Japan
日本を発見する
24th October 2023 to 6th November 2023
Travelling from London to Tokyo! - 24th October 2023
An exciting new adventure awaits us! It's been a long time since I have taken a trip like in the good old days. My chosen companion this time is Roberta, my sister. I am not sure she knows what she has let herself in for as it is the first time that she will be on a trip designed by me to see as much as possible in a relatively short time. So, here we go...
We met up at London Heathrow last night to sleep in the terminal as we needed to check in at 6.30 and I had no desire to get up in the middle of the night. We are also taking with us Bertie, the chair who will aid us in making sure Roberta doesn't overdo things. Bertie however did make itself the centre of attention even before getting on the plane. As we went through security, they did the random swipe for explosive traces and Bertie tested positive on all 4 machines. What followed was a series of questions as to the why's and where's of Bertie (it was in fact a rental and since Roberta took possession of it, it had been on a bus and a taxi on its way to the airport). Don't get me wrong, everyone was nice, but my sister was frisked, and her bag turned inside out. She has now been put on some list... The hope is that she won't put a foot wrong from now on to avoid ending up in the news as a suspected terrorist. And that,, was as eventful as it got. The flight was pretty much on time, business class a little hit and miss on the service and we got no real sleep because of our bodies feeling it was still day... Turning the lights off just didn't do it.
Tokyo - 25th October 2023
We’ve landed!
We arrived at Haneda pretty much on time. Formalities were a breeze. The real adventure was finding the rental counter of the Wifi device and where to buy the Japanese 'Oyster card'. We managed both and in doing that we started to get a feeling of what the Japanese population is like. NOTHING like their Asian counterparties in China. There was a little more English and a lot of kindness and politeness. They still mostly did not understand what we said, but they were willing to actually take us to wherever they thought we needed to be. We found our way to the hotel in a tiny squarish taxi (exactly like one you'd find in any Japanese cartoon) and found more kindness there. Our room was still occupied, but they cleaned another one so that we could rest for a few hours before out actual room was free. What can I say... Incidentally the rooms at the Hyatt Centric Hotel are great and pretty huge. The position in Ginza is also pretty cool. All the designers you might want surround us: Dior, Balenciaga, Louis Vuitton, etc. as well as a number of pretty good restaurants. Roberta took a long nap whilst I caught up with a day's worth of emails from work.
First ever walkabout in Tokyo!
We met our guide for the next three days today: Mayumi! She came to pick us up at the sushi bar we were having a quick lunch in, and off we went. It felt like we didn't do much, but we walked a long way. We saw the outer gardens of the Imperial Palace and worked through a little history on the Shoguns and Samurais. Bertie pulled a blonde lady that was interested in finding out its model and where she might get a hold of something similar. The real adventure of the day was to find a Metro stop with a lift. And we rode the Metro. Just like in London but amazigly clean and graffiti free. We made our way to our very first shrine set in a forest in the middle of Tokyo: the Meiji Shrine. To get to the main attraction we walked through three Torii gates, our very first experience of those too. In exiting the park we were offered the opportunity to visit the Harajuku district. The Takeshita-dori is the centre of kawaii fashion (young people stuff) and Omotesando is lined with beuatiful modern buildings designed by world famous architects. We chose not to: we are old and shopping was not on out list of to do things. We did see, just across the road, a Cat Cafè. That was a first too. Animal Cafès are quite a popular thing here in Japan. There are dog ones, guinea pigs ones, hedgehogs ones and many more. So we went in. You book how much time you want to stay, take off your shoes, put your stuf in a locker and off you go to play with the cats. Our very last visit of the day was to the busiest pedestrian crossing in Tokyo: the Shibuya crossing. If you've ever been to Shanghai it's not that amazing, but if you haven't, it's worth a look. And that was it for the day. We took a taxi back and settled into our new room, our home for the next 3 nights, and caught up with work again (18.00 here is 10.00 in Europe and unfortunately it works well if you make yourself availble for work!). Dinner was at an upmarket sushi place: Kiubey. We did have a lovely dinner and tried quite a few new things but getting to our seats was more like a treasure hunt that it needed to be. We turned up at the address, we were taken to a different building just down the road to a floor with 4 chairs lined up in front of the lift and a little museum of the sushi chefs in the room next to us. We waited there a while and then someone else came to get us and took us to another floor where we finally sat down at the counter. Our chef was pretty cool and spoke ok english and a few words of Italian. Eventually Roberta did the 'attacca bottoni' with the couple next to us. But it was only a matter of time... By the time we got back I was so tired I could hardly keep my eyes open. And so, finally, I got to sleep!
Tokyo - 26th October 2023
Asakusa and the Tsukiji market
A full day in Tokyo! We started off in Asakusa and the Senso-ji Temple. We strolled around the old residential area and the many many little shops that line up in front of the temple. We purified ourselves in one of the fountains before taking a closer look in this special place of worship. Here in Asakura Buddhism and Shinto coexisted for many years. We picked up food and souvenirs before taking a lift in
a river boat to get to the Hamarikyu Gardens. Another amazing park smack in the middle of Tokyo where old hunting buildings are still as pristine as they were back in the olden times. As luck would have it is also very close to the Tsukiji Market. The auction of tuna no longer takes place in this location, but many tuna shops are still here, as well as many others selling japanese delicacies. Even wasabi peas taste different in japan!
