Japan October 2017

Tues Oct 17

It doesn’t seem like four years since we were in Japan, but it is, so there you are; and here we are, pointing in that direction again, aboard a Qantas A330. This time we are travelling with our friends Bella and Albert Hiler and their daughter Sylvia. Sylvia was our tour organiser a few years ago on our trip to Israel, and she is always good for an insightful commentary on any situation, Bella and Albert’s son, Simon, who has been living in London for some time will join us in Tokyo, so we are a touring party of six.

Arriving in Tokyo, we had to do some rail ticket paperwork then jump aboard the Narita Express to our hotel across the road from Shinagawa Station, directions to which Simon had sent us, as he had arrived a few hours before us.

Elly and I were beyond partying, so we went to our shoebox room and had a Scotch and some nuts for dinner.

Wed Oct 18

I don’t know who did this schedule, but we were down at the hotel reception at 7:50 am to meet our tour guide for a half day Tokyo tour. I have to admit, we have been spoiled on our travels with things like city tours, because it has always been just us.

Not so this morning, as we all boarded a 1000 seat coach and proceeded to drive around most of Tokyo, picking up people from other hotels. By the time we picked up the last lot, I was feeling that we had already done the tour!

We had a chat with one of the passengers who boarded at our hotel, his name was Dave, from Texas, and he was here on a business trip, a conference on his field, which is cancer research. He asked us what we all did, so I told him, “ We are just the ones who have cancer.” We wished him the greatest of success in his chosen field, sooner rather than later! He also apologised for the current management of the USA, even though he was from Texas.

We first visited Tokyo Tower, which is a communication and observation tower constructed in 1958 and modelled after the Eiffel Tower. We were transported up to the observation deck, from which we could see – lots of buildings.

We then went to the Meiji Shrine, which is a Shinto shrine dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shoken. It’s Torii  Gate, the classical shape of temple gates throughout Japan, is massive, and is constructed of 1500 year old Taiwanese cypress.

Meiji Shrine

Sake barrels for the gods of the temple.

Then past the Diet Building, which is not the central HQ of Jenny Craig, but, in fact the seat of Japanese Parliament.

Finally we were taken to the Imperial Palace east gardens, which are very beautiful. We are a little disappointed that we seem to be a month too early for Autumn leaves. We didn’t get to see the Palace, because it is only open to the public on two days each year, and this wasn’t one of them.

After the tour, the others elected to do their own thing. Elly and I decided that we would visit the Sensoji Temple which is a short train ride. The long roadway leading to the temple was separated into parallel streets which were set up as a street market.

We wandered along, deciding to stop and buy an ice cream. We were happily heading back out to the street with our ice creams when we were told that we couldn’t do that – we had to eat them in the shop, an area about the size of a single bed. Every time we drifted towards the street, this terribly nice lady entreated us to “ Please move inside” sort of takes the pleasure out of the whole thing really!

Just then, prior to reaching the Temple Gate, we heard a drum starting to beat, and a dragon appeared over the crowd. We managed a closer look, Elly with her camera being in the thick of things. The dragon was followed by a carriage which contained women in traditional dress, playing the flute. The drummer was walking alongside the carriage, leaning across to reach his drum.

It was a great sight as they paraded towards the temple Gate, when they finally stopped, eventually regrouped and started to head back again.

The evening began on a promising note, as Elly had managed, with the help of Sylvia and google to find a restaurant we had eaten at the last time we were here. It was run as more of a show than a restaurant, and I have described it in the previous Japan blog.                      “Inakaya Roppongi”

As there was only Bella, Sylvia, Elly and myself, we took a taxi, and, sure enough it was the right place, which was amazing. I would have had no idea where to find it.

We went inside and it was all very familiar, and a very nice gentleman informed us that they were fully booked out. No amount of pushing by Elly could change the situation. So we booked for the next night.

The kind gentleman said he could recommend a good place nearby, and he actually walked us down and around the corner, sticking his head through the door to speak to someone ( I think it must have been his brother in law ) and then called out that they could take us.  In we went, past a number of empty seats and bar stools to a “private area” which was about the size of a broom cupboard, literally! It had a low table which didn’t have enough height for legs to go under, and only one side was useable because there was stuff stacked on the other side. My legs were kicking against what looked like about eight cans of fly spray and I managed to kick a couple over. Next to Elly was a tortoise in a bucket, which management  said was a pet, the tortoise not the bucket.

We could hardly move, we were so crammed in, the staff were very friendly and the food was beyond awful. We couldn’t wait to get out of there, and believe me, getting out of there was almost physically impossible.

Broom closet

We decided we needed a drink, so we found an expensive bar however there was a sign out the front advertising 1000 yen for first drink, hadonly one drink, so when the bill came for 8200 yen for four drinks, I raced downstairs and took a photo of the sign to show the waiter. Bill was amended to 4000 yen, paid and then went home.

