Arrival in a new world
June 9, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C
It's around 09:30 local time in Tokyo when our flight starts its final descent into Tokyo Haneda airport. The sun has risen not too long before in the land where we'll soon set foot in.
During the approach we try to get a first glimpse of what "the other side of the world" looks like. Before touchdown we see an impression of the vast size of Tokyo under a rather clouded sky. The clock hits 09:50 and we arrive on Japanese soil, ready to start our adventure.
Despite being on a huge aircraft (B748 operated by Lufthansa), we don't get the impression that the arrival hall is being flooded with people. Soon after disembarking, we arrive to the custom section where part of the crowd is split up by those not having completed the pre-registration form. Shortly after showing our passports, we're granted entry to the country.
Two tips of advice here for future travelers: make sure to complete the online pre-registration form as it will allow you to clear customs quicker. Secondly, make sure you pass through a manned gate when clearing customs if you intend on using the JR-Pass or any other variant of the JR-Pass. In order to pick-up these passes, you need to show your passport with a valid stamp or sticker. The automated gated obviously don't provide these.
Whilst we're waiting for our bags to arrive, we have to scan our passports another time by ourselves at one of the digital machines in the same area where the bags arrive. At first, we were a bit confused as we just cleared customs, but there were some airport employees walking around notifying everyone of this procedure. This is also the first time we noticed a difference from a lot of European countries that would prove to be present during our entire trip: people walking around with signs to inform tourists/guests. Whereas in Belgium a lot of these jobs would be replaced by a fixed sign, in Japan employees are performing what look to be very basic tasks.
With our luggage collected, we headed into the arrival lobby and quickly found a lady holding a sign for our group taxi shuttle downtown. As we were waiting for the other tourists to arrive, we roamed a bit through the hall to see if we could quickly find a vending machine that sells IC-cards.
An IC-card is an electronic card that you can buy all over Japan that is used for a variety of things. Although the name varies from region to region, a card bought in Tokyo can easily be used in Kyoto or even at the other side of the country. Because of a computer chip shortage, the distribution of these cards to tourists has greatly decreased around the time we visited Japan. Only tourist versions (valid for only a couple of weeks) are available at specific locations. For example, the airport. Luckily, iPhone users can now add a virtual IC-card to their Apple Wallet removing the need for a physical card.
We didn't find a vending machine for IC-cards at first sight and didn't want to walk too far away so that the lady of our taxi could easily find us.
Soon after, she came back to us and telling us very politely that we are ready to go. We followed her along to the exit of the airport. She took great care not to walk too fast and checking regularly if we were all still following along.
Near the parking lot, she dropped us off with the cab driver and made a deep bow to thank us. The driver loaded our luggage in the van and together with our other tourists (an Italian couple) we headed off to Tokyo downtown.
During the ride to our hotel, we took in every little detail. Driving on the left hand side of the road, new road markings, well maintained roads, a lot of viaducts and bridges,...
About 30 minutes later, we arrive at our hotel in Tokyo's Ginza district. Ginza is known as a shopping neighborhood.
As it was still too early to check-in to our room, we left our luggage in the hotel lobby.
In Japan, check-in times are often very strictly adhered to. Sometimes it's even entirely digital via a machine, preventing you to receive your room key card before a certain time.
The reception staff was super friendly and provided us with our pre-ordered portable WiFi. With a connection to the outside world, we started looking in the hotel lobby on where to find those precious IC-cards. Rather quickly, and with the help of the hotel staff, we realized that the digital version through the Apple Wallet would be the most convenient solution. I managed to set up the card quickly and link it with my credit card. Ann had some issues, as she didn't have a credit card connected yet in her Apple Wallet and therefore couldn't connect the IC-card with it. Adding a credit card abroad wasn't an option as we needed the physical card connector to validate the process. The hotel staff was clearly concerned about our struggles to achieve an IC-card and helped a big deal with providing possible solutions (visit a local store to buy Apple Music credits that could be transferred to the Apple Wallet, or maybe buying a physical card in the main train station of Tokyo, etc etc).
Without success, we decided to no longer waste time in the hotel lobby and get out there to explore.
Armed with our cameras, we headed out to discover the Ginza district. Because it's Sunday, the main street (Chuo Dori), is closed for traffic. We can freely roam the wide street and take in the tall buildings around us. The street is a mixture of shops, office buildings, shopping centers. We come across the Ginza Six shopping center: a modern looking building with inside equally modern architecture. We enter to see the modern central hall and to discover the rooftop terrace. Some escalators and elevators later we arrive to the rooftop garden. An oasis of green, benches and water fountains where some kids are playing, greet us. Weird to see such place on top of such a busy center, but at the same time it provides a very nice place of tranquility in a busy environment. By the way, the elevators taking us to the rooftop had employees in front of them to guide the people in and out the elevator in an orderly manner.
We walk around the rooftop garden and enjoy some views down in Chuo Dori street. A bit further down the road, we already spot the Seiko House. The most iconic building in the street and Japan's famous watch brand. Inside is a store as well as the Seiko museum.
Back on the main street, we spotted some other major stores such as Nissan and Sony. The first Seven Eleven store we came across, we stopped to get some cash money. Those convenience stores will prove to be a solid backbone for your trip: food, money, drinks,... indispensable and always open!
Don't be fooled by the overall modernness of Japan. Cash is still king in this country and not all stores accept credit cards. Be sure to carry some cash with you at all times. At the same time, you can sometimes pay with your IC-card as well at vending machines, convenience stores, etc.
As we were in the vicinity of Tokyo Station, we headed there in the hope to find a physical IC-card for Ann.
After having found an entrance to this huge space that occupies Tokyo Station, we went looking for a desk that could sell these cards. In the end, we asked the JR-Central info desk, and they confirmed our fear that due to the chip-shortage there are no more cards on sale. Only at the airport you can buy the limited version for tourists.
Disheartened, we went back outside and sat down on a bench to contemplate our options. Buying separate tickets for the entire trip or heading back to the airport to buy one over there. Because of the huge comfort of such a card, we decided to head back to the airport and try our luck over there...
The ticket vending machine at Tokyo Station took another few minutes of our time. We had to figure out which machines sell what kind of tickets. But in the end, a machine with a user-friendly interface managed to get us tickets to the airport. Google Maps helped us in no-time to select the correct trains and a couple of minutes later we stepped on the first subway back to the airport.
We headed back to the arrival hall and went looking for the vending machine. Rather quickly we found the machine and to our surprise we could buy a PASMO-card. This is also an IC-card, but not even the tourist version that was eligibly only available. With Ann equipped with a physical IC-card, and myself with the digital one, now we are ready to tackle Tokyo and Japan!
From the airport, we headed to the area just north of Tokyo Station: Akihabara. It's known as the electronic district as well as anime and manga. Getting of the train clearly brings us in a different environment: the fancy stores have made room for tall buildings, full of advertisements, electronic stores on different levels and posters for maid cafés. We stroll through the neighborhood and are a bit blown away by the fanatic liveliness. There's an exhibition for a game (we think) that draws a lot of people around. Many of them are dressed like characters from games or movies. It's impressive, and we get a doze of the what we call Japan-craziness-vibe.
After strolling through the main streets of the district, we head back in the subway to head to the district just south of our hotel: shiodome.
This is a less touristic or known area which a lot of corporate buildings in it. High skyscrapers make the office buildings for the Nippon TV Tower, the most popular television channel in Japan. Another tall building is the Caretta Shiodome that, with its 51 floors, forms a mixture of cinema, office buildings, shopping center and restaurants.
In fact, we had some difficulty getting through or around certain buildings. Japan is world class in separating pedestrian streams for motorized traffic by routing pedestrians under-, over or through buildings. Without exaggerating, you can spend up to 10 minutes walking underground before reaching an exit that takes you above ground. Google Maps does an amazing job in guiding you, although sometimes it requires great skill to interpret the different ground layers.
We wanted to visit the Hama Rikyu Park just before closing time to enjoy some quietness at the end of our long day. By the time we navigated through the maze of office buildings and highways, we arrived at the park shortly before closing time. We turned back and enjoyed the rest of the neighborhood. Before heading back to the hotel, we grabbed our dinner in a small street restaurant in an area that is famous for its izakaya. Izakaya is a sort of tapas: a series of smaller bites that you can share without any fancy restaurant looks. Perfect for our first meal in Japan!
The staff didn't speak any English, so we were forced to use Google Translate to understand the menu and order food/drinks. Luckily many of the menus have pictures, so you can at least point to what you want. It feels a bit distant to type and translate what you want to order, but in the end, it did the job.
After paying in cash (tipping is not done in Japan!) we headed back to the hotel to check-in to our hotel room. The hotel staff was clearly surprised we had to go all the way back to the airport to get an IC-card but was also relieved to hear we got it!
It's been an extremely long day since our last decent amount of sleep, but we're very happy to have done so much during our first day. We're ready to explore more of this thriving city tomorrow!Read more
Tokyo: a city of diversity
June 10, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C
We were tired enough to sleep in well, but our biorhythm isn't adjusted yet to sleep long. Nevertheless, we both slept well and caught our necessary Z's to start the new day full of energy. We wake around 07:00 and to our great surprise, no jetlag issues so far!
We head downstairs to the breakfast area. An employee graciously welcomes us and takes our breakfast vouchers. We discover the breakfast buffet with a mixture of Japanese and Western style options ranging from croissants to hot sausages and rice dishes. We stick with our Belgian routines and go for a bowl of granola with yoghurt or milk and a croissant. With some scrambled eggs we don't take the step into classic Asian breakfast yet. One has to grow slowly... right?
With some jummy in our tummy, we head out to discover our first full day in Tokyo. We go to the nearest subway station and have to check a few times where to cross the road in order to get on the pedestrian overpass taking us across some busy roads. Once arrived in the subway station we discover the ease of the IC-cards and the automated gates. Just a tap when you enter a station, and another tap when you exit the station. The system deducts the fare amount and subtracts that from your IC-card. In case you don't have enough balance left for the journey, there are fare adjustment machines in every station to top up your IC-card. Efficiency and comfort.
Most gates also work in both directions adjusting easily to the passenger flow in morning or evening rush. Speaking of rush hour, in the subway station, we notice quite quickly we're in the middle of the busiest city on Earth. Having said that, people keep to the left hand side. Don't run or rush. In other words: it works. On the platform there are markings on the ground to illustrate where to stand for a carriage to arrive and allow the exiting flow enough room to vacate the carriage. Unlike Belgian subways or trains, every subway stops in exactly the same spot, so (de)boarding can be predicted.
We follow the lead of some Japanese people and orderly board the next train to Sensoji. One of Tokyo's most famous temples. On the train we immediately notice the quietness. Everyone is on their phones. They don't talk (or do so quietly), they have their backpacks in front of them. It's an awkward feeling, but at the same time very pleasant. You can simply feel the respect for another being.
We exit the subway and are not far from Sensoji temple. It's only 08:30 so most of the stores leading up to the temple are not even open yet. It provides an opportunity to see the temple with less people than in a couple of hours. Sensoji is what many other temples in Japan will still be: gracious by itself and in its architecture. The dark red paint with the black tiled roof provide a classic yet beautiful view. Especially the pagoda next to the temple makes a nice combination of buildings.
At one point, a man asks us to take a picture of him in front of the temple with one of those retro film wind and rewind cameras. Instant nostalgia! And also, a little pressure to take the good shot.
We read and learn a bit about the habits of placing a wish in a coin locker. The ritual for washing your hands and mouth at one of the fountains and the clapping in front of the altar. We walk around and enjoy the atmosphere and incense filled air. By the time we end our visit, the main street leading up to the temple has opened most of their stores and the number of tourists has doubled as well. We stop for a quick visit in the tourist information center because it offers a nice view on the shopping street and temple. From the viewing platform you can also see the Asahi beer tower and Tokyo Skytree (the latter you can actually see from many places in the city).
Having inaugurated our first Japanese temple, we head to the river side to take a short walk in Sumida Park before heading over to the Tokyo Skytree. From the riverside we get some other nice views on the Asahi Beer tower with the golden flame (or golden poop, depending on how you look at it) on top of it. Asahi is Japan's own beer brand with the main building here in Tokyo.
