Half Year Off

March 7 2024

Western Australia – The South Part 2

Alicia & Marco Australia, Half Year Off 0

Sà-wàt-dii from Koh Chang

It’s been four weeks since our last blog post and time seems to be slipping away as we approach the end of our six-month adventure. After visiting New Zealand, we spent a week in Fiji to celebrate Marco’s birthday. Currently, we’re in the midst of our Thailand adventure on Koh Chang, located in the southeastern part of Thailand.

But for now, let’s travel three months back in time, right into our roadtrip adventure through the southern part of Western Australia. Enjoy reading!

Cheers
Alicia & Marco

East Bay Campground

We arrived at the East Bay campground at 11:00 and were lucky enough to find a beautiful spot right by the beach. The view was absolutely breathtaking and we knew right away that we wanted to stay for two nights. Take a look for yourself, the scenery speaks for itself.

Stand Up Paddelin’ the Bay

One crazy thing about East Bay Came Ground is that free to use and you even have a toilet there. This spot got into our top 5 WA campgrounds real quick, and even no 4WD needed. At around 4 PM it gets hectic, and everyone is trying to secure a free place for the night at this wonderful beach. But what we experienced the next day was crazy. At night there were around 20 campers but no one wanted to stay for longer than one night. We didn’t really realized what happened but on our second day at around 12 AM we found ourselves alone at this awesome beach! Pump up the SUP and let’s go!

Stargazing at East Bay Campground

Besides the awesome beach and fine sand (every step you made on the sand made a little squirk) this place also offered us the best stargazing spot we have experienced so far. And we were also quite impressed what the iPhone 13 Pro could get out of that nights sky.

Boat Harbor Campground

The next stop on our way was the Boat Harbour campground. The campground is marked as four-wheel drive accessible only. However, we read some comments that you could also make it in a two-wheel drive. Still missing our Toyota Hilux with whom we could have made a little beach drive at the previous East Bay, we decided to see if the new campervan can handle a little bit of off-roading, and the tracks were nice. We had no problem with a two-wheel drive getting there. At the campsite we almost got stuck in a little soft sand hole, but we made it without getting bogged. This was by the way another free campground, the host keeps running it with donations and beer he told us. Next day before leaving we left him both at his cabin.

Ravensthorpe

While driving, we bought some eggs beside the road and decided to eat a little egg wrap lunch.

Starvation Bay Campsite

During our stay at Starvation Bay campground, we had the pleasure of meeting Ron and Ronda. Ron has been retired for three years, and upon receiving his pension, they sold all their possessions and invested in an off-road mobile home. Ronda works at Woolworths intermittently, and they have been exploring Australia for the past three years like this. Interestingly, Ron has his rootes in the Black Forest of Germany, despite being Australian-born and bred.

12 km Beach Walk

We went on a beach walk today and it was amazing! We covered 12 kilometers barefoot and took some swimming breaks on the way. The best part was that we had the whole beach to ourselves. It was a really peaceful walk.

Cape Le Grand National Park

We finally reached Cape La Grande, Grande, National Park. We had a little bad luck with the weather, but the beaches were amazing, with awesome white sand and wonderfully blue water, and because the weather was not so nice in the beginning, it was less than usual at these spots.

Cape Arid National Park

Our last highlight in the far South of WA was Cape Arid National Park. The beaches were comparable to Cape La Grande, but the sea was much stronger, with big waves crashing onto the beach during a little walk. We enc an emu family with eight little Emus walking behind their mother.

Munglinup Beach

After Cape Arid, it was time to turn around and drive back towards Perth. Already missing the ocean, we decided to stay one more night at the Beach near Munglinup before heading inland’s back to Perth.

Wave Rock

On our way through the Backcountry, we stopped at Wave Rock, a beautiful rock formation formed like a wave. For the night we stayed at Bulyee Hall, where we slept beside huge eucalyptus trees with many parrots flying around.

Last Night at Bulyee Hall

For the night we stayed at Bulyee Hall, where we slept beside huge eucalyptus trees with many parrots flying around.

Returning the Campervan

After 2 1/2 week, we were finally back in Perth. We unloaded our stuff at the apartment we had for rent, and we’re ready to return our lovely Toyota Hiace, What a nice camping car!

G’day Scarborough!

It was Wednesday, the 20th of December, and Christmas stood right before the door . We also met our friends from back home Anna and Nicolai this day, with whom we planed to spend Christmas in Perth.

We hope you enjoyed reading!

See you soon

Marco & Alicia

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February 7 2024

Western Australia – The South Part 1

Alicia & Marco Australia, Half Year Off 0

Kia Ora from Wanaka

The first month of the new year 2024 has already passed and we have February, our last month in New Zealand. Currently, we’re in the central region of the South Island…

But for now it‘s time to catch up with our Western Australia adventures. Let’s go back to the start of December and right to the start of our southern WA roadtrip with a new campervan. Enjoy reading!

Cheers
Alicia & Marco

Monday Moning, back to work…

Today is December 4th, and we are starting our next adventure by using public transportation. We have picked up our camper van and plan to explore the southwest region of Western Australia.

Preston Beach

We went to Preston Beach to a free campsite to work a little on the blog. We were surprised by how big our little camper van really was. It was no problem to fit three persons sleeping in here, and we also were delighted that we didn’t have to set up the rooftop tent every night. Still, as it was only a two-wheel drive, we sadly looked at all the Toyota Land Cruiser, Hilux and and all the other 4WD who let down their tires and went for a beach drive. That 4WD times, sadly, were over for us now.

Adventist Campground

During our trip, we decided to visit the Adventist campground near Busselton. At first, we were unsure about what to expect since we found out that alcohol was prohibited on the premises. However, we decided to give it a try and booked a two-night stay. Also it wasn’t quite that hard for us after our night out at the Pub with Nigel… To our surprise, the campground was exceptional. The kitchen and BBQ area were perfect and the beach was beautiful. While walking along the beach, Alicia even spotted some dolphins. Overall, it was a wonderful experience. We even got a visit from St Nicholas on the 6th of December at the campsite.

Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse

We took a stroll at the Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse and enjoyed the breathtaking views of the Indian Ocean. On a fortunate day, you might even get a chance to see whales from this spot.

Bunker Bay

After our little walk, we planned a snack stop at Bunker Bay, but alas, there were too many flies to even think about putting out something to eat. So back into the van and back on the road.

Aquarium and Canal Rocks

The next stop on our way was the aquarium, a small bay sheltered by big rocks. We hiked a little on the Cape to Cape track, which is leading 120 kilometers from Cape Naturaliste Lighthouse all the way down south to Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse.

Boranup Campground

The Boranup Campsite is a little campground in the middle of huge eucalyptus trees. The forest looks magical if the sun is setting and shining through the winded trees. We even got some Emu visitors the next morning.

Pemberton Area

While in the Pemberton area, Marco was eager to visit the famous Glucose tree. Standing tall at approximately 60 meters, the tree offers a climb of up to 40 meters. In the past, steel poles were installed into the tree to serve as stairs to climb up to the lookout point, which was used to spot bushfires. However, the tree climbing activity was closed in November 2023, and we were unable to take part in it. 2 weeks too late… Nonetheless, we enjoyed other scenic walks in the area and were amazed by the impressive wineries. Additionally, we also watched the beautiful parrots flying around everywhere.

Mount Frankland National Park

After leaving Pemberton, we hit the road again and were surprised by the long stretch ahead of us. In the Margaret River area we were used to cities and villages around 50 kilometers apart from each other. However, once we left Pemberton, the distances between towns and villages increased dramatically, distances of 150 to 200 kilometers between each stop again. As it started getting late, we began searching for a place to sleep for the night, not wanting to drive in the dark. That’s when we stumbled upon a charming little bush camp inside Mount Franklin National Park. Despite not expecting much, we were blown away by the impressive trees with diameters bigger than our car. Because of our amount of books we accumulated over the last few book boxes, we decided to spend two nights there and even made our first camping flatbread for breakfast on the 2nd advent. Preparing the dough in the evening and cooking it in the morning in a pan resulted in the perfect meal.

Fernhook Falls

Using the Wiki camp’s offline map, we were able to locate a nearby waterfall and decided to hike there. The waterfall itself wasn’t that impressive, and we could only imagine the strength of the water streams during rainy seasons. But it was a nice walk in the Mount Frankland NP and we just saw one car the whole day.

Planned Bushfires

Around Walpole, we found some road signs we hadn’t seen so far. It told us to drive slowly because of planned bushfires. As it turned out, the firefighters laid out controlled fires to burn down the small bushes in the forest to protect them from bigger Bush and forest fires.

Valley of the Giants

As we traveled towards the Valley of the Giants, we navigated a narrow gravel road to reach the colossal tingle tree. This unique eucalyptus tree once allowed early Western tourists to park their cars inside of it.

In the Valley of the Giants, we purchased some honey beside the road and some wine and olive oil from Andreas, who left Switzerland in his 20s. The way up to his farm was quite impressive. A lot of parrots crossed our way while driving towards the farm.

Green Pools – Denmark

On our way to the green pools near Denmark, we suddenly spotted some big birds sitting beside a little river. As we wanted to take a closer look, we turned around and looked again at the birds, who turned out to be big Pelicans. What a feeling to see an animal just in the wilderness of Western Australia. The green pools itself were nice, but also crowded.

