Japan...What we MISS

I've been asked quite often what I miss or liked most about Japan. It was a huge hunk of time, especially for our first international trip together, and even more so when we were camping the entire way. Alright, I wouldn't really consider it camping since we had nice restrooms (which also acted as laundry and shower), fresh water (drink-able too, which was great for cooking and refilling our water bottles), plus we were up off the ground. Even now I would probably state I'm not a huge camping fan, but when it comes to travel I love urban camping and the price tag of 0.00 USD. Ok, back to what I miss, since I have my hammock hanging up as a bed, I can't really say I miss it. 

I miss the people and culture. Everyone was very polite, carrying, hospitable, and willing to go out of their way to help. It was a huge shock coming back to the states...I bowed whenever I said thank you for the first little while. Even now (a whole year later) I sometimes start to bow when I really want to say "thank you". In a way I feel (at least in my mind) just words don't carry the same weight anymore. Action, and bowing, which takes your whole body to do, shows how much you appreciate it - ie the deeper the bow, the more appreciative you are. Well that was an interesting side note....

FRESH fruit!!!

Yes these fruit prices range from 18 USD to 98 USD, generally they were cheaper, but these are for presents/gifts, not for general consumption....they just looked SO pretty.

We miss fresh fruit. Yes, you can walk into any grocery store in America and get "fresh" fruit, but do they look like this? And, I swear that the carrots, cabbage, pretty much every fruit and vegetable we ate there tasted a WHOLE lot better than what we get here in the States. 

I would also say I miss 7-Eleven. I've even gone to their Japanese site to day dream again about the amazing food they always had at the ready. The caramel macchiato ice cream cones, the pasta and rice curry they would microwave for me and the sticky buns filled with delicious meat and vegetables. And to know that they had all been fresh delivered to the store that morning or afternoon and not sat there for a week or more. Man I miss the fresh, convenience store food. We had heard tales about street food, especially in some of the less developed countries, but I had serious withdrawals from 7-Eleven, Lawson's, Cirlce-K, and Family Mart food. Sometimes, just to switch it up we would stop at an actual Grocery Store to raid their fresh, ready to eat food. Ahh, the dreams about handing over yen and saying "yes" to having the store attendant microwave my food, to then walk to a nearby park that would be our home for the night to eat dinner. Yes, I've actually dreamed in Japanese about the food and having them microwave it for me, sad? maybe, funny? heck yes!

Val (left) and I (Ash on the right) in front of the first Onsen we visited. This one is located in Beppu, which is known for its many many Onsen. The person that was kind enough to take the photo for us is a native Japanese girl (mid 20's) that we met in the bath and started chatting with us. 

While we did utilize many public bathrooms to wash, freshen up, brush teeth, deodorize, ect. we enjoyed the opportunities to enjoy traditional Japanese bathing. Onsens and how the Japanese regularly bathe by having a little shower that you sit in front of to scrub and rinse and then a large tub to soak in afterwards, makes so much sense. I've found myself countless time wishing for one of those little seats in front of a shower faucet, trying to balance in a shower as the curtain starts to engulf you isn't much fun. I think they have the right idea. We weren't able to take photos inside any of the public baths due to wanted privacy (I would be a little wary if they were willing to allow photographs when you're walking around nude), but I did find some photos on the internet.

Demonstrates the little stool in front of the spigot to scrub and wash
Plus the large bath to soak.  

Onsen that has an outdoor section. 

Gear: Nube & Hammock Set-Up

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We found that the Nubé and Hambunk set-up created and sold by Sierra Madre Search was the system that was easiest to manage with the most protection wrapped into a nice well thought out package.   Here are some of the things we did to make it even easier.

•  A: Hang both the Nubé tie and the hammock's e-z Slings from the same point, as high up the tree as you can reach
• This way there is enough room to hang both hammocks and the bottom luggage compartment, if you don't hang them both at the highest point, the luggage will be to low to the ground to use or the Pares sleeper will be sitting on top of the luggage...neither of those options is convenient 
• Sometimes this is not possible due to smaller trees or too many limbs and then we worked around the luggage being stored below by clipping the backpack onto the carabiner  at the foot end and then tightened the waist and chest straps tightly on the hammock and all was dry.

• B: Nubé Ridge-line Adjustment:
• The main line that we used to attach the Nubé to the tree was Zing-It Line
• To attach to the tree, the end of the Zing-it Line had a Titanium Dutch hook so that it could easily be hooked back to it's self after being wrapped around the tree. The other end had a dutch fly to allow for tightening easily... then the Nubé was adjusted to center with the Prusik Knots.
• Val made a couple loops that contained Prusik Knots (see link for Animated Knots illustration of how to tie these knots) using more of the Zing-it line. The Prusik knot was made around the long length of line that we used to attach the Nubé to the trees.  The loop of the remaining knot was then attached to the Nubé.
• If you look at the photos of it hanging you will see that we started with this continuous line from tree to tree.. but soon found that loosening one end to move the Nubé to the other could be totally avoided by cutting it in the center.

