Eyes to the Sky - from The Roof

Since starting a new job in November, I haven't been able to get out and about as much I would have liked. I am indescribably lucky though, to live in an apartment with access to a roof, and all the photos below were taken from said roof. As someone with a definite sky obsession, it's a perfect place to live, though the neighbours must wonder what I do up there. And, as someone with a definite sky obsession, there will no doubt be a steady stream of celestial photographs on this blog . These will do for now. It's been a great year for skies.

Hitachinaka Park - Ibaraki ひたちなか公園, 茨城県

A couple of hours north up the Joban Line from Tokyo, in the seemingly perpetually cloudy prefecture of Ibaraki, lies Hitachinaka Seaside Park. It's a large expanse of grass, flowers and friendly dragonflies. It's well laid out, with a wide variety of flora and activities, including a barbecue area. A 20 minute bus ride from Katsuta station, where a totally unexpected Irish Pub (Doyle's) provides a staging post for the long trip back into the city. The Great Outdoors and a cold pint, what more can a hiking gaijin ask for ?   

Shinjuku Gyouen - 新宿御苑

Since the Amagiyama jaunt there admittedly hasn't been much hiking. However, if this blog were to solely contain musings and photographs of this gaijin's hikes then it would remain a threadbare blog indeed. My  most recent efforts have included the 15 minute "hike" from my place to Shinjuku Gyouen, an oasis of calm right in the center of Tokyo. Despite what many people say, you don't really have to travel far to find beauty, even in this, the most teeming of metropoli. 

The First Post - AmagiYama, Haccho Ike 天城山、八丁池

Evenin' all.

This is somewhat of an experiment, so forgive me if it all seems rather ramshackle initially. The whole exercise was born from a probably temporary desire to sit on my arse after nearly getting lost (the embarrassment of it) on AmagiYama in Izu yesterday. Spent too long admiring the view above, and the can of Ichiban Shibori might not have helped, but the day ended in the pouring rain, in almost complete darkness, in an unedifying scramble down the mountain in an (ultimately successful) attempt to catch the last bus. Anyroads, with views such as this, it was all worth it.