Before departing for Ganryūjima where the famous samurai battle happened (photos on that here and here) Bill, Lori, and I were able to view this lovely lighthouse near our ferry’s dock. Bill said it was called “Lovers’ Lighthouse,” and I choose to believe him. In the background is the Kanmon Bridge connecting Japan’s main island of Honshu with the island where I reside, Kyushu.
Lover's Lighthouse
Statues on Ganryūjima portraying the epic duel to the death in 1612 between Musashi and Kojiro. Musashi defeated Kojiro with a bokken (a wooden sword).
For more on this duel: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miyamoto_Musashi#Duel_with_Sasaki_Kojir.C5.8D
Starting today this photo blog will be updated daily!!! Everyday at noon EST (that’s 1AM JST), there will be a new post with a new photo from my travels.
A remake of the boat Musashi rode to Ganryūjima.
Ganryūjima is a famous island where two samurai, Musashi and Kojiro, dueled to the death in 1612. Musashi defeated Kojiro with a bokken (a wooden sword).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ganry%C5%ABjima
Internet, sorry to leave you for so long. Real life called last February with renewal season and I had to answer. This was followed by a great two week vacation back to America where I saw friends and family. Since April, I’ve been adjusting to some new routines and also finally made some close friends in to hang out with. But I’ve thought a lot about it and I would like to make a comeback if you’ll have me. I have lots of videos and photos ready to post and even more in line for editing. With that… I give you, Korea. Love, Andy
Only a three hour ferry ride from Kyushu, my island of Japan, sits Busan, Korea. During Golden Week, 7 friends and I took a whirl wind tour of the unique country. From the fish market and beach in Busan, to amazing palaces, city life, and Seoul Tower in Seoul, we saw a lot of the country. I was even fortunate enough to reconnect with Jordan (also in my Nagasaki video *link*) who live in Seoul and tour the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea. We stayed in the Blue Backpacker Hostel in Busan, and the Hong Guest House in Seoul. I can recommend both. To travel between cities across the country we took the KTX bullet train.
It was refreshing to experience another foreign culture besides Japan. However, it was oddly discomforting returning home from one foreign country to another. Kind of like drying off from a shower with a wet towel.
I hope to one day travel back to Korea, however for now my 4 days there will tide me over well.
Because I took a lot of pictures, the photos on this post are all the non-palace shots that were worth editing. Next week, look forward to feasting on the shots from the palace.
Thanks for tuning in. See you next week!