 

Kannon the Goddess of Mercy

 

Cleansing procedure

 

Second Sake box

We invaded the Japan Rail office to make other arrangements, and managed to get seats on the next train which was leaving about half an hour later. We had to compromise by taking seats in the ECONOMY section! We were actually originally supposed to catch the later train, but because of the lack of first class seats, which we had paid for, we chose the earlier one. We were being met by our hotel bus at Nagano based on the arrival time of the later one, so all was well. Actually the train was a bullet train and the ride was very comfortable.

We were met at Nagano station by a friendly driver with little English, who managed to squeeze us into his aged hotel minivan. He first took us to Zenkoji Temple ( yes, I know, another temple!). This temple was established when the statue of Amitabha Tathagata ( who? I hear you ask) was enshrined after it had been recovered from a moat into which it had been dumped by an anti- Buddhism faction at a time when Buddhism was being introduced to Japan.

Back to the noisy diesel van, this time to a place Elly and I had been to before, and which we hoped Bella, Sylvia and Simon would like – the Snow Monkeys. Poor Albert wouldn’t be able to manage the steps and steep slope, or the 1.6 km walk, so our driver took him to the hotel and came to fetch us later. Great service.
The walk to the monkeys is along a lovely forest track with the steadily increasing sounds of a fast flowing river. When we arrived, there were hundreds of these furry guys leaping around, scampering up the cliffs, leaping across the river, or sitting quietly while the humans walked right past them, totally comfortable with our presence, and a few were lazing around their purpose built geothermally heated rock pool. We were so disappointed for the others because when we last saw them, in winter, they were sitting in their pool like humans in a warm spring pool, but this time none of them seemed remotely interested in doing that.
It turns out, as I suspected, that because the weather was fine and quite mild, they were perfectly comfortable, thank you very much, and had no need to do all that spa stuff.

Simon and Sylvia were getting along really well, verbally sparring with each other and cracking “ In” jokes which, more often than not, passed over the heads of the oldies. Bella, of course, was in seventh heaven having her beloved son who she sees so rarely, travelling with her, Sylvia and Albert. Sylvia cracks me up, she is as smart as a whip, and her sense of humour is brilliant.

Sylvia cracking Alan up

Simon showed us a great app which probably everyone on the planet except me knows about; it is Google Translate, and all you have to do is point your phone camera at any writing, in this case we have set Japanese to English, and it translates the writing into English. Amazing! For those of you who know “The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”, the day of the Babel Fish is nearly upon us. For those who don’t, the Babel Fish is a small fish that you put in your ear, and it will translate any language spoken to you, into your own language.

On to our next hotel, the Selan which was a lovely place set high in the mountains with views looking down the valley to the town below. The rooms were spacious with a large section off the bedroom with a low Japanese table and chairs. Two sets of traditional clothing were neatly set up for the guests, and the window looked over the valley.

Saturday Oct 21

After breakfast the little van that could took us down the mountain to the small town of Obuse. On the way Elly had asked the driver if we could stop at one of the apple orchards we had seen on our drive the previous day. The apples looked enormous. Our driver obliged and we pulled to the side of the road next to an orchard so that Elly could photograph the different types of apples. Just then a little lady appeared on the scene with a hat and a face mask and made it very obvious that we should help ourselves. Elly, of course wanted to photograph her, so she removed her mask and her hat. We came away with about 8 apples, some of them almost twice the size of apples we buy at home.

Obuse is a small, quiet town, but, during the Edo era, 1603-1868, it was a centre of local trade and commerce. Many people took an interest in the culture of Obuse, and artists also moved from Kyoto and Edo (Tokyo). One of these artists was Katsushika Hokusai who had a wealthy sponsor in Obuse, and spent the rest of his life there painting. His is the style most of us know as Japanese art, and his fame spread worldwide, beginning with recognition in the Netherlands and spreading from there. We visited a museum in Obuse dedicated to his work.
Obuse has many pathways which wind between the main streets, where you pass small, beautifully manicured private gardens and the whole town seems to move at a very quiet, peaceful pace.

Soba noodles are the speciality of Obuse

Back in our hotel in the hills, the cloud was moving in and the forecast was looking wet as the typhoon moved closer.

Sunday Oct 22

We travelled back to Nagano train station to catch the bullet train to Kanazawa, which is on the west coast. The rain was falling when we arrived, and although the hotel was only five minutes walk, Elly and I elected to catch a taxi instead of getting our luggage soaked. The taxi driver couldn’t believe us, and pointed ahead holding two fingers up to tell us it was only two minutes away, however, unlike in Melbourne, he drove us there without complaining.

We were too early to check in so we decided to visit the Omicho Market which is a very famous market, and recommended for us to visit. I personally could live without visiting fish markets of any sort, but everyone seemed to enjoy it, with Elly stopping to sample bits and pieces along the way, and even stopping at a small shop and having crab, her favourite, for lunch.

