Japan 2017

Porto, Portugal

Fri, 06 Jul 2018 21:00:00 +0100

Scheduled arrival time 22.15.

London Heathrow, United Kingdom

Sun, 29 Oct 2017 12:00:00 +0000

Day 13 - 29 October 2017 A short transfer from our hotel to the International Terminal and, hey presto, we’re on our way home. Take off 11.40am and scheduled landing 15.25 hours - but of course Japan is now 9 hours ahead of us with the end of British Summer Time, so in fact scheduled flight time is 11 hours 15 minutes. A brilliant holiday to a lovely country.

Kyōto to Tokyo, Japan

Sat, 28 Oct 2017 17:00:00 +0900

Day 12 - 28 October 2017 Sadly we are nearing the end of our adventure so after breakfast at the Ryokan we were keen to make the most of our last few hours in Kyoto. We had a last walk round the Gion district then back over the river into the main town, shops and interesting shopping arcades. Rendezvous back at the Kyoto Royal Hotel and Spa at 1.15pm for transfer to the station and our two and a quarter hour bullet train journey back to Tokyo. From the massive Tokyo Railway Station we took a local train out to Tokyo Haneda airport and our final overnight stay at the Haneda Excel Hotel - a bright modern hotel that is part of the airport complex. Just for a change we ate at an Italian restaurant at the airport - then back to the hotel and final packing.

Breakfast at the Ryokan

Kyōto, Japan

Fri, 27 Oct 2017 09:00:00 +0000

Day 11 - 27 October 2017 Kyoto A whole day free in Kyoto - and no early start for the day’s touring! After a leisurely breakfast we crossed the Kamo River by the older wooden bridge and had a walk round the historic Gion district. This is a fascinating area with many old wooden buildings and is one of a small number of geisha districts in Kyoto. Back into the centre of Kyoto for lunch and a little shopping then collected our overnight bag from our central hotel ready for the 15 minute walk to the Ryokan that we were to stay in this evening. A Ryokan is a traditional Japanese inn with minimalist furnishings and tatami mat flooring and futon bed - and this one had a wooden bath! Prior to dinner we went to the Gion Corner theatre to see a collection of traditional Japanese performances - starting with a tea ceremony and including music, dance, puppetry and comedy. It was really good. We had dinner booked at the Ryokan afterwards, along with a small number of other guests from our tour group who had also opted for this additional experience - and an experience it certainly was, sat at the traditional very low Japanese tables. We were guided through the multi course meal by our hosts who spoke little English, but we got there. Interesting, unusual and definitely worth doing - once! We had a surprisingly good night’s sleep on the futon followed by breakfast served in our room. Lynne had opted for a western style breakfast, but in for a penny in for a pound I had gone for the Japanese style breakfast. I definitely made the right choice - it was superb.

The Ryokan

Ryokan

Wooden bath in Ryokan

Dressed for dinner

Dinner in the Ryokan

Ryokan

Ryokan garden

Nara, Japan

Thu, 26 Oct 2017 07:20:00 +0000

Day 10 - 26 October 2017 Definitely one of the main highlights of this holiday. We’ve seen so many temples and shrines over the past ten days, but the Tōdai-ji temple in Nara Park truly is amazing. Twice rebuilt due to fires, the great Buddah Hall is said to be the largest wooden building in the world, and it houses the largest Buddha in the world. Add to that the1200 tame deer that freely roam the park and temple grounds and it is fantastic. We bought some 'deer cakes’ to feed the deer. How to make youself popular! This visit was sandwiched between visits to two other shrines or temples including the Kasuga Shrine which is surrounded by over 1000 stone lanterns and probably almost as many deer. I’ve some more photos to add for this section but am running out of time to keep up with it all!