Soon after, we arrive at the base of the Tokyo Skytree. Of course, one does not simply walk in at street level. You have to take some escalators up, then proceed to the West Main Entrance or whatever in order to get in. It's not busy and we can quickly buy a ticket from the vending machine without waiting in line.
Tip for future travelers: check the weather forecast a couple of days beforehand and decide if you want to visit the Skytree. Tickets are cheaper if you buy them beforehand.
With our ticket we go to one of the elevators that takes us up to the 350th floor (350m). This is the base viewing gallery. Another elevator will take us even further up to the 450th floor (450m). It's interesting how agents manage the tourist flow and count the number of people to wait for a certain elevator. Again... it's all very efficient and it works. Before we the doors of the elevator close, the agent guiding us into the elevator provides a brief explanation of the artwork inside the elevator and the lights that are visible through the glass part of the elevator roof. Perfectly timed to make a deep bow at the end when the doors close.
In no time the elevator rushes to the 350th floor and we're welcomed by an amazing view over the city. On a clear day, you can even see Mt. Fuji from here. But unfortunately, there are too many clouds or it's too hazy to see the famous mountain. Nevertheless, the vast city underneath our feet is equally impressive! We go around, enjoy the views and go further to the 450m. Which is... in my opinion little difference from the 350m. On the way down you make another stop at the intermediate floor where there's a glass floor section as well where you can stand on.
With our both feet back on ground level, we head back over the river to the west. Direction of Ueno park but making sure to pass by Kappabashi. A street or area that is famous for all restaurant necessities. Ranging from cutlery, plates, fish tanks, advertisement signs, and of course: the iconic plastic plates. In Japan, a lot of restaurants have a replica of certain dishes stalled outside. It's a real "sport" to make those dishes as realistic as possible. Walking through the street we're baffled by how many different types of dishes we see and the detail that's in it.
After having gone up and down the main street in kappabashi, we continue our journey to Ueno Park. Ueno is a huge park, next to a train station with a museum, and even a zoo inside. It's around noon, and our stomach is starting to complain it wants some new food. After having found the entrance to Ueno Park, we head to a food court inside the park. Three floors, all stacked with little restaurants. Because we don't really know what we like in Japanese kitchen, we select a restaurant solely based on the pictures on the menu. In hindsight we think this was probably a Chinese restaurant... A bit of a bummer for your first real day in Japan. Nevertheless, the food was amazing!
After our lunch, and hopefully not entire disgrace for our eating style, we discover the park. There's a huge statue of a whale next to the museum. We skip the zoo and walk choose the route along a small temple/shrine with some tori gates in front.
Because the park is slightly less impressive than anticipated, we decide to return to Hama Rikyu Park that was to closing time yesterday. With a train station just next to Ueno, we're in no-time near the park. We also know how to walk the maze of under- and overpasses to get there well before closing time.
Hama Rikyu is nice. It gives me certain Central Park vibes from Manhattan with the tall skyscrapers of the shiodome district around. On the other side, the park is cornered by a river and the ocean. All the ponds in the park are also connected with the ocean so are fluctuating with the tide. It's a calm place with birds, lots of green areas and nice trees. We enjoy the scenery, eat a biscuit on a bench and reflect on all the different things we've already seen in this world of its own.
When the park is about to close, we head back to the hotel to take a few minutes of break. We plan to have dinner tonight in the same area as Sensoji temple. Reason is twofold: one, we can see the temple at night when it's nicely lit. Secondly, we read about a nice restaurant in the vicinity of the temple.
When crossing the skyscraper Caretta Shiodome, we head up to the top floor to get another nice view of the neighborhood and the park we just visited. It's really baffling how many new things you discover here: a floor of restaurants, some shopping stores, the cinema.
After a refreshing shower and some relaxing, we head back out to the same area we visited this morning. It's crazy how the atmosphere has changed and there are many small restaurants with cosy lights outside. Despite our information online, the restaurant we looked for was closed. So... we had another look online and found a nice sushi-place not too far away. Although our feet hurt from an entire day of walking, the sushi-restaurant had standing places only. It was super tiny with only a few places around the counter behind which the chefs prepared the fresh sushi. We were a bit stressed, because we don't want to make a bad impression, but at the same time, we have little to no experience in Japanese cuisine. I think the story of our lunch meal proofs as much.
We had a great time. The people were very nice and the sushi absolutely delicious. We had a variety of different types and enjoyed every single bite of it. The restaurant wasn't cheap, but also not crazy expensive. We knew up front that this would be a rather high-end sushi meal. So... whenever visiting Japan: be advised that there are a ton of different types of sushi-restaurants with their own prices and quality.
Another little funny thing is that you almost always get some matcha-tea. The cup, hot water, matcha powder, etc are available at your table, or counter in this case. It's a bit weird when they ask you what you want to drink, because combing a soda with some hot tea is sometimes a bit weird.
After our delightful meal, we walked over the Sensoji temple grounds and enjoyed the temple in a different setting. There were also way less people, so we can actually recommend going there at night. We also got another view on the illuminated Skytree that apparently has a different color theme every night.
Tired from another full day of walking (30.000 steps), we head back to the Ginza subway station. We walk the shopping street at night towards our hotel and for the second time in a row, we quickly fall asleep knowing that tomorrow, our feet will really hurt.Read more
The city of millions
June 11, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C
After a good night's sleep, we wake again around 07:00 to have breakfast around 07:30 and start exploring the city at 08:00. Things work out well and whilst we enjoy our bowl of cereals, we test the Japanese yoghurt and milk from Hokkaido cows. It tastes different than in Belgium but not bad at all.
Strengthened with a good breakfast, we set out for the same subway station in the vicinity of our hotel. We start to know the route to get there in the most efficient manner. Cross the road over here, take the overpass over there. The first few days, taking the subway and trains proved more difficult than anticipated. In fact, it's not that complicated, but it's all just way bigger than in Europe. Finding the right exit can be a bit overwhelming as it's not uncommon to walk for a few hundreds of meters underground before hitting the surface again. For example: take exit 18A can leave you with some walking distance. Luckily, the corridors aren't all grey and dark. On the contrary, they're often large halls with stores inside. Ranging from clothing stores to restaurants. Once you get the hang of it, you're not losing any time to get on the right subway.
We take the subway line in the direction of Shibuya district. This section of town is known for its fashion and culture. But you also find the world-famous Shibuya-scramble crossing here; the pedestrian crossing where up to 3000 people can cross each time the light turns green.
In the vicinity of the train station, there's the famous statue of Hachi the dog. We used Google Maps to locate the statue, and to try and get us to take the most convenient exit. However, there were a lot of construction works going on in the station and despite some specific signs to the famous spot, we had some issues finding it. Finally, our eye catches the famous dog in a little tranquil park-like spot. It's easy to overlook as well in the vastness of its surroundings.
After having greeted our four-legged friend, we inspect the Shibuya-crossing itself which is also just a stone throw away from the station itself. I think rush hour has just passed and it's rather calm at the crossing. We've read that there's a good viewpoint from the Starbucks store across the road. We locate the Starbucks logo rather quickly, but finding the entrance to the place turns out slightly more difficult. We have to enter what looks like a car showroom in order to enter the building, and then make our way up to the correct floor. The American brand is well established here in Japan. We often joked about "probably there will be a Starbucks just around the corner..." and more often than not that was in fact the case.
We order a refreshing drink and keep a good watch on the crossing. From time to time there's a bigger bunch of people crossing. It's fun to watch, and I can imagine that during rush hour this must be impressive. Having finished our ice coffee, we start exploring the streets in the vicinity.
There are lots of stores in the neighborhood and once again we're sure we're only seeing a part of it. Some stores are on a higher floor that is less visible from the street. Tokyo really is city of different levels.
We make a little detour around "love hill" where there are a lot of little hotels that offer rooms ranging from a few hours to the entire night. The advertisement is sometimes a bit weird as you can even upgrade your room with a television and/or shower.
We continue our walk along electronic stores, luna park like stores and comic stores. Every now and then we're amazed by the things you can buy here. Entire stores that look like a luna park that you'd only find at a fare in Belgium embody over here sometimes up to 4 floors of a building.
We leave the neighborhood at the Miyashita Park. Not a park at ground level, no no, on the top floor of large construction. On top there's even a small climbing area, skate park, tennis court,...
It's starting to become very hot in the direct sun, and the rooftop doesn't provide much shade, so after having walked back and forth, we head back down to street level and take a little break. Whilst we're having a sip of our water bottle, a group dressed up in funny costumes and driving a Mario Kart pass by on the street.
Having refreshed a bit, we continue to the north and enter the Harajuku district which is well known for 3 things: the omotesando, takeshita dori and yoyogi park.
The omotesando is referred to as 'The Champs Elysées" of Tokyo. It's a wide lane with trees on either side and with fancy stores like Louis Vuitton, Hilfiger, Hugo Boss, etc.
In the beginning of the street there are two artful buildings: Paramount and Tokyu Plaza. They have a lot of glass in their architecture and despite Tokyu Plaza being almost entirely rebranded by Starbucks, it still provides some nice pictures. Especially if you go up the escalators of the Tokyu Plaza.
We quickly stop at a Seven Eleven store to buy a bento box: a little on the go meal box that we plan to eat later on in the park.
From the fancy stores we head to Takeshita Dori, a little street marked by metal arches on either end and the place for teenager and teenager stuff. Candy in every color of the rainbow, clothes, little toys and dolls, and of course: luna parks. It's amazing to just walk through this street. You can almost hear girls giggling.
From the busy streets and blazing sun, we seek shelter in yoyogi park. A large park with on the one side a shrine and large thick trees and on the other side a more grassy like section. We start looking for a place to eat our bento box, but there are very few benches and there are no-eating signs at the entrance of the park. Luckily, there's a restaurant/store with a terrace in the park and we find a free chair on their terrace to eat our meal.
For those questioning the quality of the meals bought in convenience stores: they're actually very good! You get a proper meal for a decent price. They provide you with chopsticks and a napkin. It's a perfect way to have lunch!
After our lunch, we head further into the park to see the Meiji Shrine. Just before entering the main shrine, there's a garden area that has a lot of iris flowers in it. Because the flowers are at full bloom in June, we decide to have a look in the garden. It's beautiful and tranquil. A pond, a teahouse, the flowers.
Meiji Shrine itself is also very spectacular. Large wooden gates and buildings and huge tori gates to welcome you to the shrine grounds. We can see a little part of a ceremony that's being held and stroll around some sacred trees that have many wooden plaques hanging around it with people's wishes or gratitude.
We exit the shrine and realize that we've still got a major section of the day ahead of us. Our feet are getting tired already, so we decide to take a prolonged break in the grass and shade. It feels good to lay down and relax!
Having refilled our energy levels, we continue our day to the last district of the day: shinjuku. We enter the area from the south via Gyoen Park. A smaller, but entirely different, park than Yoyogi. It's gorgeous with the tall skyscrapers sticking out behind and extremely well maintained. We can see gardeners working and even the walkways are free of leaves or branches. In the park are three tea houses and we manage to find one that's still open. For the first time, we enjoy a matcha tea inside the tatami floored section of the tea house at little tables.
Around closing time of the park, we leave Gyoen and decide to go for dinner near the skyscraper area of the neighborhood. The famous Metropolitan Government Office has a free top floor we can visit with an amazing view over the city. But first: dinner! In order to get there, we need to pass through Shinjuku station: the busiest train station in the world with a dazzling 3,2 million people passing through each day! It's very impressive to see such a maze and infrastructure and yet experience so little mayhem.
Tonight, we want to try some other classical Japanese dish. Without really knowing what to expect, we enter a restaurant that offers shabu shabu and sukiyaki. It turns out to be a rather fancy restaurant, and right from the start we feel a bit uncomfortable because we enter with our tourist outfit in shorts and all sweaty from the day. We're guided to our table that has its own gas supply right into the table. The waiter tries his best to help us make a selection and prepares the table. A lot of tools are brought to the table: cooking materials, but also a lot of small bowls with vegetables, meat, rice, noodles and eggs.
