Kyoto’s 2021 cherry blossom season began on March 21, at least for me.
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Japan’s Famous Fields of Baby Blue
Hitachi Seaside Park is beautiful, and mostly lives up to the hype built up around it—but it’s not for everyone.
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Apex of the Sakura
It isn’t every year that you sync up with the cherry blossom front; if you do, magic will surely flow outward from that linkage.
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A Very Kanazawa Future
Wednesday was the warmest morning I’ve ever taken to the streets of Kanazawa, although that isn’t saying much.
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False Bloom
Isn’t it better to have maximum awareness, but minimal impairment?
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Sakura and Sago Palms
Nostalgia has become my drug of choice in middle age.
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Plan Your Post-Pandemic Kyoto Trip
All 365 days of 2022 are going to be spectacular in Kyoto.
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The Headiest Catch
The third time isn’t always a charm, but kismet blows in with every gust of wind.
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A Way Around Japan’s Cash-Only Culture
For many years, it wasn’t possible to use Pasmo Apple Pay on your iPhone unless you had purchased it in Japan.
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Okayama and Aging
Who wants to be remembered for a truth that became a lie?
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Is Sendai Worth Visiting?
I was pumped-up to explore Sendai, after almost seven years of convincing myself I didn’t need to.
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Kyoto by the Sea
Life in Kyoto, at least so far, has been as much about retracing old footsteps as it’s been about charting new paths forward.
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Want to Study Japanese in Japan? Start Here
There has literally never been a better time to study Japanese in Japan.
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30 Pictures That Will Make You Want to Visit Tokyo
I hope looking through these images will encourage you to continue peeling away Tokyo’s layers.
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Freezing in the Shadow of Fujisan
Visiting Mt. Fuji in winter isn’t a fool’s errand, but you need to do so with some truths in mind.
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Tokyo in the Time of Covid
My life is finally back on track, even if the rest of the world may lag behind by weeks, months or—god help us—years.
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The Truth About Go! Go! Nihon
While I can’t say that Go! Go! Nihon is perfect or even necessarily right for you, I can say with 100% certainty that it works.
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Plan Your Trip to Japan in 2022
In 2022, a trip to Japan will be a better idea than ever before.
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What Can You Win When You Play Pachinko?
What, precisely, can a good pachinko game (or a dozen of them) earn you, and is it worth the trouble of learning how to play?
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Where to Hit the Beach Near Tokyo
When it comes to beaches near Tokyo, there’s good news and there’s bad news.
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