Our Nippon journey

dearlindal.com

2008-05-05T17:14:00.000-07:00

Dear readers,
I have recently obtained my own domain and will post about my second trip to Tokyo there. If you're interested, please drop by and bookmark or subscribe to my feed.
Thank you.

Junkgirl

Fri Jan 26 2007 (Day 36) - Final day

2008-01-22T21:52:00.000-08:00

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We checked out at dawn and dragged our bags to the bus stop opposite the train station to wait for the bus to Sapporo Chitose Airport. This was taken while waiting for the bus to arrive. We were almost frozen...

Breakfast at Sapporo Chitose Airport before boarding

The white meat in the white bowl is raw squid. It really doesn't taste good. It taste awful, to be honest

Arrived at Tokyo Haneda Airport and took a train to Shinjuku. At Shinjuku station, we had to find the large size lockers to store our packs because it was impossible to walk around Shinjuku with all that weight on our backs. Initially, we couldn't find the large lockers to store our bags. Those were all taken. Awww......but after some hunting around and some frustration, we tracked down a couple removing their bags from 2 large lockers. We grabbed those 2 immediately. How lucky is that. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been able to walk around and would have to head straight to Narita Airport and waited till the flight tonight.
Walking around Shinjuku, near Studio Alta

Being the last day of our 36 days trip, we were fully exhausted by now and didn't really have the energy to enjoy our final hours in Tokyo. Bought a few CDs at Tower Records, had last bowl of Soba and went back to Shinjuku Station to get our bags from the locker.
Inside the world's busiest train station, Shinjuku Station...

Headed to Narita Airport.

GOODBYE JAPAN! We will return...

Resume the journey...

Thurs Jan 25 2007 (Day 35) - Sapporo

2008-01-22T20:59:00.000-08:00

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We checked out and boarded the bus to Sapporo in the morning. Had some problems with our booking because there was no record of our payment, only reservation. Even after a long negotiation and disagreement, we still had to pay as the bus will leave without us if we don't. According to the staff involved, they will ring the bus company to find out and we thought there is no way our payment will be sorted out. To our amazement, halfway during the bus trip, the driver came up to us during a short break and reimbursed us our second payment. Wow...the Japanese really hold to their words and promise.

As soon as we got off the bus near Sapporo station, we could feel the coldness. It felt even colder than in Niseko. Our bags were heavy and we had to look for our hotel - Sapporo Oak Hotel. Lucky it wasn't too far from the train station. Room wasn't ready as it was a bit early so we left our bags and looked around for some lunch. We saw an Indian Restaurant nearby on the second floor of some shops. It was too cold to go look for other food so we settled for hot and spicy Indian food. We thought it would be a quiet, run-down Indian eatery.To our surprise, the staffs there spoke fluent Japanese and the place was filled with Japanese customers.

Full, we headed for Sapporo biru-en (Sapporo Beer Museum). After a few 'doko des ka', we finally found the place, which was a bit far out from the central.

Beer tasting

Walking back towards our hotel in the snow. Living in this sort of weather require lots of maintenace daily, such as ploughing and removing snow from your car. Even though it is beautiful and romantic and seems nice to be able to dress up in winter clothing, I wouldn't want to live here and have to go to work in freezing temperatures daily.

After enquiring about the airport bus and locating the bus-stop, we return to the hotel for a shower.
Our room at the hotel

It is snowing like it is pouring rain in KL

Walked to the station to have dinner

Our last dinner in Japan. At this time tomorrow, we will be on the flight home already.

Uni - ikura don (Salmon and Sea-urchin roe on rice)

Next day...

Wed Jan 17 to Wed Jan 24 2007 (Day 27 to 34) - Niseko

2008-01-22T19:36:00.000-08:00

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Very early in the morning, we had to walk quite some distance with our heavy load to OCAT, to board the bus to Itami Airport to catch the flight to Sapporo Chitose airport. There were heaps of students waiting to board the flight when we arriving at the boarding gate for the flight. We found out later that in Japan, they have school ski trips during winter.

On arrival at Sapporo Chitose Airport, we managed to locate the waiting bay and bus to Niseko, , which we have reserved seats. It took about 1 1/2 hours to get to Niseko. Then we had some difficulties finding our accommodation - Hirafu-tei Hotel.

This is our Japanese style room with private rotemburo.

view from the bath..priceless

nighttime view - even more priceless

the main road leading up to the ski/snowboard area

looking at Mt Yotei opposite Mt Annapuri

My greatest snowboarding achievement here was being able to get off the chairlifts without falling the moment i get off. The good thing about this resort is that the staff exercise control over the chairlifts. They slow down if they see someone fresh or if requested (which i did by indicating with my hand as the lift is about to arrive at the 'unloading' area) and they halt the lifts if someone fell right at the lifts when they try to get off. After all is clear, the lifts will be resumed. How good is that. Gives everyone a chance to learn, not fear. I have caused stopage a couple of times before my success. I fell flat on my face the moment I 'unload' from the chairlift and the attendant would check if I am alright. Daijobou des ka. Unlike my experience at Mt Buller where I fell off the moment I stood up and instead of stopping the chairlift temporarily so I can get away, the attendant shouted for me to move away. Oh..I am sitting on the ground with the board strapped to one of my feet, seconds away from the running chairlifts and I am supposed to stand up and suavely board away? The next thing i know the chairlift had hit me in the head, hard. I will never go back to that shithole again.