Simon and Sylvia were busy deciphering maps and timetables for us to catch a bus to some museums, and, weather permitting, the Geisha District, and to nearby gardens, but the system was very complex, with Orange buses, Green buses, Kanazawa Loop bus, left loop, and right loop. Finally we jumped on a bus which the navigators thought was the correct one, but Simon’s other app started telling us that we were going the wrong way, so we hopped off next to some parklands and a large upmarket department store complex. As we left the bus and put up our umbrellas, they began to disintegrate in strong wind gusts that just come out of nowhere. We went inside the department store and discussed plans.
My suggestion was to head back to base, not because we were in any danger, but if things deteriorated very quickly we may have difficulty finding a taxi, and the taxis may even stop, which would leave us stranded.

Elly was annoyed about that plan because she had been photographing a traditional dance in the department store foyer area, and I had disrupted that “because of one gust of wind”

Things were looking very windy and wet, but in spite of this, everyone except Albert and I decided to head out to a nearby department store within walking distance, for more shopping, which they did.
When they returned, Albert and I assumed that everyone would want to stay out of the weather and have dinner at the hotel – but no – it was decided by higher powers that we should walk about ten minutes through the driving rain to another restaurant. This we did. Nice restaurant, everyone enjoyed the food, then back through the rain. Simon’s weather app was indicating wind strength of around 50km/hr increasing to 110km/hr by midnight. We survived the return walk OK without getting totally drenched, in fact the inference was that it was all a non event and I had been much too conservative. Maybe I had been, but from our window we could see the open top floor of a car park, and the water that had accumulated there could only be described as “rough seas”.

It was then decided we should have a game of 500 between Bella, Elly, Simon and me, with Sylvia giving cheek over Simon’s shoulder.

A good way to finish the day, and it appeared that we had dodged most of the typhoon, apparentlyv Tokyo had been hit hardest.

Monday Oct 23

The weather was still not great, but improving, so we headed out around midday with heavy skies but only an occasional sprinkle. Simon and Sylvia had deciphered the bus system, so we bought day passes and found the Left Loop bus which would take us to the museums we had tried to find the previous day. That was OK but when we arrived we found the museums were closed on Monday
Never mind, we decided that we would visit the Kenrokuen Garden. Literally meaning the Garden of Six Sublimities, these gardens are just extraordinary, where every square metre of lawns and trees and bushes are manicured to within an inch of their lives. These gardens took 150 years to complete and incorporate streams, waterfalls and magnificent trees, many of which are physically supported by timber struts to prevent them leaning too far.

Amazingly, when we asked whether they had any wheelchairs available for Albert, they said yes, so for no charge they produced a wheelchair from a small shed, and away we went.
We have found the people here to be unfailingly kind and helpful, even to the point on the previous day in the rain, when Albert was boarding a bus, a woman held her umbrella over him to keep him dry, while she got wet.
In the gardens there was a small army of workers busy sweeping and raking the lawns and flower beds after the previous day’s storm. They were actually removing every fallen leaf in this enormous garden, not one was to remain.

We came across a “villa” which was on the site of an original rest house which was burned down in 1759 and reconstructed in 1822 by the 12th Lord Narinaga who managed to die two years after it was finished. The villa seems to have a history of burning down and ibeing rebuilt. It was interesting to walk through the villa, which is minimalism personified, with timber floors and ceilings, sliding timber framed doors with paper between the timber and on the walls. Classic Madam Butterfly stuff.

Next was a visit to the “Higashi Geisha District” which was a very cute area of narrow lanes and old timber houses. There were small “hole in the wall” food outlets, and we stopped for some croquettes, which, again, we had to eat before we walked on. The streets were spotless and without rubbish bins, so we left our rubbish for the shop to dispose of. The area was a little commercial, with a few Geishas walking along the streets, but not outrageously so.

For dinner we found a great little place called Elbow Room, with very good food and an interesting owner who was Japanese born, but had lived in the U.S. for many years working as a sous chef. He was back in Japan to look after his mother. Family first, as he said.

Tuesday Oct 24

A relaxed start to the day, as we had a short stroll to the station to catch a bullet train for 23 mins and then change to an ordinary train, with our destination being Takayama, south of Kanazawa.

Alan and Albert minding luggage

And the sun was shining!
Our journey was from Kanazawa to Toyama, then change trains. The distances of the two journeys were about the same, but the bullet train did it in 23 mins, whilst the ordinary train took 90 mins.
Having said that, I think the bullet trains go too fast, because the ride is so pleasant, and it is over too soon!
Our “ordinary” train was, in fact, a wide view train with very large windows, and amazingly you could see straight behind, looking through the large rear window of the carriage and through the conductor’s compartment to the scenery we had just passed. And the scenery was magnificent, as we wound our way through a range of mountains; I was wondering how we were going to cross them, but there was a river flowing beside us all the time, so if water could find it’s way through the mountains all we had to do was follow it.

