Category: Travel

We are a few days late in writing this, having gotten caught in the swing of Tokyo after leaving relaxing Karuizawa, but nonetheless this was a wonderful stop for our trip. Karuizawa had embraced fall more than any other area of our travels, and we loved seeing the beautiful red maple leaves (momiji)!betting strategy

It rained in various intensities for most of our stay, but we still managed a hike in the hills.

As well as multiple walking trips along beautiful moss-paved paths, to the terraced shops and delicious food near our hotel.

And where better to be in the rain than such a beautiful resort, with ponds, onsens, and stunning red trees.

Even the inside of the resort was stunning!

We had a lovely kaiseki dinner at the hotel’s restaurant, during which we tried soft shell turtle – supposedly very good for your skin and longevity.

We were tempted to go for a taste of home – Japanese style, at The Cowboy House…. but somehow managed to resist the fake horses and saloon style restaurant 😂

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

We had a quick and comfortable trip to Kanazawa, a place that is famous for its fresh fish, beautiful parks, gold leaf, and preserved historical areas. We arrived around dinner time, having spent the first half of the day revisiting some of our favorite Kyoto sites and doing some shopping, We followed the suggestion of everyone who knew we were going to Kanazawa, and immediately got some sushi for dinner. It was delicious!

The following day, we toured the famous Omicho fish market, and seriously debated having sushi for breakfast, before deciding that that might be too ridiculous, and finding a lovely cafe with the best coffee we have found in Japan.

We then strolled through the grounds and gardens of the nearby palace enjoying the trees, buildings, and many dragonflies.

For dinner, we returned to the fish market and had sushi donburi: Miles got a delicious tuna bowl, while I opted for an Ikura and uni bowl… it was everything I dreamed of.

The following day we explored more of Kanazawa, including an incredible Kaiseki lunch at Zeniya.

We then tried to walk off lunch while exploring the old geisha district.

Hawks, crows, and egrets danced over the river in this area.

Our final night, we looked up the train to our next destination, Karuizawa, which we knew to be a two hour Shinkansen ride away. Unfortunately, the best laid plans are nothing in the face of Typhoon damage, and the train was not running on this track. Our only alternate routes took us nearly back to Kyoto, then up to Tokyo, and then over to Karuizawa. The shortest of these routes was 6 hours… so we settled in for a day of travel. I’m looking forward to being able to relax when we finally arrive in Karuizawa….

• 

• 

• 

• 

Our second time in Kyoto was just as fun as the first. Though we missed our perfect ryokan, we adjusted to our fancy hotel near Koto station. We stayed more local than we had originally planned, choosing to take the time to really get to know the city that has become one of our favorite places in the world.

A substantial amount of rain somewhat impacted our activities, but we spent more time enjoying (and eating) in Nishiki market, and wandering a rainy Gion.

We toured the special exhibition of waka (court poetry) at the Kyoto National Museum, and walked nearby streets.

On Friday, a pottery festival was held at Kiyomizuyaki-danchi, with booths selling ceramics made by artisans throughout Japan. Many of these artists sold their own wares, and were more than happy to tell us about their processes. We bought a set of mid-matched small plated from various booths to use for small sides at home.

On our last two days in Kyoto we revisited some of our favorite places (including the Tsukemen and soufflé pancakes, yum!), strolled once again through the imperial palace park, and shopped in local antique stores. We never expected to feel so at home in a city so far from home. Thank you, Kyoto, for such a wonderful trip.

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

We love Kyoto so much that we decided to visit twice! This time we are staying near Kyoto Station so that we can easily take day trips to other prefectures. But for our first two days back, we have taken the time to continue exploring Kyoto.

On Monday evening, when we returned, we walked to the famous Higashi-Hongani Temple and Ryukokuzan Hongwanji Temples right next to our hotel.

And then had a delicious teppanyaki dinner at a restaurant based in our hotel!

The following morning we woke early to visit the famous Fushimi Inari shrine before it became too busy. It is a huge shrine, with a thousand Tori (gates) spanning a substantial portion of the mountain, with many small shrine stops along the way. We hikes through the gates for two and a half hours!

In the afternoon we returned to our previous ryokan for tea with Yoko, the inn’s hostess. We had a wonderful time, and ended up talking for another two and a half hours!

Wednesday morning we were pretty tired from our hike at Inari shrine, so we decided to take it easier and head to the Nishiki market. We enjoyed our time strolling through the markets, complete with wagyu beef skewers and soufflé pancakes!

We then wandered Gion, and marveled at the old streets where Geisha still wander at times.