Akihabara Electric Town and Ginza
After lunch we took a taxi to Electric town. My understanding is that the only people that call it by that name are foreigners. It is easy to see why its called that although the animate trend seems to have taken over the area as well as maid cafes, where you can be served by waitresses dressed as french maids. It is a little odd I kid you not. These 'maids' actually stand out in the street to drum up business and they look like schoolgirls. I don't think it would wash anywhere else in the world. Our last act as tourists was to visit one of the largest Electric goods store in the area: Yodobashi. Its enormous! We took a little look around, but it would take days to actually get a grasp of everything they sell. I would be lieing if I said we didn't buy anything. Some stuff is definately way cheaper here in japan then in Europe and we walked away with some airtags, an apple watch wristband, stickers and a couple of puzzles. And that was it for the day. A taxi driver who must have been 80 attempted to lift a folded up Bertie into the back of the cab, but, we helped him out, terrified that he might be crushed by it. We ended back at the Hyatt at a decent time so we could deal with European work before popping out for dinner at a nearby sushi restaurant. But, not before dropping in at Uniqlo for a couple of bargains that we just could not do without. Dinner was at a place called Seamon just down the road and we ate at the counter again, in front of a far less chatty sushi chef than last night. Tuna was the king, again. Can't get enough of it and the quality everywhere is amazing.
Nikko - 27th October 2023
Life keeps you on your toes...
We had a very early start today. We met Mayumi at 6.30 to take the Spacia X (a brand new train service launched in July this year) to Nikko. As we sat on the Metro at 6.45 in the morning Roberta volunteered the fact that people in the UK commit suicide in the tube and although sad in itself it also creates havoc for other people. Mayumi replied that despite the presence of barriers in the Metro lines in Tokyo, that was also a problem here and that it seemed to be more frequent in March as it is when people go back to their studies or work after the holidays. You'll wonder why I am sharing this conversation...and here it is. We got to the track from which the Spacia X was supposed to leave well in advance, and the trainline had been suspended due to a suicide! And here we got to see what happens to a Japanese person when given total unexpected news that throws their plans in chaos: Mayumi looked like an old cartoon from Japan as the opened her mouth and held her hands up to cover her face in total disbelief. For the next 10/15 minutes she was quietly panicking. I have to confess that it was amusing to see. We went for a coffee whilst she thought about what to do and we discovered another facet of Japanese culture: they prefer salty breakfast. That in itself would not be unusual as eggs and bacon are quite common in the UK, but they do not eat eggs and bacon. They have hotdogs with ketchup at 7.30 in the morning. And she was not the only one. It seemed to be quite normal as me and Roberta sat there with our cappucino and slice of cake. Enough about food though. A plan was hatched and we went back to the Metro (although at this time of the day it felt like a sardine can) and took two trains to get to Nikko. Roberta was quite comfy with Bertie, but much to my joy, I had to stand for a couple of hours. On the way it seemed a little bit like being in Vercelli...rice fields everywhere! We were met in Nikko by a lovely man who was to be our driver for the day. Roberta saw her very first falls (Kegon falls) and drove to some lovely viewing points (this time of year the leaves are turning yellow and various shades of red). It started to rain a little after that, so we stopped for lunch at a small traditional restaurant and had udon with broth and tempura wrapped in tofu skin. The speciality here in Nikko is tofu skin (yuba). I am grateful that it doesn't have a strong taste so I had no difficulty in going local on this.
Awesome!
The afternoon reserved an unespected surprise. The Toshogu Shrine was by far the most amazing thing we have seen to date (mind you it's only our third day!). It was a little challeging to see with Bertie, as we did have to do some offroading, and Roberta did have to go up and down a few flights of high stepped stairs, but it was definately worth it. All the buildings are quite close together so it was quite eye-catching. I am sure the photos will not do it justice, but the amazing craftmanship in restoring this site covered in gold leaf is easy to see. They also had a temporary exhibition of bonsais some of which apparently cost as much as a small apartment in Tokyo apparently... Crazy if you ask me. This only left the Shinkyo (God bridge) and the three Buddah temple (Sanbutsu-do) to see. Legend narrates that the bridge is the result of two snakes meeting in the middle to form a bridge in order to allow a priest (Shodo) and his followers to cross the river. The whole lake area was also very beautiful and, along the shore, we came across the middle shrine, overlooked by the mount Nantai (a sacred mountain). The colours are already quite striking (red and yellows all around us) but they will reach their peak in a couple of weeks (or so we were told). And that was really it for the day. Our very kind driver dropped us off at the station (Spacia X was back open in the afternoon) and we left for Tokyo. One last observation (for today) on Japanese culture: as we the train pulled into the station, the cleaners due to clean it before we boarded, stood by the side bowing. Mayumi explained that they do that out of respect for the work and to welcome the people riding the train. We said goodbye to Mayumi for one last time once we got to Tokyo at the platform for the Metro, and she stood there until our train left. I would like to say that our first ride in the Metro on our own was smooth, and it was up to a point. Once we got to Ginza it was quite a challenge to find our way out :-)! We had a very short stop at the Hotel (where the staff was dressed up as characters from video games - a little odd but apparently they were already celebrating Halloween) before deciding to complete our non-sushi day: we went for gyoza in a place that felt very local. Chao Chao was great and the only gyozas we didn't think made sense (but they were suggestions by the man at the counter) were 'lasagna gyoza' and 'korean gyoza' (the latter wasn't a gyoza at all, just breaded fried chicken with hot sauce on top). If you're ever in Ginza and fancy eating here, the chao chao gyoza and shrimp gyoza are a top choice (we had them twice!). Quick coffee and off to bed for us after that. We leave Tokyo tomorrow and head over to the lake district for Mount Fuji views. The real challenge will be picking up the rental car and not getting lost on the way there. We are on our own!