Manypeaks Bushcamp with a View

We ventured towards the Ocean Woo Camps, taking a small gravel road that led us towards the ocean and the many peaks surrounding it. According to the signs, we were informed that there were two free campsites available right beside the ocean, which seemed quite promising from the pictures we had seen. As it was already late, we decided to give it a try. However, upon arrival, we were disappointed to find out that all the campsites were already occupied. Nevertheless, we made the most of our situation and set up a small bush camp, which had a breathtaking view of the ocean. To make our experience even better, we baked some delicious Australia-shaped flatbread.

The next day we tried our luck with the East Bay Campground again. And we could easily say, that one made it’s way to our Top 5 WA Campsites real quick. More in the next blog post.

Thank you very much for reading our blogpost. We hope you enjoyed it!

See you soon

Marco & Alicia

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January 20 2024

Western Australia – The North West Part 3

Alicia & Marco Australia, Half Year Off 0

Kia Ora from Raurimu, New Zealand

Happy New Year! We’ve already passed the first three weeks of our New Zealand adventure with some guests. After having a New Year’s Eve celebration in Auckland, we flew to Queenstown and made our way back to the North Island in two weeks. Currently, we have one more week left on the North Island before our visitors return home and we will fly back to the South Island of New Zealand.

But for now, let’s go back to the end of November when we were in the remote northwestern part of Werstern Australia. In this blog post, we’ll be covering our last Off-road experiences with our Toyota Hilux Rooftop Camper. Enjoy reading!

Cheers
Alicia & Marco

Exmouth

After spending two nights at Amherst Point, we needed to restock our supplies. We left the four-wheel tracks and headed for Coral Bay, which had a small supermarket. However, we decided to go directly to Exmouth which had a well-equipped local IGA with everything we needed. While enjoying a little snack in the pedestrian zone, we were quickly joined by parrots and peculiar-looking pigeons with a sting on their head. As the temperature soared to about 40°, we decided to spend the peak hours inside a little climate cafe and shoot our Bali post. The landscape on our way to Exmouth was stunning, and we couldn’t help but wonder what the nearby Cape Range National Park was like.

Mesa Campground, Cape Range National Park

We arrived at Mesa Campground just before sunset, and Marco decided to go for a little snorkel. A lot of sand in the water made a terrible visibility, but a big shadow on Marcos right started to take off from the ground. A huge turtle, maybe 1m away, swam into the dust of the ocean waters. Didn‘t expect that from a little sunset snorkel right behind our campsot! Crazy Ningaloo Reef, and that was when we remembered some Australian fellows telling us we had to take a snorkel at the Ningaloo Reef up in Exmouth, and you can see there are turtles everywhere. Well, we now know they were right!

Lakeside Snorkel Area, Cape Range National Park

We discovered a fantastic snorkeling spot called Lakeside Snorkel through Wiki Camps, which was conveniently just a five minute drive away from Mesa Campground. Before the heat of the day set in, we decided to take a quick snorkeling trip. We didn’t have high expectations, but what we saw completely exceeded them. To reach the lakeside snorkel spot, we had to walk 500 meters along the beach, and then it was indicated where we should enter the water. Once we got in, we could take about 50 meters of steps before encountering a massive coral reef. The coral was stunning, with various hues and some looking like red and yellow brains. We had everything we could have wished for right there, and we didn’t need to take a boat or book a tour or anything since we could just walk into the water. It was crazy!

The water was crystal clear, and after one part, the water got deeper, and there it came, a mid-size turtle SW into our field of view, pacing slowly through the water, not slow so you could follow it for a little. What a feeling to swim with this creature of the sea. Marco stayed a little longer in the water to discover the more remote part of the snorkeling area on the way back to the beach. There was this 1m deep water he also snorkeled through, and then it happened. A huge Reef Shark, maybe 2 to 2 1/2 meters long, crossed Marcos way 10 meters in front of him, gently cruising one straight line, not even looking to the sides. In such moments, you realize how small you are in the picture of sea predators like sharks and in the picture of the world . It was an awesome experience snorkeling there and encountering the creatures of the sea, like turtles and a reef shark. It gives you a healthy humble respect for the ocean and its wildlife.

Back at the ranger station, we talked to the Ranger, and she wasn’t surprised by the reef shark encounter. All they’re swimming around there, but they are nice, so you were fortunate that you saw one. From the pictures on a sign we found out that Marco saw a Blacktip Reef Shark. Very beautiful and stunning creature!

The next morning, we went inside the water again, but this time, we saw no turtles or sharks while snorkeling, but plenty of colorful coral fish. You can’t be lucky every day; that’s how it is in the wilderness. While walking back to the car, the 500 meters along the beach, we were lucky again to see a turtle put his head out of the water and the shadow of a Stingray cruising gently in the shallow waters. Crazy wonderful Western Australia.

Trisel Turtle Rookery

Initially, we had planned to spend only one night at Camp Mesa campground; however the turtle encounter and the awesome lakeside snorkel nearby compelled us to extend our stay by an extra night. The camp host was taken aback, and he ended up sharing a secret with us – the Trisel Turtle Rockery. We told him that we saw some turtles snorkeling in the lakeside area. He came close, and have you seen turtles laying eggs on the beach yet? We were confused and told him we hadn’t heard about it, and then he said maybe 10 to 15 kilometers away, there is a beach where the turtles come out of the water to lay their eggs, and now we are right in the egg-laying season. He saw that we hadn’t set up our rooftop tent yet and told us it would be best to go there for sunset and wait until it got slightly darker. As soon as it is down, the turtles should come out of the water climbing up the beach and the dunes to dig a deep hole and lay their eggs.

What a crazy thing! We thought this couldn’t be true, some beach where you can go freely with no restrictions and no entry fee, and you can see turtles laying eggs, but this was exactly how it looked like. Only a small sign at the little parking lot explained of how you have to behave with the turtles, to not disturb them.

Walking the beach, we saw these huge tracks, maybe 1m in diameter. And the whole beach and the dunes looked like some drunk excavator driver digged around in those dunes. If we didn’t knew we were on the turtle beach we might have thought these bursts in the sand were coming from some kind of off-road vehicle, something like a snowmobile for the sand or something else, but these huge tracks were from big turtles crawling out of the sea, and we didn’t have to wait long to see it with our own eyes. Slowly but surely huge turtles came out of the water crawling to the dunes. One very big example came out of the water very close and we sat still, watching this turtle making it way up to the dune and digging a big hole. It took the turtle around half an hour to get from the water up in the dune. What an unreal experience.

Ningaloo Coast Track

To get from Cape Range National Park to Coral Bay, you have two options. The first option is a two-wheel drive route that takes you all the way around through Exmouth and then heads south for about 200 kilometers. The second option is the Yardy Creek Crossing, which is an off-road track that leads down the entire Ningaloo Coastline until you reach Coral Bay. We chose the four-wheel drive option, which is said to be a bit difficult due to the Yardy Creek Crossing. However, we were fortunate that the crossing was dry and the tide was not high during this time of year. The only challenge we faced was driving through the soft sand of Yardy Creek, but we were already familiar with how to handle it, so it was not a problem for us. Tires down to 18 PSI and go for it!

There are plenty of campsites available on the four-wheel drive section, but we didn’t book one in advance and had no reception. We thought it wouldn’t be an issue, but we were wrong. All the campsites had hosts who would only allow guests with online bookings, and they turned away those who didn’t have one. They also refused to accept cash and let us camp for a night, so we didn’t want to argue and went on. Since we hadn’t encountered this situation before, we decided to go to the first campsite that will take us with a cash payment. Of course it was the last one at the end of the track that finally took cash.

Bruboodjoo Point

After 60 kilometers of off-roading down the Ningaloo coastline, we reached the Bruboodjoo Point campground. We found the little spot behind the dunes, the perfect windshield for a rooftop tent. As the world was nice and good for a swim, we decided to stay two nights.

The next day; our neighbors asked if someone wanted to go out on the boat fishing. Marco took the chance and went out to fish with Gordon. Live fishing, we talked about our lives, what we do for where we live, and so Gordon used to be a chef down in Melbourne and did a Europe road trip with his wife Marry back in his 20s. One time in the 1990s, they went for a two-week vacation to WA and loved it so much that they decided to move there. He also changed jobs and is now working in explosives as a blaster in Newman, an iron ore mine 200 kilometers South of Port Hedland. It’s the biggest iron ore mine in the whole of Australia.

As we neared a reef, the water got swallowed again and changed its color to a lighter blue. Marco got a hit at his fishing rod, and he was a huge pufferfish. Gordon said he had never seen one as big as this, and he also said unless you’re Japanese, you can’t eat them. So we got the fish from the hook, and it gave it back to the ocean. Later We also saw a huge black shadow cruising in a straight line. We already knew what this could be and took in the fishing rod. We slowly approached it, and as we were maybe 20 meters away we saw the huge shark more clearly. He was definitely bigger than the bot we were sitting in. He was‘t even bothered by our little boat and made his straight line through the crystal clear waters.

During our trip we also saw countless of turtles swimming around and we even saw to making love. As we recognized it we quickly left them alone. One again, awesome ocean wildlife out here in WA.

Coral Bay Shark Nursery

Once again we arrived in Coral Bay and bought some groceries. Within a 1-kilometer beach walk, you can get to the shark nursery. Unfortunately, we couldn’t see any little sharks, but many Stingrays were swimming in the shallow waters.

Sandy Point

From Coral Bay we headed onto the four-wheel drive tracks leading South, where we booked the little off-road campsite Sandy Point. The tracks were easy, and the water was clear. We set up our rooftop tent behind a little dune and swam inside the water. The beach was one of our best swimming spots yet.

