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Leaving Wahine for a While / A New Chapter Begins #JapanSolo #healthyaging #IAFOR
Japan Solo

Leaving Wahine for a While / A New Chapter Begins #JapanSolo #healthyaging #IAFOR

This morning I leave Wahine, my boat in Buren Bay on Amami Ōshima, for a few weeks. The next month will take me to an international aging and gerontology conference organized by the International Academic Forum @iaformedia, a birthday gathering with family visiting Japan during cherry blossom seaso...
The Sweet Potato Truck #fieldnotes #superfood #japan
Japan Solo

The Sweet Potato Truck #fieldnotes #superfood #japan

A few minutes ago I heard singing drifting through this tiny village of twenty-nine people. Then a small truck appeared selling roasted sweet potatoes — a favorite food of Japan’s super-agers. Neighbours stepped out of their homes one by one to buy some. Longevity food… and the taste of community...
The Morning After the Gale  #fieldnotes #sailing
Japan Solo

The Morning After the Gale #fieldnotes #sailing

Last night a full gale blew across Buren Bay. From Mitsu’s old house near the shore I listened to the wind roll over the roof and wondered how Wahine was handling it out on the mooring. Boats are strange companions. You care for them… and they carry you. — Field Notes from Amami. Lowell Sheppa...
Three Days. Same Bay  #fieldnotes #JapanSolo #mindset
Japan Solo

Three Days. Same Bay #fieldnotes #JapanSolo #mindset

Three days in the same bay. Wednesday calm. Thursday rain. Friday wind. Life near the sea offers a simple reminder: The weather keeps us humble and shapes our mindset. Field Notes from Japan`s Longevity Hot Spots Lowell Sheppard is a writer and sailor who shares observations from Japan on comm...
Seeing Things Twice #fieldnotes #agingwell  #beautiful
Japan Solo

Seeing Things Twice #fieldnotes #agingwell #beautiful

A calm morning in Amami. When the Bay goes still, things appear twice. Above and below. Sometimes a familiar place looks different when you pause long enough to notice. #JapanSolo #FieldNotes #SailingLife #Amami #SlowTravelJapan #beautiful
The One Thing Sailing Teaches You #JapanSolo #sailinglife #writerslife
Japan Solo

The One Thing Sailing Teaches You #JapanSolo #sailinglife #writerslife

Waiting day in Amami. The wind is too strong to paddle out to my boat, Wahine, anchored in the bay — so I wait. At the same time, far away in London, my agent is showing my new book, Longevity and the Art of Community: Lessons from Japan, to publishers. After years of writing, the strange part be...
Visitors Pass Through. Community Stays #FieldNotes #JapanSolo #travel
Japan Solo

Visitors Pass Through. Community Stays #FieldNotes #JapanSolo #travel

Namba, with its lively Dotonbori area, is one of Osaka's busiest areas. It is filled with visitors from around the world. But places like this only work because of the people who belong here, the cooks, shopkeepers, and workers who show up every day. Visitors pass through. Community stays. ...
Longevity`s Trait is Often a Quieter Rhythm. #fieldnotes #longevity #japan
Japan Solo

Longevity`s Trait is Often a Quieter Rhythm. #fieldnotes #longevity #japan

Still water. A quiet harbor. A small boat resting in the breeze. Moments like this remind me that longevity isn’t always about doing more. Sometimes it follows a quieter rhythm. Scenes like this appear often while traveling through Japan’s coastal communities and longevity regions. #fieldnotes #J...
Japan’s 3-Minute Longevity Habit #fieldnotes #RadioTaiso #Longevity
Japan Solo

Japan’s 3-Minute Longevity Habit #fieldnotes #RadioTaiso #Longevity

Every morning across Japan, millions of people begin the day with Radio Taiso — a short series of simple exercises broadcast nationally. It only takes a few minutes, but it reflects something deeper: rhythm, routine, and community. Longevity in Japan may vary by region, but some habits are shared ...
While I was visiting Longevity Villages … This Happened #fieldnotes #japan #community
Japan Solo

While I was visiting Longevity Villages … This Happened #fieldnotes #japan #community

While I’ve been away visiting Japan’s longevity hotspots and gathering field notes for my book, Wahine has been quietly waiting at the dock. But apparently not alone. Some local visitors decided to make themselves at home, so on this trip away, I’ve recruited a new crew member to keep watch — 24/7...
Why Rural Japan Doesn’t Feel Lonely #Japan #VillageLife #fieldnotes
Japan Solo

Why Rural Japan Doesn’t Feel Lonely #Japan #VillageLife #fieldnotes

Rural Japan is often described as aging, shrinking, or falling behind. But spend time in a small village and you see something else. Less speed. More ritual. Less separation. More belonging. In aging societies, community isn’t sentimental — it’s structural. It protects continuity. From #Japan...
There Isn’t One Japan | Unlearning Number 1 #fieldnotes #japan #longevity
Japan Solo

