Night one of sleeping on the floor - Ow, my shoulder....
Haha no I'm only partly kidding, it isn't so bad, it's kinda cool actually. I don't know that I could do it for another week (which is how long I think it would take me to get used to it) but for a few days, the hot springs help melt some of the tension away and I am so beyond tired that I had an amazing sleep on the bus en route to Ise Jingu (Ise Grand Shrine), Japan's holiest Shinto shrine. And seemingly also one of the most expensive. Custom dictate that they rebuild the Naiku and Geku shrine buildings and the bridge every 29 years. The next one will take place next year, and they have already began preparations for it. The estimated cost for this rebuild is about ¥5 billion or about $60,000,000CDN.
Didn't make it to Mikimoto island on account of the weather, but we did visit the Azuchi Momoyama Bunka Mura ninja & samurai theme park. That's right, a ninja theme park. It was pissing pissing rain all day so the place was deserted..... Or was it?! Maybe the ninjas were just invisible to the untrained eye. Muahahaha. I think it was really just that miserable out. We didn't have much time to spend there so we watched one of the live shows, which was entirely in Japanese but still hilarious (and impressive!). The main character reminded me so much of Chris in his mannerisms and the funny imitations he did. They both did a hilarious old school deep Japanese accent, he had the whole theatre howling by the end. He looked just like Daniel (but with eyeliner on), so I had a pit in the bottom of my stomach for most of the show. We learned tonight at dinner that Chris, Dan and Michelle came here to Ise with Chako-san's kids to visit Chako's dad and they went to that very same park many years ago. He said that the boys just loved it, and I can just picture those Kano brothers and all the mischief they got into. It was just another reminder of how much I miss Chrissy, because he of all people would've been so excited to hear about my adventures.
I have so much more to say but it is getting late here and our wifi connection is hit and miss. Tomorrow we head to Suwa to meet up with Tomo, will be there until Monday then back to Tokyo overnight and home on Tues! Seems like we just got here, and yet it feels like we've been here for weeks. I don't want to come home but I won't lie, I am really looking forward to sleeping in my own bed again. The long commutes are killing me, I have never consumed so much Gravol in such a short period of time. This is also the only country I've ever visited that doesn't really have carbonated beverages, only coca cola. I would kill for a ginger ale right about now lol. But I have discovered that Pocari Sweat tastes a little bit like fresca without the carbonation, but is more like Gatorade I think. Helps with the dehydration.
I hope I remember all of this by the time I get home, I try to jot down stuff so I'll remember but my iPad is such a pain in the arse to type on, most of the time I just want to give up and do a video diary instead. Next time maybe.
Lots of love from Toba!
Kris xox
Friday, 23 March 2012
Ok, I digress, hot springs are awesome
I haven't had Internet for a few days so I'm posting a few consecutive posts tonight while I can.
Ise day 1
This morning we snuck one last visit in to the Nishiki Market in Kyoto, known as Kyoto's Kitchen because of all the different little food stalls. Most of the stores were still closed but I bought a few trinkets, including a few beautiful hand painted wall scrolls for my condo. I had been admiring some different ones in a small shop in the higashiyama district so Kimiko-san wanted to take me to this one to look at some of their selection. I wish I could've bought ALL of them, they were so pretty!
Caught a quick Shinkansen to Nagoya then transferred to the Toba line, where we were to meet James and Chako at the 3rd stop, close to Ise. Ise is Japan's oldest town, and home to one of the most elaborate and famed Shinto Shrines in the entire country. We will visit that on Friday, along with the Mikimoto Island pearl farms as Ise is also famous for their cultured pearls.
Tonight was the 88th birthday celebration for Chako's father, attended by 28 of her closest friends and relatives. We felt extremely honoured to be included in this intimate gathering in the ballroom of this beautiful seaside resort hotel. The food was incredible, very traditional Japanese celebration feast with multiple courses and the most intricate dishes. We were totally stuffed by the end of the evening, which was commenced with a rather bizarre but highly entertaining Thai showgirl variety show... Using the word "girl" rather loosely...
Our rooms are traditional tatami style, so we get to sleep on futon tonight which I'm very excited about. Last year we has the option of sleeping on futon or in the amazingly fluffy and comfortable beds at the Hakone ryokan, and by that point it was March 13th and we were EXHAUSTED. We came back from dinner, sat down on the bed at 7:30pm and woke up 11 hours later in the morning, ha! It was a thoroughly rewarding experience though, staying at the ryokan. I would highly recommend it to anyone thinking of traveling to Japan. I would suggest you learn some basic Japanese language skills first though, as they typically do not speak much English. They had a good laugh at us last year trying to navigate our way through the check in process. Thankfully we have our wonderful friends here this year to help us, but the hostess was extremely embarrassed when she was trying to explain our rooms to us and Dad and I just stared at her blankly. From what I managed to decipher, something was going to happen at hachi-ji han desu, so at 8:30... My best guess was that that's when they would set up our beds in our rooms. One point for Krissy!
