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InsideJapan Tour Leaders If you are planning on joining us on one of our small group tours we are sure you will be pretty interested in who will be showing you round Japan for two weeks! We are pleased to have some of the very best tour leaders in the business working with InsideJapan Tours and whoever is in charge of your group we are sure they will be a wonderful addition to your Japan adventures. Tyler Palma - Senior Tour Leader Alain Sabourin - Tour Leader Steve Parker - Tour Leader Jennifer Snow - Tour Leader Yasuhiko Ota - Spirit of Honshu & specialist Nikko area guide Richard Pearce - Tour Leader Andrew Petty - Tour Leader
Tyler Palma Senior Tour Leader Over a decade ago, Tyler made journey around the world by boat, stopping in Osaka and Nagasaki along the way and starting a love affair with Japan that continues to this day. He began working as a tour leader nearly nine years ago in the tropical lands of Southeast Asia but it wasn’t until after living in Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, China, and South Korea that Tyler found his true calling in the ‘land of the rising sun’. Now living in Tokyo, his free time is spent working on a masters degree in East Asian studies and studying calligraphy under one of Japan’s most distinguished 'sensei’. A self-proclaimed Japanophile, he takes a keen interest in all of Japan’s traditional arts and strives to find the best in every city he visits - which almost always includes a few pints of beer with the locals. Although his wanderlust has taken him to over 50 countries, he still maintains that there is no better travel destination than his home away from home. Not content with simply getting you from point to point, Tyler will happily share his personal insights on the world of the geisha, take you along to a family-run restaurant, or offer his assistance with planning your free time in Japan’s most unforgettable destinations!	Alain Sabourin Tour Leader Originally from Canada, Alain started traveling solo at the age of 18 and is possibly the most adventurous of our team. After spending a few years snowboarding and rock climbing in Western Canada he went to South America for a year of trekking. Alain explored the Amazon in Venezuela, Brazil and Columbia and climbed throughout the Andes of Peru and Ecuador. Having ‘done’ South America, next stop for Alain was Asia. Here he traveled through South East Asia and India and, in 2002, found himself in Japan. Sticking with the adventure them, Alain’s first job in Japan was as a white water rafting and mountain biking guide. Since 2002 Alain has added tour leading to his skill-set and has been working throughout Asia on cultural and adventure tours. From 2009 onwards he has been based solely in Japan leading a variety of tours. A,lain is passionate about showing people Japan’s rich culture and deep traditions and the true beauty of the country.	Steve Parker Tour Leader Steve arrived on Japanese soil in the summer of 1996 and spent 6 years working in education. After whizzing around the whole country to see as many of the 2002 World Cup matches as possible, he headed for home in the UK. Soon though, the itchy feet prompted him to become a tour leader - working in Japan, Cuba, Italy and Spain. He therefore has acquired the ability to dance salsa in a kimono, toss pizza dough and dodge charging bulls - all at the same time, of course. Inevitably, after 5 years came the decision to return to his adopted homeland to both live and work, as it proved impossible to stay away from the great food, hot springs, mountains and the karaoke mic.
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Jennifer Snow Tour Leader Jen was introduced to Japanese culture at a young age, and quickly developed a fascination with the culture, enjoying Japanese museum exhibits and food as a child in her hometown of Boston. While she enjoyed traveling throughout the UK and Europe many times, her interest in Japan only grew stronger over the years, and in university she was finally able to come to Japan through a study abroad program based in Kyoto, an unforgettable experience for her. She continued to pursue this interest in her postgraduate studies, participating in intensive Japanese language training in Hokkaido and receiving a Masters degree in East Asian studies with a focus on Japanese cultural studies. Having taken many trips to volunteer in her own country after Hurricane Katrina, she was eager to help her second-home in any way that she could following the Tohoku earthquake, and after completing her MA program went to the affected area to stay as a long-term volunteer at It's Not Just Mud. Along with volunteering, she was lucky to experience the natural beauty of the region, but developed a serious addiction to hot springs that she has not yet been able to shake. Jen looks forward to sharing her love of Japan with you!	Yasuhiko Ota Tour Leader Yasuhiko Ota was born and raised in Tokyo in 1942, the Japanese called, Edokko". Ota-san considers himself to be a young 70 and you certainly wouldn't be able to guess his age! He graduated from Tokyo's prestigious Chuo University majoring in Business Administrations & Accoounting and followed this up with studies at the University of Delaware, USA where he met his future wife, Hiroko. Yasuhiko enjoyed his studies in Delaware so much that he stuck around for another 6 years taking up a position with E.I.DuPont Headquarters in Delaware. In 1972 he returned to Japan starting work at JP Morgan Guaranty Bank, Tokyo Branch Office, thus beginning a 25 year career in banking during which time he worked with Wespac Banking Corporation(Australian Bank) and Citibank, Tokyo. The world of international finance brought with it plenty of opportunities for travel and Yasuhiko was stationed in Sydney (about 6 months), London (about 1 year) and New York (5 years). Yasuhiko finished his career with 7 years at American Express in the travel division and there discovered that his true interests lay in the travel industry. His hobbies are travel (Hawaii is his favourite followed closely by Okinawa), reading, gardening and he has even been known to put up some impressive performances in triathlon events. He has two children (a son and daughter aged 35 and 22 respectively) and a 3 year old granddaughter. Yasuhiko and his wife Hiroko live in Utsunomiya City, approximately 60 miles north of Tokyo	Richard Pearce Tour Leader From an early age, Richard could often be found out and about exploring the fields and woodlands of The Cotswolds where he grew up. His love of adventure and nature eventually took him to the savannahs of Kenya and the forests of Madagascar and Tanzania, where he spent several months studying the weird and wonderful creatures that inhabit there. Strangely, he still has fond memories of waking to snakes in his tent and of washing in rivers and swamps with crocs watching on. Having completed a life long dream of training and qualifying as a Safari Guide in South Africa and finishing an around the world trip, it was time to get a normal job. However, in retrospect, he realises that working as an English Teacher in Japanese and Korean schools for 5 years was anything but "normal". Richard has been based in the beautiful Tottori Prefecture, one of the most rural prefectures, for 5 years. Slowly but surely, Richard feels he has gradually become "Japanified" and spends most of his free time exploring his home from home on his motorbike or on foot, trying as many unusual foods as possible. Fried wasp maggots, anyone? Richard is joint-founder of the largest outdoor craft beer festival in Japan and sole-founder and captain of the tournament conquering Tottori Tigers Football Team. He is much prouder of the latter. Richard looks forward to showing you the often weird, always wonderful and never to be forgotten place that is Japan.
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Andrew Petty Tour Leader Andrew, a native Texan, traces his interest in Japan to hearing interesting stories of Japan from his mother, whose travels as an "Air Force Brat" included Tokyo. Andrew’s time at Baylor University, where he majored in Asian Studies (with a focus on Japan), included extensive course work on the Japanese language and a year abroad at a university in Fukuoka, Japan. While studying abroad Andrew travelled throughout Japan enriching his appreciation of the culture and leading to his decision to live in Japan. Andrew has studied Japanese for almost 10 years now and has had a variety of jobs in Japan, from bartender, to working in a Japanese office as a salarayman, to English teacher and finally translator / interpreter. He spent 3 years living in Fukuoka, Japan on the southern island of Japan (Kyushu), 1 year in Yokohama, and 6 months in Nagoya. Andrew loves hot springs and karaoke and will gladly share his knowledge of the history and culture of Japan!