• C: Nubé guyline adjustment:
• The main guy-line rope was Zing-It line that is very durable and offered in a bright yellow that makes it easy to see at night, decreasing your chances of tripping over it.
• Once again we used the very nice Prusik Knot to allow adjustments of how tight the guy lines were. These adjustments allowed for quick changes in how much ventilation, possible protection we would need during a rain storm, and how low the Nubé was going to sit. Zing-It line is light weight, doesn't absorb water or dirt, doesn't stretch and super strong.
• Initially we attached tubing to the guy-line that would allow for the line to stretch and contract due to humidity and rain, but due to extensive use of the Nubé the tubing began to wear out (we are unsure of how much they helped as we have used them throughout our trip). Moving forward we would probably remove the tubing and create a system similar to the Nubé ridgeline where the extra line would be-able to be stored under the Velcro-tabs. Could reverse the cording so the extra cording could store in the Velcro, and one could adjust the tension from under the Nubé no need to go out in the rain to tighten things down.

• D: Hammock attachment hints (How to sleep in ham-bunks comfortably):
• To hang the hammocks just-so took some trial and error on our parts, but as we had 40+ days to figure it out and we were properly incentivized with quality of sleep hanging in the balance we found the perfect set-up for us (mind you, this hang was perfect for US, it may not be the perfect hang for you).
• Once you have each hung an e-z sling, take one for the  Xplor carabiners and attach it to a loop that appears to be a high enough point that you can then hang the hammock level with the other e-z sling point.
• Now, this is the toughest part (especially when you are exhausted, it may take two of you and in many cases it did for us) STRETCH the Xplor as tight as you can possible get is so that when it hangs it is perfectly flat. HINT: Have a couple extra loops of rope that can act as adjusters to create more options for hanging distances; our loops of Amsteel Blue 7/64 were about 6" in diameter when flattened and can be folded in half to allow for more versatility. Or if you're willing you could put more knots in the easy sling for a tight hang. 

• How to make more room in the Xplor:
• I (Ash) was the one that slept in the Xplor, my backpack was the REI Lookout 40L, which I would place up in my hammock. Once in my hammock and inside my sleeping bag I would place the backpack under my knees, this way my knees were bent up (more comfortable for me) and the Xplor was widened out so that I would have more adjustment room.
• Since coming back, both Val and I have exchanged our normal beds for hammocks, I have placed two pillows and a queen-sized down blanket in exchange for the REI backpack to facilitate the same effect.  I found without this the hammock tends to squeeze the shoulders.
• Another tip would be to sleep opposite of each other so that the Xplor sleeper's head will be at the toes of the Pares sleeper and vice-versa. This helps when handing items back and forth and when the Pares sleeper starts packing things up... she only knocks about my legs and such while stuffing her sleeping bag into a stuff sack. And is very helpful when zipping up the netting for a bug free sleep!

Examples of the adjustments we made and what it actually looks like:

...

Urban Camping

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We read a lot about urban camping in Japan, before ever going over there and doing it ourselves. The main thing that made me feel confident about it being safe was that my mother had approved of it and even found it herself AND that on one of the recommendations it had said a police officer had suggested the park first.

Beppu, Beppu Park

Along the way we had asked many tourist centers if there was a place to camp at _____ (fill in the blank), they all would reply that they cannot officially recommend it, but that many people do camp there.

We would of loved to have more ideas of places to stay or that would be good. As we became experienced Japan Urban Campers, three criteria had to be met:

1. A bathroom
2. Two solid, old trees
3. Those trees had to be at a distance of 13 to 16 feet apart (Mother's feet, heel to toe)

Here are a few of the places that we stayed at all around Japan. The only one that we wouldn't recommend is Himeji Castle Park as the security guards didn't really like it, but if pressed to find a place late at night in Himeji we would go back and know that we would have to take it all down before 5 am.

A few of the places we would really recommend/ our favorites:

• Yokohama, Seaside Park: beautiful and a nice way to see the city lights and close to a bathroom
• Shirahama, Shirarahama Beach: we never had to take the hammock and Nube down during our 2.5 day stay, as almost no one walks behind the storage containers placed up by the cement walkway (this was during the weekdays, not sure how that would change during the weekend and high travel season). Very close to a nice bathroom. Beautiful beach.
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Japan Day 1 & 2: Flight & First Glimpse of Tokyo

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Set up our SMr Nube and Hammocks to make sure
that we both knew how they worked and what all
the components were.

The flight over the Pacific was an emotional one. Not bad emotions per say, but they did make the flight a lot longer  then the quoted nine hours. It was like being on a roller coaster. First me were super excited, then anxious - what if Japan didn't live up to our expectations? what if it was horrible? what if...? - then we were tired, it is a nine hour flight after all, then we would get happy - we are really flying to Japan, other people do things like this...not us, right?. Well I think you get the idea, every emotions was coursing through our veins, minus anger.

Man! have flights changed since the first time I flew back in the 1990's as a child....

