Kanazawa Castle. These shots have been sitting in the archives since early last year, waiting for me to get around to writing it up here at Wayfarer Daves. Finally, it’s time to revisit the New Years 2017 grand adventure…
A Holiday in Shikoku (Part II)
KOCHI Kochi Castle is one of the 12 original castles, like Matsuyama, but Kochi alone is the real life Swamp Castle! The castle was built where two rivers are close enough to make for a natural moat. The joining…
A Holiday in Shikoku (Part I)
There are many fine places in Japan to spend a long holiday weekend but the one I think doesn’t get enough consideration is Shikoku. Maybe it’s because Navy MWR doesn’t plan tours there, but for those willing to drive the…
A Return to Matsushiro
Two years ago, when we first started Wayfarer Daves, the first full article we published was about the unfinished Matsushiro Daihonei, or Imperial General Headquarters in Matsushiro, a small village in Nagano, Japan. You can find Mr. Krigbaum’s original…
From JOAK to NHK: NHK Museum of Broadcasting
After the stagnant Edo Period ended in 1868, Japan was quick to make up for lost time to stay competitive with the world they’d re-entered. From a feudal society that had little changed socially or technologically since 1600, Japan bypassed…
Battleship Mikasa – Hero of Tsushima
Japan and Russia are at war. Russian incursions into Manchuria and Korea in search of natural resources and warm-water ports in the Pacific angered the Japanese Empire, who saw the attempts as Russia encroaching on their sphere of influence…
Heppenheim: A Stop on the Mountain Road
Gaily colored half-timber buildings, a dominant hilltop castle and a picturesque location the road to Darmstadt, Heppenheim an der Bergstrasse is quintessential German and just off the beaten path for international travelers. Many of these beautiful restored or preserved city…
Mutsu: Japan’s Most Visitable World War II Battleship?
After World War II most of the Imperial Japanese Navy’s battleships were at the bottom of the sea or scrapped, leaving the pre-dreadnought-turned-memorial ship Mikasa, victor of the 1905 Battle of Tsushima, as Japan’s sole survivor. Yamato is Japan’s most…
Kure: Homeport of Japanese Naval History
A 40-minute train ride away from Hiroshima is the seaside town of Kure, once home to Japan’s premier naval arsenal and home of the Imperial Japanese Navy’s most powerful warship, battleship Yamato. In case new visitors weren’t sure this was…
A Series of Adventures at Summers End
As many of our regular readers know, Wayfarer Daves is two photographers named Dave who enjoy writing and travel. Regulars, or those who have read past articles, will also know that we each live on different Japanese islands with…