The Ryokan Kappo Sekiya, Beppu, Japan

Stepping off the train platform, we arrived at Beppu in the evening and started the search for our accommodation for the next 2 nights. After having had a wonderful experience staying at one traditional Japanese inn (read about that here), we were excited about our next experience at the Ryokan Kappo Sekiya in Beppu.

The Kumamoto Castle, Japan

The picturesque view of the mountains from the Kumamoto Castle.

A must-see tourist attraction while in Kumamoto was the castle. It sits on top of a hill making the view of the surrounding landscape spectacular.

Hotel THB Class Felip, Mallorca

Residential estates at Porto Cristo with a sea view. Taken from the beach right in front of our hotel.

While our time sight-seeing on Mallorca was great, our hotel was rather disappointing.

Christmas markets in Baden Württemberg, Germany!

The Christmas tree standing bright and tall in the heart of Ulm’s Christmas market square.

Christmas is right at our doorstep! For some reason, Christmas has crept up on me this year. Nevertheless, BFF and I could not miss one of our most loved traditions of the season…*drum-roll*…Christmas markets!

A visit to the Bavarian town, Füssen

One of my best friends flew in from the motherland last week. Like me, he usually travels with his partner. However on this trip, he decided to make it solo. Knowing this, I jumped at the opportunity to visit famous Bavarian tourist sites (cause I haven’t visited any of them) and have some “girl time” with him.

The town of Füssen. Taken from the clock tower of High Castle.

The Catacombs in Paris

Human skulls from the 19th century in the Catacombs, Paris

I was in Paris a couple of days ago for a very short while….more specifically, 3 days. This trip to the French capital was a little different from my previous travels: I was traveling with a friend for the first time.

Traveling to the Aeolian islands through Sicily

The city of Milazzo, Sicily from the ferry to the Aeolian islands.

We’re headed to Italy!! More specifically, we’re going to Salina, one of the Aeolian island’s off the coast of Sicily. It’s been 5 years since I was last at Salina so I expect that things won’t be exactly the same as it was before.

Kagoshima to Yakushima

Sakurajima, an active volcano in Kagoshima that has been called the Mt Vesuvius (in Naples, Italy) of the east.

The overnight ferry we took from Amami-Oshima to Kagoshima was similar, if not exactly the same as the one we took earlier in our journey from Okinawa to Amami-Oshima. We arrived at Kagoshima first thing in the morning. We stepped off the ferry to be greeted by grey skies. A few minutes later, it started to rain.

Okinawa’s Kokusai street and the Makishi Public Market

Kokusai street. Left: during the day. Right: bright lights at night.

Weird stuff sold along Kokusai street. Above: Purses made from frog leather. Below: Habushu sake with snakes still in the bottle.

Before arriving to Naha, we heard about a fish market that food-loving tourists should most definitely visit. In our search for this market, we came across Kokusai street which is lined with shops, some selling the strangest things like Habushu, a snake liqueur, and coin purses made of frog leather with the frog’s head still attached. Great for souvenir shopping, this street was constantly buzzing with activity regardless of it being day or night.

One day in Tokyo

Hubby and I recently (say 2 weeks ago?) returned from a trip to Japan. So (I reckon) I will occupy quite a few posts with events and pictures from our trip. Get ready for it, cause this is going to be MASSIVE!!

Visiting Japan was an extraordinary experience! We had 6 weeks to soak in the sights and sounds of the land and the Japanese culture. But because we had 6 weeks, our itinerary was not packed to the last second. So after a 13-hour flight from Europe, we stayed in Tokyo for a night before embarking on another flight to Okinawa the next day.