Mount Fuji - 28th October 2023
Well…non tutte le ciambelle escono col buco!
Today we had our first reasonably important hiccup. I got up early to pick up the rental car at Tokyo station. And yes, I had decided we would actually drive for the next three days. I got to the station and I run into a Japanese lady who took the time to help me look for the Toyota rental company and actually walked me around for about 20 minutes until we found the place. Once it opened, I presented my documents, but I had made a mistake...and there is no flexibility or knack for problem solving in Japan. I had had an International licence issued by Monaco (that was the requirement for driving in Japan) BUT had not checked the date of the reference to the law on it, and Japan only accepts International permits that mention the 1949 Geneva Convention. My more up to date 1968 reference law was absolutely useless. They spent 20 minutes repeating that I needed to have my licence translated in Japanese by JAL, ove and over, but they had no idea if there was a fast way of doing it. Of course, I walked away without a car. Which opened up a series of issues as I had booked things for the next three days on the presumption of having a car. I made my way back to the hotel and booked a car and driver for the first leg today as there was no real other way of getting to the lake area for the Mount Fuji experience. I also had presumed that it would be a 1 and a half hour drive, but on a Saturday it becomes nearly 4 hours, as traffic jams up completely around Tokyo. We sat in a 60km queue for a very long time moving forward at walking pace most of the time. However, we were lucky enough to be sitting in a brand new BMW i7 with a cinema screen. So, yes it will be a little more complex to get around, but I didn't sit in traffic driving myself for 4 hours. Instead, we slept and watched movies in a very comfortable car! We got to Kawaguchiko at around 2pm. The hotel sits above the lake with an amazing view of Mount Fuji (a very iconic mountain for Japan). The room, this time around, is nothing to write home about, and so we didn't hang around but went for a walk down to the lake straight away. There was a festival on (very similar to a Festa dell'Unità I would say). We ate street food from the local vendors and watched some of the performances before making our way down to the water. What is abundantly clear is that, given it's more remote position, this seems to be more of a Japanese holiday spot. Our hotel doesn't seem to have any westeners and we didn't see very many when walking around. That's not at all a bad thing, as it feels a little more authentic than expected.
You will wonder why there is a puzzle of cars as a picture. One thing that has amused us throughout, is the presence of small box/square cars. They are tiny (altough it maybe doesn't seem so in the pictures) but seem to be the best seller out here in Japan. In the Kawaguchi lake area it seems two out of three cars are box cars. But of course they have van versions. They are just a bit bigger than an Ape car and they come in slightly different shapes. But I won’t bore you with motors… We left for dinner as an invasion of people came in to go to the hotel’s restaurant (all of them Japanese). We made our way to the main part of town just across a bridge, although, much to our disappointment, the driver elected to go around the lake instead of across it (and a second driver did the same on the way back). We had wanted to try a Japanese barbecue place where you cook your own skewers at the table, but unfortnatly it closed at 6pm. Kawaguchi is not a place with a vibrant nightlife... We decided on a Sushi place that was open until 8.30pm and finally found some salmon (it has been absent from the Tokyo restaurants we have been to). Mayumi had explained that generally you don’t find salmon in higher end restaurants as it is regarded second class compared to tuna. It seems a little odd but we are not going to question a local. We ate so early that by 8.15 we were actually back at the in the room and preparing to go to bed! I worked on a few logistic issues to get to where we need to be tomorrow (Takayama) as it will be a little more complex than today: taxi, train and to finish it off, a two and half hour bus ride (unless I find a willing driver when we get to Matsumoto). I am hoping we will be in Takayama by early afternoon. The next two days' transfers will require short bus rides, so it feels like less of a challenge. Fingers crossed!
Takayama - 29th October 2023
The long way around…
Today was to be fairly challenging. We have no car and we needed to get from Kawaguchi to Takayama. We took a taxi to Kofu station, about an hour away and somehow I managed to buy tickets for the Express train to Matsumoto (with the help of google translate - thank you google). The bus was the real challenge: it could not be booked online and we had 9 minutes to get off the train, run across the square to the bus terminal (with all the luggage and Bertie), buy tickets and board the bus. I have to say that thanks to the customary Japanese timeliness, we got to Matsumoto on time, we somehow found the terminal and with a minute to spare or so, we were loading our ever growing luggage in the storage bit. And we had the whole back row to ourselves. Roberta managed to snooze a little but on the way we saw some pretty amazing scenery and the foliage makes it pretty special. We basically drove across the Japanese alps and saw a couple of the ski resorts of the area before getting to Takayama. This left me enough time to sort out another little mishap…but not mine this time. Roberta realised on the train that she had left one of the airpods in our room in the hotel at Mount Fuji. So (again thank you google) I wrote to the hotel, they found the item and agreed they would send it onto our hotel in Kanazawa. So after agreeing with the Kanazawa hotel that they would take delivery and pay charges for us, we were all a little less stressed. Lets hope it all works out!
