Sakura 2013

Sakura 2013, a set on Flickr.

Went down to Shinjuku Gyoen a big park in Tokyo this weekend to take a look at the cherry blossom or sakura. It’s very early this year, but even so there were plenty of people enjoying the day out and the sakura on display did not dissapoint.

Nikko 2013

Nikko 2013, a set on Flickr.

We had a brief trip up to Nikko, in the Tochigi prefecture about 2 and a half hours north of Tokyo. Simply spectacular countryside and views, although it was quite chilly. We made a visit to the Yumoto snow festival, where there were several ice sculptures and ice candles. Well worth the visit.

Sapporo

Sapporo, a set on Flickr.

We recently went on a trip to Sapporo and spent a couple of days driving around the island. It was quite cold and we got to see plenty of snow. A spectacularly beautiful part of Japan, and well worth visiting if you are lucky enough to have the chance.

Fukuoka

Fukuoka, a set on Flickr.

My wife and I recently spent a few days in Fukuoka. We had a great time sampling the local delights and sights. Including the cool local trains which are quite unique, and even some chance encounters with a Capybara.

Sendai

Sendai, a set on Flickr.

A few shots I took in Sendai over the weekend. Cool place, well it was incredibly hot, but you get the drift.

General catchup

Been a while since I last posted, and at the risk of being incredibly boring…. not much to report on my end. Been busy as hell with work, and can’t see that changing much anytime soon.

A few weeks back we visited a small town in Saitama called Chichibu. It’s great fun driving through country towns in Japan, they are very different to country towns elsewhere in the world, and there are always new and interesting things to see. I am yet to visit two country towns with the same supermarket for example…

Anyway, here is a pic of the view from our hotel

and here is the main reason we were there… kakigori!! Japan takes shaved ice to the next level, and this store was uber famous and tasted spectacular.

Holiday Time… well nearly

Well the time has come nearly, one more day of work before I head off for three weeks of holidays.

Will be heading to Australia to spend some time with family and friends, will only be in Melbourne for a couple of days though, so if you are in Melbourne and feel like catching up let me know.

Cheers
Greg

Kinugawa Onsen

Kinugawa Onsen, originally uploaded by gthomso1.

Recently visited Kinugawa Onsen and the nearby Edo wonderland (a.k.a Ninja Town..) and a Tobu world square ( a miniature land) very cool. Still the highlight for the trip was definitely the brilliant Onsen (Hot spring) at our hotel. Well worth a look.