Hakodate
May 9, 2025, Hokkaido, Japan. I was sad to leave Matsumae. I could have easily spent a week there, wandering in the hills and exploring the small town. It seemed […]
Monthly Archives: July 2025
Matsumae
May 7, 2025, Hokkaido, Japan. I packed quickly and barely made the train. Shawn likes cutting it close, and I honestly didn’t think he’d make it this time. I carried […]
Hirosaki
May 4, 2025, Japan. I had really enjoyed our 3 day stay in Kakunodate. Before catching the 11:05 train, I rushed back to the Nishinomiya-Memorial complex, hoping for a second […]
Kakunodate
May 1, 2025, Japan. I was sad to be leaving Tōno. We packed our bags and headed to the municipal museum, which turned out to be excellent. I stayed until […]
Tōno
April 29, 2025, Japan. I woke up bleary-eyed after another rough night. No espressos in this town, so we headed straight to the train for an early start. We arrived […]
Hiraizumi
April 27, 2025, Japan. I really liked Matsushima and wish I had more than a day. I asked Shawn if he minded leaving mid-day for Hiraizumi, and he agreed. I […]
Matsushima
April 26, 2025, Japan. We left Yamagata around 9:30 after enjoying a latte and pastry at a Starbucks in the train station. I had wanted to see the old hospital […]
Santa Fe
August 11, 2023, Panama. I slept only two or three hours. I told Einy I thought I should stay, but she seemed perplexed and gave me the impression she thought […]
Boquete Post Surgery – Part 1
August 16, 2023, Panama. I woke up at 8:04—my alarm was set for 8:05. I shoved some cornflakes in my mouth and met up with the three Spanish women to […]
Panama City Post Surgery
July 20, 2023, Panama. I had first arrived in Panama in April, but had been forced to fly home for meniscus surgery. I’d fallen off the proverbial horse and had […]
El Valle de Antón After Knee Surgery
August 1, 2023, Panama. I woke after a restless night, still thinking about feeling taken advantage of and knowing I needed to say something. I wrote a message to Tamir […]
Latvia and Lithuania
Summer, 2015. I spent some time in Sigulda, where I learned about a Jewish painter who had a strong influence on Latvian art. I tried to find a latte but […]
Tblisi
May 7, 2015, Georgia. I arrived at Tbilisi airport around 5 pm. Max, a Nigerian student at the Technical University, greeted me. He’s been working with the Georgian consulate to […]
Car Camping through Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, and France – summer 2016
Croatia I started my day with a latte at Pécsi Kave, then hit the road for Zagreb. The drive was slow and packed with trucks, winding through small villages that […]
Tarn
August 26, 2018, France. I thought about stopping in Lyon, but the roadwork was daunting—too many diversions and closed roads. I continued on and decided to visit Rodez, which claimed […]
Germany
August 19, 2018. In the morning, I continued to Lübeck and arrived around 11:15 a.m. I really enjoyed the city—it was beautiful, with a charming tower, a moat, and a […]
Denmark
August 16, 2018. After stopping to look at a mill and manor, I crossed a bridge under construction and came across a beautiful church, which I took time to explore. […]
Norway
August 9, 2018. I went to the tourist office and asked about the route. A very kind and tall man named Sven helped me. The drive became beautiful after I […]
Sweden
July 29, 2018. I woke up to rain leaking through the fly of my tent. People kept walking by, which made me nervous. Got a cappuccino for $5, a burger […]
Alone Again in Finland
July 23, 2018. I headed to Haltia in Nuuksio Park, hoping for a good coffee, but the €4.50 latte was terrible. From there, I walked down to the lake and continued […]
Latvia to Finland with Shawn
July 11, 2018. Shawn had joined me in Riga the day before. With the end of the National Latvian Song Festival, I was spent, but happy to see Shawn. We […]
On to Riga for the National Song Festival
June 30, 2018. I woke up in Mikulov, just over the Austrian border in the Czech Republic. I drove toward a large castle, then wandered on foot, discovering the old […]
Istrian Peninsula
June 25, 2018. I slept on a hill behind the church, wondering if a police officer might find me. The bar in the valley below blasted music until 5 a.m., […]
Pacific Northwest
June 30, 2019. I was supposed to hit the road earlier this month, but plans had changed. My housemate had given notice halfway through June, and I had to scramble […]
Wyoming and Montana
July 26, 2019. Having learned where to go, I took the map I’d purchased at the trading post and set out early to find the petroglyphs. I relied more on […]
Roadtrip to Colorado
July 16, 2019. I continued on to Boise and spent some time exploring the city. I visited the Basque Museum and Cultural Center, which included a boarding house and a […]
On the Road to Chicago
August 9–19, 2019. I was home for my dear friend Ed Bierman’s memorial on the 10th. While back, I spent time with friends, went to Peter Nowell’s pool party, attended […]
Chicago to Canada
August 24–September 2, 2019. I stayed with Cathie and Don in Chicago for a week. They had invited me to visit after we met during their stay at the AirBnb […]
On to Yamagata
April 22, 2025. We woke early, packed for the next leg of the journey, and headed back to the cute cafe we had found the day before. One of my […]
Next stop: Aizuwakamatsu
April 19, 2025. Before catching the train from Tokyo to Aizuwakamtsu, we headed to the Fukagawa Edo museum which we had visited my first time in Tokyo in November. They […]
Back to Japan – First Stop, Tokyo
April 15, 2025. This was my second trip to Japan. My first was scarcely 6 months earlier, when we spent 6 weeks traveling to many cultural, historical, and spiritual places […]
Lisa Karpinski 