Takayama!
We quite like our new hotel. There is no TV (but in any case we have yet to be in a hotel that has non Japanese channels so it is like not having one), and the set up is ‘japanese style’: the mattresses are on the floor. We took a walk in Sanmachi old streets which are very close to the hotel. It was like going back to the Edo period with the tiny wooden houses. We tried some of the street food being offered. One of the big things here in Takayama (the other is sake) is Hida beef. It’s a type of wagyu beef. So we tried it in nigiri form and on skewers. Pretty yummie! But we knew that was only a little preview of this local delicay: the hotel had actually booked for us
Kitchen Hida for dinner, one of (I am sure) many restaurants that specialises in Hida beef. We went back for a shower and change and walked to the restaurant. The beef was indeed special. Roberta had tenderloin and I had sirloin. It melts in your mouth. Tonight we risked a dessert as they had something pretty similar to Creme brûlée. Even that was nice! And that is saying a lot, because these lovely people are good at many things, but dessert is not one of those! All eateries here (not a new thing for us anymore), close pretty early (8/8.30 as a rule maximum), and we have become accustomed to eating early. We saved coffee time for the hotel and then, we did something that Roberta has been dying to do for the last couple of days: try out the costumes offered by the hotel. Much like the previous accommodation, the hotel makes available lounge wear (that’s what they call it). At Mount Fuji everyone was walking around the hotel with the ‘borrowed’ clothing. It’s a look, not my kind of look, but it works for the rest of this island. And that is it for today. We have a guide tomorrow, Yoko, to show us around and then we leave for Shirakawa by bus (the smurfs village as I have started to call it), a Unesco World Heritage site. Can’t wait!
Takayama and Shirakawa - 30th October 2023
Yoko and fermented food...
This morning we had our very first Japanese breakfast in our traditional hotel. I can't say I am a fan, but this whole trip is about trying new things as well as seeing new things. Miso soup and rice and fish (as well as meat and funny looking vegetables) at 7.15 in the morning is challenging at best. We were meeting Yoko (our guide for the day) early so as to catch the 2.30pm bus to Shirakawa. She's quite a cheerful person, but I have to confess that it is not unusual in a country where people do not know how to say no, always smile and all of their nick-nacks brings them luck of some kind. One of her daughters lives in the UK. She works in finance and has managed to get a two year Visa with the idea of finding something permanent in her sector out there. She took us round a traditional governement building from the Edo times, street markets and a beautiful pagoda (that used to be 5 storeys, but caught fire and when it was time to rebuild there was only money to build 3 storeys). The Hachiman Shrine was a bit of a challenge with the stairs, but I got some help with a passing young lady and got Bertie all the way up. After the disappointing breakfast we stopped for coffee at a very old and traditional coffee house and we were served our cups by a lady who must have been in her 90's. As a side topic, we had found out that Mayumi's grandmother had died at the ripe old age of 106, and, as it turns out, Yoko's grandma died at 102. Both of them maintain that people live a long time in Japan because they eat a lot of fermented food. You have to ask yourself if it's worth it though... We also learned that sake breweries hang outside their shop a cedar ball to signify that freshly pressed sake from the new brewing season is available! And soon it was time for lunch. We had ramen soup from a tiny traditional place. Judging by the slurping around us it must have been pretty authentic! And that was pretty much it for Takayama. It's been short but sweet and a jump back of about 300 years. We said our goodbyes to Yoko who gave us a little gift (origami). If any of you get given it as a souvenir, please pretend we actually bought it and did not just re-gift it. Roberta felt that she was not as good as Mayumi but I thought her English was a little better than our Tokyo guide. In any case their English is a lot better than our Japanese! We picked up our luggage and made our way to the bus station for our short ride to Shirakawa (about an hour). Ah, I almost forgot: I finally asked about the little box cars and vans. They are very popular in Japan because they are tiny and so can be parked everywhere, and they are squarish because that way they maximise the space inside. It still looks funny to see a fully grown person in these tiny vehicles, they don't seem to scale! And, one very last thing, if you are ever down these parts, they have a spring and an autumn festival where 23 floats are pushed around town by the locals. They weight as much as two tonnes...pretty hard work if you ask me.
Shirakawa
Unesco World Heritage site! Why you ask? It is an outstanding example of traditional human settlement that is perfectly adapted to its environment and its social and economic raison d'être. The Gassho-style houses found in the Historic Village of Shirakawa-go are rare examples of their kind in Japan. At least that's the why I found on google. Charming...that's a good adjective for this village. Cute also. We left our luggage at lockers at the bus station and climbed up to the old ruins of the castle to take a few pictures from the top. Roberta had forgotten to charge Bertie last night so we were at risk of being left halfway up the mountain, but I have to say that the batteries held their own and lasted for the whole of the second day. It was a crispy sunny afternoon. Absolutely beautiful. These cottages with thatched roof are something out of a fairy tale. Or, as I more inclined to think, they could very well be a smurf village (il villaggio dei puffi). Rice fields and cottages, that's all there is. I fear there is no night life here either. But lifting Bertie on and off throughout the day had left me pretty tired and I was glad that we were having a traditional kaiseki dinner at the hotel. We went back to the bus terminal to wait for the hotel's shuttle. When we got there, we were asked to lock up our shoes outside. We have been walking around barefoot since then. The flooring is tatami and they even cleaned the wheels of everybody's luggage coming in to make sure we would not leave marks. Incidentally, just in case you do not know, the tatami's come in standard size always: 90x160. Apparently this would have been enough for a standard sized man in Japan back in the days to sleep on. There are communal baths, traditional lounge wear etc. So again Roberta made me wear the local lounge wear and we even made our way to the kimono room (yucata out here I believe) and Roberta picked out outfits for both of
us with the intention of going for dinner with it. We did try them out, but it's really not my thing, so we went for dinner in 'western' clothing. The dinner sittings themselves were at 5.45pm or 8pm. They really do eat very very early out here. We of course went at 8pm to try out kaiseki. It was a bit hit and miss as a meal as of course, we are not accustomed to a lot of their tastes and at times we have no idea what we are eating. The funniest moment was when the first course was brought with the menu arranged over it. Roberta picked it up and the waitress looked at her and said: ah...it's the wrong way around! And turned the menu around for her. Now, as the menu was in japanese, the moment the person that picks it up is holding it the wrong way, it should be pretty clear that they do not read japanese. We could not help laughing. We leave in the morning for Kanazawa. Our last stop before finally reaching Kyoto!