We arrived in Takayama, which has a delightful city centre consisting of narrow streets and old style dark wooden buildings, most of which were food shops or restaurants. A fast flowing river passes through and several bridges cross it.

The restaurant hunters found a lovely place for dinner, a Sake brewery with a restaurant attached. The area is known for its quality beef, and we all ordered food which required cooking your own meal at the table. It was all presented beautifully with your own burner and griddle plate, and bowls of salad and rice was well as a bowl of Miso soup.

Back to our hotel, which was OK but a bit over the top Japanese for the Aussies, no shoes past the foyer, a special shoe locker in the foyer. The rooms were small and the beds were futon mattresses on the floor.

Wednesday Oct 25

It was raining again!

Never mind, we had a plan. We would walk to the local market, while Bella & Albert took a taxi. Sylvia and Simon would do their own thing, then we would meet again at midday, or before, if it happened. We found the market and it was totally without interest, so we went for a bit of a wander, and came across one of the heritage national asset establishments. This was an administrative office, used during the Edo period, when the warrior government wielded supreme power over the nation for 15 generations of the Tokugawa Shogun for 265 years. Many head officials were sent from Edo (Tokyo) to perform administrative duties such as tax collection,police action etc.
The building is beautifully preserved and all the separate rooms are labeled in Japanese and English. The structure is, again, very sparse, with timber and paper used traditionally, and with bamboo mats completely covering the floor.

Still with our umbrellas up we made our way to the bus station for a trip to Shirakawago village. This small village is completely surrounded by mountains, in fact the drive there was notable for its lack of tunnel free space – OK what I am saying is that most of the 50 minute drive to Shirakawago was inside tunnels. As we arrived the rain made several attempts at clearing, but still left ragged cloud patches slowly sliding up the sides of the surrounding mountains.

start of autumn leaves as seen from bus

We walked through the village which consisted of farm houses, most of them being quite large and with very solid thatched roofing, some of which looked quite recent. I think they must have a local thatcher, because he had been very busy. Apparently the thatching lasts about 30 to 50 years.

Back through the mountains to Takayama town.

Thursday Oct 26

Back to the trains again to travel to Kyoto via a change at Nagoya. The train system here is fantastic. Smooth, clean trains running exactly on time, with carriage numbers displayed on the platform so you know exactly where to stand when the train arrives; the entry door for your carriage will be right in front of you as the train stops. We had purchased 21 day passes for the trip, so we could travel all over the country. We also have Pasmo cards which allow us to use the local trains in Tokyo and Kyoto, and which are basically the same as Myki cards.
We were met at our hotel by Fumiko, our guide for the afternoon, who was going to take us to see three main sights; the Kyoto Imperial Palace, the Golden Pavilion, and Nijo-Jo Castle.
There were only four of us, as Sylvia and Simon decided to wander through the city and do their own thing.
We decided to travel between sites by taxi rather than Albert having to slog it out between railway stations and destinations.
The Imperial Palace was an enormous series of structures spread out over a vast area. Most of our walking was done externally in the gravel areas surrounding the buildings, which would have been a problem for Albert, but we found that, once again, wheelchairs were provided, and not only that, they were electric power assist wheelchairs. The Palace itself is no longer the residence of the Emperor, who now resides in Tokyo, but we could see the various ornately decorated gateways where important people were permitted entry for an audience with the Emperor, as well as the waiting rooms where they subsequently cooled their heels until their turn came.
The roofing was generally tiled, however the gateways were more ornate and had immaculate thatching for their roofing. The gardens all around the Palace were, of course perfectly manicured and pristine.

Next was a visit to the Golden Pavillon which was another immaculate structure, completely covered in gold leaf, and seemed to glow from whichever way you looked at it. This was also surrounded by beautiful, serene gardens, with small lakes and ponds as well as paths winding around waterfalls and manicured trees. It was originally the villa of an Ashikaga Shogun, but upon his death it was converted into a temple.

The amount of water we have seen on our visit is in such stark contrast to where we live, where we have to conserve water all the time, the Japanese are more concerned with utilising the water flows by incorporating them into their environment, as well as keeping heavy flows under control.

Finally we visited the Nijo-Jo Castle, which is, again, a massively impressive structure which was built in 1603 by the founder and first Shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate. This unified Japan after a long period of civil war and ushered in the longest period of peace and prosperity in Japan’s history.

We decided that Fay was a completely inappropriate name for our guide so she became Fumico, her real name.

