Catching up to Bashō

A view of Matsushima Bay in the Tohoku region of Japan, October 2025.

As some of you may recall, last fall I had the great pleasure of traveling to Japan with my husband and son. The highlight was a six-day walking tour tracing part of the route of 17th century haiku poet Bashō.

I’m thrilled that a major haiku journal has published a haiku sequence inspired by the trip. When my husband Paul saw the piece, laid out over two pages, he joked, “You got the centerfold in Modern Haiku!” I’m happy to share it here, with thanks to editor Paul Miller. I’ve added notes below for context.

_________________________

Three travelers hike part of Bashō’s 1689 route.

In Bashō’s Footsteps

three wayfarers
we catch up to Bashō
by bullet train

Narrow Road
everyone driving
on the wrong side

dancing maples
we clap and clap
for bears

An elevated section of the trail.

all words drown
in its depths . . .
Matsushima Bay

a crow
cawing cawing
smoky hojicha

autumn leaves
Bashō’s dreams
endure in stone

View of the steps leading up to Natagiri Pass.

on his walk too
the rhythm of rain
on bamboo

a little more wear
from our boots
sunken stone steps

a banana tree
waves hello
Bashō museum

straw sandals
how long they last
in the display case

steaming onsen
the long trail
dissolving

NOTES ON VERSES:

Annette Makino along the route of Bashō’s Narrow Road to the Deep North, October 2025.

“three wayfarers” - My husband, son and I took a bullet train from Tokyo to Sendai, in the rural Tohoku region in the north, where Bashō and his friend and disciple Sora walked over a period of five months in 1689.

“Narrow Road” - Based on his travels, Bashō wrote a very influential travelogue sprinkled with haiku, called Oku-no-hosomichi, or Narrow Road to the Deep North. This verse also plays with the fact that in Japan, people drive on the left.

“dancing maples” - In the Tohoku region of Japan, aggressive bears killed 13 people last year. Signs warn hikers to make noise as they walk, so we often clapped our hands to warn bears away.

“all words drown” - With its hundreds of small pine-covered islands, Matsushima Bay is considered one of the most beautiful places in Japan. Bashō was so overcome that he couldn’t write a single haiku about it.

“a crow” - hojicha is a kind of roasted green tea.

“autumn leaves” - This verse riffs on one of Bashō’s most famous haiku, reflecting on the once-mighty Fujiwara dynasty: “the summer grasses— / all that remains / of a warrior’s dream” (trans. Robert Hass). This poem is engraved on a stone monument near the site where Bashō wrote it.

“on his walk too” - The fall weather was mostly lovely, but we had a bit of rain on our walking tour. Glad we had better raincoats than the straw cape Bashō wore!

“a little more wear” - Part of the walking tour involved climbing a steep mountain pass via some very worn and mossy stone steps.

Basho and Sora spent some nights at this station master’s house, now a museum.

“a banana tree” - Bashō adopted his pen name from the banana tree, or bashō, outside his hut. A cluster of banana trees grows near the entrance to the Bashō museum in Yamadera.

“straw sandals” - For their journey of 1500 miles, mostly on foot, Bashō and Sora wore sandals made of rice straw. These wore out out so quickly that they had to be replaced every day.

“steaming onsen” - Japan is famous for its many onsen, or hot springs. The traditional Japanese hotels on our walking tour all had onsite onsen—a great treat after hiking up to ten miles.

_________________________

Thanks for coming along! For more details and photos of the trip, booked via Walk Japan, see my blog post, Three wayfarers in Japan.

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Makino Studios News

Summer sale: Take 15% off all cards in the Makino Studios shop until midnight this Monday, August 3 with code SUMMER2026. And check out the new bestseller bundles for birthdays, sympathy and everyday (6 cards for the price of five).

2027 calendar focus group: I’ve been working hard on the collages for my 2027 mini-calendar of art and haiku! I could use some feedback on which image to use for the cover and which pieces to leave out entirely. If you’re interested in getting a sneak peek online and voting on the options, please email me (see page footer). And if you were part of last year’s focus group, I’ll include you again. Thanks!