Each morning we would go down for buffet breakfast which is included in our booking. This is when the housekeeping staff would come to put away the futon mattress so we would come back full in the stomach to a cleaned-up room. Then around dinner time when most guests are out feeding, the housekeeping staff would come again to lay out the futon. This is quite common in most accommodation in Japan. Our room and the complimentary Spotaka bags used to carry our snowboard boots

View from the bath in our room

Crispy, dried ladyfingers. We had the buffet dinner in the hotel on the first night but it was costly and too much food for our stomach. The rest of the time here we had instant noodles from the convenience store and ramen at eateries nearby. One day we did splurge and had Shabu-Shabu and Sukiyaki at a nearby hotel.

The run just next to our hotel

Japanese student groups on ski lessons

Our hotel on the right

Out on a photoshoot

We had ramen and donburi here one of the days

An snowman shaped ice-cream container. Talk about packaging...

Entrance to Hirafu-tei Hotel

Night view of Niseko

Night-time at the run beside our hotel

Snowflakes on my pants....this is the first time i took notice and look closely at snowflakes

If it weren't for the Japanese signs reminding you that you are in Japan, you would have thought you are in Australia. The number of Aussies here are astounding, not just visitors but also residents on business or work affairs. It's like Bali for wintertime. Most of them, not all, especially the younger crowd thinks they own this place. Rude, arrogant and disrespectful are perfect to describe the Aussies here. Perhaps everywhere too.

Exhausted after 7 nights and 8 days in Niseko, we leave for Sapporo tomorrow.

Next day...

Tues Jan 16 2007 (Day 26) - Last day in Osaka

2008-01-22T18:40:00.000-08:00

Walking in the Namba area

a car park

Dotonburi by day

Tsutaya is a bookstore chain

a huge 100-yen store in the Shinsaibashi-suji Shopping Street

Pachinko

Mos burger for brunch. It was delicious, the tastiest burger i've ever had

at Amerikamura

Some of the sales staff at the shops here were curious about where we are from and asked us.

We got a little lost and came across this exit to a highway, which is unlike the ones in Msia or Australia

Another Apple store....there isn't even one in the whole of Australia. How backward is that?

The streets of Osaka

Another burger to feed our hunger. Sometimes fastfood is the easiest and fastest way when one is on the go...

Heading back to Dotonburi..from the opposite point of view

I think these people are queueing up to purchase tickets for a theatre performance

We will be heading to Niseko, for snowboarding tomorrow. We managed to get our snowboard boots and gloves and beanie at Spotaka, just before it closed for the day.
After unloading our purchases back at the hotel, we stumbled upon this local street side ramen stall while searching for Hozenji (a old street similar to Pontocho in Kyoto) in vain, and had dinner here.

I had chashu ramen in shoya broth and Kee had miso broth which was quick thick.

Strolling around the area

Last look at the neonlights of Dotonburi

On the bridge over Dotonburi Canal

AMPM is a convenience store

Bye Osaka

Next day...

Mon Jan 15 2007 (Day 25) - another day in Osaka

2008-01-22T17:51:00.000-08:00

Our second day in Osaka. We went to Kuromon Ichiba Market in the morning. The underpass between Namba Station and OCAT

Packaging is important in Japan. Sometimes I feel tempted to purchase an item just for the packaging itself

Osaka is filled with underground malls that seems endless, like below

China isn't the Asian country with a high bicycle usage

At Kuromon Ichiba Market

Fugu for sale

Oden or Japanese Yong-tau-foo

We grabbed takoyaki and okonomiyaki for lunch. Personally, I don't like both

Then we walked towards Den-Den Town. Nothing much compared to Akihabara

Monokuroboo...

Back to our hotel for a quick break. The entrance to our hotel

Shinsaibashi bridge over the Dotonburi canal

ABCMart is a chain which sells shoes, lots of it

Shin-bura (trendy name for the area) by night

The Glico man - a trademark of Osaka

Dotonburi by night

That's it for today

Next day...

Sun Jan 14 2007 (Day 24) - Osaka

2007-12-18T17:53:00.000-08:00

Today is the final day of validity for our JR pass so we headed for the Rinku Premium Outlet near Kansai Airport. It was quite a long way from Namba.
The artsy wall in Namba Station

while waiting for the train

At Rinku Premium Outlet Mall. The place is huge compared to the Outlets in Melbourne. We bought lots, mostly from GAP

Looking across at Kansai Airport

A french bulldog looking at me

We stopped at Osaka and went to Hep-Five. It was chaotic with salespeople shouting at the top of their voices like in wet markets.
The Ferriswheel at Hep-Five

Headed home after a long day

Next day...

Sat Jan 13 2007 (Day 23) - Hiroshima

2007-10-01T19:32:00.000-07:00

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Our room at Benten no Yado in the morning, before breakfast and before the roomkeepers put away the futons

The floating torii in the distance

Breaksfast in the dining room area a few floors below

Fish

Gohan & soup. The Japanese have rice in the morning

After breakfast we went to the bath area which has excellent views. This is the women's bath

Looking down into the garden area from the bath building

Another level up is the men's bath, also with spectacular views while bathing

The building containing the baths, from the garden

We checked-out from Benten no Yado and hopped on to the ferry to take us back to the mainland

At the Miyajimaguchi train station, waiting for the train to Hiroshima

Back in Hiroshima station

Outside the Hiroshima station, figuring out how to get to the Peace Memorial Park

After a while, we figured out that we can take a tram to get to A-Bomb Dome at the Peace Memorial Park. It was quite confusing as there were no english instruction on how to purchase the tram tickets. The tram arrived and we got on, wondering whether we should have purchased the tickets from one of the machines at the tram stop or buy when we board the tram (which didn't seem to be the case because everyone just got on and sat down...perhaps they have daily passes or something) or do we pay when we alight at out destination. I was worried that we should have tickets or some receipt for the driver when we get down the tram. It won't be good if he starts yelling at us in Japanese for trying to get a free ride. It turned out that we had to drop a fixed fare into a coinbox near the driver when we alight. Oh...that was close.

