Prisoner of Hopes

Tag: Nature

  • 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…

  • The Long Ride: Rural Road Trips Texas

    The lure of the open road is strong. I love road trips and I love to drive. Today I am behind the wheel of our thirty foot rv which is towing our Chevy pickup. My husband completed the first shift coming out of New Mexico. He navigated White Sands missile range, Alamogordo, and Roswell. I…

  • Caving: Rural Road Trips Arizona

    We find ourselves in Arizona near Karchner Caverns. We booked a Koa near highway 10 and within a short drive to Tombstone, where we will adventure tomorrow. But today, we need to secure two tickets to see the cave. I call and ask for same day tickets. I am put on hold. I tell them…

  • Phoenix Zoo: Rural Road Trips

    The Phoenix Zoo is not quite what we hope but still an enjoyable day. We embrace the experience and meet a new friend who tries to share his lunch.

  • Saguaro Shut Down: Rural Road Trips

    Saguaro National Park is wild and wonderful in its desolation. On this trip we are almost the only ones there, which fuels my imagination.

  • Red Rock Hike: Rural Road Trip Arizona

    But the song is as old as time. It is the language of life long love, a familiar duet performed among the red rocks. If you have been married for decades, you likely know the lyrics. Feel free to sing along.

  • Verde to Tonto: Rural Road Trip

    I wouldn’t call us aimless. But we have no plan other than to enjoy this beautiful weekend. The weather is perfect. Blue skies. Cool breeze. And we have a whole day ahead of us to enjoy whatever we can.

  • Animal Cafe Takes My Stress Away: Travel Goals Japan

    In this post, I fall in love with Tokyo’s pet cafes.

  • Meiji Morning: Travel Goals

    This morning I wake up with the sun. It is a mystery to me how my internal clock always knows sunrise. Even on the other side of the globe, I’m up at the first hint of dawn. Last night we arrived in Tokyo after nineteen hours of travel. Unsurprisingly, the boys are still fast asleep.…

  • Pink Jeep Tour: Rural Road Trip

    We pile into the pink jeep with six strangers. Our driver seems a little crazy….in a mostly good way. He navigates the heavy Sedona traffic like he has done the route hundreds of times. So far so good. He tells stories as he drives. He finds them funny and entertaining. I find them hard to…