Kanazawa - 31st October 2023
Geishas, Samurais and gold leaf
We were unfortunately subjected again to a Japanese breakfast this morning. I had plain sticky white rice to start my day off. The rest was honestly off putting at 7.15 in the morning (we weren't even given the choice of the time slot). Our bus to Kanazawa was not until later so we gathered our stuff and left for the bus terminal in the hope that we would find coffee in the village. We found no Starbucks or equivalent anywhere as we took a lovely stroll around the cottages. The drive to Kanazawa was quick and painless and the scenery was rice field rich. Our hotel for the night was of the same chain as our Tokyo one. We have been very impressed by Hyatt Centric: decent value for money, huge rooms and always in great locations. Our room was ready when we arrived and that left us time to drop things off and have a quick lunch (sushi) just across the square. It was a conveyor belt sushi place that had given up using the belt and you just ordered from an ipad in front of you. The pictures were very helpful but the lady who insisted in having long conversations with us in japanese not so much. Yukara was our guide for the afternoon. Kanazawa used to be a big deal during the Edo period, in fact it was the fourth largest town in Japan after Edo (Tokyo), Kyoto and Osaka. She took us around the samurai district first, the gardens of the castle to follow and one of the three geisha district last. There was a striking difference between the houses of a samurai and the plebs back in the days. The net worth of a person was judged in rice terms, in kokus. One koku is equivalent to around 150kg of rice. Middle class samurais would be worth in the thousands or so. We visited one of the houses in the samurai district and, as luck would have it, it was a house owned by the Nomura family (I worked for 3 years in London for Nomura, so the name struck a cord). The gardens inside these houses are always something special, and this one was no different. As was the Castle’s garden, despite the castle no longer being there. We struck lucky in the Geisha district that we chose to visit, as we heard a group of geishas trying out and we stood like peeping toms outside the building listening to their playing and singing. Normally they would do so in the morning as they work in the afternoon. 95% of the geishas walking around are people dressed up of course, and Roberta looks at them green with envy. It is very rare to see a real working one in the flesh. One funny take on the rules for the geishas: the suggested time allocated to any client is 90 minutes. That is the maximum time that a gentleman remains a gentleman apparently. It is rather overestimated I fear. Here in Kanazawa geishas work 'freelance' although there is an agency that procures business for them. In Kyoto however, they have the equivalent of a 'boss'. A lot of westeners are under the mistaken belief that geishas are the equivalent of prostitutes, but there is no 'romance' as they say here, in a geisha's work. They play music, they sing and they perform tea ceremonies. That's about it. As a very last thing for the day, we got a chance to see some local artisans working gold to transform it into gold leaf. It is one of the local crafts here in Kanazawa. It takes a lot of patience and a long time… Taking a taxi back was a bit of an adventure as Yukara attempted to use a taxi app for the first time, but as always, we did find our way home. Roberta had been told about Kanazawa’s cab season and therefore I made an attempt to find a crab restaurant. Unfortunately, the crab season starts on the 7th of November...so no luck! We went next door where there was a food court (but with proper restaurants) and we elected to try Yakitori (skewers/spiedini). They had allsorts: liver ones, chicken skin, small intestine, chicken neck, chicken tails etc. I am only listing the weird ones of course, which are the ones we avoided! The guy looking after us, Yuto (like in Yuto Nagatomo - ex Inter player), turned out to be a Brighton FC supporter! (they apparently have a japanese player in the team). Quick coffee at Starbucks and bed for us. We have a leisurely day tomorrow, as we will take a bullet train to Kyoto lateish in the morning, and have the rest of the day in total relax. Goodnight!
Kyoto - 1st November 2023
Relax, relax and relax
We had a relaxed start to the day. And a choice for breakfast! A change from the last two Japanese traditional breakfasts. We took the bullet train to Kyoto: Thunderbird 16! Getting to the platform was relatively easy despite the luggage and Bertie. However, the carriages were not lined up as indicated on the platform and I ended up having to walk through 8 carriages twice with all our belongings and Bertie whilst Roberta looked at me as if I was about to keel over any minute. But that was as stressy as it got for the day. The seats in green class were so comfortable that you would have wanted the journey to last longer as we dozed off. We found a taxi driver in Kyoto who was overly concerned about his car being scratched by other people handling luggage, but the flip side was that he did everything for us. He wouldn’t even let the hotel staff help him when he was unloading. The Seiryu is a notch above the Centric class wise but on amenities and room size they both excel. Our room is huge! Check in was a little painful as there is a time for everything (turn down in the evening, cleaning of the room etc.). And they wanted me to choose…. The hotel is an old school so it’s full o& character. We had lunch in house and relaxed for the afternoon (Roberta slept soundly). It’s been a great trip but a little tiring for everyone involved. Even for Bertie.!
