Above, finding food at a bargain is easy in Tokyo like this restaurant in Asakusa. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
When one is going to Japan on a vacation trip, there are many places to see and things to do around the country.
However, if one is short on time or on a limited budget, just staying in Tokyo is an option. There plenty there to fill the times.
National Geographic posted a list of top 7 things to do in Tokyo or nearby (such as Kamakura).
Above, the Great Buddha of Kamakura. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
They begin it with:
Forget the notion that Tokyo is nothing but a concrete sprawl, neon and crowds—that tells only a small part of the city’s story. From centuries-old festivals and calming gardens to cutting-edge galleries and culture classes, these seven experiences will help you discover the many other sides of Japan’s capital.
Above, following a snowstorm in Chiba Prefecture. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Over the years, I've been in Japan during winter only once. That was in February 2014 and at the same time I was there, the country was hit by two big snowstorms. The first one arrived when I did.
Above, Nakamise Street shops. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
That didn't stop me from enjoying the trip. It made it more interesting, especially when I was stuck aboard a commuter train between Narita Airport and Tokyo for several hours due to snow.
Above, Kurihama's Godzilla slide with a dusting of snow. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
According to an article in National Geographic, there are some advantages of traveling to Japan during winter.
They begin with:
There’s no question Japan is one of the most popular destinations on the planet right now and with good reason. From its deeply distinctive culture to great food to fascinating historic sites, it has so much of what travelers love, and that also means it’s often crowded, even overtouristed. This is why I recommend it for a winter trip when many people are seeking sun and sand. Last winter I put together a 12-day getaway for myself and my husband that included Tokyo, Kyoto, and a drive across the region known as the Japanese Alps. It was perfect and gave us a taste of what makes Japan so great without intense crowds or logistical hassles.
Above, my hotel in Ueno following the second snowstorm. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Above, a view of Elm Street in Dealey Plaza two windows away from Oswald's sniper's window. Photo by Armand Vaquer
Sixty years is a long time. I can still remember that day almost as if it were yesterday.
Today marks the 60th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination on November 22, 1963 in Dallas, Texas. I was in fourth grade at the time at Woodcrest Elementary School in Los Angeles.
Above, a view of Elm Street and the former Texas School Book Depository Building. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
I had just finished lunch in the school cafeteria and got up to bring my tray and dishes to the busboy window. It was there at the window I was told that Kennedy was assassinated, and the school’s flag had been lowered to half-staff. I left the cafeteria and went outside and saw that the flag was indeed at half-staff.
I then went to the playground for the remainder of the lunch hour.
Minutes later, the bell rang for everyone to return to class.
Above, a view of Elm Street from Main Street in 1984. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
There, in class, our teacher tearfully confirmed what had happened. Everyone was in stunned silence. Then, a fire drill bell started ringing and we all headed out to the playground. There, outside of the auditorium at the top of a stairway, the school principal, over a public address system, also told everyone the news and had everyone sing patriotic songs.
He also announced that school would be dismissed for the day following the program.
Above, Oswald's sniper's nest recreated in the Sixth Floor Museum. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
I then headed home (I only lived across the street from the school) with a friend from the Cub Scouts. His mother wasn’t at home so he came home with me. After getting home, we watched the television coverage with my mom. All programming on all television stations were preempted by the assassination coverage. This would ultimately be the case throughout the weekend until after Kennedy’s funeral on Monday, November 25.
Much of what was repeatedly shown was the Kennedys at the breakfast in Fort Worth, their arrival at Love Field and some footage of the motorcade. Later, a live feed from Andrews Air Force Base showing the arrival of Air Force One was shown and Lee Harvey Oswald under arrest.
Above, a view of Elm Street from the grassy knoll area. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
As this was a Friday, my family usually went out for dinner. But, for the life of me, I cannot remember if we did or ate at home.
Nobody who was alive at the time would ever forget, just like other generations who remember what they were doing and how they learned about Pearl Harbor and September 11.
Above, the Kennedy limousine after it passed under the triple underpass from a display in the Sixth Floor Museum.
Since then, I have visited Dealey Plaza in Dallas, Texas twice, being a history buff. The first was during the 1984 Republican National Convention and the second was in January 2021. A visit to the Sixth Floor Museum in the former Texas School Book Depository Building is well worth a visit.
For those who wish to delve further into the Kennedy assassination, these DVDs are recommended:
Above, this DVD by the History Channel is the best one. It covers the assassination and what transpired since, including conspiracy theories.
