A recipe from Mieko’s kitchen (dated 1999), with modifications.

Visits to a nearby pottery district, always a sentimental journey.

A small tourist village near a gorge famous for its display of autumn leaves.

16-18 July 2024: A casually planned three-day ride to a popular hot spring resort. Surprises included: an unridable hiking trail; a flat tire repair challenge in a rainstorm on a mountain road after dark; a midnight map reading failure; and the kindness of strangers.

21-25 May 2024: A sentimental multi-modal journey to Tokyo and the Kantō plain to visit old friends and make new connections.

We had one day of cherry blossoms in Nagoya this year, and I took snaps of some of ’em.

18-20 March 2024: A three-day ride into the foothills behind Okayama led by a friend in the area, in which I brought a road bike to a country tour and … found out. A tale of hot springs and cold weather.

A small roadside lunch counter in Okazaki that I discovered on my first camping trip, and still visit from time to time on a day trip.

I made waffles for breakfast this morning (well, there’s only one in the house now, so it’s looking like lunch as well). It’s a simple thing, here’s the recipe, transcribed from my late wife’s hand.

If you once “go on your travels,” it’s likely that some habitual comfort foods won’t be available in the place where you land. For me, one of those items is sourdough bread.