After its long history the 15th Shogun, in 1867 announced that the Shogunate rule was at and end, and the political power was being transferred to the Emperor. The style of the buildings is similar to the structures in the Imperial Palace.
Back at our hotel, Simon and Sylvia, contacted us to say they had booked us into a restaurant, so we jumped into a taxi and went to meet with them. This was a Vegan restaurant, which was something I had never experienced, and really didn’t like, although everyone else seemed to enjoy it. It seems that I radiated my dislike and subsequently got into trouble for spoiling everyone’s fun! I’m sorry for that.

Friday Oct 27

This was a day trip to Hiroshima, again via the bullet train leaving at 7:20 am, arriving at Hiroshima at 9:05 am – amazing!
There we met our guide,Yumi, which was easy to remember, as we have a friend of the same name at home.
We first visited Miyajima Island, which was a short train ride followed by a ferry ride. This island is sacred (Miyajima means sacred island), in fact it was once so sacred that nobody was allowed to set foot on it. Eventually small groups of religious people were permitted to go there under the supervision of a priest from the mainland. Even now nobody is permitted to die there, or be buried there; babies are not allowed to be born there, and any woman who has a baby on the mainland is not allowed back on the island for 100 days, due to the very high child mortality rate there.
Travelling to the island is considered as going from the normal world to the spiritual world, and that can only be done by passing through the Torii  Gate, this one being very famous, and is seen on lots of tourist brochures. It is actually in the water, not on land, because it was not permitted to enter the spiritual world by setting foot on land; this way you could pass into the spiritual world whilst still at sea. Directly in front of the Torii  Gate is the Itsukushima shrine which was built in 1168 and is actually built over the water, so people visiting would pass through the Torii  Gate and then continue on to the Shrine.

These days, practicality and tourism have ensured that anyone can come to the island, and, of course the ferry is a bit too big to fit through the Torii  Gate!
Once on the island there is a main shopping strip for souvenirs and food and deer wandering around looking for food from the tourists.

We walked up past the port area up several sets of stairs to a cable car, which they call a ropeway, actually one small cable car followed by a larger one. This takes you to the top of Mt Misen, from where you have a good view across to Hiroshima and out to sea in the opposite direction.

On the way back, Yumi booked us into a restaurant for lunch, for us to try the local speciality, Oconomiyaki, which we watched them cook in front of us. It starts with a thin crepe, then is heaped with cabbage, layered with pork plus a few other things, then inverted to cook the pork, and is finally sliced in half and presented to the diner. It was really delicious and very filling.

We saw a wedding family photo shoot wich was most intriguing as they had makeup and latout artists setting up before the shoot.

After lunch it was back for a tram ride to the Peace Park. The trams in Hiroshima are an eclectic mix, having imported a variety of old trams from various countries. The one we took looked as though it had come from a 1930s Eastern European country.
Arriving at the famous bombed dome, one of the few structures left standing, or partially standing by the atomic bomb, I personally found it hard to imagine that just 600 metres from where I stood, and just 300 metres above me was where the atomic bomb exploded on that August morning; that people were vaporised right where I was standing. We have all read about the bomb and the reasons it was used, but actually standing right underneath where it fell from the Enola Gay is very confronting.

We then walked into the Peace Park which has been established to ensure nobody forgets, and that the young generations are made aware of what happened, and the consequences of war, in fact a group of school children was assembled in front of a memorial sculpture as we passed.

We moved into the museum section which housed a great deal of before/after photographs and information about the city before the bomb and afterwards, as well as a visual working model display of the actual event – hard to describe here, but very well done.
We were a bit pushed for time, having to travel all the way back to Kyoto, so we unfortunately didn’t have as much time in the museum as we would have liked.

On the way back, our guide, Yumi, told Elly of her mother’s survival and the loss of her sister and her brother when their house collapsed on top of them. She is finally putting in writing her mother’s story, and her painful survival and loss some eleven years later.

Back in Kyoto we had a good view of Kyoto Tower and then out for dinner.

Saturday Oct 28

We had the morning off to sleep in a bit and catch up on the blog, We slept in, but Bella and Albert set the alarm to get up and say goodbye to Simon and Sylvia, who were both heading off to their respective countries at some painfully early time.
In the afternoon we had an appointment with a Geisha, yes, true! Well, not strictly a Geisha yet, but a Maiko, who is a trainee Geisha. This was organised by Fumiko, who met us at the establishment. This was in an old part of Kyoto, an area with narrow lanes and old wooden buildings. We waited outside the door, huddling out of the ever present rain. We found out that the “Geishas we had seen previously in Kanazawa were not real Geishas, but in fact, could simply have been tourists wearing hired traditional clothing – we had been fooled – real Geishas these days shun publicity, and are rarely seen.