Sang karaoke for 2 hours after dinner and the show, Dad did his usual - wanna guess? Daydream Believer, Love Me Tender, and Blue Hawaii. The only 3 English songs all night unless you count the lip synching dancers. Oh lordy that was a funny experience!
Bedtime now, another long day of sightseeing tomorrow. The hot springs arent nearly as hot here, so I spent some time soaking in the sauna tub and then the outdoor tub overlooking the bay. It is unbelievably gorgeous here. I feel so grateful everyday that we are getting to experience so much of this incredible country, and it has been very rewarding learning a little bit more about my heritage at the same time. I also figured out that karaoke is a great way to learn hiragana and katakana, but following along with the characters on the screen! I'm getting much much better, maybe I'll actually be able to read a little bit by the time I get home. (Lisa, Megan, we can practice lots together!)
Ise day 1
This morning we snuck one last visit in to the Nishiki Market in Kyoto, known as Kyoto's Kitchen because of all the different little food stalls. Most of the stores were still closed but I bought a few trinkets, including a few beautiful hand painted wall scrolls for my condo. I had been admiring some different ones in a small shop in the higashiyama district so Kimiko-san wanted to take me to this one to look at some of their selection. I wish I could've bought ALL of them, they were so pretty!
Caught a quick Shinkansen to Nagoya then transferred to the Toba line, where we were to meet James and Chako at the 3rd stop, close to Ise. Ise is Japan's oldest town, and home to one of the most elaborate and famed Shinto Shrines in the entire country. We will visit that on Friday, along with the Mikimoto Island pearl farms as Ise is also famous for their cultured pearls.
Tonight was the 88th birthday celebration for Chako's father, attended by 28 of her closest friends and relatives. We felt extremely honoured to be included in this intimate gathering in the ballroom of this beautiful seaside resort hotel. The food was incredible, very traditional Japanese celebration feast with multiple courses and the most intricate dishes. We were totally stuffed by the end of the evening, which was commenced with a rather bizarre but highly entertaining Thai showgirl variety show... Using the word "girl" rather loosely...
Our rooms are traditional tatami style, so we get to sleep on futon tonight which I'm very excited about. Last year we has the option of sleeping on futon or in the amazingly fluffy and comfortable beds at the Hakone ryokan, and by that point it was March 13th and we were EXHAUSTED. We came back from dinner, sat down on the bed at 7:30pm and woke up 11 hours later in the morning, ha! It was a thoroughly rewarding experience though, staying at the ryokan. I would highly recommend it to anyone thinking of traveling to Japan. I would suggest you learn some basic Japanese language skills first though, as they typically do not speak much English. They had a good laugh at us last year trying to navigate our way through the check in process. Thankfully we have our wonderful friends here this year to help us, but the hostess was extremely embarrassed when she was trying to explain our rooms to us and Dad and I just stared at her blankly. From what I managed to decipher, something was going to happen at hachi-ji han desu, so at 8:30... My best guess was that that's when they would set up our beds in our rooms. One point for Krissy!
Sang karaoke for 2 hours after dinner and the show, Dad did his usual - wanna guess? Daydream Believer, Love Me Tender, and Blue Hawaii. The only 3 English songs all night unless you count the lip synching dancers. Oh lordy that was a funny experience!
Bedtime now, another long day of sightseeing tomorrow. The hot springs arent nearly as hot here, so I spent some time soaking in the sauna tub and then the outdoor tub overlooking the bay. It is unbelievably gorgeous here. I feel so grateful everyday that we are getting to experience so much of this incredible country, and it has been very rewarding learning a little bit more about my heritage at the same time. I also figured out that karaoke is a great way to learn hiragana and katakana, but following along with the characters on the screen! I'm getting much much better, maybe I'll actually be able to read a little bit by the time I get home. (Lisa, Megan, we can practice lots together!)
Wednesday, 21 March 2012
Today was Wednesday?
