What I learned today was that life in the Japanese Alps during the Sengoku (Warring Provinces) period must have been fairly brutal for all involved–the warlords who were constantly having to raise armies to attack their rivals, or defend against those attacks; the reluctant farmers who were forced to leave the rice paddies they hadContinue reading “Nakasendo Trail: Day 5 (Yabuhara to Narai and Matsumoto)”
Category Archives: goldeneagle
Nakasendo Trail: Day 4 (Kiso-Fukushima)
Today was my favorite day of the trip even though we just stayed around Kiso-Fukushima, and that was largely because it was my sister’s birthday, so we maximized the fun. The weather had thankfully cooled off a bit, so while the Germans peeled off to go back to a nature preserve on the Kiso RiverContinue reading “Nakasendo Trail: Day 4 (Kiso-Fukushima)”
Nakasendo Trail: Day Two (Tsumago to Nagiso and Kiso-Fukushima)
This was the day I met my Japanese boyfriend, Kiso Yoshinaka. Never mind that he’s been dead for 900 years and change; I like unavailable men. But more on Naka-chan in a bit…. Since my sister was recovering from a foot injury, and I had tweaked my knee the previous day, we let the restContinue reading “Nakasendo Trail: Day Two (Tsumago to Nagiso and Kiso-Fukushima)”
Nakasendo Trail: Day 1–Magome to Tsumago
The Nakasendo (literally “central mountain route”) was formalized in the Edo period (17th century), stringing together a series of mountain passes that travelers from the Kyōto area to the Tōsando (the middle and northern mountainous provinces of the Honshu island of Japan) had used since the 7th century. The tour we chose was Nakasendo andContinue reading “Nakasendo Trail: Day 1–Magome to Tsumago”
Nakasendo Trail: the Pre-Game Show
I knew we were in for it the minute we stepped out of the Chiba train station at 8 pm and it felt like someone had thrown a black plastic bag over my whole body. It was the second of September, and yet my weather app avowed it was 88°F with 80% humidity, even withContinue reading “Nakasendo Trail: the Pre-Game Show”
A Weekend in Japantown SFO
I threatened to post this before, and this seems like as good a time to make good on that threat as any, as I just got back from a quick overnight trip to Japantown. Friday Night There’s really nowhere else to stay but Hotel Kabuki. Well, that’s not literally true, but you’re not going toContinue reading “A Weekend in Japantown SFO”
Wright’s Beach: Watercolors and Haiku
I usually take my watercolors along and try to knock out a few postcards while I’m sitting on the beach–it’s a good way to pass the time, and salt water creates some neat effects with the pigments. Also, in lieu of writing a journal-style blog post about my week on the coast, I wrote aContinue reading “Wright’s Beach: Watercolors and Haiku”
Wright’s Beach: Photos
I spent a whole week camping at Wright’s Beach with the dogs this year, which gave me plenty of beach days as well as excursions to dog parks and trails in the area. Since I have reels of beach photos already, I tried to take pictures in some other locations like Ft. Ross, the oldContinue reading “Wright’s Beach: Photos”
Mushroom Camp
It all started with the Mushroom Fairy. I was hiking Three Lakes Trail up at Donner Summit with my dogs, maybe 10 years ago, and suddenly out of the woods stepped this beautiful girl—wearing a full peasant skirt, long dark hair braided back, carrying a basket full of mushrooms. At least that’s how I remember her.Continue reading “Mushroom Camp”
A Weekend in Las Vegas
Vegas gets a bad rap, and deservedly so: it sprawls out in every direction like it’s scrambling for dollars at a strip club, oblivious to the needs of the environment and the wellbeing of the people who live there—heck, even threatening the livelihoods of ranchers hundreds of miles away in its endless thirst for growthContinue reading “A Weekend in Las Vegas”
The Rookery 