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  • Simon Randfield
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  • Simon Randfield

Winter 2025-26

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  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler

    Nara

    November 27, 2025 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 17 °C

    Fantastic Ryokan in Ki-katsuura. The best food ( dinner and breakfast, both virtually interchangeable) and all sorts of onsens, including one a boat trip away in a cave where I think thunderbird 2 used to park.
    Then an effortless 4 hours of trains back north to Nara.
    Nara used to be the capital of Japan, before Kyoto, before Tokyo. Therefore it has a fair smattering of old temples and a more relaxed town atmosphere on the edge of parkland and countryside. We elected for a dawn visit to the must-see great Buddha- we were actually there before they opened!- but beat the crowds. Then a wander round a load more parkland, temples of every shape and size perused by the omnipresent sicka deer.    Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler
    11

    Kumano Kodo day 4

    November 25, 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    Accommodation last night was very different from the previous nights home stays -a big lux hotel with an onsen- shared natural hot baths. Once we had negotiated the dos and donts of onsen behaviour - mainly revolving around soap, slippers and ( lack of) clothing, we were able to come to a slow simmer in a pit dug in the side of the riverbed outside the hotel.
    Later I was like a kid at Christmas in the all you can eat Japanese buffet, and felt quite the part in my kimono/yukata combo, apparent from trying not to flash the waitress.
    All this led to a good nights sleep ( for me) and a pre dawn start. We decided to rip up the agenda/ route set to finish or trek in style and took a bus to kogechi, allowing us to complete the trip as we started it- on foot. This did mean traversing the " body breaking slope" and "abode of the dead", but allowed us to drop down into Nachi Taisha, a fitting end to our odyssey. What we hadnt planned for was dreich cold weather , and thick cloud, so a different vibe today. Though I'd be happy for the sunny weather we'd had so far to have continued, the misty clag gave a spooky ethereal feel: abode of the dead indeed. This section of trail was remote but a combination of Japanese infrastructure and technology meant there was one of the ubiquitous vending machines at 800m half way, where we discovered they dispensed hot coffee and hot soup!
    A long descent through the cloud base at the end was frustrated by the lack of gaps in the trees so we could only imagine the fantastic views of vertiginous mountain slopes, swirling clouds and distant Pacific Ocean... some price for trees!
    Arriving at Nachisen/Nachi Taisha was arriving in a different world- bus tours and folk everywhere. But another sacred Buddhist / Shinto space. Here is the highest waterfall in Japan- the Nachi Taisha, so beautiful that it became an object of worship itself. Deification of natural objects is a common feature of the kumano Shintoism and what makes walking through this landscape more special.
    A bus down to the coast and we were back in a fancy hotel with a flurry of slippers, kimonos, tatami and onsens. Dinner was a veritable feast- the best meal yet, multiple courses, served either raw or cooked at the table, all served in intricate pottery .God help the washer- up.    Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler
    11111

    Kumano Kodo day 3

    November 24, 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    Another stunning day on the Kumamo. In just a few km we reached the end of our pilgrimage, the Hongu Taisha. It was really quite impressive and lively with the sound of chanting, drumming and the thrum of tourists. We spent a wee while ringing bells, bowing and clapping with the peaceful crowds, and once fully spiritually awakened, went for a coffee. At this point we decided we wanted to walk on to our nights accomodation rather than the planned series of buses, so up and over to the first onsen ( hot springs) where we boiled some eggs then on down the valley across bridges and through tunnels to our hotel.hotel tonight was somewhat more glamorous than the rustic home stays to date and we swanned around in our kimonos for a while. Our hotel is built around an onsen , so instead of immersing eggs we immersed ourselves and had a lovely soak as dusk fell watching red kites fly up and down the valley and the moon rise over the trees.Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler
    111

    Kumano Kodo day 1

    November 22, 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 11 °C

    So begins 4 days trekking in the remote mountains of the Kii peninsula: the Kumano Kodo. This route follows one of the ancient pilgrimage routes dating back more than than 1000 years linking 3 grand shrines where Shinto and Buddhism have intertwined with the local geography.
    From the 11th century pilgrims have visited the Kumano to train their souls to reach paradise.
    Let's see how we get on.    Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler
    Tsunami defences

    Tanabe

    November 21, 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 13 °C

    Several hours of easy train rides, feasting on our Eki-Ben and craft beer, and we're at the bottom of the Kii peninsula to start the Kumano Kodo- along with the Camino, the only UNESCO protected pilgrimage.Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler
    1