• Head phones actually look like headphones, not stethoscopes that doctors use to listen to your breathing, minus the metal piece at the end.
• You actually get your own TV that has a bunch of recently released movies, instead of multiple monitors that are attached to the ceiling that play the same movie on all of them. Oh, and the you have right in front of you provides information about the flight, music, games, and shopping too.
• They feed your really good food and unlimited drinks. It also appeared that they gave an allowance of alcohol to those of age.
• There's no longer a pull down shade, you press a little button down below to set what kind of darkness you would like and then before landing it gradually brightens back up to mimic a sun-rise.

We arrived into Narita Airport at a little before 4pm Japan time. We were through customs with no hiccups and on the Narita Express into Tokyo Station. The Express was a little expensive...but we really wanted to get into the city quickly and we were new to the train system.

Or at least that's my excuse, since I was the money manager and the navigator and the translator during the trip - not that I knew very much Japanese, but since I was the one carrying the money and knew where we were going, it was kind of a default . By the time we were into Tokyo station it was a little after 6 and we were headed to Kimi Ryokan in Ikebukuro. After taking a couple moments to get our bearing and figuring out the rail system we were off.

In our Yukatas in our room at Kimi.

Once settled out our Ryokan we were back out on the town to find food. We were hungry. After wandering around for about an hour we went back to the Ryokan and asked for any recommendations for food. They recommended going back to the train station as there are food malls with plenty of options, but after a long flight and being up super early to go through TSA we did not feel like walking all the way back, so we settled for the closest decent looking restaurant.

Our first restaurant in Japan was Chinese... 

That restaurant happened to be a Chinese place named Ma La Gong Fang...alrighty, so we looked at the menu which thankfully was a picture book. And made two selections a celery, peanut stir fry and one that looked like sweet and sour. The server told us "no" and then started talking in Japanese..."uhhh, why not?" was our response. After trying to figure out some English to stick a sentence together that would make some more sense to us, which didn't work out very well, one of the other customers blurted out "chicken heads" to try and help the server and us out a little. "Well alright, we don't really want to eat chicken heads on our first night in Japan" is what was running through our heads.

We then asked for recommendations and ended up with a stir fry rice dish and some other things. Once the third plate arrived we were a little bit more confused by our food and how to eat it as they also provided a bowl of water with it. After tasting it was a sweet potato that had been caramelized in ginger which was still piping hot, so to make it cool enough to eat you had to dunk it into water and then eat, but first you had to pry it off the plate with your chopsticks. It was a decent meal and we even made friends with a couple of the other customers. Our fellow neighbors ordered us a traditional Chinese tea...oh, goodness, it was better then the sweetened chilled tea that you can buy in the US. Sharing the experience with the fellow restaurateurs was nice and even fun. It was a fabulous welcome to the country, even if it was on the basement floor of a Chinese restaurant.

Japan Countdown

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There are only 6 days until we get on an airplane to head over the pacific ocean to Tokyo, Japan for our 49 day trip to all of the major islands: Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku, and Hokkaido, plus some minor ones. It feels like yesterday that I got mother to agree to travel to Japan with me, that we drove to Barnes and Noble to pick out a good travel book, and that we purchased an overall map of Japan to start learning the locations and geography. I grew up with manga and anime, like many children in the United States, but as I became older I started falling in love with their traditions, history, and contradictions.

I have compiled a lot of research on the different attractions, combining our interest in the Japanese experience and trying to cut costs. We finally came to the conclusion that we would try camping as much as possible and pay to use onsen/ofuro (indoor bath) or rotenburo (outdoor bath) whenever necessary/we really want to be clean. While in the Grand Canyon we tested out our Sierra Madre 3 person tent with 2 vestibules. The tent was fabulous, it didn't weigh too much, was easy to set up, and had plenty of room for us and our possessions. We did have to clear a path and make sure that we found semi-level location, so we opted into performing research on hammocks, but with hammocks you have to have a shelter in case it rains (we are traveling to Japan during their rainy season).

Sierra Madre Nube and Hambunks

After hours, days, and many google searches later Val found a very interesting hammock set. After watching every video and finally deciding to splurge and purchase this amazing package, we finally received the set over the weekend (5.3.14). Val finally had a chance to set it up yesterday, although rather gusty in Eastern Idaho, and came to the conclusion that after some finagling that it would be perfect for all our trips. We really liked that it had a mosquito net, two could sleep under the same shelter, you could roll everything away to cook under the shelter, you can also convert it into a small tent by using hiking poles to prop up the two points, and it all packed down really small. Val and I are extremely pleased to be taking this on the road with us and can not wait to hang it from some beautiful Japanese trees.