There Isn’t One Japan | Unlearning Number 1 #fieldnotes #japan #longevity

From a distance, Japan looks uniform. On the ground, it fragments. A fishing village in Okinawa doesn’t move like Osaka. A mountain town in Nagano doesn’t age like Nagoya. Longevity in Japan isn’t national. It’s local. This is the first in a short series on what slow travel has forced me to unle...
Everything I Thought About Japan Was Wrong #fieldnotes #slowtravel #japansolo
Japan Solo

Everything I Thought About Japan Was Wrong #fieldnotes #slowtravel #japansolo

After years of travelling slowly across Japan — by sailboat, train, and on foot — I realised something unexpected: The hardest lessons weren’t about learning more. They were about unlearning assumptions. Not facts. Narratives. Cultural shortcuts. This short introduces a five-part reflection on 5...
Japan’s Plastic Conference – A View from the Waterline
Japan Solo

Japan’s Plastic Conference – A View from the Waterline

Next week, Japan hosts an international conference on plastic pollution. I won’t be in the room, but I live at the waterline. From here, plastic pollution isn’t abstract. It’s mechanical. It’s physical. It can be dangerous. A discarded fishing net once wrapped around my prop shaft and nearly sank ...
Longevity Looks Like This #healthspan  #movement #fieldnotes
Japan Solo

Longevity Looks Like This #healthspan #movement #fieldnotes

In Japan’s longevity communities, people don’t chase intensity. They keep moving. Not fast. Not forceful. Slow enough to feel the ground beneath them and the elements around them. Sun. Air. Water. Over time, that rhythm compounds. These are field notes from Japan’s longevity hotspots — places w...
Quarters Vs Seasons #fieldnotes #slowtravel #japan
Japan Solo

Quarters Vs Seasons #fieldnotes #slowtravel #japan

In cities, time often feels segmented. In the countryside, it feels cyclical. Quarters versus seasons. Spending time in both makes you notice how differently time is structured — and how that might shape how we live over decades. Field Notes from rural Japan. Exploring longevity, community, and p...
Cleaning Crew #buffet #fieldnotes #community
Japan Solo
Shared Abundance #fieldnotes #japan #abundance
Japan Solo

Shared Abundance #fieldnotes #japan #abundance

Tankan are in season here in this remote Island, a designated World Heritage Site. A woman came by the boat, leaving me with two bags full. No transaction. Just abundance shared. Belonging often begins with proximity. Field notes from Buren Bay. #FieldNotes #Amami #WorldHeritage #Community #Sl...
111 Years, One Community  #fieldnotes #japan #longevity
Japan Solo

111 Years, One Community #fieldnotes #japan #longevity

Kiyotaka Mizuno, Japan’s oldest man, died at 111. His mayor described him as “a symbol of vitality and good health.” Longevity at that level is rarely individual. It is deeply communal. Field notes from Japan.#fieldnotes #japan #longevity
Managing Tension at the Wall #slowtravel #fieldnotes #boatlife
Japan Solo

Managing Tension at the Wall #slowtravel #fieldnotes #boatlife

Out in the middle of the bay, the boat rises and falls without much effort. Tied to the wall, I adjust the lines throughout the day. The tide is the same. The setting changes the work. Field notes from Buren Bay. #FieldNotes #BoatLife #SlowTravel #Amami #WritingInPlace #Longevity
Moving the Boat on a Mirror-Smooth Morning #FieldNotes #BoatLife #SlowTravel
Japan Solo

Moving the Boat on a Mirror-Smooth Morning #FieldNotes #BoatLife #SlowTravel

I moved the boat today. The water was mirror smooth. Mountains resting in their own reflections. For an hour it felt like I wasn’t moving at all. Sometimes motion feels like stillness. Field notes from Buren Bay. #FieldNotes #BoatLife #SlowTravel #Amami #WritingInPlace #MirrorWater
Oranges and Bleach #fieldnotes #japan #travel
Japan Solo

Oranges and Bleach #fieldnotes #japan #travel

I’ve been provisioning the boat. Somewhere between oranges and bleach, I managed to fall. Nothing to dramatic — just a swollen elbow and a reminder. Longevity isn’t about living long. It’s about staying steady. Field notes from Buren Bay. #WritingInPlace #Longevity #HealthyAging #SlowTravel #Ag...
Making Use of the Day #japan #slowtravel #fieldnotes
Japan Solo

Making Use of the Day #japan #slowtravel #fieldnotes

Still on land tonight at Mitsu`s house. He allows me to use his guest room as a wrirting room and storage The boat is close. The weather decides the timing. I’m writing, provisioning, and letting the day be useful. Field notes from Buren Bay. #FieldNotes #WritingInPlace #SlowTravel #Longevity #...
Where I Stay #fieldnotes #japan #slowtravel
Japan Solo

Where I Stay #fieldnotes #japan #slowtravel

Back in Buren Bay. I haven’t stepped aboard yet. I’m just looking. Belonging doesn’t always arrive loudly. Sometimes it’s already there. Field notes from the bay. #FieldNotes #WritingInPlace #SlowTravel #Longevity #community #Belonging
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