The woman, who is apparently the owner of the premises ushered us into ushered us into a room with a low table which was set for four places and around which we had to sit- fortunately there was a recess under the table for our legs.  Then the Maiko, Maruume, was ushered in and served us a horrible green tea. She was dressed in a traditional costume with white powdery makeup on her face, heavy lipstick and lots of eye makeup. We were allowed to ask questions of her which were translated by Fumiko, our guide. This was like being on another planet as this young girl quietly sat there answering our questions. Geishas had always had a somewhat dubious reputation, but the reality is that they are basically inter trainers who can discuss world affairs, play one or more musical instruments as well as dance and sing. This girl was about 20 years old, who has been studying her role since she finished secondary school. She has about one year until she graduates as a Geisha. The girls all live in a “ boarding house” and are looked after by a “ mother” who is usually the owner of the boarding house. She manages their appointments and provides their living accomodation until the Maiko earns enough money to support herself and repay her. Sounds like a prostitution business with a pimp, apparently not so as these girls are very above board and their client limitations are strictly specified. We asked her whether her parents were happy about her career choice and her response was, not really. Fumiko told us that she believed that her parents were concerned about not being able to see her very often, and that it was a very difficult career choice and many Maiko failed to become Geishas, rather than being ashamed, because it is apparently a respected profession and much sought after. Our Maiko played the three stringed Japanese guitar, and also danced. She said that she would dance for us, which she did, a slow traditional dance. Elly had been taking photos all this time.

I personally would not engage a Geisha for my companion, although clearly we did and so do many other people. After 45 minutes had passed we had a quick photo session and were ushered out, back into the rain.

After we left, some distance down the road, we passed a Geisha standing like an elegant statue, holding an umbrella and not moving. I wondered whether she was actually a person until a taxi pulled up quietly and she climbed in and was driven off.

We walked around the Gion district and saw a few more geishas and kimono clad tourists.

Sunday Oct 29

We laft the Kyoto hotel and we were bid fareewell by the doorman who looked like Dustin Hoffman. We were trying to guess his origin and he assured us he was Japanese BUT he didn’t look or sound authentic. We were intrigued and only discovered later that he was of Peruvian descent

Whilst waiting for our bullet train, I wastrying to perfect my bullet train photo, Alan said come look in the waiting room. There was 6 geishas and a “mother” waiting for the bullet train toi Tokyo.

By a series of train trips and changes followed by a ferry, followed by a bus, we had arrived at Naoshima Island, an out of the way place which has now become big tourist attraction due to the construction of several art museums, along with lots of scattered art works in outdoor locations. We were to stay at Benesse House which is an hotel incorporating an art museum.

The Benesse House bus had picked us up at the ferry port, and then took us to the first museum, Chi Chu Garden Museum which is built mostly underground to avoid intruding onto the landscape. It is built of concrete which is also designed by a famous Japanese architect to be an art work, with walls tilted as you walk along concrete corridors. It was a bit weird, with all the young female staff tellling us when we had to take off our shoes and when we could put them on again. It felt like some futuristic prison or hospital. Elly asked me what I thought of the place and I said “ Interesting but I’m not sure about the psychiatric nurses wandering around”.

The contents were minimalist although they had several large Monet paintings in one room, along with other rooms which challenged your perception. ( no photos allowed)

outdoors leading to the museum and landscaped to resemble Monet’s lillies

Outside staff wandering around in their uniform added to the prison atmosphere, and gave me the impression that it was ok for you to wander around within certain limits, but you are not going to leave here.

Next we the Lee Ufan Museum, named after the artist who constructed it. This had several sculptures and art works in the surrounding garden, and again was a concrete construction by the same architect as Chi Chu Museum

Our final stop was at the Benesse House Museum, which I thought was the most interesting of the three, with lots of features, both inside and out, including three cut out wooden men with hinged jaws clapping away to the beat of their voices saying; “ chatter, chatter, chatter ad infinitum.” It did get a bit tedious after a while, but interesting.

There were lots of other museums on the island, but they were all closed the next day on Monday, not that we had time available to see them, as we could only book for one night. The place is so popular you have to book up to a year in advance, and I suspect we only managed it due to the closure of most of the museums on a Monday.

The hotel itself is fabulous, built like a rabbit Darren (that should be warren) with strange doorways and corridors, passing art works along the way.

The have a bar which has no staff, so you have to bring one from the front desk, if you want a drink, which we did, and the scenery outside the window was beautiful. The rooms were stunning, and we had a choice of restaurants, Japanese or French; we chose French. The dinner was fabulous, if expensive ( very ) and the service was excellent, with all the Japanese waiters trying hard to be French.

Monday Oct 30

Up again to do the reverse after breakfast; bus to ferry and a series of trains. We had a little time before leaving the hotel so Bella and Elly explored the nearby outdoor art works.