Where did the time go? I have no concept of what day of the week it is, or even what city we're in (Kyoto, for the record), the days have just blurred together because we've been in a different city every night almost! Such an incredible experience. Sorry I haven't been as diligent with my updates as I had hoped I would be. Lack of a reliable internet connection is one hindrance, you would be surprised how many hotels don't have wifi. There is free wifi in many of the public areas, like along the Shijo Dori shopping street here in Kyoto, but we are so rarely ever in one place for any extended period of time, it is difficult to get anything productive done in terms of checking in at home. Normally I would compose my thoughts on the train since we spend hours upon hours on the Shinkansen (as Hiroko says, it's "free" so we might as well take advantage of it!) but my motion sickness is crippling, so I spend most of my time trying to sleep away the nausea.
It is late here now and we have another long day of traveling tomorrow so I apologize for glazing over some of the details again in this post! Yesterday was our second day in Beppu, so we visited the Takasakiyama park, or Monkey Mountain as they call it. It really is a mountain full of "wild" Japanese macaques. There are over 1000 of them living there this year, they live in the mountains and come down to the reserve for food twice a day. You can wander through there during the day amongst them (no, you can't pet them though) and they sort of do their own thing. It was fascinating. I could have spent the entire day there just watching them interact with each other. They had big ones, little ones, even babies, and there was a clear hierarchy between the alpha males.
After that we spent an hour or two at the Umi Tamago "Sea Egg" aquarium across the street. They had dolphins, walruses, seals, otters, Sea turtles, sharks, frogs, you name it! They even had a sloth! Again, we didn't have enough time to spend there but I'm glad we went. For a town that Hiroko described as boring with "not much to see", I think I could have spent a good 4 days there and not have to do the same thing twice. Other than soak in the hot springs, that is.
From the aquarium Hiroko hired a taxi driver to take us out to the little town of Yufuin, about an hour from Beppu. It is a small European inspired town they built around 1945 when they put in the highway. Seems totally random to me that it is European, of all things, but to the Japanese, that is exotic to them. The area is known for its greenhouses as the hot springs allow them to grow the most brilliant orchids. We spent a few hours wandering through the streets and parks there. It was bustling with other tourists, mostly other young Asians (Chinese and Korean tour busses run through there too). There is also a popular university nearby so a lot of the students take jobs in the town to make some extra money.
Fast forward to tonight - we are back in Kyoto, heading to Ise via Nagoya tomorrow to meet up with some other friends for Chako's father's 88th birthday celebration. I bought a kimono tonight, a black tomesode (formal) kimono that was very reasonably priced, although still a lot of money to spend on one item of clothing. The ladies were gushing over the fact that a Yonsei 4th Generation Canadian is more Japanese than they are because I know how to put on a kimono and tie a basic obi. I guess I never really thought of it that way, most modern Japanese women would never have to wear kimono, and if they do, they don't dress themselves. So I have my odori Sensei to thank for that! And my parents for putting me in odori from age 2.
I'm exhausted now so going to sign out for the evening. Attempting to share a few more photos, hope these links work! Thanks for following, especially enjoying the feedback from all of you! I learned from my Aunt that my great grandparents on the Matsui side spent some time in Beppu as well. Truthfully, I don't know much about my family history so I found that very interesting! Thank you Auntie Mary and Uncle Roy. I look forward to swapping more stories when I get home!
First photo, taken in Yufuin somewhere near Kinrinko Lake. http://instagr.am/p/IZVfQJzMgf/
Some early ume (plum) blossoms in Kyoto http://instagr.am/p/IUDHdJTMsB/
And one of the sharks at the aquarium! http://instagr.am/p/IadQXuzMs-/
xo Kris
It is late here now and we have another long day of traveling tomorrow so I apologize for glazing over some of the details again in this post! Yesterday was our second day in Beppu, so we visited the Takasakiyama park, or Monkey Mountain as they call it. It really is a mountain full of "wild" Japanese macaques. There are over 1000 of them living there this year, they live in the mountains and come down to the reserve for food twice a day. You can wander through there during the day amongst them (no, you can't pet them though) and they sort of do their own thing. It was fascinating. I could have spent the entire day there just watching them interact with each other. They had big ones, little ones, even babies, and there was a clear hierarchy between the alpha males.
After that we spent an hour or two at the Umi Tamago "Sea Egg" aquarium across the street. They had dolphins, walruses, seals, otters, Sea turtles, sharks, frogs, you name it! They even had a sloth! Again, we didn't have enough time to spend there but I'm glad we went. For a town that Hiroko described as boring with "not much to see", I think I could have spent a good 4 days there and not have to do the same thing twice. Other than soak in the hot springs, that is.
