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A Mother. A Son. Genuine Friends. #agingwell #family #japan
Japan Solo

A Mother. A Son. Genuine Friends. #agingwell #family #japan

This week, Mitsu's 91-year-old mother, Chiharu, has joined us in Buren Bay. It's only the second time I've met her. The first was a few months ago when she came sailing with me aboard *Wahine*. Since then, Mitsu has become Wahine's owner and skipper, while I've remained here...
  • Jul 17, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:37
Wahine Is Sailing to Mexico… Without Me
Japan Solo

Wahine Is Sailing to Mexico… Without Me

Sailors have an old saying: "The two happiest days in a sailor's life are the day he buys a boat and the day he sells it." Having recently passed Wahine on to my close friend Mitsu Kume, I now understand why. In fact, I'm doubly happy. Not simply because I'm relieved of ...
  • Jul 16, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:06:17
Wahine Is Preparing to Cross the Pacific… Without Me
Japan Solo

Wahine Is Preparing to Cross the Pacific… Without Me

For nearly seven years, Wahine has been my home, my office, and my companion on an unforgettable journey around Japan. Now she is preparing for her next adventure. Next year, she'll cross the Pacific...without me. I'll explain more in the coming weeks as one chapter closes and another be...
  • Jul 14, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:24
80 Year Old Neighbor Rescues My Dingy #japan #villagelife #community
Japan Solo

80 Year Old Neighbor Rescues My Dingy #japan #villagelife #community

Life in a remote village rarely goes exactly as planned. Today brought two unexpected problems. One was solved by the kindness of an 80-year-old neighbor. The other simply required patience, perseverance, and getting my hands dirty. The longer I live in Japan's remote communities, the more I ...
  • Jul 13, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:40
I’m Back in My Longevity Laboratory #agingwell #japan #wellness
Japan Solo

I’m Back in My Longevity Laboratory #agingwell #japan #wellness

After a month away, I'm back in my tiny fishing village on Amami Oshima. Twenty-nine people. This has become my longevity laboratory and a base from which I am exploring one simple question: What helps people remain healthy, independent, and engaged well beyond the average healthy lifespan? ...
  • Jul 09, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:35
Why I Never Rush Through Narita
Japan Solo

Why I Never Rush Through Narita

Every few weeks, I pass through Narita. Not just the airport. The town. It has become part of my rhythm. Leaving Tokyo, I slow down before returning to my tiny village on Amami Oshima. Leaving the village, I gather momentum before heading back to Tokyo. I've learned that transitions matter....
  • Jul 07, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:43
Is This Famous Japanese Saying Really True?
Japan Solo

Is This Famous Japanese Saying Really True?

A famous Japanese proverb says: "The nail that sticks out gets hammered down." Yet after years of travelling through Japan's remote communities and researching healthy aging, I've come to a different conclusion. The healthiest communities I've encountered are not those th...
  • Jun 30, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:26
Why I Set Out to Explore Japan’s Longevity Hotspots
Japan Solo

Why I Set Out to Explore Japan’s Longevity Hotspots

Why do some people remain healthy, active, and independent well into their eighties and nineties, while others experience years of decline? That question sent me on a two-year journey across Japan. Using prefectural health and longevity data as my compass, I set out to visit communities where heal...
  • Jun 28, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:01:03
A Father’s Day Tribute #father #agingwell #community
Japan Solo

A Father’s Day Tribute #father #agingwell #community

In celebration of our first born 40th this week, this book, for fathers, grandfathers and father figures is free. It’s an update story of one I wrote over twenty years ago am published as part of Never Too Late. It’s a short read and hopefully you will find it fun, encouraging and provocative. ...
  • Jun 20, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:01:02
He’s 81!!
Japan Solo

He’s 81!!

Many people think ikigai means discovering a grand purpose.n reality, it is often much simpler. A reason to get up. A place to go. People who know your name. Watching Juichi in his eighties, I wonder if that is part of what we are really seeing. I’m Lowell Sheppard, 71, sailor, author, and Fellow o...
  • Jun 15, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:27
The Car Was the Same Age as Me
Japan Solo

The Car Was the Same Age as Me

Today I rode in a beautifully restored 1957 MGA with my friend Tony a classic enthusiast @fastbikejp It wasn't lost on me that the car was almost exactly my age. I hope it's proof that with a little care, attention, and purpose, old machines—and perhaps old people too—can continue bringin...
  • Jun 13, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:30
Healthy Aging Requires Community
Japan Solo

Healthy Aging Requires Community

I do not like retirement homes. That may sound provocative, especially as aging societies rapidly build more of them. But after traveling across Japan’s longevity hotspots and researching healthy lifespan, I increasingly wonder whether separating generations may actually accelerate decline rather th...
  • Jun 08, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:39
Happiness and Healthy Aging in Japan
Japan Solo

