Out of Norm Travels

[Note. This is me reminiscing about my past travels as I am not sure when I will be able to start traveling anytime soon. ]  Harry Potter Themed Activities in London Here is my recommended list of Harry Potter themed activities when in London:  1. 'Tour for Muggles'  http://www.tourformuggles.com; June 2018 Photos taken at the Tour for Muggles  An appropriately themed tour, ' Tour for Muggles ' is one filled with Harry Potter snippets. I am "Muggle", and referred as such in the wizarding world as I am a non-magic person.   We dived into Harry Potter land at  Borough Market  at London bridge. As every Potter-fan knows, Borough market is a must visit for many scenes of the Potter series. It is after all, the location of the Leaky Cauldron in 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'! At the corner outside Borough Market is the replica of a  skeleton in a cage  which, according to Gibbit folklore, was something used to house criminals.  The guide peppere

For 2019 , my Japan adventures kickstarted with Fireworks at  Lake Biwa and Osaka in August (here is the blog entry for my Fireworks trip Osaka trip) and recently in November to Saga (mainly  for the Saga International Hot Air Balloon Fiesta - blog entry here).  This entry is for an unexpected detour to  Karatsu , an hour away from for their Karatsu Festival .  Karatsu (唐津) is where this festival is held and is a coastal city in Saga Prefecture on Kyushu, about 50 kilometers west of Fukuoka. In the past, Karatsu was a major stop for ships making the journey towards Korea and China because it is one of the closest Japanese cities to the Korean Peninsula. Today the city is known for its castle, the annual Karatsu Kunchi festival held in November 2 to 4 every year.  During Karatsu Kunichi, floats are paraded in the order of completion with the oldest being the Red Lion Aka-jishi (made in 1819) and youngest float called 7 Jewel (Shichiho-maru) made in 1876.  The atmosphere of festival