Emma and Lucas, accompanied by their dog David were our campground hosts at Sandy Poing. Emma and Lucas are both teachers from Exmouth, taking one year off from their jobs. The travel Western Australia by being campsite hosts at national park off-road campgrounds. This option provides them with certain benefits such as access to the same facilities as Rangers in national parks, free water supplies, and the possibility to camp for free in National Park campsites while hosting. As hosts, their duties include checking visitors’ bookings for the campsites and ensuring that the toilets are clean. They spend about a month at each campsite, making it an enjoyable and inexpensive way to travel for a year camping at some of the best spots Western Australia has to offer.

Little Bay

Our time with the Toyota Hilux was coming to an end. With just a few days left, we decided to spend them at the Little Bay campground near Horrocks. To get there, we had to drive about 3 or 4 kilometers down a sandy off-road track through the dunes. The campground itself was nestled among the trees and had a stunning view of the Little Bay. We even had a massive dune behind us. The water was perfect for swimming and stand-up-paddling, thanks to the coral reef that sheltered it.

We had the entire campsite to ourselves, with only a handful of locals driving their pickups on the beach or launching small boats into the water to fish at night. The little bay was all ours, and we made the most of it by snorkeling, swimming, stand-up-paddling, cooking, and taking leisurely walks on the beach. One day, Marco even had the incredible opportunity to paddle alongside some dolphins as they hunted for food – an unforgettable experience.

Horrocks

Horrocks is a charming beach town nestled beside the tranquil bay campground. Though it has limited amenities, such as a small general store, it offers simple pleasures like swimming in the ocean, boating, and playing golf on the course. Despite its small size, Horrocks boasts beautiful houses with stunning ocean views. During our visit, we even had the chance to spot some Ospreys near the town.

Sandy Cape the Second

It was Wednesday, and tomorrow, we must give back our beloved Toyota Hilux. So! what better place to camp for the last night than our first off-road campground at Sandy Cape? But before we went to the campground, we went to Jurien Bay to get a new SUP. The one Marco purchased had a little hole on the top right from the beginning. It allowed us to use the SUP only for one hour. After that, we had to do some air with the pump. In Jurien Bay, the Home Hardware store we purchased the SUP 3 weeks earlier gave us a new one, an even upgraded version from the one we had.

With the new SUP. We made our way inside the four-wheel drive section of the campground. We took the same path as three weeks before, and we could remember our thoughts when we saw the little hill with the soundtrack where we had to get over to our campsite three weeks ago. We thought **** there we have to go over, and now we looked at it and smiled about the thoughts three weeks earlier. No problem anymore.

Weekend in Perth

It was the day we had to return our Toyota Hilux. Sadly, we drove the three hours back to Perth to the small Malibu apartment we booked in West Perth. We unloaded the car at the apartment and draw it back to the Britz Camper station.

Sadly, we returned it and drove back to our apartment. After 3 1/2 weeks of camping, mostly on remote off-road campsites with only dump toilets, the apartment felt like a luxury heaven, with a whole kitchen, oven fridge, a bathroom and a nice big bed.

We spend our days exploring the area around the apartment, walking through Little Christmas Markets at 30 degrees outside, and one night, we even with Nigel, one of the fishermen from Steep Point.

The weekend flew by and before we knew it, it was Sunday the 1st advent. Tomorrow, we’ll be embarking on another road trip in our new camper van, this time exploring the southern parts of WA on two wheels. Based on what we’ve seen so far, we can already tell that the South is vastly different from the Northwest. Get ready for our exciting adventures in Southern WA.

Once again thank you for reading our blog post!

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December 23 2023

Western Australia – The North West Part 2

Alicia & Marco Australia, Half Year Off 0

G’day from Scarborough

It’s that time of the year again – Christmas! We just got back to Perth after a 2.5-week trip to the southern part of Western Australia. The trip was filled with endless adventures, and we’ll be sharing all the details in some upcoming blog posts, so stay tuned! We will spend our Christmas days with our friends Nicolai and Anna in a nice apartment 10 min walk from the Beach in Perth-Scarborough. The temperatures right now are around 30-35 degrees perfect for some beach barbecues during Christmas!

But now back to our great off-road adventure in the Northwest. Enjoy reading our new post and have some great Christmas holidays!

PS If you don’t want to read in English, go to the menu bar and switch to German.

Cheers
Alicia & Marco

Entering the Edel Land National Park – 120 km Offroad Track to Steep Point

On Sunday, November 14th at 11:00 AM, we were ready for the steep point adventure. We had our car fueled up, 10l of backup diesel and groceries and water for at least a week with us. And there it is, the sign from the main road, leading us to steep pint. It’s approximately 140 kilometers until we reach a steep point ahead of us, and we’re not quite sure how long it will take us to get there. According to Google Maps, the trip should take around 2 1/2 hours (yes google maps leads you also through off-road tracks in Australia), but we’ve read online that some people have made it in 2 hours, and even 1 1/2 hours. However, we’re planning to take it slow and steady, as we have between six and seven hours until sunset. As Jamie advised, we’ll just take our time and enjoy the drive. As Jamie said, ‚don‘t rush mate, take your time and enjoy the ride‘.

The 1st 30 kilometers were quite easy, sealed Rd. No problem. 110 km to go. Next part of the track, unsealed Rd. with some crazy corrugations. All right remembering the advise from Jamie we got our tires down to 30 PSI and searched for our best speed to cruise over the corrugations. We found it at around 60-70 km/h. If you get to slow the whole car gets into heavy vibrations, if you are to fast same story. In between the unsealed part, around 2-3 km of sealed road again. The unsealed part was around 70 km in total, when we reached the entry to the Edel Land National Park. 40 km till steep point. To this point you could even drive with a two wheel drive.

We drove into Edel Land National Park with our tires still at 30 PSI. As we continued, we noticed the tracks were becoming sand. From here the real off-road section starts. In the distance, we spotted a large sand dune forming on the horizon. After five kilometers, we reached a 180° curve that led straight into the dune. We knew that this was the spot to lower our tires. With our tires now at 18 PSI, we began climbing up the dune in low 4 gear, on a single line track, The Doors playlist playing in the radio. On or way to the top we stopped at each parking bay, listening for any signs of other cars coming from the front.

Sandy tracks and lonely beaches

In the end dune itself was an 2 kilometers soft sand uphill drive, single track with no real vision for upcoming vehicles. The track was a bit challenging because of some big holes where people before us got stuck. But with our tries on 18 PSI, the luck of no upcoming traffic and our Toyota Hilux in Low 4×4 Drive we made our way slowly but surely.

After climing up the dune our way down began. While rolling down the dune, the ocean was shaping out on the horizon again. What an awesome view and no sign of civilization. We begin to realize why this is the most beautiful spot on earth for Jamie. The road led us to a little beach. So, what else could we do, such as jumping in and having a bath? What a place! 20 km after the dune we passed the Ranger station and the Shelter Bay campgrounds. They looked so nice that we told ourselves to spend one night there while going out.

Mainland Australia’s most westerly point

The last 20 kilometers to Steep Point were easy, good visibility for upcoming vehicles and no soft sand sections. We drove over one last Crest and there it was. 180 degree ocean view, the end of the Australian continent. We made it to Steep Point, we made it to the most westerly point of mainland Australia.

Faultline 1 Campsite

Before entering the no reception zone we booked our campground online (back in Denham). We managed to book a spot named Faultline 1. The campground is up on a Cliff with the best ocean views, with wind protection from a hill in the back.

The fishermen next to us on fault line 2, a small pool where they pumped ocean water every to cool off and have a small bath. They also invited us to hop inside the pool and told us they wouldn’t go swimming around there. There would be a lot of sharks around this area; we later saw it with our own eyes, how a shark bit away a nice snapper from one of the fishermen’s rods.

The days were chilled, and we made a lot of good food: chili, wraps, shoyu Ramen (which gave us a little flashback to Japan) peanut butter jelly sandwiches, and of course, coffee.

Secret Shell Beach

After having a beer on the first night out at Steep Point with the fisherman beside us. They told us about a little beach with lots of beautiful shells; around 50 minutes to our first morning out at Steep Point, it was a bit cloudy, so we took the chance and walked to the beach and were flashed by the amount and color of them. We were in a National Park, so nothing could go with us, only the rubbish we found.

Gone Fishin’

The fishermen beside us also invited us two fish with some free rods standing around. And that’s what we did. Spending time at steep point fishing from the cliffs. On one morning Jim and Dave took up the Crayfish box and surprisingly there was a Wobbegong Shark inside. Strange looking shark, almost like a catfish, we had never heard or seen before.

Fisherman’s stories

In the first night we joined our neighbours with some beer for them to make friends, and after that we sat every evening in their camp listening to their fisherman’s stories. It was a surreal experience out at Steep Point, hundreds of kilometers away from civilization, sitting in a fisherman’s camp with a TV running in the background and four fishermen telling us stories about some fig fish they caught or even hooked at Steep Point, about whales and manta rays passing by and about a legendary fish named Boo Jingles.

Boo Jingels was a huge codfish who lived years ago out in the waters of steep point. He swam around right under the cliffs, catching away the fish, the fisherman were able to hook up. So as a fisherman in lot of cases you managed to hooked a big fish and casted it right down to the big cliff, Boo Jingles came and took it away from you. Now you had Boo Jingles on your rod but he was smart and strong enough to get under the cliffs which resulted in the cut of your line at the cliffs every time. So every time Boo Jingles got away, another fishing line added to his mouth hanging down from it. And because the water at steep point is so clear you could easily see them when he took away your next catch. In the end one unknown angry fisherman took his gun with him to steep point and shot Boo Jingles from the cliffs. It became quiet in the fishermen’s camp and finally one of the four said „you know it’s such a shame he shot Boo Jingles. It was quite a nice game who will get the fish first you or Boo“ Silence again. You could clearly see how they remembered back these days when boo jingles was still around.

