If you happen to visit Japan, don’t miss to include visiting temples and shrines in your itinerary and don’t hesitate because no matter what your religion is, it’s no big deal to visit shrines and temples. The Japanese ‘pray’ at temples and shrines largely out of tradition rather than religion so they won’t mind foreigners inside these premises at all.

To the unfamiliar, shrines and temples can be quite hard to distinguish. The easiest way to tell is often from the Japanese name. The word for shrine is jinja and for temples it is o-tera, and the kanji will be suffixed to the name of the shrine or temple. Temples and shrines are definitely popular sights in Japan. Basically, temples refer to Buddhism and shrines to Shintoism.

There are so many temples and shrines scattered all over Japan with Sensoji Temple in Asakusa (Tokyo), Kiyomizudera (Kyoto) or the Todaiji (Nara) among the most popular.

(A great article explaining the differences between shrines and temples.)

(No, I think I’ll pass…)

These shrines and temples are undeniably attractive. However, if you visit the usual and the popular shrines and temples suggested by big travel agencies and Tripadvisor, you’ll most likely find hundreds of tourists in the same place as you. And they’d be on your left and right, behind you and in front of you when you take photos!

It’s no secret: more and more people are putting Japan high up in their travel bucket lists now more than ever. Statistics show that close to 30 million people visited the country in 2017. And the numbers continue to rise. Kyoto is crowded these days. It takes a lot of planning and effort to have shrines/temples and gardens to yourself.

I’ve been to the major shrines and temples in Japan and they were all beautiful and unique in their own way. But I hate that they are too crowded. I prefer the temples away from the big cities, tucked in the middle of a forest, shrines of small villages.

For sure, highly developed areas may be the top picks of most foreign travelers, but Japan’s rural regions are just as lovely and highly recommended for those who want to take a break from the busy city life. I’ve picked up a few from our new hometown.

1. Jinguji

This ancient temple is said to have been founded during the Heian period (A.D. 794-1185. T)he temple gate and hall dedicated to Kannon, both built during the late-Edo period, and three Buddha statues made during the Fujiwara period are all designated cultural assets of Niigata prefecture.

What I love about visiting shrines and temples is that it’s always a few degrees cooler than any place in town. It’s a great respite in the summer and Jinguji is not an exception!

I’ve been wanting to visit Jinguji since we arrived here in January, however, snow was at least 2 meters high around it! Now that everything is clear, I’m glad I went back to take photos of it. Don’t you think it’s mesmerizing?

2. Chosenji

Unfortunately, I couldn’t find information regarding this temple in the internet. My daughter was the one who told me about this place since it’s near the city’s biggest track and field stadium where her school trains and holds competitions. I may need to ask the monk who is in charge of this temple to know more.

I’ve copied and pasted the kanji characters in Google search but even in Japanese language, there were only very few search results that were relevant enough.

Chosenji is only about 10 minutes by car/taxi from the main station. It’s a little too far to walk, especially when it’s so hot in the summer or when the roads are dangerous in winter. I recommend visiting if you have your own car or else hire a taxi from the station.

3. Mitamafudoson Shrine

This is by far, my favorite among the shrines and temple I’ve visited. The entrance is not that eye catching, however, don’t be deceived. Walk through the shrine gate “torii” – if you love nature, serenity, culture and old traditional buildings, this one hits all the marks.

As soon as passed the shrine gate, we could hear the sound of water. Rushing water. Turbulent sound of water. And then I saw this waterfalls at the side of the shrine!

This is the part where I share a bit of myself. I get really emotional (and OA) seeing things like this. I just stood there, taking it all in. I mean, as if all these green wasn’t enough, there’s a freaking waterfall in the middle of it all! Having lived in the desert (Dubai) for 11 years, things like this make me hyperventilate!

It was getting cold, which was a very happy respite from the recent heat wave that’s going on in Japan this summer. It made me want to build a house right beside this. Can you imagine hearing the sound of water every minute of your waking life?

There’s a spring water that’s said to make you live longer if you drink from it. If you’re reading this and plan to go soon, bring a water bottle! Or else, there’s a nearby shop that give out empty plastic bottles for free so people can get water from here and bring it home or drink it while they hike. The water is free flowing anyway, so why not not share it, right? Very nice.

We climbed up a flight of stairs to see the second temple. Look at ALL. THAT. MOSS.

Just like the other temples and shrines that we’ve visited here, there isn’t much information about Mitama Fudoson in the internet.

These are just a scratch on the surface with regards to the number of shrines and temples in Tokamachi or Echigo-Tsumari region.

There are big ones and then there are many, many random small ones, too. Some can be found randomly in weird places even, like on top of mountains, in the middle of forests, etc.

The best, best thing about visiting these shrines and temples in our hometown? We had them to ourselves!

Mostly, or in our case, we were the only ones there. There wasn’t a single soul even if we were there on a weekend. Why? Because these places aren’t worth visiting? Surely, you don’t think so, right?

