Prisoner of Hopes

Tag: Japan

  • Tourist Mecca or Sacred Mountain?: Travel Goals Japan

    Today’s destination is Fushimi Inari Taisha, a temple that has over 3 miles of trail up Mount Inari. The mountain temple path is lined with over 10,000 Tori Gates. My son has picked the location because of internet reviews and photos of the Tori gates. It does look impressive and a little intimidating. However, if…

  • Bullet Train: Travel Goals Japan

    I am riding a bullet train today. There is one leaving the station every few minutes. I can arrive and walk to the platform with absolutely no fuss. I am still in shock that for a small fee I will be in a city across the country in just a few hours. With a Japan…

  • Adventures in Grocery Shopping: Travel Goals Japan

    One of my favorite things to do when we travel internationally is to hang out in the grocery stores. This is weird because grocery shopping is not something I enjoy normally. I would put it in the necessary inconvenience of modern life category. But a grocery store in an unfamiliar place is a cave of…

  • Imperial Palace: Travel Goals Japan

    Today we visit the Imperial Palace in Chiyoda, Tokyo. While it is the primary residence of Japan’s Emperor, the inner palace area is closed to visitors. Instead, we head to the East gardens. Both the palace and the gardens are built on the grounds of the former Edo Castle, the seat of the Tokugawa shogunate. There are…

  • Beautiful Surprise: Travel Goals Japan

    Just walking through Tokyo, we take a short cut suggested by Google Maps. We are on our way to Tokyo Tower to get an aerial view of the city. Google says we can walk through an ancient wooden door. My husband is leery because it is obviously not a street and Google has taken us…

  • Electric Town: Travel Goals Japan

    You want it? They’ve got it. At least that seems to be the case in Akihabara. We are spending the afternoon in Tokyo’s Electric Town. As we walk across the river from the train station, we see police vans blocking off the streets. This allows the thousands of consumers to wander freely through the city…

  • Tokyo Tower: Travel Goals Japan

    It screams tourist trap. There can be no purpose visiting Tokyo tower except to have a tourist experience. And yet I am drawn like a fly to a flame. Not quite Eiffel Tower vibes, but the smaller Tokyo Tower is impressive when juxtaposed against the monastery that sits beside it. I guess the Tokugawa shoguns…

  • Stroll Through The Park: Travel Goals Japan

    A remembrance of the day that every museum and cultural attract in Tokyo is closed. We make our own fun.

  • Eating Our Way Through Tokyo: Travel Goals

    Food is an important part of a travel experience. In this offering, I remember several memorable meals and the ways we embarrass ourselves.

  • Inari Tokyo: Travel Goals Japan

    I am drawn to sacred spaces, especially if they are authentically in use. While I know little about Shinto, I can relate to the seeking and penitent hearts.