A Japanese Traveler, Yuino Takeyama, Blogs for Experience Nicola Valley
Yuino Takeyama. A Japanese Traveler.
I am happy to be an International Travel Blogger connecting people to Experience Nicola Valley through my stories. I do my best.
Yuino Takeyama, a Japanese traveler shares with us, “I had a great encounter with a family and stayed for the weekend with them. The generous hospitality, the welcoming home, was provided by a family in Merritt , British Columbia, Canada.”
I am, Yuino Takeyama, a Japanese traveler and I am not a student, as I have decided to explore and travel your beautiful country before I make any life decisions. At 19, leaving the security and comforts of my home was a very hard decision. However, I have always been a person who seeks adventure and challenges and I felt this was the time when I could start collecting life experiences. I’m a person who wants to challenge myself all the time! And Canada is my playground.
I, Yuino Takeyama, a Japanese traveler arrives In Canada
One day, while living in Japan, I came up with the idea that I was going to travel across Canada and then decide where I wanted to live. Firstly, I landed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Secondly, I soon found out in your beautiful country I didn’t actually understand English very well. My bad! Just too excited to get here. I was surprised how I couldn’t communicate with people through language. My conclusion, it was harder than I expected. I needed to do something fast!
Learning English in Canada
Many Canadian people helped me out a lot in teaching me English. However, when I wanted to show my appreciation, I couldn’t communicate with them well enough to show my gratitude. That’s when I decided to learn and speak English only. To assist me in learning English I went to language school for 3 months. After I graduated from the language school, I took to the road with my Japanese friend, Micheal Taiga who is the craziest man in Japan. He was ideal for exploring because he wanted to see everything.
Yuino Takeyama, a Japanese traveler, experiencing Canada.
Starting our travels across Canada
Anyone who has traveled at a young age knows that budgets are always tight. So to make ends meet we decided that we travel across Canada by hitchhiking and by doing homestay visit and stay the home of who lives around area you travel .It was the best decision that I have ever made! The opportunity to meet so many good new people and to experience the beautiful nature in your country would not have happened without the kindness of Canadians. Therefore, I can say I have experienced so many things that I would never have had a chance to experience in Japan.
Where we traveled
We started our adventures in Vancouver, and then hitchhiked to Merritt, Kamloops, Golden, Banff, and Calgary seeking experiences. Then we flew to Whitehorse, Yukon and stayed in Haines Alaska for a while. During our stay we explored the Alaska Highway. The Alaska Highway was just beautiful beyond description! Then we hitchhiked back to Whitehorse and boarded a plane to Quebec City, Quebec. Continuing on, we put our hitchhiking thumbs to work in the region as we visited Montreal, Toronto, Niagara Falls and crossed the border to City of New York, USA. Actually I have a bunch of interesting stories to share with you about these places. However, I’m going to post those stories at a later date!!
Camping with new and old friends in Banff, Alberta
Farewell to my travel buddy
Taiga, my Japanese traveler buddy went to Germany to continue traveling with another friend. So we decided we would go our each way. I wanted to stay in Canada and learn more about your beautiful country. He wanted Germany. Honestly I was sad to see Taiga go. However, at the same time, I was excited to be on my own seeking out adventures, meeting new people and more. It was “go-time” for me, now I had to do everything by myself. I was super excited at this new turn in my journey!
Beginning of my new journey
When Taiga left was when it really hit me. It was time to start my new journey by myself. As you recall, I am exploring Canada to find where I want to live and the lifestyle I wish to work hard for. I have seen much of Canada and when my plan comes together and I live in Canada I am picking Whitehorse, Yukon to live the rest of my Canadian life!
Running towards adventures in the wilderness. My heaven in Canada.
On my own looking for place and play
As I said,I had no idea where to go and what to do? What I did know was that I had to find a place to live and work. Things work in funny ways and how I found my accommodation is another crazy story I will share that story with you in another post. Bottom line, I eventually found a place in Carcross, Yukon Territories which is a 3 hour drive from Whitehorse, Yukon.
Beautiful mountains in Carcross, Yukon
Living in the northern wilds of Canada
I spent 1 week in Carcross, Yukon Territories, Canada. The Yukon village has a population of only 300 people! I stayed in a rustic cozy cabin with a a beautiful lake and mountains outside my front door. I call this life”Heidi Life”. Do you know what Heidi is? It is my favorite Japanese animation… Anyway, back to my story, I started to look for a job.
Home is Haines Junction under the Northern Lights
After ”Heidi life”, I ended up to Haines Junction, Yukon Territories. I had come to work at Mount Logan Lodge for 2 months. It’s run by a family and it is a popular place to stay in the region. When visiting the lodge you have to try some of the “home cooked” meals just like your Mom served you at home. That is what I was told by my Canadian friends anyway.
Finish my Wild life
When I got out of my wild life, I felt tears.. that is how much I loved living in the Canadian north. After that I decided to live in Kamloops and find a new job. And on my way to Kamloops, British Columbia from Vancouver, I had a great encounter with a family and stayed with them for a weekend. The generous hospitality, the welcoming home, was provided by a family in Merritt , British Columbia, Canada. This was the beginning of many positive Merritt encounters.
So the adventures of a Japanese traveller continues …
I was now looking for work, I hitchhiked all over the region looking for work. Finally, I found work in Kamloops at a restaurant. I am glad I can keep using my English, studying English and living a healthy Canadian life. To sum it up, my Canadian adventures has given me tons of unique experiences and I have received so much kindness from many Canadians. I’ve come to feel comfortable when I step out of my ”comfort zone”.
“Journey to let you find yourself,” – Yuino Takeyama
Yuino Takeyama, a Japanese traveler, explores Canada
How exploring led to Experience Nicola Valley Blogging
In conclusion, it is funny how things happen and how lucky I am in meeting so many kind and good Canadians in my travels. Just recently I was hitchhiking in not so good weather, with a friend, from Kelowna to Vancouver, passing through Merritt. A nice lady by the name of Melvina White picked us up. She could not believe we hitchhike. I starting sharing my travels and she started sharing how much fun she was having telling people’s stories with blogging. Now I too wanted to share my adventures, and my stories of Canada. The good people of Merritt have made it come true. So here I am. So happy. I want everyone to know my stories and all to come to the Experience Nicola Valley website and visit Merritt.
Japanese Traveler – Yuino Takeyama
Merritt, British Columbia, Canada
Remember Nicola Valley that #merrittmatters on social media.
Merritt British Columbia Canada Top Travel Guides
Places To Stay in Merritt
- A Japanese Traveler, Yuino Takeyama, Blogs for Experience Nicola Valley - January 30, 2020
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