We have also received our:

• Japan Rail passes 
• Studio Ghibli Museum tickets
• Reservation for our first ryokan (traditional hotel)
• Printed our Welcome Cards: discount coupons for different locations that are available to foreign visitors to reduce costs
• Written some common words we will want in Kanji, English, and pronunciation
• Copies of all vital documents
• Received two months worth of medication: you can actually receive a vacation waver from your insurance that allows them to pay for more than one months worth of medication if you are going to be gone
• Medicine documentation for entry: for some medications you actually need to supply documentation to the Japanese government for approval before entering the country. We also found that in the case of bringing medications abroad it makes it easier during customs to have:
• On your doctors letterhead, type of medications, generics/other substitutes, what you are taking the medications for, how long your have been seeing the doctor, and contact information
• Duplicates of the prescription(s)

Victoria, BC

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Oh, Canada, Oh Canada!!!

British Columbia's capitol
Victoria's government building

Testing out our passports. For my 18th birthday we traveled to this amazing city.

Best place that we have traveled to out of the country thus far. We have recently been to Vancouver and we both thought it was the ugly step child compared to this amazing city right across the strait.

Must do and see places:

• Noodle Box: amazing food! They had a great close knit atmosphere where there are only a couple of tables, local art on the walls, and wonderful service. We ate at the Douglas location. 
• Tour of the capitol building: We liking getting some basic history and knowledge about our northern neighbor and also getting to see some architecture. Plus it's free.
• Butchard Gardens: If you can make it during an evening that has fireworks I would absolutely recommend this place, even if you can't get the fireworks. Everyone was very friendly. It's handicap accessible. You can even stay into the evening and view the gardens lite up by lanterns.
• Tree top excursion: At wild play that is north of Victoria, by Nanaimo, you can bungee jump, zip line, do a tree top excursion and more. We did the tree top excursion and the zip line. Out of everything we did in Canada during our three day tip, this was the highlight. If you have a mode of transportation and low a thrill, this is your place. 

As far as places to stay the night, we spent the night in the back of my vehicle at Sooke River Campground. This campground was a little out of the way, but as we weren't planning on spending all of our time in Victoria we took my vehicle to drive to the different attractions, since I live in the Greater Seattle area. We really liked the campground. It was clean, even the bathrooms, quiet after 9, and very peaceful. There were a lot of other tourists there from all around along with some locals that wanted to get out into some forests, even if they are near a town. Located near the campground was a gas station and a small convenience store. 

Idaho

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Idaho in the Fall

Getting Around: There is no major public transportation system in Eastern Idaho or any other part of Idaho except maybe Boise and Coeur d'alene, so if you want to get around you have to drive.

In this part of Idaho I would recommend coming during the Summer or Fall. The summer can be quite warm, sitting around high 90's for a week or two, but these are the best times to go to the pools are mountain hikes. During Fall you can see the Aspens turn brilliant colors of orange, yellow, and red, with the green of evergreens poking out every once in a while. You may want to venture to this area during the Winter if you are an avid skier, snowboarder, snow shoe-r, or just some one that loves snow; you can really enjoy cozening up into hot springs, so there is that plus.

Attractions: 
Idaho Falls:

• Greenbelt: In downtown Idaho Falls, the Greenbelt is a city park the makes a loop around a section of the Snake River, there are many monuments that have erected and even some farmer's and craft's market that spring up during the summer months. 
• Downtown: this part of town is the old, historic portion of town, so it is densely populated with local stores and family owned restaurants. One of the best Chinese/Mandarin food is at Happy Chinese, you should eat here if you have the chance.

Outdoor hot pool, Green Canyon

Green Canyon Hot Springs: Is a family run camp ground that also contains an indoor swimming pool, with an outdoor cold pool and hot tub. The pool is heated naturally by a local hot spring. The main building also offers amazing BLT's any time of year as they grow their tomatoes in a green house (becoming one of the larges producers of out-of-season tomatoes in Eastern Idaho). The camp ground is in a gorgeous canyon that has a creek going right by.

Heise Hot Spring's Outdoor pool & Slide

Heise Hot Springs: A little closer to the central city of Idaho Falls, Heise offers water slide, diving board, hot pool, pizza parlor, camping, zip line, and some close by hikes into Kelly Canyon and Tetons National Forest. The pool is open during the winter to allow for people coming down from the ski hill, Kelly Canyon, to soak and relax. During certain times of the year, fall and winter mostly, you can often see moose, bald eagle's, and deer.

Big Jud's: Want to enjoy real American food in Eastern Idaho? Big Jud's the place you want to go, yes, it's a little out in the sticks, but you're in Idaho, what did you expect? Alright, back to FOOD. Their french fries, chicken strips, and any kind of burger is fantastic here, and don't forget the ice cream. They have a contest where if you eat a one pounder by yourself you get a photo on their wall. You can also do a couple other contests to get up on their wall, but man that is a lot of food. Enjoy this local eatery.

People tubing the Portneuf River

Lava Hot Springs: This place has all the water fun you can stand, from tubing down the river, pools, hot springs, and more. The main attraction of this town is the hot springs and tubing, so it may be a little more touristy then the rest of Eastern Idaho, but it's a whole bunch of fun, been there twice for parties. The hotel on the main road (I would list the specific road, but the towns so small there is only one road really) that is pretty cheap for a touristy destination, it comes with a fridge, microwave, and a really big Jacuzzi tub. Having the microwave and fridge allowed us to bring a frozen lasagna, stored it in the fridge to later microwave for dinner.

