Travel Spotlight: My Special, Ordinary Days in the Japanese Countryside

After eight days traveling through the bustling crowds of Tokyo and Hakone, I yearned for space, peace and quiet. I hopped on the train and, two hours later, arrived in the mountainous area of Nagano. This was my third visit to Japan, and after seeing the highlights of Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Hakone, Kanazawa, Hiroshima and Naoshima, I was thrilled when an opportunity arose to visit the Nagano region (known for the 1998 Winter Olympics), which had not previous been on my radar as a tourist destinat...