The Taj Mahal, Agra FortToday, at the convened hour, my driver was waiting for me with his rickshaw to take me on my full tour of all things Agra. Before we started, I double-checked the itinerary and the price and everything, to make it extra clear what I wanted and what I didn’t. I said… Continue reading The Taj Mahal, Agra Fort
Train to Agra
TuesdayBye, Delhi! But not for long!Today I left Delhi to go to Agra, home of the Taj Mahal. I had to leave my hotel to go to the New Delhi Railway Station, which wasn’t terribly far but you can’t walk anywhere with a bag here. Instead of asking for a cab, I tried using Uber,… Continue reading Train to Agra
Humayun’s Tomb, Gurdwara Bangla Sahib
It was a rough morning, y’all. I woke up still tired from yesterday, to the news that air pollution had hiked in Delhi back to severe levels (and indeed the view from the window was hazy and unappealing), as had the far right in the Spanish elections; this brought back unhappy memories of when Trump… Continue reading Humayun’s Tomb, Gurdwara Bangla Sahib
The Red Fort, Jama Masjid
Red Fort, Jama MasjidAfter a wonderful, restoring sleep, I woke up this morning to a sunny Delhi morning, and this time I could definitely notice a grayish haze in the air, even though there were no clouds.My main objective for today was to visit the Red Fort, Delhi’s main attraction, a sprawling 16th century Mughal… Continue reading The Red Fort, Jama Masjid
Arrival in Delhi
At one point this summer, I said, “Would it be crazy if I up and went to India in November?” and my friends went, “...Not more than usual?” So here I am now!As usual, I’m going to travel for two weeks, and I’m going to see what’s called the Golden Triangle (Delhi, the capital; Agra,… Continue reading Arrival in Delhi
Your Vietnam Itinerary
Want to discover Vietnam, north to south, but don't have two months to do the backpacker experience? Here's a great, compact two-week itinerary that will get you to the country's main highlights without making everything feel like a blur:HanoiDay 1: Arrival in HanoiRead: The Old Quarter of HanoiDay 2: HanoiRead: The Imperial Citadel, the Temple… Continue reading Your Vietnam Itinerary
Naoshima
I should thank my lucky stars, because after yesterday’s rain, today it was clear -if still muggy- all day long! This means I was able to fulfill my master plan of going all the way to Naoshima!Naoshima is this island in the Inland Sea that sits between Honshu and Shikoku, two of the main Japanese… Continue reading Naoshima
Himeji Castle, Dotonbori
Ah, well, I had a good run. Today tsuyu finally caught up with me: it was hot and rainy, just like they'd promised me my entire stay would be. I got incredible weather until now, though, so I can't complain! (I may still complain a bit)Undaunted by the rain, I set on my journey to… Continue reading Himeji Castle, Dotonbori
Kurashiki
Today I got up bright and early to say goodbye to Fukuoka and take the shinkansen to Osaka! I’ve actually already been to Osaka, but my flight back to Paris leaves from there so I decided to use it as my base of operations for day trips around the region. And hey, I can always… Continue reading Kurashiki
Dazaifu
Yesterday I had a bit of choice paralysis when I was researching where to go today. It's my last day in Fukuoka, and I had all of Kyushu at my fingertips, so where to go? Friends' recommendations and web searches turned out lots of suggestions but no consensus. So I began looking into each one:… Continue reading Dazaifu