Author Archives: John Rose
Japan Part Nine: Neo Tokyo
There is a romance about all those who are abroad in the black hours. Robert Louis Stevenson As the sun sets on the sprawling metropolis of Tokyo it undergoes a transformation. The concrete and glass facades of city streets become faded under a kaleidoscope of neon lights. The Early Birds morph into Night Owls as […]
Japan Part 8: Tokyo Drift
When we are very organised we arrange for a tour on our first full day in a new city. This helps us get our bearings, sample a selection of top sights on day 1 and get some insider information from the guides – “eat in this district”, “get here before 9am to not queue” etc. […]
Japan Part 7: Castle on a Cloud
Located 117km southwest of Kyoto is coastal city of Himeji. More like a town really with its 500,000 inhabitants compared to the metropolitan region of Osaka/Kyoto/Nara. Why were we leaving the hustle and bustle of downtown Kyoto to visit this smaller place? Himeji Castle… that’s why! Its a 17min walk up the wide boulevard of […]
Weekly Photo Challenge – Lock
This week’s photo challenge Luckily for us it had since been rebuilt and would allow us to ford the Danube and reach our next destinations. But before we moved on we had to leave our mark. Similar to the Pont des Arts in Paris and the Brooklyn Bridge in New York, the Istvan Szechenyi Chain […]
Japan Part 6: All that Glitters is not Gold!
Can you make scrambled eggs in a cup? Not one of life’s most interesting questions. Not one I thought I would find myself pondering in 2018 in modern-era Japan. The answer is – yes, yes you can! As long as you stir the sh1t out of them with a plastic fork. About 5 days into […]
Japan Part 5: We are not in Nara anymore..Kyoto!
Located in the southern suburbs of Kyoto this motley collection of shrines, temples and rest-houses is quite impressive. What blows you away is are the vermilion torii. Thousands of these gates mark the pathways inside the complex. Sweeping up and down slopes and crests in all directions while winding their way up Mount Inari A wondrous […]
Japan Part 4: Chronicles Of Nara
Our next stop on our Japan Journey was the Old Imperial Capital City of Nara in the Kansai Region. The younger sister city to neighbouring metropoli / metropolises / metropoles* of Osaka and Kyoto. The only challenge was that we were 400km away, and on another island. 3 Trains and a ferry later and we […]
Vivid 2018: …and there are lights!
As my wife and I trained in Bradfield Park our eyes were fixed on the familiar sight of the Sydney Opera House and Circular Quay, an almost 5 year fixture in our lives. Except tonight it was shining a bit brighter than normlal…oh crap it’s May -> that means Vivid Festival is here. Billed as […]
Weekly Photo Challenge: Wheel
A pair of wheels for this weeks challenge. On the right is the famous Falkirk Wheel in Falkirk, Scotland. This unique design connects the Union Canal and the Forth and Clyde Canal. A masterpiece of engineering. On the left is a wheel of cinnamon and apple turnovers that we enjoyed at the Hopewell Lodge in […]
Japan Part 3: Miyajima Island
Our next destination would be the nearby island of Itsukushima. It is more popularly known as Miyajima “Shrine Island” and is famous for its large Tori Gate Shrine – Itsukushima Shrine. To get there would involve a train, a boat and a walk to our Ryokan (a Japanese style Inn). It was decided that we […]
Japan Part 2 : Hiroshima
Bullet Club It was time for Karen and I to join the Japanese Bullet Club. We had been on Maglev trains in China but this time it was the real deal – The Nozomi (のぞみ, “Wish”) , the fastest train running on the Shinkansen Lines with top speeds over 300km/h. Getting all excited we made […]
Japan Part 1: 24 Hours in Osaka
Prologue We departed Hong Kong for our next destination. It would turn out to be a short hop across the East China Sea to the Land of the Rising Sun – Japan (Nippon in Kanji). Our port of departure was not on land but actually an artificial island in Osaka Bay – Kansai International Airport. […]
Return to Canton
It had been three and a half years after our last trip to Hong Kong. Then it was a gateway to China where we stayed a month. This time it would be a stop-over on the way to Japan for Easter. The last trip involved meeting up with friends who were passing through. This time we […]
High Road to Wanaka
Our last full day on the South Island beckoned. We decided to do one last ‘big thing’ while here. It’s always so easy to bury the last day or two by staying put – chilling at the accommodation or strolling into whatever town we were nearby – pottering – as they say back home. Our […]
