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Japan 2023

September - November 2023
A 60-day adventure by Alan Read more
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  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 3

    The Journey to Tokyo

    September 11, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    On Saturday September the 9th, I left home at 18.00 and took the Northern Line to Tottenham Court Road and then the Elizabeth Line to Heathrow. however, once on the latter, there was an announcement about the disruption to trains in West London and the suspension of trains to Heathrow, plus disruption on the the Piccadilly Line, an alternative route to Heathrow. passengers were advised to take the Heathrow Express from Paddington. At the latter, there were crowds standing around because all routes were suspended indefinitely. So I joined the queue for taxis, and shared a taxi to Terminal Five with two German ladies returning to Munich that evening,
    I checked into the Sofitel Hotel at Terminal Five which was franchised to Arora Hotels. There was no TV in the Sports Bar so I ordered room service and watched England v Argentina in the Rugby World Cup in my room.
    On Sunday the 10th, I checked out of the hotel at 10.00, walked to Terminal Five, and checked in for the BA flight to Tokyo which departed 30 minutes late at 13.50. The flight on a Boeing 787 took 13 hours plus an 8 hour time difference which meant that the plane landed at 10.50 on Monday the 11th at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, Not being able to fly over Russia and the Ukraine, the flight crossed Germany, Austria, Hungary, Rumania, the Black Sea, Kazakhstan, China and South Korea.
    There was a 1km walk to the efficiently-organised immigration desks. A pre-arranged transfer by Inside Japan took me to the Agora Place Hotel in Asakusa. I had lunch in the cafe until the room was ready at 15.00.
    Tokyo was humid with a similar temperature to the heatwave in London of the low 30s.    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 4

    Tokyo

    September 12, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 31 °C

    On a humid day, the temperature was 31 degrees. After breakfast at the hotel, I walked to the Tourist Information Office in Asakusa for a 90 minute walking tour with a guide and a couple from Montreal after taking photos from the rooftop floor of the Office. The tour was mainly around the Senji Shrine. Afterwards, I walked across the bridge over the Sumida River and to the yellow Asahi Super Dry Hall. I took photos and had a light lunch plus an Asahi beer on the 22nd floor. Then I walked to the freestanding Skytree Tower and, after lots of queuing, ascended to the top level at 450m to take photos of a hazy Tokyo. There was a glass deck to stand on and look down.
    I walked back to the hotel through the Senji Shrine and the nearby entertainment district.
    It was noticeable that the Japanese respect the traffic lights even when there is no traffic. Birdsong plays when the lights turn green.
    There were few cycle lanes in Japan with cycles being ridden on the pavements.
    Back at the hotel, I moved room and started sharing with James Kennedy, a 25-year-old from near Hamilton, North Island, NZ. He had been travelling around SE Asia for a month with Contiki.
    On a number of early-evenings over the following week, we watched on TV one of the largest sumo wrestling tournaments in Tokyo.
    There were 10 at the group meeting for the first leg of the Intrepid trip entitled Ultimate Japan; James and myself; Alison and David from Edinburgh; Jason and Tracey from Pacifico, San Francisco; Donna from Victoria, Australia; Leona and her daughter, Eleanor, from Australia, and Lay (or Lai) from Toronto. Seiji was the Japanese leader. We went for a sushi dinner followed by a walk to the floodlit Senji Shrine with the floodlit Skytree Tower in the distance.    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 5

    Nikko

    September 13, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    It was very hot in Tokyo but cooler once we arrived in Nikko
    In the morning, we checked out of the hotel and took the Ginza Line to Ueno Station and left Seiji activating our 10-day JR Pass.
    Some of the group went to the Tokyo National Museum in Ueno Park which was free for over-70s. I walked round the Japanese civilisation and archaeology galleries and the garden with its tea houses, and had lunch in the restaurant at a nearby museum.
    I walked back to Ueno Station which was the first of many very large stations which I saw on the holiday with lots of entrances, railway lines, and services on different levels. The handle on my large wheeled holdall had stuck so I'd left it in the largest left-luggage cupboards.
    We took our first Shinkansen (bullet) train ride for 40 minutes to Utsonomiya followed by a local train to Nikko. The countryside was green with rice paddies and horticulture once we left the suburbs of Tokyo. Nikko was a small town with mountains nearby. Taxis took us to Hotori, our first ryokan with tatami floors and futons as bedding. Dinner was at a restaurant with an extensive menu. I had a meal with nine different items, a bit like an Indian thali,    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 6

    Nikko

    September 14, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    The good breakfast included warm bread, jam, fruit, a boiled egg and orange juice. Afterwards, we walked a short way to the Kanmangafuchi Abyss with Jizo Buddhas wearing their red caps and napkins waiting for offerings. Then we walked to the Toshogu Shrine complex with lots of buildings and schoolchildren. There many steps up to the burial shrine of the Tokuga Shogun.
    Walking into town, we saw the red-laquered Shin -kyo Bridge on the way to a restaurant where the food was ordered on a tablet and delivered by a robot. It was also the first indication that meals were not as expensive as expected nor as in London.    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 6

    Nikko

    September 14, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    After lunch, we took a local bus up the mountain to Chuzenji Lake and the Kegon Falls which fell 100m. There was a smell of sulphur near the volcanic lake. A group photo was taken by the sign of the G7 whose leaders had met at a lakeside hotel earlier in the year. The town looked as though it was out-of-season.
    We returned to Nikko around the hairpin bends on a local bus, and bought food at a convenience store to eat at the ryokan.
    In the evening, some of the the group went to a very amusing drag show.
    There was no sign of obesity in Japan with few women being taller than 5 and a half feet, and people being slimmer than in the UK in general.
    The handle on my holdall was still stuck despite the ryokan manager hitting it with a hammer to try to release it.    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 7