EBR-1

Idaho National Laboratory (INL)/ EBR-1: EBR-1 was the first nuclear power plant in the world, so they claim (I guess I'm a little skeptical since they say a man born to Rigby, ID was the first to invent the television), this is an interesting piece of history by any means. It did however power an entire city, now name Atomic City (the name's very inventive, isn't it?), now with a population of 29. They have since turned this nuclear reactor into a museum with displays, interactive tasks, and videos about how science was conducted. This museum even has the original knobs and gears for the switch boards and controls.




Arco: Doesn't have all that much going on, but they are close to Crater's of the Moon. An area where astronauts would practice for Moon like conditions before they had fancy anti-gravity chambers. You can see volcanic flows, ash, and cones.

Buffalo, Yellowstone National Park 

Yellowstone National Park:  Best time to go is over Mother's Day, although not advertised they allow you to stay in the Old Faithful Inn for the price of the year (ex. 2015, a night stay is $20.15). If you want a really good price during a time when most of the park is still closed and the animals are roaming around new newborns...go then. They do charge your credit card for the full price until you show up and then they debit back the difference, so make sure you call and confirm that they still do this. There is plenty of do here no matter what time of year, but do remember that in the winter we get a lot of snow, so passes and driving can be tricky and even dangerous at times. There is beautiful camping that is encompassed by tall pines with hot pools (to look at, to hot to do anything else with, maybe you could boil eggs..., just a thought after reading about Japan), day hikes, and nature to breathe in.

Jackson Hole, WY:

• Alpine Slide: Located at Snow King Ski Hill, this summer attractions has always been something I would like to do. Who doesn't want to ride a chairlift to the top of a hill and ride an alpine slide down? 
• This region has two major ski hills that are very popular during the winter months: Jackson Hole and Snow King. They both offer amazing snow, shopping, and a bunch of other attractions. I would probably go to Jackson Hole Ski for the mountain opportunities and Snow King for their amazing tubing.
• Other recreations: Jackson also offers some great pools, indoor water parks, hiking, and a bunch of other events.

Random Thoughts about Blogging and Travel

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Point marks my "permanent" address and the
point where I spend most of my childhood.

So far I have a couple posts out, they seem to be doing good...I don't really know yet, since there aren't any comments, but I guess +1's are good. I really wanted to add some content onto the blog, so there wasn't only one post. It would be so lonely, thinking it has no friends. And really, who wants to go to a website that only has one page? No one, that's who. haha. The posts that are here and that will be coming up in the next week or so are really there has a guide or resource when planning your next trip. Hopefully *fingers crossed* that's what the goal of them was anyways.

During some travels I will being posting, so you will be able to follow me around the Grand Canyon, Japan, or where ever I am at that point. Hopefully passing on some points of wisdom or spur some travels ideas.

I grew up in Eastern Idaho with a lot of travel to the surrounding areas over the summers to follow my fathers work (he helped pave roads back then driving semi's) and with the ski team over the winters. From those experiences I have an extensive knowledge of camping, hiking, and local hangouts of Central and Eastern Idaho, along with parts of Wyoming and Montana. Plus some family trips down to the extended family in Arizona and California.

Kappa no Yu (Onsen), Yagen Valley
Doesn't this place just look beautiful?

I look forward to sharing my experiences as I broaden my knowledge of the world and myself. We just received Lonely Planet's "Hiking in Japan" book and there are quite a few that seem really interesting with the little hiking huts that are available, so we (mother and I) might be taking some multi-day hikes, for you nature lovers out there. Plus what better way to commune with nature and rustic onsen then after a long hike and in JAPAN none the less. Have you caught on to how much I'm really looking forward to this summer trip? Nah! it was not obvious at all, was it?

Seattle, WA

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Seattle and Space Needle from Lake
Washington on the Duck Boat Tour

Beautiful water and cultural city. Largely known for the Space Needle and being a mecca of new bands and musics. I personally know it as the land of flowers, since I always see the flower sellers at Pike's Place (more on that later). Side note: Sea hawk's just won the Super Bowl; not much of a sports fan, but it is pretty cool to live by a city that just won.

I have also been to the Space Needle, Pine St shopping area, taken the monorail between the two (great transportation), then walked down to Pike's place and the new Ferris wheel. My father also talked me into going on the duck boat tours, since it was the only time he had been to Seattle and the second time I had. Some comments on these attractions:

Getting around: If you aren't willing or able to drive around, that's a-okay is this part of the Pacific northwest. There are many buses that can get you from Tacoma, to Sea-Tac Airport, to Seattle, to Olympia, and you can even catch the Amtrak down to Portland. If you do decide that buses are how you want to travel, make sure to come with dollar bills and quarters (you need exact change) or buy an Orca card. Orca cards allow you to get a little of a discount on the pre-loaded card and give you some benefits, such as longer transfer windows, and can even work on ferries.