Above, this National Geographic DVD covers much of the same as the History Channel DVD.
Above, this DVD shows the Zapruder film from sharp photographic copies made from the original camera film.
Below is a video I took of former Secret Service Agent Clint Hill, now 91, giving a talk on the assassination at Book Passage in Corte Madera, California on June 11, 2016.
Above, a view of the InterContinental Yokohama Grand and Minato-Murai Ferris Wheel from the Landmark Tower. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
During my travels to Japan, I have been through Yokohama either by commuter train or in a bullet train (Shinkansen) a few times. I went there once and wandered around the city's waterfront and went to the observation deck of the Landmark Tower.
National Geographic has posted a guide to Yokohama, Japan's second largest city.
It begins with:
With the narrow spire of Tokyo’s Skytree in the distance, the view from Yokohama’s waterfront never seems to escape the clutches of its more prominent neighbour. Yet, Japan’s second-largest city is coming into its own as an artistic haven. This creativity is set to be showcased in style in March 2024, when the Yokohama Museum of Art reopens after a two-year renovation — just in time for the Yokohama Triennale, an art festival that turns the city into a creative stage every three years.
Views of Yokohama’s bay unfold amid broccoli-shaped trees from Yamashita Park, offering a survey of the city — a former fishing village that sprung into sparkling skyscrapers in just 150 years. Take the short walk past the undulating, wave-like walkways of Osanbashi Pier and 20th-century Red Brick Warehouse — now a shopping and cultural centre — to BankART1929. Housed in a repurposed 1920s bank in the dockside area of the Minato Mirai neighbourhood, it’s an airy space showcasing artists aged 35 and under. For more art, saunter across the Katabira River and through the rush of Yokohama Station’s west exit. Founded by an eye surgeon, the sleek Fei Art Museum Yokohama runs an eclectic range of exhibitions.
Above, the cattle drive in the Fort Worth Stockyards. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
National Geographic is on a Texas kick this week.
They posted two items on the Lone Star State yesterday. One is on the 10 best things to do in Texas and the other is their essential guide to visiting Texas.
My personal experience with Texas is with the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The two cities are 30 miles apart, but they seem like one big city as there has been a lot of growth between the two. My first time there was with the California Reagan Delegation to the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas. A friend and I went back there in January 2021.
In their post on the 10 best things to do in Texas, National Geographic begins it with:
With mountains in west Texas, beaches along its Gulf Coast, and the Hill Country at its heart, the Lone Star State covers such varied terrain that sometimes it feels like a country all its own. And it was, from 1836 until 1845. Today visitors flock to America’s second-largest state to learn about its fight for independence, spot neotropical birds, chow down on barbecue or Tex-Mex food, or hike mountains and deserts.
Above, Elvis Presley's Graceland mansion. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Planning a visit to Memphis, Tennessee?
If so, there are a few places that are "must-sees" in the city. They include Graceland, Sun Studio, the Lorraine Motel and Beale Street.
If Elvis Presley's Graceland is on the top of one's "bucket list" (I have been there twice, once in 2001 and once in 2016), National Geographic has a guide on how to visit Graceland.
Time it well and you can visit Graceland’s grounds without spending a dime. Every morning (aside from Thanksgiving and Christmas Day, when the site is closed), from 7.30am to 8.30am, fans can pass through the gates free of charge for an hour of quiet contemplation at Elvis’s graveside.
Plan around peak season
The party kicks off from 5-8 January for Elvis’s birthday celebrations, where crowds flock for a cake-cutting ceremony sometimes hosted by his ex-wife, Priscilla Presley. There are events all across Memphis, too, but plan ahead as hotels book up lightning fast. The bustle returns for the week surrounding 16 August, the anniversary of Elvis’s death, when celebrations go all out, with tribute artists in bejewelled jumpsuits and a moving candlelight vigil.
When I went there in 2016, I stayed at the Graceland RV Park that is across the street from Graceland, which I found nice and handy.
Above, my campsite at Graceland RV Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Above, hula dancers perform at the Big Kahuna luau in Honolulu. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Whether or not one has ever visited Hawaii, the hula dancer is one of the most familiar of Hawaiian cultural things to people.
It is surprising that hula dancing almost ended completely.
National Geographic has posted an article on the surprising history of the hula tradition.
