On March 12, 2020 we checked into a Airbnb house in Monteverde Costa Rica to visit the Cloud Forest, little did we know that would be our home until July. After several cancelled flights and pushbacks we arrived on Maui later in July. As the flight touched ground we knew the conditions of arrival. At the time Maui had a mandatory quarantine for two weeks. This meant anyone arriving had to stay indoors at one address for two weeks beforeRead more
Hiroshima Memorial ~ Japan
After a short 90 minute ride from Osaka on the Shinkansen high speed train awaits Hiroshima. Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. Sadly Hiroshima is also the first city to experience a nuclear bomb explosion. This tragedy happened at 8:15 a.m. on August 6, 1945. The Hiroshima memorial museum is located less than five kilometers away from where the first atomic bomb struck a city on earth. This museum is built to memorialize the victims and catastrophic devastationRead more
Japanese Food
The best thing about visiting Japan is trying different foods that aren’t available anywhere else. Japan surprises with a diversity of dishes that are left out of international Japanese restaurants abroad. Fresh, prepared, packaged and specially ordered foods in Japan have been crafted to bring out their best flavor. Besides using the best quality ingredients, restaurant owners, cooks and chefs take pride in their dishes. This combination presents incredibly tasting food coming out of Japan. Most places in Japan whetherRead more
Osaka ~ Japan
Just when you think you’ve seen it all we land in Osaka. Osaka is full of energy just like Tokyo but not as polished. There is a grittiness to this city but it still has the cleanliness and order Japan has exemplified this entire trip. As soon as we arrived, we put our things in the rental apartment and headed straight for Dontoburi. This neighborhood of Osaka is filled with shops and tons of takoyaki stands. Takoyaki are balls madeRead more
Kyoto ~ Japan
After a high speed ride on the Shinkansen from Tokyo, we arrived in Kyoto . What normally takes six hours in a car only took two on the train. Japan has always been ahead of everyone when it comes to train transportation. The Shinkansen is a high speed bullet train that runs throughout Japan. Shinkansen train lines are over 1,700 miles and travel at speeds from 140-200 mph. During peak times, there are thirteen trains per hour in each directionRead more
Tokyo ~ Japan
Tokyo was once known as Tokyo City but now it has been broken up into twenty-three different wards. Our first stop in Tokyo is Shinjuku. The train from the airport to the city rolled out at ninety-nine miles per hour, and that wasn’t even the fast train. I just sat there in awe. Not to mention how clean the train station is. In America if you can get past the street performers, beggars and smells then just maybe you’ll getRead more
Wild Atlantic Way ~ Ireland
Once we left the city of Dublin the roads changed from modern highways to two lane roads with roundabouts. In some areas the two lanes were barely wide enough for two cars. Pair this with driving on the right side of the car and it got hairy at times. We took a drive down the Wild Atlantic Way. This route spans 1600 miles along the western coast line of Ireland. The first stopover from Dublin was Galway County. Whenever we askedRead more
Dublin ~ Ireland
Instead of states, Ireland is broken up into counties. During this trip we plan to cover Galway, Clare and Kerry County. The country of Ireland is an island surrounded by the North Channel, St George’s Channel, Irish and Atlantic seas. Before visiting, the only things I knew about Ireland was from television. Leprechauns, pots of gold, Lucky Charms cereal, corned beef and cabbage, rainbows, Irish Spring soap, four leaf clovers and thick accents. As it turns out all of theseRead more
Rotterdam ~ Netherlands
Rotterdam is a city in the Netherlands in South Holland. It’s also the next big city compared to Amsterdam. What makes Rotterdam different is the architecture. During the Nazi takeover the entire city center was ruined and destroyed. When the war was over the city was rebuilt with modern buildings (far ahead of their time) and wider streets. The town of Delft is what’s left of old Rotterdam. Only fifty percent of the population in Rotterdam are Dutch, the otherRead more
Hoi An ~ Vietnam
So much has changed since the last time we were here. Parts of the city are unrecognizable and there are ten times more cars, vans and large tour buses on the narrow roads. The highway leading into Hoi An from Da Nang has been updated and the city of Da Nang is in the process of being built up with ocean front condominiums and high rise buildings. Updated bridges have been built with a modern yellow ark design. The secretRead more
FlashpackingBarbie 