Shabu-shabu is a dish that's prepared in a copper pot over a gas stove. They boil a broth and add the vegetables, and meat to it. Stir it a bit with the chopsticks and eat it in your plate. The sukiyaki is a pan on a gas stove where they fry the meat and vegetables. Then you have to dip it in a raw egg and eat it on your plate. We were very lucky that the waiter performed some sort of table cooking for us because it's a whole ordeal to understand what's going on and at the same time requires great skill and accurracy with the chopsticks. Not the level that we currently have.
Despite feeling like utter noobs at the table, the meal is delicious and we're grateful for having the opportunity to do and see this.
When we exit the restaurant, it's dark outside, perfect for the last part of our day.
We find the entrance to the Metropolitan Government Office and take the elevator to the top floor. It's a spectacular view over the city at night. Because of the reflection in the windows its rather difficult to take pictures, but we go around twice and enjoy the many little lights as far as the eye can see.
When we're back on the street, we notice a group of people watching something on a square nearby. There's music as well, so we decide to make a brief stop. On one of the sides of the skyscraper, there's an immense light spectacle. The music fitted so well with the experience. Very nice to watch!
Lastly, it's now time for the real banger of Tokyo: kabukicho. The nightlife area of Tokyo with all its neon lights. It's already late in the evening, but the crowd around shinjuku station has only grown. We can almost follow-the-flow to the kabukicho area and is overall hard to miss. The famous red neon gate welcomes us to one of the many streets filled with nightlife. We're already pretty tired at this point, so no crazy stuff for us anymore but we enjoy the atmosphere and neon lights. It gives a Las Vegas vibe.
In the middle of the street, there are some girls all dressed up in special costumes for cosplay. We had to do some research on what's exactly the concept of it all, but hey, it's Japan: anything is possible here. You can - for example - pay a girl dressed as your favorite game character to join you for a couple of hours and have a drink together or go and play some games in a luna park.
Just before we head back to the hotel, we walk through the tiny alleys just behind the kabukicho area: Golden Gai. It's a small area with tiny tiny alleys but packed with small bars. They usually only have place up to 5 (max 10) people. Sometimes you have to pay a small seating fee, but they are generally known to be very cozy bars. If we weren't longing for our beds, we would have stopped here for another drink.
Just before midnight, we arrive back in our hotel room. For the second time in a row with more than 30.000 steps (or 21km) later and having seen a world of different stuff, we drop on our beds and fall asleep. Tomorrow, we leave the city of Tokyo behind and travel inland to the Alp region.Read more
Back to the roots of ancient Japan
June 12, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 25 °C
Today is on a fixed schedule as we have reserved seats for the shinkansen. We have to be at 11:24 at Tokyo station to get on the train out of the city. Before we leave the capital behind, we want to visit the Tsukiji outer fish market that's actually not too far from our hotel. Before, there was also an inner fish market where the freshly caught tuna were auctioned and the day price was set. Nowadays, the inner market and auction has moved closer to the harbor, but the outside market remains at its original location and is still a thriving area for fresh fish. We arrive shortly after breakfast and many food stalls are already open selling shrimp, crabs, oysters, etc. If breakfast wasn't included in our hotel, this would have been the perfect place to have breakfast (or lunch).
The entire marketplace is only a couple of streets big. We crisscross through them and watch how chefs prepare fresh shrimp with a gas burner. As today is Wednesday, some of the stalls remain closed as it's their closing day. After the market, we quickly stop at a nearby shrine. It's a shrine to honor the god(s) of the waves and to wish for good return for the many fishing boats.
We return on foot to our hotel to check-out and head for the subway station. Timing wise, everything is going great. We even arrive a bit before schedule in the hotel and can enjoy one of the free beers that the hotel offers its guests. It's funny to see that the beer can mentioned "inspired by Belgian beer".
After a refreshing drink and some cooling down in the air-conditioned lobby, we take the subway to Tokyo Station providing us with enough time to catch the shinkansen to Nagano. Because this will be the first time we have to use the shinkansen, and we have to use the pre-ordered tickets instead of our IC-card, we wanted to have enough time. Of course, things turned out to go incredibly smooth. From the subway station we quickly switched to the shinkansen gates. An employee told us to put both tickets in the machine and we received both back at the other end. Amazed by how the machine knows how to read and interpret the different tickets, we continue to the platform.
Tip for future travelers: in larger stations, the shinkansen trains and local trains/subways are separate from each other. You'll have to badge out of the subway/local train and enter through a dedicated gate to enter the shinkansen platforms. Because shinkansen tickets cannot be bought (easily) with an IC-card, this system is incrediby easy. You pay for your local train/subway trajectory by IC-card when you exit the local gate and use the shinkansen tickets when entering the respective platform. More on buying or reserving seats later.
By now, we've seen the lines on the subway platforms to position yourself so you don't block exiting passengers. On these platforms, things go even a tiny bit further: you have separate lines for train number 1, or train number 2. Just in case there are two trains in close succession of each other. Each carriage is already visible on the platform as they know exactly where the train will stop.
There are different kinds of shinkansen depending on the trajectory. Also, the number of carriages can vary, but it's easy to deduct where to stand based on the info on the screens.
It might seem like a bit overkill, but all this drastically reduces the amount of (de)boarding time and allows for a neater schedule.
Our train arrives and we find our places in the reserved carriage on our ticket. At exactly 11:24 the train leaves the station bound for Nagano. Announcements are made in English, there's plenty of legroom, there is even Wi-Fi on board the train. And above all: it's quiet. In part because the train makes little noise as it blasts over the rails. But also, because nobody talks, or does so very quietly. People receiving a phone call exit the carriage to answer the call.
At the point of writing this blogpost, this remains a very nice an aspect of Japanese culture. Last time I took the train in Belgium, I received a phone call and exited the carriage as well to answer it. It was almost impossible to hear what the person was saying because the train makes so much noise.
In Nagano we have to switch to the Shinano express train to Matsumoto. No more shinkansen, but a very decent "normal" train that takes us to the foot of the Japanese Alps. Soon after there's the announcement for our stop: "we'll soon make a brief stop at: Matsumoto. Please be ready to exit the train before it comes to a stop at the platform". Again, maximize efficiency and (de)boarding times.
We arrive at the station and have to pass through the ticket gates. We don't know which tickets to enter, as we also have some tickets left for our onward journey to the next accommodation. Putting one in provides an error and spits the ticket back out. Let's try all three then? Yes! We get the ones we didn't need back at the other side of the gate. Smart things...
It's time to find a locker for our suitcases as we don't want to take them with us during our visit at the castle. Luckily, almost any station has coin lockers available in different sizes. We even find a modern section next to the information office that accepts IC-cards as payment. After having put our luggage away, we continue on foot to the castle. We're slightly pressed as time is ticking: our next train to our final destination is also a reserved one. We have 1 hour, to visit the castle.
Matsumoto castle is beautiful! Before entering the castle ground, you can see it dominating the environment around it. We have no issues in quickly buying a ticket and walk through the garden leading up to the castle. Before we enter the castle, we have to take off our shoes and carry them along in a plastic bag. Inside is a museum about the history of the castle and the battles fought here. We work our way up the different floors and inspect the impressive woodwork that holds this entire structure together. The square rooms quickly get smaller as we reach the top floor.
When we exit the castle there are some cosplay characters of ninja warriors outside that happily pose for a picture. No money required for taking a picture, those people are happy to pose, dress and perform for free.
We follow the signs for the most scenic photo spots. In the end, our one-hour time limit turned out to be sufficient. We managed to see everything we wanted to! Time to head back to the train station and pick up our luggage.
Just before the train station, we make another stop at a Seven Eleven store to buy a little snack. It's a little to 4PM, and we're having a little craving. On the other hand, we don't want to eat too much as we know that dinner will be served early this evening. I'm buying a sort of pastry with custard cream and whipped cream to eat on the train. Ann decides on a kind of rice ring and some kiwi-juice. I'm falling in love with the custard cream pastry, and Ann discovers that kiwi-juice tastes like candy-juice. Nevertheless, tasty!
No issues in picking up our suitcases or getting through the ticket gates. We board our train that will soon take us to Kiso Fukushima, a small village in the Alps. We'll be staying here at a ryokan: a traditional room style hotel that includes breakfast and dinner in it's stays.
The landscape outside of the train window changes rapidly and soon we're surrounded by green tree-packed mountains on both sides of the train tracks. When the train halts in our little village, the ryokan is just across the street. We enter and are warmly greeted by the owners. They were expecting us! Before even entering the hotel, we have to take off our shoes and leave them at the front door. All shoes you leave at the doorstep should be pointing away from the house so you can easily slip them back on when leaving. We set foot inside our ryokan that is entirely covered in tatami (mats). Whilst checking in, we are given some free tatami socks, and an employee kindly shows us to our room. Even the elevator is covered in tatami.
The lady shows us the elevator, presses the correct floor button and makes a deep bow. By the time the elevator doors open on the second floor, she's standing again in front of the elevator and welcomes us again to the second floor. It's funny to see how she must have run up the stairs to be able to be there by the time the elevator arrived.
Our room is a typical ryokan style room: a low table, and sliding doors covered with a thin rice-milk like layer. There are some yukata's in the room to wear if we like. When we eat dinner, the staff will come and place our beds (futons), transforming the living room in a sleeping room.
We're both blown away by this incredible room. It makes you feel like you're travelling back in time, to the ancient Japan which gives an oddly satisfying feeling. We try on our yukata and belt provided with it. My old judo lessons help me out a bit on how to wear it and how to tie the knot. Not too much later, it's time for dinner. We leave our room, both dressed in our yukata and wearing the special tatami socks to the dining area. There are some other tourists, but we're the only ones wearing our yukata. The staff, however, seems pleasantly surprised to see us in the traditional outfit and shows us to our table.
Staying in a ryokan is a special experience on its own, especially because the dinner is quite often kaiseki ryori which is equivalent to the French 'haute cuisine'. We're given a list of all the different things we will eat tonight and from the appetizer until the dessert everything is marvelously presented. Tiny portions, but with great finesse in taste, texture and presentation. We try our very best to adhere to the many food etiquette that Japan has as we're treated like gods.
The waiter attending our table kindly announces the end of the diner when placing the last dish in front of us. Ask us what we want to drink tomorrow morning at breakfast and invites us for breakfast in the same room tomorrow morning.
We finish our meal and are bowed goodnight by the staff as we leave the room. Time to inspect our beds!
Two thick matrasses are placed on the tatami mats with a cozy blanket on top. Before ending the day, we decide to test out the low table in our room and have a cup of matcha tea. During our relaxing moment, we look up some movies on how to wear and tie a yukata. Turns out there's way more to it than I initially thought. We practice on tying the perfect knot and making sure our yukata's are not wrinkling. Nothing is ever plain and simply in this country.
Although you can sleep in the yukata, we don't want it to be all wrinkled tomorrow morning and switch to our normal pjama's and fall asleep in a tiny town, far outside the busy streets of Tokyo.Read more
Mountains and old post towns
June 13, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C
We sleep a little longer than the previous days. Breakfast is only served at 8AM which is a nice break from the loaded first days. Our pajamas are swapped for our yukatas. The evening before, we spent some time watching YouTube videos on how to wear and tie a yukata. With our newly practiced belt knot, we show up on time for breakfast. To our pleasure, an American family showed up as well all dressed in yukata. Seems like we set a standard yesterday evening.
After being warmly welcomed and assigned a table, we receive our orange juice followed by a traditional style Japanese breakfast. Just like dinner, it’s a mixture of all little bowls and plates. Each of us receives two huge boxes filled with tiny dishes ranging from fish to yoghurt to eggs.
We’re grateful for being able to try out this traditional style dish. Despite the amazing look of such an extensive breakfast, and the great taste of many of the dishes, we still kind of prefer our classical European or Western style breakfast. It’s just something we’re more used to. Eating raw fish and fermented soybeans for breakfast is a slight adjustment for the stomach.
Having finished our breakfast, we quickly change clothes and head to the station across the street to catch the train. There are only a few limited express trains running per day. Those trains stop only in major stations instead of all stations. We still have to buy tickets for the vending machine in the station, but luckily everything goes rather smoothly. We don’t pay the extra fee to reserve seats and just hope for an available seat in the non-reserved carriage. Each train has at least one carriage for non-reserved seats usually in the front or at the back of the train.