From the aquarium Hiroko hired a taxi driver to take us out to the little town of Yufuin, about an hour from Beppu. It is a small European inspired town they built around 1945 when they put in the highway. Seems totally random to me that it is European, of all things, but to the Japanese, that is exotic to them. The area is known for its greenhouses as the hot springs allow them to grow the most brilliant orchids. We spent a few hours wandering through the streets and parks there. It was bustling with other tourists, mostly other young Asians (Chinese and Korean tour busses run through there too). There is also a popular university nearby so a lot of the students take jobs in the town to make some extra money.
Fast forward to tonight - we are back in Kyoto, heading to Ise via Nagoya tomorrow to meet up with some other friends for Chako's father's 88th birthday celebration. I bought a kimono tonight, a black tomesode (formal) kimono that was very reasonably priced, although still a lot of money to spend on one item of clothing. The ladies were gushing over the fact that a Yonsei 4th Generation Canadian is more Japanese than they are because I know how to put on a kimono and tie a basic obi. I guess I never really thought of it that way, most modern Japanese women would never have to wear kimono, and if they do, they don't dress themselves. So I have my odori Sensei to thank for that! And my parents for putting me in odori from age 2.
I'm exhausted now so going to sign out for the evening. Attempting to share a few more photos, hope these links work! Thanks for following, especially enjoying the feedback from all of you! I learned from my Aunt that my great grandparents on the Matsui side spent some time in Beppu as well. Truthfully, I don't know much about my family history so I found that very interesting! Thank you Auntie Mary and Uncle Roy. I look forward to swapping more stories when I get home!
First photo, taken in Yufuin somewhere near Kinrinko Lake. http://instagr.am/p/IZVfQJzMgf/
Some early ume (plum) blossoms in Kyoto http://instagr.am/p/IUDHdJTMsB/
And one of the sharks at the aquarium! http://instagr.am/p/IadQXuzMs-/
xo Kris
Monday, 19 March 2012
Monday March 19th
Im doing this a little out of order because I need another day to compose my thoughts re: Hiroshima/Nagasaki. So I'm skipping right to Beppu, which is where we are now. Beppu is one of Japan's best hot spring towns, producing some of the best quality onsen spas. It is very busy this weekend, as we found out today that it is a national holiday.
So, today I got to experience my first onsen (hot spring bath). All this time I've been worried about the whole public nudity thing because it isn't really that common for women in North America, but I got over that fear after a few mins of loitering in the hall by myself... I just couldn't get over how unbelievably HOT those tubs are! Yowza! The hotel we're staying at has both private and public baths, and as far as I can tell the only difference is that the public baths are on the roof in the open air overlooking the mountains, and the private one is enclosed in a room one floor down. Beautiful and peaceful, granted I wouldn't know any different because I couldn't hear a damn thing without my aid on, but you actually don't feel the cold when you're basically simmering (cooking) in a tub full of scalding hot water. Anyhow, as I sit here in my room in my yukata, my skin feels wonderfully soft and even though it is only about 10 degrees and my windows are open, I'm still toasty warm and my skin has never been softer. So maybe there's something to it after all.
Backtracking a bit, this morning we got up early and had breakfast, checked out and went straight to the train station to catch the Kyushu express back to Hakata (Fukuoka). These trains aren't as smooth as the other Shinkansen, so I was loaded to the hilt with Gravol to try to suppress the motion sickness. Lucky for me, that just means I get to take a nice long nap. It took about 2hrs to get to Hakata, and then the transfer from there to Beppu was another hour and a half or so.
When we arrived it was still too early to check in so we spent the afternoon sightseeing. There isn't a lot to see in Beppu, but the two main sights are the Jigoku Meguri "hell tour" hot spring parks and the monkey hill... Where I'm told there are monkeys living in the hills. We didn't end up going there, thats on tomorrow's agenda so I will keep you posted on that. But the Jigoku Meguri tour was fascinating. Basically the name "Jigoku" means "burning hell". The tour consisted of 9 different themed hot spring sites that can be found in the Oita area, each one supposedly conjuring up different scenes from the Inferno as depicted by Dante.
The first one is called Umi-Jigoku, or Sea Hell, aptly named because the deep cobalt water looks like the sea. They boil eggs here for consumption, they're deeeelicious. Unlike the kuro tamago(black eggs) we saw in Hakone last year, these ones look fairly normal but the yolks are a bright orange instead of plain yellow. Here is a photo of this jigoku from google images. In the spring and summer the water lillies that grow in the pond here get so big small children can stand on them and not sink. Seriously.
