A selection of some interesting signs found during the trip.

The golden pavilion (鹿苑寺 – rokuonji) in Kyoto is a gorgeous temple and grounds and very well maintained. Like all the national landmarks hordes of workers are constantly tending the land: picking up leaves one by one and replacing stones scuffed off walkways. We debate on how many of these…

The Tokyo fish market is as crazy as it is said to be. Sarah and I did not bother trying to go the the tuna auction in the morning since one really needs to get there by 4:30 to get a spot. But we did arrive in time to catch…

This is the first full day after having met up with Nikesh, Alex, and Marina. We will be with the first two for the remainder of the trip but Marina will be leaving in a week. Tokyo is the busiest city I have yet to see. The sidewalks and streets…

Another huge travel day. This is the last day in the Japanese country side. After this it is all big cites: Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, and Hiroshima. But, before rejoining the hectic life (and holy shit is Tokyo hectic) we walked the 8 km between 2 post towns following the footsteps…

Apple tarts and coffee started off the day – light fair to be made up for later. The daily exercise of excess started at lunch. Pretty standard North Indian fair as can be found all around where we live in the US, but presumably a find in Japan. At least…

The traditional Japanse castle in Matsumoto is the oldest and only one of the surviving castles to be painted black. It is very well preserved and Includes and exquisite collection of match and flint lock guns. The vast majority of the day was taken up by an annoying local train…

Yudanaka does not have onsen only for people but monkeys as well. While paling in comparison to la isla de los monos in Peru, the snow monkey sanctuary was pretty sweet. Monkeys, monkeys everywhere and close enough to shake off on you after dipping in their hot springs. Since its…

Breakfast at the ryokan was more delicious than dinner since there were no gelatinous or sticky substances (no nattou yet). It included smoked salmon, a scrambled egg concoction, roll your own maki, a vegetable and fish cake soup, miso soup, local yogurt, and more. Hora (see the pictures).

It’s hard to know exactly what day it is at this point, but the jet lag mitigation plan seems to have worked. We’re tired but fully functional. Japan is by far the most confusing place to navigate of any of our foreign in destinations. Addresses are nonsensical at best. Places…