Do you use a phone ap to translate when needed? Very common now in Vietam which can be useful. I wondered it you used one to sort out the hotel where you reserved for 5 people.
Very true about the scarcity of public seating in Japan. Regarding onsen “uniform “ I normally walk barefoot or bring my own slippers. Onsen baths are everywhere, in the mountains, near the lakes and beaches, in the middle of the forest. The only tax we, residents of Japan, pay for enjoying them is the fear of earthquakes.
"Bitcoin, at least at first glance, doesn’t seem to have an aura, but it does have a story, which is very political and ideological, and that story is the aura. You are making a political, or sociological statement when buying bitcoin, which is akin to the admission price for being accepted into a worldview. Talk to any dedicated bitcoin investor and you can see the outlines of a myth — the nebulous founder, the early dodged investors, the heroic quest to overthrow the corrupt and profane ordinary financial world and replace it with something more just and virtuous."
Think of it as a vote of "no confidence" in the current financial system, much like gold is a put option against financial collapse.
EDIT: I find Patrick Boyle insightful in many things, but in his criticism of crypto , he does not get or does not want to get how more and more humans see the existing financial system as rigged against them, and are seething with white hot incandescent rage as a result.
If you want to know what elected Trump, that is why.
I wrote a comment suggesting you try the JetFoil service to Busan/Pusan, but this ferry was a much better choice. The kind of experience you had is something I've tried to teach my children to enjoy. Sometimes to their embarrassment, I confiscate their phones and drag them around with me while I engage with fellow travelers in life. I'm going to print this out, because to email them (edit: the) link would defeat the purpose!
Japan is probably the only country I'm confident enough in the general food chain hygiene etc, that I will eat raw meat of any kind. I have had food poisoning once in Japan, it almost certainly came from am octopus sushi roll that I ate despite my wife saying it looked iffy. It wasn't a bad episode, just a short period where my stomach expelled everything in it in both directions as rapidly as possible...
The only really bad episode I've had was in Peru when I thought I was being really careful but obviously something wasn't cooked that I thought was. My guess is that there were buried salad greens under something that I didn't notice and ate by mistake but it's a guess.
Peru cooking, especially on the sea coast, had a heavy Japanese influence, so lots of uncooked/barely cooked items in salads, soups, and garnishes. I tend to look at it as a colonic hydrotherapy when I get unlucky.
The Ukraine War was started by the Americans. Look up the Wolfowitz doctrine sometime if you want to understand why. NED ran a coup in 2014 because we want to force the Russians to accept Ukraine as a US vassal and allow a NATO army and nuclear missiles on their doorstep. Our goal is to overthrow the Russian government and plunder them like we have so many other countries. We built the largest army in Europe in Ukraine and used it for 8 years to shell Russian cities in the Donbas. Russians are not doing this for fun. They finally had enough. Would we accept a large Russian army in Mexico? Here is a link to Glenn Diesen's excellent book.
Here is a link to Oliver Stone's contemporaneous documentary about the US/Bandera coup, which the CIA-controlled Wikipedia claims is propaganda. You decide.
US has overthrown governments in nearly 100 countries since WWII. The list includes Iran, Guatemala, Chile, Haiti, Vietnam, and many, many more. People who love and trust the US government (which means they have television in their lives) can get a much better picture of the world from the many voices on alternate media. Start here:
When I lived in Japan, I went to the public bath every night for years. On trips back, I never miss the opportunity. Welcome to the club, Chris.
Here in the New York area - Queens, Fort Lee - there are a number of Korean baths. The experience is essentially the same. Nothing like a walk across the GW Bridge ending in a hot tub.
When I lived in DC, I would go to the Korean baths in Northern Virginia. The Koreans are everywhere, so I'm sure other cities have them too.
I don't know where you live, Chris, but I hope there's a Korean community nearby. No need to give up one of life's great pleasures.
If you're ever in Mexico, check out the baños del vapor. Not the same, but you still come out steaming clean and soft like a noodle.
Japan's baths are glorious once you have figured out the etiquette, especially which slippers to wear where (using the so called 'toilet slippers' elsewhere is especially egregious)!
Excellent post. Thanks for the diversion into your thoughts on pricing and the power of myth.
If I can, let me suggest Bitcoin has an intrinsic value. An entry in the ledger connects a private key to data. This might not seem like much but database entries and encryption keys, to oversimplify, make our digital world turn. Having absolute control of my entries on a secure system can have loads of utility. Think of the Bitcoin system like the lockers at train stations - owning a coin/utxo is like having a key to a locker. Again, I’m oversimplifying but I believe the price is insane and yet the technology is valuable.
Money used to be gold. Now it is debt. All money is embodied as digital data, not just bitcoin. (I have a few bitcoins as well. I had to fight my wife about it, now she thinks I am a genius.)
Are the public baths still restrictive with regard to admitting people with tattoos?
Thanks for putting your thoughts on evaluation down, my thinking is similar. But was far less coherent until reading this
Do you use a phone ap to translate when needed? Very common now in Vietam which can be useful. I wondered it you used one to sort out the hotel where you reserved for 5 people.
Very true about the scarcity of public seating in Japan. Regarding onsen “uniform “ I normally walk barefoot or bring my own slippers. Onsen baths are everywhere, in the mountains, near the lakes and beaches, in the middle of the forest. The only tax we, residents of Japan, pay for enjoying them is the fear of earthquakes.
https://www.furofushi.com/hotspring/
With ya on the Loudermilk.