The reason why there are no tourists is that many people who visit Japan go to the popular places first. The shrines and temples in Kyoto, Nara or Nikko. Those are worth your travel dollars, yes, but when you’re done with those places, I hope you find the time to leave the well-worn tourist tracks and see a quieter Japan. And take pictures where there are no five hundred sixty two tourists behind you!

TRAVEL WITH GRACE

I’m available for a few dates from mid-September onwards, till the winter snow starts to accompany travelers who want to experience the beauty and serenity of Japanese shrines and temples for yourself. (And see the lovely countryside along the way). Drop me an email if that’s something you would like to do!

My original blog name was Sandier Pastures, a name I picked when I started blogging when we moved to Dubai from Japan in 2007. I was happily blogging for eleven years and used the handle @sandierpastures in my social media accounts. Everyone who knows me connects that name automatically to me that PR people started addressing their emails to me as “Dear Sandie”.

I started blogging using Sandier Pastures without thinking of anything at that time. That at one point in time, we could move somewhere where there’s no sand.

TIP TO NEW BLOGGERS: Pick a blog name that is not restrictive either by your location or your life situation. Also, pick a blog name that’s easier to understand.

I struggled a bit with my old blog name, with even some people wondering, “is it English?” Sandier Pastures was born from a play of the idiomatic expression, “greener pastures” which means a better life or situation than what is now. Most people move abroad to work for better opportunities, however, our main intention of crossing over to the desert land of the UAE was to experience living abroad as an expat family and for my daughter (then 3) and husband to be able to learn English. Thus, our pasture wasn’t really greener, just sandier.

It’s been half a year since we moved out of Dubai and relocated to Japan. It made me cringe every time I use my blog name and social media handles. I don’t know if my followers/blog reader felt the same but I know I had to change it. To be honest, I had a hard time choosing a new blog name. I had some brilliant ideas but then the domain would not be available or very expensive or the Instagram/Twitter is already taken.

WHY “FINDING BACKROADS”?

Because I love backroads?

A backroad is defined as a little-used secondary road, especially one through a rural or sparsely populated area. I chose this new blog name (and URL to boot, thankfully it’s available) because we live in a place with so many backroads right now and more so, “finding backroads” reflects how I travel; how my family travels.

A few days ago, my husband and I were looking for this certain shrine. A few minutes into the drive, he said, “do you want to take that backroad over there?” And I realize, we do this a lot. We don’t just from Point A to B. Most of the time, we find backroads to discover off the beaten path tracks, often without anybody there, just the way we like it.

WHERE THIS BLOG IS GOING

Blogging has been quite challenging right now, time wise. But I think I couldn’t quit writing just yet. I’d be updating this blog every chance I get to share stories, discovering backroads and showing you another side of Japan that you may not know. (Yes, there are rice paddies in Japan and there are places where the streets are dark at 8 pm)

I am going to explore this new home of ours, my husband’s hometown and hope to share the Japan that we love to anyone wishing to visit through my new project called Travel with Grace!

Please subscribe to get first hand information when I launch the project soon!

Today I looked out of our bedroom window and realized, it’s been exactly one year since we visited this countryside. Tokamachi. My husband’s hometown. The place he grew up. And though we’ve visited a few times in the past, I could never get tired of the view, be it in summer or in winter or spring and maybe fall (we will yet to experience fall soon!).

Last year when I was here with the kids, it didn’t occur to me that we’d be moving back to Japan. Much more, live here. Not at all. We stayed for less than a week but we loved all the green fields that extended as far as our eyes can see, the laid back and slow life and even embraced the noise of the frogs at night like it’s white noise lulling us to sleep.

The place we lived before, Dubai, is hideous by June, weather wise. That’s the time of the year when the kids couldn’t even go out or stay out for longer periods of time during day time due to the heat so we weren’t looking forward to going back soon. Summer in Japan is the other way around – it’s perfect from May when all the snow has melted and everything comes alive!

Little did we know that a year after, we’d end up living here, experiencing our third season (we arrived in the middle of winter!) and raising the kids here.

WHERE IS TOKAMACHI?

Tokamachi City is located in southern Niigata Prefecture, along the coast of the Sea of Japan. Though it’s a ‘city’, it’s far from being the big city in Japan that you might imagine. Five regions make up Tokamachi City and most of the area is covered by lush green forests, rice fields and suffering from huge population decline so most towns are sleepy towns, literally.

With the Shinano River flowing through the center, the city consists of a basin and surrounding hilly and mountainous areas. It is the heart of Japan’s snow country with three to four meters of snow each winter. Rice is cultivated widely in the city, a production area of well-known Uonuma Koshihikari rice.

It is about 240 kilometers from Tokyo and accessible by bullet train from Tokyo to Echigo-Yuzawa and the local Hokuhoku line from Echigo-Yuzawa station. You can reach Tokamachi City in two hours from Tokyo.

WHAT IS IN TOKAMACHI?

Clean, unpolluted air.

Delicious water from the mountains.

