As previously mentioned, a few weeks ago we headed to a shrine sale/market on a Saturday morning. In one area they were serving food. I love Japanese food. I love that Japanese “fast food” means that someone is cooking it … Continue reading
If you are in Ho Chi Minh, highly suggest calling up Saigon Street Eats and taking a tour. We took a night tour down the crowded side streets (sorry, didn’t do the scooter tour). Amazing to sit and eat fresh … Continue reading
We still have not gotten out as much as we would like in Japan, primarily due to a few things that have take us sideways – but we are getting there. A few weeks ago we headed to the … Continue reading
It has been a little over 3 months since we moved to Japan and I have noticed that my food preferences are changing. I still crave sugar treats (the Dutchman in me), but crave “bready” items less and have … Continue reading
If you have followed this blog at some point you know that one of my favorite places to visit while traveling is a market. Beijing was no different. The markets are the best places to enjoy the “life” of a … Continue reading
Our time in Japan has come to an end. We could have stayed longer, but factors played out that a different choice was the right one for our family. Leaving a country is always a bittersweet experience, there are things … Continue reading
There are two ways to do the great wall. Hitting the tourist areas which are cleared out, easy access and involves a cable ride up and taking a ride down to the bottom via a toboggan OR hitting an abandoned … Continue reading
I think that Yoyogi Park is one of my favorite parks. I love walking it. In Tokyo, people gather in the parks on the weekends. Families, friends, joggers, ninjas, cosplayers, dancers … everyone. That is why it is such a … Continue reading
I will miss trying different foods. Tokyo is for the bold, in this case squid – with a little mushroom. I am quickly approaching the point where I will try anything. As my wife always taught, you have to try … Continue reading
Actually, down the street from where we live – a spring view. Config: Canon 5D Mark III with a Canon 28-300mm f/2.8 USM. Many restaurants look like this, with the welcome cloth over the door. This fellow was arriving, ready … Continue reading
I was in North America for a few hours recently and I grabbed a quick bite in a food court – avoiding the fast food chains (which is really hard) and getting a scratch made sandwich. I walked down the … Continue reading
With Jaipur complete we faced the arduous trip from Jaipur to Delhi. How long would it take? The answer was 5 – 8 hours. Who knows? That is the joy of traveling in India. A couple hundred kilometers is a … Continue reading
Once inside the fort, it felt different than others we had visited. More opulent. You can read more of the forts history here. In a nutshell: The aesthetic ambiance of the palace is seen within its walls on a four … Continue reading
There are 3 ways to the top of the Amber Fort, walk (it is long), a jeep up the side streets (our method) or an elephant ride that wanders up the hill. I jumped in front of this one as … Continue reading
One of the benefits of having a private guide is itinerary control. When we arrived in Jaipur the family was ready for a quiet break from touring. I had to run an errand and Anu accompanied me – through the … Continue reading
Part of the sakura season in Tokyo is the celebration; gathering friends, throwing down a blanket on the grass and hanging out. This usually involves food and of course – drink. It gets very crowded under those trees. I cannot … Continue reading
As I wandered around Chofu I started to get lost. Fortunately I had my iPhone and used it to locate where I was and where I had left the car. Somehow I had gotten quite far off track so I … Continue reading
The Old Delhi markets are a real mix. Inside a city block you can find everything; spices, food, textiles, with a little bit of everything in between. When it comes to colors and textiles, the Indian culture is all about … Continue reading
I had never experienced this before; the tradition of an after meal palate cleanse. At our first (and probably best) lunch during our stay in India they brought out this serving set filled with rock candy, anise seeds and fennel. … Continue reading
After our tour of Siem Reap, Cambodia we headed to Ho Chi Minh city. I have always wanted to visit Vietnam and this was our first time. I think this shot best describes the city. A large city with roughly … Continue reading
The Japanese love baseball. They are crazy about baseball. In Canada you go from town to town and see a hockey rink, in Japan it is a ball diamond. We did our first ballgame a few months ago and it … Continue reading
It is festival time at Yoyogi Park which means a different theme every week. A few weeks ago they had India as the theme; entertainment, shops and food galore. And what festival would be complete without a nan bread mascot?