Yung Stands Strong: After months of research, writing, and editing, the children’s book I’ve written in collaboration with Humboldt Asians and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI) is finally finished! With beautiful illustrations by Yukari Mishima and an in-depth historical section, this book about the 1885 expulsion of the Chinese population from Eureka, CA,  goes to the printer tomorrow. We expect to have books in hand by the beginning of October. The books run 50 pages (half story, half historical background) and will cost $20. If you expect to buy more than a couple of copies, please let me know ASAP, as we are still figuring out the right quantity to print!

Obon Festival: Local Humboldt folks, I hope to see you at Humboldt’s fifth annual traditional Japanese celebration of our ancestors 3-7 p.m. on Sunday, August 16 in the Arcata, CA, Creamery District. Bon folk dancing, taiko drumming, Asian food vendors, crafts, kids activities and an ancestor shrine await you. I’m honored that this year’s posters, t-shirts and sweatshirts feature one of my mixed media collages. More info from HAPI.

Seabeck Haiku Getaway: For those who will be at the Seabeck Haiku Getaway in Seabeck, WA in late October, I plan to attend and give a presentation, with haiku and photos, on walking part of Bashō’s route.

Book cover reveal!

Yung Stands Strong is scheduled for release in the fall of 2026. Art © Yukari Mishima.

Ta-da! I’m excited to share the cover for Yung Stands Strong: A Story of Expulsion and Resilience. This is my children’s book about the 1885 expulsion of the Chinese from Eureka, California. The book centers on a real girl named Yung who lived in Eureka’s Chinatown and was the only Chinese student in her one-room school.

The beautiful cover, by Japanese illustrator Yukari Mishima, shows nine-year-old Yung on one of the two ships that relocated 300 Chinese people from Eureka to San Francisco with just 24 hours notice. And the illustration below depicts Yung and her tuxedo cat, Miu Miu, walking to school.

An illustration from Yung Stands Strong shows Chinatown in Eureka, California circa 1885. Art © Yukari Mishima.

Understandably, some people have assumed I am creating the art for this book. But drawing people and buildings is not my forte (or interest). I think Yukari’s watercolor and ink paintings are perfect for this project. Her depictions of facial expressions and body language show great skill and sensitivity, and she has a kid-friendly style.

Funded by a grant from the California State Coastal Conservancy, the book is part of the Eureka Chinatown Project, an initiative of Humboldt Asians and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI). The HAPI team is writing an extensive back section on the history of Chinese immigration to the United States, Eureka’s Chinatown, and Chinese people’s resistance and resilience. The lively book design by Amy Uyeki includes historical maps, old photos, political cartoons and newspaper stories.

Teacher Roxana Stengl reads a draft proof of Yung Stands Strong to her fourth grade class at Alice Birney Elementary School in Eureka, CA in May 2026.

Last week, several members of the book team visited a fourth grade classroom as the teacher read the story to her students. They were the first kids to experience the book.

Having spent six months writing the story, incorporating feedback from a dozen people and going through twelve revisions, I was in suspense. How would my target audience respond?

In addition to the anti-Chinese racism and expulsion, real-life events in the story include the shooting of a White city council member and the attempted hanging of a young Chinese man. Would all of this be too traumatic for the young readers?

I needn’t have worried. The students took everything in stride and their teacher kept them engaged with lots of questions and discussion throughout. The first thing they asked at the end was, “When is the sequel coming out?”

A couple of Hmong children related the story to their families’ forced exile from Laos. Some Mexican kids connected the Chinese New Year altars in the story with their own custom of setting up altars for Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos). And many could relate to the experience of being teased or bullied for being different.

Afterwards, one boy came up to me to say, “I loved the book!” I asked what was his favorite part. He replied, “Everything!”

Book author Annette Makino displays a preliminary proof of Yung Stands Strong.