Vast green spaces.

Fresh food from nearby farms.

Slower pace of life.

Stars in the night.

Fireflies in the garden.

Warm and friendly locals.

While travelers tend to be drawn to Japan’s major cities, there’s much to be savored in its quiet countryside, where a different, deeper kind of beauty awaits. We have only one regret moving here. And that is, why we didn’t do it sooner.

Are you ready to explore more of Japan than the heavily congested cities full of tourists? Come visit our countryside, you will get to see less buildings and more serene shrines and temples. Less people and more natural landscapes. Afraid to get lost physically and in translation (because yes, it does happen if you don’t know the local language)? I’m happy to help! I’ll write more details about it soon.

As per statistics, the number of foreigners who visited Japan in 2017 has reached to almost 30 million, with most flocking to its vibrant capital city, Tokyo. The big city of Tokyo is great and overflowing with things to do, but there’s so much to Japan beyond the busy Shibuya crossing.

Have you been to Japan? If you’ve been to Tokyo, did my photos make you want to visit the countryside next time?

When we were living in Dubai, the only chance we had to see real tulips was inside a lobby of a five star hotel. Dubai is awesome like that, if you can’t get to the real flowers, they bring it in. These flowers are imported from far flung countries and handled with so much care so we desert dwellers could enjoy looking at it like they were freshly picked.

So our kids – they have seen tulips that were picked and put in a vase but not the tulips growing from the ground! One of the best things about moving to a country with four seasons is to be able to enjoy lots of nature, including these seasonal flowers.

Flowers and plants in their natural habitat, blooming at their own pace.

And what makes it more exciting is that there is a national park near us that’s twice the size of Tokyo’s Yoyogi Garden – the Echigo Hillside Park.

WHERE IS ECHIGO HILLSIDE PARK?

Echigo Hillside Park is located in Nagaoka City in Niigata Prefecture. With an enormous size of 120 hectares, this national government park is more than twice the size of many Tokyo dwellers’ favorite Yoyogi Park (54 hectares).

The park has a very huge space that people come early, especially in the warmer season to bring their tents and spend the whole day here. There are restaurants inside the park for park goers who do not like to bring their own food.

There are craft activities for kids and adults to enjoy, too. We went for the kite making activity because both our kids have not flown a kite ever. (They might never have seen or touched or made a kite – what am I doing with my parenting, right??)

As soon as we walked out and they found a spot to fly their kites, we couldn’t get them to stop (because it’s too hot). No, mother dear, we did not hear you!

WHEN IS THE BEST TIME TO VISIT?

The park is worth visiting all year long with different flowers in bloom every time. You can catch the tulips in April, roses in May, cosmos in Sept/Oct, etc. Be sure to check their flower calendar.

Our move to Japan has been a huge transition in our lives but the flowers we see blooming all around us definitely makes this journey easier. Christian Dior famously said, “After women, flowers are the most lovely thing God has given the world.”

How right that is.

Useful information:

Echigo Hillside Park
1921 Miyamoto Higashikata-machi, Nagaoka City
Tel: 0258-47-8001
Entrance fee:450 yen for adults, 210 yen for 65 years old and above, free for children under 15 years of age.
Website (Japanese only): https://echigo-park.jp/

The promise of spring’s arrival is enough to get anyone through the bitter winter.

People who visit this area called, “snow country” in Niigata prefecture would think it will take a year for all the snow to melt. And I can’t blame them, I mean look at this. This picture was taken last February, in the middle of winter and nope, we weren’t having a super snow storm because when it snows in this part of Japan, it is always super snow storm.

Fortunately, there are four seasons in Japan so there is no such thing as one full year of winter though every winter day you may feel like it. At one point or another, all the snow will have to melt, paving way for another phase of life, the spring season.

I love spring. I think it’s one of life’s mystery, one of Earth’s miracles. For me spring is a time of renewal. I love to watch the gardens around me as the daffodils and tulips and cherry blossoms (!) start to show their beauty. It is such a miracle that this can happen each year. The sun gets stronger and you really begin to feel its warmth against your face.

Things begin to come alive. Or they just simply BEGIN. The fiscal year in Japan starts in April. This is when the new school year start and new college graduates start working. This spring is definitely a new beginning for us – Benjamin attending first grade at the elementary school.

When I was living in Dubai, I was perfectly ok without experiencing the seasons. It was so convenient to be able to wear the same type of clothes everyday all throughout the year. And also not suffer from pollen allergy in spring time. I lived in Japan for 10+ years before moving to Dubai so I thought, I’ve had my fill of spring, I won’t miss it. However, I didn’t realize how much I loved and longed for the seasons once we moved back to Japan.

We arrived and started our life here in the beginning of the year, in the middle of winter and then now everything is becoming alive and green.

Spring is also the time we finally change the tires in our car from studless snow tires to normal ones. Benjamin gets to help do it, only because he really, really wanted to do it so he is in charge of turning the screws as if he knows what he’s doing. Oh boys and cars.

