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b'Follow Black Belt travel writer Paul Barach as he treks the 750-mile Shikoku Pilgrimage in Japan. Dedicated to the 8thcentury Buddhist Holy Man, Kukai, Shikoku is the wildest of Japan\\u2019s four main islands filled with steep mountains, thousand-year-old temples and thick cedar forests. Walked for more than 1,200 years, this is one of the hardest Buddhist pilgrimages in the world and Paul will be doing it all on foot, staying in traditional villages and camping out along the way.\\n\\nBut this is more than just a trek. A black belt in bare-fisted full contact Kyokushin karate, Paul had dreamed of coming to Japan since he was a small boy. He had trained hard for this moment. He had dreams of fighting monks on hilltop temples, dodging ninjas or perhaps even meeting a wizened old man on the path who would give him a samurai sword and say: \\u201cYou\\u2019re ready.\\u201d\\n\\nWhat he didn\\u2019t prepare for was the trek. At all. He arrived in Shikoku during the worst heat wave in over 100 years with shoes that didn\\u2019t fit, a map he couldn\\u2019t read and no ability to speak Japanese. He survived, but only just.\\n\\nHe fought off wild boars and heat stroke. He struggled to find food, water and places to sleep. He was nearly arrested, broke a temple and ended up in hospital. But through that struggle, for fleeting moments, he also caught glimpses of the enlightenment and wisdom he sought. And let\\u2019s just say all that kung fu training wasn\\u2019t for nothing either \\u2026\\n\\nHighlights include:\\n\\xb7\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0Find out about the 1,200-year-old Shikoku pilgrimage, one of the hardest but also most beautiful pilgrimages in the world\\n\\xb7\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0Join Paul on his many misadventures: wild boar attacks, temple catastrophes, hiding from security guards, hospitalization and more\\n\\xb7\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0Hear about the wisdom and enlightenment Paul found along the way, and how you can benefit from that in your own life too\\n\\xb7\\xa0\\xa0\\xa0See if Paul\\u2019s dreams of fighting monks on mountain top temples comes true \\u2026\\xa0\\n\\nPaul\\u2019s book is called \\u2018Fighting Monks and Burning Mountains: Misadventures on a Buddhist Pilgrimage\\u2019 and his Instagram is @barachoutdoors \\u2026 connect with him, he\\u2019s an awesome guy!\\nThank you to Wondrium for sponsoring this episode! This is the new name for The Great Courses Plus, but it\\u2019s now loads more content from documentaries and expert courses to world cinema and more. It\\u2019s awesome and we\\u2019ve got a deal for you \\u2013 just go to www.wondrium.com/armchair to get 1 month of content absolutely free. No obligations, just check it out for free. It\\u2019s a great way to support the show!\\n\\nCheck out Armchair Explorer (www.armchair-explorer.com) for background videos, photos and more on each episode. And please hit that follow button to support the show!\\n\\nFollow @armchairexplorerpodcast across Instagram and Facebook\\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices'