Ashlynn Holbert

May 13

“Wind Rises” in Nagoya

A huge fan of Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, it was a lot of fun stopping off on our way to Toyota in Nagoya. Then off to the Toyota Factory tour.

May 12

Ash

Toyota Factory Tour

Visiting the Toyota Factory Tour and museum was a highlight of the trip. It provide insight into corporate businesses and the Toyota Production System.

May 10

Ash

Ferry from Kagoshima to Yakushima

Our exploration of Yakushima had been intense and exciting, pushing us to the limits and rewarding us with natural beauty and exploration of the wild. One of the few things we did not expect to see were cows, especially not as we were getting on to the ferry to go back to Kagoshima.

May 9

Ash

Turtles of Yakushima

Turtles being turtles, they only come ashore during the night; continuing our crazy streak we went out in a torrential downpour to watch them.

May 8

Ash

Yakushima, Onaida Nature Trail

Onaida Nature Trail was rigorous and beautiful, it helped us understand our limits and push past them. This Lonely Planet hike is not for the faint of heart

May 7

Ash

Kagoshima & Sakurajima exploration

We were in Sakurajima for the dinosaur park and Kagoshima for the 4-hour ferry to Yakashima. Staying here another day wasn’t in the plan, but enjoyable.

May 6

Ash

Volcanic Sakurajima

We were off to Dinosaur park on Sakurajima Island. Urban camping at, which then came with 2 story location, pet hawk, and viewing of a Submarine.

May 5

Ash

Beppu’s various Onsen

We were ready for a relaxing bath and Beppu was just the place to find one; being famous for the largest concentration of onsen and rotenburos in Japan.

May 3

Ash

Packs, Sleeping bags, and Gear galore

Gear can be a tough thing to sort through, read all the reviews, and finally make that big purchase. Tested and reviewing packs, sleeping bags, and pads