Happiness and Healthy Aging in Japan

As I continue traveling through Japan’s longevity hotspots, I keep hearing a surprisingly common response from people who remain active, healthy, and engaged deep into old age: “I don’t worry too much.” And I notice something else as well. They laugh easily. This Short is another small Field Note f...
  • Jun 06, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:42
Wahine vs Typhoon #6 Jangmi
Japan Solo

Wahine vs Typhoon #6 Jangmi

Wahine vs. Typhoon Jangmi: Post-storm inspection complete! This wasn't her first rodeo, and she held up great. The only casualty was the old, worn-out bimini. We already planned to upgrade to a hard bimini, so Jigmai just accelerated our timeline! Best of all, all five solar panels survived un...
  • Jun 04, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:49
The Art of Community and Aging Well #japan #agingwell #healthyaging
Japan Solo

The Art of Community and Aging Well #japan #agingwell #healthyaging

In Japan’s longevity hotspots, healthy aging is not reinforced only through healthcare or individual habits. It is woven into the annual rhythm of community life through rituals, festivals, preparation, participation, and shared responsibility across generations. Young and old working alongside one ...
  • Jun 04, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:36
The Hidden Cost of the Nuclear Family
Japan Solo

The Hidden Cost of the Nuclear Family

More than a century ago, writer Lafcadio Hearn observed that Japan viewed life, family, and community differently from the modern West. Less linear. More circular. After years traveling through Japan’s longevity hotspots, I increasingly wonder whether one hidden cost of the modern nuclear family is...
  • Jun 02, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:44
The Harbor is Empty Today #danger #travel #japan
Japan Solo

The Harbor is Empty Today #danger #travel #japan

The fishing harbor is empty today. A typhoon is approaching, and the village has prepared. The longer I spend in Japan’s remote longevity hotspots, the more I notice a deep awareness of nature, uncertainty, and the limits of control. One side of the storm can bring protection. The other, danger. ...
  • May 31, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:58
The Calm Before the Storm: My Boat is Ready #travel #boatlife #japan
Japan Solo

The Calm Before the Storm: My Boat is Ready #travel #boatlife #japan

Mirror-smooth water. Birds in the distance. Wahine waiting quietly in the bay. Tomorrow, the typhoon arrives. The boat is prepared. Now… we watch from shore. About me: I’m Lowell Sheppard, 71, sailor, author, and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. Through Japan Solo Field Notes, I explore ag...
  • May 31, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:24
Wake Early. Move Early. A Pattern in Japan’s Longevity Hotspots
Japan Solo

Wake Early. Move Early. A Pattern in Japan’s Longevity Hotspots

As I continue traveling through Japan’s longevity hotspots, I keep noticing recurring patterns. One of them is simple: Many of the people who age well tend to wake early—and get moving early. Movement woven naturally into the rhythm of daily life. Of course, there are always exceptions. But agai...
  • May 30, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:21
A Stone in Remote Japan that Explains How To Age Well
Japan Solo

A Stone in Remote Japan that Explains How To Age Well

In a remote village near where my boat Wahine is moored in Amami, a weathered stone has long been part of a local coming-of-age ritual. At first glance, it seems ordinary. But the longer I study longevity and community in Japan, the more convinced I become that healthy societies are built when gen...
  • May 27, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:14
One of the Great Fears of Aging
Japan Solo

One of the Great Fears of Aging

The goal is not to stay young. It is to remain engaged with life. Curious. Connected. Active. Participating in the world around you. A small Field Note from island life in Japan. About me: I’m Lowell Sheppard, 71, sailor, author, and Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society. I’m the Founder of th...
  • May 27, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:18
Back to the boat . . . Then this Happened
Japan Solo

Back to the boat . . . Then this Happened

At my age, falling is no joke. Thankfully… just bruised pride this time. #Sailing #JapanSolo #BoatLife #IslandLife #Funny #Fail #Aging #StillGoing #Sailboat #Japan
  • May 26, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:16
Food, Friendship, Aging Well
Japan Solo

Food, Friendship, Aging Well

Fresh food. Local people. Shared meals. The deeper I travel into Japan’s longevity hotspots, the more I suspect healthy aging is not just about what people eat—but who they eat with. This Field Note was filmed at a small local restaurant deep in the jungle near the island community where I current...
  • May 25, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:35
Japan’s Longevity Secret Might Be This
Japan Solo

Japan’s Longevity Secret Might Be This

Back in my remote island village in Japan. The more time I spend traveling through Japan’s longevity hotspots, the more I notice the same patterns repeating themselves. Connection. Routine. Seasonality. Calmness. Community. Not as abstract ideas, but woven into everyday life. Perhaps healthy agi...
  • May 21, 2026
  • Language: EN
  • Play Time: 00:00:42
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