Anyhow, we managed to arrive at our destination without any hassle.
The A-Bomb Dome was the first sight at Peace Memorial Park

There were some visitors, quietly reflecting on what had happened here.

The rider was lowering his head to avoid getting shot by me.

Near the Peace Memorial Museum

An incident never to be forgotten

The time the bomb striked.

There was a watch, displayed in the museum, which stopped at the time the disaster striked Hiroshima. I didn't take any photos in the museum, I felt that all the items on display related to death and I just didn't felt like capturing any of it. It is all in my memory.
It is strange how when you are in a somber place, you get a distressed feeling as well. What happened here was very sad and shouldn't have taken place. Even though the Japanese Army deserved retribution for their cruelty during the Japanese Occupation, the majority of the victims of the Hiroshima bombing were civilians. They should never be the ones that have had to suffer, it should have been those who commanded the war.

Life moved on and Hiroshima has rebuilt itself. Today, it is like any other city in Japan.

It was still early so we had coffee and some macaroni at a cafe in the station. Then. we headed for Osaka via the shinkansen, about 3 hours ride away. Arrived in Osaka and had to change a couple of trains to get to Namba station where we will be staying for the next few days. Our bags was extremely heavy and lucky it didn't take too long to find the hotel we were staying in - Dotonbori Hotel in the Dotonbori area.
After checking in, we headed out to find dinner and see what Osaka is like. The Dotonbori area is very vibrant and lively at night, especially near Shinsaibashi

Who says only China has bicycles

Our hotel is straight ahead. Very convenient location

Spotaka on the right was where we managed to get our snowboard boots and gear a few days later ,before heading to Niseko.

It has been a long day and it was crowded everywhere so we decided to just have Makudo but even that was crowded so we got teku-audo (take out) to have back in the comfort of our hotel room.

Next day...

Fri Jan 12 2007 (Day 22) - Miyajima

2007-09-24T00:21:00.000-07:00

Checked-out from Tour Club early in the morning and headed for Kyoto Station to board the shinkansen to Hiroshima and then catch a local train onto Miyajima

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The ride was going to be about 3 hours so we bought eki-ben for lunch on the train. It cost 1000yen each.

Arrived in Hiroshima

After figuring out & asking a station officer, we got onto the train to Miyajima station. The ride took about 15-20 mins. Then we followed the signs to the pier to board the JR ferry that will take us across to the island. It was a JR service so we could use our JR pass. Great! More savings.
Waiting for the ferry

After getting off the ferry and exiting the pier, we were confronted with ..... deers. Lots of deers

Bambi!

About 3 or 4 came up to us, stole a packet of tissue that i had in the pockets of my jeans and started chewing on the tissue. I managed to grab the plastic wrapper of the tissue packet, which fell to the ground, so that the deers wouldn't swallow it.

The deers have all been de-horned, most probably so that even if the deers do attack, injury will be minimal

I have read that the deers roam around Miyajima but still, seeing it in person is quite different, as with most things.

We found our accommodation for the night - Benten no Yado but it was still a bit early to check-in. The reception told us we could leave our bags with them and come back in the afternoon to check-in. Great..that was what we wanted - to unload. We then headed back into the town to find lunch. The town is pretty small, calm and not very lively except for the visitors. There wasn't much eateries and we went into one which was near the pier.
We got seated and ask for the menu - 'menu o onegai shimasu' and the lady-boss indicate to us to point from the display at the window. Alrighty.
I had katsu-don with the mashed egg on top

Kee had the tonkatsu with rice

The display window

After filling our stomach, we headed for the main attraction - Itsukushima Shrine

The famous floating torii in the distance

Looking across to the mainland

A deer on the way. Notice its droppings on the ground.

I find that these guardian lions are quite similar to the Chinese ones

Foraging for food

Looking behind towards the pier. The deer was following us.

The Itsukushima Shrine below

There is a small fee charged for entrance to the shrine

Purifying before entry to the shrine

The view of mountainous landscape behind the shrine is quite stunning

Miyajima is one of the Nihon Sankei (Japan's 3 most scenic places)

These 2 guys were posing for a creative shot by the 3rd guy

sake barrels at the shrine

An old tree bark

I've never been this close to Bambi

The streets in the town. Reminds me of the kampung houses back home

Love the old-town charm

Close-up of the old tree bark

The pagoda next to Senjokaku
and the stairs leading up to it

More deers

Senjokaku below. There didn't seem to be anything much so we didn't enter and just looked from the outside

View from the top. Our hotel is on the right

On to the shopping street.
Crispy rice crackers

We bought 4 of these - 2 small & 2 medium sizes

Back at the ryokan hotel, waiting to check-in at the lobby. Our bags were already taken into our rooms. Almost all accommodation required a copy of guests' passport. Knew that from doing my 'homework'.