I won't post pics of all the other jigoku's but I will list them:
- Oniishibozu Jigoku (Oniishi Shaven Head Hell), named as such because the bubbles of hot grey clay look like the bald heads of monks
- Yama Jigoku (mountain hell) because the mud that bubbles up from the steam vents has formed small peaks over the years. This spot also has a mini zoo with an elephant, hippo, etc
- Kamado Jigoku, The Cooking Pot Hell, lol, which features a big red demon standing on a pot... Some feminists might agree that this would indeed be a form of hell for the modern woman...
- Oniyama Jigoku, Monster Mountain hell, where they breed crocodiles because they love the warm waters. Theyre really freaky looking,wait til you see the pics.
- Shiraike Jigoku, White Pond hell, because the water comes out of this spring milky white for some reason. Smells great too (not!)
-Chinoike Jigoku, Blood Pond Hell, the freakiest of them all because the red clay makes the water red, reaching temps of around 78-80 Celsius.
-Tatsumaki Jigoku is a natural geyser of hot spring water, it is really neat. Famous for the short intervals between eruptions.
How many is that? Was that 9? I think we skipped the Kinryu "Golden Dragon" Jigoku
Tomorrow we will go see the monkeys, and then I think we're visiting a small town nearby that brews European spirits or something like that. What a trip it has been so far. Hiroko-San keeps us busy every minute, she has adopted me as her granddaughter, everywhere we go she finds something else to feed me. Reminds me of my own Nana, she was the same way. We would be totally lost without her! Couldn't ask for a better guide and traveling companion.
K xo
So, today I got to experience my first onsen (hot spring bath). All this time I've been worried about the whole public nudity thing because it isn't really that common for women in North America, but I got over that fear after a few mins of loitering in the hall by myself... I just couldn't get over how unbelievably HOT those tubs are! Yowza! The hotel we're staying at has both private and public baths, and as far as I can tell the only difference is that the public baths are on the roof in the open air overlooking the mountains, and the private one is enclosed in a room one floor down. Beautiful and peaceful, granted I wouldn't know any different because I couldn't hear a damn thing without my aid on, but you actually don't feel the cold when you're basically simmering (cooking) in a tub full of scalding hot water. Anyhow, as I sit here in my room in my yukata, my skin feels wonderfully soft and even though it is only about 10 degrees and my windows are open, I'm still toasty warm and my skin has never been softer. So maybe there's something to it after all.
Backtracking a bit, this morning we got up early and had breakfast, checked out and went straight to the train station to catch the Kyushu express back to Hakata (Fukuoka). These trains aren't as smooth as the other Shinkansen, so I was loaded to the hilt with Gravol to try to suppress the motion sickness. Lucky for me, that just means I get to take a nice long nap. It took about 2hrs to get to Hakata, and then the transfer from there to Beppu was another hour and a half or so.
When we arrived it was still too early to check in so we spent the afternoon sightseeing. There isn't a lot to see in Beppu, but the two main sights are the Jigoku Meguri "hell tour" hot spring parks and the monkey hill... Where I'm told there are monkeys living in the hills. We didn't end up going there, thats on tomorrow's agenda so I will keep you posted on that. But the Jigoku Meguri tour was fascinating. Basically the name "Jigoku" means "burning hell". The tour consisted of 9 different themed hot spring sites that can be found in the Oita area, each one supposedly conjuring up different scenes from the Inferno as depicted by Dante.
The first one is called Umi-Jigoku, or Sea Hell, aptly named because the deep cobalt water looks like the sea. They boil eggs here for consumption, they're deeeelicious. Unlike the kuro tamago(black eggs) we saw in Hakone last year, these ones look fairly normal but the yolks are a bright orange instead of plain yellow. Here is a photo of this jigoku from google images. In the spring and summer the water lillies that grow in the pond here get so big small children can stand on them and not sink. Seriously.
I won't post pics of all the other jigoku's but I will list them:
- Oniishibozu Jigoku (Oniishi Shaven Head Hell), named as such because the bubbles of hot grey clay look like the bald heads of monks
- Yama Jigoku (mountain hell) because the mud that bubbles up from the steam vents has formed small peaks over the years. This spot also has a mini zoo with an elephant, hippo, etc
- Kamado Jigoku, The Cooking Pot Hell, lol, which features a big red demon standing on a pot... Some feminists might agree that this would indeed be a form of hell for the modern woman...
- Oniyama Jigoku, Monster Mountain hell, where they breed crocodiles because they love the warm waters. Theyre really freaky looking,wait til you see the pics.
- Shiraike Jigoku, White Pond hell, because the water comes out of this spring milky white for some reason. Smells great too (not!)
-Chinoike Jigoku, Blood Pond Hell, the freakiest of them all because the red clay makes the water red, reaching temps of around 78-80 Celsius.