We board the train and use Google Translate to check which carriage is the non-reserved one. Unfortunately, there is no English indication for this. We still find two adjacent seats and settle down for our journey to Nakatsugawa. There are a lot of people exiting the train at the tiny station of Nakatsugawa which is the gateway for a famous section of the Nakasendo trail. The Nakasendo trail is an old trading route between Tokyo and Kyoto. A very scenic part is between the two old postal towns of Magome and Tsumago. From the train station we have to take a bus to take us to Magome. IC-cards don’t work in this area of Japan (it’s not part of any IC-card region), so we have to pay the bus trip cash. We just follow the flow of passengers that brings us easily to the correct bus.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do. Or in this case: when in Japan, do as the Japanese do and take a ticket out of the machine when boarding the bus. Contrary to Belgian busses, you have to enter a bus via the rear doors in Japan. There is a ticket machine that spits out tickets with a number on it. This number represents the halt where you entered the bus. During your journey, you can see on a screen at the front of the bus the fare that is due when exiting at each of the following halts. We’re riding the entire trajectory of the bus, so it’s the full fare of ¥570 per person. When exiting the bus via the front door, you insert your ticket and fare amount in a machine next to the driver.
Magome is made up of a lot of traditional wooden buildings that serve as souvenir stores or little cafes. We start our hike uphill through the picturesque town and cobblestone paved street. In the beginning it’s crowded with tourists, but not long after they all dissipate and we’re quite often walking alone on the track. Every now and then we come across a bell. It’s recommended to ring the bell to keep bears away from the track. We do it for fun, but pretty sure that there are very few bears coming so close.
Once you exit the town of Magome, the trail winds through the woodlands and the cobblestone paths make some nice pictures in the old, mostly pine tree, forests. After a while, we pass by a tea house. The place is nothing more than a wooden shed where there’s a big tatami floor inside and an open fireplace. The thing is filled with smoke, but we stop by to have a free cup of tea. On the outside of the house, you can draw your country’s flag with some chalk. The owner doesn’t speak much English but is very happy and kind to see all kind of tourists. We say goodbye and are offered a free, self-made candy. How sweet! Free tea and a gift for simply passing by.
Some bear bells later we arrive at the other post town of Tsumago. It has the same atmosphere as Magome but seems a tiny bit smaller. Of course, it’s also crowded with souvenir shops and little places to eat. Because we have to try new things, we try a matcha flavored ice cream. It’s surprisingly delicious!
Normally, most tourists stop here, but we decided to walk a bit further to the station of Nagiso. Not all trains stop at the station of Nagiso, but it allows us to not have to take a bus back to our starting place. The last section between Tsumago and Nagiso wasn’t very spectacular with only a little shrine on our path. Just before we arrive at the train station it starts raining, so we’re quickly going inside to seek shelter.
A local train takes us back to our hotel in Kiso-Fukushima. We refresh ourselves in our room. Change back to our traditional yukatas before going for our second haute-cuisine-style dinner in style. Just as the day before, it’s an amazing experience to see the amount of effort the hosts put into this. The little cups and bowls, everything is displayed nicely and has great taste and texture. When the waiter concludes our dinner by taking the drinks for the next morning, we hear that tomorrow morning will be a Western-style breakfast. Fine by us! Curious to see what they see understand as a Western-style breakfast.
With our tummies full of tasty food, we chill around a bit in our room. Because we have to leave this nice hotel tomorrow, we want to try out the onsen. Onsen are some sort of hot baths that are very popular in Japan. Men and women are almost always separate as you bathe naked. Each of us has the bath to themselves. Afterwards, we have to lookup online what the wooden benches and cups are near the showers. This really is a country of many unknown routines, disciplines and etiquettes.
Totally relaxed, we lay down on our fluffy futons and fall asleep. Tomorrow we’re heading to the cultural capital of the country: Kyoto!Read more
Impressive wealth in Nagoya
June 14, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C
We put on our yukatas for a last time and put everything away in our suitcases. We feel slightly sad we have to leave this special room behind. It was nice to stay in such a wonderful place. If we come back to Japan in the future, we'll check to stay more often in a ryokan.
The Western-style breakfast has fruits, yoghurt, some salad and vinegar... Everything is again nicely presented in large wooden boxes. We're not sorry that the fried fish is not there in the morning.
After checking out, we're offered another pair of tatami socks and some nicely decorated chopsticks for free. The hotel staff bows us goodbye and we cross the town square to the train station. We're getting the hang of how the ticket vending machines work, so we buy a ticket to Nagoya in no time with seat reservation. It's the same limited express train as yesterday, but this time we travel a bit further to the first big city outside of the Alps: Nagoya.
Nagoya is a large city and the home of one of Japan's pride brands: Toyota. Despite its size, we stop here only for one reason: the castle of Nagoya. During our train ride, we're optimizing our stopover: looking online for a floor map of the station and where the lockers are located. Luckily, these things are pretty easy to find. We drop our bags in one of the coin lockers near the shinkansen terminal and change to the subway. A couple of minutes later, we arrive near the castle's grounds. It's blazing hot today and before we start exploring the castle, we have a sip of water and something to eat on a bench near the subway exit.
The castle grounds are pretty big, but the key element of interest is of course the castle itself. Due to extensive renovation works, the castle's keep (and main building) are closed to the public. We knew this beforehand but quickly find relief in the magnificent Hommaru palace. The whole place is a reconstruction of the old palace which served as a place for the shogun to live and invite his guests. The castle itself was always more considered as a military and strategical building.
Many of Japan's castles are reconstructions or extensive renovations of the original building. Most of them were destroyed during World War II or burned down. Nevertheless, they put immense effort into making it as original as possible and we never had the feeling at looking at a fake replica.
The waiting line to enter the Hommaru palace is not long and very well organized. You stand in line, are invited to watch a short video about photography and shoe policy. Once you arrive inside there is a large area with lockers to store your shoes and even a separate area with larger lockers to store backpacks.
As we enter our tour of the palace, it's immediately clear that this place had to represent wealth and class. There are huge panels with gold leaf paintings of historical events and wildlife. The palace consists of different rooms that all have tatami floors and sliding doors made of rice paper. Every door or wall is artistically painted and decorated. The fact that we won't be able to visit the castle's keep is highly compensated for by this piece of art.
Back outside we walk around the castle's grounds to take some pictures of the iconic white main keep with the green roof. On the roof, there's a golden fish statue which was believed to protect the castle from fire.
It's interesting to see the different warfare defense strategies. It must have been very difficult to take such a castle. Before arriving at the main keep, you have to pass through various reinforced gates. The castle grounds look more like a city within a city. All surrounded by a moat that can be controlled by floodgates to either add or drain the water in case of an attack via the river/waterways.
It's past midday when we finish our tour and frequent announcements on the broadcasting system are advising visitors to drink enough water and find shade due to the heat. We find some cooling in a café and have another matcha ice cream before heading back to the train station.
Picking up our luggage, buying tickets for the shinkansen to Kyoto all go with great ease. Only 35 minutes later we arrive in the cultural capital of Japan: Kyoto. Having arrived in the second metropole, we have to look for the subway. Apparently, it's almost entirely separate from the train station. Going "down-under" doesn't mean you have found the subway. At first, we arrive at an entire level of shops, stores, restaurants. When it's raining or snowing you can easily find something dry and warm to do here!
The subway takes us in a few minutes to the halt near our hotel in the center of Kyoto. We check-in at the hotel and ask the reception desk about information on renting bikes. We've heard that Kyoto is the biking city of Japan... so why not try it out and discover the next few days by bike?
We're given a couple of flyers and choose one that is close to the hotel. Just before closing time, we decide to stop by and ask for the possibility to rent a bike for the next two days.
It's just before 6PM when we enter the bike store. A young lady that's super fluent in English (which is rather rare) explains us the different options. Unfortunately, it's not possible to take the bikes home the very same evening and only pay for the next two days. However, she gives us a nice discount that makes it worth our while to take them with us already so that we can start early in the morning without any hassle of picking them up. We have a hefty program tomorrow, so we don't want to waste time on this, especially as the store only opens late.
After some documents and a video, we receive a map of Kyoto. Some of the streets are pedestrian only and are prohibited for bikes. We have to take great care not to enter those, unless when walking with our bike at hand. You also can't just park your bike anywhere you want. There are designated parking areas for bikes that are either free (mostly at historical sites) or you have to pay a day fee and then you can use any parking for the rest of the day. It's a bit weird that you have to pay for bicycle parking, but the prices aren't high so it's still okay.
Since we've found a local that is fluent in English, we ask her if she knows a nice place to go and eat tonight. We want to try omurice. A dish that... as the name suggests... has rice in it and an omelet. The omelet is baked in a frying pan, and immediately folded in half making the outside stiff, but the inside is still runny. There's a famous restaurant for this dish, but reservations have to be made beforehand and otherwise you just have to go and wait in line until a table becomes available.
With our bikes, we go to the famous restaurant, but the waiting line is already pretty long, and we don't want to wait. After all, we have no idea how long it will take before we can have dinner. We look online for another place that serves this dish and find one in the vicinity of Kyoto station. Omurice is tasty but maybe slightly less wauw than expected. Or perhaps that's just because we ended up in a cheap(er) place and you have to go to the famous restaurant to try the real deal.
When we arrive back at the hotel, we ask the hotel staff at reception if we can park our bikes somewhere. An employee walks with us to the storage area of the hotel where we can place our bikes. Whenever we want to retrieve them, we simply have to ask the front desk to open the storage area again for us.
It's time to go to bed, because tomorrow we want to wake up early. We have a lot of famous touristic sites planned, and for some of them, we really want to beat the crowds. Early wakey wakey!Read more
Temples and Shrines
June 15, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C
It's still early morning when the alarm clock calls our dreamy mind back to this wonderful land. Most temples and shrines open as early as sunrise, which is as early as 4h42 in June. We want to beat the crowd, but maybe not as ambitiously as sunrise. As breakfast is only served at 7AM in our hotel, we decide to skip it today and make sure we're in time at Fushimi Inari with its famous torii-gates.
Public transport in Kyoto is slightly less convenient compared to Tokyo. You have to rely more on buses or transfer in stations. That being said: it's still astonishingly good and at least you can count on the timetables. Nevertheless, today we have our bikes to get us from point A to point B in no time. We've selected a route at the riverside to get us to Fushimi Inari. It's beautiful and tranquil. In the early morning sun, we pass some joggers doing their exercise before the heat of the day.
We arrive at Fushimi Inari around 7h15AM and park our bikes in the designated parking lot. We're definitely not the first ones, but at least we know it's better than waiting around 9AM to get here.
The whole touristic site starts with some temple grounds and then a trail that takes you up a hill that is covered with the red/orange gates.
We try to make haste on the main temple grounds, as we'll have time to see them on our way back. I'm writing 'try to' as it's hard to not take pictures at all...
Soon after, we're amid the thousands and thousands of torii gates. It's impressive to see and occasionally it's still possible to take a picture without too many tourists in it. The crowd is still okay-ish enough to sometimes halt to allow people to take their picture. This is also a Japanese thing... Or maybe it's the country's atmosphere and culture that imposes a certain degree of respect. There are many locals and tourists that stop to allow you to take your picture.
As you climb higher on the hill, the density of the torii gates decreases, and they become less and less impressive. At a viewpoint overlooking Kyoto most people, including us, turn back. The trail back takes you along a slightly different path down to the main temple but to be honest, we didn't find it equally beautiful or impressive. Especially because the gates have some markings painted or engraved in them that are only visible from one side. The trail back to the main temple took us past many typical graveyards or shrines and fewer torii gates.
When we arrive back at the main grounds, we can witness a ceremony in one of the temples. We stand and watch for a couple of minutes from the outside. It's clear that the crowd has only thickened over the past few minutes, so it was a good idea to come "early".
Now, it's time for breakfast! It's around 8h45AM now and we find a very nice breakfast spot nearby. It's a small place, with in the back places or benches overlooking a pond. We have some muesli with yoghurt and a piece of home-made cake. And of course, a cup of coffee. It's delicious!
We grab our bikes and continue to Kiyomizudera Temple. By now, it's starting to become pretty warm in the sun and whenever we have to bike uphill, we can understand why some people don't like the bikes at all. On our route to Kiyomizudera, we pass Tofuku-ji temple with a nice zen garden inside. Ann isn't really convinced about the zen gardens, but I find it oddly peaceful.