Today there is no more Boo Jingles only the sharks, waiting under the cliffs for taking away the fish from your rod just as Boo Jingels did back in his days. And the sharks under the cliffs are also the reason why they wouldn’t recommend going for a swim anywhere near these cliffs.

Surrounding the oven with Jim

One day, Jim wanted to show us the oven. It’s right beside Steve Point, and it got its name because, in the summertime, it often gets boiling out there, reaching temperatures of about 45 to 50. At that time, you want to stand there fishing. He also wanted to go with us because the track is very tricky, and you need to be very careful because of the little steps right beside the Cliff going down 30 meters into the ocean.

Australia’s most westerly nature’s window

During one evening, we decided to go on a hunt for nature’s window near Steep Point. Although we had heard about it, we hadn’t managed to catch a glimpse of it yet. As we reached Steep Point, we came across a family and a friend who were clicking pictures and enjoying their beers. We joined them and were soon offered an Emu beer, which is from Western Australia. We shared our plans with them and mentioned that we were unsure about the location of the window. To our surprise, the mother of the children knew about the window back in their childhood days but had forgotten it was there. Excitedly, we all decided to explore the terrain around Steep Point together, and at last, we found the most westerly nature’s window of Australia – one of the the most stunning spots for a sunset we have ever been to!

Dangers at Steep Point

Although the place is beautiful, it poses a risk of staying away from civilization. Every morning, you can see snake tracks in the sand around your camp, so it’s essential to be cautious everywhere you go.

Another thing you should never understimate is the weather. As described above the temperatures at the oven can get up to 50 degrees in summertime. But rain or a storm is also dangerous. First of all a heavy rain can cause you some serious problems if you want to get out of steep point as the track conditions can change quickly. So even if you want to stay for two nights or so, just make sure you have some additional supplys in case there is any problem. Jim told us from one time he was out at steep point when a heavy storm hit the coastline. He stayed with his brother at Faultline (same camping spot as we had) and the waves got so big they washed over the whole Faultline campground (20 m up from sea level). Their whole camp was destroyed by the huge waves crushing down and they were lucky not being washed away into the wild Indian Ocean.

Additionally, there are cliffs with sharp stones, making it dangerous to fall off even in good weather conditions. Unfortunately, during our stay, an 84-year-old fisherman fell down the cliffs at the oven into the ocean. It was lucky that his grandson was with him and knew how to swim. He saved his grandfather’s life quickly. All the fishermen around came to help, and one person even rode his Motocross to the Rangers station to call for help. They managed to get the two people up again with the help of ropes. Although the boat arrived late, they were already safe. The Ranger sent the injured to the hospital. The area also has signs from people who went fishing for the last time. May they rest in peace.

Time to say goodbye

We booked two nights out at the steep point campground but we ended up staying three nights there with such wonderful people around and this amazing landscape. But finally, it was time to say goodbye. As little gifts, we made some Polaroid pictures of nature’s window and gave them to Jim, Dave, Karl, and Nigel. It was a pleasure meeting you guys; our paths might cross again. See ya!

Shelter Bay Campground

On our way to the Faultline camping area, we remembered a stunning beach and campground right beside it named Shelter Bay. After a 15 to 20 kilometer journey, we arrived at the campground and were pleased to discover that our nearest neighbors were around 1-2 kilometers away in either direction. This meant that we practically had the beach to ourselves, and what a beach it was! The white sand was simply breathtaking, and we were delighted to spot many starfish scattered around. It was truly amazing.

Way out & False Entrance Blowholes

On our fifth day, after four beautiful nights out at the most westerly point of Australia, we had to leave the Adelland National Park behind us. On our way out, we explored some sidetracks and the false entrance blowholes. These are huge Cliffs about 50 to 60 meters above the water. With is cold inside the cliffs, and if you have high tide and big waves, you can see water spilling out of these holes. The time we went there, the waves weren’t big enough, but you had a strange sound coming out of those holes, like sparkling water.

On our way down the big dune, we remembered Jamie’s word: take as much time as possible. He told us will see one of the most wonderful places on earth, and now we’re sure it is defenetly one of the most beautiful places!

Quobba Blowholes & Nyinggulu Coastal Reserve Track

After leaving the Adelaide National Park, we headed for Carnarvon. We fueled up, loaded some water and groceries, and got out of it again. No city plans (town might be the better description for Carnarvon), we wanted to get back into the wilderness as quick as possible.

We went to the Quobba Blowholes a little north of Carnarvon and finally managed to see some blowholes, spitting water. We continued our track north, where the road signs said if you were on four-wheel drive, you could make our way through there. At one point, we reached a gate, and a sign was telling us from here on, only with four-wheel drive. Even after some little off-road experience, these signs remember you to always respect the track and if something happens you are on your own out there.

We had three hours of daylight left, and the sign told us we should plant 1 1/2 to 2 hours for this 30 kilometers. This was another kind of four-wheel track, with no sandtracks, only stones, and holes on the way. We had some steep inclines and declined with some rock steps, which of the pictures look half as scary. We even had a river crossing on this track, and if you watch the picture, it’s looking easy, but driving down there and getting up again was quite a challenge. Finally, we made it after two hours, and we could easily say this was one of the hardest four-wheel drive tracks we had done so far.

Amherst Point

We were rewarded with an amazing campsite, Amherst Point, after a challenging four-wheel drive. The site offered stunning views of a beach nestled in the dunes, with a coral reef about 50 meters from the shore. We enjoyed refreshing swims and snorkeling in the chilly waters, while the sound of the waves crashing in the distance provided a soothing backdrop. We were amused to spot countless yellow crabs scurrying along the beach. To top it all off, we ended our day with a Great Northern beer in the sunset. We decided to extend our stay for two more nights while planning the next leg of our adventure.

Email from Jim

After our steep point adventure, Jim sent us an email sharing his impressive fishing catches during his 14-day stay. He attached some big pictures of Tuna and Spanish Mackerel, where you can even see the sharks taking their bites. Take a look for yourself, they are truly remarkable.

We hope you enjoyed reading! As we are not sure when the third part of our Northwestern Australia adventure will be published, we wish you all the best for the upcoming christmas hoildays and a great start into the new year 2024! See you soon.

And thank you every much for every feedback thats reaches us over WhatsApp, Email or the Blog Post comments down below. Do not hesitate to write us feedback, we love hearing from you 🙂

See you next year

Marco & Alicia

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December 4 2023

Western Australia – The North West Part 1

Alicia & Marco Australia, Half Year Off 4

G’day from Perth

In the last days we got a lot of snow pictures from home. We hope you had an enjoyable first Advent weekend! We spent ours in an Apartment in Perth with around 25-30 degrees Celcius and were happy to have Air Condition, a Washing Machine, an own Bathroom and a real kitchen with fridge. You learn to be happy with the little things after 2 months of traveling.

Over the last 3 and a half weeks, we’ve been traveling the northwestern part of Western Australia with our Toyota Hilux. In this blog post, we’ll be sharing about our first stories with our off-road camper. Have fun reading!

Cheers
Alicia & Marco

Hello there Western Australia!

On November 4th, we left Bali. After spotting a bakery we couldn’t resist buying some pretzels for our flight. The flight was pleasant, and we were lucky to have $10 seats in the first row of the plane. Upon entering Australia, Alicia filled out the necessary customer clearance details, but Marco thought we were good to go. Alicia noticed some missing information and asked Marco about it, but he didn’t have it either. We were left feeling a bit confused. We had plenty of Japanese nut snacks with us, which we enjoyed picking from. However, during clearance, officers scanned our luggage and disposed of our snacks.

Kings Park and Botanic Garden

Perth welcomed us with 25C, bright sunshine, and a small breeze. It almost felt like coming home after our last stay in Australia 7 years ago. The smell of Occipus trees in the air, the colorful parrots smell of summer. Good to be back.

University of Western Australia

Following our trip to Kings Park, we were headed to Fremantle by bus. However, we chanced upon the University of WA just before catching the bus. The campus looked like a scene out of an American movie, with beautiful old stone buildings, lovely palm parks, and bustling libraries filled with students. It was a surreal experience with peacocks roaming around the area, adding to the charm of the place.

Freemantle

In Fremantle. We went to the farmer’s market and had a very good burger on our way to the market. It is a very nice part of Perth with nice buildings and good shops.

Pickin’ up our Pick up

On November 6th, we were finally able to pick up our Toyota Hilux 4×4. The process was simple: download the app and watch the instruction videos, that’s it and here are your keys. Unthinkable if you would rent a car like this in Germany or somewhere else. Right before we wanted to start we recognized that somthing is missing as we looked at our car but we couldn’t tell what it was… Then we saw the obvious: our front license plate was missing. We went back in but everything was good they just forgot to tell us. The police already knows about it, no worries you’re good to go. All right, the car was even looking better without the front plate! Our first stop was Coles grocery store, where we filled our supplies. After purchasing some beer, we were ready to hit the road out of Perth and into the wilderness of Western Australia.

The Pinnacles Desert & Kangaroo Point

During our trip, we made a pit stop at the Nambum National Park to check out the pineapple desert. If you happen to have a four-wheel drive, you can access some stunning four-wheel tracks located right next to the rock formations. Later, we ventured to Kangaroo Point and discovered a charming little beach. It dawned upon us that we could explore even more remote beaches and have exciting adventures during the remaining 3 and a half weeks.