We also had some time at Uno port after coming off the ferry but before taking the train, so we stopped at a cute little cafe with a very relaxed atmosphere and a boss with an American Japanese accent. He had lived in Brooklyn for many year, and come home to his birth town – a relaxing 30 minutes. Back to out hotel in Kyoto, I managed to come down with a fever and spend a miserable night whilst the others went to enjoy dinner.

and back to Kyoto

Tuesday Oct 31st

View from our room in morning

Elly managed to find the name and address of a clinic to get me some antibiotics, so we went there whilst Bella and Albert went with Fumiko to see the Buddhist Deities of Sanjusangen- do. The temple was founded in 1164 and features a large seated statue of a Buddhist deity and 1000 life sized standing statues in the main hall. The pressure was off Bella as she was not allowed to take photos.

We found the international Japanese  clinic and the doctor was charming and fluent in English. I got my drugs and I went to bed and Elly, realising I would survive, joined the others.

We went to Kokedera (Moss Temple) which is the stunning garden of Saiho-ji temple

We then trained to Tofukuji Station to visit the Tofukuji Temple which has beautiful Zen gardens.

We then went to Todaji Temple which was built origionally in 710-794AD. It is an normous wooden structure which has been rebuilt some 3 or more times because of fire.

We happened to be there on the only week of the year that visitors can go inside to see the huge buddha and artwork that it houses (but of course no photos inside!)

We then trained to Inari to visit the Fushimi Inari Shrine, one of the oldest Shinto Shrines in Kyoto. It is known for its famous thousand Torii gates located behind the shrine. There were hordes of visitors and Fumiko said this shrine has become famously popular as it was featured in Spielberg,s film  of the life of a Geisha.

Both Alan and Albert piked for dinner so that left Bella and me free to roam and choose. We discovered the other side of Kyoto station which was architecturally very interesting, constructed with huge glass domes and artistically light up stairways. We consulted Trip Advisor as decided on well recommended  Yakiniku Pound Japanese bbq. Unfortunately it was full but we managed to make a reservation for the next night and we found a fabulous place again recommended by Trip Advisor which specialised in cutlet style beef and shrimp. Delicious along with a chilled bottle of red wine ( desperate to have a drink, we drank most of it.

night view from room of bullet train and kyoto tower in top right

Wednesday 1 st Nov

Alan still wonky decided to stay in the hotel and that gave Albert an excuse to pike too. Bella and I met Yumi, a charming guide to explore on our last day in Kyoto. The pace was on now! I figured we could make up for not seeing Nara yet and also go to the West to the beautiful forest areas. We trained to Arashiyama, famous for its beautiful scenery. We went to the Tenryuji Temple which features a Zen garden dating to the 14 Th century called Tenryuji Sogenchi Gardens. It was established in 1339  but has been ravaged by fires 8 times, most recently in 1864. As you leave the temple, the landscape garden is the oldest in Japan, retaining the same form as when it was designed in 14th century and is now designated a World Cultural Heritage site. You go to bamboo groves towering overhead and the sun peeking through the high branches.

We walked to the station via the river which was surrounded by lovely autumn coloured mountains and tourists and even a maiko.

We then took a local train to Nara which was the original capital of Japan and walked through Nara park which was surrounded by many very tame deer roaming freely and many tourists.

We visited the Todaiji Temple, the world’s largest wooden architecture, housing the giant Buddha, 16 meters high and surrounded by minder buddhas.

We returned to Kyoto and Bella went back to the hotel but I decided to go to the Nishiki market to see if I could buy a Kyoto knife. The market closed at 6 so I figured I could just make it and I did but alas the store closed at 5.30! I trained back and met the others at the fabulous Pound restaurant behind the Kyoto tower.

Tomorrow we are going to Hakone area and hopefully we will see Mt Fuji and stunning scenery and good weather . Only 2 days there and then Tokyo and then home.

Thursday 2nd Nov

We travelled 2 hours by bullet train to Odawa and then by taxi to a town Yumoto in Hakone. Alan has recovered now so he will resume his blogging role.

First glimpse of Mt Fuji from train

OK, back on deck after sick leave, so all the last few days of blog are by Elly, and I take no responsibility!

One thing that I have noticed in our travels on train, bus etc. is that they never shut up! From the moment you get underway, until the next stop, the verbal onslaught doesn’t stop, although, I must say that since out last visit, part of the verbal rambling is in English, so it is much easier to keep track of where you are and where you are going.

Upon our arrival in Yumoto, we boarded a small train which began the process of climbing into the surrounding mountains. This was achieved in a series of zigzags, with, every now and then, the driver running from on end of the train to the other when changing from a zig to a zag, and all this time the speaker system was talking at us, as usual.

Our plan was to take this train to the terminus, then change to a cable car, which was on rails but very steep, then onto what they call a “Ropeway”, which is actually an airborne cable car. This ropeway would take us down to the northern end of a lake, Lake Ashi, a 400,000 year old volcanic lake, and we would take a boat to it’s southern end, then take a bus back to Yumoto.

That is what was supposed to happen!