I’m thrilled that the fourth graders enjoyed the story and could relate to it in so many ways. It feels very meaningful to help shed light on this little-known history of discrimination, injustice and resistance—one that is still relevant today.

Yung Stands Strong will be printed by Bug Press in Arcata, California and published by The Press at Cal Poly Humboldt. While some of the art and text is still in progress, we are currently on track for a fall release.

We plan to give copies to Humboldt schools plus a full classroom set to the County Office of Education. The Office of Education will develop a curriculum for teachers along with a short video of the classroom reading. I’ll let you know when the book is available so you can meet Yung and Miu Miu!

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Makino Studios News

“Paper Alchemy” art show at the library: Thirty of my mixed media collages are on view at the Arcata Library in Arcata, CA—but just until noon this Saturday, May 30. This story in the Eureka Times-Standard has more details. If you can’t come in person, you can explore my online gallery.

NEW! Card bundles: By customer request, I’ve created three new card bundles, one for birthdays, one for sympathy and support and one for everyday occasions. At $25, you get six bestselling cards for the price of five. Shop bundles at the bottom of this page of all my card designs.

North Coast Open Studios: Local artists’ studios are open to the public the weekends of June 6-7 and June 13-14. Though I am not a participating artist this year, I will be out visiting other artists during this fun, free event!

Summer retreat: I’ll be on my annual creative retreat on the river June 27-July 4. Orders will not go out that week as I work on haiku and collages for my 2027 calendar of art and haiku. Sorry for the inconvenience!

Obon Festival: Local folks, mark your calendar for this traditional Japanese celebration of our ancestors 3-7 p.m. on Sunday, August 16 in Arcata’s Creamery District. I’m honored that the posters and t-shirt will feature one of my mixed media collages! More info from HAPI.

Free shipping: Get free US shipping on orders of $35 or more. Enter code FREESHIP35 at checkout.

Cherry blossoms for Haiku Poetry Day

“spring fever” is 8x10, made with paper, acrylic paint, pen and glue on cradled wood panel. © Annette Makino 2025

Today, April 17, is Haiku Poetry Day! To celebrate, I’m sharing a piece on a classic haiku theme: cherry blossoms.

Last spring, on a visit to my sister Yoshi’s house, I noticed that her flowering cherry tree was absolutely humming with hundreds of honeybees.

That inspired a haiku:

spring fever
the whole tree
buzzing

At home later, I mixed acrylic paints in the colors I wanted. I then used a gel press to apply the paint to an old typewritten letter, an insurance statement, rice paper embedded with mango leaves, and other specialty papers from Asia.

Using reference photos, I carefully tore the pieces into the desired shapes, then laid them in place on the cradled wood panel.

Next I took a second panel, placed it on top of the first one, and flipped both together. Now the whole collage lay upside down on the spare panel, so that the background pieces—the first ones I needed to glue down—were on top. I then worked my way up to the foreground pieces.

Inspired by the Japanese tradition of haiga (art combined with haiku), I added the haiku to the collage digitally. It is the April art for my 2026 calendar, and I also made a birthday card version, above.

Every spring, I spend some time with a Yoshino cherry tree on our country road, soaking in the delicate beauty of the pale pink blossoms. The experience is joyful with a tinge of heartbreak, knowing how briefly this stage will last.

blossom season
earlier each year
this fleeting world

It’s the impermanence itself that makes these days of peak blossom so precious. The bees certainly seem to know they need to make the most of the moment! Happy spring and happy Haiku Poetry Day.

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Makino Studios News

Annette Makino hangs her “Paper Alchemy” show at the Arcata Library, running through May 2026.

“Paper Alchemy” art show at the library: Thirty of my mixed media collages are now on view at the Arcata Library in Arcata, CA, with an original haiku accompanying most of the pieces. The show runs through May. You’re invited to visit and check out some books, DVDs or a telescope while you’re at it! If you can’t make it, you can explore my online gallery.

