東京 [tokyo]
for the first two weeks of the trip i was working remotely in the early morning (sometimes starting at 2-3am) and then either napping immediately after lunch or exploring the city
this led to some pretty erratic sleep schedules - but i did enjoy being awake during tokyo’s most peaceful hours
this led to some pretty erratic sleep schedules - but i did enjoy being awake during tokyo’s most peaceful hours
finally got to see yuragi and tricot and a bunch of other sick japanese bands
explored a bit of the club scene as well, which i hadn’t gotten into yet during my last trip
was fortunate to catch some local and international favs including:
was fortunate to catch some local and international favs including:
-
k means
-
notte infinita
-
dj maria
-
takumi inamoto
- shinichiro yokota
played a set on room 303 radio in shinjuku
i got to shoot the motion ward anniversary event!
such an all-star lineup of contemporary ambient and a great turnout
such an all-star lineup of contemporary ambient and a great turnout
barely caught the end of cherry blossom season
also nice to see so many good friends converge from all over
大阪 [osaka]
first stop out of tokyo
not much to say about it, i’m afraid
not much to say about it, i’m afraid
高野山 [koya-san]
took a short trip to the largest cemetery in japan; 200,000+ graves nestled in a dark forest
took a short trip to the largest cemetery in japan; 200,000+ graves nestled in a dark forest
we were there at midnight with nobody around and it was eerie - especially when the wind stopped and the forest went totally silent
直島 + 豊島 [naoshima + teshima]
the two most popular of the art islands
there are a handful of small but cool museums and of course many site-specific works incorporated into the landscape
the two most popular of the art islands
there are a handful of small but cool museums and of course many site-specific works incorporated into the landscape
very peaceful and atmospheric after the last ferry leaves
しまなみ海道 [shimanami kaido]
aka the best part of the trip
a 45 mile bike ride across 6 connected islands in the seto inland sea
some of the most breathtaking views of the trip were from this section
the islands are joined by suspension bridges that sort of felt like “level complete” markers and were a ton of fun to bike across
aka the best part of the trip
a 45 mile bike ride across 6 connected islands in the seto inland sea
some of the most breathtaking views of the trip were from this section
the islands are joined by suspension bridges that sort of felt like “level complete” markers and were a ton of fun to bike across
we embarked from onomichi which was itself a very cute seaside town
the route begins with a short ferry ride, then it’s nonstop gorgeous scenery
spirits were high because of golden week and the wonderful weather
there are a couple attractions scattered throughout, including this thing
九州 [kyushu]
the last week of our trip was spent driving around the southernmost main island
the long drives were a highlight, maybe even more than the destinations themselves
the last week of our trip was spent driving around the southernmost main island
the long drives were a highlight, maybe even more than the destinations themselves
lush forests, windy mountain roads, jagged cliffs by the sea, wide open plains, small towns, volcanoes, tunnels, bridges
we even had a couple spooky night drives going down dark rural roads in the rain
we even had a couple spooky night drives going down dark rural roads in the rain
you get used to driving on the left side of the road pretty quickly
鹿児島 [kagoshima]
we drove straight there after getting the car
the highlight of this area was a hike up to karakunidake which overlooks the onamiike crater lake
we drove straight there after getting the car
the highlight of this area was a hike up to karakunidake which overlooks the onamiike crater lake
fukuoka strawberries for the hike
(upside down, oops)
(upside down, oops)
we wanted to stay at one ryokan while in kyushu and were grateful that we planned it for right after the hike
the kirishima onsen area is quite charming
kirishima open air museum
lol
阿蘇山 [aso-san]
mostly driving between different viewpoints to enjoy the landscape which was unique from what we had seen so far with its wide open expanse
mostly driving between different viewpoints to enjoy the landscape which was unique from what we had seen so far with its wide open expanse
a lot of couples doing the takachiho boat rental thing during golden week
very cute
kuju flower park
熊本 [kumamoto]
we stopped by but since the castle was being renovated there wasn’t much to do besides eat lunch and be on our way
we stopped by but since the castle was being renovated there wasn’t much to do besides eat lunch and be on our way
池島 [ikeshima]
we stayed overnight in saikai then took the first ferry out to this semi-abandoned mining island
we stayed overnight in saikai then took the first ferry out to this semi-abandoned mining island
it felt a bit otherworldly
not totally abandoned though as there is still regular ferry service and they run a tour of the defunct mining facility occasionally
not totally abandoned though as there is still regular ferry service and they run a tour of the defunct mining facility occasionally
this was the only safe spot to eat without being bothered - the place is infested with cats
おわり [the end]
we stopped by nagasaki to see the memorial and then drove back to fukuoka to take the camellia ferry to busan
thus concluding japan trip 2025
thanks for reading!
we stopped by nagasaki to see the memorial and then drove back to fukuoka to take the camellia ferry to busan
thus concluding japan trip 2025
thanks for reading!
full itinerary:
tokyo [10]
osaka [3]
koya-san [1]
takamatsu [1]
naoshima [1]
teshima [0]
okayama [0]
onomichi [1]
shimanami kaido [1]
imabari [0]
fukuoka [1]
kagoshima [1]
kirishima [1]
kumamoto [0]
aso [2]
saikai [1]
ikeshima [0]
nagasaki [0]
fukukoka [1]
tokyo [10]
osaka [3]
koya-san [1]
takamatsu [1]
naoshima [1]
teshima [0]
okayama [0]
onomichi [1]
shimanami kaido [1]
imabari [0]
fukuoka [1]
kagoshima [1]
kirishima [1]
kumamoto [0]
aso [2]
saikai [1]
ikeshima [0]
nagasaki [0]
fukukoka [1]
photography remarks:
- all the photos with me in them were taken by gabi
- there aren’t any food photos because i am simply not good at taking them haha
- film is stupid expensive in japan, bring your own
- develop + scan is much cheaper though and the labs i went to in japan had great taste in colors (or a great scanner preset idk)
trip remarks:
- fukuoka is not pictured but i was pleasantly surprised by how fun it was and i liked it a lot more than osaka as a major city, personally
- we only budgeted 2d+1n for the art islands - it felt like the right amount of time for naoshima and teshima but maybe more days to see the other islands would have been nice
- totally missed yakushima in our plan, sad we couldn’t find a way to fit it in since it looks super sick and who knows when we’ll be in kyushu again
- we discovered luggage transport service on this trip and used it 3 times; shipping bags from one hotel to another was pretty painless and cost us only ~$20 which made excursions like the shimanami kaido way more feasible
- familymart’s fried chicken ‘famichiki’ is very famous and popular but actually i think 7-11 had the best fried chicken by far