Two More Announcements!
I’ll make this brief.
- I’ve now officially launched my Tokyo walking tours, which can also be done as a photo walk. Either way, it’s all based on principles derived from psychogeography and experimental modes of urban exploration. It’s gonna be fun.
- In addition to the travel book, I’m challenging myself to put out a dozen zines in 2025 for the sake of staying fresh creatively.
And read more about the travel book (my previous announcement) below.
Announcement: I'm Writing a Book!
After a decade of making piles of notes and rough drafts, I’m putting it all together and writing a travel book aimed at helping people get the most out of their visit to Japan.
This is not going to be a typical travel book. I am not an influencer and I’m not going to feed you bad lists of must-see places. Instead, this project is driven by my own philosophy on travel, combined with practical strategies and useful information to make any trip as enriching as possible.
I need your help to see it through, though. For as little as USD $10, you can pre-order the book at a discount and get access to the final product, plus the audiobook version and supplemental materials. Check out the project page at davidwroteabook.com
My aim is to get it finished by the end of Q1 2025, but the more support I can get, the more time I can afford to put into it, leading to an earlier release date.
Posts
Dispatch № 72: For a Limited Time
Soft stridulations waft like lithe wisps of wood smoke on the gentle evening breeze, the crickets calling tenderly under the waxing crescent moon.
Dispatch № 71: Troublesome Gaps
While it is entirely possible that, by the time we visit again, new buildings and businesses will occupy those spaces, it is also possible that they will remain empty for a long while.
Dispatch № 70: Rainfall
Greatest among the differentiating factors is that of the surface upon which the rain lands, drops of rain like tiny hands striking the skins of myriad drums.
Dispatch № 68: Have Camera, Will Wander
This kind of rest is a sort that must be earned, in that it only exists on the far side of intense focus. It is found only after the work is done.
Dispatch № 67: Continuity
It has been there for more than a dozen generations, and it may remain there for at least that much longer still.
Dispatch № 66: Smooth Pursuit
Over time, stacks of these fragments string together and hang upon the backdrop from which they were extracted.
For Medical Reasons, Somewhere in Japan Temporarily Delayed
I’m sitting in a hospital waiting room at about 11:30 PM on a Monday night because I’ve got a messed up knee, can barely walk, and I’ve got a high fever. Super-duper not comfortable.
Dispatch № 65: I Am a Visitor Here
Not a fish out of water, but a fish temporarily in the wrong body of water. I’m a trout in a tide pool.
Dispatch № 64: No Plan, Best Plan
We lingered there for a time, suspended in the moment, before continuing on, enjoying the snails and mushrooms in the undergrowth, the swaying of the forest canopy, and the trickling of a hillside stream.
Dispatch № 63: No Return
The already-slippery concept eventually all but entirely lost its meaning after years as an emigrant and only regained some of its significance years after settling in Japan.
Dispatch № 62: The Bike of Theseus
But it was a bike, and it was mine. A ticket to personal mobility and a way to get out of my apartment and get out of my head.