Tag archives: Japan
Kyoto, a sprawling city of 1.5 million, is a captivating patchwork of old and new. More than 400 officially recognized Shinto shrines and approximately 1,600 Buddhist temples are woven into its neighborhoods, along with countless tiny neighborhood shrines tucked into unexpected corners. I picked up a free Rakyo Taxi Kyoto map highlighting 81 temples and […]
It’s difficult enough to try and navigate travel in Japan on one’s own, and while doing so offers an ongoing element of surprise – both good and not so great – I finally cried “Uncle!” After weeks of planning, booking, worrying, I’d just about given up on planning our Japan travel itinerary, when MacKenzie McNeill […]
There were two things I longed to experience during my two-week Japanese sojourn; one was to visit Kyoto, where my father was stationed in the US Army during “Occupied Japan,” and my other wish was to first rest and recover from the overseas flight and time change at an onsen-ryokan in the countryside. These are […]
After making my way through Japanese customs, I was thrilled to be greeted at the airport by Yoshi, who announced with great enthusiasm, “The first cherry blossom has bloomed!” How auspicious, I thought, to arrive on the day of the first official bloom. At first, I imagined there was only one cherry blossom somewhere in […]
“If you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” – African proverb that speaks to the value of community for long journeys. “If you want to go at all… and get there, make sure your flight leaves on time.” – me After decades of solo globe-trotting – first […]
My brother Benjamin Tolan – and you can ask anyone who went to MUS, Crane or Laguna Blanca High School – is best known for his uncanny excellence in whatever he pursues. He can pick up any tune on the flute, saxophone, or piano in just a few listens and dominate in any video game […]
Here are some images capturing only a few of the highlights from my Japan travels earlier this year. Of note was a visit with Hiroshima bombing survivor Sadae Kasaoka, who spent over an hour with us, and seeing the “Atomic Bomb Dome,” a surviving building that was the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall. There was […]
Merlie and I have just returned from three weeks in Japan. Very fortunate to catch the cherry blossoms. It is risky to offer impressions after such brief exposure, but I will try. Many things are exactly as you would expect. Things are orderly. There is no trash or graffiti. People are extremely polite. But guess […]
Japan’s primary broadcaster NHK spotlighted Opera Santa Barbara in an extensive news segment on its Lobero Theatre production An American Dream on the treatment of legal American residents of Japanese heritage after the attack on Pearl Harbor. The Tokyo TV crew was in our Eden by the Beach for several days during the filming. Clearly […]
The cultural treasures of Japan also beckon for members of Montecito Bank & Trust’s MClub, a concierge travel club for premier customers. Thirty members gathered at the University Club for a talk with Hiroko Benko, bubbly owner of the Condor Express whale-watching vessel, whose relative is the country’s 13th Grand Tea Master, and club director […]
Condor Express owner Hiroko Benko has been having a whale of a time visiting her native Japan with friends, including Montecito’s Anne Towbes and her sister, Suzy Farbman. The eclectic itinerary included the Katsura Imperial Villa in Kyoto, which had particular meaning for Hiroko, given a relative, Kobori Enshu, designed the garden in the Edo […]
I was eight when planes piloted (in my comic-books) by sinister-looking Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. Even before then, “Made in Japan” reputedly meant “cheap and shoddy.” During the war, of course, Japanese were simply our diabolical enemies. And, thanks to war-movies like God Is My Co-Pilot, the image of evil Japanese pilots was strongly planted […]
Every now and then (daily), a little voice in my head says: “Oh-oh, dude…” This time we were on the Shinkansen, the 200-mile-per-hour Japanese bullet train that is so smooth you could probably give yourself an intricate tattoo without risk of injury. “Ow!” “What are you doing?” Pat asked. I pulled the tip of the […]
“Are you chewing gum?!” Pat asked. “Hai!” I said, using one of the many (three) Japanese words I knew. We were standing next to The Great Buddha of Kamakura “Daibutsu”, the largest outdoor Buddha in Japan. Built in 1252, the 44-foot-tall, 121-ton seated Buddha draws more tourists than the world’s largest ball of saved wire […]
“Hi, Siri.” “What can I help you with?” “How do you say, ‘My name is Ernie…?’” “I don’t. My name is Siri.” “You didn’t let me finish, Siri.” “What can I help you with?” “I need to know how to say my name…” “I found this website with names.” “…In Japanese. We are going to […]