The main entrance. The young man attending to us hardly understood English and we hardly speak Japanese so it was a case of 'sign language' and common sense when he was explaining check-in procedures and showing us our room. Service is an important factor to the Japanese. When he indicated to us where to store our shoes (no outside shoes allowed in the ryokan hotel, guests can either go barefoot or use the slippers provided), Kee went to out our shoes in there and the young man quickly rushed towards Kee, telling him that he'll store the shoes for us and that we don't have to do it ourselves. At the end of his explanation, i said wakarimashita and thanked him for his service.
Shoes were stored in the boxes on the right. We worked out that those with red doors indicated occupied.

There wasn't much guests around, seemed like we were the only one. Hah..the whole place all to ourselves...nice. We found out later there were about 2 other couples also staying that night.
I sneaked into the men's onsen to capture these while Kee was on the lookout

The washing area.

The hot bath

The drying and dressing area

Baskets for guests

The ladies onsen. I came here later that evening and it was kind of spooky being here all by yourself.

Washing area on the left

washing area on the right

The outdoor garden and the bath with a view in the building opposite, up the stairs

The massage and leisure area. We spent some time on the massage chair at night, after dinner.

After some rest, we headed out again, for a walk. The lobby area below

At the ryokan hotel entrance

Looking back at the entrance to Benten no Yado

The alley on the left, after the entrance

The street straight from the entrance

Further down

The giant wooden rice spoon, which is an emblem of Miyajima.

Back onto the shopping street

I bought a piece of the rice crackers. The stall owner easily described the different flavours to me in english. This indicates the amount of foreign tourist in this town.

The whole street is filled with souvenirs and snacks. Touristy

Even Hello Kitty products

Grilled jumbo oysters

These looked like fishcakes

We bought 3 kokeshi. 2 of them with the maple design, an emblem of Miyajima

The alley leading to our ryokan hotel

The alley on the right just outside Benten no Yado

Back in our room for some rest before dinner. A welcome snack for us. The maple leaf is another emblem of Miyajima.

The main entrance to our room.

The bath/shower room

The toilet. I like the Japanese toilet system. It has the built-in bidet and most has a seat warmer.

View from our room. The local houses looks like a scene from an anime or manga.

Dinner was served in the dining rooms a few floors below. We went down in our yukata

The food was served consecutively, as with kaiseki meals
Ingredients for nabe

The nabe

Nabe ready to eat

The tempura was served with a salt & wasabi powder dipping (bottom left), which tasted nice and a bit out-of the-norm.

Gohan and clear soup

After the sumptuous meal and 'gochisosama deshita' to the young lady who served our meals, we ventured out in the garden for a night view

At the bath with a view of the torii gate in the distance.

We then got changed and headed out to the shrine area to see the floating torii at night

The tide was low

It was very quiet and feels a little spooky. The only sound we could hear are some deers walking around and faint conversation from another group of people at the shrine.

The shrine area stays lit till about 10 pm

The shopping street, all shut. Many visitors come just for the day and return to the mainland. we decided to stay a night on the island to see the torii ate by night.

The giant wooden rice spoon at night

Back to the ryokan & our room

This is the most relaxing, least rushed nights of our trip so far. Most of the time, especially in Tokyo, we came back to the hotel late, shower, review the next day's itinerary, unload photos from memory disks to Mac, do our budget and off to bed. At least here we still have time to watch some Japanese programmes on TV.

Next day...

Thurs Jan 11 2007 (Day 21) - Himeji

2007-09-18T20:10:00.000-07:00

Today we will travel by shinkansen from Kyoto Station to Himeji.

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Waiting for the arrival of our shinkansen at Kyoto Station

a shinkansen arriving

and departing

a departing shinkansen on the opposite platform

a shinkansen arriving at the platform. This isn't the one we got on

The kiosk at the platform

Another one approaching

Seated

Arrived in Himeji. An oncoming shinkansen

Downstairs in the Himeji station
a model of the Himeji-jo grounds

A yatai being displayed

We got a map from the visitor centre and walked towards Himeji-jo. Saw a tank full of fugu at the entrance to a restaurant

Arriving at Himeji-jo

There was some construction work at the entrance

The main gate

After the gate, the view on the left

We were lucky to come on a clear and sunny day.

starting point where the entry tickets are sold

Ambush windows where arrows were fired from

Inside

A portion of the 'oil wall'

The various styles of the rooftiles

Inside the tower
Old Guns

Samurai costumes

Lots of steep stairs and climbing to get to the top, which isn't fun for a serious acrophobic like myself

Arms

The model of the castle

The view from the top

The street we were on, leading to/from Himeji Station

Drainage

Exiting

Last look at Himeji-jo before heading back to the train station.

had ekiben at the station while waiting for our shinkansen

shinkansen viewing while waiting

Our shinkansen approaching

On board

Back in Kyoto

the shinkansen we were on, departing from the station

in Kyoto Station

outside Kyoto Station

The street across Kyoto Station

We walked north towards a bookstore we spotted from the bus yesterday,to have a look and headed back to the inn at dusk

Next day...

Wed Jan 10 2007 (Day 20) - 3rd day in Kyoto

2007-09-17T17:03:00.000-07:00

First destination today is Fushimi Inari Shrine . Took the train to Fushimi Station which is part of JR so we were able to utilise our JR Pass.

The fox statues guarding the entrance

Entering the torii gates

It was still quite early around 9am i think. But there are quite a number of people heading uphill and some downhill. Most are elderly groups as part of a gathering activity.

The elderly Japanese are quite fit and healthy. They do lots of walking

The light

We were not going to go all the way. Mainly to pass through the torii gates.