Activities:

Seattle Public Library

• Seattle Public Library: a very interesting and modernistic perspective on how people interact with learning and books. They offer different lectures, never been to one, but just from walking around in the building I feel like they would be pretty good. The library has different colors for different floors, one was bright red, not faded or muted, but RED! It was spectacular, had a little photo shoot, right then and there with mother. 
• Space needle: personally, I wasn't very impressed with the observation deck. It was a good one time thing, but I wouldn't do it again, I wouldn't even recommend that you go up it. They did provide a free photo that they green screen the space needle into; you could e-mail the picture to yourself at the kiosk in the top of the needle. From experience I would just stand at the bottom and look up, see it from different perspectives there. The needle is an amazing engineering feet.
• Monorail: It's a lot of fun, faster than buses, and takes you right to Pine Shopping center from the Needle. I've taken it many times and it's still fun to wander through the shops in the shopping center and get a free tea sample from Teavana. Last time I took the rail it only cost 2$ per person.



Seattle's hardest working man

• Duck boat tour: Wow was this a goofy experience, the driver put on different hats while talking about different local attractions. They take you out onto Lake Washington, the building that is shown as the outside of the hospital in Grey's Anatomy, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Hardest working man, the needle, and plenty of other sites. It was worth the price and gave you a very good tour of the city. Especially if you have limited time or you want a good overview of what the city has to offer.
• Ferris Wheel: Gone up in it twice and am still amazed with the magnificent view of the port. Especially on rainy days the clouds and calm of the water are breathtaking. 
• Underground tour: I heard a lot of hype about this place. It's where they give a tour of the original Seattle walk ways, before they lowered the grade a smidgen to correct plumbing and whatnot. I really had high expectations for this tour, but they really let me down. They did provide some good history of the city: fires, plumbing, how it started, infrastructure, etc. You do see a different side of the city on this tour. That's my two cents.
• Uwajimaya: If you are any kind of fan of Asia you will love this store. They have everything from candies to fruit to books to cooking supplies and everything in between. Ah, I have spent many an hour in this store and sometimes even take the bus from Tacoma up just to visit this place. 

  

   Flower stalls at Pike's Place Market

• Pike's place: Every time I visit this wonderful city I share Pike's Place Market. Yes, the market may be very touristy at this point, but I go to encourage the local flower arrangers, you can buy wondrous pieces of living art - I guess they are technically dead by the time the consumer sees them - for pretty cheap and the flowers, wreaths, depending on the time of year last a really long time. I would recommend anyone that's never been there to at least check it out once, plus you can see the first ever Starbucks and see the fish throwers. 

San Francisco, CA

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When people think of San Francisco the first thing that's conjured to the mind is the Golden Gate bridge, but there is so much more to this fantastic city. I was blessed enough to spend one month with family and friends in this magnificent city and truly marvel in all of its splendor.

Gallivanting Val (mother)
and Aunt in front of exhibit
located right in front of
Asian Art Museum

• Modern Art Museum: The exhibit that they had on display at the time seemed to revolve around the end of the world/wars. They had some very creative pieces and really made you think about what is considered art. One piece was colored lines draw directly onto the white wall.... Luckily they normally have free days but as the museum is currently under construction, you might want to check out some of the public art pieces. 
• Asian Art Museum: At the time that I visited (in August of 2010) they had the Shanghai Exhibit, it was an extra charge to see those pieces, but was totally worth it. Just checked their website to create the link and they had a yoga exhibit, makes me really want to head to San Fran and visit the museum. They even allow you to participate, how cool is that?! Don't forget to take your student ID card if you have one, they provide discounts.
• De Young Museum: Another fantastic museum, yeah I know that I said earlier I wasn't much of a museum person, but when I saw that they had a traveling Europe exhibit and this was the first and only time it was traveling to the US, I had to go. We saw Monet, Picasso, and many other amazing and influential classical paintings. I even still have a Monet print hanging up that I purchase there. I wasn't too impressed with their permanent collection, but the special exhibits are absolutely worth going to, especially on the first Tuesday of every month, when the museum is free. 

  

