Gatwick Airport
29. September 2025 in England ⋅ ☁️ 17 °C
Window shopping! ☕
Shanghai airport
30. September 2025 in China ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C
Someone put a sticker on me somewhere in the International Transfer lane
Tokyo
30. September 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 22 °C
Arrived at Imano hostel at 11:30pm in a pre-booked car from Narita Airport.
Shinjuku, Tokyo
1. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌧 21 °C
I arrived at Imano hostel at 11:30pm in a pre-booked car from Narita Airport. I had a hostel breakfast with a Malaysian family, mum and two teenage girls.
Top priority today was buying a ticket forWeiterlesen
Imperial Palace and Ueno Park
2. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 23 °C
The Imperial Palace East gardens occupy the site of the Edo era palace that burned down. A few sections still stand, and it was a really interesting half day. Lunch was a meat and egg supermarketWeiterlesen
Kyoto and the bullet train
3. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
I was excited about the Shinkansen (bullet train) to Kyoto. It's ok to eat on the train if it's the Shinkansen, so I bought an Ekibento (train bento box). We moved fast, but I had no sensation of 285Weiterlesen
Kyoto palace and temples
4. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌧 21 °C
Kyoto's Imperial Palace was rebuilt in 1869 in traditional 8th century style in cedar wood after it burned down, as it had several times before.
The guide's English was perfect but I couldn't hearWeiterlesen
Kyoto Golden Pavilion and Monkeys
5. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌧 23 °C
I took an early bus to be at Kinkakuji Temple, the Golden Pavilion, at 9AM, but it was already busy, with parties of schoolchildren and Chinese and Italian tour groups. It's still breathtaking even inWeiterlesen
Kyoto slow day
6. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C
My last day in Kyoto. I took a bus to the Silver Pavilion (Ginkakuji) which has immaculate gardens of trees, moss, stones and a sea of silver sand. Walking the Philosopher's Path back to the centreWeiterlesen
Tokushima - travel day
7. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C
I was impatient to leave big cities, go to Shikoku Island and start the walk. I took a bus to Kyoto station, waited a stressful 30 minutes to buy a ticket for the train to Osaka and took the train,Weiterlesen
Temples 1-6, Tokushima
8. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C
This pilgrimage visits 88 Buddhist Temples around Shikoku. The Japanese use a mixture of walking, car and public transport.
Temples 1-6 are close together so it's easy to visit them all in one day byWeiterlesen
Temples 7-10, Kamojima
9. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 20 °C
It was not as hot today and I felt much better. I walked all day with a Québécoise called Pauline (Porinu on her breakfast place).
We walked through villages and it's been more rural. It's stillWeiterlesen
Temples 11-12, Kamiyama
10. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C
Today was a hard day, but not as tough as it could have been. Temple 12 is on a mountain with a very steep ascent to reach it. I worried about whether I could walk from my hostel to Temple 11, toWeiterlesen
Temples 13-17, Kokufu
11. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C
I chose an alternative, more rural route to Temple 13 and saw no other Henros. It went through a National Park with pine trees and weeping cherries and passed a power station surrounded byWeiterlesen
Temples 18-19, Tatsue
12. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C
All rooms are booked near these temples so I'm returning to Tokushima each day and missing out some road walking.
I saw a man feeding a cat and stopped to watch. He beckoned me over and let meWeiterlesen
Temples 20-22, Aratano
13. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 25 °C
A very nice day. Temples 20 and 21 are on the top of mountains, and required a lot of climbing. I love steep narrow mountain tracks beside ravines. Then, once you're at the temple, there are lots ofWeiterlesen
Hiwasa
14. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C
Late start today after taking a train out from Tokushima to Aratano where I finished yesterday. I was worried about the heat as 29 degrees was the forecast but in fact there was nearly always shade,Weiterlesen
Temple 23, Sabase, near Mugi
15. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C
After visiting Temple 23, as an alternative to a busy main road, I diverted to a quiet ravine-spanning coast road that promised ocean views, although 5km longer. Now and then monkeys loped across theWeiterlesen
Shisakui
16. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 26 °C
I detoured to explore a scenic area and found pretty coastline and a lake with jumping fish.
On the road, a man was harvesting persimmons with a clever gadget which I admired, and he gave me twoWeiterlesen
Temple 24 - Maruto
17. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌬 26 °C
This was a half rest day to give time for exploring Cape Muroto, a rocky tip of land and a Geo Park because it has interesting rock formations. However, it was very hot, 29 degrees, so I retreated toWeiterlesen
Temples 25-26, Nahari
18. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C
A half day and another Onsen! At Temple 25 a temple employee and her son helped me phone my host for tonight. The boy especially was very happy to help and waved me goodbye enthusiastically.
When IWeiterlesen
Temple 27 - Kochi City
19. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C
Misono prepared us a delicious breakfast and offered to transport my backpack so I didn't need to carry it up and down the mountain that Temple 27 is on. She is very kind.
I took a train to KochiWeiterlesen
Temple 31 - Kochi City
20. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C
Rest day in Kochi. EN hostel was so awful that I asked to leave and transferred to Bonito Guest House, which is much more comfortable and sociable with its communal kitchen.
A Kochi tourist busWeiterlesen
Temples 28-30, Kochi City
21. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C
On my last day before travelling to the airport, instead of having another rest day, I went walking.
At Kochi station in the morning I pressed a black button to open the waiting room door (as IWeiterlesen
Kanzai International Airport, Osaka
22. Oktober 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C
I was beginning to like Kochi City with its birds tweeting in palm trees, painted streetcars and Mont-bell outdoor clothing store, but today I travelled to Osaka's airport.
At Kochi station I hadWeiterlesen

































































































































































































































































































































































































































ReisenderNot tempted?!
ReisenderI'm not sure that a pilgrimage walk needs a £500 handbag...
Reisender😂😂