Dinner
I wouldn’t normally dedicate a chapter to a meal, but: a) we didn’t go walkabout, b) the meal was outstanding! Before leaving I had booked a couple of restaurants and Mouryia Gion was one of them. It specialises in kobe beef. We took a taxi there (it’s a short ride) and from beginning to end, the experience was excellent. We sat at a counter with our own little chef. The combination of his skills and the quality of the kobe meat (we tried sirloin and fillet as well as foie gras) was a match made in heaven. Even the side dishes were great. I decided to have a glass of sake and the waiter brought a little square wooden box and a small shot type glass. He then returned with a bottled and poured sake in the small glass until the overflow filled the box also. He explained that once I had finished the sake in the glass I should refill it with the sake in the box. Peculiar but funny. I’m not a fan of sake but even that tasted great tonight. The chef interacted a little with us (it’s all limited by the language barrier of course) and gave suggestions (instructions
really) on what should be eaten with what. Even the dessert was nice! A kind of lemon sorbet/ice cream with Japanese pear, grapes and persimmon (the hard kind and not the squashed type). So far the best meal we have had in Japan. And that’s it really. There’s a private event in the hotel tonight so I had a nice hot bath and I’m off to bed. Tomorrow we meet our last guide for this trip and he will spend the next two days with us. He’s also the first male guide! A domani…
Kyoto - 2nd November 2023
Orange is the new black
We had a very full day today! So much so that Bertie, despite my taking over a few times, run out of juice as we walked through the hotel back to our room. But, this was our chance to see some of the highlights of Kyoto. We started off with the Kiyomizudera Temple whose claim to fame appears to be its veranda. Unfortunately it was also the start of what proved to be a very tiring day for Roberta (and for me). A lot of steps, a lot of gravel which made Bertie work a lot harder etc. Also, I believe I have never seen so many schoolchildren all in one place. There were tens of groups of ten little mongrels in uniform! We were lucky enough to see a musical performance on one of the pavillions whilst there. But rest is for the wicked, so we jumped on a taxi to the Fushimi Inari Shrine, most famous for its 1,000 plus vermilion shrine gates. Amazing place. Mainly businesses donate money to have one erected in their names as it brings luck with business. The bigger ones are donations of around 100,000$, but the small ones go for about 10,000$. So, if you are ever inclined to do anything in that direction, you now have a rough idea. A lot of walking here also (it couldn’t be avoided unfortunately), but Roberta was a trooper…on the other hand, moving Bertie up and down steps was not as much fun as one would think. A side note: now and again some pitiful soul would help out. But you know that it was mostly women??? Go figure… we braved the train (quite handy) and went to Kyoto’s main station to have lunch as it was on the way to our next stop. We had ramen with pork (a Kyoto speciality), but I didn’t realise how spicy my choice was going to be. Still, it turned out to be a great meal, and for £3, honestly, you wouldn’t be able to eat in many places in Europe. So, next!
Golden moments
We took a bus to go to the Kinkakuji Temple, better known as the Golden Pavilion. What a sight. A specialised artisan checks every night the state of the gold and makes any adjustments. It is covered by the many little squares of gold leaf we saw being produced in Kanazawa (not sure they would be from there though). Definitely worth a visit if you are ever down this way. Our penultimate stop was the Arashiyama Bamboo Forest. This is just a beautifully peaceful place, were it not for the thousands of people walking every path! We left the chaos behind, but I beli I must have created confusion with Shogo (our guide). I seem to have forgotten to introduce him. He’s a very softly spoken man (in fact a grandfather to four grandchildren). He’s been the most prepared guide so far (he’s our last one) as he has prepared material with even a time sheet for our schedule and another one showing how what we are seeing interacts in the various periods of Japan’s history. Still, it transpired that I managed to confuse him. The one issue with all the guides we have had is that their english is on average pretty good, but sometimes you need to repeat things two or three times to be sure they have understood. He had proposed going to a market and then back to the hotel, but I spent 20 minutes explaining that as we had decided to take a day off from sightseeing the day before, we hadn’t had a chance to see Gion (the Geisha district). And, that after that my plan was to go and have dinner in Pontocho alley (a narrow street full of restaurants and bars) and one of the most atmospheric street in all of Kyoto. When we got to Gion, he turned around and went towards Pontocho. I believe he even added: ah of course you have seen Gion! Another 10 minutes of explaining and FINALLY, off we went to one of the main streets in that area. He had explained about Maikos and Geikos (the former are Geishas in training and the latter have experience). Unfortunately Roberta had not been listening. So after he had taken us to one of the houses were some Maikos were being trained (you only know that because you see a little block of wood outside with some Japanese writing on it (I presume their names), Roberta turned round to me (I am still laughing as I wrote it) and asked: who is this Michael? Just hilarious… as Geishas live their homes at around 5.30/6pm to do their work, sometimes you are lucky enough to run across them. We let Shogo go home for the night (he looked a little perplexed still at my idea of us finding our way to Ponchoko and then take a taxi home) and waited around. Sure enough I caught a glimpse of one and turned Bertie around and run to catch up with her. It was a little bit like an american film police chase as we came across a group and going through with Bertie was not easy. We saw her go into a garden and then a house, but I was a little too slow with my camera. However, two minutes later, another Geisha went in the same door and I managed to take a photo although only from behind as we only saw her at the last minute. So, all in all, quite a successful trip to Gion! Tired but a little hungry we moved on to Ponchoko alley. And you know what? As we were searching for sushi, Roberta saw another one! As for teh alley itself, it would have been easier to search for a place that had kobe beef! To find sa simple nigiri place was quite an effort. But with google’s help (we had failed on our own), we found Sushi Tetsu. There was a queue. You needed to write your name on a piece o& paper at the entrance and then as tables opened up, the waiter would come out and get you in the strict order with which the names were written down. We waited a good half hour or so, maybe a little longer, and whilst waiting we realised why there was such demand for this place. It was very very cheap! In fact it was a place for young people, possibly students. We had no strength to look for somewhere else so ended up having the worst meal of the trip so far. The quality of the fish was poor to say the least. The salmon was actually chewy! We ate a little and left. A taxi and voilà: back at the hotel. Till tomorrow folks…goodnight!