-Tatsumaki Jigoku is a natural geyser of hot spring water, it is really neat. Famous for the short intervals between eruptions.
How many is that? Was that 9? I think we skipped the Kinryu "Golden Dragon" Jigoku
Tomorrow we will go see the monkeys, and then I think we're visiting a small town nearby that brews European spirits or something like that. What a trip it has been so far. Hiroko-San keeps us busy every minute, she has adopted me as her granddaughter, everywhere we go she finds something else to feed me. Reminds me of my own Nana, she was the same way. We would be totally lost without her! Couldn't ask for a better guide and traveling companion.
K xo
Sunday, 18 March 2012
Sunday March 18th
10am
We don't have Internet in Hiroshima so the crack berry addict in me is feeling a little deprived. Marty is probably worse off than me though, haha!
Yesterday we caught a early train from Kyoto to Hiroshima. Had to transfer in Okayama, but made it here in good time. We are staying at this funny european-inspired hotel called thr Hiroshima Grand Intelligence Hotel, the lobby is oozing with grandeur - suits of armor guarding the front doors, marble columns, (fake) fireplaces, (fake) European tapestries, lush carpets, old gilded furniture... Beethoven and Mozart playing over the speaker system. They even use old-fashioned keys instead of keycards! It is kind of funny, but it is clean, the beds are comfy and it is very close to the train station!
First stop when we arrived was Miyajima. It is quite a hike to get there from the city centre so we took a cab (about 30mins). Funny story, when i got in the car I found a wallet on the floor. I tried to tell the driver that I found it but he waved me off and (I thought) pointed me to put it in the seat back pocket, so I did. Then a little while later he asked me to see it, so I showed it to him and he waved me off again, so I put it back in the pocket on his headrest. So then I find out that he is giving us 10% off our fare because of this ID card I showed him. I tried explaining it wasn't mine again, but it was lost in translation. Fast forward to the next morning, I find out he came back to our hotel while we were out for dinner thinking I left MY wallet in the car. When Hiroko-san told him it wasn't ours and that we found it, I think he then thought I tried to scam him into giving me the 10% off for having a disability. I kinda thought it was evident that I wasn't an 80year old Japanese man? Anyhow, it made for a funny story and we saved a couple hundred yen.
Back to Miyajima... the ferry ride was quick, only about 10-15 mins. It was rainy and cool in the morning but by the time we got to the island it was sunny and warm, so we were a little overdressed. Wandered through the main temple and took 100 pics of the wild deer that live on the island. What funny little creatures they are. They are polite, but persistent, and will eat virtually anything they can reach, their favourite apparently being paper. We watched them eat quite a few pamphlets and brochures, most of which they plucked out of the hands or pockets of unsuspecting tourists.
The temples on the island are spread out up the mountainside a little, so wee were told it would take us a good 4hrs to do the whole "course". We opted for a few good photo ops of the famous floating torii and spent the rest of the beautiful afternoon wandering along the busy backstreets. Hiroko-San bought a few goodies off the street vendors so we tried roasted sweet potatoes, roasted chestnuts, and special maple-shaped manju, then I bought one of the deep fried bacon-wrapped satsuma sticks. Oishiiii. And I was still full from the delicious unagi-don bento we had for lunch. Good thing we burned off most of those calories trekking up and down the hills all day.
We had planned to take the streetcar back to the genbaku domu, a-bomb memorial, but by the time we got there it was past 6 and it was closed. Instead we went home, crashed for an hour, then bought dinner from the department store across the street and wandered through the store looking at all the crazy stuff they had there. It's no wonder Japanese people go so nutso shopping in Hawaii, most of the stuff in the big dept stores is very expensive.
This morning we're up early for breakfast then plan to go back to the peace memorial museum and a-bomb memorial before we catch our train to Nagasaki.
By this point many of you may have seen my Maiko photo on Facebook (or from my mom, who almost operates her own social media network). Pretty cool, huh? That is definitely my favourite thing I've done so far. (does this link work?)
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10100227133700249&l=853070c1bb
Update from Nagasaki, 9:30pm
We're at our hotel in Nagasaki now, have had a very long day. Visited the A-bomb museum in Hiroshima this morning, then caught the shinkansen to Hakata (Fukuoka) where we transferred to the Kyushu express to Nagasaki. I slept most of the way, as usual, because the latter part of the journey was twisty turny and when the alternative was motion sickness, I'll take the nap instead. Did a whirlwind tour of Nagasaki when we got here, will have to update you on that later because I'm asleep in my chair right now. Posted a few pics on FB, still can't figure out how to attach pics from my iPad.
