The Daisetsuzan volcanic group includes Hokkaido's highest peak, Mount Asahidake (2,291 m), and other active volcanoes. The Daisetsuzan area has more than 16 peaks over 2,000 meters high, and is often called “the roof of Hokkaido.” H

My first visit to Hokkaido was in 1995. Hokkaido is the Northern most island of Japan. We had gone there to attend a meeting in Sapporo - Capital city of Hokkaido. I had never imagined that I will be going to Sapporo again and again later. On this visit all our internal travel was in slow motion. We didn’t use plane journey.We travelled in a Ferry boat from Maizuru to Otaru, the port city. From there in a car to Sapporo.

All waterfalls start as a rivulets which when reach a steep rock descends down as a water fall. This waterfall has a unique origin that explains why it does not freeze even in winter.

Mount Fuji, or Fuji-san as affectionately called by locals, is like the majestic guardian of Japan's landscapes. This iconic stratovolcano, standing tall at 3,776 meters, proudly boasts a nearly perfect cone that seems to touch the sky.

Takayama is a city in the mountainous Hida region of Gifu Prefecture. To differentiate it from other places named Takayama, the city is also commonly referred to as Hida-Takayama.

Hakodate is a very popular tourist destination in Hokkaido. Looming over the town is 334m-high Mount Hakodate. The mountain's summit, reachable by aerial ropeway gondola, offers dramatic nighttime views. 

While we were in Maizuru we had a car available for our use. So over weekends, we used to drive around to interesting places. Our earlier visit was to Amanohashidate, going west along the coast. This time we decided to drive along the coast towards the west. 

Whenever I talked to friends in Japan about sightseeing, they would ask me if to have been to Shiretoko? I had not much heard about this place but seen a short documentary about it. In the documentary what I remembered was seeing an old lady collecting seaweeds along the beach, which is a favorite Japanese food. The beach was barren. The next scene I remember was showing grizzly bears roaming on the beach.

We were going to Sapporo in Hokkaido which is the Northern most island of Japan. We were in Maizuru a port city, in Kyoto prefecture. There was a ferry from Maizuru to Otaru, a port town on western coast to of Hokkado.

Then came the dream opportunity - We were going to Japan to attend a conference held in Sapporo the largest city on Hokkaido island. Before going to Sapporo my husband was invited to teach clinical cardiology at a hospital in a small town called Maizuru on the North Japan sea. This was at the recommendation of a doctor in USA who knew him well for his teaching ability.

We went on a very short visit to Nagasaki. Been to Hiroshima several times. Nagasaki is a port city and in old days it was the only port open to western countries. Portuguese were the first to arrive. But after that Dutch people came. Many memories are left by the Dutch people.

BYODOIN TEMPLE MY FIRST VISIT TO UJI I had never heard of this small but famous town located halfway between two historical cities - Kyoto ans Nara.

My visit to see swans in Sapporo was a surprise visit. Usually, we visit Sapporo, in Hokkaido in October, as later it starts getting cold. But once we were there till early November. Weekends were meant for outings. It was getting biting cold for us and the drizzle of snow had already started. So we were wondering what to do on Sunday. Our doctor host in Sapporo was very friendly. On almost every visit to Sapporo, he organized some interesting outings for us. So when he asked should I take you for an outing in my car we were very excited.

Okinawa islands are located south of Kyushu island. Okinawa became famous after Second World War. Besides Hokkaido, Tohoku, Shikoku and Kyushu, Okinawa is the 5th island of Japan. And it is the smallest island.

The iconic Red-crowned Crane of Hokkaido, a part of Japan's cultural heritage. As it is part of its natural history attracts visitors from far and wide to visit it’s breeding and wintering grounds in Kushiro in east Hokkaido.

What took us to Japan way back in 1978 was a meeting of the World Congress of Cardiology in Tokyo. Planning our first visit to Japan was an exciting experience.