Photos from throughout Japan. Most rural and countryside photos are based in and around the Hida-Takayama area of Gifu prefecture. Questions? Please comment below!
Photos from throughout Japan. Most rural and countryside photos are based in and around the Hida-Takayama area of Gifu prefecture. Questions? Please comment below!
West Coast to Far East 
These are absolutely gorgeous!
Thanks so much! I’ve had a few visits now… but living there, will be a whole new experience.
> I’ve had a few visits now… but living there, will be a whole new experience.
Yes, I think so! I like to visit rural areas around Japan…but I couldn’t imagine living anywhere but Tokyo! Tokyo is so convenient!
Yes, have some wonderful friends in Tokyo – an amazing city. Can’t wait to go back.
Can you read / speak Japanese, by the way? And…do you use Instagram?
Limited on both counts. Basic Japanese/conversational, but a long way to go. Hiragana/Katakana yes, but Kanji is rather limited, probably 100 or less. I have a LONG way to go. Sink or swim!
It’s a lot more than I knew when I moved here (to Japan)! I didn’t know any Japanese at all when I first came here…and, back then, there wasn’t any internet and few signs (even at trains stations) had English on them!
Well any tips or recommendations you have are appreciated. I will have to quickly get beyond simple american-japanese sentences, and into real conversations. How does building kanji skills fit into the priority of things? I guess it’s different for everyone, but I’m 40 now, so no path will be easy. I know much embarrassment lies ahead! haha
>Well any tips or recommendations you have are appreciated.
Attend volunteer-taught Japanese-language classes in your area.
>How does building kanji skills fit into the priority of things?
It’s nice to be literate. Kanji isn’t easy but you should practice being able to at least recognize and understand their meaning. (But I recommend learning to write them and how to properly read them, too)
Beautiful pictures!! I am now at the age to appreciate beauty of nature that Japanese countryside offers. Tokyo is overrated! Non-urban living is the BEST!
Love your pictures.
Thank you so much. I plan to get some fresh ones up here soon.