For dinner, we had the best Ramen and Tsukemen that we’ve ever tasted… we will definitely be returning to Ginjo Ramen Kubota before leaving Kyoto!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

We left Kyoto on Saturday bound for Osaka amidst a typhoon that passed harmlessly by us (other than some rain), but we hear hit Tokyo pretty directly…

Since it was a rainy day, after dropping off our luggage, we headed to the Osaka aquarium to visit the whale sharks! After nearly being eaten by a whale shark that was somehow on land…

We entered the aquarium and spent several hours enjoying the exhibits (Including real whale sharks)

The next morning we headed to Osaka Castle, and walked through the beautiful grounds, across the large moat, to the castle itself… only to be deterred by a line wrapping around nearly the entire castle. We decided to return Monday morning, which will hopefully be quieter than Sunday?

On our way back through the grounds we saw a traditional wedding-procession at a shrine, and stood to watch.

We then went to the famous Dotonbori shopping district, which was… extra… from giant animated crab signs to large dragons and octopi on buildings, this area was larger than life.

We have been eating well so far, focusing on small local casual spots from okonomiyaki to tempura donburi, and some of the best katsudon we have found so far!

But the highlight may have been the best taiyaki (fish shaped waffles filled, one with red bean and one filled with sweet potato) that I have ever had. Yum!

Halloween decorations are also in full swing here, and we couldn’t say no to this hauntingly cute ghost cheesecake!

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

Today was my (Paige’s) 30th birthday! There isn’t a much better way to start my 30’s than in Hawaii. We decided to use today to explore more of the island.

We ate crepes for breakfast and then wandered around Kona in the morning, and then headed up to Waimea, a small town on the north side of the island. We arrived in Waimea, and soon realized the poke shop we had intended to stop at for lunch (Amazingly named “Poke Da Dawg,” which let to hilarious directions from Siri) was actually a food truck, and was not anywhere near the address provided. We turned around to go to the almost as amazingly named “The Fish & The Hog,” which was great!

The most amazing thing happened during lunch: Miles learned to chew. He chewed so much and in such a dedicated manner that I initially thought something was wrong. When it became clear that he was fine, and was hitting an important life milestone, I had to take a video to commemorate the occasion (though Miles wouldn’t let me post it, sorry!).

After lunch, we drove through Waimea, and quickly realized that everything of interest was closed. So we started driving. We went first into the hills and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.

We then went down to Waikoloa Village to do some shopping. When we arrived at the shopping center, we were concerned that everything seemed overpriced and touristy. But then we stumbled across a small shop selling traditional Hawaiian wooden carvings. We began talking to the shop keeper, and quickly learned that she was from a native Hawaiian family of carvers, which is the only one still doing true traditional carving on the Big Island. Every wood piece in the shop had been carved by her cousins, 4th generation carvers, and she made the jewelry. Talking to her was an incredible experience. We ended up staying for well over an hour, learning about native Hawaiian culture, language, and tradition, as well as her own life and opinions. Among the most memorable moments for me was when she taught me the meaning of Aloha as more then “hello.” She explained that “Alo” means presence, and “ho” means breath, and demonstrated the traditional greeting with me, foreheads touching and breathing in together, exchanging your presence and your breath.

I could have stayed and talked to her for many more hours. She said that her cousins will be in the shop on Tuesday doing carving, so we are hoping to go back to see that before our flight.

We left to make our reservation, at Merriman’s restaurant back in Waimea. We had no idea how amazing the meal would be. The food was delicious! It was the perfect birthday dinner, complete with a lilikoi mousse with a candle in it for dessert. It was an incredible birthday!

Today was our second trip to Cook’s cove! That’s right, we liked it so much that we went again. We boarded the boat and watched the coast roll by on the way to the cove.

As we were approaching our destination, the captain called a dolphin alert! He took us on a short detail to watch the pod of small Hawaiian spinner dolphins. They played along the boat for a few minutes, and were adorable!

When we arrived in the cove, Miles and I rushed into the water. It was a beautiful sunny day, and the water was clear. We almost immediately saw a small eel far below us. Through the day, we saw a large puffer fish, 2 small eels, a mostly hidden large zebra eel (a very cool orange and white striped guy), and the mouth of a giant morey eel peeking out of a cave. Clearly, Mr. Eel from our previous visit to the cove was unavailable, so he sent over his family to greet us. It was a beautiful day of snorkeling.

After the snorkel, we returned to the condo and hung out, until late afternoon, when we headed to town to stroll around, and then had dinner at a lovely little sushi place, making sure to leave room for gelato.

On our way to our dessert, we saw that there was a beach volleyball tournament! (or as I often unintentionally call it, bolleyvall). We grabbed our frozen treats and grabbed some seats to watch the tournament.

The competition was impressive! Everyone was quite athletic and there were many close rallies. We stayed for several matches before deciding we were too tired (read: old), and heading back home.