Fushimi Inari Shrine is one of my favorite places. I love the mystical feel passing through these vermillion torii gates.

Mini torii gates as offerings

Back at the entrance

and heading back to the train station

a drink before the next destination

We took the train to Sagano to see the Bamboo Groves at Arashiyama. On the way walking to the Bamboo Groves

The entrance to the Bamboo Grove is a bit further on the left

At the Bamboo Groves. There were some trishaws trying to pick up passengers

At the entrance/exit

We took the train back to Kyoto Station to catch the bus to Kinkakuji

After Kinkakuji, Ryoanji 'next door' was our next destination but it was close to 5pm. We have to make it because these 2 places took us a long bus ride to get here and we are not going to return here. We raced to the supposedly nearby Ryoanji which took us forever to get there. Luckily we made it before 5.30pm which was the last entry time. And to our biggest disappointment..this was what the sight we had raced-till-we-almost-collasped for

A quick restroom break. Even my camera is out of breath

This is the main attraction - the Zen Garden

The model of the zen garden

The hall prior to the Zen Garden

That was Ryoanji. Totally overrated
We got off from the bus at Gion

We've covered quite a few sites today. Tomorrow we will head to Himeji on the shinkansen.

Next day...

Tues Jan 9 2007 (Day 19) - 2nd day in Kyoto

2007-09-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

Went to the Nishiki Food Market

The variety of ingredients and food for sale at the market:

Below: These are katsuobushi, dried fish blocks from which the bonito flakes is shaved from.I found out here

Bonito flakes

Huge, fresh strawberries with huge, fresh prices

Super-size chestnuts

Authentic sushi

a moving crab, a mechanical one

Next we visited the Heian Shrine

There wasn't much at Heian Shrine but it was on the way to Nanzenji so at least we didn't have to go out of our way to come here.

At the exit, we turned left along the moat and walked towards Nanzenji.

Near the entrance to Nanzenji, we bought a bottle of Livita to recharge. I was able to grasp the price when the lady told us how much the bottle cost. At least learning my 1-1000 was put to use.

The entrance to Nanzenji

The doorknobs on the wooden doors at Nanzenji

The rooftiles

The rooftiles at Nanzenji

At the aquaduct in the Nanzenji area

After Nanzenji, we walked along the Path of Philosophy to get to Ginkakuji . The walk is about 1.5 kms each way, similar to our walk to Korakukan to see the 'snow monkeys'. The area is a quite, peaceful residential area

A phonebooth

We're going the right way

Looking into someone's garden

The path leading to Ginkakuji

Inside Ginkakuji

Samples of the variety of moss at Ginkakuji

views of Kyoto from the hilltop

The entrance/exit to Ginkakuji

Making our way back on the Path of Philosophy

ice-cream on the way

There is a boy's high school nearby and the students finishing school for the day

We got a little lost trying to find the bus station where we got off but we eventually got back on the right track before it got dark. Somewhere along the way.

Dinner at Kyoto station above Isetan

walking back to the inn, about 15-20mins away from Kyoto Station. The area was a much quieter area.

Next day...

Mon Jan 8 2007 (Day 18) - 1st day in Kyoto

2007-09-11T19:17:00.000-07:00

Our little room at Tour Club

the umbrella we bought from the Visitor's Centre in Shirakawa-go 2 days ago, hanging on the door

First up - Sanjusangendo

The statues at shrines and temples often have a red bib tied to them.

Notice the rain chain hanging from the roof.A decoration with a function

Next - Kiyomizudera
a smaller shrine or temple (don't remember) near Kiyomizudera

walking uphill to Kiyomizudera, passing a cemetery

Arrived at Kiyomizudera and full of tourist

A rain chain

The wooden pillars holding Kiyomizudera

An eatery under Kiyomizudera

Statues

Downhill through the shopping street

Dango, which tastes a bit like the chinese 'tang yuen' but is more chewing and has a different taste. I think the flour is different. I prefer the 'tang yuen'

For me, most of the Japanese snacks looks attractive but doesn't suit my tastebuds - too sweet. Almost all are filled with red bean paste - yuck...

I like how samples are provided so buyers can taste prior to purchasing. Else, how can I tell what it taste like by just looking. I almost spit out a few of the samples i stuffed in my mouth...

This lady, seeing me about to snap her, quickly did the classic Japanese pose

The walk downhill was interesting with old-style shops on both side

Tanuki

Then we spot what we've been wanting to see on the road

I used to think that when you see lots of bicycles, you know it's China. But i was wrong. There are lots of bicycles used as daily transportation in Japan as well.

Final destination for the day - Gion
bought a steaming hot bun (the Japanese also call it manto) to fill up for the moment. Even a bun from a small stall makes effort in packaging and presentation.

Notice the wrapping, which is kind of like a piece of soft bark

A maiko stopped to pose for someone else and I quickly seized the opportunity but on a whim, I forgot that my camera was still in macro-mode. Aaargh..what a waste..she even looked in my direction. She was then whisked away for her next appointment by her 'manager' lady who was waiting impatiently as she pose for photos.

It wasn't dark yet, just underexposed

Dango

The Pontocho area

Then we had teppanyaki for dinner at a restaurant below ground level on the busy main street

then stroll around the area for a bit before heading for the bus-stop to get back to Tour Club

Gion by night

looking inside a restaurant with geisha/maiko service

Next day...

