First-person travel notes, city stories, photos, and videos from the Travel Map archive.
Walking further away from the center, I found myself in a typical working-class neighborhood of Quebec City, built at the turn of the 20th century. The houses here are very similar to those in Montreal (https://t.me/alexshitpost/3124?single) - 2-3 stories,…
Rue du Sault-au-Matelot is another well-known pedestrian street in Old Quebec. It's amazing how this type of urban landscape is so different from the rest of Canada. During my trip, I walked and literally photographed every street like this, because it's…
#Quebec Flags on bars in Canada are always funny. Italy, Quebec, Canada, Mexico, France, Korea - together we are one!
#Quebec Those garbage trucks aren't meant for streets like these, guys.
In Quebec, there is the oldest port in Canada, which, even during the colonial era, was used to transport goods up the river to Toronto and Montreal. Although Vancouver has long held the lead in terms of cargo volumes…
#Quebec They say that the best view in the city can be seen from the hill named after Pierre Dugua de Mons, located near the old citadel. Well, I won't argue with that!
Religion plays a much more significant role in Quebec than in other parts of Canada. Historically, being Franco-Canadian meant being Catholic, in part as a contrast to English Protestantism. Despite the declining trend, Quebec remains the province with the…
But Quebec doesn't end at the walls of the Old City! As you move further away from the center, the stone buildings give way to brick, and instead of European-style houses, you find more classic American apartment buildings, which are more reminiscent of…
Once you venture beyond the old city center, the fairytale ends... #Quebec, after all, remains a city in North America, and almost every city here suffered in the 70s from punitive development and motorization. A multi-lane highway was built through the…
No less significant is the building that rises in the center of the city: the Parliament of the province of Quebec. The architects clearly drew inspiration from the Canadian Parliament in Ottawa, but added their own touches to give it a "French" feel –…
#Quebec In the evening, the old city center comes alive with a variety of colors. It feels like summer, but the atmosphere is reminiscent of Christmas!
Saint Jean pedestrian street, one of the oldest in Quebec. A cobblestone street, bustling pubs and restaurants, houses made of stone and brick... It looks like a French city, but it has a surprisingly Irish feel!
#Quebec I have no complaints about the food in Canada – it's a country of immigrants, which means you can easily find cuisine from any part of the world in any city. However, finding good European cuisine at a reasonable price is becoming a problem! And…
It's hard not to notice the elephant while walking through the streets of #Quebec! Right in the middle of the 18th-century historical district stands the enormous Fairmont Château Frontenac hotel. This is one of 20 grand hotels built by the Canada Pacific…
#Quebec - Where is it? I think not everyone is familiar with the geography of Canada, and many don't know that we have as many as 10 provinces. Quebec is one of them, and the only one where French is the official language. This is due to historical reasons…
I'm starting my short vacation in a rather unusual city, with a cup of coffee, in the old square called Place Royale. Someone in the comments managed to guess where the place in the photo is, but I suppose it's not familiar to most people. Three-story stone…
Let's take a slight detour from the usual routes in Asia 😏 A question for the experts: in which country am I this time?
Regarding Kobe, I won't draw any definitive conclusions because I was only there for a day, and didn't even stay overnight. However, if I were to offer advice, I would suggest placing Kobe on a second (or even third) itinerary for your trip to Japan. First,…
#Kobe One thing I noticed in Japan is that almost every major city has a kind of "golden district." It's always impeccably clean, beautifully decorated, and well-maintained, and of course, it's full of expensive stores like Gucci, Vuitton, and others. In my…
#Kobe I made it to the dam! It wasn't as huge as I expected, but it's still a cool structure, especially considering it's located right in the forest. From here, the route is quite straightforward – just follow the service paths down to the bottom and then…
#Kobe The most interesting part of the route for me is always to deviate from the well-trodden tourist paths. Even while riding the cable car, I noticed a dam on the slope, and of course, I decided to try to reach it through the forest. AllTrails showed…
#Kobe Not far from the Shinkansen station, there's a cable car that takes you to the nearby mountains. If you go up, you'll find the Nunobiki Botanical Garden at the top. This place is quite local, and there aren't many tourists. There are shops selling…
#Kobe This image caught my eye. You can definitely recognize Japan here, but there's also a certain European vibe to it. What do you think, does it resemble any other country?
Fun fact: In #Kobe, you can find the oldest mosque in Japan, built in 1935. It miraculously survived the bombings of World War II!
