I kicked off the New Year in Tokyo, then ventured south toward the island of Kyushu, with a detour to the Philippines for some surfing and a wedding along the way.

Japan is by far the most efficient and adventurous country I’ve had the privilege of experiencing. On this trip I took trains, flights, and even hopped in a van southward with an old friend.

A few weeks in advance, my friend Rimo invited me to participate in an art fair in Tokyo his publishing company was involved with. Had a blast creating a catalog of images along with my friends from Europe, NYC, and LA. 

Of course, the food was a highlight. Osaka and Fukuoka are top-tier cities for their culinary prowess. Although I’ve ate my way through Osaka a few times (including on this trip) I got to explore Fukuoka’s vibrant food scene full of things I’ve had in Tokyo, but a little different and ‘better’. Another mid expanding stop was Kobe where my buddy Jack and I had a steakhouse dinner and stocked up on Kobe beef for our road-trip south. Just 45 minutes by train from Osaka, Kobe proved to be a worth while detour.

As we made our way south driving through Awaji Island we stopping by some Tadao Ando structures. Japan’s landscape is dotted with incredible structures, and Tadao and Kengo Kuma are two architects in Japan that you’ll hear of often.

This journey also brought me to Hiroshima for the first time. There was something eerily quiet about the place, like a distant memory. The wide streets and modern developments gave it a European ambiance, but on a smaller, quieter scale. Hiroshima doesn’t have a ton of well known attractions besides the Peace Dome, but I’m glad I got to check it off my list. I think I’ll return in the warmer months to experience it in a new light.

And then there were the onsens and sentos. After a long layover on the way to Manila, my buddy Joey and I found a hidden gem at the Niigata airport—an on-site sento where we soaked in the warm waters, the perfect remedy to kill time between flights. On the other side of Japan’s bathing cuture, Beppu provided much needed warmth of sulfuric hot springs. The cream of the crop was a mud bathhouse just up the hill outside of town near what are known as the ‘Hells of Beppu.’

All in all, this winter trip ranked high up there in my trips to the islands. Mostly because I got to explore the southern islands by way of van. Although winter roadtrip isn’t so ideal, it was a blast to go South West in Japan and experience something new aside from the run of the mill Tokyo trip.