Sam grew up in Manchester, England and came to Japan for the first time to live in 2012. Falling in love with the Kansai region where he was originally based, he spent the first few years exploring western Japan before moving to the east in 2016. A big fan of food and history with a general inquisitiveness towards trends and subcultures, Sam is happiest when exploring Japan's many metropolises, where he enjoys getting lost searching for cool neighborhoods with hidden gems of eateries and good craft beer bars.
The Mount Fuji World Heritage Center, Shizuoka recently opened on December 23rd, 2017. Located in Fujinomiya, Shizuoka Prefecture, the center is set up to celebrate Mount Fuji and its relatively recent distinction as a world heritage site...
I was lucky enough to spend three days on Amami Oshima, the largest of the Satsunan islands running between Kyushu and Okinawa, taking in its many picture-perfect views, pristine forests and celebrated food and human culture.
Sado Island is an isle of wonders off the coast of Niigata Prefecture in the Sea of Japan. The biggest of the Japanese isles after Okinawa Island, here lies a land of rich history and a flourishing traditional culture particularly noteworthy for its abundance of nature; from the clean, blue waters that lap at its shores to its verdant mountains and flat lands of fertile soil that produce delicious fruit and vegetables. On this visit, I was eager to learn more about how the island’s inhabitants interact with the beautiful nature that surrounds them, especially with autumn, among my favorite seasons, starting to take hold...
Located in the Tohoku region in the north of Japan’s main island of Honshu, Miyagi and Yamagata are two prefectures which are certainly not visited as often as other areas of the country, including the ever-popular areas surrounding Tokyo and Kyoto. Despite this, these two prefectures boast some of the most amazing sites in the country and are brimming with majestic mountains, hot springs and stunning nature spots...
One week ago to the day, the no entry zone around Mount Shirane’s iconic Yugama Crater was reduced to 500 meters due to a decrease of volcanic activity in the area. This means that visitors can once again utilize the area’s parking lot and resthouse as well as hike up to the observation area from where stunning views can be had of the lake. In light of this recent development, I headed yesterday to the famous mountain to take a look at the situation for myself, and also combined my investigation with visits to a few other of the area’s main attractions...
Today I traveled to Nikko in Tochigi Prefecture to visit some of the main attractions of this revered tourist destination. As well as being popular during ...
Today I traveled to Ashikaga Flower Park in Ashikaga, Tochigi Prefecture to take in some of the floral delights the park has to offer. The park boasts spectacular displays of seasonal flowers at various points throughout the year, but is particularly well known for its wisteria flowers that typically come into full bloom around late April to mid May and invariably draw in droves of flower fanatics...
Today saw me at Hitachi Seaside Park to check out the blue nemophila flowers that the park is famous for as they come into bloom around this time of year
Winter is finally coming to an end with spring just around the corner, and this usually means that it is a great time to see some of the early-blooming cherry blossom species, which averagely hit full bloom around this time. Accordingly, I took a trip today to Tokyo to check on the state of the cherry blossoms at some of the city’s most popular spots...
Kiyomizudera in Kyoto has been undergoing significant renovation works on many of its buildings since 2008. As the final phase of this large renovation project, the temple’s most iconic building, its main hall, will be renovated; namely by replacing its famous thatched roof...
The area around Kushiro in eastern Hokkaido is not only revered for its natural beauty but also as the last home of the Japanese Red-crowned Crane. Tancho as they are called in Japanese were found all accross Hokkaido and Honshu up until the Meiji Period, when over hunting and the disapearance of their natural habitat brought them to the brink of extinction. The species was thought to have been completely extirpated from Japan in the early twentieth century, before a small flock of 20 birds was discovered in the Kushiro Marshlands in 1924...
Today I headed to Hokkaido’s second largest city to check out the opening day of the 58th Asahikawa Winter Festival. Though smaller and not quite as famous as the Sapporo Snow Festival, the Asahikawa Winter Festival also showcases an array of snow and ice sculptures which are spread out over two sites in the city and illuminated in the evenings. A 90 minute train ride and convenient side trip from Sapporo, The festival will run all this week until Sunday 12th...
The Yuki Akari no Michi Festival (Snow Light Path Festival) is one of Hokkaido’s most popular winter festivals and, Otaru being only a 45 minute train ride from Sapporo, is convenient to visit in combination with the Sapporo Snow Festival...
The 68th annual Sapporo Snow Festival (Sapporo Yuki Matsuri) started today and will run through the week until Sunday, February 12th. The largest and best-known of Japan’s snow festivals, this year’s Yuki Matsuri features around 200 snow and ice sculptures spread across downtown Sapporo...
This year, Atami’s early-blooming plum and cherry blossoms have began bursting to life particularly early, making it a great time to visit the town. In the name of catching the most of this floral fantasia, I was particularly keen to see the city’s reputed plum garden, as well as to take a stroll along the banks of the Itogawa River lined with a Atamizakura...
The Yamato area in Nara Prefecture around today’s Sakurai and Tenri cities is highly significant in the history of Japan as the first center of power for the imperial court...