    Hakone

    September 15, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    My wheeled holdall was forwarded from Nikko to Takayama whilst I took just my backpack for the two nights in Hakone. The luggage forwarding service in Japan was excellent.
    We did our previous journey in reverse leaving the Chinese Maples in Nikko to return to Tokyo Central Station from where we took a Shinkansen to Odawara where I had a udon noodle lunch.
    Greater Tokyo lasted for the 40 minutes from Utsonowiva to Tokyo Central. There was no Green Belt around Tokyo and other large cities.
    Using our Hakone 3-day Free Pass, we took a local train to Gora, the funicular/cable car to Sounzan, and the ropeway to Owakudani at an elevation of 1000m. where there were sulphur fumaroles and where I bought my Japan Number 1 cap having lost my other cap in Nikko. We took the ropeway down to Togendai on Lake Ashi and then a bus to Fuji Hakone Guest House. which was a ryokan with shared facilities as in Nikko. It also had a piano with Beatles and other sheet music.
    There was thunder, lightening and rain before we went down the road for a Chinese meal.    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 8

    Hakone

    September 16, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 25 °C

    We took a local bus to Lake Ashi. The Japanese obey the instruction not to get up from your seat until the bus stops. There was also little chatter on buses, metro and local trains. We went on a "pirate" boat across the lake, and then went into a magic box shop to see how the boxes are made with different woods and designs. They were very attractive and expensive. One of them had 35 things to do before it opened. I bought a sake cup.
    We passed through a gate which was the frontier between the Shoguns in Edo/Tokyo and the Emperor in Kyoto. It was part of the Post Road which I hiked on elsewhere later in the trip,
    We visited the Shinto shrine which was above the red Torri gate in the Lake. There was an archery class in one of the buildings in the complex.
    I had a good udon vegetable soup for lunch.
    Seiji, James and myself took a local bus to Hakone Yumato Station and then a shuttle bus to the alkaline hot spring public onsen at Hakone Yuryo, As in all onsens, there were separate baths for men and women since the bathing was nude. There were hot and medium cold pools plus a hot sauna with a temperature of 40 degrees; I lasted for less than 2 minutes in that heat.
    We took a local bus back to the guest house, passing through villages on windy road and completing our circumnavigation of Lake Ashi.
    We went to a local Japanese restaurant for dinner.    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 9

    Takayama

    September 17, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 30 °C

    We left Hakone by bus to Odawara Station, a Shinkansen to Nagoya, and a local express train for 150 minutes to Takayama situated at 573m the other side of the watershed in the Hida Mountains and surrounded by the Southern Alps at 3000m.
    Most Japanese obey the instruction not to walk up or down the escalators at stations.
    After checking-in at the ryokan, we went to Hida No Sato Open-Air Folk Museum where old buildings had been relocated around a lake which had carp.
    We sat on the floor for dinner at the ryokan where Hida beef was cooked in a heated pot. After dinner, we played various card games but mainly pontoon (21) with small coins to make it more interesting.
    There was an onsen at the ryokan as at a number of the accommodations on the holiday. Some were from hot springs and had minerals whereas others were just hot water. A few places had hot baths with silver foil on top to keep the water warm.    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 10

    Takayama

    September 18, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 27 °C

    We ate a typical Hida breakfast with lots of dishes at the ryokan sitting on the floor.
    We went to the morning market where there were lots of shops and booths with food to taste. There were many Japanese and foreign tourists, today being a public holiday to respect the older generation.
    Many old houses had been converted into cafes, shops or museums.
    We visited Takayama Jinya which was the branch office of the Shogun government from 1692 until 1868 when the Shogun was replaced by the Emperor. This Jinya was the only original one in Japan.
    We visited a sake shop for a tasting of three different sakes although I struggled to tell the difference.
    I went to the Tourist Information office at the Station to be directed to the only shop with rucksacks but there was nothing on wheels with a handle.
    For lunch, I had a Hida beef rice bowl, miso soup, and a Hida cheese pot.
    In the afternoon, we walked through a handicraft centre and a local museum to the Retro Museum which had lots of items from the mid-1950s.
    We visited a Shinto shrine and a Buddhist temple with a 1000-year-old ginkyo tree. These places were much quieter than the equivalent in Nikko.
    We had another Hida dinner at the ryokan, and played cards in the evening.    Read more

  • TravelerJapan 2023
    Day 11

    Hiroshima

    September 19, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 30 °C

    I forwarded my holdall to Kyoto for Y2100 = £13.
    After another Japanese breakfast at the ryokan, we retraced our route back to Nagoya and experienced the only delay on a train on the whole eight-week holiday. It was only 20 minutes and meant that we missed our connection but there was another train soon afterwards.
    I bought a bento box to eat for lunch on the Shinkansen to Osaka, where we sat in our only unreserved seat on the whole holiday, followed by a Shinkansen to Hiroshima.
    After checking-in at the S Hotel, we took a tram to the Peace Park and saw the Dome which had not been destroyed by the atomic bomb in 1945 because it was at the epicentre of the blast.
    We walked through one of the many long, covered arcades in Japan to an upstairs floor where there were a number of booths with tourists eating okonomiyaki pancakes made on the hot surface in front of the counter. It was one of the best meals we had so we returned the following evening.
    There was a massive store selling all kinds of things close to the restaurant but it didn't have wheeled holdalls. Many shops had suitcases on sale.
    It was noticeable in Hiroshima and other cities that the average size of car was smaller than in the UK with few SUVs.    Read more

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