Sun Jan 7 2007 (Day 17) - Another Long Train Ride

2007-09-11T16:45:00.000-07:00

It was snowing heavily on our last day at Shirakawa-go and it was beautiful

The entrance to Yokichi. The straw fences are set-up in winter as insulation.

Crossing the bridge towards the bus-stop

Waiting for our bus and taking shelter at the Visitor's Centre

The bus ride back to Takayama. The view was the opposite of the bus-trip to Shirakawa-go, when it was nice and clear. Today, we can hardly see anything in this weather.

Waiting for the train to Nagoya at Takayama station. Still snowing. It was quite crowded at the station.

views along the train ride

At Nagoya, after waiting a while in the waiting room, we boarded the shinkansen to Kyoto. The ride was about 3 hours. Arrived in Kyoto after dark. After a near-to-frustration search with our heavy load, we managed to locate our accommodation, Tour Club. Checked-in, unload (phew!) and walked back to Kyoto Station to find food.

Took the long escalator up to the SkyWalk

We had green tea ice-cream to end our long day. Japanese products are very captivating. They take pride in the packaging and presentation. It makes you wanna purchase the items even if you don't know what those are...

Next day...

Sat Jan 6 2007 (Day 16) - Winter Wonderland

2007-09-10T20:37:00.000-07:00

After breakfast at Shimizu Inn, we checked out and headed to the Visitors Centre to see if we can store our bags there until mid-day when we check into our next accommodation in Shirakawa-go -Yokichi.

crossing the bridge to the Visitor's Centre

view of the Visitor's Centre and parking area

After storing our bags at the reception, we waited and then boarded the bus that takes us to the viewpoint. It was raining. The view from the viewpoint somehow seemed a bit more surreal, a bit more beautiful in images than being there in real-life. Nonetheless, it is still breathtaking, like a winter wonderland.

the shop at the viewpoint where we took shelter while waiting for the bus to go back down

After checking-in at Yokichi, we walked around the town and visited the Gassho-village museum. It was still pouring

Back onto the main street

we then walked towards the direction of Shimizu Inn to find the other trademark view of Shirakawa-go

Found it

We went back to Yokichi for a rest and then we walked back up to the viewpoint for a dusk view of the village before it gets too dark. The innkeeper lady lent us some walking boots which made walking on the wet and icy road a lot easier. Walking to the view point isn't that far.

Our best shots without the tripod.

Made our way back to the inn before it gets too dark to descend.
A gassho-zukuri at the botton of the hill near then end of the road leading to the viewpoint

The building with flash

our room at Yokichi, waiting for dinner
Left: the wardrobe Center: The main door Right: The heater

Meals were served in the meal room. There were 2 other couples staying at the inn that night.

It was snowing outside. Apparently thunder doesn't just come with rain, it does with snow too. I heard thunder and thought it was a storm. It turned out that it was snowing heavily outside.

Next day...

Fri Jan 5 2007 (Day 15) - Shirakawa-go

2007-09-05T19:50:00.000-07:00

Breakfast in our room

Hoba-miso laid on a magnolia leaf, is a local speciality - taste quite salty but great with rice

Left: Last shot of the mini-garden in our room, Centre: Japanese wooden clogs for guests at the entrance, Right: standing at the entrance of the ryokan, looking inside

waiting for our turn to check out

We then walked to the Takayama bus station which is next to the train station and waited for the bus to Shirakawa-go. Bookings are required and we had ours all taken care of, even before we arrived at Narita. I feel so proud of myself for being able to find and reserve seats for a bus to this quite remote area. Hard-work (hard-searching to be exact) and persistence paid off. There was a gaijin who had some problems boarding the bus. I think he didn't make any reservations and so had to wait for empty seats. 1 1/2 hours later we arrived at Shirakawa-go. The view along the bus trip was scenic and i think winter makes its greater.

waiting while giving way to oncoming traffic as it is pretty tight in the bridge

First, we searched for our accommodation - Shimizu Inn, to drop off our packs. It was further from the town. The lady inn-owner was out (we're a bit early) and her son showed us to our room. We then headed out to see Shirakawa-go.

quite a large number of visitors.

The gassho-zukuri of Shirakawa-go

Right: a concealed fire hydrant. The gassho-zukuri buildings are prompt to fire.

The bridge connecting the main bus terminal and visitor centre to the town.

Heading back towards our accommodation for the night, Shimizu. It is almost dinnertime.

Our humble room for the night. It was freezing and only the little heater was keeping us warm.

Left:The futon bedding stack. Centre:Our jackets. Right: The sliding door to the room.

There was another 2 middle-aged ladies (friends) staying at Shimizu that night and we had a quiet dinner together in the main room. Heard them say their 'itadakimasu'. As we couldn't speak Japanese and they didn't speak much English, it was just smiling to acknowledge and eating away quietly...
After dinner, we went out for a walk a night after dinner. It was still early before 10pm but already pretty quiet and there were hardly anyone on the streets.

So we got a drink from a vending machine and headed back for the inn to have an early night in. No internet connection so only the TV to watch & a bit of itinerary reading for tomorrow's activities.

Next day...

Thur Jan 4 2007 (Day 14) - Takayama

2007-09-04T22:24:00.000-07:00

Breakfast in our room

The lady who served our meals showed us how to eat seaweed correctly. No, you don't just pull it out of the wrapper and put it in your mouth. You dip the seaweed in soy sauce and then wrap rice into it and then eat it. And it takes a bit of skill too, to wrap/roll rice in the seaweed.