Sandy Cape Recreation Park

In Jurien Bay Marco spotted an Suzuki Jimny with remembered us of our time in Japan. While taking a picture one local came by and shouted in strong accent „noice little Jimny EY?! Cheers Mate!“ We love the Aussies! Our first real off road campground was the Sandy Cape Recreation Park located north of Jurien Bay. The park can be reached through the Sandy Cape Campground, which is accessible by a two-wheel drive. As soon as you reach the end of the campground, the four-wheel drive sandy tracks begin. We managed to find a quaint spot in a remote bay, offering calm and serene waters that were perfect for a swim. To get here we had to pass a small soft sand hill and one Aussie sitting right next to the hill in front of his off-road camper shouted the advice in our direction „aim for it and than just gun over the top!“ said and done, no worries mate thanks for the advice!

Hutt Lagoon Pink Lake

A few kilometers north of Geraldton, you find the Hut Lagoon Pink Lake. It’s a salty little lake with a wonderful pink color.

Lucky Bay Campground, Yallabatharra

We stumbled upon the Lucky Bay campground which is accessible by four-wheel drive. This campground offers an option to set up your tent behind the dunes on the very soft sand. However, we were advised by the locals that driving through the dunes on the beach is not a good idea, as it’s very soft and there is a risk of getting bogged down. Therefore, we decided to avoid dune or beach driving for the day.

Offroad Training in the Dunes

The following morning was overcast, and we had witnessed some young Australian guys driving around in the dunes with their cars the previous evening. Some even brought their boats on a trailer, which sparked an idea in our minds. We wanted to try off-road driving and explore more secluded places in WA where the weather is warm and hot. As we looked around the campground that morning, we realized there were many people around. So, we thought it would be an excellent training experience to practice driving in the dunes. If we had a choice to get bogged, it would be here. A lot of potential helpers around. We exercised some soft sand driving through the dunes, and soon enough, we got bogged. However, it didn’t take long before five Australians showed up with some hard sand tracks. We quickly got out and learned a lot from driving through the dunes and how important it is lowering the tire pressure a bit. We thanked them with 5 beers. On our way back through the dunes, we feelt a lot more prepared and made it through without getting bogged. We were ready for the real off-road experience!

Kalbarri National Park – Coastline

The next thing on our track was the Kalbarri National Park coastline. Awesome cliffs with wonderful blue water.

Kalbarri National Park – Skywalk, Nature’s Window & Z-Bend

We entered the Kalbari National Park to see the skywalk and nature’s window and set bent at the nature’s window. There was also a walking track, but at this time of the year it was only possible to begin this track before 7:00 AM. We quckly realized why: The temperatures in Kalbarri got hotter and hotter, and 35 deg Celcius felt more like 45.

Welcome to the North West

After Kalbarri it’s where the real wilderness and romteness starts. Up here, the off-road cars are getting bigger, the road trains are getting more and longer, and cars passing each other with greet. Temperature’s climbing. 10l drinking water which cost you in Perth arround 4 AUD is sold here for 12-14 AUD. Fuel is getting more expensive. Gas cartridges we bought back in Jurien Bay for 2 AUD are now 8 AUD. Phone reception is getting rare. You need every chance to fuel up because you never know where the next gas station will be. Pure nature, pristine beaches, stunning wildlife and clear night skies. That’s why we’re here. Welcome to the Northwest.

Shark Bay

To Denham, we entered the Shark Bay World Heritage drive. Beaches full of little shells, and stunning coastlines shape the picture up here. At denham we finally had our first BBQ at a publix BBQ grill and while we were preparing our food, we were lucky enough to spot some dolphins passing by in the bay. Unbelivable.

Francois Peron National Park

Francois Peron National Park is located next to Denham. Access to the park is limited to four-wheel drive vehicles only. The sand dunes are a beautiful red color and driving through the 50-kilometer stretch of sand can be quite an unreal experience as you make your way around corners and over little hills. There are no other cars in sight as you look out to the horizon. If you plan to stay overnight, camping is also an option in the park. During our visit, we stayed at Bottle Bay, which is located at the park’s North End. We had the entire place to ourselves for the night.

During our second night, we visited Gregory’s campground and spent some time exploring the park. We discovered that the northern section of the park has very soft sand tracks, so if you plan on driving there, it’s important to keep the tire pressure around 20PSI to avoid getting bogged down.

Cape Peron, Francois Peron National Park

Cape Peron is on the North End of the National Park. When we first arrived, we didn’t realize how surreal this place was. The red cliffs, the white sand, the blue water, the sound of waves and crabs running around. This is magical. If you ever are in this area and you don’t have a four-wheel drive, make sure to book a tour or something to get out here. It’s worth it.

Little Lagoon, Denham

Right beside Denham is also the little lagoon. It’s a small salty lake with a wonderful blue color. Marco found it perfect to try out his Christmas gift, a stand-up paddleboard he bought back at Jurien Bay. Seeing Marco out there on this beaten lake made Alicia also wanted to hop on the board. In the end we paddled for around an hour, and crossed the whole lake back and forth together on one board.

Last Preparations in Denham

While off-road driving in Francois Peron National Park, we lost some nuts and bolts from our rooftop tent. Although we replaced them, we did not use sealing nuts as we did not have the right tools in our vehicle. So, we visited a marine repair shop and asked the owner if we could use some of his to fix the sealed nuts on our rooftop tent. The owner informed us that he had to go to the airport and his wife went grocery shopping but allowed us to use his workshop. We discussed our plans to go to Steep Point, the most westerly point of mainland Australia, located around the Shark Bay Area. As it is accessible only by four-wheel driving about 140 kilometers, we had concerns about the track conditions and how to get there easily. Fortunately, we got valuable information from someone who showed us the track on a map and even advised us with which tire pressure we should drive on each section of the track. We planned to stay for one night at Steep Point and heard from Janie that it is one of the most beautiful places on earth and he gave us the advice to spend as much time as possible there. All right we booked our stay for the second night. Supplied up, fueled up (even with a 10l backup Diesel canister) and loaded with some local advice for the track we began our way to enter the steep point off-road track. The words of Jamie ran through our heads „oh I don‘t need to show you the place on the map, you will recognize the big sand dune you need to drive up. Just make sure to drop your tires to 20, better 18 PSI (1,2 – 1,3 bar) and enjoy the ride!“

Thanks if you made it down here! Stay tuned if you want to see how we made it to the steep point and if it is worth the 140 km of offroading.

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November 20 2023

Bali

Alicia & Marco Bali, Half Year Off 2

G’day from Exmouth

The first two weeks in Australia have already passed, and we almost missed to send out our Bali adventures! Western Australia is an amazing place, with its serene countryside and remote camping grounds. We will update you about our Western Australia adventures in our next blog post. But now 2,5 weeks back to the Indonesian island of Bali. Before our Australian Off-road adventure, we took a week off from road trips and big cities in a nice little hotel on Bali. Have fun reading!

Cheers
Alicia & Marco

Warm Weather, a little Culture Shock, and a place to relax

On Monday, the 30th of November, we arrived in Denpasar, a bustling city on Bali in Indonesia at around 2:00 PM. Coming from the clean and organized country of Japan, the city of Denpasar was a big culture shock with its unfamiliar smells, heavy traffic, and countless motorcycles. Despite feeling overwhelmed, we were fortunate to have found a hotel in the calm part of Eastern Bali. As soon as we checked in, we were welcomed by the hotel staff with two refreshing fruit drinks. The delicious food, relaxing pool, and serene location of our hotel made it easy for us to unwind and enjoy our stay.

Stumbled upon a Balinese Party

Because our hotel only had 25er sunscreen we wanted to go to the next city and buy some better. While walking towards the next city, we quickly realized it was more dangerous to walk than to ride a little motorcycle. All these fast trucks, cars, and bikes pass very close. It’s quite dangerous, and you don’t even have a broad walk. Right in the city, we stumbled upon a yearly Hindu Temple ceremony. We quickly made friends with Nengah who explained everything to us, gave Marco his number, and organized a cheap motorcycle taxi home to the hotel. The driver was his cousin Karek 27, living with his wife and two kids in the little city of Manggis where our hotel was located.

Exploring East Bali

Next, we explored Eastern Bali on our little scooter. We saw temples, monkeys, beaches, waterfalls, and crazy jungle roads only for scooters. As socius you must always be prepared to jump if it gets too steep, and the little Honda Scoopy won’t make it 😉

Sunset Dinner and a Night Ceremony

We had the most stunning sunset on Thursday at Candidasa in a local restaurant. While enjoying our meals of spring rolls, bami goreng, nasi goreng, and unsweetened iced tea, we had a breathtaking view of the ocean. The best part? It only cost €6 for all the delicious food we had. We even got to try the baked banana, which was a delight. During the dessert Nengah, who arranged the scooter taxi three days prior, sent Marco a message via Whatsapp about a closing ceremony happening at the temple, which he said was massive. Since the temple was on our way, we decided to stop by and see it. We met Nengah again and witnessed an incredible night ceremony at the Hindu Temple.

Balinese Power Grid Expansions

While at the indoor market, we were hoping to grab an iced coffee, but unfortunately, the coffee machine wasn’t working due to the generators running on diesel. Instead, we went for the iced Matcha latte. It was a pleasant surprise to witness the expansion of the Balinese power grid and see workers installing new cables. The construction sites had a unique appearance compared to those in Germany. Sending my regards to all Netze BW colleagues at this point!