Speaking of seasons, when we moved here in the middle of winter, I was worried the kids would hate me. That they’d utter the word ‘Dubai’ (our previous home and where they grew up) every single winter day. But surprisingly, not only did they welcome the change, one of them actually LOVES winter. Weird, I know but in the eyes of a child, everything is fresh and new, it seems.

It’s the kids first experience of the spring season and it may be the warmer weather, or the greens outside or the fact that even if it’s April or May, they can actually play outside. In Dubai, they start to get lesser and lesser time outdoors in these months due to the heat.

Looking at the smiles on their faces, I am confident to say that our move to Japan was a great decision, at least, for them. They get to know their grandparents better (we live with them), they get to know about the culture and heritage that’s part of who they are and then they get to experience the changing of the seasons (and lots of outdoor time).

Do you live in a place with four seasons? Which one is your favorite?

For the past two months, this is the view that greets me every morning when I wake up and open the curtains.

If you saw the photos I recently posted on my Instagram account during our move to Japan, specifically in Niigata prefecture, you would tell me I’ve gone crazy. And I’m going to tell you, you’re not alone in telling me that.

Yes, we traded the year round sunshine (and skyscrapers and heat!) of Dubai to this.

The peaceful, rural, countryside living over the big city life.

Why here and not Tokyo? Because we have decided to live more simply and not run around like headless chickens to get into packed trains every morning. That’s why I have declined offers of work in metropolitan Tokyo – I feel I am too old to handle the pressure of the daily commute and the work that pays more that would naturally mean work is more. We wanted to get the kids closer to nature and closer to their grandparents while they’re still around.

(This is where their father was born and raised until he moved out for college in the big city.)

You see all white in my photos because we moved to Japan after 11 years in Dubai in the middle of winter and settled in one of Japan’s snowiest areas where from December to March, cold Siberian air streaming south and east across the relatively warm waters of the Sea of Japan generate bands of clouds that dump snow over the mountains on the western part of Japan’s main island of Honshu.

(All these snow is too much? No baby, this is just the start. Pic taken a few days after we arrived in mid-January 2018)

Parts of Niigata Prefecture receive up to 8 meters (26.25 ft) of snow; the prefectural average is 5.78 meters (almost 19 ft). The city of Tsunan (next city to us) sometimes can get 10 meters (32.8 ft) of snow, literally covering the entire town if not for the very efficient snow clearing trucks that run regularly 24/7! Snow is so much that residents in most villages in Niigata prefecture must enter homes through special second-story entrances, including the in-laws’ house where we live now.

I’ve been to Tokamachi city in Niigata prefecture many times before, even in winter time but never stayed long enough to see how this small rural beauty which is evergreen in summer turn into a sprawling white wonderland in winter. The amount of snow is no joke but the resilience of the people living here echoes the life lesson, “this too shall pass”.

During January and February, they’ll be days where it snows like it would snow forever, no ending in sight. There will be mornings where we wake up to a 50 centimeters of snow and our car buried in white stuff – something I miss about living in Dubai is that you can easily get on your car and speed away, no snow to rake out in ‘winter’.

To be honest, I tried so hard not to end up living here because of the images about the dreadful images playing in my mind. But my husband said, how will you know if we don’t try? Surprisingly, I am not hating life here at all. I mean, not right now (maybe because I didn’t have to drive through the snow storms to work yet?).  Snow storms can be dark and gloomy and dangerous and the most inconvenient thing is that, here, life goes on. Schools or work have not been suspended so far because of a snow storm. Like, ever, my mother in-law says.

When it snows, it’s kind of depressing but when the sun peeks out after a storm, it makes you think the snow storm that passed was just a bad nightmare. (And when it snows again, you’d wonder if the great sunshiny weather was just a wonderful dream…)

Beautiful, no? Snow is definitely beautiful to look at, in the photos. But to live with it, is another thing.

Luckily, there is no such thing as a whole year of winter. (even if my son wishes so!)

It’s almost spring as I write this. I’ve put off blogging for a while though I had the time (I am not working yet!) – I was busy cleaning, arranging things and renovating an almost 50 year old house, turning over corners that have been untouched for at least twenty years!

Oh, in case you’re new here and/or not following me on social media, especially on Instagram, we’ve moved to Japan. It’s been a month since I started sleep talking in Nihongo again. And if you ask me how we’re all doing, thank you, we’re all doing fine (except that – my daughter claims that I have started snoring frequently something that I didn’t do in Dubai…)

We were in Tottori prefecture for ten days last January.

When we decided to leave Dubai and settle in Japan, my husband’s birth place and the place where I spent 10 years before we moved to Dubai in January 2007, we brainstormed where to live and work within Japan. Can we handle densely populated Tokyo where life happens in fast forward or would we be happy in the countryside? The range of choices for place to settle was varied and then there was Tottori prefecture.

Tottori. WHERE THE HECK IS THAT? I bet not many of you have heard of such place.

