Japan

When I was very little, one of my favorite snacks was smoked salmon and cream cheese, which my grandmother would always make for me. My mom likes to joke that it’s the reason I grew up loving sushi so much. By fifth grade, my obsession had become so obvious that she even made me a homemade sushi roll costume for Halloween. It isn’t surprising that Japan had always been one of the countries I dreamed most about visiting.

I’ll always remember walking through Tokyo on my first night. The endless neon lights, incredible food, and constant movement somehow coexisted with an overwhelming sense of order. Jet lag worked in my favor, so before sunrise on my first full day I made my way to Toyosu Market to watch the famous tuna auctions before sitting down for one of the best breakfasts of my life: an unbelievably fresh bowl of sushi. That might seem unusual to some, but for me it was a childhood dream come true. Beyond eating my way through Tokyo, I crossed the bustling Shibuya Crossing, the busiest pedestrian intersection in the world, and was fortunate enough to find a last-minute ticket to a professional sumo tournament, one of Japan’s oldest sporting traditions.

After leaving Tokyo, I continued exploring the country, visiting Mount Fuji, Hakone, Kobe, Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima, and even Suzuka for the Japanese Grand Prix, a stop on the Formula One calendar. By the time I left, Japan had somehow managed to exceed the impossibly high expectations I’d built up since childhood.

Of all the countries I visited, Japan was one of the few I couldn’t stay away from. A year after my first trip, I returned to explore the island of Okinawa. Its crystal-clear waters and stunning beaches couldn’t have felt more different from the mainland. Some of my happiest travel memories came from Japan. I’m incredibly grateful that I had the opportunity to experience such an extraordinary country.