We also stop at Sanju-sangen-do. A larger temple with also some nice orange pillars that make great photos and a very impressive inner hall with 1001 statues. Photos are prohibited inside, but we managed to take a picture of a flyer that was hanging outside.
The road to Kiyomizudera is almost entirely uphill. Especially the last part is heavy in the blazing sun. Finally, we arrive at Kiyomizudera. By now, it's around noon and the crowd has grown immensely. We find a place to park our bikes and continue on foot. It's not that hard to tell which is the main street leading up to the temple as you're almost simply grabbed by the flow of people that head to the temple. The main street is full of little souvenir shops and places to eat. We're also looking for some place to sit and drink or eat something as we're both still exhausted from biking uphill. Unfortunately, with so many people around, it's not easy to find a tranquil spot to sit down. In the end, we entered a matcha shop and buy two drinks. We're not allowed to drink it in the air-conditioned shop, but they have a small courtyard in the back where we can sit on a bench. Even in the shade it's still hot, but the cool drink is most welcome!
Having gained a bit of strength, we continue to the temple. It's a huge temple on a wooden platform overlooking the city of Kyoto. This area of town is also known to have some geisha neighborhoods, and a lot of tourists and locals dress up traditionally to visit this sacred place. I don't think we've seen a true geisha, but it's easy enough to spot a lot of men and women in traditional clothes. Which make some nice pictures of course.
After we've visited the huge temple on the platform, we continue our path to a red pagoda that is dominating the landscape. From there we also get some nice views of the temple itself. Below the temple, there's a sacred water source that is divided into three different streams of water. Each stream brings a different fortune: long life, prosperity in school/career, or love. You can drink from one of them but drinking from more than one is considered greedy. The queue is quite big, so we don't join the line and press on to the main neighborhood surrounding the temple. This area is also known as the Gion district and is full of traditional houses, shops, and an older atmosphere.
It's a nice area to stroll through the little streets. In the middle of the Gion-district stands another pagoda. The streets are crowded and it's difficult to take a nice shot here. Better to just appreciate the area and go with the flow. The whole area is not that big, so you can get around quite easily. We stop at another cafe to have (another) matcha ice tea and take a moment to rest.
After our refreshments, we continue north and make a short stop at Kodaji temple with a tiny bamboo forest in the garden.
Here's already a tip for future travelers: try to visit bamboo forests connected to smaller temples rather than to wait for the famous bamboo forest in the Western part of Kyoto. You'll be able to take way nicer pictures than in the overwhelming touristic place!
We finish our tour on foot at the Yasaka shrine, another famous landmark in Kyoto where they celebrate in July an important festival. It's a shrine full of lanterns with a beautiful park next to it. One of the places to be when the cherry blossoms are in bloom.
By the time we finish the items on our list, it's already 5PM and we have to walk quite a bit back to the starting place where we left our bikes. The whole area is a no-bike zone, so we couldn't take it along anyway. We pick up our bikes and ask the guard at the car park for a day-ticket for our bikes. With this ticket we can park for free for the rest of the day. The conversation doesn't go very smoothly as the man warns us that the permit is only valid until 6PM so there's little use. However, we hope to be somewhere else by then and make use of it. He hands us the paper and we enjoy the downhill ride back to downtown Kyoto.
Despite not being the largest city, we have to make a few stops to circumnavigate the no-bike zones in the city in order to get back to our hotel. Back in the hotel, we park our bikes in the storage area of the hotel and refresh ourselves a bit in the room. Time to start and think about the next thing: dinner.
Having tried the explicit sushi experience in Tokyo at the restaurant where we had to stand. We'd like to compare this to another famous Japanese experience: sushi from a conveyor belt. We google a bit and find a few places that have this concept. It becomes clear that this is generally considered as fast-food sushi rather than haute-cuisine. Nevertheless, there are certainly also places out there that are at the other end of the spectrum using this concept.
In the end, we select a restaurant near the Kyoto train station. Somewhere in one of the underground walkways full of restaurants and stores.
Because we're already pretty tired from today, we decide to take the subway to Kyoto train station.
A few moments later, we find the place, and together with it, a waiting line to enter the restaurant. Because we have only found a few places with a conveyor belt, we decide to stick with this one and just join the queue. We have to pass the number of people at the front and our name. As soon as someone clears a table, they will call us. Everyone is patiently waiting in line. Mostly on their phones like classic Japanese spirit.
When it's our turn to enter the restaurant, we receive a place at the front. We discover that the prices are determined by the plate that the sushi is on. You keep all the plates, and at check-out the waiter will make your bill based on the color of the plates. There's also a tablet in front of us where you can order drinks or special sushi (for example without wasabi). We try a bit of everything and come to two conclusions:
1. You're adding up plates rather quickly making this not necessarily a cheap food option.
2. The quality of the sushi is no way near what we've had before in Tokyo. We struggle to keep the sushi together as the neta (topping) falls easily off the rice and the latter breaks apart. Also taste wise we amateurs can notice a clear difference. Kudos to the restaurant in Tokyo and sorry for those waiting in line having to watch us eat.
Having enjoyed yet another tasty meal and experience, we head back to our hotel. Time to go to bed!
Tomorrow, we will discover the Western part of Kyoto with - once again - a lot of things on the planning.Read more
West Kyoto - more temples and shrines
June 16, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C
People who know us know that we like to pack our travel schedule to the limit. Although a mindful day-to-day planning was made, we were anticipating a possible issue for the future.
The day after tomorrow, we'll leave Kyoto and travel to the city of Hiroshima. And because our time there is also limited, we planned to visit part of Hiroshima already on that same day. This is where the problem arises: there's also one key highlight in Kyoto that's a bit out of the area where we're headed today. Adding it to the planning for the day after tomorrow would complicate things and endanger our plans in Hiroshima, so we decide to add it to the list for today. After all, we're on bike, we're agile, we're young and... Okay, let me stop there.
We have breakfast at the earliest time and take our bikes from the storage area. It's a rather long bike trip to the first (newly added) item on our list today: Kinkakuji, also known as the golden pavilion.
Side note about biking in Kyoto: remember how impressed we were in Tokyo about the discipline? It seems like this doesn't carry all the way through to biking. We plan our biking trips along major roads because those roads tend to have a separate bicycle lane. Otherwise, you should be biking on the road with the cars, but there's often not that much place and most people actually bike on the pedestrian sidewalk. Despite it being prohibited and often severely hampering you from advancing. There's also no such thing as keep left. As a cyclist, you just have to circumnavigate all the pedestrians.
We arrive at the famous landmark only 15-30 minutes after opening time and the crowd is still okay. The pavilion itself is indeed quite astonishing: standing on the side of a pond in its shiny golden color. The temple used to be a residence for a shogun but was later re-instated as a Zen temple.
As we walk around the grounds and take pictures of the building, we're happy that we didn't skip this place. Not too much later, we arrive back at our bicycle parking and are ready to continue our trip to the western part of the city. We decide to start in the northwest at the highest point, and continue downhill to end the day, rather than to go in the opposite direction. Our biking route takes us via some of the outskirts of the city and it's a nice change to see larger lakes, fields and farmers.
Some up- and downhills later, we arrive at Gioji temple. It's not the highest or most northern temple on the planning, but due to a slight navigational error from my side and a more than welcome break from the cycling uphill, we decide to start exploring here.
Gioji is tiny, calm and has almost no tourists at this time of day. The temple is surrounded by trees providing a lot of shade and an ideal place for moss to grow. No surprise that this Zen temple stands out for the different types of mosses and tranquility.
We hop back on our bikes and let gravity bring us to the slightly lower located temple of Nisonin.
These grounds are bigger than the tiny Gioji and have a beautiful central lane that leads up to the building. We imagine that it must be marvelous in autumn with all the maple trees turning orange and red. The temple itself is also in a Zen-style theme with nicely raked pebbles and nature as the main facilitator of the area. We enjoy the quietness and serenity of the place where people take great care in the preservation of all the flora. Imagine walking in a park where all the trees are meticulously maintained, there's no twig or leaf among the pebbles and not a single piece of litter around. Those elements by themselves are already impressive, let alone the location and architecture of the place.
When we exit the temple, we discover a sign that indicates "bike parking lot" in Japanese. Our bikes were in the shade of a tree just across the road. Good thing it's calm in this area of town and without Google Translate we had no way of knowing what was written on the sign. English is not always that well established in Japan.
After a sip of water from our bottles, we continue back uphill to go and explore the final two temples. The last part is very steeply uphill, but we made it! Workout for the day: checked!
Our guidebook referred to the next temple as undiscovered by tourism. In the sense that we don't really know where to park our bikes, yes. There were an equal number of tourists as in Nisonin and Gioji here, so I wouldn't really go with undiscovered. Nevertheless, it didn't feel crowded at all.
This small temple is known for a very special characteristic: 1200 tiny stone statues are placed around the temple. Some of them almost covered entirely in moss. It's a special sight and makes beautiful pictures.
Some time later, we bike back downhill through a tiny street that remained fixed in time. The houses on the side of the road, the road itself seem to come straight from the Meiji-era. As we park the bikes at Adashino Nenbutsuji temple, an old man approaches us and ask in broken English where we're from. He's happy to see foreigners and hand us a self drawn map of the area. He points out all the different temples that we've already visited or still have to visit on our way down. How nice!
Adashino Nenbutsuji is located in a more open space than the other temples. A monk once started by placing a little statue for each of the deceased. Now the sacred ground counts over 100 statues. Maybe the tradition of placing little statues started here?
Because of the open space, most of the statues are not covered with moss. It feels more like a sanctuary or graveyard compared to Otagi.
In the back of the temple, there's a little bamboo forest. There's only a small path in between the huge bamboo trees. Don't be fooled, this is the place where we managed to take our most beautiful bamboo pictures. So can definitely recommend this place!
It's already 1h30PM when we exit the temple and decide that it's about time to have lunch. Having finished all the temples on our list, we bike downhill to the river and connection with Kyoto city. Soon after, we locate a Seven Eleven store where we can enjoy a well deserved bento-box.
Having regained some energy, we go search for the famous bamboo grove forest that is located in this part of the city. We have to look a few times on Google Maps in order to find where the famous stretch of bamboo forest is exactly. We bike to the area and are quickly overwhelmed by the number of tourists. Surrounded by tourists, we can only advance on foot and once we've cleared the crowd, we head back for another loop to park our bikes somewhere. It's not easy to find a parking spot in this area as there's no designated parking area for bikes. Finally, we find a parking spot near a playground for kids not too far away from the touristic walk.
With the cameras at hand, we continue for a proper look of the area.
The entire area is only a few streets big and packed with people. The bamboo trees are not always as thick or dense as in other places we've seen them. In the main street, it's almost impossible to take a good overview picture. Happy that we got already some pictures before coming here, we follow the crowd and just enjoy being in the moment.
At the end of the trail, we enter a nearby park to grab some air. There's a viewpoint overlooking the river below and we take a little rest on a bench. Time to check what's still on our list, and to do a time-check as we have to hand in our bikes no later than 6PM this evening.
After our short break, we continue to stroll a bit through the park and head back to the parking area to pick up our bikes. We've figured out a route that brings us back to central Kyoto but also takes us along the river for a long while.
It's around 4PM as we leave the Western district over the togetsukyo bridge. A large wooden bridge that is also a famous landmark in the area and a well-loved place during blossom season to admire the beautiful trees near the riverbed. As we take distance from the city we admire the beauty of this city. Kyoto is located in a valley, surrounded by hills from all but one side. In the city center, it's hard to picture this, but here in the countryside you can clearly see the outline of the city and its surroundings.
As we're re-entering the city, we're also feeling more and more confident to cycle on the road instead of the pedestrian sidewalk. In some streets it's way faster to cycle in a sort of bus lane. In narrower streets we still switch to the sidewalk but overall, we're making swift progress.
It's around 5h45PM when we arrive at the store to hand-in our bikes. It was nice to have a different method of transport for the last couple of days. I wouldn't compare Kyoto to Amsterdam or Copenhagen as a biking city... but it got us everywhere we wanted in a decent amount of time.
