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Nagasaki Lantern Festival
Nagasaki, Japan. To Westerners, one image or thought instantly pops up when discussing the Japanese city of Nagasaki. August 9th, 1945, 3 days after the atomic bomb exploded over the city of Hiroshima, Nagasaki witnessed a similar fate. Fat Man – the name given to the atomic bomb that exploded over Nagasaki, killing around 80,000, ultimately leading to the surrender of Japan 6 days later. Prior to the war, Nagasaki was one of Japans most important and largest trading ports. Because of trade mainly by the Portuguese, Dutch, and Chinese, there are a lot of cultural influences within the city that make Nagasaki a truly unique city worth visiting not…
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Cycling Around Suo Oshima
Konichiwa or should I say, “Aloha!” Yashiro Island, better known as Suo Oshima, is an island located in eastern Yamaguchi Prefecture. Suo Oshima is a large island located in the Seto Inland Sea of Japan. Suo Oshima is connected to mainland by a huge green bridge named Oshima Bridge. Somewhat mountainous with gorgeous beaches, Suo Oshima is also famous throughout Japan for their mandarin oranges or “Mikans,” in Japanese. Why Aloha Island? Aside from the natural beauty and mikans, Oshima is also called the Aloha Island and has a relatively long history with the U.S. state of Hawaii. Suo Oshima is the sister island of Kauai Island in Hawaii, and they…
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Okunoshima “Rabbit Island,” Japan
In the Seto Inland Sea, there is a small island named Okunoshima that has a dark past but the current residents are darn cute! I am talking about Rabbit Island, in Japan’s Hiroshima Prefecture! **This post contains affiliate links. If you click on one of the links or banners throughout the page, whether it be TripAdvisor, Booking.com. Agoda.com, or any other affiliate, I might receive commission at no extra cost to you. For more information, you can visit my affiliate link page here. Thanks for the support! How did Okunoshima become known as Rabbit Island? So how did this island become known as rabbit island? The obvious answer is that…
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I Moved to Japan!
I Moved to japan! In 2019, I created a goal for myself to leave the Mid-West. Originally, I was hoping to move to either the East or West Coast, so I applied for positions along the coasts. Just for laughs, I applied for one position in Okinawa, Japan. Out of the places I applied for, I never heard anything back except for the job in Japan. The company got back to me letting me know that the positions in Okinawa were full but they had an opportunity in Iwakuni, Japan. I’ve never heard of Iwakuni, but anything in Japan sounds exciting so I accepted the position and have been here…
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First Timer’s Travel Guide to Fukuoka, Japan
Fukuoka, Japan’s 6th largest city and the capital of Fukuoka prefecture is a modern city with a fantastic food scene. Fukuoka is the result of two cities, Hakata and Fukuoka being merged together in 1889. The city of Fukuoka has two main districts, Hakata and Tenjin, each unique with an exciting nightlife. Fukuoka was the first city I visited when traveling to Japan in 2017. Fort first timer’s, Fukuoka is a great introduction to Japan. The subway line here is easy to figure out, it’s walkable, tourist friendly, and has amazing attractions. Since the first time I visited Fukuoka, I’ve been back here a half dozen times at least. This…
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Interesting Food Around the World that We’ve Tried
Exploring a cultures culinary traditions has become one of the motivating factors and reasons we travel. Plain and simple, it is fun to try authentic, new, and down-right weird food. I always say, I am willing to try everything at least once! Living by that rule, the two of us have become adventurous when it comes to local cuisine. What may seem bizarre in our culture can be a daily diet in others. I mean here in the United States we eat beef right? While the cow is sacred in some states in India. Did you know that over 80% of the world’s population eats insects, yet the sound of…
