This will be my tenth post since I re-started this blog.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to recover all the previous posts I’ve written for this site so I’m going to start from scratch. While I mourn the hours I spent writing my previous articles, I’m looking forward to revisiting some of the more interesting ones I’ve done. (The ones I think are worthwhile to re-post, anyway. I know it’s a difference of opinion: some might find my ideas boring, so feel free to skip around the site.)

As such, I am trying to re-create my old blog posts as well as write new articles. My goal for the next month is to write 30 blog posts in 30 days: one article a day.

It will be my biggest writing project yet, but we’ll see how it goes. I hope I have the stamina to do it.

Since we’re also approaching the end of 2019, the theme for the next few weeks will most likely be a recap of what went down during the year.

Now, I love to travel, but this year, I’ve been on an airplane quite a lot–even for me. I traveled to Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka and Hiroshima in April. I’ve been to Chiba at least five times in the spring and summer months. For my birthday in June, I traveled again to Kyoto to attend a kabuki play of my favorite anime. Just this past October, I traveled to Shimane and Tottori Prefectures, two more places I can pin to my travel map.

I’ve also gotten my Japanese license this year, which means I can drive–legally–any where I want. Hubby lets me drive his car all the time; basically, I choose some place to go and he’ll come along for the journey.

This has allowed me to plot out the sites I’ve wanted to see but never had the time to visit. In the next few weeks, I’ll post some blogs about an interesting cemetery in Takino, a bird sanctuary in Tomakomai, a very rare Japanese garden in Iwamizawa, and a Canadian-themed “amusement” park.

I’ve done some really random stuff, too, like comparing different onigiris from different convenience stores. I thought it was a really fun thing to do. I love eating out at some of my favorite places, so there’ll be some ideas for food.

I also love sweets and desserts, so I’ll be writing about those, too. I also love testing out souvenirs–you know, all for the sake “research.” After all, I’m helping out others. Somebody needs to try out some of these things to make sure that they’re worth buying 🙂

Again, the whole point of this blog is to help others appreciate some of the lesser known things about life in Hokkaido. While I do think that some of the more famous tourist spots in Sapporo and Hokkaido are important, sometimes the road less traveled can lead you to other, more meaningful experiences. I try to be practical in my advice, but like everything else, it’s up to you to decide whether any of my suggestions have merit.

If you’ve read this far, thank you. I really appreciate it.

I hope you’ll continue reading my future posts.

Rochelle