Nara and Osaka - 3rd November 2023
Osaka
We started off today still a little tired from yesterday. But, we had exciting plans: Osaka and Nara in one day! Obviously just some highlights as the time at our disposal is now quickly running out. We moved around with the Metro and local trains (as well as a couple of taxis) and made our first stop at Osaka Castle. It’s very beautiful and it is set in a pretty big park. The castle is one of the most famous and important buildings in Japan. I should also say that today was a National Holiday in Japan: culture day. This meant that although we didn’t come across any schoolchildren (or at least not with their schools), we were surrounded by families and the crowds were as plentiful as yesterday. However, luckily, the place has wheelchair access to all floors. This meant that we had no stress with stairs and that (flipside of the medal) we jumped all queues. Result! Our next visit was to Doutonbory Street. So colourful and japanesey looking! It's a bustling area of restaunts and bars. Some have the food they offer as a big thing hanging off the front of the building. It reminds me a little of Carnaby Street where sometimes you see shoes sticking out of the storefront in place of a shop sign. It becomes particularly alive in the evening, but I can assure you that it was pretty lively at lunch! We fortunately decided early on to stop off to eat at a pancake place (japanese pancakes are made with rice flour and filled with all sorts of things). By the time we had finished, there were ridiculous queues for any of the eateries around: for octopus balls, sushi, pancakes, cakes, hot dogs, etc. To say it was crowded is really downplaying it. Imagine being at a concert or at the entrance of a stadium. Not very dissimilar to that... How were the pancakes I hear you ask? Actually not bad. The place is run by a chap who takes in young people who have had trouble with the law and gives them a second chance and teaches them a job. Nice! Goodbye Osaka! Hello Nara!
Nara and the Bambis...
Nara deserved more time and a less crowded day for us to have a real opinion on the place, but it is what it is. We had an afternoon. And Bertie was about to give up on us battery wise. This meant that we did see the giant Buddah (the biggest in Japan standing at about 15 metres) at the Todaiji temple, and that we were forced in taking a picture with two of the ugliest fake Geishas we've see so far. I believe Shogo may have believed that we wanted a photo with local constumes. As we walked around the park on our way to the Kasuga shrine, we were surrounded by deer. When I had read about Nara, I had been left under the impression that we would see deer roaming around happily jumping around in the park. The reality was a bit sad: because of the tourists feeding the deer, they seem to have become like pets hanging around waiting to be fed. Halfway to Kasuga Bertie's batteries gave up on us. So it all became very hard work, especially because we had to go uphill and it was a pretty warm day. At the torii gate we left Roberta to have a drink and I went ahead to visit the shrine with the guide. As it turned out, it would have been unthinkable for Bertie and Roberta to even attempt to visit the place. Zero wheelchair access. It was all about stairs. The shrine was built for family use so it wasn't particularly big. It did have a lot (and I mean a lot) of lamps. Both in stone walking up to it, than in metal (gold and bronze) inside the complex. Very pretty. And that was really it for Nara. We caught a bus back to the JR station and caught a train (although I should really say two trains) back to Kyoto. Shogo seemed a little bit lost in the afternoon in the stations, and it was not different for the return journey. He seemed to have long conversations with the station staff as to what train to take. Back in Kyoto's station we said our goodbyes to the old chap (he's actually 71 and before retiring he spent 40 years as a teacher), and had a quick look around the shopping centre and eventually made our way to a sushi restaurant on the top floor to grab some dinner before going back to the hotel. We had to wait in an orderly queue but this time it wasn't too bad. And the sushi was toooooooop! So this is it for Kyoto. Off to bed. We leave in the morning for Hiroshima with one of the many bullet trains: the Nozomi.