Lots of love from Nagasaki,
Kris xo
We don't have Internet in Hiroshima so the crack berry addict in me is feeling a little deprived. Marty is probably worse off than me though, haha!
Yesterday we caught a early train from Kyoto to Hiroshima. Had to transfer in Okayama, but made it here in good time. We are staying at this funny european-inspired hotel called thr Hiroshima Grand Intelligence Hotel, the lobby is oozing with grandeur - suits of armor guarding the front doors, marble columns, (fake) fireplaces, (fake) European tapestries, lush carpets, old gilded furniture... Beethoven and Mozart playing over the speaker system. They even use old-fashioned keys instead of keycards! It is kind of funny, but it is clean, the beds are comfy and it is very close to the train station!
First stop when we arrived was Miyajima. It is quite a hike to get there from the city centre so we took a cab (about 30mins). Funny story, when i got in the car I found a wallet on the floor. I tried to tell the driver that I found it but he waved me off and (I thought) pointed me to put it in the seat back pocket, so I did. Then a little while later he asked me to see it, so I showed it to him and he waved me off again, so I put it back in the pocket on his headrest. So then I find out that he is giving us 10% off our fare because of this ID card I showed him. I tried explaining it wasn't mine again, but it was lost in translation. Fast forward to the next morning, I find out he came back to our hotel while we were out for dinner thinking I left MY wallet in the car. When Hiroko-san told him it wasn't ours and that we found it, I think he then thought I tried to scam him into giving me the 10% off for having a disability. I kinda thought it was evident that I wasn't an 80year old Japanese man? Anyhow, it made for a funny story and we saved a couple hundred yen.
Back to Miyajima... the ferry ride was quick, only about 10-15 mins. It was rainy and cool in the morning but by the time we got to the island it was sunny and warm, so we were a little overdressed. Wandered through the main temple and took 100 pics of the wild deer that live on the island. What funny little creatures they are. They are polite, but persistent, and will eat virtually anything they can reach, their favourite apparently being paper. We watched them eat quite a few pamphlets and brochures, most of which they plucked out of the hands or pockets of unsuspecting tourists.
The temples on the island are spread out up the mountainside a little, so wee were told it would take us a good 4hrs to do the whole "course". We opted for a few good photo ops of the famous floating torii and spent the rest of the beautiful afternoon wandering along the busy backstreets. Hiroko-San bought a few goodies off the street vendors so we tried roasted sweet potatoes, roasted chestnuts, and special maple-shaped manju, then I bought one of the deep fried bacon-wrapped satsuma sticks. Oishiiii. And I was still full from the delicious unagi-don bento we had for lunch. Good thing we burned off most of those calories trekking up and down the hills all day.
We had planned to take the streetcar back to the genbaku domu, a-bomb memorial, but by the time we got there it was past 6 and it was closed. Instead we went home, crashed for an hour, then bought dinner from the department store across the street and wandered through the store looking at all the crazy stuff they had there. It's no wonder Japanese people go so nutso shopping in Hawaii, most of the stuff in the big dept stores is very expensive.
This morning we're up early for breakfast then plan to go back to the peace memorial museum and a-bomb memorial before we catch our train to Nagasaki.
By this point many of you may have seen my Maiko photo on Facebook (or from my mom, who almost operates her own social media network). Pretty cool, huh? That is definitely my favourite thing I've done so far. (does this link work?)
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10100227133700249&l=853070c1bb
Update from Nagasaki, 9:30pm
We're at our hotel in Nagasaki now, have had a very long day. Visited the A-bomb museum in Hiroshima this morning, then caught the shinkansen to Hakata (Fukuoka) where we transferred to the Kyushu express to Nagasaki. I slept most of the way, as usual, because the latter part of the journey was twisty turny and when the alternative was motion sickness, I'll take the nap instead. Did a whirlwind tour of Nagasaki when we got here, will have to update you on that later because I'm asleep in my chair right now. Posted a few pics on FB, still can't figure out how to attach pics from my iPad.
Lots of love from Nagasaki,
Kris xo
Friday, 16 March 2012
Can I just stay here forever?
Really quick check in tonight because I'm falling asleep in my seat. Today was our first full day here, spent it in Kyoto. Instead of doing our half-day trip to Nara as planned, we decided to stick to the city. I went and had my photos taken in full Maiko costume as suggested to me by the Consul General's wife, Mrs Yamamoto. It was the coolest experience. What an incredible team they have there, I was fully dressed with makeup and hair done in under 45mins. This includes the white face and everything. Photos to follow when I can figure out how to upload something from my iPad.
