Today, I am writing about the inevitable reality that almost all travellers face, unless they are travelling professionally that is and when they come home it’s only to say hello, and pack for the next trip. Coming home can be a serious ‘culture’ shock that is not easy to deal with, and I am facing …
Continue reading Culture Shock: Part Three – Returning Home.
Whether you’re here to live, or here backpacking you are going to have to get from point A to point B somehow. I was considering doing a post all about transport in Japan and including driving, because for many people coming here to live and teach driving is an essential part of the day and …
Continue reading Japan Survival Guide Part 3: Getting around Japan by Rail!
Well, Spring is everywhere at the moment even if it did rain for all of Thursday, and in Japan that means cherry blossoms - Sakura. People are out and about celebrating the arrival of spring with 'Hanami', hard to define, a sort of celebration though. After a long, cold winter, where even Yokohama saw some …
Continuing on with my tips from part one a week or so ago, today I am blogging a little about money in Japan. I can start by telling you the local currency here is the ‘yen’, or as the locals say ‘en’, and that it is worth just over 100 to the US dollar right …
Continue reading Living in Japan Survival Guide Point Two: Money
Well, today I said 'Goodbye' to my apartment where I have lived the past two years. If moving to Japan was tricky, leaving is not only difficult but also quite slow and frustrating. Still, even though the apartment wasn't quite as comfortable as I might have liked, I'll have fond memories. Not so much of …
Hello! Today I am starting a series of points that will form a sort of informal 'Survival Guide' for those thinking of living in Japan. My time in Ichinoseki is almost up as I type - tomorrow I say goodbye to my apartment, Friday night I am off to Yokohama via night bus, so things …
Continue reading Living in Japan Survival Guide Point One – Second Hand Stores
Yesterday I finally had the chance to visit the most renowned onsen in Ichinoseki, the Kanpo Onsen. A beautiful setting, a little way out of town on top of a hill, the onsen is fed by reputedly 14 different hot springs. It is regarded as the best onsen in the immediate area and one of …
I have just under a week left in my home of two years now in Ichinoseki. We have been packing and preparing to shift down to Yokohama where we will live for six weeks before flying to Melbourne. We've been frequenting the second hand stores to sell off a few things - I just said …
So, for those who don't know me, on Friday my wife and I celebrated our second wedding anniversary. We headed out in the car to a small restaurant run by a friend of my wife, not quite sure what to expect. But I have to say we were more than happily surprised by the quality …
Continue reading Anniversary Dinner, in the middle of nowhere, happy surprise!
Well... that's that! In a blink of an eye, somehow I am finished with teaching schools in Japan. Today, at my second school, a special needs school, I went to graduation. It was an interesting day, some happy faces, some nervous ones. It is interesting to me that comparing the two, very very …
A Scottish island girl exploring the world on a budget
exposing the inner-world of my brain
My second blog page
Put pictures on your travel dreams
The beautiful picture of angels makes you happy.
inspiring journeys and friendly advice
A Scottish island girl exploring the world on a budget
exposing the inner-world of my brain
My second blog page
Put pictures on your travel dreams
The beautiful picture of angels makes you happy.
inspiring journeys and friendly advice
Andy's World Journeys 