They begin with:
How a sacred Hawaiian dance and music ritual was canceled, commercialized, and finally, revived.
With her flower crown and grass skirt, the hula girl has been synonymous with Hawaiian hospitality since cruise ships first docked in Honolulu in the 1920s. Even today, exoticized images of these traditional dancers headline on travel websites, at tiki-themed bars, and on wiggly dashboard tchotchkes.
Over the past two centuries, the cherished Hawaiian dance has moved from a sacred religious practice to a tourist attraction, along the way falling prey to cultural appropriation and near erasure.
“People shunned the old style of hula and looked at dancers like they were heathens,” says Micah Kamohoali‘i, a kumu hula (hula teacher) and cultural ambassador on the island of Hawai‘i. “Then our hula became more of a Hollywood show. We never danced with cellophane skirts and coconut bras.”
Above, a dashboard tchotchke in my RV that I bought in Hawaii. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Above, a bird's eye view from the Tokyo Skytree. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
National Geographic posted paid content from the Tokyo Metropolitan Government on ten ways to travel responsibly in Tokyo. Although paid content, I thought it worth sharing.
It begins with:
As one of the world’s biggest cities, Tokyo is a dazzling cosmopolitan center of innovation and international exchange. However, its roots are still steeped in ancient traditions that live on today. Immersion in the lifestyles and customs of Tokyo’s residents, the responsible traveler can benefit from a more insightful and rewarding visit.
Japan is well known for its volcanoes and earthquakes. It is right on the Pacific's "Ring of Fire".
Many volcanic eruptions have been noted in recorded history, most recently it was Mount Aso in Kyushu and the Tohoku Earthquake (the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami) is still fresh in people's minds despite having taken place ten years ago.
An interesting earthquake took place under Japan's Bonin Islands (Ogasawara Islands) several years ago. At a depth of 423 miles, it was one of the deepest earthquakes ever recorded. National Geographic has posted an interesting article about it.
They begin it with:
One spring evening six years ago, hundreds of miles underground, our planet began to rumble from a series of peculiar earthquakes. Most of Earth's temblors strike within a few dozen miles of the surface, but these quakes stirred at depths where temperatures and pressures grow so intense that rocks tend to bend rather than break.
The first jolt, which struck off the coasts of Japan's remote Bonin Islands, was recorded at magnitude 7.9 and up to 680 kilometers (423 miles) underground, making it one of the deepest quakes of its size. Then another oddity emerged in the cascade of aftershocks that followed: a tiny temblor that, if confirmed, would be the deepest earthquake ever detected.
Above, the Durango and Silverton train at Rockwood Station last week. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
My first ride on the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad took place in the summer of 1983. I have ridden it several times since then (most recently, last week).
In 1984, National Geographic produced a documentary on trains called, "Love Those Trains", which includes the Durango and Silverton train.
Here is the segment on the Durango and Silverton train:
Above, yours truly under one of the elk antler arches in Jackson. Photo by Mitch Geriminsky.
Jackson, Wyoming can be a destination itself. There are many cool things to see, nice restaurants and plenty of shops. It is a gateway to Grand Teton and Yellowstone National Parks.
Since the parks have reopened following the pandemic lockdowns, Jackson is feeling the strain of surging tourism.
I visited Jackson last summer and had a great time there, despite the heavy traffic in town.
According to National Geographic:
A few months ago, residents of the valley of Jackson Hole, Wyoming, worried the summer tourism season might be a dud.
Now 40,000 visitors a day stream through Jackson, a town in the valley and a gateway to neighboring Grand Teton and Yellowstone national parks. While that visitor count isn’t too different from previous years, July saw a string of days where the number of visitors was up over 2019 levels, according to the Jackson Hole News & Guide—a far cry from earlier this year. Closed from March 24 to May 18, the parks are now seeing hundreds of thousands of tourists a month.
Jackson is not alone. Mountain towns, beach communities, and vacation destinations throughout the country are facing an influx of visitors—many traveling from virus hotspots—in the middle of a rapidly worsening pandemic. Anecdotal accounts in Jackson suggest many tourists are surprised to hear COVID-19 exists in the area at all, having mistaken picturesque mountain vistas and wildflower-blanketed meadows for safety.
Above, The Beast at Trailer Village RV Park in Roswell, New Mexico. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Many people are opting to travel this summer by RV instead of by airline or cruises, and some of them are doing so for the first time.
