The Best Side Trip From Osaka: Okayama

When people decide to take the plunge and travel to Japan, they start planning their trip with what to see and what to do when over there. Many people, especially those who will be going for the first time, make plans to only go visit the big three: Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto with a possible pit stop to Nara. Nothing is wrong with this travel plan. I even did this travel plan the first time I went to Japan (no regrets). But once you have already become familiar with these places, where else do you go?

There are so many places in Japan that are worth visiting. Out of the many places to choose from, may I suggest Okayama.

Hiroshima: Visiting Japan's History

I knew at some point in all my travels to Japan I would want to visit Hiroshima. There are many reasons why people should want to visit Hiroshima, but in this blog post I am going to talk about the most important one: the atomic bombing of Hiroshima.

Don't Fear Going to Japan

First, a little back story to why I'm talking about this topic in my blog. As announced on my YouTube channel, I got a new job! This new job involves me educating college students about Japan and taking them over there for a month during the summer to study abroad. I'll link the program here.

Anyway, my university did a survey on Freshmen about what countries they would love to travel to but why they didn't go. I already knew finances were going to be an issue, but to my surprise it was fear that was commonly mentioned in the survey. So I would like to clear up any fears that people may have about going to Japan.

The Joys of Exploring Japanese Neighborhoods

It's common for people who live in Japan to tell you not to plan out your trip to Japan, to just explore and find new things. I agree with that to an extant. It's easy for them to say that because they live there and have a lot of time to explore. For visitors, your time in Japan is limited. It's natural for you to want to fit in as much as possible. I plan out all of my trips when I go to Japan. But what I do is when I find a break in my already planned schedule, I try to explore the neighborhood I'm staying in just to see if I find something interesting.

Let's talk about the discoveries you'll come across during your travels in Japan.

Japanese Bathrooms in Japan

When looking for accommodations for your stay in Japan you may look at the size of the place, how big the beds are, if there's free WiFi or even how big the bathroom is. You won't be spending too much time in your hotel or other accommodation but it can still be a game changer on how big that bathroom is. The size of the bathroom can be a game changer for your trip to Japan. That may sound weird but it could possibly make things relaxing for you or super difficult. Let's explore Japanese bathrooms.

What to do at Night in Japan

While you're planning your trip to Japan there will most likely be many things on your to-do list. Sometimes it can look really scary because you may be thinking how am I going to get all of this done during my trip to Japan? There is a simple solution, and not many people think about it. On your list of things to see and do in Japan is probably some stuff that can be done during the night hours. This can save you a lot of time for activities during the day.