Day 22: Drink til you drop

Today was all about the booze! We started with a tour of the Asahi Suita Factory in the morning. The whole tour was conducted in Japanese but we were given English audio guides so we were still able to fully appreciate everything. We saw the bottling and canning process taking place, and just some of …

Day 21: Triple dinner

Today the sun was shining and we wanted to pack in lots of random things. We started with our usual breakfast from the konbini but for lunch and dinner we switched it up a bit. We walked down to an area called Shinsaibashi which is known for all of the streets of shops. We weren't …

Day 20: Deer oh deer

This morning got off to a bit of slower start with Joseph's ankle giving him some grief with all the walking we've been doing. Thankfully it wasn't too bad so we headed off to Nara Park to do some deer shooting (photography not guns). Nara was a gorgeous spot, packed with tourists and their more …

Day 19: Final stop in Japan

Today we packed up our things and took the bullet train up to Osaka, our final stop in Japan. Just the thought of that makes me sad! We navigated the subway systems and made our way to the Osaka castle and gardens. The tiny dogs were out in force as it was a Sunday, and …

Day 18: Acting cultured

Today we had another day of exploring on the cards. We jumped on the train down to Uno Port where we took the ferry to Naoshima Island, otherwise known as the art island. The island had been recommended to us by some friends who had also suggested we hire bicycles to get around, and that …

Day 17: making friends

What a day! It all began with an early start, heading south on the train to the port town of Onomichi. Once there we hired bicycles and took a quick ferry over to the first island to begin our journey. The Shimanami Kaido is a 75 kilometre road passing over several small islands in the Seto Inland …

Day 16: Western Art

Today was meant to be another wet one so instead of cycling, we visited Kurashiki by train and wandered around the Bikan Quarter. It had beautiful canals with weeping willows, and even a few swans. We visited the Ohara Museum of Art and saw some work by the old masters. As the first museum of …

Day 15: Deer & Beer

This morning we woke up and it was pouring with rain, not exactly ideal sightseeing weather! Nonetheless we got everything packed up and got a taxi to the train station to avoid getting our bags soaked. Unfortunately it turned out that all of the coin lockers to store luggage were out of action to prevent …

Day 14: Bunnies

Today was another amazing day! We got up early and took a train down the coast before boarding a ferry bound for an island covered in fluffy creatures. Ōkunoshima otherwise known as rabbit island, was awesome! We had some cabbage from our lovely okonomiyaki chef which was lucky as they didn't sell anything on the …

Day 13: Okonomiyaki!

Today we had an earlier start, fitting in a trip to the beautiful Shosei-en garden before heading to the train station and catching the bullet train south to Hiroshima. I had my first experience with a delicious train bento box which I enjoyed on the 90 minute journey. Once we arrived in Hiroshima it was …