Our team at Inside Japan Tours

Charlie set off for Japan for a couple of months when he was 18, armed with nothing but a backpack, some very basic Kanji and an ambitious route from Wakkanai in the north of Hokkaido all the way down to Miyazaki in Kyushu.

With this journey under his belt, and a burgeoning interest in Japanese movies from the 1950s and 1960s, he was soon hooked. The only problem? He had made a nemesis on his trip: Mount Fuji. The elusive snow-capped postcard star had defeated Charlie at the 8th station due to poor weather.

While there's a saying 'only a fool climbs Fuji twice', after packing up up his worldly belongings to teach English in Kochi on little-visited Shikoku six years later, he set off for round two, finally making it to the top. What's more, he would do it again. We wouldn't ever suggest he's foolish, but if the walking boot fits...

Charlie loved days spent surfing near Shimanto, practicing Kyudo and taking to the karaoke mic - a rite of passage in Japan. When not wearing his walking boots, or bringing the house down with his singing, we like to think he was dusting off his dancing shoes; Kochi is famous for the Yosakai festival, an annual event where dance troupes travel from all over the country to compete.

After moving back to the UK, he worked for the Sake Sommelier Association. We're hoping he might hold a tasting night in our Bristol office soon; for research purposes, of course. Yosakai-style performances optional.