Travel with Ardhia

I went to Katsuoji Temple as a day trip from Osaka, about an hour from Osaka Station. It's up in the hills, so the air is noticeably cooler than in the city, though the summer sun still hits pretty hard. Right when you walk in, you're greeted by a beautiful gate, and there's a pond on the right that's perfect for photos. One thing you have to do: collect the stamps for the postcard, they're gorgeous. You get the postcard right at the entrance, then just follow the walking trail around the temple, picking up stamps along the way. You can also try your luck with a little daruma near the main hall and see what fortune's inside. Good luck!

If you’re planning to have day trips from Osaka, maybe you might want to try visit Kobe. It’s just 30 mins ride by train from Osaka and it has beautiful seaside view. Also, you can try the Kobe Beef right in the city! Best time to visit Kobe Port is before the sunset. It has Starbucks nearby and you can enjoy the scenery there. You can also go up to the tower if you want!

I went to Akebonoyama Park in Chiba in late July and it was the season of sunflower!🌻 There are more than 80 thousands sunflowers in the park with windmill in the background. It’s only 1,5 hours from Tokyo and the entrance is free! Since I went during summer on the weekend, there was some fun activities for children at the other side of the park and food trucks as well!✨

Enoshima is an island near Kamakura with so many things to see and to do. It’s perfect if you look for a day trip from Tokyo. It takes around 2 hours and what I loved the most is you can take the most exciting train rides with Shonan Monorail! The track is on top of the train and I felt like flying with the train. Additionally, if you’re lucky you can see the Mt. Fuji from Enoshima. Walk through to the Iwaya Caves and the scenery is so beautiful you can also see the sunset by the sea🌅

I went to Shirakawa-go last December, and it was so magical! I spent about 3 hours there, which was just enough time to wander around and soak it all in. HOT TIP: always check the weather before planning your visit. During the winter season (December–February), so many people visit this place because you can see the traditional Japanese houses covered in snow. I also tried the viral custard pudding there, and it was so good, definitely worth grabbing one while you're around. So please also book your bus in advance!