While we were eating, our futon were put away in the next room with the sliding door closed.
After our sumptuous breakfast, we headed out to see Takayama.
Entrance to Nagase Ryokan

Walking around Takayama

A huge dog we came across near the morning market. I think its a Pyrenean Mountain Dog or the Great Pyrenees.

At the morning market near Takayama Jinya. There wasn't much stalls..maybe it was too early or it's a non-trading day

Takayama Jinya - served as Takayama's government office during the Edo Period.

A moss ball hanging in front of a store indicates a sake/liquor store

I think these are decoration for the New Year

The old streets of Takayama

Snacks

Interesting wooden chairs outside a store

Some type of chrysanthemum, i think

More snacks

The morning market along the Miyagawa River

Saru-bobo for sale

A small shrine at the morning market

The Miyagawa River

We bought 2 packets of these - a sesame one & a peanut one. Quite tasty & crunchy

Small cars

Hachiman Shrine

Purifying before entering the shirne

a Shinto priest and his assistant

Paper wishes

Wishes on a tree

Strolling along the Miyagawa River

Koi in the waters

A tanuki and a fire hydrant

A big Saru-bobo which is a trademark of Takayama

It was past lunchtime and freezing cold. We weren't able to see any eateries nearby and thought maybe we can find just get 'fasdo-fudo' such as McD, but there wasn't any in sight. Maybe there isn't one in this town. It was feeling colder and colder and we need hot food fast. Found a local eatery and went in after a moment's hesitation. The hesitation is because it is truly local. The menu doesn't even have pictures. The place was crowded and maybe we're the only non-Japanese in there. We sure look lost. We got seated anyhow. They should have the most basics i guess - soba. So i asked the waitress unsure if she'll understand me 'Soba arimasu ka'. She nod and I indicated 2 of the 'soba'. Our orders arrived after a while and it was yakisoba. Still has the 'soba' in it and tasted quite good.

With still a bit of time, we decided to take the train to Hida-Furukawa which is about 15mins train ride away

At Hida-Furukawa

Hida-Furukawa is popular for its canal.

Tanuki at a shopfront

Heading back to Takayama

views from the train

walking back towards Nagase Ryokan

A beautiful street on the left

Entrance to Nagase Ryokan

Left: The garden in the centre of the ryokan Centre & Right:The mini-garden in our room

Some snacks while waiting for our dinner

Ah....dinner

Soaked in the onsen after dinner. Came back to our room with the futon already laid out. A relaxing night of our trip so far.
I missed the onsen experience after returning home and after some searching, i managed to find some Japanese bath salts here. This is the closest i can get to an onsen, albeit home-made, until my next trip to an onsen in Japan.

Next day...

Wed Jan 3 2007 (Day 13) - The Long Train Ride

2007-09-04T19:33:00.000-07:00

Woke up to light snowfall. Packed and got ready for breakfast and then check-out.
Our room at Korakukan Jigokudani Yaenkoen.

A macaque outside the window. We were told not to open the outer windows because the macaques will enter.

Breakfast is ready

Checked-out at about 10a.m.
Last views before our long walk heading back to the town

The view along the walk

We seemed to be the only walkers carrying large backpacks and there was one man who said something to me in Japanese. I am pretty sure he was referring to the heavy bags and I just smiled and said 'hai', not knowing how else to reply. All along the way, Japanese walkers, mostly elderly, smiled and greeted us with 'Konichiwa' or 'Ohayo'

Finally..end of the walk

After some wait & guessing, we hailed a bus that stopped at the bus-stop. I asked the driver if he was going to Yudanaka station. He replied Nagano station. Even better because we're bypassing Yudanaka station and going straight to Nagano station. Being spontaneous, we stored our bags under the bus (extra charges) and boarded the bus.

At Nagano station, reserved seats were all sold out and we had to settle for unreserved seats and were lucky to get the last 2 seats or else we would have had to stand all the way from Nagano to Nagoya. So begins the long train ride from Nagano to Nagoya (approx 3 1/2 hrs) and then from Nagoya to Takayama (approx 3 1/2 hrs).
Butter sandwich and onigiri on the train bought from a convenience store the day before but wasn't able to finish.
The packaging was the reason I bought the sandwich. I like how it is totally held together. No gap.

Views from the train

Arrived at Nagoya and boarded the train to Takayama. We got seats in the first row, right behind the driver.

We arrived in Takayama at 6.30pm, the sun has set and and we walked towards our accommodation - Nagase Ryokan. Luckily one of the ryokan lady was standing on the street, on the lookout for the late guests (us), and asked (in Japanese) something like where are we looking for etc. If not for her, we would have kept walking past the ryokan.
A quick welcome and in-room dinner (which was quite late according to the ryokan's schedule). I was starving.

A welcome snack

Kaisekiprepared for us. Brought into the room for us at different intervals. A feast for the eyes as well as the mouth.

Satisfied & Full

After dinner, the 2 ladies came in to put out our futon mattress. Nice...
Went out for a night walk and shopping at the convenience store and went back to try the onsen.
Left: The entrance to the ryokan, Centre: Entrance to the men's onsen. Right: Around the ryokan

Next day...

Tues Jan 2 2007 (Day 12) - Snow Monkeys

2007-09-02T23:19:00.000-07:00

In the morning, after shipping some of our loot & load home at the post office, rushed to the Nagano train station to catch the train to Yudanaka.