However when we arrived at the the terminus, we were told that, due to volcanic gases, the ropeway would not be operating. Sure enough, as we turned a corner, plumes of steam could be seen coming out of the ground ahead of us. So, plan B had to be actioned. We could take a bus down to the lake, which we did, and as the sun was getting lower we had some quick glimpses of the massively impressive Mt Fuji with a small patch of cloud at its peak and a yellow sun beside it.Down at the lake we had a bit of a walk to the last boat, which was a mock pirate ship. We cruised the length of the lake which was surrounded by mountains.It took one beer, and we arrived at the jetty after dark. A bus journey back to the hotel and the day was done.

Friday Nov 3

view of our hotel Tensiein

This morning there was a planned parade, called the Feudal Lord’s Parade, celebrating some of the feudal history of the area. It effectively shut down the town, and we managed to position ourselves in front of one of the hotels that had its entry courtyard cordoned off so the parade could pass through. The parade started at aroung 0930 and was heralded by 5 people with upside down rubbish baskets on their heads, all playing the recorder, walking slowly one behind the other, all the way up the hill to where the parade began. We never managed to find their significance, they may have been very serious, but they certainly appealed to our sense of humour.

The parade began with a youth marching band, followed by various types of Samurai looking threatening, then some geishas looking beautiful, then more Samurai. This all took place in a lovely setting, with the narrow road descending into the town along the river which runs through the town. It was a beautiful morning, and a great sight to be a part of.

In the afternoon when the town started operating again, Bella and Albert decided to take it easy for the rest of the day, and Elly wanted to find some views of Mt Fuji, (surprise), so we jumped on our zigzag train, a little earlier this time to achieve what we wanted to do before dark.

This was a classic scenario in which you do the same things and expect a different result! Well, not quite, certainly the zigzag train was the same, certainly the ropeway was still not working, but then we waited for the bus, which never came. Apparently the parade had disrupted everything, including bus schedules, although nobody told anyone. We faced the prospect of waiting an hour for the bus, and hitting sunset again. Sadly, tail between our legs, we zigzagged home again.

Saturday Nov 4

Today our plans basically had us travelling back to Tokyo, so rather than effectively wasting the whole day, we changed our train schedule and hired a van and driver to take us to some viewing spots, where, hopefully we could see Fuji, which has a reputation of being a bit coy. We checked out, loaded all our bags into the van and headed off. The driver spoke almost no English, so there was no conversation to be had, but we did find Fuji, with cloud midway up, and on again off again cloud over the peak. As we travelled, the countryside was beautiful, although we were still not in the full colours of Autumn.

An interesting place on the way was the Sky Walk, which is relatively new, and is a swing bridge of around 400m in length, and is obviously a really popular spot. The bridge moves all the time as people walk along it, and at times feels as though it may get out of control, but it is obviously engineered to stay flexible. From the bridge, Mt Fuji is visible, and Elly took the usual gigabites of photos.

Sunday Nov 5

We had a half day guided tour with our new guide, Kyoko, or as she said to call her Koko, because that was the name she called herself when she was little. We visited the famous Shibuya pedestrian crossing, where thousands of people cross each time the lights change, then along to Takeshita Dori, which is almost like a street market, but more permanent. Lots of people, lots of noise coming from spruikers along the way, and quite fun. In our travels we passed through Shinjuku station, which, according to Koko has 3 million people passing through it each day! Imagine that!

We had a booking at a place called the Robot Restaurant, which had been recommended to Bella. We had no idea what it was, but we had front row seats, one free drink each, but hadn’t ordered any food. Teh front of the place looked like fun, and when we entered, it was into a large waiting area where you could sit and relax with your drink. The room was loud and gaudy, with lots of flashing lights and music. Evenyually we were lead down several flights of stairs into an area with patrons sitting either side of a large stage area on which they were selling drinks and popcorn.

Then the show started: What a riot; lots of dancing by sexy Wonderwomen climbing all over a crazy variety of machinery moving around the stage. Guns being fired at othe machines, and loud drumbeats up to ear damaging volumes. All the time, as you looked across the stage you could see a full width projection of animated people and scenery behind all the spectators, as they could also see behind us.

They had a couple of intervals so they could flog some more drinks etc and then off they would go again. It was all great fun and brilliantly put together in such a small space, with some of the machinery, and the girls, actually within touching distance at times. A good time was had by all!

Elly wanted to look in one of the big camera stores, so we spent a bit of time there, in fact in one section, she got talking to a guy who was looking for the same thing she was. It turned out that he was a Lufthansa Flight Attendant on a Tokyo layover, and we asked him whether he knew any good local restaurants. He said that, in fact, he knew the owner of a Turkish restaurant, which he intended to visit himself, so we hooked up and all of us enjoyed the meal. He is into photography so he took Elly’s card to check out her website.

It was a very pleasant dinner, and a good last night.

Tomorrow we fly home.