Dark Sides of Paradise

Bali offers an incredible natural beauty with its lush green jungles, breathtaking waterfalls, stunning beaches, and majestic volcanoes. However, it also faces a significant rubbish problem. Waste can be seen on the streets, beaches, jungles, and even in small water streams, which are now filled with garbage. The sight of chickens scavenging for food amidst the waste can be quite unpleasant. Another issue that plagues Bali is the traffic. The roads are not very scooter-friendly, and inexperienced riders are advised not to venture out. Cars and trucks drive fast and close by, requiring riders to remain extra cautious at all times.

Food and Drink

We hope the previous section wasn’t too shocking for you. Now, let’s take a look at some of the culinary delights Bali has to offer.

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November 3 2023

Tokyo

Alicia & Marco Half Year Off, Japan 0

Salam from Bali

Our time in Japan has come to an end. We’ve traveled about 4,000 kilometers, and we’re presently on the Indonesian Island Bali. We can’t belive how fast one month is over. Have fun reading!

Cheers

Alicia & Marco

Returning our Suzuki Every

Thursday marks the end of our epic Japan Road Trip adventure as we bid farewell to our trusty Suzuki Every. It’s been an incredible journey spanning over 4000 kilometers across the diverse landscapes of Southwestern Japan. We’ve had our fair share of off-road escapades, city explorations, animal sightings, volcano overnighter, temples, awesome people, and scenic drives along the coastline. It’s been an unforgettable road trip that we’ll cherish for years to come. Attached are some pictures of how we transformed our small car into our cozy bed for the night. We’ll miss you, Little Suzuki. We had a blast with it.

The Arrival in Tokyo

After leaving the Japan campus at the Narita Train Station, we stopped to enjoy a delicious bowl of ramen before embarking on our 1 1/2 hour train ride to our hotel in Tokyo. Once we arrived in the Otsuk region of Tokyo, we were thrilled to discover a Michelin Star Ramen restaurant just a 5 minute walk from our hotel. The next morning, we decided to check out the restaurant and found that there were around 15 people waiting in line. The wait time was estimated to be around 40 minutes, but we decided it was worth it. After all, where else in the world can you enjoy a Michelin Star lunch for only €6?

Tokyo by night and Onsen recovery

On Friday, we met Fiona and Christian again and explored the Tokyo nightlife in the Shibuya and Shinjuku regions. Not many words needed to describe this. The morning after was tough, and we were glad to have a free onsen in our hotel to recover. Marco stayed there until the cleaning team went in, so he was able to take some rare pictures from the inside of the onsen.

Cosplay and Ramen Festival

During our stay last Saturday, we stumbled upon a Cosplay convention that was held in a nearby park. As we walked around, we immediately noticed that we had been transported to a different world. Photographers were lining up to get the perfect shots of their favorite Cos Heroes, while Cosplay enthusiasts were taking pictures together in their matching outfits from various series. After this exciting experience, we decided to attend the Tokyo Ramen Festival, which featured 15 Ramen stands from different regions in Japan. You can look up the Ramen stands on their website and try the ones that you like the most. All of the Ramen we tasted were delicious, and one of them could have been the best Ramen we had during our trip to Japan, but it’s difficult to make such a claim.

Goodbye Tokyo, goodbye Japan

It’s Sunday, our last day in Japan. For lunch we headed to Ichiran, a famous ramen chain, to have our last ramen in Japan. After exploring the city a little more, we met Christian and Fiona at the Ueno District, where we had dinner and some beer together and a round of Mario Kart at 10:00 PM in the evening we made our way to the Airport and sadly left this wonderful country.

Final Thoughts on Japan

Japan might be to be the most camper-friendly country we have ever traveled to. Finding a safe overnight spot is easy and convenient. If you’re looking for regional attractions, Michi-no-ekis are worth checking out. The landscapes are stunning and the locals are friendly, making for a unique experience. And if you need a shower, you can indulge in a full spa experience for just a few Euros, rather than settling for a cold shower. Plus, the food in the countryside is not only delicious, but also very affordable. With options like Ramen, Gyoza, Soba noodles, and Bento boxes, you never have to worry about lunch or dinner. You can also get fresh local fruits everywhere you go. They even show you the farmers you buy the fruits from at some locations. Below are some impressions from local Michi-no-ekis.

Food and Drinks

Japanese Cars

We remember the first few days, when we smiled every time a small little Japanese Car turned around the next corner. Marco made a little Car collection and here are some of his favourite picks of Japanese Cars.

That’s it for this week’s blog post. Thanks if you made it down here! Let’s see what the new week will bring.

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October 28 2023

Japan Week 3

Alicia & Marco Half Year Off, Japan 0

Konnichiwa from Tokyo

Our time in Japan is almost over. We’ve traveled about 4,000 kilometers, and we’re presently in Tokyo. We can’t belive how fast 3 weeks are over. Have fun reading!

Arigato Gozaimasu

Alicia & Marco

Exploring Beppu and Mount Aso

On Tuesday, we stopped in Beppu at some hot terminal pools described with wonderful red water. As we arrived, tourist buses came and supported loads of tourists. The cube was very long, and we were surprised by the many Western tourists around this area. We grabbed a ramen in Bapu and made new plans.

We decided to visit Mount Aso in the Kuju Aso National Park. Our plan was to find a place to stay on the highest active volcano in Japan. We found a nice sleeping spot on the volcano and headed for the crater on Wednesday morning. After seeing the crater and the steam coming out of it from right next to it, we saw a little wooden walk, and we decided to go for it. It ended up in a 2-hour walk, a whole round around the crater with the best views from higher peaks down to the crater. We only saw two other hikers, maybe 1 1/2 hours into the walk. As we returned in the car, it was around 10:00 in the morning, and the first tourist buses arrived. We were very lucky to have this volcano on our whole round around it, almost to our own.

Fukuoka: From Street Food to Bento Boxes

Following our enjoyable hike on Mount Arthur volcano, we were eager to return to city life. We promptly booked a hotel in Fukuoka and made our way there. Our primary objective was to dine at Sometai, which is a collection of small food stands along the street where locals sell their delicious cuisine. Upon arriving in Fukuoka during lunchtime, we indulged in some local cuisine. As the day turned into night, the food stands opened up. We explored the Canal River area, stopping at some Yatai along the way. Eventually, we settled into a cozy Yati and savored some Yaki Ramen – a well-known Fukuoka specialty where the ramen is served without soup and heated on a pan.

On Thursday morning in Fukuoka, while passing by the road, we noticed small stands appearing around 11:00. Japanese workers from the nearby buildings lined up at these stands to buy something. We were curious and approached the stands to find out that they were selling Bento boxes. Bento boxes are small lunch boxes that people often carry while going to work or on long journeys like a Shinkansen ride. We decided to try out the food from two stands, one run by a young lady and the other by an elderly married couple. The food from the elderly couple’s stand was hot and delicious – a pleasant surprise from such a little box.

Coastal Shrine Exploration

Later that day, we drove out from Fukuoka to the North to explore some Shinto shrines right beside the sea. We saw one with 976 and headed to see a beautiful bridge over the harbor, where Marco bought his Haku pinmen. On Thursday night, we found a nice little spot right beside the sea. It was raining a lot that night, so we hit the road that day. We looked up and saw the weather was good on Saturday, and we were around the mountain Rookie Region. We wanted to hike the mountain twice, so we hit the road and went for it.

Chilling Hike to the Summit of Mount Tsurugi

It was a freezing night at the trailhead of the Thoroughly Sun, and as we started our hike, we saw on the thermometer it was five degrees Celsius, a little frosty. We continued the hike, and on the top, another thermometer told us we had 1 degree Celsius. We went inside the Wanderers Hut to have a nice little coffee provided by Toshimi, who is running the Hut on the hill, followed by a hot, delicious miso soup. We were ready for the cold again.

Savoring the Delights of Sakura Beef in Hyogo Prefecture

While traveling further north, we passed by Kobe but didn’t want to deal with city traffic. So, when Marco expressed his desire to have some beef, we headed to a quaint restaurant in the Hyogo Prefecture, known for raising famous Kobe cattle. The restaurant was amazing! Even though they didn’t have Kobe beef, they served Wagyu beef from another breed called Sakura beef. Upon entering, the personnel greeted us warmly and showed us to our private room with a grill inside the table. We were given the meat to grill ourselves, which made the experience all the more enjoyable. The beef was delicious, and we had an excellent time.

Motorcycle Enthusiasm in Japan

On Sunday, we were awakened by the sound of motorcycles passing by. The weather was perfect, and while sipping his coffee, Marco made a habit of checking out each motorcycle that went by. Some of them stopped right next to us, and Marco took the opportunity to get a closer look at some of the bikes. It was during this time that he met Toshimi, who spoke a little bit of English. Toshimi told us that there was a motorcycle meeting about 5 kilometers away from where we were. Since we had no other plans for the day, we decided to head over to the meeting. The location was really nice, and there were a lot of vintage and classic bikes on display. There was even an old Volkswagen van supplying coffee to everyone. We wandered through the rows of motorcycles and ran into Toshimi again, who was thrilled to see us again. After chatting for a bit, it was time to move on for us.

There were also a lot of funny Japanese cars like the daihatsu Mira on the parking lot and Toshimi the owner of the Mira was so spurprised that Marco liked his car so much he let him sit in for a picture. What a nice surprising stop this was! After the spontaneous visit to the motorcycle event, we continued our trip towards Obama, a small coastal town. We drove the coast north from here towards the Echizen region. We ended our Sunday with a lovely visit to a Onsen (520 JPY / 3€ per person), located by the coast with a beautiful view of the sunset. It was a great way to unwind and relax.

