Japan City Series - Chubu Area - Kanazawa-shi, Ishikawa-ken

May 29, 2025 by Aaron Johnston in japan

Next up on my Japan City series of the Chubu area is the lovely Kanazawa!

The city of Kanazawa is a place I wished I would have went to a lot sooner than I did because after visiting, I already wished I could go back. It had the historic feel of Kyoto but without being as touristy and busy. It’s like if Kyoto had a sibling. Kanazawa can do what Kyoto can, but just to a smaller degree but that doesn’t minimize how much enjoyment you can have there. It has a historic old town, beautiful gardens and a favourite of mine, a castle (well, just the grounds, the castle is gone T_T). I just can’t get enough of castles!

Japan City Series - Chubu Area - Okazaki-shi, Aichi-ken

April 23, 2025 by Aaron Johnston in japan

I kick off my Japan City series of the Chubu area with Okazaki!

The city of Okazaki is a special place for me personally since I spent 3 months there living at a home stay while going to a Japanese language school. So, even though I may have a personal bias towards Okazaki, if you plan on making a stop in Achi-ken, especially in the nearby Nagoya, here are a few reasons why Okazaki should make your list.

Japan City Series - Introduction

February 13, 2025 by Aaron Johnston in japan

In this series, I’d like to introduce you to a number of cities that I have visited over the years in order to highlight some of the local spots and food that I found interesting. In doing so, it might generate some interest and curiosity to consider these places while planning your trip to Japan.

The Tokaido Sanyo Kyushu Shinkansen & The smartEX App

January 25, 2025 by Aaron Johnston in japan

Taking the Shinkansen in Japan has to be up there in my Top 3 of ways of getting around Japan in a comfortable, hassle free and efficient way. Actually, taking the train in Japan is definitely my most preferred way of getting around, hands down! And if you love riding trains and getting to your destinations as quickly as possible via the train, then there is no better way than the Shinkansen. To learn more about the Tokaido Sanyo Kyushu Shinkansen and a hassle free way to find and buy tickets, you’ve come to the right place!

Flights, Flights & Flights

June 07, 2024 by Aaron Johnston in japan

Someone I know recently posed the question to a group chat asking if anyone had some tips regarding finding flights to Japan. Even though I don’t have any magical tools that will find any secret flights, I do follow a number of strategies before I click buy to ensure I feel at peace with my purchase.

And I figured, this would be a good thing to add to this here blog as it could help other friends and/or random internet beings find the best deal to Japan or elsewhere.

While what I write below will use Japan as the primary example, I am confident that my notes will work for flights to anywhere you want to go. Again, this is just what I do. It’s not proven, it’s likely not the best method, but it’s worked in such a way that I feel good knowing I did as much research as I could within the confines of my vacation window.

Winter 2024 Japan (Cai Remix)

April 03, 2024 by Aaron Johnston in japan

For just over three weeks in February and March, Mindy and I took our little 5 month old to Japan. Yes, you read that right, we took a 5 month old baby, Cai, to Japan.

Merry Christmas

December 24, 2019 by Aaron Johnston in japan

This Christmas is going to be a weird one. I have to really go out of my way to make it even remotely seem like Christmas is around me this year. I knew it would be like this, but knowing that I’ll be missing all the festive activities with Mindy, my family and her family is still a bummer no matter how you look at it. Nonetheless, there is always next year so I’ll have to double down on the festivities then.

I’ll be at school on Christmas Day but I plan on eating chicken and cake during my lunch to celebrate Japanese style since that’s what a lot of people here think is the traditional style meal. You should see how busy it is at KFC. It’s crazy town. I’m tempted to go, but battling the lines and the long wait times don’t seem like a fun way to spend the time.

Also, I have to prepare a short little presentation on a movie review on the 26th. Naturally, I’m choosing Scott Pilgrim vs the World since it’s got a great mix of pop culture and some Canadiana mixed in. So needless to say, I’ll be studying on Christmas, like a good boy. Did you hear that Santa?

We did have a pretty rad Christmas Eve dinner tonight. Homemade pizza and various types of fried meats (beef, pork, fish, etc.) but all roads lead to chicken always tasting the best. There was also a cake, but everyone ate so much dinner that there was no room for dessert. Alas, we can go crazy on the cake tomorrow.

I hope you all have a great Christmas holiday and really cherish the moments you have with others. Those specific moments will only ever happen once, so don’t let them pass carelessly.

I also hope you find your Christmas Unicorn.

n_n

Please enjoy this little Christmas tune courtesy of the super cool Sufjan Stevens.

Nabana no Sato

December 03, 2019 by Aaron Johnston in japan

As previously mentioned, my shenanigans didn't end on Saturday when I left Nagoya and returned back home in Okazaki.

No, they were only just beginning.

After returning, I spent a little bit of time in my room and then hung out with the family until it was time for dinner. During dinner, they asked if I wanted to visit Nabana no Sato, a garden with a special illumination during the winter season. When I asked when, they said right after dinner.

So I soon found myself in the backseat of their van, heading down the expressway towards our end destination. It was about a 40 min drive or so and technically, in a different prefecture, Mie-ken, so I can check off another prefecture off of my list of the many I still need to set my foot in.

It cools off a lot during the evenings now so I am glad I threw on a sweater before heading out since our entire time at the gardens was obviously spent outdoors.

Upon arriving though, we weren't greeted by various flowers, but instead strings and strings of lights everywhere. Thinking about it now, I wonder how long it took the crew to set this all up and also, how many individual lights was I surrounded by. Too many. Naturally, I didn't take many pictures of the lights cause that's way too cool.

The most impressive sights though were the trees (with momiji) along a pond that were reflecting perfectly along the surface of the water. My pictures don't do the the sight any justice.

After proceeding through a massive light tunnel where everyone and their mom wanted to take pictures, we were introduced to the main attraction, a giant backdrop to recreate a mountain forest scene. From here, well, was an amazing light show supported by different music tracks.

In the video below, this is just one of the short light shows that was on display. I think the entire loop took about 15 min and was comprised of probably 5 or 6 short themes.

Viewing this spectacle was definitely worth the price of admission and definitely secured this as something I was glad to participate in.

After heading back to the main area, we did some omiyage (souvenir) shopping since our ticket included a voucher to buy stuff at their shop. It was a use it or lose it sort of thing so I ended up buying some random stuff which is to be kept a secret for now.

So yah, if you're ever randomly in Japan at this time of year and enjoy lights, music and action, go to Nabana no Sato. And then maybe catch a film after to really solidify an awesome day in Japan.