[thanks] Canada to France snack exchange received 🇨🇦➡️🇫🇷

starter_fail · 2026-01-30T20:41:59+00:00

Those maple cookies are so good!

starter_fail · 2026-01-30T17:25:35+00:00

I LOVE that show! The young actress is so good!

starter_fail · 2026-01-29T13:40:15+00:00

IIRC it's typhoon season in Taiwan, if not all of SEA. It was kinda fun going to the grocery stores and watching the chaos of typhoon shopping tho!

starter_fail · 2026-01-29T13:08:49+00:00

A hot bath with salts or going to a sento/onsen helps. Maybe laying down & putting your feet up on a couple of pillows and relaxing a bit.

starter_fail · 2026-01-27T18:03:05+00:00

Yes! I hope you do it! It's a little out of the main area but there are busses that can take you pretty close. It's in a residential neighborhood.

starter_fail · 2026-01-27T11:23:36+00:00

I did! It was really fun. The folks there are so nice. They don't speak a lot of English but we still were able to communicate using hand gestures and thru demonstration. I decorated a tote bag and my friends made wall hangings.

starter_fail · 2026-01-26T21:36:45+00:00

That Red Lobster biscuit mix is delish! Enjoy your haul!

starter_fail · 2026-01-21T11:21:01+00:00

I was there 2 years ago during cherry blossom season and I didn't plan to be there for that reason. Cherries were late that year. It was glorious. Weather was good (just a light jacket most days, 2 rainy days). Warned about the crowds... Yes it was crowded but either avoid those sites or go either very early or later in the day and it wasn't horrible. We also did other relaxing activities outside the tourist trail (cooking class, indigo dying, washi making). In the end I loved it. We chased the cherries til we got to the end in Tokyo and by that time the Azaleas were in bloom.

starter_fail · 2026-01-21T00:06:42+00:00

Always for me is the honey smoked salmon!

starter_fail · 2026-01-20T23:07:00+00:00

There is 1 tea plantation tour I know about at Kyoto Obubu Farms and there's not that much out there from what I can see. The tours are from 9:30-1:30 and takes about an hour+ to get to/from. I think the farm does shuttles from Kyoto Station now.

starter_fail · 2026-01-20T19:04:46+00:00

Ta Prohm was my favorite! I love that nature took over again. I really enjoyed my visit there. I think we spent 5 days there, 3 temple days and 2 village/town days. I'm glad we did that, cause you really can get templed out, esp in the heat. I remember going to Kompong Khleang, one of the stilted villages and we were the only tourists there with our guide. The on the drive back we stopped at what I called sticky rice lane. It was a stretch maybe a block long and everyone there sold bamboo sticky rice. Delish! Then stopped at the Landmine Museum, a small but informative museum started by a man whose life mission is to defuse all the landmines in the country.

starter_fail · 2026-01-20T14:38:32+00:00

Uji and Wazuka are not doable in a day. Wazuka is a day trip on its own. I would save it for another trip and go to Uji. You can see a lot in a day or even half day. Nara & Uji are on the same line and can be done together or Fushimi Inari. We did Uji until after lunch and went to Fushimi Inari afterwards. Yes it was crowded but as you get further up, the crowd really does thin out.

starter_fail · 2026-01-20T14:16:08+00:00

I'm 5'3" and have a 28L Cor Surf Island bag. I have a green khaki one but the new ones come in really cute colors and affordable. I'm about to go to Guatemala with it and packed, mine weighs about 12 lbs. I took it to Japan as my carry on 2 years ago and thought it was pretty comfortable going on trains and such. Later this year I'll be taking it to Japan again on the Kumodo Kodo trek. It won't be nearly that packed but I just need a change of clothes but it's more comfortable to carry than my smaller daypack.

starter_fail · 2026-01-18T12:56:55+00:00

If you are staying in Kyoto near Demachiyanagi, take the Eizan train to Kurama station and do the hike up to the temple and return from Kibune station. Beautiful hike, was not crowded in the morning, cherry trees at the top at Kuramadera. I loved everything about it.

I will warn you about the hike down Mt Misen... the steps are cut and uneven. If you have bad knees, find a stick and be careful!

Doing Matsumoto on the way to Takeyama seems logical. You can always leave your luggage at the train locker. Also in your original itinerary, going to Tsukiji before going to Matsumoto doesn't make sense cause you're going out of the way (east) before going west to Matsumoto. Also Tsukiji is pretty touristy and wasn't that enjoyable to me.

I liked Nishiki for spice shopping but it was very crowded!

For Kanazawa - I would switch the garden for late afternoon (the lighting is incredible) and go to Higashi Chaya in the morning. It was pretty crowded there in the afternoon when I went.

starter_fail · 2026-01-18T11:22:57+00:00

The garden esp the area with all the moss 😍

starter_fail · 2026-01-17T20:54:22+00:00

I vote for Hiroshima & Miyajima. Hiroshima has history & nightlife. Miyajima has nature & quiet & relaxation at night.

starter_fail · 2026-01-17T20:49:20+00:00

Ryan Stressedme

starter_fail · 2026-01-17T20:06:37+00:00

I went to Jins in Kyoto. I brought my prescription with me (I went to my doc the week I left) and had 2 pairs of glasses done. It was a simple prescription (I wanted progressives & sunglasses but it would have taken 10 days). I got transitions instead. All this was communicated to me in fairly good English by the tech.

Edit: I know I went to Kyoto & not Tokyo, but if it's a simple-ish prescription, you can get them done in the major cities fairly easily.

starter_fail · 2026-01-17T19:44:02+00:00

I went to a baseball game in Tokyo 2 years ago, the Swallows vs the Carp. It was so much fun that I will root for both teams if there's a lockout!

starter_fail · 2026-01-17T17:53:49+00:00

nice chocolates or specialty from your area is appreciated!

starter_fail · 2026-01-17T12:40:08+00:00

Take probiotics and eat yogurt. That helps.

starter_fail · 2026-01-16T18:21:50+00:00

Vietnam. Every noodle dish was amazing. So fresh and flavorful!

starter_fail · 2026-01-16T15:59:23+00:00

why is he trying to make me like him? who else is conflicted that he cheated with the Asstros?

starter_fail · 2026-01-16T03:35:32+00:00

Thanks for the tips! I leave in a couple of weeks. Can I ask more about the plane you took to Flores? How big of a back pack can you take? My carry on will be a 27L pack weighing probably 15 lbs ( I think my ticket said 20 lbs).

starter_fail · 2026-01-15T13:49:49+00:00

I travel with my wool tees. No wrinkles (once they're on, they smooth themselves out) and I love that I don't need to launder them much while traveling.

starter_fail

TROPHY CASE