    Kyoto

    November 19, 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 9 °C

    What trip to Japan could not include Kyoto? The historical capital and cultural centre of the country is stacked full of imperial palaces, Shinto shrines, Buddhist temples ,Shoguns, Samurai and Geisha. What's less clear on the packaging is that its a city of 1.5 million, and all the above are scattered around this metropolis , making it a bit overwhelming to find your way around. Added to this every corner shop is a UNESCO world heritage site and is called something-ji.
    so we elected to take a bike tour to suss the place out . Inauspiciously, our guide was the unlikely "only Argentinian in town", Alex. However living in Japan for 10 years with a Japanese wife his outside/ inside perspective was fascinating.
    We've lucked out and the ephemeral autumn colours are at their peak- we never thought we'd get so excited about gardens! But Japan nails the imperfect perfection or wabi sabi of everything being just right in these amazing spaces.
    Day 2 and 3 in Kyoto saw us exploring more shrines and temples, gardens and coffee shops. We hit some of the blue riband sites and with that the crowds!! Whoa! So busy!! We took solace in Japanese food which continued to surprise and stimulate.    Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler
    2
    2112We❤️shinanami!

    Shimanami Kaido

    November 17, 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    We had a second, leisurely day on Naoshima mooching around coffee shops and "art houses". Japanese minimalism at its best. Then back to Okayama for the night and an early morning Shinkansen to Onomichi, the start of the shimanami Kaido- a " must do" bike ride linking multiple islands in the Seto Inland Sea. Very well developed in as much as there are brilliant cycle specific lanes winding up ( and down) from each bridge - never more than 3% and 80m- but the islands themselves are a mix of bucolic orange orchards above crisp sandy beaches and industrial units and ship building. Sort of like the Clyde once was, maybe? With citrus instead of Irn Bru..
    And continuing the Scottish analogy , it makes you realise the 5 ferries could put Scotland on the international cycling map if the ferries were reliable. Or there were bridges. And it was sunny. And no midges. And drivers weren't trying to to kill you.
    Any which way, it was great to be on the bike again.
    We got to our Ryokan just as the clouds rolled in, the rain started and it went dark. Time for a quick splash in the onsen then a magnificent feast on all sorts of unrecognisable seafood.
    After the best nights sleep on futons and tatami and a magnificent Japanese breakfast we were off early on our return journey. Expecting biting cold and horrific head winds we lucked out by taking a circuitous detour which all but kept out of the wind. This time we had a bridge , a ferry, 3 bridges, a ferry, a bridge and a final ferry back to Onamichi. Brilliant , well recommended!!    Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler
    111

    Naoshima

    November 15, 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 14 °C

    An hour from Okayama, by multiple local trains and a ferry, lies Naoshima. Previously a run down backwater- a mix of rural depopulation and a copper mine denuding the local nature- it was transformed into an "Art Island" with the establishment of the brutalist concrete Benesse museum and a couple of Yayoi Kusama pumpkins. Since then it continues to flourish with more installations, sculptures , art houses and galleries.
    Apart from the melee getting off the ferry and picking up one of the electric bikes to get you around the island, it's been a perfect antidote to the frenetic urban cacophony we've experienced so far in Japan    Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler

    Okayama

    November 14, 2025 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 12 °C

    Phew! Out of Tokyo and 3hrs on the Shinkansen, effortless travelling, to Okayama.
    Here as a stop off for Naoshima, but found some rickety old bikes to follow the Kibiji cycle path out of town. A bit like cycling out of Falkirk on the forth and Clyde canal, but with some Shintō shrines at the end. You're not going to find those in Bonnybridge!
    Back to base then a dusk walk down to the castle and gardens. Tonight's the night they put the winter lights on!    Read more

  • Simon RandfieldWinter 2025-26Traveler

    Toky-oh

    November 14, 2025 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    And they're off! A whirlwind few days in Tokyo as an abrupt and deep-dive into Japan and Japanese culture. Fantastically bewildering!!
    So what have we learned?
    Tokyo is very large: our central hotel was the best part of an hours commute from the .... centre.
    There's lots of people here. 14 million, 11% of Japan's population- and all on the Shinjuku subway every morning.
    Folk here have learned to live close together. Apart from cramming onto the subway, everyone respects each others space.
    Follow the rules. Don't jay-walk.
    Shintō shrines vs Buddhist temples...
    The fish market isn't a fish market anymore. Unless you go to the fish market.
    Very polite and helpful folk.
    Food has not disappointed- although haven't tried the pork rectum yet..
    Cycle where you wish and don't bother looking! You can actually relie on drivers looking out for you. ( please don't take this literally..)
    I want an all singing all scrubbing all dancing Japanese toilet !!    Read more

    Trip start
    November 10, 2025
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