  Rain Forest Dome at the
  Academy of Science

• Academy of Science: We stood in a line for about one to two hours on a beautiful Sunday morning, looking back I think the line added to the experience, you know that the attraction is going to be great when all of San Francisco lines up to attend. The line stretched out the admission doors, down the block around the corner, all told, it probably totaled at least half a mile. Once in those admission doors you have free rain of the entire place. There is a four story tropical rain forest, planetarium, aquarium, and a host of other interesting exhibits. What's even more interesting is that the entire building is very eco-friendly. They have a living roof that you can go up and see, it looks like the rolling hills that surround San Francisco. Select Sundays are free. 
• On a day that my mother and I went on a full blown excursion of San Francisco, we took the Amtrak from Menlo Park (where we were renting an apartment for the month) into the city. 
• We weren't really sure what the day would bring, but we decided to head in the direction of Pier 39. Once there we got some lunch at Boudin Bakery Cafe where we both got a bowl of clam chowder in a bread bowl. As you sat and ate, you could watch the bakery section move freshly made bread on a bucket wire system that sailed above you. They bread into different shapes; my favorite was the turtle. 
• We then continued to walk towards the Golden Gate bridge. Suddenly bicyclist started cropping up all over the place, you could tell they weren't regular bicyclists, they were rented bikes. Alrighty, so how do we get one of those? Following the water front we found a bike shop! Renting one of those bikes we headed off to the Golden Gate. You can ride across the bridge and down into Saucilito. One of the best things we did on that excursion. Taking the ferry back from Saucilito, you can land back at pier 39 and drop off you bikes. One the ferry ride, you get motor by Alcatraz Prison and get a beautiful view of the city from the water. 
• A quick peek of China town for some dinner and off to the Amtrak station.
• Alcatraz Prison: as a child we went to the Prison and received a walking audio tour. You can see famous cells and get a great history of the island. It was one of the most memorable trips to San Francisco as a child. I would endorse this tour for anyone that likes history and/or has kids. 
• Environs:
• Santa Cruz Boardwalk: Admission can be pretty cheap during some promotional periods, we went when it was ten dollars off admission with a empty coca-cola can, with the pier logo on it. The best ride was the white roller coast, not jerky, took some funny pictures of us on the ride (we didn't pay for the photo, just took a picture of TV screen...), the second best was probably the Fireball (got my Aunt to go on this one, and she doesn't like roller coasters).
• Great America Theme Park: decent theme park, only had one good roller coast the Flight Deck, it was smooth, not jerky (essential for a mother that has a bad leg, she want's to enjoy the fun too), fast lines, and you don't feel like you are going to fall out of the restraints. For smaller kids they have plenty of great fair rides, I even enjoyed them as a break from the Flight Deck. 



Red woods, California

• Red Woods: With a fascination of trees (love to draw them), driving through northern California to Portland, OR (ten hour drive) we had to pull off to the side of the road and take some pictures. The Red Woods are a great place to stretch your legs and get some fresh air in your lungs during a long drive.  

Planning hints

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Whenever starting the planning stage of an excursion I go through a few steps. Of course these may not work for everyone, but they have worked for me so far.

1. Set a time period and destination 
• You cannot give justice to Europe in one week, so make them a little more realistic



My beginning part 2 of Asia map. How do you fit all of those
countries into one flowing trail without covering the same area?

• Leave enough wiggle room to allow for change of plans or additions to the travel
2. Go on to Google Maps or any other planning engine and draw up a hypothetical map
• Of course you don't have to stick to it, but it helps me solidify that I'm actually going and this is a potential route that could work to accomplish the basics
3. Start somewhere, pick a point: beginning, end, middle, country
• Start doing research, a few good resources I've found:
• nomadicmatt.com
• lonelyplanet.com
• Eyewitness Travel guide book
• Getting friends advice (oddly enough, mother got a tip from an e-bay customer, so you never know where that next idea will come from)
• Of course there are a whole lot more than this, but I've had the most success beginning with the Eyewitness Travel book (actually read the whole book on Japan, minus the Okinawa section because it wasn't in the budget). 
• Once I wrote down in the margins what would be most interesting I went to the country specific sites: JNTO and Japan-guide website for more information on those towns. Picking out more attractions. 
• After I felt I had enough of the obvious things I just started googling "Japan's hidden secrets", "most missed Japan" and other key words like that trying to get lists or ideas of less touristy attractions. Of course posting more of these online will sadly make them touristy, but hopefully not too much. 
4. Leave flexibility



Part of the word document I created so that we could
have our travel details close at hand and ideas brewing.

• Keep the things you are really excited about, water down the information
• I summarized into one sentence and maybe a picture everything I thought would be interesting
• Planned out how many days each city would take 
• Allowed for some down days: soaking up the sun in a park, chilling at the local cafe, doing as the locals do 
• Still have 9 days that have nothing, so in case someone mentions something that is a "can't miss" then we won't be scrounging for time, won't have to cut anything, and ultimately enjoy the time we have; if we get a hankering to take the ferry to China or Korea, we can :)
• Luckily we don't have anything that requires us to nail down dates, so we can spend as much or little time as we see fit. 

Hope these tips can help a little in the planning stages. If you have any additional comments or things you feel I may have left out, I would love to hear them.

Test Run: Grand Canyon

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The Grand Canyon trip was first created as my next excursion out into the world. I have always had the travel bug, as I grow older it appears that I now get to pursue that urge.

During the beginning of my mothers last visit to Washington, we decided that it had been a little too long since the last time we had really traveled anywhere. Yes, we want on little vacations to Vancouver and Victoria, but they never actually satisfied those exploration urges. We wanted big, whopping, ocean hopping explorations, and I was only in college once. THIS is the only time that I won't have to work around work vacations. I could take up to three months off and not worry about losing a job or any other commitments. She agreed that this was quit logical. Mother finally caved in and agreed to help me raise enough money to travel to Japan.