Tottori is located in the southern part of Japan, along the coast of Sea of Japan. The nearest international airport is Kansai International Airport in Osaka. From Osaka, it’s about 2 hours by bus or car.

WHY TOTTORI?

Everyone gives me a blank stare when I say we plan to move to Tottori and quickly ask, why? First let me say – people, there’s more to Japan than just Tokyo or Osaka or Kyoto.

There was a job opportunity for me at Tottori and the city government had a program called “Ijuu taiken” (trial residence) where you can rent a fully furnished house for a maximum of 30 days (based on the availability) for only 1,200 yen per day, including water, electricity and on winter, kerosene for the heaters. That’s merely US$11 or about AED40 per day for a full house furnished with the basic things to function.

I think it’s a really great program because after all, you’ll never know how you’ll feel about the place and how it is to live there if you don’t try to live there. In those thirty days, the city government provides support with connecting you to employment agencies so you can find work in Tottori and eventually settle there. Why do they do all these?

Tottori prefecture is the least populated prefecture in Japan and they need more people.

To know more about trial residence in Tottori, please check out this link (only in Japanese language though): Trial residence in Tottori

WHAT IS IN TOTTORI?

Aside from the possibility of work for me, there is plenty of nature in Tottori. There was a lake just beside the house we stayed. I love that the kids are closer to nature, which was one of the reasons we left Dubai. The house provided for us was located outside of the city proper. It was such a stark contrast from the big city of Dubai. There are no skyscrapers nor bright lights and we loved it.

I don’t know how many times I’ve apologized for the lack of updates on this blog so I’m not going to do it now because I can’t promise to be consistent in writing with all the things currently going on in my life. But if you are reading this, thank you for still being here.

If you have followed me on social media, you may have come across posts where I mentioned that we have left Dubai, our home for the past 10 years and 11 months. To many, it was a sudden move, a surprising decision even, especially when I said we’re moving back to Japan – it’s shocking to some people who has heard me say I will try hard not to live in Japan again, after we left in 2007. (But that is another blog post to write)

I struggled for the time to be able to sit down to write this post and even thought of just closing down this blog and quit writing. But who am I kidding? I don’t know if I’ll ever lose my love for writing. Sentences have already formed n my head even before our flight out of Dubai took off and I couldn’t wait to be able to open my laptop and write away these thoughts.

Also, when you have followers on social media and readers on your blog, you feel some kind of social responsibility to be transparent, to share the goings on in your life, especially they have followed you from the start. And I really wanted to write this post to collectively tell our story for those reading this and for myself, as a reminder years from now why we made this big move.

There is not one single reason why we left Dubai. It is a mix of so many reasons that snowballed into the major but necessary decision to pack up and leave.

Reason #1: my work

“Life’s too short to do the things you don’t love doing.”

Somehow, this quote had been crossing my mind so often I wake up in cold sweat in the middle of the night.

It wasn’t always like that. I am grateful to be given the chance to work in Dubai in my previous company with so many wonderful people who became not just my work colleagues, but my friends. My day job allowed me and my family to live in Dubai comfortably and indulge in life’s little pleasures like traveling outside of the UAE.

However, after many years, the stuff I do for a living has brought more stress than happiness no matter how I tell myself ,”get over it, this too shall pass”. Day in, day out, getting on the train, running to catch the time, sweating profusely during the grueling hot months (more than half of the year?!), sitting down from 8 am to 6 pm on mechanical mode going through papers and papers, putting in over time some of the time but feeling unappreciated, etc. And then repeat again till the last work day of the week. Lately, the theme of my life had been #WaitingForWeekends.

When you reach the point where you dread when the weekend ends and the work week begins, you know life has become stressful and unhealthy. When sometimes you find yourself half-assing your work, unconsciously, you know you need to put an end to it.

I know that sounds like a selfish thing. And there are bills to pay. Believe me, I have battled voices in my head saying, “you should be grateful you have a job!” or “the pay is good, the work is not difficult, why leave?” or “why don’t you just get up, show up, sit for 8 hours and wait for the paycheck?” and then on the other side, so many voices of reasons that would sum up:

“Are you sure you want to do the same thing everyday for the next ten years?”

And the answer to that was NO.

I guess when you work in a place that long, (10 years and 11 months for me in the same company), you would want some sort of change. I’ve asked for it but that change didn’t come and I didn’t see it coming at all. Doing something over and over again that long is not sustainable, at least for me. I feel my feelings weren’t normal because in my previous company, people have worked for 10, 20 or even 30 years. No one ever leaves (almost) that people didn’t believe I resigned and started to speculate and spread rumors that I was terminated. When I said I submitted my resignation paper last November 2017, there wasn’t a single soul who didn’t think I was joking. “Why would you?”

There’s also the lingering matter of my age. I’m 41 and it came to the critical point where IF I have to change jobs, I have to quit the current one NOW otherwise stay there till I retire. There was no change in the horizon with the current one and no, I don’t want to do the same thing I was doing day in and day out for the next 3,650 days of my life.

