Trip to Japan

Japan is awesome! Well I guess you have heard that from many people who have visited the island of the rising sun. Well, it simply is! When we had already planned our trip and started asking around, we got the same response. Because our expectations were so high that we thought it would not be possible to be so good, we simply stop asking so we would not have any expectations!

We flew in to Narita, the main Tokyo airport. The first person we encountered, even before the passport control simply confirmed what we had been told. Japanese are extremely polite and helpful. After the formalities, we exchanged the JR Pass obtained in the country of origin, with a special permit that allowed us to travel unlimited on all the rail network run by JR plus a few more services. 

Nagoya

Tokyo was the last part of our trip so when landing we took the train to the city of Nagoya, some 350 km south of Tokyo. Nagoya is kind of the Detroit of Japan, the city where major automotive industries have their premises. The first building of Toyota (producing looms) is located there. But having no time to visit that, we wanted to get a feeling of the city and of course the castle located at the center. A convenient bus service takes tourists all around the major attractions. In general Japanese don’t speak English, but signs, maps and instruction leaflets make sure that you are never, ever lost! And if you ask someone for help or directions, chances are that they will get out of their way to help you or go find someone that will.

Kanazawa

The second stop of our trip was Kanazawa, a lovely provincial town on the Eastern Sea (that is the one between Japan and China, the other side being the …Pacific!). What strikes most when arriving in Kanazawa, is the amazing train station. Big and impressive, it uses many inspirations from local architecture, like the giant wooden torii.

Arriving at the hotel, the receptionist was the first person we noticed that bowed. Deep bow like we were the emperors or something. We realized what we had read that all Japanese do that. Also when passing something to us (from a few coins to a large package) they always hand it using two hands, never one. 

Kanazawa itself is a lovely and quiet for Japanese standards, town. Worth visiting are the Kenroku-en gardens, one of the best in Japan. It is important to know, that entrance tickets to attractions in Japan (museums, gardens, temples) are very cheap, compared to European standards. We never paid more than 9euros for entrance. Must visit is also the old part of the city or the Geisha quarters, where a number of traditional wooden and paper houses remain, some open to the public. For bike fans, Kanazawa has a bike system, similar to the one found in many European cities (like Velo in Paris). There are many stations around the city, and unlocked a bike from one, go to another station, leave it there etc. This is the only Japanese town where we found that system and we simply loved it! Note that in Japan it is perfectly normal to cycle on the pavement... 

Hiroshima

Moving on, we took the train to Hiroshima. I had read so much about the bomb, the history, the survivors and visiting this place was a childhood dream. I have to admit I shed a tear or two when I first saw the A-bomb dome, a symbol of nuclear destruction. But apart from that and the museum about the bomb and the Peace memorial park, Hiroshima is a vibrant and modern city. Having nothing traditional to show, the Japanese rebuilt part of the Hiroshima castle, which we did not miss. Like Nagoya, a tourist bus (free with the JR pass) took us around the major sights. We used it for the far away ones (like the amazing Manga library which is located in the mountains) and we experienced the city on foot, as every proper visitor should!

 

A taste one should not miss in Hiroshima is okonomiyaki. A local specialty made of noodles, eggs, bacon pancake and iceberg, it is prepared in front of you in a large metal plate. It is very social thing where many customers sitting around a bar like metal plate have a chance to watch the “chef” preparing the okonomiyaki. For us it was a good chance to meet locals who were curious about where we come from and how we like their country and also for us to ask about their city.

Miyazima

 Close to Hiroshima, is the island of Miyazima, one of the most touristic places of Japan which is accessible by train and then boat (all covered by the JR pass card). Famous because of its large torii, which you can walk or go by boat, depending on the strong tide. We decided to follow the path to the top of the island, some 500m above sea level. The top is also accessible by cable car but for the fit enough, the walking route is strongly recommended. Walking in a beautiful forest, we saw many shrines and dears, which are everywhere on the island! The view of the Pacific and Hiroshima from the top is stunning. Coming back down, near sunset we enjoyed the full colors around the torii. The site is beautiful even at night when the street lights are lit and certainly worth waiting until then. Anyway, ferries and trains run until late. Miyazima is also famous for holding a world record of the largest spatula in the world. To be honest the rest of the sites on the island are far more important, but just mentioning..