Tonight, we plan on having dinner not far from our hotel. In one of the streets cornering our hotel, we saw a nice-looking little restaurant. We enter the place but unfortunately, everything is fully booked for tonight unless we don't mind eating at the standing table. Just next to the street window, there's a large table without chairs. Apparently, that's how they handle non-reservations: you can have dinner but standing so you don't take too much time. Although our feet are a bit sorrow, we don't mind standing up.
From what we can understand from the Google translated menu, it's a sort of tapas style restaurant. Although we're not really sure how big the portions will be. Soon after, another Japanese couple joins us at the standing table. They are so kind to translate our order and questions to the waiter. The food is tasty, but we feel kind of "small" in the shadow of the real Japanese people next to us. We're still hesitant about how to and when to eat certain things. They - obviously - know what they're doing.
After dinner, we're hesitant about going back to Fushimi Inari to see the torii gates at night. The site is open 24/7 and I imagined it must make great pictures at night too. The weather hasn't been kind to us in the evenings with some rain yesterday. Tonight looks rather okay-ish, and tomorrow is for sure rainy. Because it's now or never, we decide to grab that last bit of energy and head to the subway to go back to orange gates.
The subway and train take us in about half an hour to the site. It's now 8h50PM and armed with camera and tripod we hope to make some nice shots. One thing is immediately clear: the crowd is gone, and we almost have to the place to ourselves. Maybe that's a bit exaggerated, but in any case, it's easier to take pictures without other tourists in it.
To my surprise, the gates are not as well lit as I'd have imagined. Sometimes it's not easy to take pictures due to the different light sources and lanterns quickly over- or underexposing the shots. We play around a bit with poses, angles, go back and forth a few times. Occasionally, we have to jump away from big spiders that are crawling in the woods and on the pillars. At around 10PM we're surprised by a few drops of rain. We start packing the tripod and cameras, but by the time we manage to take it apart or take out our jackets, we're soaked by a downpour. That clearly states the end of the photo session. Time to get back to the train station and go to bed!Read more
Oh deer! A daytrip to Nara
June 17, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C
Today we planned a daytrip to Japan's first fixed capital: Nara. It's a city located south of Kyoto, in between Kyoto and Osaka. It has a huge park that has various temples in it and is also known for the many deer that are around.
After having finished our breakfast in the hotel, we set off to the nearest subway station. We take the subway line for only one stop and transfer to an express line to Nara. The whole trajectory takes 1h and we have to stand upright for the majority of the trip as it's rush hour time. In the carriage it's easy to spot the tourists that will continue the line to the end station of Nara, and who is on his/her way to work. As more and more people exit the train over time, we find a seating place so we're well rested to start our day of exploring in an unfamiliar area.
Around the train station, there are some main shopping streets with food stalls and souvenir shops. We decide to walk for a little while in one of those streets and then take the shortest path to the nearest temple at the edge of Nara Park.
Where we enter the park, there are some construction works going on and you have to buy admission tickets for some specific temples. After having a quick look on Google what's to see inside of the temple, we decide to skip this one and continue strolling through the park. It's filled with different temples and visiting them all would just be too much. Besides, having spent the last two days visiting temples as well, we enjoy viewing them from the outside and appreciating the surroundings as well. Just before joining back on the main road that's cutting through the park, we see a lot of deer. The animals clearly know how to interact with tourists and even learned to bow in order to get some food. There are 'deer crackers' stalls everywhere and people try to get the best pictures of themselves with their four-legged friends.
The main attraction of Nara Park is Todaiji Temple with it's enormous Nandaimon gate leading up to it. We follow the flow of people in the direction of the temple. Our way is interrupted by taking pictures of deer that come close and might just make a good picture. In the end, they rather quickly realize that if it's only for a picture and no food they don't have to hang around for long. Smart creatures!
Why all these deer at Nara? Deer are considered holy animals and messengers from the gods. It certainly is the place to convey your message!
We arrive at the Nandaimon gate with two gigantic sculptures on the side. It's a good thing we have a phone with a wide-angle lens, because otherwise it would be hard to fit everything on screen. On the picture below, you can't see the sculptures because they are placed inside of the structure. When walking through the gate, they are placed on your left and right side and are as tall as the whole bottom compartment of the gate.
Having passed through the gate, it's a straight line to the Todaiji temple. There's a museum on the left-hand side but we head straight for "the real deal" in front of us. Following the straight road from the gate provides a great opportunity to take a picture of the temple itself as the stairs place you slightly higher than the tourists inside. If you can hold your camera high enough, it provides a nice frontal picture of the temple. Having taken our shot, we head to the entrance to get our ticket and see this grand building from the close by.
The temple grounds are - as usual - super well maintained. The grass is equally green, the hedges are trimmed to perfection and flowers are in bloom. The path leading up to the temple is sided by a colorful red hedge. Inside there's a huge buddha statue of 15m! The inner place is humongous, especially if you think about it without all the statues and tourists. Not too long ago, this was the largest wooden building in the world. Apart from the buddha statue at the entrance of the hall, there are other tall wooden statues of protectors of the gods.
With the main attraction behind us, we continue to stroll through the park at a relaxed pace. Time for a chilled coffee from one of the vending machines and eat a cookie. We're not sitting alone for long as a curious deer spotted some food in our hands and would happily nibble along.
The park is calmer away from todaiji and there's still plenty of other temples to discover. We go to Nigatsudo Hall which is located on a small hill. The hall has a terrace that provides a view over the surroundings and the city of Nara. The stone walls next to the stairs give it an authentic feeling.
We stop by some other temples as we gradually finish our loop through the park. We finish near the Shosoin storehouse which is a "barn" that is build on pillars. Once served as storage for rice to prevent water from getting in. Later used to store the treasures of the todaiji temple and the emperor's family as it was harder to steal from an elevated place. You can't enter the building and there's only one spot where you can view the building. It's nice to see, but you don't really spend a lot of time there.
Our loop is complete and it's time to head back to the train station. Before going to the tracks, we discover the little shopping streets surrounding the station and try some different snacks. About a lot of stuff we have no clue whatsoever what it is, so we have to ask. We try some different things. Tasty for sure, very sticky as well.
It's not the first time we have come across some weird stores, but this time we found one that solely sells gaming cards. And of course, a lot of them about Pokémon. If you wish to complete your collection (and you speak Japanese) this is the place to be!
The train ride back is even busier than the way to Nara as we are joined in the last carriage by a whole class of children going back to Kyoto. We're squeezed in but enjoy the landscape as it passes by through the rear window of the train.
We switch trains in Kyoto station instead of closer to our hotel to have some more breathing room. Few minutes later we arrive back at our familiar hotel and take a rest and start looking for where we want to have dinner tonight.
We set our mind to a small restaurant in the vicinity of the hotel that serves dim-sum style food. It's a small place but quiet and calm. We order a menu for 2 people and are eager to discover what we will be served. It's very tasty food and luckily the plates stopped coming when we were getting (overly) stuffed.
When we exit the restaurant, it started raining. We quickly walk back to our hotel and start making our suitcases. Tomorrow, we will travel to Hiroshima. Checking the weather forecast, that's an excellent timing as the next few days Kyoto will be rainy and Hiroshima sunny. Luck is on our side!Read more
Marked by history
June 18, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 29 °C
Everything is packed, and we have a last time breakfast in the hotel lobby.
Just like yesterday evening it’s still raining, so it’s a good thing that we don’t have anything else planned in Kyoto today. We drag our suitcases through the rain to the nearest underground access and continue to the subway through the tunnels. That’s the practical side of having huge underground networks.
Before we step on the train, we need to trade in our Kansai-Hiroshima-Area-Pass in the station of Kyoto. We have to search a bit for the correct office as there’s JR-Central and JR-West offices. At first, we’re in the wrong office and they redirect us upstairs to the JR-West office. There we successfully hand in our voucher and receive the area-pass that grants us unlimited access to JR-network trains and buses. Unfortunately, the pass is only valid as of the station of Shin-Osaka, which is one stop away from Kyoto station. First another train/subway stop to Shin-Osaka and then we hop on the shinkansen towards Hiroshima with our passes. Despite some stress when planning this trip up front: everything is going smoothly now as we’re getting used to the way things work here and the vending machines for tickets.
We board the shinkansen, settle into our reserved seats and 1h20 later, we arrive a fair distance further in the city of Hiroshima.
We disembark on a hot and sunny platform. It feels like a different world out here. We walk from the station to our hotel and have to switch our glasses for sunglasses and put our sweaters in the backpacks. Hiroshima is built around and over rivers leading towards the nearby ocean. Our hotel is situated in a tall skyscraper and the reception area is on the top floor. In the beginning, it would have been weird to enter a building and elevator to go to the reception. Now, it already feels like a normal choice as it provides a way nicer view and first impression than the ground floor. To our surprise we are granted immediate access to our room and there are free drinks and snacks in the breakfast area to enjoy.
By the way, it’s true that you can find a lot of commodities in Japanese hotels for free. In almost every hotel we stayed you can find toothbrushes, shampoo, skincare, slippers, etc. for free.
We leave our bags in the room. Change into shorts and after a refreshing drink in the lobby, we start exploring the new city of Hiroshima. New, because almost the entire city was destroyed by the atomic bomb in 1945. The city doesn’t feel extremely modern. Maybe because the bombing was already almost 80 years ago. There are skyscrapers and shopping areas, and some buildings even look a bit old by today’s standards.
Apart from a large pedestrian zone in the center which has a lot of shops and restaurants, the main point of interest is located in Peace Park. The green oasis was constructed where the atomic bomb hit and there are various monuments and memorial places in it.
The “new Hiroshima” breathes ‘Peace’ in all different aspects. They don’t want to forget the atrocities and terrible history, but they mainly want to convey the message that what happened in Hiroshima cannot happen again, nowhere. During the construction of the park, they lit the so-called peace-flame which is only to be extinguished when all nuclear weapons on earth have been destroyed/dismantled. Standing in front of the flame and appreciating the beauty of the architecture, it’s quite confronting to realize that this noble goal is today maybe the furthest from completion as ever.
Another beautiful place in the park is the memoriam for all children who died directly or indirectly from the bombing. There is a story mentioned of a girl who survived the original bombing but got cancer soon after. She got the advice that if she made 1000 crane birds in origami, she would live. According to some sources, she reached the amount but still passed away shortly after. Nevertheless, all schools from the area still gather in the park and fold origami crane birds contribute to the cry for peace and memorated all the diseased children. The stalls next to a statue of a young girl are filled with origami birds. Impressive to see!
Before exploring the rest of the park, we decide to first visit the Peace Memorial Museum in the beginning of the park. In general, I’m not that eager to visit museums, but this one stood out from the planning phase. The reviews and must-sees in this city all mention this one by a long shot.
On our way to the museum, we pass by the peace bell which you can ring.
In the museum we put everything away in a locker and get ourselves an audio guide.
We’re emerged in the storytelling of survivors for more than 2 hours without even realizing it. Looking at some of the found and worn and torn clothes, a metal toddler bike, etc. whilst listening to stories about what happened that day is deeply touching. We’re both muddled when we step back outside into the daylight of the present day. It feels extremely weird to stand on the same ground where all of those stories occurred. The entire park immediately carries even more value and sentiment as we continue to stroll through it. At the end of the park is the iconic A-Bomb-Dome. The only remnant of a factory that survived the blast of the atomic bomb. It aligns perfectly with the park central line and the peace flame.
It's already dusk when we slowly walk back to the city center and pedestrian area. Soon, we’re surrounded again by neon lights, bright and jolly shops and restaurants. To lift our spirits, we stop in one of the luna parks. After having seen so many of them, we have to try at least one of them! With our IC-cards we try our luck on the cute Munchlax Pokémon. Alas, without success.
Because Hiroshima has its own variant of a Japanese dish, we decide to try it! Okonomiyaki is a messy looking dish with rice and an omelet on top. You get a little spatula to eat and cut it. The same dish exists in Osaka as well, but the two are supposed to be different.
It’s tasty, but the combination is a bit weird. We’re curious to compare it to the other variant!
After our dinner we head back to the hotel. Tomorrow, we have a day trip planned to the island of Miyajima. It’s going to be another full day! Deeply impressed by today we fall asleep in our bed.Read more
The island of Miyajima
June 19, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 29 °C
We wake up to another sunny day in Hiroshima. Enjoy our breakfast on the rooftop terrace of our hotel and start planning our day ahead. Main activity for today: visit the island of Miyajima with it's famous huge torii gate standing in the water. One of the most iconic pictures of Japan.