“So if you didn’t like your job, why didn’t you apply for other jobs, in Dubai?”

We move on to reason #2.

Reason #2: the kids

There are several reasons worthy enough of a separate blog post that could be controversial to other families raising their kids in Dubai. Dubai is still a great place for families for many, however, PERSONALLY, I feel it wasn’t the best place for us anymore. The lifestyle didn’t fit what we wanted for our family.

I have a child who is transitioning into adulthood. She is 14, and while very open minded and sensible, I feel that living in Dubai as she transitions into this very important phase in life will not ready her or arm her with important life skills she needs and resilience when life is not so convenient and comfortable anymore in the outside world.

The other child is six years old and always happier when taken outdoors, not just for a period of time (cooler months in Dubai) but everyday.

Reason #3: the husband’s job instability

Background: we moved to Dubai because of my work; he was the trailing spouse.

To his credit, he really tried. He has come a long way from someone who didn’t know how to speak or write proper English sentences to someone who can negotiate business affairs using a language foreign to him. He is Japanese and only speaks Japanese language with me from the start. And in Japan where we previously lived, there is no need to use English.

In the past years when his job doesn’t work out due to various unfortunate reasons like salary was too low to compensate for the long hours, company downsizing, etc, he managed to get another and then another. He even worked in Saudi Arabia for a year while the kids and I remained in Dubai in 2016.

We decided, ENOUGH.

Now that we are in Japan, he can find something that would suit him better here. It’s his home country after all and as for me – I can manage to fit in, as I did for 10 years I was here before moving to Dubai. I can find something here should I decide to work (I have worked here for 5 years after graduation before).

Reason #4: there’s no forever in Dubai

Dubai is a transient place. More than 80% of the population are expats from 200 different countries…who will ultimately leave one day, it’s just a question of WHEN. It’s actually scary when you really think about it.

Why? The UAE doesn’t offer permanent residency – visas are tied with your job that if you lose it, you only have 30 days to either find a new one or exit the country, no citizenship offered as well.

It’s a temporary place where people come to earn and/or save.

I liken living in Dubai as part of the story of the Japanese folk tale of Urashima Taro – a fisherman who gets to visit a beautiful kingdom under the sea as a reward for rescuing a tortoise. The kingdom under the sea is like paradise and Urashima Taro lingered on, enjoying every moment, forgetting about the outside world. When he came up and went back to land, he was shocked to find out so many years have passed since the last time he was there.

Most expats in Dubai, us included, arrived thinking they’ll stay “just for a couple of years” but then the lifestyle is too comfortable, convenient and appealing, the malls so big, bright and shiny LOL, and we all end up making Dubai our semi-permanent home and before we know it, we’ve been living in this glorious city for years and decades.

And leaving gets harder and harder the longer you live in Dubai.

It’s a transient place and we’re all waiting for that “snap” that could be in the form of: you or your spouse losing your jobs and can’t find one before the 30 days grace period ends, you or your spouse’s company closes down and can’t find another company to sponsor your visa before the 30 days grace period ends, Dubai’s economy all together snaps and you become redundant or worst case scenario, war erupts in the Middle East (the UAE is peaceful right now and I think it will be for the next years…but then again, there’s no guarantee?)

So what if the “snap” happens tomorrow and we have no savings or when we’re 50? Where will we go? Will there be any companies to accept us back home or somewhere else?

We felt it is time to settle and build a permanent home.

WHY THE MOVE TO…JAPAN?

We are all Japan passport holders, my husband is from here and we have family here (his side, our children’s grandparents who are so delighted with our move). Japan will always be that place we can base ourselves the easiest, move with least effort, financially, logistically. Here, we are eligible for social insurance and school for the kids is free.

Also, we feel it’s time for our children to get to know the culture and heritage that’s part of who they are.

Are we staying here for good? I don’t know about the “for good” part but “for now”, yes.

No matter how comfortable and almost perfect life is in Dubai, we are only there on borrowed time. With the visa, we are given the privilege to stay in Dubai/UAE. In Japan, we have the right to stay as long as we can.

One interesting thing about this move – much like when people in Dubai asked me why we left Japan, people here in Japan are asking me why we left Dubai – a seemingly modern day Utopia where everything is convenient; even the heat is a mild matter as we live in temperature controlled houses and sleep with our comforters even when it’s nearing 50C outside.

The grass is always greener on the other side, eh?

*****

January 13th 2018 (that’s today in my time zone) would have been our 11 years anniversary in Dubai but we’re no longer there. I wanted to start the new year fresh and new so I chose to leave before 2017 ended. Honestly, I thought I’d write a really sappy post how I missed life in Dubai but not right now. I actually didn’t have time to grieve over leaving the city we called home for nearly 11 years. I was so busy with so many things like patching things at work before my exit, selling/giving away/disposing things at home and preparing to leave for the Philippines last month for my sister’s wedding. (Had several incidents even before we landed in Manila with Benjamin suddenly getting sick on the plane and we had to call emergency when we landed and then the airline losing 2 of my checked in luggage and typhoon Vinta got our flights to my hometown cancelled …who has time to be sappy about Dubai?)