Kyoto

Before visiting Tokyo, we stopped for a few days in Kyoto, the old capital of Japan a city rich in attractions. Sparred by the American bombs during WWII, has a huge number of lovely neighborhoods, temples, gardens etc to visit. The sites are all over the city so make sure when arriving at the train station to pick a copy of the bus and metro maps. Being fans of “over ground” rather than “underground” we used bus which is cheap, easy to use and can get a daily ticket right from the hotel reception.

Gion district, Pontocho, the golden pavilion, the silver pavilion, the Philosophers walk are all lovely places to visit. We were lucky enough on a warm night to wander around and find the Kodai-ji gardens open for visit. It was some light festival which we did not know about. Slightly hesitant to visit we decided to give it a go. Wondering around in the garden was one of the most beautiful places I have seen in my life. So peaceful and beautifully lit we did not want to leave the place. If you are lucky enough and it is open when you visit, don’t think twice about entering the gardens. The rest of the attractions in Kyoto are easy to find but be warned that you will face hordes of tourists!

If you plan to shop in Japan, do it in Kyoto. It has everything! Clothes and electronics stores are located in and around the massive train station. We were lucky enough to experience the Japanese attitude towards customers when buying some clothes, the girl at the counter simply did not let us take the bag and go but rather accompanied us with our purchases to the exit of the shop where she handed the bag!

A stone’s throw away is Nara another place full of nice Buddhist temples scattered in a park among hundreds of deer. Most famous is the Todai-ji, built around a Buddha statue of giant proportions. A lovely place to have lunch in Nara is Edogawa, a little old restaurant at the end of the Naramachi shopping arcade. Serving mainly eel it is run by a family (the grandfather welcomed us and daughters served us!) and retains the characteristics of an old Japanese house (wooden, paper windows, tatami).

Also located near to Kyoto and must visit, is Fushimi Inari. A series of torii’s donated mostly by businessmen, they run up on a mountain. The tori are so many and close together that create an excellent path to walk under. Starting at the bottom of the mountain it is extremely crowded but the higher you get the fewer the tourists and can actually enjoy it better.

The only place we did not like during our trip was in Kyoto and it was a theater called “Gion corner”. A huge building in the Gion district, it promises traditional Japanese acts. The acts itself are not bad but the people running the theater make a grave mistake: they encourage tourists to take pictures! For those who just want to watch the show it is impossible. In front of us a bunch of Italians and Chinese (no offence!) where waiving their massive DSLRs, shooting hundreds of pictures with flash. Multiply that by 50 and you get so much noise and flashing that it is extremely annoying. Anyway, this is the only thing I would NOT do in Japan if I would visit again.

Tokyo

Our last destination was Tokyo, a huge city and the largest metropolitan area in the world (35mil!). While being there it was a public holiday so, to be honest, we did not encounter the crowds we were told about. Heavily bombed during WWII, it has no old town or traditional houses (like Kyoto does). Neon covered buildings, shopping arcades and skyscrapers co-exist with humble homes and beautiful parks.

Tokyo metro is complicated but once you get it, it is easy to move around. There are different companies that run different lines, there is metro and train network (but never on the same map) and a number of different tickets. Good news is that JR pass can be used on the JR network (which does not include the subway). Bad news is that we asked around to rent a bike and no one knew where or how.

In Tokyo you should not miss the Ginza shopping area (although I have the impression is not for those on a low budget), Shibuya with the famous neon lights, Shinjukuwith all the skyscrapers but also the busiest train station in the world and of course taking a walk around the Imperial palace. Akihabara neighborhood, which is a heaven for gadget and electronics fans, is a must visit. All the latest and weird gadgets can be found there. Best visited on a Sunday when the stop the traffic on the main road and makes it easier and nicer to move around. Prices in modern electronics and cameras are not any different from those in Europe. Second hand staff is sometimes ridiculously cheap. Good thing is that when buying something tax free, the tax is removed right there and then. Don’t have to wait until the airport. By the way, VAT in Japan is just 8% (compare with 23% in Greece…).

Last day before returning the Netherlands we had the opportunity to visit a traditional Japanese home and eat with Japanese. Located in the mountains some 1,5hours by train from Shinjuku train station we ended up near Kawai the heart of a Wasabi producing community. It was certainly a privilege and a lovely experience to be among locals, eating like locals do in a part of Japan we would otherwise never visit.

Leaving this lovely country but most important, the beautiful people was hard. But Japan is always there and certainly in the near of far future we will have the chance to visit again..