Sometimes, we forget that the folk we discover on Substack have digital archives and spaces to explore beyond their presence here.

While we daydream about exploring Japan one day, we lose ourselves in the words and images of Burcu Basar, inspired by incredible journeys into rural Japan way beyond the images of the modern cityscapes we often associate with this part of the world.

‘Letters from Japan’ is the most absorbing website, brimful of gems and sparks for our curiosity:

I was already 40 when I moved to Japan and had traveled extensively until then, but I think my experiences in rural Japan taught me at least as much about what I personally seek in travel as all my previous trips combined. I like to think those experiences, which first destroy the expectations you bring with you and then give you room and tools to build new ones, have made me a slightly more mature traveler.