And then this move to Japan.

I might eventually get nostalgic and write the sappy post someday but not today. I’m busy looking forward to the challenges we’ll all face. The kids’ attending Japanese school, me looking for a job (or deciding to stay at home!), looking for a permanent house etc.

Oh, and the harsh winter. I am more bothered of the cold, cold temp inside the house this winter to be grieving about the past.

I do have a passing thought and probably an advice to you expats thinking about leaving Dubai: don’t leave when Dubai is at its most gorgeous in the “winter” months, especially if you’re destination is the real winter world. You’ll miss and long for Dubai’s glorious sunshines in December.

Leave during the summer when you’re cursing your way out of the airport and happily looking forward to your normal world destination where you can stand outside without your arm pits transforming into waterfalls of sweat and you can breathe without being choked by 95% humidity.

Oh and one last thing keeping me from grieving?

I need a new blog name.

This year, I took the kids again to the Philippines so they can spend the rest of their summer vacation (2 months!) after our 10 days vacation in Japan. We started to let them stay with my parents starting from last year because they’re better off there than being cooped up indoors in Dubai during the hottest time of the year.

My home town is an hour and a half airplane ride south of the capital Manila. Like I always, do, the kids always look forward to see the beautiful sight outside as the plane approaches Mindanao island.

I was to stay for only ten days before I needed to go back to Dubai so I wanted to take the kids for a small adventure: we go to Cebu island by sea transportation and see the whale sharks in Oslob!

WHERE IS OSLOB, CEBU?

The town of Oslob is located 120 kilometers south of Cebu City, in Cebu island, central Philippines. It is said that the residents of this coastal town started seeing whale sharks around 2012.

I have a long time friend who lives in Cebu so it was a perfect way to meet her again and for our kids to finally meet. This is my friend, through time and distance and weight fluctuations, we never lost touch and have been friends since we were 13!

HOW TO GET THERE

Oslob can be reached via domestic flights to Cebu or Dumaguete (from Manila) and then from Cebu City, which was our base, Oslob is at least three hours by car.

TIP: Leave Cebu City as early as possible to avoid the rush of tourists at Oslob. Aim to leave at 4am so you can reach just before 8am.

We left past 5 am and reached Oslob before 9 am and it was already full of tourists and the moment we finished everything from payment to the brief seminar about the do’s and don’ts of swimming with the whale sharks (DON’T GET TOO NEAR, MAINTAIN AT LEAST 4 FEET DISTANCE FROM THE WHALE SHARKS + NO SUNSCREEN LOTIONS), the sun was already high up and getting hot.

From the internet: Dumaguete/Sibulan port is closer to Oslob than Cebu City. It only takes a 30 minute boat ride from Sibulan port and then a Ceres bus ride or motorcycle ride to get to the whale shark watching area in Tan-awan town in Oslob.

TRAVELLING BY SEA

The kids and I got to Cebu City from Cagayan de Oro by sea transport – with a passenger ship leaving at 11 am and arriving Cebu City at nearly 8pm. The Philippines is an archipelago of more than 7,000 islands so commercial ships are still a popular mode of transportation when crossing one island to another. I used to travel this way in the 90s, since there no budget airline that existed that time and airplane fares were really expensive.

Usually, trips from Cagayan de Oro to Cebu leave at night at 8pm and arrive in Cebu at just before sunrise. But I wanted the kids to see the sea and the islands we pass by as the ship cruises through so I picked a day trip.

This was on the deck of the ship, many people were outside just soaking in the warm sun and inhaling the lovely sea breeze.

More than the kids, I had so much fun on this boat ride because it brought back so many wonderful memories – like the time I went to Manila (it take 30 hours!) to take the scholarship examination for Japan. I remember looking out into the sea, alone in the deck early in the morning with these thoughts running through my mind, “Lord, your will be done. If you think I need to be in Japan, then be it. I’ll accept it with all my heart…in fact, let me go there, Lord!”

SWIMMING WITH WHALE SHARKS

After a couple of days in Cebu, we set out to Oslob with my friend’s family. They have four kids and plus two of mine, their big car was full. I’m so happy her kids got along really well with my kids. Long car rides don’t matter much if you’re having fun.

After we paid the fees and finished listening to the briefing, we waited for more than one hour for our turn to get on the small, wooden boat. The boat left the shore and after just a few minutes, we were already in the deep end and finally near the whale sharks!

Life vests are provided and mandatory while on the boat but you should remove it so you can dive with ease. Presenting: the overly enthusiastic kids who immediately removed their life vests without batting an eyelash and got in the water!

Pristine had been waiting for this moment for a long time! These photos were taken by our diver/guide using the action camera we rented (PHP500 and they transfer the files to your mobile afterwards).

