If you’re considering an Italy honeymoon or even just a romantic getaway in the boot of Europe, then we can’t recommend it enough. The romantic appeal of Venice’s canals, Cinque Terre’s cliff-hugging villages, and to-die-for Italian cuisine had us entranced before we even stepped foot in the country. Italy’s attractions include 54 UNESCO World Heritage …
Burma Street (Mandarin: 緬甸街) goes by many names. Myanmar Street is derived from the country’s official name today, while many still prefer the Southeast Asian nation’s former name, Burma. The actual street in Zhonghe, a crowded district of New Taipei City, is called Huaxin Street (華新街), while the New Taipei City government officially goes with …
Before I took my parents, wife, and one-year-old son on a trip from where we live in Taiwan to Phuket in Thailand (see the difference between Taiwan and Thailand here!), I was on a mission to find the best place to stay in Phuket for families. Most importantly, we wanted to be very close to …
Kyoto blew me away. Japan’s ancient capital is a mecca for temple lovers, with so many magnificent historical structures that the city was sparred during WWII campaigns. The city without any doubt deserves a top spot on your Japan travel itinerary. There are so many things to do in Kyoto that you really need four …
Qufu, China is a small but ancient town 550 kilometers south of Beijing in Shandong. This province is famous for three things: Qingdao beer, Tai Shan (Mount Tai), and Qufu, the hometown of Confucius. The Temple of Confucius Qufu is the largest and most important Confucius temple in the world, and together with the adjoining …
The Kumano Kodo is a network of pilgrimage trails that connect various Shinto-Buddhist sites in the mountainous Kii Peninsula south of Osaka and Nagoya, and is considered one of the world’s great pilgrimages that travelers can easily join. These expansive tracts of wilderness are replete with spiritual sights that have attracted pilgrims for 1000+ years, …
In 2018 I visited Wakayama, a remote and wild region of Japan south of Osaka and Nagoya, to walk parts of the Kumano Kodo, a network of ancient pilgrimage trails. These trails are easily accessible, making them one of the best pilgrimages in the world for travelers. Besides these amazing hot springs at the eastern …
Hikers doing Japan’s Kumano Kodo walk, a network of trails that follow a pilgrimage route going back over 1000 years in Wakayama prefecture south of Osaka and Nagoya, are rewarded with a plethora of hot spring baths along the trail. After tramping up and down forested trails all day long, one of the best things …
Almost exactly 10 years ago as I write this, I left my home in Canada to go traveling and teach English in China. I had traveled extensively before that, but this was the first time I was leaving on a one-way ticket. It was a path that eventually led me to Taiwan, where I still …
On my recent 10-day winter trip to Japan, my plan was to not step foot in a single city, hike parts of the Kumano Kodo pilgrimage, one of the world’s best pilgrimages that travelers can easily embark on, and only stay in traditional minshuku, ryokan, and temples. For the latter, doing a temple stay in …