It so happens that Kobe boasts a wealth of non-Japanese architecture. In the second half of the 19th century, a foreign settlement was established in the city to facilitate trade. Along with it, houses typical of Europe or America also appeared in Kobe. In…
The most famous invention associated with Kobe, which you might have heard of if you've been to Japan, is Kobe Beef. However, this "invention" is essentially a tourist trap, because it's just regular meat! Yes, it's Wagyu beef, and it's generally tasty, but…
Another third-tier city that I managed to visit during my trip through Japan – the city of Kobe. Quite unremarkable, hidden in the shadow of the nearby metropolis of Osaka, Kobe doesn't attract many tourists. However, it's interesting enough to have…
#Hiroshima #Review I had a great three days in Hiroshima, and I'm glad I didn't just stick to the classic Tokyo-Osaka-Kyoto route, but instead started exploring other regions of Japan. Perhaps a small lesson from this is that you shouldn't judge a city…
#Hiroshima This is what the evening tide looks like near the floating gates. Where boats used to sail during the day, now people are wading through the water up to their knees. By the way, these gates served a purpose: the land of the island was once…
#Hiroshima While descending the mountain, I came across a sign. 😶 Thanks for the information, not sure what else to say.
#Hiroshima Through sweat and tears, I climbed Mount Misen (535m). The view wasn't exactly spectacular – there was either fog or smog hanging over the island. But you could definitely appreciate the scale of things! The temple here definitely saved the day.…
#Hiroshima As they say... A wise person wouldn't go uphill? Well, I guess that's not me, because how could I miss out on a hike under the scorching sun at +33°C (91°F) 🤪 At first, I thought I'd take the lift up, but unfortunately, it was closed for…
#Hiroshima Upon arriving on Miyajima Island, you immediately find yourself in a small village with a shopping street. Of course, everything here is geared towards tourists. However, what I noticed is that it's more geared towards Japanese people than…
#Hiroshima So you understand what the deer "gang" on the island gets up to – here's a video of a deer trying to break into a restaurant, and subsequently being escorted out by a waiter. And here are some others who snatched brochures from unsuspecting…
#Hiroshima If you miss the deer of Nara, I've found a worthy alternative for you! There are just as many deer on Miyajima Island, and here they are truly wild animals! Unlike Nara, feeding the deer is prohibited here. They often ignore people because they…
#Hiroshima Miyajima Island is a must-visit destination for all explorers of Japan who venture beyond Kyoto. It's home to the famous floating torii gates, as well as Mount Misen, which stands at 535 meters tall. The island is home to approximately 2,000…
#Hiroshima It seems that this sign also survived the nuclear explosion.
#Hiroshima They might not have given me another business card, but! At the Alegre bar, I received a treasure map of Miyajima Island, which I'm heading to tomorrow. Also, the owner of the bar told me that they have another, secret bar (as if a hobbit hole…
#Hiroshima Remember, I mentioned that at a bar in Fukuoka, I was given a business card for another bar? (https://t.me/alexshitpost/4591?single) Well, I decided to take on that "quest," and I made it to the next stage – the Alegre bar in Hiroshima! The…
#Hiroshima Every Japanese city has a garden. If you don't know where to escape the concrete landscapes, look for one! In the photo, for example, is the Shukkei-en Garden in Hiroshima, which I visited on a hot day. Entrance to these gardens usually costs…
#Hiroshima Random photos from walks.
#Hiroshima In the 1970s, income inequality in Japan was much higher than it is today, and thousands of citizens lived in what were essentially slums. In an attempt to address this problem, the authorities in Hiroshima implemented several planned social…
#Hiroshima I tried okonomiyaki for the first time – a Japanese dish that originates from Hiroshima. It looks like a messy pile of ingredients in its original form: noodles, rice, vegetables, meat, fish... In general, you can mix in pretty much anything you…
#Hiroshima In Japan, you often come across such a mix of incompatible elements. The photo shows a classic example of urban zoning: a private house next to a massive shopping center.
#Hiroshima If you're wondering whether or not to go up to the castle, here's what the city looks like from the observation deck. As I mentioned, Hiroshima is quite compact, as it's surrounded by mountains and the sea on all sides. I didn't even need…
#Hiroshima Hiroshima Castle is the second most famous landmark in the city, after the dome (https://t.me/alexshitpost/4620?single). The original castle was built in the late 16th century, but, as you can imagine, it didn't survive the nuclear explosion.…
#Hiroshima Near the station, I stumbled upon a local "golden gai." The streets here are similar to Shinjuku, but on a smaller scale. Places like this really capture that quintessential Japanese nightlife, with izakayas (Japanese pubs) and tiny restaurants…
#Hiroshima While walking along the river, I noticed some movement in the grass. As I got closer, I realized I had stumbled upon some river crabs! Maybe it's just because I'm a city person, but I'd never seen river crabs before. And there are so many of them…
#Hiroshima is one of the few major cities in Japan where trams still operate. Since the city is located in a river delta, the soil here is not suitable for building underground metro lines. Therefore, the municipality has invested all its resources in…
#Hiroshima I was surprised to see that, for a city of its size, Hiroshima has quite a few buildings with 20-30 floors, and even a few with 50 floors! I think geography plays a role, and the high density is likely due to the mountains that surround the city…