Hiroshima - 4th November 2023
Nozomi fun
We are still recovering from the last two very busy days in Kyoto and therefore, we kept today light (at least physically). We made our way to the station to catch our bullet train to Hiroshima. And we had a ‘Japanese moment’. I had actually bought the last two rides for the bullet trains online and all we needed to do was to use the QR code to board. But, we were stopped at the ticket barrier and held there (for our own safety was the explanation) for about 10 minutes. As we always have to account for Bertie, our luggage and elevators, I was getting concerned that we might end up missing the train. Eventually they waved us on and we made our way to platform 14. After a while one of the guys we had a conversation (I use this very loosely) with at the ticket barrier turned up with an older colleague with a small ramp (they are always very kind, so they had come to make things easier with Bertie on boarding). All of a sudden, the older chap indicated that we should move to wait at a different carriage: carriage number 9. Now, we were in carriage number 10. How do I know that? Because I booked it and it was clearly stated (amongst the Japanese wording) that we were boarding the Nozomi 9, in carriage 10 and seats 4C and 4D. It took 10 minutes to explain this. They couldn’t read their own tickets! Once it became clear even to them that we were all waiting for the Nozomi 9 an not carriage 9, we got a long ‘aaaaaaaaaaaah’ from the older gentleman. The name of the train was clearly displayed on the board on the platform! All’s well that ends well and by 11 we were in Hiroshima. The hotel was right outside the station (which makes it also easy for tomorrow’s ride back to Tokyo), so we dropped the bags off and guess what: we went for lunch! I fear probably our last local sushi…
Ring the bell for peace
In Hiroshima, our sole purpose was to visit the A-Bomb Dome and the Peace Memorial Park. It was a profoundly emotional experience to stand in a place that was once devastated by the very first atomic bomb, resulting in the loss of 140,000 lives. The Peace Memorial Museum displayed haunting images, both photos and videos, reminding us of the horrifying consequences of war. It's disheartening to realize that despite our tragic history, we seem to have failed to learn from it, as conflicts still persist globally. The geo-political situation remains alarming, and countless innocent lives continue to be tragically lost. In the midst of this sorrow, we found solace in a symbolic gesture within the park: a bell, erected as a plea for peace. Visitors were encouraged to ring it, and I did so, hoping for a world free from violence and conflict. Although I haven't visited Auschwitz, I've heard that the emotions stirred by such a visit are similarly intense. It's a stark reminder of the depths of human cruelty, yet it appears that these lessons have not prevented us from repeating history. The cycle of violence persists, and it's a sobering realization of our collective failure to learn from the most horrific events of our past.
Dinner time
I had booked a nice teppanyaki dinner for our last night in Japan. And we were going to try a local delicacy . Something that I read is very sought after: abalone. Fortunately, we also had Japanese lobster and Kobe beef to make up for the experiment! We have really enjoyed the times that we have exploited this ‘chef all to yourself’ type of meal. We did it a couple of times in Tokyo (sushi based) and tonight. The dialogue (limited as t is by the language) and the personal touch really make an evening. So: the abalone. What does it taste like? It has the consistency/chewiness of octopus, but it doesn’t have a particularly strong flavour. It is however very ugly to look at. Not appealing lets say… But, still glad we tried it. The lobster and the kobe beef were more in our cords, and they were spectacular.
Miyajima island - 5th November 2023
The floating Torii
25 degrees and sunshine on the 5th of November. The seasons have changed indeed! Roberta was a bit dubious on the trip to the island just across Hiroshima, but how could you stay inside on such a beautiful day? So we packed our things up (we will be leaving by bullet train for Tokyo to catch our flight back in the afternoon), jumped in a taxi and went off to the ferry. My compliments go again to the Japanese people, as they have made sure that the ferries to the island and indeed from the train station (should you go by train) are stepless. It made today so much easier for all three of us. The floating Torii is beautiful, I have little else to say. And as it was a Sunday on the back of a holiday, it was also very crowded. We snapped away and decided to forego the shrine itself (we have seen many) and took a walk down Omotesando street instead (shops and restaurants). I confess we did a little more shopping for stuff we do not need, tried out the local cake (a maple leaf shaped cake that comes in different flavours). Once we got back to mainland, we made a tiny little mistake: instead of going all the way to the train station itself (which would have been just a little further on), we saw what looked like a train to Hiroshima station right outside the ferry terminal and got on that. As it turned out we had got on a tram, and instead of getting to the station in 25 minutes, we did it in an hour and a quarter. Luckily we were not in a rush. And as we were being dropped off at the station where there is a whole mall of eateries, we had our last gyoza meal there, and bought some sushi to take on the longish train ride for dinner.
Going home…
And this is it… We took the long nosed bullet train to Tokyo (Nozomi) where we’ll be catching our BA flight to London. I will then say goodbye to my sister and Bertie. We couldn’t have done half the stuff we did without its help. Thank you Bertie! And thank you Robi!
Things we have learned:
- Everyone is exceptionally kind and will go out of their way to help you (even when they can’t)
- The word no is rarely used, yes on the other hand is a permanent fixture in a conversation
- Even a very short question will be met with a very long answer (in Japanese)
- Odd numbers are preferred to even ones and 4 is particularly unlucky
- Don’t bother to ask how much something like a taxi ride might cost as no one will commit to even a range of pricing
- Life and people in Japan are exactly like in cartoons from back in 70s and 80s
- Avoid committing to a Japanese breakfast
- Do not bring pyjamas with you to Japan as you will always be provided with one
- Eat a lot of tuna. You will never eat anything like that outside of Japan
But, first and foremost: visit Japan!