Katsuyama Castle, and a Mystical Forest Shrine

We began our Monday morning by visiting a Montbell shop located beside a Michinoku store. Montbell is a Japanese brand that specializes in outdoor clothing and equipment. We were able to find everything we needed for our upcoming hiking and camping trip. As we continued our drive, we spotted a castle-shaped structure on the horizon. Intrigued, we made a spontaneous decision to visit the katsuyama castle and learned about its history. The pictures depicted farmers being attacked by foreign armies, but the castle had successfully defended the country. Other country same story like in our Middle Ages. It was an interesting and informative visit. Right next to the castle, we saw a little narrow Rd. leading into the woods. It looked very Mystic, and we had no choice but to drive this road. We drove around one or two kilometers to the shrine in the woods. We couldn’t draw further, so we parked our car and walked the last bit to the shrines and temples in the middle of the forest. Walking along Mystic Rd towards the shrine in the forest, one can’t help but feel the friendly and peaceful environment. The soothing sounds of the forest transport you to a different time when samurais from the castle used to walk the same road to offer prayers at the shrines. It fills you with a sense of humility and reverence.

Road to Hakusan National Park

While on our way to Hakusan National Park, our minds wandered back to ancient times with samurais, temples, and forests. We stumbled upon a small, winding road through the mountains that was a perfect play of autumn colors and sunshine. Suddenly, we spotted a small sign with a monkey on it. Alicia suggested that there might be monkeys and as we turned the next corner, we saw a group of monkeys sitting in the trees beside a parking lot where a few cars had already stopped to photograph them. We joined in and watched the monkeys play and eat fruits from the trees. The sight of little monkeys haggling around was especially entertaining. They were quite clumsy, but it only added to the fun. We observed them for maybe 15 or 20 minutes. Coach arrived. He backed in front of the monkeys, a lady from the bus screamed and shouted to back in further, and a group of tourists came out of the bus. The monkeys saw this and the chief of them screamed a little, and then all the monkeys came down from the tree and went back into the hills. This was also our sign to move on.

Exploring the Kamikochi Region

On Tuesday, we visited Kamikochi, a place inaccessible by car. We parked our car near Hiraya Onsen and caught the first bus at 6:30 am to Kamikochi. We were lucky to have arrived early, as we hiked for three hours covering 12 km across the beautiful landscapes with almost no tourists around. However, while heading back to the bus stop, we noticed a large crowd of tourists that had arrived by then. We were happy to have started early. Since we had to return our car on Thursday, we took up the challenge of driving to Japan campus space and used Google Maps without toll roads. It suggested an eight-hour drive, perfect for our three-day plan. We started our journey in an All Suzuki car, and we were soon greeted by the winding mountain roads and beautiful autumn colors. As we turned a 180-degree curve, we were surprised to find some monkeys enjoying the warm sunshine and delousing each other on the road. Sorry for disturbing you little monkeys!

Japanese Shoping Mall Adventures

During our visit to Aeon Mall, we decided to explore the area and grab some food. We stumbled upon a great ramen and Gyoza spot. After finishing our meal, we stumbled upon the arcade and gaming section. The experience was amazing. Marco had a blast playing Mario Kart with his friend Toshimi and was fascinated with the Anpanman figures.

That’s it for this week’s blog post. Thanks if you made it down here! Let’s see what the new week will bring.

Food and Drinks

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October 17 2023

Japan Week 2

Alicia & Marco Half Year Off, Japan 0

Konnichiwa Oita!

We’re currently at half-time here in Japan. We’ve traveled about 1.500 kilometers, and we’re presently in Oita, 2h away from Fukuoka. The fuel costs are meager in Japan; one liter costs only around 1 €. What is more expensive than fuel are the tolls on more significant highways. Once we’re done here, we’ll turn north again and head back towards Tokyo.

Have fun reading!

Arigato Gozaimasu

Alicia & Marco

Lousy weather and animal encounters

Week 2 in Japan starts with lousy weather. With our first Blog post written, we start the day driving along the rainy coast of the Mie Prefecture towards the Nachi Waterfall. On the way, we find another small local stamp rally as we stop at an observation deck. There were no better plans for the day, so we checked the other stamp locations, and suddenly, three monkeys crossed the street before us. A few corners further, some red crabs sat on the street. It’s amusing where those little stamp rallies lead you. Ultimately, we didn‘t find the stamp, but we saw monkeys and crabs… Later that day, another monkey crossed the street very slowly, so we managed to take a picture.

Further south, we found a lovely Shinto shrine named Hananoiwaya with beautiful red portals. We arrived at the waterfall almost at sunset, and no one else was there; even the parking attendants were at the end of their work, so we got free parking there.

Testing our off-road limits

It stopped raining in the night, and we woke up on Tuesday morning with a blue sky, white clouds, and warm sunshine. We continued our drive along the coastline with perfect weather. We saw some nice rock formations at a Michi-no-Eki and took a selfie with Japanese girls traveling by bus. On a map beside the road showing the local countryside, we found a mark with a waterfall and headed inland to see it. We drove and drove, and as we looked on Google Maps, we noticed that we missed the waterfall. We turned around, but Marco saw an interesting little branch towards a stony riverbed—the perfect spot for a coffee break. Everything went well, and we parked the little Suzuki Every on good, hard ground. It went so well that Marco wanted to push the limits further… But what do you expect if you drive a small car with rear-wheel drive and 10cm wide street tires? That’s right. The Suzuki got stuck. There was one lonely fisherman with a 4WD about 1km away. If we couldn’t solve the problem ourselves, we would have to ask him for help. We took it as training for Western Australia, and Marco started to search for some wood, dig the gravel away, underpin the rear tires, and slowly but surely, we made our way out of the small gravel pit and parked on the hard sones again—time for a refreshing bath in the beautiful blue river. In the end, everything went well, and we will take it as a sign not to overshoot our cars and skills in off-road riding.

Familiar faces in Osaka

We woke up with lovely sunshine 100 km south of Osaka. After a little beach walk, we were ready for a ride towards Osaka. Plan for the day: Meet Alicia‘s brother and girlfriend, who are traveling Japan by Shinkansen in Osaka. We booked a hotel near Osaka Castle and went straight there. We arrived at 10 AM, so we had 5 hours to go until we could check in our room. We went straight to the Dotonbori District and met with Christian and Fiona. What a feeling to talk German to someone again! We discovered the city together and returned to the hotel for check-in. The room was excellent and even had a Japanese-style dining table in it. But we had no time to lose and met again with the two at Tsutenkaku Tower.

After a beer, we searched for an okonomiyaki restaurant (like an omelet with cabbage grilled right before you). The first one or two were closed, so we ended up in something that looked like a Japanese grandma’s kitchen. There wasn‘t even a menu, only Japanese writings on the wall. We told her our wishes with the translation app, which functioned semi-good. Alicia‘s brother ordered one okonomiyaki with chicken, and what he got was only some grilled chicken. No rice, no noodles, no sauce, just grilled chicken. Ultimately, we paid around 6000 JPY (40€) for three beers, a Coke, two okonomiyaki with only egg and cabbage, and the grilled chicken. Quite expensive this semi-good food experience.

After this disappointing experience, we went to the Tsutenkaku Tower to see the Osaka skyline by night, which was lovely. The next stop was a nice Shushi restaurant beside the tower named Rokusen. The sushi was fantastic, and we also did a small sake tasting. The night with Christian and Fiona was excellent, and we think our paths might cross again somewhere else in Japan.

Back to nature

One day and night in Osaka was enough for us, and Japanese nature pulled us away from the cities again. The plan was to eat Kobe in Kobe, but we had enough of driving a car through city traffic and went over Awaji Island straight to Shikoku Island, where you can find some of the remotest parts of Japan. We planned to hike the Tsurugi-san with its 1,955 m. The way to the trailhead was quite a surprise, and we drove endless curves on a small mountain street for two hours in the dark. Finally, we made it to our sleeping spot, and after a cold night, we had a fresh, sunny morning with around 7 degrees Celsius. After our coffee, we started the hike to the top, and right before the top, we reached a small Shinto shrine where we wrote our first ema wood plaque. You could write wishes on these beautiful signs and hook them beside the shrines. We continued our hike and reached the summit with the best weather. Because of the weather and the nice paths, we continued our hike towards Mount Jirogyu. Ultimately, we went down by Cablecare; only one seat, no belt, but speakers with nice calming Japanese sounds. We were thrilled and exhausted; what a fantastic Friday.

Hiking Round 2

Because we liked the hike so much, we decided to hike Mount Ishizuchi on Saturday. There was rain forecasted for midday, so we wanted to walk early in the morning. So again, we drove to the trailhead, and again, we drove the last hour in complete darkness on small little mountain streets. The morning was cloudy but dry, so we went for Ishizuchi-san. About two kilometers from the peak, it started to rain, and we paused at a public toilet (what else do you expect after hiking 4 km into the mountain in Japan?!) around one kilometer away from the top. We waited a few minutes to see if the rain would stop, but it didn’t look so. So we went on, and some young sports group with the same outfits followed. We quickly saw that they were pushing each other, so we let them pass. We followed them, and the rain was forgotten after we had the new goal to keep up with their speed. Just before the top, the rain ended, but it was very cloudy. After our hike, we drove out of the mountains towards Kochi, enough of hiking and driving small mountain roads.

