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5It’s been my observation that most people who have never been to Japan seem to think of Fukushima as an uninhabitable nuclear wasteland. My Facebook friends are surprised when on some of my posts I wrote that I traveled through … Continue reading →
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1Towada in Chinese/Japanese characters There is evidence that Christianity may have come to Japan long before the Jesuit priest, Francis Xavier reached Japan on July 27, 1549. The northern prefecture of Honshu, Aomori, contains many Christian symbols that predate Xaxier, … Continue reading →
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3I still hear a lot of fear-mongering about the Fukushima nuclear accident. Some call it “worse than Chernobyl”. I find no logic in that statement at all. Two and a half years later and yet not a single Fukushima power … Continue reading →
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3November 19, 2012: It was a bright sunny day and I didn’t want to spend it indoors in front of a PC screen. Instead I rode my bicycle to a village at the foothills of Mt. Yahiko, about 33 kilometers … Continue reading →
Having fun hitchhiking in northern Japan, making new friends, and saving a bucket of cash.
Continue reading →Most of the Tohoku (northeast) region of Honshu Japan could fit in Lake Michigan.
Continue reading →Getting treated to an oyster snack on my 400-mile hitchhike adventure in Northern Japan.
Continue reading →Mr. Murata playing his handmade shakuhachi On June 22, 2012, Mr. and Mrs. Murata picked me up from Nikaho, Akita Prefecture, and invited me to drink tea with them in their home in Akita city. Mr. Murata’s hobby is making … Continue reading →
June 15, 2012: The day is bright and sunny with thin and wispy cirrus clouds. Again as I did the previous week, I started off from Majima station on Route 345 at 7:35 AM. This time I didn’t catch the … Continue reading →
Mr. and Mrs. Sakura in their living room Sunday, June 10, 2012: I hitchhiked 404 kilometers (253 miles) from Aomori Prefecture to Niigata City in 9 cars. They consisted of 4 married couples, two small children, 4 single men, 2 … Continue reading →
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6Just take a very close look at the figure and describe what you see! Click it to see an enlargement. Clicking the enlargement will make it yet larger to see more detail. The figure is courtesy of Dr. Nakasato from … Continue reading →
Fukushima Daiichi (meaning #1) Nuclear Plant My brother Mike sent me the following link: http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2011/03/13/world/asia/satellite-photos-japan-before-and-after-tsunami.html Each photo has a slider in the middle. Move the slider back and forth by putting your mouse pointer in the middle of the center … Continue reading →
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1The left arrow points to my location and the right one is the location of one of the nuclear power plants in trouble. Two days ago I was finally able to contact a friend in Sendai, the largest city closest … Continue reading →
The Tohoku or Northeast area of Japan is about the size of Lake Michigan. The earthquake moved this massive amount of land 2.4 m (8 ft) east into the Pacific! That’s what caused the tsunami that killed 19,759 people. It … Continue reading →
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7I’ve been calling all my friends, especially the ones that live close to the earthquake epicenter near Sendai, Japan. Nobody I know was hurt during the earthquake in the slightest. Everybody in Northern Japan experienced the shocks of the quake, … Continue reading →
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2The pointer on the left points to where I lived in Niigata City, and the pointer on the left is where the Fukushima nuclear reactors are that were damaged by the earthquake and tsunami. March 11, 2011: At 2:46 PM … Continue reading →
Walls of snow along road in Japan February 1, 2011: I started out very well with the first ride on my trip to Noda city in Chiba prefecture, just east of Tokyo. The purpose of this trip was to attend … Continue reading →
January 25: Today in 4 cars I hitchhiked back to Niigata. The third driver would have taken me to Nagaoka train station, but because it was not too late, still 4PM with a hour of sunlight left, and because I would … Continue reading →