“Our Art, Our Story” group show: I also have a piece in this exhibition showcasing Asian and Pacific Islander artists of Humboldt—as does my daughter, Maya Makino! Sponsored by Humboldt Asians and Pacific Islanders (HAPI), the show runs through May 12 at the Redwood Art Association Gallery in Eureka, CA. Join the artists for Arts Alive on Saturday May 2, 6-9 p.m.

Moms and grads: Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 10 and locally, Cal Poly Humboldt’s commencement is Saturday, May 16. I have several card designs for those occasions and dozens more besides, available in the Makino Studios shop and in select stores.

Chinatown book update: As I shared last month, working closely with HAPI under a grant from the California State Coastal Conservancy, I am writing a children’s book about the 1885 expulsion of the Chinese community from Eureka, CA. The story centers on a real girl named Yung and her tuxedo cat, Miu Miu. I’m happy to share that the book has a title! It is Yung Stands Strong: A Story of Expulsion and Resilience. The illustrations by Yukari Mishima are coming along beautifully and the historical background section will be fascinating. We go to press this summer.

Touchstone Awards for Individual Poems: Today the Haiku Foundation announced the five awarded poems in this prestigious annual contest, which my husband has dubbed “the Nobel Prize of haiku.” Congratulations to the winners as well as the poets included in the short and long lists! Big thanks to coordinator Matthew Markworth and my fellow judges, Sarah Paris, Thomas Haynes, Dan Schwerin, and Mary Stevens, who sorted through 1500 poems from 35 countries.

In Basho’s Footsteps: I appreciate everyone who joined my Zoom talk for the Yuki Teikei Haiku Society about my walking tour in Japan last fall! It was fun to relive the trip and show some of my art to an enthusiastic crowd of sixty people. I plan to give a version of the Basho talk at the Seabeck Haiku Getaway in Seabeck, WA in October.

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CREDITS:

“spring fever” (haiga): Contemporary Haibun Online, Haiga Gallery, 21.3, 2025; Contemporary Haibun Volume 20, Red Moon Press, 2025

“blossom season” - Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival, Honourable Mention, United States, 2025 Haiku Invitational

How to move through a broken world?

“copper-tinged waves” is an 8x10 mixed media collage made with paper, acrylic paint, colored pencil and glue on cradled wood. A greeting card version reads, “take heart.” © Annette Makino 2025

Although I try to stay connected with my readers, I haven’t written you in close to three months. The truth is, with all the upheaval in the world these days, it has been hard to know what to say.

On the one hand, I know I’m not obligated to say anything about the news—no one really expects artists and poets to analyze the political events of the day. Somehow the New York Times still hasn’t phoned for my take on the war in Iran! On the other hand, it seems oblivious at best to chatter about my creative projects and my happy little life while the regime is locking up children and murdering US citizens in broad daylight.

How to navigate these dystopian times? I know many of us attend protests.* We’ve got our reps on speed dial. We donate to help people in Gaza, Ukraine, Minnesota. We stay informed as best we can without drowning in the horrors of the day. Yet faced with the shocking cruelty and corruption of this administration, it never feels like enough.

Still, I take heart from these words by Rabbi Rami Shapiro, interpreting a part of the Talmud: “Do not be daunted by the enormity of the world's grief . . . You are not expected to complete the work, but neither are you free to abandon it.”

Under an administration that stokes fear and hatred of “the other,” I believe that connection, creative expression, and celebration are all forms of this work. Whether it’s taking in a beach sunset, writing a poem or petting a stranger’s dog, joy is an act of resistance.

copper-tinged waves
trying to fit the ocean
into my camera

One spark of joy: I have been writing a children’s book about the 1885 expulsion of the Chinese community from the nearby town of Eureka, California. The story centers on a real nine-year old girl named Yung and her beloved tuxedo cat, Miu Miu, who are forced from their home in Eureka’s Chinatown and shipped to San Francisco.

To work out some book details, we toured the site of Eureka’s historic Chinatown.