We're a bit unfortunate with this tides, as the torii gate is standing in the sand at low tide and only is fully "floating" at high tide. However, low tide is exactly at the middle of day, and it takes until around 8h40PM for it to reach high tide again. Chances are big that we will only see the gate during low tide.
In order to postpone our trip to the island as long as possible, whilst still maintaining the luxury of a leisurely walk and visit, we decide to first visit a garden park in the city.
The Shukkeien Garden only opens at 9AM, and we're standing in front of a closed gate when we arrive at 8h55AM. Luckily, to the meticulous precision of a Japanese watch, the gates open at 09h00AM and we're welcomed in. Standing in front of the closed gate, we could hear people working already on the inside. Employees are carefully sweeping the paths, cleaning everything so that visitors have a tranquil and nice experience. As we make our way through the park and its small walking paths, we swing around ponds full of koi fish. An iconic stone bridge is standing in the main pond that reminds us of the shape of the cenotaph in the Peace Park. Every now and then a fish leaps from the water and splashes a bit further back under the surface. At the side of the pond, we see a lot of turtles bathing in the early sunlight.
Inside the garden, there are some tea houses which are not yet open at this time of day. Nevertheless, their traditional shape and architecture make them blend in with the surroundings perfectly. Of all the parks we've visited so far, this one stands out in it most traditional way. It's oddly calming, and locals come here to walk around and escape the fuss of the city around them. There even is a tiny bamboo forest area.
We take a short break in one of the wooden structures near the water. Even here there's a sign to remove your shoes before entering. This results in an extremely clean and well cared for floor. Just imagine this in a country like Belgium...
Having soothed our inner peace, we head to the train station to go to the harbor from where our ferry leaves for Miyajima.
If you're planning on going to Miyajima from Hiroshima, there are different ways of getting to the harbor. There is a local train that takes a longer time but stops at the harbor itself. There's a train that takes you there in half the amount of time but requires you to walk from the train station to the harbor (approx. 10 min). We chose the second option as it was also included in our JR Area Pass.
When we arrive at the harbor, there are various signs and people informing you that you need to pay an additional tourist fee before you can enter the ferry. We read this information beforehand and easily make our way to one for the ticketing machines. It's only ¥100 per person, but without the ticket you're not boarding the ferry. Afterwards, we head to the line for the JR-ferry.
There's a different line for another ferry owned by another company. The two boats back and forth in alternating order and you won't be waiting that long for your next boat. If you have an Area Pass like we do, the JR-ferry is included in your Pass, the other one isn't.
The trip across only takes about 15 minutes and we take a seat on the upper deck. From the beginning it's not that hard to spot the famous orange gate at the other side. The island itself is covered in green vegetation and has some rather high peaks. From the moment we disembark, it's not that difficult to figure our where to go. On the one side, we've seen the gate from the boat, on the other side it's just a matter of following all the fellow travelers that set foot ashore with us.
To our surprise, Miyajima also has deer wandering around. They're not as social as the ones in Nara, but some of them are starting to understand that people quite often equal food. The sidewalk next to the coast takes us to the Itsukushima shrine which is the shrine complex of which the torii gate is actually part of. We pay our entry fee and walk around the many wooden boardwalks on stilts. When it's high tide, the water reaches all the way up to the main complex. At this very moment, the torii gate is about 300m away and entirely dry. After our visit in the main shrine complex, we don't walk all the way up to the gate itself as we're under the impression that the nicest views are probably from where we're standing.
We head inside the little town that is dominated by tourism. Therefore, it's full of souvenir shops and surprisingly little restaurants. As it's already passed noon, we're getting a bit hungry and start looking for something to eat. We enter some souvenir shops and buy a little cloth banner of Japan. In one of the main streets, we eat something sweet from a food stall. I don't remember what it was, but like almost everything in Japan: it was tasty! We had our own water with us, but finding something to drink isn't hard in this country. You can find vending machines everywhere selling cold or even hot drinks.
With some more jummy in our tummy, it's time for our next stop: the temple of Dasho-in. It's located near the base of the mountain/hill and doesn't have a major road leading up to it. Nevertheless, it's not hard to find as it's well marked by signs. The temple complex is huge! On the way up, you come along some stairs that are covered with rotatable cylinders. These represent sutras and spinning them ought to have the same effect as actually reading them. We join in the tradition and are lucky not having to read every single one of them (not that we even could).
The main temple is magnificent! The wooden structure stands sublime in the surrounding forest and the amount of detail that is put into carving out figures is astonishing. With some of the trees reaching their autumn colored leaves it's a truly remarkable place.
There are some other small temples or shrines in the vicinity. One is almost entirely surrounded by water. Another shrine is hidden in a cave but lit up by hundreds of candles and music is playing inside. The floor is covered by some golden tiles in front of each statue where you can say your prayers.
When we finish our tour and come back in the main area, there's a machine that activated and blows a mist of water vapor into the air and surroundings. Not sure if it's to cool the tourists, or to water the trees surrounding the sacred site. Either way, it makes a neat picture!
When leaving the temple grounds, there's an alternative path next to the stairs with the sutras that takes us along hundreds of tiny statues. Almost each and single one of them is wearing a red knitted hat.
Having concluded most of the main must-sees on the island, we decide to finish our day with a hike up to the summit of Mt. Misen. There are two ways to reach the top: some walking trails that estimate to take between 1,5h and 2h to reach the top, or via a cable car. Because it's both warm and we're a bit unsure of the time it will take us to get up there, we decide on taking the cable car up, and walking back down. The cable car base station is at the other side of the town, so we first have to walk a bit to reach it. On the way, we walk through some forest-like parks with deer and a little waterfall. Having bought our one-way ticket up, we board the cable car. In the mid-station, we have to switch to a larger car that takes us to the top station. The views on the way up are already spectacular, but we can't take any pictures in the second car because we're too cramped together. Having arrived at the top, there are frequent announcements to say how long you still have to walk to reach the actual top of the mountain, and when the last cable car is going back down. If you miss it, you'll have to walk back down. And somehow, I get the feeling that - being submerged in Japanese culture for 11 days now - they mean it.
We start our hike of about 30 minutes to the actual top of the mountain. With the sun blazing down, we're happy that we took the cable car to come up here. There's still some physical exercise to be done to reach the top. On the side of the trail, a snake quickly disappears in the bushes. Some American tourists go and look for the snake, but we happily press on. Not too keen on those creatures.
The trail climbs higher and higher and passes by some smaller shrines that are also part of the Dasho-in temple at the base of the mountain. Just imagine the monks walking up here and constructing these things!
Towards the top there are some larger boulders that provide spectacular views. Having finally reached the summit, we sit down to catch our breath in a beautiful construction. We take in the views spanning from the coastline and Hiroshima to the ocean and little islands.
Just before we reached the summit, we came across a couple of young tourists that apparently walked all the way up. I went over to ask them how long it took them to get to this point. To my surprise, they answered "only like 30 minutes or so". Either way, we now know that the way back shouldn't take too much time.
Having relaxed a bit, we walk back downhill and head for the trail that ends near the Dasho-in temple. The same path that our young tourists walked up. By luck, they are joining us not too far behind. Now it's time to see if it really takes "only 30 minutes" to go up...
Pushed forward by the two tourists breathing down our necks, we hike the entire trail down with only one short rest. Our knees are shaking when we finally reach flat ground again. Like they are saying: "What do you mean, no more stairs or slope?". Our watch tells us: 49 minutes from top to bottom with only one short break. Bollocks that you can do this in the opposite direction in only 30!
At the first vending machine that we cross, we buy an ice cold coffee or chocolate milk. What a luxury to have those machines around!
Satisfied by our day, we head back to the harbor to take the ferry back to the mainland.
By now, the tide has come in a bit and the torii gate is already standing a bit in the water. We take this opportunity to take a ton more pictures as it's especially beautiful with the evening sun.
The way back goes smoothly and with ease. The ferry and train back are uneventful, and we start making our dinner plans.
The day we arrived in Hiroshima, Laurens saw a food stall that sells pancakes. As we didn't have the chance to eat one in Tokyo's Takeshita Dori, this would be an opportune time to catch up. We wander through the pedestrian area full of restaurants and shops near Hondori and find the place. To Laurens' delight, we have our Japanese pancake! The options are almost limitless if you have a look at the menu. Ranging from sweet to sour, anything is possible.
As we continue our evening walk, we hop in the same luna park store to try our luck again on our new favorite Pokémon Munchlax. Again, no luck!
With most shops behind us, we head back to the hotel and stop by a Seven Eleven store to buy something for dinner. We're not very hungry after the pancake and take something small from the store. In our room, we chill out a bit and do some laundry. Just before bedtime we head to the rooftop terrace and enjoy a free Japanese soup as dessert. It's salty, but tasty! It's amazing how much free things this hotel offers.
As we go to our beds, we look back on a satisfied day. Although sometimes, we start to realize that tomorrow we're already travelling to our last stop. Tomorrow, it's time to head for Osaka, the kitchen of Japan!Read more
Another crazy metropole
June 20, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C
Another early morning and long day ahead of us.
It's busy in the breakfast area of the hotel. We're looking for a table that has a sign on it "I'm finished, please clean my table". When you enter the breakfast area with your meal voucher, you're given a two-sided plastic paper to indicate if you're still having breakfast or not. Quite handy as you don't need to worry about your table being occupied by someone else by the time you return from the breakfast buffet.
We find a spot, enjoy our breakfast and head back to our room to finish up our bags to leave Hiroshima. We check out using the electronic machines next to the reception desk and walk back on foot to the train station. By now we know which vending machines to look for and reserve our seats on the next shinkansen to Himeji. Yes, you read that right: not Osaka because we planned to make a brief stopover at Himeji to see the amazing castle.
Arriving on the platform we're greeted by a different kind of shinkansen train as usual: the Hello Kitty version. With a mixed sentiment of "why?" but also some childish excitement, we board the train and take our seats. First thing to do: look online for more information about this weirdly themed train. It turns out we're rather lucky to travel on this unique shinkansen. The entire first carriage is built as a store full of Hello Kitty stuff and a bar. The second compartment is a travel compartment, but entirely themed in Hello Kitty with even a photo stand. During our trip we can't resist having a look at what such a store looks like. It's Japan, so we can leave our stuff in our seats without fear and explore this pink colored bullet on tracks.
Having taken our mandatory picture with the famous cat, I start looking online for the location of lockers in Himeji station. Always handy if you know what you're aiming for when arriving on the platform rather than walking around like a clueless pigeon.
Of course, things go smoothly, and it doesn't take too long for us to store our bags. Next thing on the list: grab a coffee. No need to plan your coffee moment up front: as you've already read on this blog, Starbucks is all around! Obviously, there should be one in the station. We have to do some searching in the shopping center that is connected to the station but find it and start our morning routine.
From the train station, it's a straight walk down a boulevard to the castle. You can already see it from the moment you exit the station. Walking down the boulevard and having to wait a few times for the pedestrian traffic light to turn green, we notice how there's a different sound for the visually impaired for crossing the main street compared to the side streets. One sounds like a bird, the other like a Star Wars laser gun.
At the end of the street, we arrive at a moat and a nice wooden bridge that welcomes us to the castle.
Himeji Castle is huge. It's considered one of Japan's most prestigious and well-preserved castles. Contrary to many other castles, this one was never destroyed by fire or a tsunami making it rather unique. We buy our entry tickets and walk along the many rooms and corridors that this castle has to offer. On old drawings we see the sheer size of the castle grounds long ago. The castle grounds reached all the way up to the train station. The city had to compromise on what to keep and protect and which section to relinquish and use for modern facilitations.
During our visit we walk on the original wooden floors and read many stories about the emperors who lived here. As per Japanese tradition, we have to carry our shoes with us in a plastic bag to protect the floor. I actually like this habit of removing shoes, not only does it protect the structure, but it also gives an odd sense of liberty and respect.