National Geographic has an article on things people should know about RV travel.
They begin with:
TRAVELERS ARE GEARING up for summer getaways, but with more than 20 states reporting spikes in COVID-19 cases in June, vacations involving air travel and large gatherings are likely to remain on hold. If you’re driven to distraction by wanderlust, here’s a tip: Take a spin in an RV.
The pandemic has fueled interest in recreational vehicles—RVs, campervans, and travel trailers. As a result, motor home sales and rentals have dramatically ramped up. While industry-wide data has yet to be fully compiled, RV dealers that reopened in early May report monthly sales are up 170 percent year over year; bookings through rental site RVshare for the Fourth of July weekend are up 81 percent over 2019.
What’s more, the duration of rentals has increased. “We have seen an uptick in the amount people are spending because the average rental period has increased,” says Jon Gray, of peer-to-peer booking site RVshare. “Instead of a long weekend, renters are booking for an average of seven to 10 days.”
Above, a tyrannosaur skeleton at the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, Pittsburgh. Photo by ScottRobertAnselmo.
Here's one for you dinosaur fans!
The biggest tyrannosaurus rex had been discovered in Saskatchewan, Canada in 1991. More details on the creature has been revealed in an article from National Geographic.
They wrote:
A fossil site in Canada has yielded the heaviest Tyrannosaurus rex specimen ever found—an animal that weighed an estimated 19,500 pounds in life, far heftier than most elephants alive today.
The dinosaur, unveiled last week in The Anatomical Record, consists of a skeleton that's about 65 percent complete, including the skull and hips along with some of its ribs, leg bones, and tail bones. Nicknamed “Scotty,” the tyrannosaur was a senior by this species' standards, making it to at least the age of 28.
Some 68 million years ago, the Canadian landscape Scotty knew was a subtropical coastal paradise—but life was no vacation. The dinosaur's remains include a broken and healed rib, a massive growth of bone in between two teeth—a sign of infection—and broken tailbones possibly maimed by another tyrannosaur's bite.
Above, the Hotel Nevada on Hwy. 50 in Ely, Nevada. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
How many of you readers here have been on "The Loneliest Road In America"?
If you're wondering what road has that designation, it is Highway 50 that crosses the state of Nevada.
I was on Route 50 while in Ely, Nevada last summer. A friend and I had dinner at the Hotel Nevada's Denny's Restaurant, which is on Route 50 in Ely.
National Geographic has an interesting pictorial article on Route 50.
They begin with:
Where the state of Nevada folds in half—from the elbow on its western arm at Lake Tahoe across to its Utah border—you’ll find the most direct route across the state. It crosses several communities, a handful of mountain ranges, a national park, and one reservoir, where bobcats, foxes, and wild horses roam free. There’s life, yes, but not a familiar way of life for many. It’s a place where the lines between John Wayne Westerns and everyday life blur, where ghost towns bleed into living ones. This is Route 50, the Loneliest Road in America.
Or so says Life magazine. In July 1986, the publication honored the Statue of Liberty’s 100th birthday and highlighted American superlatives: On one page, the “Cutest” (a toddler actor) appears alongside the “Loneliest Road” below a photo of a seemingly endless highway that reaches across the desert toward the mountains, a lone cowboy on horseback crossing from one side of nothingness to the other. An anonymous AAA counselor is quoted in the article: “We warn all motorists not to drive there, unless they're confident of their survival skills.”
Above, the Stardust Ranch is blocks away from Hwy. 50 in Ely. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Above, a natural arch at Bryce Canyon National Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Utah is one state that has several national parks (five of them) within its boundaries and to see them all is to take a multi-day road trip.
National Geographic has an article on such a road trip as they visit each national park in Utah.
They begin it with:
This multiday adventure on remote byways is a journey through the slickrock heart of the American West, linking Utah’s "Mighty Five" national parks—Zion, Bryce Canyon, Capitol Reef, Arches, and Canyonlands—with the diverse state parks and nameless vistas of Southern Utah. Each park showcases the iconic landscape of the Colorado Plateau, much of it an ancient Sahara now turned to stone. The surreal tableau of arches, alcoves, hoodoos, and epic canyons is so otherworldly, you may wonder what planet you’re on.
Two days ago, I posted a blog about the review of the latest edition of National Georaphic Guide To National Parks of the United States (8th Edition).
I then proceeded to order a copy and it arrived today, thanks to the folks at Amazon.com.