Choosing a drink while waiting for the train to Yudanaka at Nagano station

On the train

Arrived at Yudanaka station. Wanted to get on the bus but ended up enquiring at the taxi counter by mistake. However, it turned out better because the taxi was able to drop us closer to the Korakukan and Jigokudani 'Snow Monkeys' park..which means less walking. The start of our walk.

reminds me of the Salem High Country ad from years ago

After aprrox. 1.5kms, 45 mins of walking along the peaceful forest trail with our backpacks, arrived at our accommodation for the night - Korakukan

view from the entrance

The stairway leads to the snow monkey park, which is right opposite the Korakukan.

A welcome dumpling, a teaset and the windows in our room.

view from our room

Ordered soba for lunch. Tasted different (not as good) from the soba we had in Tokyo.

After lunch, we headed off to the Snow Monkey Park

up the stairway

view of the Korakukan from the Snow Monkey Park

This is the livecam we viewed before the trip.

The furry Japanese Macaques relaxing in their 'onsen'. I think this is one of the few, if not only, places where people can watch monkeys soak in onsen, just like humans. Just like a scene from National Geographic. For a moment, i can't believe we are really here, after seeing so many images of this place while doing pre-trip 'homework'

The keeper on the right

The Monkey-only onsen (hot spring) below:

The guy in red was taking photos

Another few on the steep way up, heading back to the stairway & Korakukan through the Snow Monkey Park office

Entrance to our room & inside our room

Dinner at the dining hall. Each group of guest were seated at their own table.

Grilled fish & fried cricket...yes little fried cricket on the bottom left

Chawan-mushi.....I'm getting a bit sick of mushrooms...mushroom overdose

Next day...

Mon Jan 1 2007 (Day 11) - A New Year

2007-09-02T20:33:00.000-07:00

It's New Year's Day. Today we depart Tokyo for Matsumoto via shinkansen. We arranged the reserved seats tickets few days ago, using our Japan Rail Pass. It's our first shinkansen ride.
Last look at our hotel room at Nishi-Shinjuku Hotel.

Our load

Eki-ben for brunch

After about 3 hours on the bullet-train, we arrived at Matsumoto station. We stored our heavy packs in the lockers at the train station (what would we do without these lockers) and walked towards Matsumoto-jo after some searching and referring to Lonely Planet Japan

Glimpse of the castle

at Matsumoto Castle

Sun is setting & moon is appearing

Queue to ring the New Year bell and some shops somewhere near the Matsumoto-jo

We had a quick soba at a Family Mart convenience store (below). I asked if there are hot water for us to pour onto the instant soba and the attendants went through the whole preparation process (put in the sauces & flavourings) for us.

Quick night-time view before hurrying back to the train station to grab our bags and catch the shinkansen to Nagano. We had our seats reserved. Beginning to get hold of the train system already....it really isn't that complex.

Arrived at Nagano station. The Winter Olympics 1998 was held here in Nagano.

Our load was very, very heavy and we had to practically drag it along, searching for the hotel we're staying for the night, Comfort Nagano Hotel.
Our room, which was more spacious than the room in Tokyo.

Going out for a walk in the freezing temperature - 0 degree celcius

Dinner was from the Lawson convenience store. Some rest before the long walk tomorrow and prior to that, searching for the post office to reduce our load.

Next day...

Sun Dec 31 2006 (Day 10) - New Year's Eve

2007-08-30T21:33:00.000-07:00

The entrance to Nishi-Shinjuku Hotel

i think this is a form of Japanese New Year decoration

Breakfast around the corner from the hotel

Only on our final day in Tokyo, did we stroll around Shinjuku despite of staying in the area for already a week.
The Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. There is a city viewing area in this building but unfortunately the doors were closed for the New Year Holiday.

An interesting bike

The Shinjuku sculpture version of the Love by Robert Indiana

The Takashimaya building and its neighbour, the Empire State Building look-a-like, the NTT Docomo building . The Shinjuku station tracks below Takashimaya.

It seems that the Japanese don't mind queueing or maybe they love queueing. There are queues for almost everything and everywhere, even at foodstalls. Below: the queue for Krispy Kreme. There is actually a queue for queue where people are queueing to go on to the main queue. I'm serious

Hotto kouhi break. I just can't get enough of the drink vending machines in Japan

Sun is setting to a new year.

Had a quick dinner at KFC. It was a bit disappointing. Dry and small. The best KFC i've had has got to be the KFCs in Malaysia. You get big, juicy pieces.... like effort is actually put in to prepare it.

More vending machines and drinks

Wandering around Shinjuku

Just like the fruits-on-a-stick in Msia

Near the Kabuki-cho area. There are lots of these eroge bookshops/DVDshops. These shops are usually tight in space and requires a bit of squeezing.

These crepes are quite popular, especially at Harajuku, but we didn't get any in Harajuku because of the queues. There is no queue here so we decided to try one. We ordered by indicating to the girl that we'll point out our choice to her at the window display

So vibrant & lively

Decided to take the train to Shibuya to see if there is any Countdown to 2007 at Shibuya Crossing. It was disappointing as there was no events organised, just crowds cheering to themselves.

Crowds getting high at Hachiko statue

Had ramen in a little eatery somewhere in Shibuya

Police officers were present to control the crowd, just in case...

We stationed here at the Shibuya Crossing to see if anything is going to happen....

into 2007

There was also some plain-clothes office among the crowd. There was one stationed just in front of us, a middle-aged man with an earphone in his ears, surveying.

Crowds dispersing

taking the train back

it's been a long day, even my camera's eyes are blurred

Next day...