city of Xi’an. …
A Kaleidoscope of Perpetual Motion: Fuchu’s Kurayami festival, Tokyo
4 May 2018. Seven hundred thousand! That’s how many people descend on the Tokyo neighbourhood of Fuchu City and the …
Down By The Water – summer evenings by Vancouver’s Fraser River
On these long hot summer evenings Don and I like to have our dinner here:It’s a tiny rocky pebbly “beach”, …
Bright Lights, Big City – Tokyo at night
3 May 2018. I walk up the stairs and step out of the Metro into a swirling crowd. There are …
The Other Side of Travelling Without Don: new friends in China!
An article I wrote for Intrepid Travel has just been published in The Journal, by Intrepid Travel. I recently wrote …
If your heart is a volcano, how shall you expect flowers to bloom? Mt Fuji: the heart of Japan, and spring flower festivals.
27 April-5 May 2018. It’s a long journey to get to the Shibazakura Festival. I take the metro from my …
Lost in Translation
26 May-11 June 2018. Nearly seven weeks travelling solo in Japan and China. Non-stop sightseeing, long days, walking walking walking. …
Tokyo’s Temples – to Buddha in Asakusa and to shopping in Harajuku
29 April 2018. On my second day in Japan I take the subway from near my hostel in central Tokyo …
With a Little Help From a Friend; the first day in Tokyo.
28 April 2018. In Vancouver, while researching Japan, Don printed out and gave me a map of Tokyo’s metro and …
Japan: a Revelation
Of course I’ve been aware for most of my life of the obvious and iconic examples of Japanese culture: sumo, …
