Uploaded March 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
Since the late 2020s, I’d been saving and planning for one big trip: Japan — my mom’s and my first time. We joined WanderRock, a well-known travel group for young autistic adults, for guidance and support. Our journey began with an overnight stop in Los Angeles, then on to Tokyo, where neon streets and pop-culture temples of manga, anime, gaming, and Pokémon swallowed us in the best way. We wandered crowded malls, hunted rare collectibles, strolled the historic lanes of Asakusa to Senso‑ji Temple, and wandered Nakamise Shopping Street. We even spent a surreal afternoon cuddling tiny piglets at a pig café and closed the evening inside the immersive, otherworldly TeamLab Planets exhibit.
The next morning, we boarded a shinkansen and, between rice fields and cityscapes, were treated to a distant, perfect view of Mount Fuji. In Kinosaki Onsen, we sank into the rhythm of traditional Japan at a ryokan — tatami floors, futons, yukata, and multi‑course kaiseki dinners that felt like culinary ceremonies. We soaked in mineral hot spring baths beneath quiet skies, tried Japanese calligraphy and straw craft, and rode the Kinosaki Ropeway for sweeping mountain-and-town views that felt almost like a postcard come to life.
Kyoto was next: first, a little more modern shopping and gaming, then check‑in at a luxury hotel and my newfound love — Japanese McDonald’s mango milkshakes. We spent a morning in Arashiyama among the whispering bamboo groves, visited the serene Tenryu‑ji Temple with its famed Zen garden, and hiked up to Iwatayama Monkey Park to meet a lively troop of Japanese macaques. Later, we walked the endless torii of Fushimi Inari and traveled to Uji for a meditative matcha session with a tea master — the matcha there tasted infinitely fresher than back home. In Kyoto, we also met Hanazawa “Hana” Yuta, a warm, energetic portrait artist near JR Kyoto Station, who sketched a beautiful 2D portrait of my mom and me that I’ll treasure.
If you want to find Hana on YouTube, here's the Link:
youtube.com/@HANA-fy6kk/videos
Music Credits:
🎌 Japanese (Royalty Free Music) - "WINDING TIDES" by Kuukiko
Pokémon Anime BGM - Masaki's (Bill's) Lighthouse (1997~1998-M76A)
Kanto tracks
Album: TV anime Pocket Monsters Original Soundtrack Best 1997-2010 2 (2 CD)
Release Date: 23.02.2011
Masaki's (Bill's) Lighthouse (1997~1998-M76A)
Composed and arranged by Shinji Miyazaki
Samurai Jack: Battle Through Time - End Credits
Composed and arranged by Yuichi Baba, Masanori Otsuka, Hiroshi Watanabe, Tomoyo Nishimoto, Shinya Chikamori, and Akari Kaida
🐥 Instrumental & Anime (Royalty Free Music) - "ALGOMA" by Ross Bugden 🇨🇦
Pokémon Movie01 Japanese BGM - To the Hopeful Sky
Album: Pokémon Sound Picture Box - The Birth of Mewtwo
Release Date: 12.02.1999
Kibou no Sora E
希望の空へ
To the Hopeful Sky
Composed and arranged by Shinji Miyazaki
I do not own the music. All Music Belongs to its respective owners.
There’s more from this trip — a few scenes I’m saving for part two of my video next month. Stay tuned for the rest of the adventure. Arigatō — Collin
Since the late 2020s, I’d been saving and planning for one big trip: Japan — my mom’s and my first time. We joined WanderRock, a well-known travel group for young autistic adults, for guidance and support. Our journey began with an overnight stop in Los Angeles, then on to Tokyo, where neon streets and pop-culture temples of manga, anime, gaming, and Pokémon swallowed us in the best way. We wandered crowded malls, hunted rare collectibles, strolled the historic lanes of Asakusa to Senso‑ji Temple, and wandered Nakamise Shopping Street. We even spent a surreal afternoon cuddling tiny piglets at a pig café and closed the evening inside the immersive, otherworldly TeamLab Planets exhibit.
The next morning, we boarded a shinkansen and, between rice fields and cityscapes, were treated to a distant, perfect view of Mount Fuji. In Kinosaki Onsen, we sank into the rhythm of traditional Japan at a ryokan — tatami floors, futons, yukata, and multi‑course kaiseki dinners that felt like culinary ceremonies. We soaked in mineral hot spring baths beneath quiet skies, tried Japanese calligraphy and straw craft, and rode the Kinosaki Ropeway for sweeping mountain-and-town views that felt almost like a postcard come to life.
Kyoto was next: first, a little more modern shopping and gaming, then check‑in at a luxury hotel and my newfound love — Japanese McDonald’s mango milkshakes. We spent a morning in Arashiyama among the whispering bamboo groves, visited the serene Tenryu‑ji Temple with its famed Zen garden, and hiked up to Iwatayama Monkey Park to meet a lively troop of Japanese macaques. Later, we walked the endless torii of Fushimi Inari and traveled to Uji for a meditative matcha session with a tea master — the matcha there tasted infinitely fresher than back home. In Kyoto, we also met Hanazawa “Hana” Yuta, a warm, energetic portrait artist near JR Kyoto Station, who sketched a beautiful 2D portrait of my mom and me that I’ll treasure.
If you want to find Hana on YouTube, here's the Link:
youtube.com/@HANA-fy6kk/videos
Music Credits:
🎌 Japanese (Royalty Free Music) - "WINDING TIDES" by Kuukiko
Pokémon Anime BGM - Masaki's (Bill's) Lighthouse (1997~1998-M76A)
Kanto tracks
Album: TV anime Pocket Monsters Original Soundtrack Best 1997-2010 2 (2 CD)
Release Date: 23.02.2011
Masaki's (Bill's) Lighthouse (1997~1998-M76A)
Composed and arranged by Shinji Miyazaki
Samurai Jack: Battle Through Time - End Credits
Composed and arranged by Yuichi Baba, Masanori Otsuka, Hiroshi Watanabe, Tomoyo Nishimoto, Shinya Chikamori, and Akari Kaida
🐥 Instrumental & Anime (Royalty Free Music) - "ALGOMA" by Ross Bugden 🇨🇦
Pokémon Movie01 Japanese BGM - To the Hopeful Sky
Album: Pokémon Sound Picture Box - The Birth of Mewtwo
Release Date: 12.02.1999
Kibou no Sora E
希望の空へ
To the Hopeful Sky
Composed and arranged by Shinji Miyazaki
I do not own the music. All Music Belongs to its respective owners.
There’s more from this trip — a few scenes I’m saving for part two of my video next month. Stay tuned for the rest of the adventure. Arigatō — Collin
