Good Sleep: What I learnt in Japan

I love Japan and have travelled there regularly since 2010 to visit family, explore beautiful sites, discover the culture, and eat wonderful food. I have had some fantastic experiences and enjoyed some of the best sleep while travelling in Japan. Here are a few things I learnt and how they can be adapted for good sleep back home. I hope you enjoy my travel photos. 

1. In Japan we walk a lot, and this really helps me sleep well. The public transport is wonderful, particularly the trains, so we always do a lot of train travel and hence a lot of walking. This is also a great way to see the sites. We love visiting temples and temples have steps, lots of steps! So back home, get those steps up and try to build walking into your everyday life.
   
2. Traditional Japanese food is not only delicious but very healthy. We enjoy eating regional cuisine at family-run Ryokans (Japanese inns). We have tried a wonderful array of delicious foods, including a Kaiseki meal in Kyoto which was a feast for our eyes as well as our taste buds. With little dairy, meat, processed foods or wheat grains, but lots of pickled vegetables, fresh regional produce and fermented foods, my digestion is very happy and this certainly helps me sleep better.

Back home, try to embrace simple and elegant eating by using fresh seasonal produce, adding in fermented foods such as pickles, kimchi and sauerkraut; and avoid lots of meat, dairy and wheat, especially if you are sensitive to these.

3. My greatest joy in Japan is soaking in a traditional Onsen (hot mineral bath). Once I learnt what to do and got over my initial body consciousness, I embraced this incredible bathing experience and go as often as possible. Relaxing in hot water not only relieves sore muscles, it relaxes the mind and makes my skin so soft. It helps me sleep like a baby! 

  
Nishimuraya Kinosaki Onsen, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Try making the time for a deep, hot bath in the evening. Add some bath salts and put on a diffuser with Sleep Scents oil. You will feel relaxed and will sleep so much better.

4. Japanese gardens are stunning and change with the seasons. They are ordered, calm and contemplative spaces that seem to help people find inner peace and connect with nature. From Zen rock gardens to temple courtyards, harmony, balance and beauty touch the soul.

Can you bring some more beauty, order, and contemplation into your home and daily life? Try creating a bit of Japanese style in your garden, on your balcony or even inside your home by making an Ikebana flower arrangement. I have found that keeping a clean and organised home makes a difference to how I feel. Of course, daily meditation is so valuable, and it may be nice to create a lovely meditation space.

5. I always feel I have had a great adventure when I travel in Japan because it is so different and just makes me feel alive. Like all good travel, it opens the mind and the soul to new experiences. One of my best adventures was visiting the prehistoric Jomon village excavations at Aomori where I trekked through snow to see ancient structures. I felt like a true explorer! I certainly slept well that night.

It can be hard to get this same feeling of adventure at home and I am certainly missing travelling now. Instead, I have created new adventures: I have taken a painting class, learnt how to make junk journals and started writing articles for Sleep Scents. One way to get that sense of adventure is to try and new things.

So, what have I learnt from my travels in Japan that help improve sleep?

1. Walk a lot and take the stairs.
2. Eat light, healthy, seasonal foods.
3. Take an evening Onsen bath.
4. Bring some beauty, order, and contemplation into daily life.
5. Take on a little adventure by trying new things and learning new things.

I have also learnt that I really want to go back to Japan!  I can certainly recommend Japan travel to all our supporters.

Mata ne! (See you later!)

Karen