I am so proud of her!! I am so thankful the school she attended from Year 1 to 7 had a swimming pool because that’s where she learned how to swim and to be confident in the water.

Benjamin, though was in the water too, wasn’t able to swim underneath – I didn’t take off his arm floaters (there were no life vests small enough for him that was available). I felt he was too young to be submerged in the water long enough so the guide can take a photo of him. However, he was still able to see the whale sharks up close.

These pics were taken when they come up to feed.

Meanwhile, you can see that at this point, only the adults are left in the boat! LOL. Me, my friend Divina and her husband are all non-swimmers. It was nearly noon and getting really, really hot. I was so, so tempted to get in the water just to cool off!

I wasn’t able to bear the heat, I jumped in!! There was something wrong with the way I put on my life vest, it was trying to get into my head and I hated it but at least my body is cooler now.

Confession time. I am scared of the deep blue sea. Mostly, maybe because I don’t know how to tread when the water is too deep (shame). And next, I am scared of what lies beneath. I am cringing just by writing this post. Our diver/guide told me so many times that our limited time (30 minutes!) was running out and that I had to take off the life vest now so he can push me underwater and take a picture of me with the whale shark in the background. For, you know, BRAGGING RIGHTS.

Some pics of Pristine swimming around with my friend’s kids. These bunch earned some serious bragging rights at this young age.

After so much hard thinking about this very important life or death decision, I decided not to take off my life jacket because trust me, I know I’m going to sink faster than the Titanic to the bottom of the sea. The diver/guide who was with us assured me he will not allow me to drown and would save me, if ever but no, no, no!! My kids still need their mother so I was just there, floating and sighing, hearing my daughter shouting YOLO, mama! YOLO!! (YOLO = You Only Live Once)

Do I regret not removing my life jacket? Kind of. Don’t get me wrong, maybe 95% of me still say I did the right thing of choosing safe than sorry but 5% is whispering, what if.

The what if that I’m going to live with for the rest of my life.

That said, I am happy my kids are braver than me or rather, are able swimmers than me. Pristine had been wanting to do this since she was 8. And Benjamin, well, maybe next time when he is older.

The whale sharks are beautiful and peaceful creatures and is an awe to watch and our experience watching them up close is definitely unforgettable.

TIPS BEFORE YOU GO

1. Go early. Whale shark watching starts at 6 am to 12 noon only. Cut off is 1130 am. The earlier you are, the less crowd plus the water is clearer early in the morning.

2. Though the “whale watching fee” includes gear (snorkeling), it’s best to bring your own goggles.

3. Wear long sleeve rash guard/UV clothing as it gets really hot before you notice it. Sunburns are no fun! Also, sunscreen lotions are strictly NOT allowed so protect your skin.

4. The “whale watching” time is just 30-minutes  so if you can, jump as soon as your boatmen signal or you will waste/miss the chance.

5. The charge for whale shark swimming is PHP1,000 ($23) for a half hour session. Fess can be paid in cash only before the tour at Barangay Tan-awan Beach, Oslob so prepare cash.

DO I RECOMMEND SWIMMING WITH WHALE SHARKS IN OSLOB?

Swimming with the whale sharks in Oslob was an incredible experience. You might have read somewhere though, that some environmentalist groups are against this activity due to injuries to the whale sharks by boat propellers but this is outdated info as the boats that were used were all trimarans with no motor/engine, only oars. Another controversial thing is the guides feed the sharks; the animals expect this now so it affects their usual routine and behavior. The feeding sessions make the whale sharks overly dependent on the handouts. But, the boom of this tourism activity is helping the local economy. The whale sharks contribute tremendously to Oslob’s income, helping to create much needed infrastructure, jobs, and opportunities for growth with neighboring municipalities. Nearly 300 staff work at the feeding site, under local government management, to safeguard the sea creatures.

It’s a difficult balance.

But, personally, I find that the government is working hard to protect these creatures as much as they can by strictly regulating the time when to feed and see the whales and conduct clear briefing on the do’s and don’ts. I’ll leave the decision to you whether you’d go for this or not.

I would say go but be a responsible tourist and follow the rules.

I’m going to make this post short – have you been to the kids aqua park in Jumeirah called Splash n Party?

I’ve heard of this place for a long time and seen pictures on social media uploaded by other bloggers but never really got to check it out with the kids because the invites were all on a week day and I have work.

We got another invite last week and luckily, the husband was off from work so I asked him if he can take the kids for Splash n Party’s Halloween Party. The mini water park looked promising so he drove the kids there and flooded my Whatsapp with photos.

Since the weather is getting really better and better, I think it’s a great place to take the kids. Our two kids had so much fun and didn’t want to go home even after almost 3 hours there. Splash n Party, located  is a little far from where we live, was definitely worth the drive.

They were lucky to go last week too, in time for Halloween! Splash n Party threw a Halloween party with lots of folks in scary costumes!

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The mini water park is also available to book for birthday parties and other celebrations. Wouldn’t it be fun to have a kids birthday party here? What do you think?