I’m working closely with Humboldt Asians and Pacific Islanders in Solidarity (HAPI) under a grant from the California State Coastal Conservancy. The book, as yet untitled, is due to be published this fall by The Press at Cal Poly Humboldt. Doubtless this will be one of their less scholarly works, but it will include about ten pages of background material with historical context. And how many academic tomes can offer a cute cat?

The book will be used in local schools, especially fourth grade classes, to teach about this dark chapter in California’s history. Yukari Mishima, a talented Japanese artist whose style reminds me of Hayao Miyazaki, is creating the beautiful illustrations. And the Humboldt County Office of Education is designing an accompanying curriculum.

I’ve spent a lifetime writing and editing, from three-line haiku to multimillion dollar grants. But I’ve never written historical fiction for children before, so this is all new territory for me—a sometimes challenging and ultimately rewarding process. It’s a gift to collaborate with goodhearted people on such a meaningful creative project. May the story of Yung and Miu Miu help shed light on the racism and injustice that is still so present today—and help us see our common humanity.

moth holes
the part of the world
I can mend

all the best, Annette

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Makino Studios News

15th anniversary sale: Makino Studios celebrates its 15th anniversary this month! When I launched my art biz in March 2011, I had no idea whether it would last. In thanks for your support, I’m offering 15% off all cards, prints, books and calendars in the shop till midnight this Sunday, March 8. Enter code 15YEARS at checkout.

Hanging out with haiku master Basho in Tokyo, October 2025.

In Basho’s Footsteps: This Saturday, March 7 at 11 a.m. Pacific, I’m giving a presentation to the Yuki Teikei Society on my recent walking tour in Japan of the 1689 journey by the famed haiku poet Basho. I’ll share photos, haiku and art. You are invited to attend and sign in as a guest (the first few minutes will include some organization business). This presentation will not be recorded. Click here to join the Zoom. Meeting ID: 818 4373 6721

Museum of Haiku Literature Award: I’m honored that the following poem was chosen as the best haiku of the Autumn 2025 issue of Frogpond, the journal of the Haiku Society of America:

milkweed leaf
a butterfly sheds
its deadname

Touchstone Awards: Since January I have served on the panel of five judges for this contest sponsored by The Haiku Foundation. The Touchstone Award for Individual Poems is considered a premier honor for English-language haiku, and the judging process is very thoughtfully designed. The winning poems will appear on The Haiku Foundation website starting April 3.

Art show at the library: The Arcata branch of the Humboldt County Library has invited me to show my art there in April and May. The show will feature a range of mixed media pieces including some haiga (art with haiku). And probably some cute cats!

*No Kings: The next nationwide protest is No Kings on March 28—it may well be the largest one-day protest in US history!

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Haiku publication credits:
“copper-tinged waves” - Kingfisher, Spring 2024
“moth holes” - The Heron’s Nest, March 2026

Glimmers in the dark

“touch of frost” is an 11x14 mixed media collage made with paper and paint on cradled wood. This is part of my 2026 calendar. A version of boxed holiday notecards reads “joy to the world.” © Annette Makino 2025

I must admit, these short, dark days are hard to take. Being more of a night owl, I miss part of the limited daylight we get in the mornings, then feel shocked and cheated when twilight approaches before 5 p.m. So unfair! 

How to cope? I try to appreciate merino wool sweaters, flannel sheets, and our wood-burning stove. And ignore the fact that spring is still months away—in fact, it’s not even officially winter yet! Still, it’s cold, dark and damp, and I struggle.

otter dusk
what’s left of the light
slips downstream

But it turns out that the worst is already behind us: yesterday saw the earliest sunset of the year here, at 4:48 p.m. From today on, the days will feel longer even though the winter solstice is not until December 21. So hurray for the return of the light!

I’m finding that the best way to make my way through this hard-to-love season is to look for glimmers of joy. Last Thursday my husband, son and I went tide pooling during a ridiculously beautiful sunset (see below), which we would have missed had the sun set after dinner. 

