Travel Highlights 2023
In 2023, my travel was focused on Honshu, the main island of Japan. Aomori in Aomori Prefecture was the northernmost city I visited, while Kobe in Hyogo Prefecture was the furthest west I ventured. All in all, I visited 24 out of the 47 prefectures, which isn't too shabby, but it is still a far cry from the pre-covid years.
After experiencing the pain of not being able to travel freely during the pandemic, I truly appreciated being able to travel freely this year - mask free as well - without restriction. It was difficult to make a best-of list, when every trip this year felt like This is the best day of my life!™ So without futher ado, these are my top five highlights of 2023.
#5: Harry Potter Studio Tour
On June 16, the Warner Bros. Studio Tour Tokyo opened not far from Ikebukuro in central Tokyo. I was lucky enough to snag a media invite, which allowed me to preview the facility before it opened to the public. Even though I am not a huge fan of the Harry Potter series, the impressive studio walkthrough kept me engaged for almost four hours! I was sure I would be in and out in two hours tops, but was surprised to be entertained for so long - an indication of how much fun I had! I am sure fans of the series would thoroughly enjoy their time here, and those, who like me are not super fans, will also be suitably capitvated.
#4: Akita dog tours
At the end of summer, I visited northern Akita to participate in three tours accompanied by Akita dogs. These autumn-limited tours were held in Odate, the hometown of Akita dogs, which also has an Akita Dog Visitor Center where one can meet some Akita dogs in person. This trip was especially memorable for me because it was the first time for me to hike, canoe and visit a winery with Akita dogs, activities which I had done many times before sans dogs. The Akita were incredibly well-behaved, and each time I saw them I just wanted to hug them.
#3: Iwate
We went to Iwate in the Tohoku Region to shoot the first time to Iwate video. The whole trip was just amazing in terms of the places we visited and the weather, and allowed to view Morioka, the capital city, in a different light. I even went back to Morioka on a separate trip only two months after we shot the video. Two of the spots on our trip that stood out to me were Jodogahama and Kitayamazaki along the Sanriku Coast. Even though I had visited these two spots before on a separate trip hiking along the Michinoku Coastal Trail three years ago, the beauty of these two places wowed me all over again. Perhaps it was the seabreeze and the crashing waves, but energy I felt in Jodogahama and Kitayamazaki just hit different. The Sanriku Coast is a place that I feel I can visit over and over again, and still be spellbound each time.
#2: Koumi Line
At the peak of summer, when the temperatures in Tokyo were constantly over 35 degrees Celsius, I took a one day solo trip traveling on the JR Koumi Line. The rural train line combines two of my two of my special interests of being in high places and taking the local train. The average elevation for the Koumi Line is over 800 meters, which meant that things were generally cooler than Tokyo. On that trip, I visited an interesting fort in the countryside, a radio observatory, the highest point of the Japan Railway and take a lovely sightseeing train, the High Line 1337. It was an eclectic mix of sightseeing spots in a place I had never been before, and I wouldn't have it any other way.
#1: Akita Kanto Matsuri
This year, after over a decade of living in Japan, I finally got round to attending the summer festivals - namely the Sansa Odori in Morioka, Kanto Matsuri in Akita and Nebuta Matsuri in Aomori - in the Tohoku Region. The only major Tohoku summer festival I missed this year was the Tanabata Matsuri in Sendai. The major Tohoku festivals take place around the same time in early August, making it convenient to stay in the region and attend all the festivals in succession. Be warned that accommodation typically get booked out quickly, so be sure to book your bullet train seats and accommodation early to avoid any disappointment. All three festivals I attended were very exciting as it was my first time, and each came with their different energies and local charms. I truly enjoyed my summer festival bonanza, but the one that stole my heart was the Akita Kanto Matsuri, which was a beautiful sea of the bamboo lantern poles swaying gracefully in the night sky.