On this day, we experienced again how friendly the Japanese are and how fit elderly Japanese People are. On the top of Mount Ishizuchi, we talked to elderly Ohme, who lives in Kobe, and went out the weekend to hike. He was the fastest of his group of 7 hikers, and as we spoke, his friends arrived, and he asked if we could make a group foto of them—no problem, and a selfie afterward. Two Japanese women from the group came instantly towards us to gift us some Japanese snacks. We liked them very much.

On our way down, we met Kota with the nickname Noisan. He was carrying 25 kg of food for the mountain hut on his back and lives around Ishizuchi-San. He asked if we had an Instagram account, and as we have none, we gave him a card for our blog. Cheers, Noisan; if you are reading this, meeting you was nice!

On our hikes to Mount Tsurugi, Jirogyu, and Ishizuchi, we only saw one Western-looking tourist. It differs from something like Osaka, where you can hear every language. This is the Japan experience we are here for!

Beaches, Spiders, and temples

Today, we decided to escape the bad weather by heading down the coastline to visit some temples and enjoy the beautiful weather at some nice locations. Along the way, we saw a lot of spiders, but it didn’t dampen our spirits. Overall, exploring the beaches, temples, and nature was a great Sunday. One thing we recognized is the signs of tsunamis. You can see the escape signs everywhere, and we also saw some tsunami shelters.

Onsen and Ferry Day

On Monday, our plan was simple. We only wanted to visit an Onsen and catch the ferry towards Fukuoka. As we slept near Amazing Gorge, we went for a little morning hike, and as we saw a rope swing over the water, Marco couldn’t resist. On our way to the Onsen, construction work blocked the road. A construction worker named Nakamura, who is 40 years old, told us we had to wait 45 minutes, so there was no problem for us. We made coffee and gave him one. He was pleased. We found a nice little Onse for only 500 JPY (3 €) in the countryside. The manager of the Onsen was Yoshi, and he also had a campsite next to the Onsen. He was very interested in our route through Japan and had a friend who lives in Berlin. He loves Techno and hopes to get into Berghain one day.

Food and Drinks

That’s it for this week’s blog post. Thanks if you made it down here! Let’s see what the new week will bring.

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October 9 2023

Our first week in Japan

Alicia & Marco Half Year Off, Japan 5

Konnichiwa Japan – 今日は日本

Get ready for our first real travel update after one week in Japan! We discovered new foods, struggled with the Japanese writings, saw the Fujisan, and discovered unique places with our funny little car.

It is Monday morning, and we are sitting in our car at Ise-Shima National Parc in the Mie Prefecture. The weather is rainy, but we have a nice Ocean view and hot Coffee. Perfect weather to finish our first travel update from Japan. Have fun reading!

Arigato Gozaimasu

Alicia & Marco

Arriving in Japan

After our two flights and almost 24 hours of travel, we reached our first destination, the land of the rising sun: Japan. The arrival was smooth, and we were directed to the short-distance taxis without any problems. We prebooked a hotel near the Narita Airport, first because we wanted a hotel within reach and second because we picked up our camper van near Narita. We arrived at the Meet Inn Narita hotel at 2 PM, left our backpacks at the reception, and started exploring Nariata because check-in was only possible after 3 PM. We used the time to get cash at a 7-Eleven ATM and purchased our first Japanese snack, Gyoza. We also discovered a busy street with one restaurant after another. We tried a few things like cucumber on a stick or fried rice dumplings with different sauces. At the end of this street, we saw our first Buddhist temple, Nimomon Gate. We had no expectations, but the old building was imposing.

The first problem with Japanese Writings

For dinner, we picked a small Japanese Ramen shop named Menya Aoyama. There were only locals inside, a good sign for authentic Japanese food. In many ramen shops or restaurants, you must purchase your meal on a vending machine, pay for it, and hand the receipt to the kitchen. Most vending machines have pictures of the meal you purchase on the buttons, but this one was different. There were no pictures, no translation to English, only the Japanese Writing on the buttons. We were fortunate because the Japanese Lady in the ramen shop recognized our problem and helped us to choose a good ramen. Ultimately, her recommendations for us (Tonkatsu Ramen for Marco and mild Tonkatsu Ramen for Alicia) were perfect, and we enjoyed our first delicious ramen in Japan.

Jetlag and Day One in Japan

On wednesday we skipped breakfast and lunch and woke up at 1 PM. Before starting our tour, we checked how to solve our problems with the Japanese writings. If nobody was around speaking English, we had to make a random choice on the vending machine the evening before. The solution was simple: the Apple Translation App could also translate pictures and works offline if the language is downloaded to the phone (for Android users, the Google Translate App with downloaded languages would be another solution). With our problem solved, we got an excellent coffee in the hotel lobby. We started our tour through Narita, where we stopped the day before at the Naritasan Park beside the Nimomon Gate Temple. After exploring for a while, we drank a matcha tee and were ready for lunch after another hour. We chose a small restaurant inside the Narita Train Station and ordered two udon noodles for 500 JPY or 3€ per meal. The meal was delicious again, and we started to wonder if it was possible to choose something untasty in Japan.

Picking up our Japanese Campervan

On Thursday, Yoshi picked us up and took us to the Japan Campers station near Narita. We got our campervan and other camping gear like a gas stove, camping chairs, table, etc. They showed us how to prepare our camper for the night. It’s impressive how this little car can keep all the camping gear, our backpacks, and even a cooling box. We fell in love with it immediately. Finally, we filled our water tank and were ready to hit the Japanese roads!

First Driving Experiences to Odawara Castle

It was easy to drive this little car, shaped like a shoe box, and the automatic gearbox made it even easier. It has been a while going on the left side of the road, but Marco got used to it relatively quickly. Our first stop was a 7-Eleven, which you can find on every second corner in Japanese cities. We picked up some supplies, funny snacks, and drinks and were ready for some highways to escape the crowded surroundings of Tokyo. We read about some Japanese stamp rallies and that you could start one at Odawara Castle. The Castle itself was very astonishing and in relatively good shape. We also found our first stamp in the Castle; more to Japanese Stamp Rallies later…

Fujisan

We got our first views of Mount Fuji on the highway to Odawara. But this differed from our view after passing the Mount Mikuni pass road. The sun was setting, and we accidentally came to the right place at the right time. After sunset, we found a nice sleeping spot just beside the lake. The following morning, we discovered why Japan is called the land of the rising sun. It started at around 5 AM, and the parking lot beside the lake got fuller and fuller. At around 5:30 AM, the parking was full. Photographers trying to get good shots from Mount Fuji as the sun rises, a group of old ladies stretching at the beach, and a couple in traditional Japanese clothes right at the lakefront. It was a very busy morning at the lakefront, and it wasn’t even 6 AM! After a little hike recommended by an old Japanese man we met on the walk again, we drove to Fujiyoshida for lunch. We chose Lake Tanuki for sunset, with a charming lakeside view of Mount Fuji. On this day, we were surprised with presents from Japanese people twice: the first one was the older man who recommended the hike (some power drinks), and the second was a family playing football at the lakeside (some wasabi snacks).

Yume no Tsuribashi Suspension Bridge

After Fujisan, we went more into the hills and recognized, once again, how small the engine of our Suzuki Every was. Every little steeper section was torture for the little car. But we were not in a hurry, so we finally reached our destination, Sumatakakyo Gorge, with its beautiful suspension bridge.

Lazy Japanese Sundays

The lazy Japanese Sunday starts at around 4 AM with fishing. After fishing, the first surfers arrive at 5 AM. We slept the night at a parking place right behind the dunes of the Pacific Ocean. On Saturday night, there were only five cars. On Sunday morning, the whole parking lot was packed. Like always, beforehand 6 AM. Everyone went either surfing or fishing. The weather was not the best that day, and there should be rain later in the morning, so Marco went for his first dip in the Pacific. The water was warmer, as expected. After the bath, we went for a coffee, and it started to rain. We were ready for our first Japanese Onsen experience. Onsen are traditional Japanese hot baths you can find all over Japan. Renewed and fresh, we hit the road again and set off with a ferry from Irago to Toba. We met Hatano and his friends on the ferry, who were interested in how two Germans found this remote ferry line. He translated all the Japanese loudspeaker announcements and liked the Bundesliga. We found a nice little spot beside the ocean for the night. One more thing to mention is the Japanese public toilets. They are everywhere, always (!) clean, and most of them have heated toilet seats.

Japanese Stamp Rallies

Stamp Rallies are very popular all over Japan, and you can get stamps at train stations, castles, and Michi-no-ekis (Japanese Road stations). We collected our first stamp at Odawara Castle. With the castle challenge, you have two options: The 100 Castle challenge or the 24 Castle challenge. Both are very ambitious, even if you travel for four weeks in Japan. So we decided to collect stamps where we got some, and that’s it. We bought a Michi-no-Eki stamp rally book at the Subashiri Road Station and started to collect these stamps in the book since we are traveling by car and will see a lot of Michi-no-Ekis. It’s a lot of fun to collect stamps, and sometimes you even have to wait because others are stamping their rally books right in front of you.

More Food and Drinks

Here is a small collection of our food and drinks during our first week in Japan. One thing we liked very much is the unsweetened green tee you can get everywhere (especially while driving). It is quite surprising the first time you try it because you expect something sweet, like all the iced teas in Germany. Another great Snack is the riceballs you can get with every flavor at every 7-Eleven or similar store. Our favorite one is fried egg rice with soy sauce and broth.

Another great thing we discovered by coincidence was Komeda’s Coffee. It is a food chain where you can get breakfast for free if you order Coffee for 480 JPY or 3€ (until 11 AM). This is also where a lot of this blog post was written.