If you can't go to a far off island right now, then why not learn about two instead? The ladies double down on East Asia this episode, as Johanna breaks down the controversy around Taiwan status as a country(?), while Olivia introduces you to an extraordinary 88-stop pilgrimage you can do on Shikoku, Japan.

Air Castles is a cultural anthropology podcast where Semi-Qualified Hosts/World Travelers/Best Friends Johanna Schöllauf and Olivia Schmitz try to learn more about world cultures one topic at a time.

Questions/Comments/Compliments/Corrections? Email us at aircastlespodcast@gmail.com or reach out to us on Twitter @aircastlespod

Johanna:

All information was taken from my lectures at Kansai Gaidai University, Osaka.

Olivia:

This is the website to my pilgrimage professor, Dr. John Shultz: http://www.japanjohn.com

“No right way to complete Shikoku’s 88-temple pilgrimage”: https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2018/03/23/travel/no-right-way-complete-shikokus-88-temple-pilgrimage/

Shokoku Henro page on Shikoku’s Tourism Website: https://shikoku-tourism.com/en/shikoku-henro/shikoku-henro

“Kukai”: https://www.ancient.eu/Kukai/

“Shingon Buddhism”: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Shingon