itine-rantur

[itine-rantur]

Japan revisited 🇯🇵

It has been roughly six months since my trip to Japan. So many things have happened between then and now, and my brain is slowly burying my memories of the moments spent there. This is why I have decided to document as much of that trip as possible. In fact, I aim to document as many of the trips I will go on in 2019 and onward, both in and out of Australia. I have developed a slight fear of forgetting. Forgetting the sights and the moments that I’ve been blessed to experience. Hopefully by chronicling my travels, I will be able to go back and remember the feelings I felt and the sights I was able to see. 

This trip was my first trip out of the country where I was solely independent - it was just me, my boyfriend and my sister. Because of this, I feel as though I was able to foster my sense of independence, and was able to experience things from a new perspective. 

Please look forward to a rough recollection of my thoughts and the photos of the scenery I was able to capture as we travelled through the various prefectures of Japan. And also the photos of the food. 

 🍜🍣🍙🍡🍵

[itine-rantur]

I cannot wait to be back in Japan again. I was able to see just a snippet of the beauty of this country through my travels in Osaka and Kyoto last year. But it wasn’t enough for me, and now I plan to fully immerse myself in the scenery and culture. Photos do not do these places justice, they don’t fully capture the magical essence that these spots contain. It was life changing and I’ll be back to experience it all again very soon. 

So far these are the photos I’ve captured that I feel showcase what Japan has to offer.

December 2, 2017 Everywhere we went throughout the temples in Kyoto, there were these tiny statues - some with little red bibs - that would ominously stare and stand guard. I found out that they were known as Ojizo-sama, and that they were present at shrines, graveyards and even by the road. Ojizo-sama is supposed to be the guardian of children and those who pass before their parents, and was both a comforting yet mournful symbol to see. 

December 1, 2017 The Dotonbori area in Osaka is world renowned and is famous for the giant neon sign depicting the Glico man. I saw crowds of tourists scrambling to take photos, imitating the pose, and it was overall very packed. But if you turn around, on the opposite side of the bridge, there’s a much calmer, quiet side to the otherwise bustling section of Dotonbori. There were plenty of quiet side streets too, where you could be walking through shoulder-to-shoulder crowds, and then as soon as you turn into a small street, it turns quiet and empty. 

December 2, 2017 As soon as you come out of the Gion-Shijo station and cross along Shijo-dori, there’s a long strip of land that goes along the side of the Kamo river known as Pontocho. I went here during winter, so there weren’t many people out along the riverside, but supposedly in the summertime, the restaurants that are situated along Pontocho set up stall along the river to help cool their patrons down. 

December 1, 2017 Great food was of abundance throughout the locations I visited in Japan. Something that stood out in particular was the takoyaki in Osaka. Takoyaki originated in Osaka, so it was an amazing opportunity to try my first authentically made takoyaki in its birthplace. And it did not disappoint. It was surprisingly soft and fluffy on the inside despite looking like solid spheres, and the insides were all oozy and perfect. 

[itine-rantur]

Japan 2018

I’ll be travelling to Japan with my boyfriend and sister in a week’s time. We’ll be starting our journey from Osaka, then travelling through Miyajima, Hiroshima, Kyoto, Nara, Uji and then finishing off in Tokyo.

This is a chance for me to capture a variety of shots throughout Japan, to create a digital scrapbook and journal of my travels. 

See you in Japan.