4 Days in Tokyo: Sampling a Huge City

Gotokuji Temple Cost: Free Our first stop in Tokyo was actually a little bit farther from the city center. Gotokuji Temple is allegedly the birthplace of the Maneki-Neko (luck cat), and you can see why this legend has persisted. There are several theories and stories surrounding the creation of the beloved symbol, but Gotokuji's own…

3.5 Days in Kyoto: A True Classic

Once the capital of Japan, Kyoto is still a thriving area full of rich history and interesting sights. I love Kyoto because there's so much to see, but it's not as bustling as Tokyo (which I also love for other reasons). There are more natural things to see, such as the Arashiyama bamboo forest and…

Unprompted History: Manga

I have always loved comics. To this day, I believe it's a totally valid form of literature, so much that I even took a course on comics history in college and wrote reviews and analyses for ComicsVerse. People often look at sequential art as a lower form of literature or art, if they even consider…

3 Days in Hamamatsu: A Hidden Gem

The first time I had ever even heard of Hamamatsu was in a small Japanese restaurant in PA with my friend when she received an e-mail detailing the prefecture she would be assigned to as an assistant language teacher in Japan. "I don't even know where that is!" We both had to look it up…

Japan Vegan Diary/Guide

Perhaps you've been wondering why I haven't posted in two weeks, or maybe it hasn't even crossed your mind. Either way, I was in Japan visiting my best friend, Catherine! And we happened to eat some very great vegan food. When I first started researching vegan options in Japan, I got some disheartening search results…

Vegan Destinations: Watkins Glen Farm Sanctuary

If there's one thing I love, it's looking at and petting animals, especially animals you don't think about petting. For example - Turkeys! Turkeys are actually super sweet, smart, and loving creatures. We just don't get to see that side because most of the time we view them from a food lens. Which is valid…

Two Days in the White Mountains, New Hampshire

Before going to the White Mountains, I literally had no idea New Hampshire even had mountains. In fact, I didn't know much about New Hampshire at all. But this area has become one of our favorite destinations so far, mostly due to its beauty and the abundance of things to do and see. I'm not…

Shopping Small in New Hampshire: Books and Antiques

Beannacht Books Bethlehem, NH As somebody who loves to own books but also wants to contribute to a circular economy, used bookstores are my absolute favorite kind of shops, especially family-owned. Beannacht Books was my favorite bookstore of the trip, not only because it was a really cool space but because everything was so organized.…

Travel Wish List: Czechia

I've been thinking about Eastern Europe a lot lately and not just because I watched Chernobyl recently. In fact, I was interested in these countries well before, noting how underrated they seemed as I clicked through article upon article detailing the rich history of all the Eastern countries, from Bulgaria to Romania, Turkey to Ukraine,…

Unprompted History: Mt. Washington Cog Railway and Observatory

A Brief History During our trip the White Mountains in New Hampshire, a friend of ours discovered the Mt. Washington Cog Railway, a 150-year old steam-powered train that scales the side of the 6,288′ Mt. Washington. We actually ended up taking the bio-diesel version up the mountain, but it was still extremely interesting (and way…