After its arrival, I did some perusing inside and found it loaded with lots of information on each national park along with beautiful photographs of each.
This will be a very handy tool for future visits to the national parks. It'll be a great addition to the growing library of books in The beast.
To order a copy through Amazon, go here. Their price: $17.95.
Above, Yosemite's North Dome. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
The Buffalo News has an article on the latest edition of the National Geographic Guide To National Parks of the United States.
The writer of the piece, Scott Scanlon, may have been in Yosemite National Park at about the same time as I was in 2015. He had lunch at the Ahwahnee Hotel, I opted for breakfast instead.
He wrote this about the book:
National Parks have the ability to astound, often greatly. I have learned that it pays to seek out the experts in places like Yosemite, Acadia and the Grand Canyon, not only after you arrive but preferably before you go.
The eighth edition of the "National Geographic Guide to National Parks," issued to mark the 100th anniversary of the founding of the National Park Service, is an invaluable starting point to help you get the most out of a visit to the parks. A used edition can be found online at only about one-third its original cost.
Its glossy pages boast more than enough tidbits to make its purchase on amazon.com a better and more reasonable investment than lunch at the former Ahwhanee. (Though, if you ever go to Yosemite, I encourage you to book a lunch reservation. It's much less expensive than dinner.)
His article recounts a visit to Yosemite by Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip in 1983.
Above, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park. NASA Photo.
NASA and National Geographic has released some fascinating photographs of several national parks taken from space.
DP Review has posted them at their website.
They wrote:
If you're unable to take advantage of free National Park entry this weekend, you can still enjoy the grandeur of some of the US's best-loved National Parks thanks to National Geographic and NASA. To celebrate National Parks week they've published some of their favorite photos of parks – from space.
Above, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park a little closer to the ground. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Above, "tears of the Arizona" rise to the surface from the sunken ship. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
It was very moving for me to see firsthand the sunken battleship USS Arizona resting on the bottom of Pearl Harbor below me from the deck of the USS Arizona Memorial.
For years, I have heard that oil still seeps to the surface from the vessel. I saw it for myself last May. They are called "the tears of the Arizona" or "black tears".
It was an experience to see the ship at rest, knowing that men are entombed inside.
Above, the USS Arizona Memorial, built over the sunken ship. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
War History Online has an interesting article on a recent ten-day survey of the interior of the ship by unmanned submersibles.
They wrote:
Clearly, the deputy chief and photographer of the National Park Service’s Submerged Resources Centre (SRC) has been touched by the latest images from the sunken battleship USS Arizona, which has lain at the bottom of Pearl Harbour since December 7, 1941.
Brett Seymour, viewing recent images from remotely operated vehicles says the most striking find was a jacket hanging in an officer’s quarters.
It was clean, not covered in sediment, and hadn’t fallen off the hangar. It was there, standing proud.
Seymour was part of a team which was comprised of the NPS and National Geographic photographers that for ten days documented the interior first and second decks of the 608-foot long battleship.
Above, the deck of the USS Arizona. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
According to the article, the next step is to survey the third deck, "whenever that will be."
The May 2016 issue of National Geographic is now out on the newsstands and it is one that lovers of national parks (especially since this is the centennial year of the National Park Service) and, in particular, Yellowstone National Park. The issue is dedicated to Yellowstone and, slightly, to Grand Teton National Park, since they are both part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Above, two Yellowstone bison relax on a hill. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
I found a copy of the issue at the local supermarket as I was buying provisions for my camping trip to Ventura. I've been relaxing today at the Ventura Beach RV Resort pouring through it.
The issue is loaded with photographs (as one might expect from National Geographic), posters, maps, statistics and all kinds of information on Yellowstone. It is an issue you'll want to get and keep!
Above, Lower Yellowstone Falls. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
One interesting tidbit: Last summer, my daughter Amber and I went to Yellowstone National Park for a father-daughter vacation and we both got ourselves bitten by mosquitoes, Amber more so than I (she must taste sweeter to the critters). According to National Geographic, there are 35 species of mosquitoes that live in Yellowstone. Small wonder we got bitten!
Above, Amber and Armand at Gibbon Falls.
Another tidbit: One half of the world's known geysers are in Yellowstone!
Above, Old Faithful Geyser erupts. Photo by Armand Vaquer.
Trivia: Former President Gerald R. Ford served as a park ranger in Yellowstone in the summer of 1936.