Mother's x-mas present to help
with last minute items for our packs
and also to try out some Japanese food.

It had been a while, since we had seen my grandparents. While we were in the state we may as well go see the long told of Havasupai Reservation. As we neared the end of her two week stay with me in the summer of 2013, I started telling her that the time to travel was now.

Since we have never been minimalist travelers or travelers outside the US, we were going to have to complete some research and do a test run. The Grand Canyon trip seemed to be the perfect goal for having our gear together and test everything out. First off we would be in the same state, we could both give feed back on how things worked, improve them if necessary, or decide to chuck them all together. Second, we could organize who should carry what, who should collect what (food, medical, cleaning, etc). Third, it was already planned, mostly paid for, and would be a bunch of fun!

We are now 14 days away from our plane and drive to the rim. Last minute preparations are in order: getting a lite weight can opener (wouldn't have thought of it, until we had to start planning on what to hike down to our camp ground for 2 nights and 3 days), making sure tents, sleeping bags, clothes, hygiene, and everything else was in order.

LUSH's Godiva 2-in-1 Shampoo
and Conditioner

Just came across a article that mentioned LUSH had solid shampoo and conditioner, for pretty cheap too. That way those two items don't cut into the amount of liquids you can carry onto planes; very necessary when you want to travel lite, but clean. We are now replacing those two go-Toobs with olive oil and dish soap.

Clipped toe nails and finger nails (yeah, it's gross to mention) but when your planning on walking down hill for most of a day, you really don't want your toes jamming into the tip of your boots causing serious pain (mother actually had this happen the last time she hiked down as a child, lost quit a few of those nails). Gross, but necessary preparation.

The only things that we have left to really do before heading off on our first documented gallivant is to pack and head for the airports. Waiting is the problem, two more weeks of school before break and I believe they are going to be torture. If I had anything other than planning money (we are selling things on e-bay to raise funds for these trips) and school it might be a little different. I guess I will just muddle my way through to the light at the end of the tunnel.

Synopsis: Trips 2014-15

This site is no longer going to be updated. I have upgraded my site and the new location is:

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As the first blog I should probably give you the low down of what's in the works.

   

First trip: Grand Canyon (oh yeah, for not much of a hiker, definitely jumped into the deep end).

We (my mother and I) are going meet up in the Salt Lake City Airport and fly down to Phoenix, AZ. Pick up the rent-a-car and drive to the Canyon edge. As this will still be March, it may be a bit chilly. We are making the transition from Northern US to a little bit father south, so I'm not expecting too much of a temperature shock, but just in case it is too chilly for camping on the rim, we will have a car to sleep in. We are fine with sleeping in cars, tents, hostels, pretty much anywhere as long as we have running water and cheap food somewhere close at hand. 

Havasupai Falls, Grand Canyon

After a night on the rim, we will be waking up bright and early to hike down into the Havasupai Indian Reservation. This place has always been on my mothers bucket list to go back to. I grew up hearing "If there is one place I could take someone before they died, that would be the place". How can you blame that idea when she's actually been there once before and it looks like that. Naturally, when thinking of a place to get our feet wet and "test" out our gear before a big trip, we wanted to check it off.

Second trip: Japan

When asked about where we are going in Japan, the simple reply is everywhere, of course one cannot travel to every single place in a country in 49 days, but we will sure try. This will be taking place right after my Junior Finals are over, from mid-May to the beginning of July. We will be taking off from Seattle- Tacoma Airport and landing in Tokyo with our Japan Rail Passes in hand. Some of the highlights are:

Hagurosan Approach (2,266 steps),
Dewa Sanzan

• Tsukiji Fish Market, Tokyo
•  Ueno Zoo (Giant Pandas!), Tokyo
• Sumo Tournament, Tokyo
• Ghibli Museum (yes, I am one of those Americans that grew up with Miyazaki; yes, I do own all of his movies; and I have made a quilt that is captions from all the famous movies that he produced, that were out in 2010).
• Hakone Loop
• Takeda Castle Ruins, Asago
• Kii Peninsula Hike
• A-Bomb, Hiroshima
• Bike Shimanami Kaido (Shikoku to Honshu)
• Floating Torii, Miyajima Island
• Takachiho gorge
• Dinosaur Park, Sakrajima (next to Kagoshima)
• Yakushima Island 
• snorkel with turtles
• watch turtles lay eggs



Shirantani Unsuikyo, Yakushima Island

• forest that Princess Mononoke was based on
• Akiyoshi-dai Tablelands
• Noto Peninsula
• Hagurosan, Dewa Sanzan
• Rishiri-Rebun
• Jigokundani Onsen, Nakano (bathe with monkeys)

We will be seeing plenty of shrines, temples, rice patties, museums, ryokan, and other attractions along the way. Didn't want to bore you with all of the details in one shot, when all I know is what I and my mother have gleaned off of the internet.