Sunset at Houda Point in Trinidad, CA, during a minus tide. December 2025.  Photo: Annette Makino

a cormorant air-dries its wings

         sea-washed stones

Saturday night we took part in Arts Alive, a monthly cornucopia of local art and music during which Paul and I got to join our old choir for a few songs. Sunday we watched a fun play featuring an evil sock puppet orc who sings a hilarious but poignant solo. On Monday morning I taught a haiku workshop to a class of surprisingly engaged high school sophomores who impressed me with their creativity.

Holiday season brings the special pleasures of gathering with family, friends and community. This coming weekend, I’m looking forward to having a Makino Studios booth at the Arcata Holiday Craft Fair. As my only in-person event this season, this is a rare chance to meet face-to-face with my customers and to hear their stories. That is a key part of what keeps me going in my art biz.

However winter hits you, here’s wishing you bright glimmers to celebrate in this dark season. Happy holidays!

touch of frost
the dog smiling
from nose to tail

warmly, Annette Makino

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Happy merry holidays!

Makino Studios News

Free shipping: Use promo code HOLIDAY2025 at checkout for free shipping on all Makino Studios orders, no minimum. Good for first-class shipping within the U.S. One promo code per order. Promotion ends at midnight this Sunday, Dec. 14, 2025.

2026 mini-calendars: Small calendars of art and haiku make great holiday gifts! They feature 12 colorful Asian-inspired collages with my original haiku. $12 each.

Cards: Holiday, birthday, sympathy or everyday  . . . right now there are around 80 Makino Studios card designs to choose from. I also have notecard sets, including holiday designs.

Water and Stone: My award-winning book of art and haiku includes 50 watercolor paintings with my original poems. Cost is $25. I will sign them on request—just send me an email after you order. 

Holiday shipping: The US Postal Service advises that to ensure that packages arrive by Dec. 25, they should be shipped by Dec. 17.

Arcata Holiday Craft Market: Featuring food, music, and local vendors, this festive fair takes place 10 to 5 on Saturday, Dec. 13 and 10 to 4 on Sunday, Dec. 14 at the Arcata Community Center in Arcata, CA. Look for the Makino Studios booth on the lefthand side of the main room. This will be my only in-person event this season. Admission is a $2 donation benefiting the Youth Development Scholarship Fund.

Made in Humboldt fair: The “Made in Humboldt” event at Pierson Garden Shop in Eureka, CA runs through Dec. 24. There are more some 300 local vendors; Makino Studios items include my 2026 calendars, books, prints and boxed notecards.

CREDITS: “otter dusk” - Acorn, Fall 2025; “a cormorant” - Nowhere Else: Haiku North America 2025 Anthology, Eds. Michael Dylan Welch and Chuck Brickley, Press Here, 2025; “touch of frost” - 2026 in Art and Haiku, Annette Makino, 2025

On grateful wings

This mixed media collage, “evening rays,” is 11×14, made with acrylic paint, paper, pen and glue on cradled wood. © Annette Makino 2025

Happy Thanksgiving! Isn’t is amazing that we have a whole holiday dedicated to gratitude? (With a side of cranberry sauce.) There’s so much I’m grateful for, but a key element is the sense of purpose I gain from my Makino Studios work. It turns out that being an artist and poet doesn’t bring in the big bucks—who knew?! But unlike hedge fund managers, I get to regularly hear from people how much my offerings touch them.

This weekend a friend told me that one of my cards was perfect for a difficult situation: her brother is in his last weeks in hospice. Another wrote that she was so moved by a poem that she sent it on to family and friends. And there are hundreds of people who make a point of giving my haiku calendar to friends, family, book club members, caregivers and coworkers every year. It means so much to have that impact as an artist and poet. Your support helps my dreams take wing, so thank you all!

Today I’m sharing my process for the mixed media collage of a blue heron shown above. This haiga (art + haiku) appears in my 2026 mini-calendar, with a poem inspired by a late afternoon on the Klamath River:

evening rays
the driftwood stick
spreads its wings

There is a card version reading “may your dreams take wing.” Enjoy this season of gratitude!