After that we visited the Kiyomizu-dera Temple where we witnessed some sort of performance going on, I am still trying to figure out what it was but there was a dragon involved, and they marched all the way up the street and through the temple. It was really really cool. We had no idea they would be there, just lucky timing! Beautiful temple, there are 1000 Sakura trees on the property, only a few of them had some early blooms. I'm told it is absolutely packed there in the height of the cherry blossom season. I believe it. It would be quite the sight if everything was in full bloom.
Tomorrow we are heading to Hiroshima and Miyajima. From there we will make our way down to Nagasaki, and will stay in Kyushu for 2 days, one night at a hot spring resort in Beppu, and then another ryokan somewhere else on the island. After that we will spend one more night in Kyoto before heading to Nagoya and Ise to meet our friends.
Been taking lots of pics, will try to post some soon!
Lots of love,
K xo
After that we visited the Kiyomizu-dera Temple where we witnessed some sort of performance going on, I am still trying to figure out what it was but there was a dragon involved, and they marched all the way up the street and through the temple. It was really really cool. We had no idea they would be there, just lucky timing! Beautiful temple, there are 1000 Sakura trees on the property, only a few of them had some early blooms. I'm told it is absolutely packed there in the height of the cherry blossom season. I believe it. It would be quite the sight if everything was in full bloom.
Tomorrow we are heading to Hiroshima and Miyajima. From there we will make our way down to Nagasaki, and will stay in Kyushu for 2 days, one night at a hot spring resort in Beppu, and then another ryokan somewhere else on the island. After that we will spend one more night in Kyoto before heading to Nagoya and Ise to meet our friends.
Been taking lots of pics, will try to post some soon!
Lots of love,
K xo
Thursday, 15 March 2012
Back to the land of the washlet toilets!
4:45pm
I can practically hear all my Canadian friends going "eeewww" right now, but seriously, awesome invention.
Well we made it here safely. I'm writing this as I sit on the NEX (Narita Express train) en route to Shinagawa Station where we will catch the transfer to Kyoto. The flight was uneventful, I slept most of the way, watched a few terrible movies, and slept some more. We're giggling right now at the couple that just boarded the train with two GIANT ABC Store bags from Hawaii. There was also a guy on our flight wearing the largest, flashiest, most ridiculous sombrero I've ever seen in my life. I wonder where he got it from and what he's going to do with it. Funny thing is, he's wearing his baseball cap underneath it.
We're staying two nights in Kyoto, hoping to do a bit of sightseeing, and Mrs Yamamoto (Consul General's wife) suggested I go have my photos taken in full Maiko costume. Will try to see if we can get an appt.
10:00pm
Made it to our hotel in Kyoto, we are staying at the Hotel Mitsui Garden Kyoto Shijo, cozy, we'll see if I feel brave enough to try the hot springs tomorrow. My skin doesn't really like scalding hot water. I now understand why lobsters turn bright red when you cook them....... Anyhow, despite all the sleep I got on the plane (and train), it is bedtime here! Not much to report today, but after last time, that's ok!
Oh, but I did notice that there are "in room massages" available between 7:30pm-1:30am...... (insert raised eyebrow here). Just sayin'.
K xo
I can practically hear all my Canadian friends going "eeewww" right now, but seriously, awesome invention.
Well we made it here safely. I'm writing this as I sit on the NEX (Narita Express train) en route to Shinagawa Station where we will catch the transfer to Kyoto. The flight was uneventful, I slept most of the way, watched a few terrible movies, and slept some more. We're giggling right now at the couple that just boarded the train with two GIANT ABC Store bags from Hawaii. There was also a guy on our flight wearing the largest, flashiest, most ridiculous sombrero I've ever seen in my life. I wonder where he got it from and what he's going to do with it. Funny thing is, he's wearing his baseball cap underneath it.
We're staying two nights in Kyoto, hoping to do a bit of sightseeing, and Mrs Yamamoto (Consul General's wife) suggested I go have my photos taken in full Maiko costume. Will try to see if we can get an appt.
10:00pm
Made it to our hotel in Kyoto, we are staying at the Hotel Mitsui Garden Kyoto Shijo, cozy, we'll see if I feel brave enough to try the hot springs tomorrow. My skin doesn't really like scalding hot water. I now understand why lobsters turn bright red when you cook them....... Anyhow, despite all the sleep I got on the plane (and train), it is bedtime here! Not much to report today, but after last time, that's ok!
Oh, but I did notice that there are "in room massages" available between 7:30pm-1:30am...... (insert raised eyebrow here). Just sayin'.
K xo
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Japan 1988
Dad, Mom and I in Japan, Oct '88