The main keep is impressive. As you climb the gigantic wood-structured building, you read about the use of each floor and the weapon and defense mechanisms they used. It must have been incredibly hard to conquer such a castle. In Europe we had a moat and a stone castle, but nothing to the size of the castle and inner walls of these Japanese countries! In our defense, stone is less prone to fire...
It's around 2PM when we head back to the train station and whilst waiting for our next bullet train to take us to Osaka, we buy something in a Seven Eleven store and eat it on a bench just outside the station. Once more, we notice how clean, modern, and comfy it is to sit here. A spotless bench, a tree next to us with no garbage near the base. On the ground around us not a single cigarette bud to be found. We realize how much we'll miss this when we get back home.
A few moments later, we arrive at our last stop for this journey: Osaka. Another great metropole with its own vibrance and food.
Exiting the train section of the station we head "down under" for the subway to take us to the hotel. When we exit the subway station at the exit closest to our hotel, we get for the first time a glimpse of what Osaka looks like. And... well... the first impression is a bit weird as just across the street is a tall pink hotel all decorated with sweets, cookies and pie. Welcome back to the madness of a big city!
After checking in and dropping off our bags, we head back on the streets to discover some of the city highlights in the vicinity of the hotel. We're already a bit tired, but our planning doesn't allow things to simply be moved to another day. And we're not coming back here soon, so there's no choice: out we go!
First stop is Namba Parks: a shopping complex that has special architecture that resembles a canyon and a park on top. Not really knowing what to expect, we set off in the general direction of the park. From across the street, it doesn't seem like a spectacular or large place. However, once we're "inside" it actually is a beautiful work of art! We start by walking down below in the canyon and appreciate the curves and architecture. At the end we take the elevator to the top floor and walk back through the many parks and peaceful areas. There even is a little grass field where you can come and chill out. Read a book and enjoy the peace and quiet. There are cozy bars too! On the many floors separating the roof from the ground floor are different stores and restaurants.
Namba Parks leaves an impression. A good one. It's an oasis of green and peace and quiet in an otherwise vibrant city.
From Namba, we head in the direction of Den Den Town. It's a neighborhood that reminds us of Akihabara in Tokyo with all the electronic stores, anime, manga and cosplay. It doesn't take long before the streets are filled with colorful signs of stores. Every few hundred meters, there's a girl or boy standing in cosplay outfit. The stores keep amazing us... the things you can buy here?! Ranging from action figure dolls to playing cards to luna parks where you can try to catch a French fry as a key hanger. Yes... you read that right: one French fry as a key hanger. Or have you heard about pet cafés where you can have a cup of tea with a hedgehog? Or a duck?
Leaving the madness behind us, we continue north to the most famous spot of Osaka: Dotonbori Street. However, before arriving there, we pass through the Kuromon market where they sell lots of local fresh products that are used in the restaurants. Because it's already quite late when we pass through, most of the stalls are closed. Nevertheless, we can imagine an extreme amount of liveliness here in the mornings.
You can't really miss the street to our left that is Dotonbori. The number of tourists is overwhelming. As we make our way through the street, we have constantly have to move our attention from not hitting oncoming tourists, to the amazing and huge storefronts in the street. Most of them are restaurants and have an absolutely humongous sculpture of their food or anything other that attracts the eye hanging in front. Of course, there's the moving crab (actually, there are many).
Dotonbori is located next to a river and the bridges across are packed because of the nice views on the many advertisement boards. It feels like you're in a theme park. There even is a television screen so big that it almost covers the entire front of a building. And there's a dog appearing on it that seemingly sticks its head out of the screen.
Just on the other side of the bridge is the famous "running man" sign. One of the most renowned symbols of Osaka. It's not lid at this time and we're both starting to feel very hungry. Despite having food stalls all around us, we don't really feel like walking into the first restaurant we come by.
We still have to try ramen and the proper way to eat it. We leave the crowded area of Dotonbori behind us and try to find some better prices and calm in the neighboring area of Amerikamura. It turns out to be a long search for food. Not due to the lack of options, but rather the abondance of options! We enter a ramen place and are offered two seats at the counter.
Ramen is a quick meal in Japan, so it's not a fancy restaurant vibe kind of dinner. Having seen some videos online on how to eat this boiling noodle soup and the different types, we order something. Not really knowing if we'll like it or not.
A few minutes later, the bowl arrives and it's time to test out our slurping skills. We both try a couple of times. We both fail a considerable number of times. Every now and then there's a successful slurp but then we didn't really catch the technique on how we achieved it. From the chef's point of view or any Japanese I think we failed miserably.
With our T-shirts stained with a few drops of broth, we go one more time to the bridge in Dotonbori to see the running man sign illuminated. We take our pictures and head exhausted to the subway. Time to get to bed! 21000 steps later we fall down on our matrasses and close our eyes. Tomorrow is our last day...Read more
Osaka's kitchen
June 21, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C
Our journey is approaching its final chapter. It’s our last full day in Japan but there’s little time to mourn about it as we packed it again to the notch. To finish this incredible journey, we booked a guided food tour at 5PM. Osaka is often called ‘Japan’s kitchen’ and despite being at the end of our journey, this felt like the right place to do it. After all, maybe we’ll finally get some advice on how to eat certain meals.
For now, it’s early morning and we enjoy our breakfast at the hotel. Afterwards we fill our backpacks and head outside for another day of exploration. There are still certain areas in the city that we need to discover. Starting high with the Abeno Harukas, a 300m high skyscraper with a viewing deck on top. Just like in Tokyo, there’s another viewing platform as well (Umeda Sky Building), but geographically the Abeno Harukas was more convenient. It’s way higher as well with its 300m compared to the Umeda Sky Building’s 175m. Inside the skyscraper is Japan’s largest shopping area of more than 100.000m² of shopping pleasure. The top 3 floors make up the observation platform.
Although entry to these places is relatively expensive (¥1500/pp) the view is quite impressive. There are also good signs that indicate what you can see and which direction you’re facing. We try to spot major city highlights, the airport and where we’ll go afterwards. In the distance we can spot one of the tall attractions near Dotonbori Street where we passed the evening before. Contrary to what we thought, the tower of Tsutenkaku – which is where we’re heading next - is not that well visible. It’s camouflaged between the many tall and grey buildings surrounding it.
Before we leave the observation platform, we have a quick stop at the toilets. I’ve seen bathrooms with a lesser view than this!
We exit and walk through a park in the direction of Shinsekai neighborhood which is referred to as ‘the new world’. Main attraction is the Space-Needle-like tower in the middle: Tsutenkaku.
It’s a vibrant neighborhood with lots of colors and signs. We’re there still in the middle of the morning and most restaurants aren’t open yet. We can imagine that at noon or in the evening this area is thriving even more. Some of the street lanterns are artistically designed in a piece of art.
Time to go and visit our last Japanese castle! We head to Osaka castle and when viewing the waiting queue for buying tickets, quickly take out our phones to make an online order. The queue for pre-purchased tickets is not long at all compared to the one for the ticket booth. A few minutes later we have a digital ticket on our phone and can skip a big portion of the crowd.
The castle is more of a museum than a historic castle. All the floors are different exhibitions, and it’s rather crowded inside. We go up the different floors and stop at some of the interesting displays. The Japanese history in all its detail is a bit too complicated for us. Some of the major historical events are familiar, but this really goes above our heads. On the top floor, there’s a viewing platform from which you can look in all 4 cardinal directions.
As we exit the castle/museum’s grounds via the surrounding parc, we have a seat on a bench in the shade to plan our next move. We have to be in time for the food tour, so it’s little use to travel all around the city to hop back on the subway a few minutes after we arrive to make it in time. We decide to visit the temple of Shitennoji. One of the oldest in Japan but also a replica as the original has burned down a couple of times already. In the streets surrounding the temple complex there is a weekly market going on. Because of the market, the inside buildings are free to visit. Lucky us!
The pagoda in the middle of the square has a lot of winding staircases and a very limited view on top. Inside there are hundreds of little buddha statues. Apart from the buildings themselves, there’s nothing very spectacular to see. We walk back through the market and pass by another place with a lot of little sculptured monks with red hats. It’s beautiful and crazy how hard it’s to spot in the crowded streets.
We decide to head to the subway station where we have to meet up for the food tour. Better to arrive a bit in advance and check out the neighboring area than to be late. We’re curious about what we’ll eat. Hopefully there are still some things that we haven’t tried yet! And yes, that is surely an option in Japan. There are so many different things to eat here.
Whilst we’re waiting for our tour guide, we stroll around a bit the little streets. At one point, we pass by a huge gambling shop. It’s actually quite stunning how big gambling addiction is in this country. From luna parks to slot machines, many Japanese are spending a lot of money on it.
Back at the meeting point, a young lady meets us. She seems about our age, although guessing age is extremely hard in Japan. We wait for two more people who arrive just on time. Our guide isn’t holding a sign or anything, so it’s a bit of a search in the crowd to look for people who look like they’re looking for other people. We meet up with the other guests: two British men.
The fun thing about the tour is that we explore food in an area that is still rather unknown to tourists. Mostly locals come here to eat so we don’t have the feeling we’re just another tourist herd being led from stall to stall. We start with some tempura and an extremely jummy egg soft boiled egg. You have to eat it in one bite (thanks for the tip, guide) but it’s a real taste explosion.
Having tried some appetizers, we move on to the next location where we’ll try the okonomiyaki. There will be two variants of which we’ve eaten one before. The tables are equipped with a heated plate in the middle and an employee prepares the food at the table. Some real show cooking!
Our last stop is a place where we’ll have some sort of BBQ. All tables have a little BBQ-like stove in the middle of the table, and they bring vegetables and meat. Some dip sauces to marinate the meat before you throw it onto the grill. Our guide prepares a lot of different types of meat, and we even have a taste of some raw meat which is surprisingly tasty. Nothing compared to what we have in Belgium (steak tartar).
It’s a cozy evening. We can chat a bit about Japanese culture. Get to know each other and exchange stories from our home countries. Our new British friends decide to go to a pub afterwards, so our guide drops them off at a nearby good pub. She walks us back to the subway station, say goodbye and head back to the hotel.
The sad moment has arrived: time to re-organize our suitcases so everything fits. Tomorrow in the early morning, we’ll go to the airport. We’ll surely miss this country and culture!Read more
Back Home
June 22, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C
We grunt and turn in bed when the alarm clock wakes us. We don't want to accept that this marks the end of our journey in Japan. What a journey it has been!
We prepare ourselves and put our final belongings in our suitcases. For the first time in a while we take a sweater or hoodie for on the plane and face the colder temperatures in Europe. With everything prepared, we take the elevator to the reception hall and check out. The reception desk is manned at this early hour, but it's too early for breakfast. We'll have something at the airport.
There were several options for us to get to the airport, but because we woke up on time, we planned the one that is still included in our JR-Area-Pass. That should still provide us with plenty of time at the airport itself.
The train ride is uneventful, and the last part takes us to the island on which the airport of Kansai (Osaka) is located. As the train goes over the bridge, the sun starts to rise over the hills. It's another spectacular view.
At the airport, we head to the arrival hall because we still have to hand in our portable Wi-Fi. The desk where we have to hand in has just opened but there's a drop-off box available in case you arrive at a different time. Time to make our way to the departure hall and get rid of our luggage.
When we arrive at the check-in desks, they are all still closed. Our flight is one of the first intercontinental flights to leave and every desk is still closed. We wait together with only a few other passengers and after a short while they open the check-in desk. We're the first to drop off our bags and head to security. Because of the early hour, everything goes smoothly and quickly as well. In no time we're in the shopping and duty-free area. Ready to enjoy our last Japanese breakfast. The options for food are rather limited but of course you can always find something to your liking.
Whilst waiting for boarding, we stroll around and visit some souvenir shops.
After a while it's time to board our flight back home via Munich.
The shiny Lufthansa Airbus 350 is waiting for us. To our surprise and joy the flight is not completely booked and there are many seats empty. This provides us with an entire row for just the two of us. Always nice to have a bit of extra space.
We watch in awe as the plane rotates. The scenery below becomes smaller and smaller, and our memories of this incredible journey grow bigger and bigger.
Thank you for reading my blog posts and sticking with me to the end.
I hope you've enjoyed reading it and maybe you obtained some useful tips or advice if you're still planning on visiting.
See you in the next adventure!Read more
