I took the photo above early in the morning when I was taking a walk from our hotel room to the outside onsen. It was probably about 6am and Mariko and the kids were still asleep, and I could have just stayed in bed as well but I really wanted to make the most of our stay so I made the sleepy walk along the path.
Just do it
One of the things I am trying to do is to be more active. By active, I don’t mean exercise, but rather if there is an opportunity to do something, I want to take it rather than just stay in and relax. The problem I’ve had in the past is that it is difficult for me to get started doing an activity. Once I am actively engaged in that activity, however, I almost always have fun and it is worthwhile. But just taking that first step has been a barrier. I’m not talking about a large project or adventure, but more like daily things. For instance, I always remember my brother Kevin would ask me to go golfing, but I would be hesitant to go. I’m not sure why, but I would rather take the “safe” option and stay home. But of course when I went golfing, I had a lot of fun and couldn’t wait to go again. Kevin mentioned something about that… how I should just get off my butt and go. (Not his exact words)
Let’s go
Back to my vacation… I arrived at the outside onsen and joined several other guests to enjoy watching the sunrise over the mountains, which was a pretty dang cool thing to do! But it didn’t stop there… after I returned to the room and changed into my regular clothes (and the family was still sleeping), I decided to go on a short hike. The hotel we stayed at has a few trails of varying lengths that start near the entrance so I took a short one, which led to a small stream and waterfall. I thought I might see a few other guests on the trail, but I ended up not seeing one single hiker. (I found out later that there was a longer, guided hike that left earlier.) The hike itself was good, but it was already starting to get muggy and I was constantly in motion trying to keep the mosquitoes at bay, and spider webs out of my face. However, I am glad I went for the hike. It was a new place that I would probably never go to again, I got some exercise, and I created some lasting memories.
I’m glad that I am making decisions that lean towards taking action rather than ones that follow the “safe route”. We only live once, and thinking of all the possible memories and experiences that we are missing makes me a little sad.
I wanted to visit Fushimi Inari Shrine this trip because it looks so cool and is one of the top tourist destinations that I haven’t been to. In the past I wasn’t so interested in seeing the touristy stuff, and since I was always with a local (Mariko), I enjoyed going to places that a native Japanese person enjoys. But lately I see a lot of photos from friends who visit the touristy places and I start to think… “Shootz, I haven’t even been there even though I have visited Japan so many times!” And I kind of have a new outlook on life… where I want to experience all sorts of things and not really care about stuff that doesn’t matter. For instance, looking like a tourist used to bother me a little, but now I don’t care about it. Anyways, the feeling of being a tourist might last only a short while, but the memories of visiting an amazing place will last a lifetime! And you know what? I am a tourist after all! Why try to pretend that I’m not?
Also, as I try to look for positivity in all things, I realize that being a tourist can actually be fun and that you can have some interesting interactions with the locals, who are almost always friendly and generous with their time.
So this trip when Mariko asked me what I wanted to do and see, I included Fushimi Inari Shrine and Himeji Castle on the list. I also mixed in some local stuff, like seeing a baseball game, and it turned out to be a great mix of activities, with items being removed from the bucket list, and precious memories created!
I recently returned from a vacation to Japan and Hawaii to visit family. I almost didn’t bring my running shoes, but at the last minute decided to throw them in the suitcase (along with socks, shorts, and a shirt). I didn’t know if I would have a chance to do any running on vacation but I really wanted to try, plus my running gear is so light and takes up hardly any space, so I didn’t have much of an excuse not to bring it. Honestly, my primary motivation for bringing my gear was that I thought it would be cool to add some new data to my Runkeeper and Strava profile (gotta expand my running outside of Texas!), but it turned out to be so much more rewarding than just recording the data!
Osaka Castle Manhole Cover
When I arrived in Japan, I suffered from a bit of jet lag and woke up at about 4:30am – an hour earlier than usual. The sun rises pretty early in Japan as compared to Texas so I was able to get out the door and start running around 5am, but I usually decided to wait until around 6 to hit the streets. I didn’t do any research as to what route I would take on that first day but I just wandered around the neighborhood and let the route decide itself. Surprisingly, I saw a few runners out there on the city streets with me! I noticed however that my neon green tank top was really different from the more conservative running t-shirts that everyone else was wearing. I was a little embarrassed, but whatever – I was on vacation! :) I ended up running over 3 miles that day, and when I returned home everyone was still sleeping so I could enjoy a nice long shower and then relax on the balcony.
