When I speak of traveling for pleasure among various lands, I speak of my travels inside Japan, and not around the world. The Chinese character of my first name (圀: Kuni) is a bit unique. People often like to mention that it is the same one found in the given name Mitsu-kuni (光圀) of Mito Komon (Elder Lord Mito); a famous deputy Shogun who according to folklore traveled Japan by foot in his retirement. This is one of the reasons I developed a liking for him over the years, and admire him as a vanguard of footloose travelers. In the TV drama, "Mito Komon," Lord Mito rights wrongs and punishes evil while traveling all around Japan: Whereas in historical fact, his treks were limited to within Hitachi Province (currently Ibaragi Prefecture).

I have had the pleasure to traveling around the country, although I have neither retired from active career nor punished evil like Mito Komon did. Frankly speaking, my travels were a natural extension of keeping my distance from golfing — a sport for which my lionhearted enthusiasm is belied by my beastly score averaging 110 + 10 strokes or higher.

Each region has its unique development of history, culture and art, which we can see in historical relics and heritages such as castles, temples, shrines, old tavern towns, station buildings, document archives and national treasures.

At first I was indifferent, but this uniqueness grows on you, the more you develop a distinct taste for them. Nowadays any cultural heritage or attraction will do. If some particular site or item grabs my interest, I make sure to pay a visit whenever I have a chance. I also keep a note that I spend time blissfully filling in with impressions and observations from my travels when I get home.

Most people in the regions I travel to sincerely care about and take pride in their local heritage. With many, their eyes come alive when I ask them questions about it. It is so much fun to talk with these people and listen to their commentary that I often lose track of time. Wherever I go, I always purchase a load of souvenirs, and kid myself that I am somehow making a contribution to Japan's economic recovery. Apart from that, my travel experiences have come in handy in livening up my conversation with customers.

Living in Japan, we should be more familiar with our own country. This can be said for the natural scenery, our daily lives, the food we eat, the many relaxing hot springs and our wonderful history. We experience the blessings this country has to offer first hand when we take the time to travel to its many distant parts. This makes me all the more fall in love with Japan. It reminds me how very important it is to have strong attachments for these lands we call our own.

That said, most of these fascinating lands are now suffering from depopulation. Although I understand it's too much to hope for our country to develop evenly for all regions, I cannot help but wonder if there is some hint out there that might keep the countryside from falling behind. By contrast our cities are overflowing with people and cars. Given that the quality of life and the environment for raising children in the cities is far less than ideal, it would seem almost impossible to cope with the declining number of births.

Each time I travel, I think of what it means to have a rich home land and live in an affluent society such as Japan's.