Japan March – April 2024

This trip had a different feel to it. There was an emphasis on going to different places, getting stamps, getting Goshuin and retracing steps. Getting eki and memorial stamps, Gojoin and Goshuin has added another layer to my trips in to Japan. 

Often times when I get infactuated with some, I like to invest time to understand and enjoy it. This trip was exploring the aspect of a stamp collector, but the main thing with stamps was to show “you were there”. 

What started out as a stamp here and there, some of them ended up me chasing a lot of stuff. An example would be the All Japan Towers stamp rally. 

Again, the biggest thing for me was to get a stamps to where I have been, making the journey unique to myself. 

50,000 yen… geezus

I’ve always got the National JR Pass. In October of 2023, the price was increased for the 1st time since the 80s. I truely abuse these passes and hit my usual golden route. This trip, I actually started my 7 day JR Pass 2 days early since the 1st portion of my trip to Sapporo failed. 

I definitely hit the places I needed to go, but I just feel that they increase in prices DOES make you want to explore other options and I feel that my future trips to Japan will be more regionally focused. 

The new price for the 7 day pass is even more expensive than the old price of a 14 day pass (47,000). Again, it sucks because I love the JR Pass for it’s unlimited range. Regional passes do have their limits. 

Todai-ji goshuin

As mentioned, I decided to make this trip with intentions of seeing a lot of temples and shrines. I’ve always checked out the temple/shrine grounds, but I never really focused on the rituals of cleansing and praying. 

I started to get interested in Goshuin after reading and seeing some of these stamps. I had forgotten that I got a goshuin at Kiyomizu-dera back in 2016 thinking it was just another souvenir. 

Now that I got a better understanding of pilgrimages and the purposes of some of the charms, it has opened a door to a better understanding of Japan’s religous/spiritual side. 

Ofuna Kannon

Since I was chasing a lot of goshuin, this pushed me to areas that were more religious. For example, Nara, Uji, Ofuna and Nikko to name a few. It was pretty cool to visit these places in general and of course, a lot of these places are pretty historic.