The plan is set in motion. Two tickets are acquired to get me to Taiwan February 25th and then a departure from Narita (Tokyo) May 26th!!
The many weeks in-between are roughly hewned out to look as such:
TAIWAN (February 26th to March 19th)
a) Taipei: i will take 8 days to explore the capital and all the glories of its fine food culture!
b) East Coast exploration with dear old friend "Congo"
-Lanyu (orchid island)
- Tao tribe semi-underground dwelling, loincloth & silver helmets
- Coral reef – best unspoiled spot in Asia for snorkeling
- Dawu or Yami (Tao) Flying Fish Festival
c) Taroko Gorge, Jiufen, and Green Island (with "Congo")
KOREA (4 weeks - six locations)
1) Jeju-Do ISLAND
—hiking, galeries and historic sites
- Chocolate museum!?
— black pig, horse meat
2) Jeonju (hanoks)
—stay at ChoGaJib traditional home
—Jinan city stop to see Horse-Ear Mountain peaks
3) Gwangju (counter-culture Art scene)
— one-hour bus ride to Gochang DOLMEN (440 megaliths) & Hwansun Dolmen group
3.5) Daehan Dawon (tea plantation)
4) Busan (coastal village and fish markets)
5) Gyeongju
- Daegu
- Bulkug-sa (eastern gyeongju TEMPLE)
5.5) Ganghwado island
— Dolmen Park at Ganghwa (150 megaliths of which 70 are UNESCO Heritage sites)
(Bugeun-ri Dolmen Trio weights 75 tons)
6) Seoul
- Gyeongbok Palace (by blue house)
- Cheong-gye-cheon WALKING STREAM: ice cream & spectral nighttime light shows
- Weird Cafes (cat, sheep, muirrcat, raccoon, poop)
JAPAN
The big finale to my 2020 travels will be 2 weeks spent in one location NARA, from which i can easily take trains to many other important cities and destinations:
-Osaka (Sumo Wrestling, Canal tour, Aquarium)
-Kyoto (Nishiki Market, Fushimi Inari Shrine hike, few nights at a Ryokan)
-Nagano
-Shikoku
And wrapping it all up with a English guide to accompany me to a serious Sumo Wrestling tournament and a day at the Ghibli Museum.
More to come,
Gulliver