train travel

Digital sign at Shin-Osaka Station. The sign lists the next Kodama and Nozomi Shinkansen trains bound for Tokyo and indicates that this car is a non-smoking Green Car

Is the JR Green Car worth it on the Shinkansen or Thunderbird?

by Mark
July 18, 2023July 18, 2023
Reviews, Travel

In the interest of learning, your Guide recently took two train trips in JR Green Cars, assuming they might be better for getting work done while zipping across the Japanese countryside. Is the Green Car… Read More »Is the JR Green Car worth it on the Shinkansen or Thunderbird?

On the train from Beijing, China to Hanoi, Vietnam, a meal replacement bar package. It has a gold strip along the top edge, a red stripe along the bottom, and a red star between the stripes. There is writing in Chinese characters all over it, as well as an official-looking emblem in the top left corner.

That time I messed up my Vietnam visa and got pulled off the train in China

by Mark
August 2, 2022August 2, 2022
Digital Nomad Life, Travel

Back in 2006, after quitting my job in Korea, I was traveling back to Canada by land and sea. On the journey, I was passing by train from China to Vietnam. I needed a visa… Read More »That time I messed up my Vietnam visa and got pulled off the train in China