When we were first considering moving to Tokyo I reached through my network to speak with people who had lived in Japan, I researched and spent a lot of time reading. Safety kept coming up as one of the positives … Continue reading
Our 3rd day included the Monkey Park (previous posts) and a boat ride down the Katsura River which runs below it. Across the river is a famous bridge that people like to photograph, the Togetsukyo or “Moon Crossing bridge”. It … Continue reading
I am not sure if people know about Iwatayama Monkey Park in Kyoto. It wasn’t listed as one of the “must see” in Kyoto as I researched for our trip. But as an animal loving family, when we found out … Continue reading
As mentioned in my initial post on Kyoto, we enjoy learning the history and culture of Japan. We did not know what to expect with our dining with a maiko/geisha/geiko experience. When the maiko-san originally arrived, our interpreter quickly helped … Continue reading
Meet one of the most highly debated fruits. Is it good? Is it awful? Does it smell? (no contest). For those outside of Asia … Durian: Regarded by many people in southeast Asia as the “king of fruits”, the durian … Continue reading
I just read this quote: “The World is a book, and those who do not travel read only a page”. Saint Augustine I never grew up thinking this way. I never dreamed of living in Tokyo or London. It was … Continue reading
Tokyo is filled with great restaurants, the most Michelin stars in the world. But it isn’t all about expensive places, there are amazing small restaurants for all budgets and as the Japanese BMI demonstrates, very few western style fast … Continue reading
TimeOut Tokyo suggested the Earth Day market as a “what to do this weekend” so we headed over on the Sunday afternoon to explore. It was across the street from Yoyogi Park (we had to do some wandering to … Continue reading
For Christmas week we headed up the coast to Hamilton Island, just off the great barrier reef. Here is my simple take on Hamilton Island after much back and forth trying to get the straight goods around tourism in … Continue reading
Once off the cable car you have a host of choices, continuing the trek to the top level of the village and Musashi-Mitake Shrine and/or picking one of many hiking trail. The view of the Japanese countryside is spectacular. … Continue reading
While in Sydney, I kept playing with the HDR on my 5D. The biggest lesson when shooting handheld HDR is ghosting is a pain, and simply doesn’t work when there is motion. The options are to keep the originals … Continue reading
I came across a suggestion that the Edo Open Air Architectural Museum was a worthwhile tourist destination. In retrospect, I would say it was “5/10” and better enjoyed if you can enjoy the park around the museum. It is a … Continue reading
The top of the Mori Tower in Tokyo has the museum, a viewing deck (of the city), a Disney exhibit and restaurants. After the museum we took a look around. It is a great view. We looked at these apartments … Continue reading
After moving around the different food halls we decided to buy lunch and head to one of the rooftops. As you can imagine, there was wide choice. I love eel. This eel is cooked right in front of you, … Continue reading
People often ask me “is Japan expensive”? Yes and no. For example, down the street there is an amazing sushi vendor who has wonderful fresh sushi for very reasonable prices; 6 maki rolls for $3 or $4 and a … Continue reading
You cannot go through Kitchen Town without enjoying the plastic food. A very robust industry exists as many, many Japanese restaurants display plastic food in their windows. I am not sure that it is an effective sales strategy, as … Continue reading
In August we went on a very bad Skybus tour and one of the few English sentences we did understand was around Kitchen Town, a street in Tokyo: Kappabashi-dori, also known just as Kappabashi (Japanese: 合羽橋) or Kitchen Town, … Continue reading
Skipped blogging this week as I was in San Francisco with 90,000 other people attending Dreamforce which was flat out amazing. There is a world of change happening and it is very exciting times in our industry. Before I … Continue reading
It seems to happen to us every once in a while. It happened in Rome; we walked out of the hotel on our first night, wandered down the street and ended up in a tourist trap restaurant that cost … Continue reading
My first full week in Tokyo was quite the week, starting with a bout of food poisoning that put me behind the 8 ball for the entire week (Thank-you for offering me 20% off my next flight un-named Canadian … Continue reading
The next few years will be filled with new experiences and observations. As someone explained to me … the 1st year in Tokyo is filled with confusion, the 2nd with a sense of understanding and the 3rd is when … Continue reading
I have not been posting trip adventures as the winter this year was filled with beaches and water football. Not a lot of adventure. For March break we headed down to Grand Cayman for a break and much of … Continue reading
As many of my friends know, our family is planning a move – to Tokyo. We have often talked about Asia and it has been a personal career goal. As with all goals, if you set your mind to … Continue reading
Or as some like to call it, the tax shelter. We spent a few days there a week ago and were fortunate to have great weather and a lot of fun as a family (Although Atlantis is run down … Continue reading
I have never been to war but have always been fascinated by history, specifically our world’s long track record of epic conflict. While on holiday over the Christmas break I had the opportunity to read What It Is Like … Continue reading
I love this time of the year. Holiday music is everywhere .. the food seems to be better. Sure, there are the year end pressures but there is also opportunity at every turn to find something fantastic. How can … Continue reading
I was listening to the Stuff You Should Know podcast ‘Was Thomas Malthus right about carrying capacity?’ which I knew nothing about. The synopsis of the podcast (which I enjoyed): Thomas Malthus concluded that humanity is bound to outgrow … Continue reading
The summer has finally arrived in Canada and 30C weather is here this week. We are not big drinkers at home, but when the summer hits I admit that we do have a few favourites; a good German Riesling … Continue reading
Michael Weening: a few pictures 