Starting tomorrow for the next 8 weeks, I will be backpacking solo in 5 different countries in Asia: There will be many train rides in Japan, hiking and camping along the rim of an active volcano in Indonesia, multi-day hill tribe trek in Thailand, wandering through pagodas in Myanmar, and finally wrapping up at Angkor Wat in Cambodia.
In addition to exploring new places, my goal is really just to be present, spontaneous, and to interact with people from all walks of life.
To properly document this experience, I will be doing a travel blog here on Wix, which I plan on updating once a week whenever I get access to the internet.
The why is clear and the time is now. I am certainly grateful to the company I have been with for the past 9 years for giving me the flexibility to travel on my own terms!
First stop – Japan.
@Arashiyama嵐山
@Arashiyama嵐山
@Fuji富士
@Shizuoka静岡
@Arashiyama嵐山
I spent most nights in hostels during my stay in Japan. Hostels in Japan (the J-Hoppers brand) are inexpensive, well-located, and extremely well-run. More importantly, hostel stay offers the perfect opportunity to meet people from all over the world. I have met travelers from over 20 countries just from my hostel stay alone. Pretty incredible.
During my 2-hour wait freezing in front of this place called Sushi Midori, I got a chance to speak with a businessman from Spain who has been traveling to Japan for his TV business every year for the past decade; then I got seated and had another conversation with this Korean guy from Sacramento sitting next to me who was having an interview in Tokyo the next day, applying to Stanford Business School!
@Yurakucho有楽町
@Koyasan高野山
@Koyasan高野山
@Koyasan高野山
@Nara奈良
@Nara奈良
While I was walking in the area I saw a group of locals, all lined up in this very narrow, dark, cold alley. The alley was about two feet wide, just enough for a single person to walk through. I had no clue what they were lining up for, as the line cut off at the opening of the alley that led to nowhere. But I figured I wouldn’t go wrong with a bunch of locals, so there I was, lining up with them, without knowing what I was lining up for.
After 30 minutes freezing in this dark alley overhearing some Japanese conversations (and understood absolutely nothing), a Japanese girl led me to a steep set of stairs to this tiny flat upstairs. Turned out it was a ramen place and she had me pick a soup base and toppings. The entire place was just over 100 square feet with 8 chairs, no table but a bar counter. This was probably the smallest eatery I’ve ever seen, and the experience was pretty amazing.
@Shinjuku新宿
While I was walking in the area I saw a group of locals, all lined up in this very narrow, dark, cold alley. The alley was about two feet wide, just enough for a single person to walk through. I had no clue what they were lining up for, as the line cut off at the opening of the alley that led to nowhere. But I figured I wouldn’t go wrong with a bunch of locals, so there I was, lining up with them, without knowing what I was lining up for.
After 30 minutes freezing in this dark alley overhearing some Japanese conversations (and understood absolutely nothing), a Japanese girl led me to a steep set of stairs to this tiny flat upstairs. Turned out it was a ramen place and she had me pick a soup base and toppings. The entire place was just over 100 square feet with 8 chairs, no table but a bar counter. This was probably the smallest eatery I’ve ever seen, and the experience was pretty amazing.
@Shinjuku新宿
@ShinjukuNishiguchi新宿西口
@ShinjukuNishiguchi新宿西口
@Arashiyama嵐山
@Shibuya渋谷
@Odaiba台場
@Kamakura鎌倉
@Yoshino吉野山
@Gokokuji護國寺
@Asakusa浅草
@Kyoto京都
@Kyoto京都
@Kyoto京都
@Kibune貴船
@Shibuya渋谷
@Okutama奧多摩
@Okutama奧多摩