I rolled blue paint on my gel press, created texture with a stiff, dry paintbrush, then placed and smoothed a sheet of rice paper on top.

One of my reference images for the art helped guide my choices of colors and shapes.

blue heron art card for graduations, birthdays and life changes (473)

$5.00

may your dreams take wing

In this colorful card, a great blue heron spreads its wings, preparing to swoop off from a riverbank. Based on an original mixed media collage, this inspiring card is suitable for graduations, birthdays, moves, new ventures and other life changes.

Add to cart

I needed to make collage papers that could work for the heron wings. I painted the water right on the wood panel with blue, black and silver acrylics.

My studio in process as I decided which papers to use.

Considering where to place the heron—and soon realizing it looked way too chubby!

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Makino Studios News

Thanksgiving sale: Use promo code THANKS25 at checkout for 15% off everything in the Makino Studios shop except original art. Good for first-class shipping within the U.S. One promo code per order. Sale ends at midnight this Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025.

Arcata Holiday Craft Market: Featuring food, music, and local vendors, this festive fair takes place 10 to 5 on Saturday, Dec. 13 and 10 to 4 Sunday, Dec. 14 at the Arcata Community Center in Arcata, CA. Look for the Makino Studios booth on the lefthand side of the main room. This will be my only in-person event this season. Admission is a $2 donation benefiting the Youth Development Scholarship Fund.

Made in Humboldt fair: The “Made in Humboldt” event at Pierson Garden Shop in Eureka, CA runs through Dec. 24. There are 250 local vendors; Makino Studios items include my 2026 calendars, books, prints and boxed notecards.

2026 mini-calendars: Small calendars of art and haiku make great holiday gifts! They feature 12 colorful Asian-inspired collages with my original haiku. $12 each.

Water and Stone: My award-winning book of art and haiku includes 50 watercolor paintings with my original poems. Cost is $25. You can find it online here, and I will sign it on request—just send me an email after you order. 

Cards: Holiday, birthday, sympathy or everyday… right now there are more than 80 Makino Studios card designs to choose from. I also have ten different notecard sets, including several holiday designs.

Art prints: Blake’s Books in McKinleyville, CA carries a selection of my matted art prints, ready for gifting. They are among the local stores that carry my books, calendars, notecards and single cards.

Holiday shipping: The US Postal Service advises that to ensure that packages arrive by Dec. 25, they should be shipped by Dec. 17.

Thanks: I appreciate all the responses on my last post, “Three Wayfarers in Japan,” and love it when someone takes the time to write. I read and answer every message. You can read past posts on my blog.

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Credit: The haiku “evening rays” was first published in Bee Here Now: The Haiku Foundation Volunteer Anthology 2024

Three wayfarers in Japan

The trail to Jizogura shrine (shown left) outside Hijiori Onsen village in the Tohoku region of Japan.

Paul, Annette and Gabriel in Tohoku, Japan, October 2025

Konnichiwa! I’m back from a wonderful 18 days in Japan with my husband Paul and son Gabriel. On this, my fifth trip there, we toured Tokyo boulevards, mountain trails, rice paddies, rural villages and temples.

sacred shrine
worshippers raise
their selfie sticks

Paul has been studying Japanese intensively and was able to have brief exchanges and read some signs, which was very helpful. The Google Maps and Google Translate apps were also key companions.

We traveled by subway, bus, bullet train, boat and on foot, walking up to ten miles a day even when we weren’t hiking.

rice paddies blurring into the past bullet train

Annette sitting at the feet of the master, 17th century haiku poet Matsuo Basho, at Motsuji Temple, Hiraizumi.

The focus of the trip was a six-day self-guided walking tour in the northern region of Tohoku following the route that haiku poet Matsuo Basho took over five months in 1689. That resulted in his classic haiku-laced travelogue, Oku-no-hosomichi, or Narrow Road to the Deep North. Basho is considered Japan’s greatest poet, and it was moving to visit places that he wrote about almost 350 years ago and to see the many statues and monuments commemorating him.