Sorry, I mean Calico = Sylvania
Weird, in North America my daughter collects Calico Critters. I have no idea why they need two different names.
"Bitcoin, at least at first glance, doesn’t seem to have an aura, but it does have a story, which is very political and ideological, and that story is the aura. You are making a political, or sociological statement when buying bitcoin, which is akin to the admission price for being accepted into a worldview. Talk to any dedicated bitcoin investor and you can see the outlines of a myth — the nebulous founder, the early dodged investors, the heroic quest to overthrow the corrupt and profane ordinary financial world and replace it with something more just and virtuous."
Think of it as a vote of "no confidence" in the current financial system, much like gold is a put option against financial collapse.
EDIT: I find Patrick Boyle insightful in many things, but in his criticism of crypto , he does not get or does not want to get how more and more humans see the existing financial system as rigged against them, and are seething with white hot incandescent rage as a result.
If you want to know what elected Trump, that is why.
I wrote a comment suggesting you try the JetFoil service to Busan/Pusan, but this ferry was a much better choice. The kind of experience you had is something I've tried to teach my children to enjoy. Sometimes to their embarrassment, I confiscate their phones and drag them around with me while I engage with fellow travelers in life. I'm going to print this out, because to email them (edit: the) link would defeat the purpose!
Thank you for this delightful post. So much to absorb I will be re-reading it throught Thanksgiving. Safe Travels!
Japan is probably the only country I'm confident enough in the general food chain hygiene etc, that I will eat raw meat of any kind. I have had food poisoning once in Japan, it almost certainly came from am octopus sushi roll that I ate despite my wife saying it looked iffy. It wasn't a bad episode, just a short period where my stomach expelled everything in it in both directions as rapidly as possible...
The only really bad episode I've had was in Peru when I thought I was being really careful but obviously something wasn't cooked that I thought was. My guess is that there were buried salad greens under something that I didn't notice and ate by mistake but it's a guess.
Peru cooking, especially on the sea coast, had a heavy Japanese influence, so lots of uncooked/barely cooked items in salads, soups, and garnishes. I tend to look at it as a colonic hydrotherapy when I get unlucky.
We got our dose in Cusco, just before we returned to the coast to see the Nazca lines
Your posts are always a fascinating read. I have lots of good memories from my childhood of traveling in Japan with my parents 🇯🇵
And I did not realize the Sylvanian collectibles are Japanese! Have you seen the Instagram account called Sylvanian Drama? It is HILARIOUS.
Chris - do you wear socks and sandals on all of your jaunts?
The Ukraine War was started by the Americans. Look up the Wolfowitz doctrine sometime if you want to understand why. NED ran a coup in 2014 because we want to force the Russians to accept Ukraine as a US vassal and allow a NATO army and nuclear missiles on their doorstep. Our goal is to overthrow the Russian government and plunder them like we have so many other countries. We built the largest army in Europe in Ukraine and used it for 8 years to shell Russian cities in the Donbas. Russians are not doing this for fun. They finally had enough. Would we accept a large Russian army in Mexico? Here is a link to Glenn Diesen's excellent book.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=the+ukraine+war+and+the+eurasian+world+order&crid=39PES9NMCKFFU&sprefix=the+ukrain%2Caps%2C185&ref=nb_sb_ss_ts-doa-p_1_10
Here is a link to Oliver Stone's contemporaneous documentary about the US/Bandera coup, which the CIA-controlled Wikipedia claims is propaganda. You decide.
https://www.amazon.com/Ukraine-Fire-Oliver-Stone/dp/B0735WSJBF
US has overthrown governments in nearly 100 countries since WWII. The list includes Iran, Guatemala, Chile, Haiti, Vietnam, and many, many more. People who love and trust the US government (which means they have television in their lives) can get a much better picture of the world from the many voices on alternate media. Start here:
https://strategic-culture.su
Lol. Lmao, even.
Russia could just leave.
When I lived in Japan, I went to the public bath every night for years. On trips back, I never miss the opportunity. Welcome to the club, Chris.
Here in the New York area - Queens, Fort Lee - there are a number of Korean baths. The experience is essentially the same. Nothing like a walk across the GW Bridge ending in a hot tub.
When I lived in DC, I would go to the Korean baths in Northern Virginia. The Koreans are everywhere, so I'm sure other cities have them too.
I don't know where you live, Chris, but I hope there's a Korean community nearby. No need to give up one of life's great pleasures.
If you're ever in Mexico, check out the baños del vapor. Not the same, but you still come out steaming clean and soft like a noodle.
Japan's baths are glorious once you have figured out the etiquette, especially which slippers to wear where (using the so called 'toilet slippers' elsewhere is especially egregious)!
Excellent post. Thanks for the diversion into your thoughts on pricing and the power of myth.
If I can, let me suggest Bitcoin has an intrinsic value. An entry in the ledger connects a private key to data. This might not seem like much but database entries and encryption keys, to oversimplify, make our digital world turn. Having absolute control of my entries on a secure system can have loads of utility. Think of the Bitcoin system like the lockers at train stations - owning a coin/utxo is like having a key to a locker. Again, I’m oversimplifying but I believe the price is insane and yet the technology is valuable.
Thanks again for sharing your stories and walks.
Money used to be gold. Now it is debt. All money is embodied as digital data, not just bitcoin. (I have a few bitcoins as well. I had to fight my wife about it, now she thinks I am a genius.)