Arrigato gozaimas. Thank-you very much (Japanese). And that goes to the universe and to all the people in my life that have helped me to get here. Japan was fabulous.
After a seven hour flight, we started our adventure on a one hour train and then a shorter subway and 5 minute walk with luggage to our hotel in the outskirts of Tokyo. Taxis are a small fortune, and it's common to walk around with your luggage anyway. I nearly knocked over a few bikes along the way, but other than that the trip went smoothly.
Our days in Tokyo were big city. We saw the lights, the action, the crowds, the kids dressed up as anime characters, a couple of people giving out free hugs, vending machines everywhere, temples, the red light district, narrow streets with pubs... and we ate at fabulous restaurants and, yes, rested at Starbucks. Service was excellent. People were friendly. And nobody stared in the subways - refreshing!
Shibuya Crossing is apparently the busiest intersection in the world - and it sure looked like it. Harajuku is where you watch trendy people and can buy pretty much anything. Shinjuku is commercial and colorful and full of crowds hustling and bustling... and great Japanese signage. Pachinko and slot establishments were everywhere (even in the small towns). Fashion was... from trendy to nutty to questionable.
The Tsukji fish market is something everyone should see while in Tokyo. Guys drive around in these carts pulling fish boxes, and they are fast. We had face masks (definitely blend into Japan while wearing a face mask) in case the smell was too much - but we didn't need them. There was seafood of every kind imaginable in this huge market. With rolled up pant legs we roamed through and when we were finished, Terry was smiling ear to ear and my teen had a look on her face like a boiled boot.
We rented a car for the remainder of the trip and visited a small village in the mountains called Tsumago where we stayed in a traditional Japanese minshuku (ryokan). The roads leading to this place were windy and the views were mountainous - it was incredible. Once we arrived, we had robes, slept on the floor on thin mattresses, wore slippers in the rooms, and ate traditional Japanese meals. Many places in Japan have public baths - this ryokan had a private one... Terry, of course, got a bath. My daughter and I opted not to since it was absolutely freezing everywhere except in the rooms. The view was spectacular. The owners were wonderful. And the town was quaint and preserved its heritage wonderfully. We explored the snowy town the next day and drank it all in.
After some tradition, we made our way to Kyoto. We spent a full day temple viewing. We spotted Geisha - we think some were authentic (you can dress up as a Geisha and wander around so we think we saw some tourists dress up as well). Kyoto is pretty. It's a much smaller city than Tokyo with a population of 1.5 million as opposed to 12.5 million. Temples and castles fill the city, and most have beautiful gardens. Seeing it in Spring with the cherry blossoms must be amazing.
We ate in a Japanese diner in Kyoto... that was fun. We also visited a castle... it was OK. I liked the squeaky floors it had... this was built into the castle on purpose so the royalty would know if someone was sneaking in. The floors were called Nightingale floors. Big Buddhas high in the hills were common. We met a monk in one temple we visited and he sang the Canadian anthem for us, stating he thought it was much nicer than Japan's. So of course, we asked him to sing Japan's, which he did, and it was not so bad. He knew were Newfoundland was and told us how popular Anne of Green Gables is amongst the Japanese. He was a lovely soul.
My daughter was Queen for a day and her choice of activity was Universal Studios in Osaka - another city close to Kyoto. So, off we went. Being 4 months pregnant at the time, I couldn't go on any of the rides except the carousel! Some of you know how much I love rides... but I lived vicariously through my daughter and Terry as they went from ride to ride and came off each one with big smiles. I people watched and, frankly, seeing the after ride smiles was good enough for me.
Our final stop was another small, traditional town called Shimoda, which was near the ocean. We stayed in a hotel but the room was a traditional Japanese style with mattresses on the floor. Everyone in the hotel roamed around in the same robes. At first I thought they were from a group. But, no, the robes were in the rooms and they put them on and hung out in the hotel. There were public baths (separate male and female) in this place. Again, Terry took that in. Maybe if I wasn't pregnant I would cross that threshold, but there was no way my 17 year old daughter was going to. Surprisingly, we found an amazing R&B pub to eat at - Japanese pub food, which was quite good. It was a fantastic way to spend a couple of hours after driving half of the day.
On our final day we captured the best views of Mount Fuji.. an awesome spectacle. That was my driving day. Terry did the majority of the driving, but I drove that day from Shimoda to Narita Airport in Tokyo. A little nutty for sure... but having a GPS makes all the difference!
Oh - toilet seats are mostly heated in Japan (and they also play music, have bidets, and play fake flushing sounds if you like). And... what is with having a ferris wheel in every city? We drove past several cities and each one had a ferris wheel peeking out. (Singapore has one too.)
Our week long trip was a bit of a blur. We experienced lots and loved it all. Arigato Gozaimas.
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