Paul warns bears of our presence on the trail.

Some trails had clappers and at one trailhead, our driver set off firecrackers to warn away bears before we started our hike. Being used to California’s shy black bears, we weren’t terribly worried, but after our walking tour we learned that since April of this year, bears have killed 12 people in Japan and injured more than one hundred! Luckily, we didn’t encounter any bears nor any evil wild monkeys.

At one of our inns, a dish was grilled at the table on magnolia leaves.

Our tour company, Walk Japan, reserved traditional Japanese inns for us which each had on-site onsen, or hot springs—a real treat after hiking for miles over mountain passes or trudging up a thousand temple stairs. These inns served amazing breakfasts and dinners of 12 to 18 courses each, exquisitely presented on various types of pottery or lacquerware. Most of it was delicious, if sometimes mysterious. But I drew the line at tasting the raw horse meat on one sashimi platter!

Amida Buddha in Kamakura, completed in 1252.

We spent a total of six days in Tokyo, where we got to see my Japanese relatives. There we also caught the women’s qualifying rounds for the Tokyo Open, especially fun for Gabriel, a tennis player and coach. We took a day trip to see the Great Buddha of Kamakura, which has appeared in Paul’s dreams, reaching the massive, serene sculpture via a hike past five temples.

The iconic two-legged stone lantern at Kenroku-en in Kanazawa.

For four nights we based ourselves in Nagano, in the Japan Alps. We made a day trip to Kanazawa to see one of the most famous gardens in Japan, peaceful Kenroku-en, and to explore the evocative old samurai neighborhood. Wandering through rainy alleys that evening, we stumbled into a restaurant where we were ushered into a private tatami room. There, servers in kimonos brought us gorgeous platters of sashimi and sushi followed by dessert decorated with gold leaf—our favorite meal of the trip.

A special dinner in a private tatami room in Kanazawa.

sushi bar
through fish tank glass
they watch us feeding

We also traveled to the charming town of Obuse one day to visit the Hokusai Museum, which showed the intricate step-by-step process for printing his famous woodblock print, “The Great Wave of Kanagawa.” I was humbled to learn that Hokusai created more than 30,000 artworks in his lifetime!

We took a boat ride around Matsushima Bay, which Basho found so beautiful that he couldn't write a single haiku about it.

I could go on and on, but I’ll let my photos do the talking. This trip was covered by Makino Studios, so a deep bow of gratitude to all who have supported my art business. And thanks for your patience with orders while I was traveling; I’m all caught up on shipments and store deliveries, so feel free to order now (free shipping through Sunday). And thanks for coming along on this trip to Japan! As Basho wrote, “every day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.”

warmly, Annette

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Makino Studios News

Free shipping this weekend: I’m offering free shipping on everything in the shop, no minimum order, through midnight this Sunday with code JAPAN2025.

2026 calendars: These mini-calendars of art and haiku are now for sale in most of my local stores and available here for $12. They make great gifts!

New cards and notecards: You can browse all new and ongoing designs here. Some of the newest designs are already almost sold out, but more are coming in a couple of weeks.

Made in Humboldt Fair: The holiday market at Pierson Garden Shop in Eureka, CA starts this Monday, Nov. 12 and runs through Dec. 24. It includes more than 250 local vendors. You can find my calendars, notecard sets, books and prints there.

Arcata Holiday Craft Market: Featuring food, music, and local vendors, this festive fair takes place Dec. 13-14 at the Arcata Community Center in Arcata, CA. Look for the Makino Studios booth on the lefthand side of the main room. This will be my only in-person event this season.

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Torii gates lead to Sasuke Inari Shrine in Kamakura.

Haiku credits:

“rice paddies” - Last Train Home: tanka, haiku, rengay; Ed. Jacqueline Pearce; Pondhawk Press; Vancouver, BC, Canada; 2021

“sacred shrine” - 3rd place, Gerald Brady Memorial Awards for Senryu, September 2016

“sushi bar” - Prune Juice, Issue 17, November 2015