Yodogawa River
I told Mariko about where I ran, and she suggested I run along the Yodogawa River and that I should be able to make it to the sea if I kept running that way. So for my next outing I traveled along the river and had a nice 2-mile run along the water. The path is popular with other runners, walkers, bicyclists, and people walking their dogs so it was always interesting looking at others (and their dogs). A lot of elderly people walk on that route too and they are usually very friendly offering a “Ohayogozaimasu” (good morning) as I pass by. This route would be my regular morning run while in Japan, and I eventually extended it to an 8.7 mile run to the sea! Actually, it didn’t really look like the sea because it is very industrialized, but still, I went just about as far as I could.
I modified my route a little bit to bypass one large intersection where I got delayed by a passing train that first day, and this alternate route was so cool because I got to see a sports field where people were playing gate ball, got to run through a tiny tunnel, ran on top of a wall right next to trees filled with cicadas (I had to cover my ears it was so loud!), and saw a bunch of cool scooters and motorbikes. That’s one fun thing about running – it’s easy to explore new places and see new things.
Every time I returned home from my morning run I felt so good and energized and ready for the day’s activities which included a lot of sightseeing and plenty of good food. The morning exercise really kept me going!
The next leg of our trip was in Hawaii where we stayed with my brother on the island of Oahu. His house is on the side of a steep hill which made the morning run very interesting. I actually only ran twice, but the first run was so memorable and one of the highlights of my trip. The first day in Hawaii, we went to the farmers market at Kapiolani Community College and picked up some fruit and had lunch. I saw a bunch of runners and my cousin Taylor said that many people run around Diamond Head and that it was probably the most popular run on the island. Well, that piqued my interest! So right then I decided I wanted to do that run, but I didn’t know if I needed to drive and park somewhere near the beginning of the run.
Diamond Head Crater Sign
A couple of days later, though, I woke up before everyone else and went for a run down the hill and headed towards Diamond Head. Before long, I was at the community college we visited before, so I decided to try to run around Diamond Head. I stopped a few times to check Google maps to make sure I was going the right way but eventually I found myself running along with several others going east on Diamond Head road and completing the loop around the crater, then I headed back towards the house. I was on cloud nine! When I reached the steep hill I had to walk up it, but was still in a really happy state and that set the mood for the rest of the day, if not the rest of the trip!
If you like to exercise and like to travel, I highly recommend taking along some gear on your next vacation. Running gear is usually pretty light so it’s easy to pack, and running in a new environment is super fun and interesting. You’ll also have plenty of energy because the newness of the environment is so invigorating!
By the way, I ended up buying a more conservative short-sleeve running shirt while in Japan, so I didn’t have to wear my neon green tank!
We have a new (to us) way of dealing with itchy mosquito bites: the hot spoon! And it works great for instant mosquito bite relief! Basically, you heat up a spoon and then press that hot spoon on the bite for a minute or so. That usually kills the itchiness for the entire day for me. The next day, the itchiness might return, in which case I just reapply the hot spoon. The itchiness hasn’t returned to me after that.
In one article I read, they recommend putting the spoon under a hot faucet to heat it up. But I just put the spoon over a hot stove for a few seconds, then letting it cool a bit so that it is still hot, but not (too) painful.
Before using the hot spoon technique for mosquito bite relief, I’ve tried the scotch tape method, meat tenderizer method (old school!), and also applying an anti-itch liquid called “muhi”, but I’ve found the spoon method to be the best! Give it a try next time and let me know how it works for you!
The phenomenon of a “Runner’s High” is well-known and something that I’ve wondered about for a long time. In fact, every time I go running I think about it, usually around the 30-minute mark when I start struggling a bit. I’m not sure, but I am pretty certain I haven’t ever experienced a runner’s high. There have been times when I have been running and my legs have a lot of energy and the running becomes almost effortless. This fits some descriptions of a runner’s high, but it’s not really the euphoria I expect. It seemed like that was more from just the muscles getting used to the strain.
Maybe I am being silly but I keep expecting for my mind to suddenly become clear, be filled with energy and a feeling of well-being, and everything will be right in the world. But so far that hasn’t happened. At any rate, I’ll continue to look forward to that elusive “Runner’s High”, even though it might never come.
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I use a Fujifilm X-series camera for most of the photos on this site and my Instagram. Why not pick one up for yourself?