Feeding the deer at Nara

Kyōto, Japan

Wed, 25 Oct 2017 19:10:00 +0000

Day 9 - 25th October 2017 First visit today was to the Kiyomizu-dera Shrine, occupying a hillside position with a panoramic view over Kyoto. Next on the itinerary was Nijo-Jo Castle, another World Hetitage site. Completed in 1603 it was built on the orders of the founder and first Shogun of the Tokugawa Shogunate. A full schedule today and our next visit before lunch was the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, accessed directly off the main street of the town of Arashiyama. There had been some damage to the grove from the typhoon earlier in the week but this was fortunately quite limited. A very busy place with visitors exploring the grove both on foot and by rickshaw. We had a short break and reviver in a Tulley's Coffee shop located in the town’s very attractive railway station. Tulley’s seems to be Japan’s version of Costa but much better. There’s no rest for the wicked so soon we were off again - this time to the Ryoanji Temple, a Zen temple built in 1450. The karesansui (dry landscape) rock garden (designated as a special place of scenic beauty), which lies on the south side of the Hojo (quarters of the chief priest), is famous as "Tora-no-ko Watashi." The white sand rectangular Zen garden is surrounded on three sides by an oil earthen wall. Last but certainly not least on today’s itinerary was the fabulous Konkani-ji, or Golden Pavilion. This really was saving the best until last and I think the photographs speak for themselves. We got back to the hotel about 5.30pm and after briefly recharging our batteries headed back out into the town - this time having a break from eastern food and heading for a highly recommended Italian restaurant for delicious pizzas. Once again we were not disappointed. And then to bed.

The Golden Temple

Hiroshima - 2nd day, Japan

Tue, 24 Oct 2017 16:40:00 +0900

Day 8 - 24 October 2017 We left our hotel in Hiroshima straight after breakfast for the short journey across town to visit the Hiroshima Peace Park and Museum. Quite an experience graphically conveying the horrors of nuclear war. Interesting too to see so many Japanese schoolchildren visiting the site. An experience that will not be forgotten. We left Hiroshima late morning for our drive to Kyoto, calling en route at the magnificent gardens at Korakuen, Okayama. These are regarded as one of the top three traditional Japanese gardens in the country and there was much to see and enjoy. After around two hours in the gardens we were on the road again, completing our journey to Kyoto by early evening. After checking in to our hotel - the Kyoto Royal Hotel and Spa - and a quick freshen up, it was time to hit the town and find somewhere to eat. We settled on a really good sushi bar just over the road from our hotel. We were not disappointed. And so to bed.

Not a model village, but the view from our room at the Sheraton, Hiroshima

The A Dome - as the bomb left it

Another view of the A Dome

Peace Bell

Peace Park

Peace Museum

The gardens

In the lake

The Castle

The Gardens

Japanese photoshoot

Magnificent chrysanthemum

Hiroshima, Japan

Mon, 23 Oct 2017 20:00:00 +0000

Day 7 - 23 October 2017 Hiroshima Today started rather earlier than expected with a loud piercing alarm sound from my phone at around 3.10am coupled with an emergency alert notification showing on the phone. It didn’t help that the only English words in the notification were ‘emergency alert’. The rest (as you can see from the screenshot) was in Japanese! Fortunately, with the aid of Google Translate, I was able to establish that this was all about the typhoon which had now reached us, and nothing to do with goings on in North Korea. We could see through our window that it was extremely rough outside, but we were safe enough and went back to sleep. Even more amazing was the fact that by the time we had to get up the rain had stopped (alleluia), the wind had dropped and the sun was shining. What a difference. After breakfast we checked out of the Hakone Hotel and travelled by road to Mishima to catch the famous bullet train to Hiroshima. Fantastic! Lunch on the train. Arrived Hiroshima early afternoon and after a quick bag drop at our next hotel - the Sheraton Grand - we went off to catch a ferry to the nearby island of Miyajima in Hiroshima Bay. The island is known for its forests, temples and wild but tame dear. A lovely, but tiring, afternoon so we decided to have a lazy evening in the hotel and a reasonably early night. Lots to do tomorrow!

The typhoon warning

Bullet Train

Mount Fuji

Bullet Train

The ferrry to the island.

Telaxing!

The Grand Torroi Gate marks the entrance to the Itsukushima Shrine, which was first built in the 12th-century.

Part of the Itsukushima Shrine complex on the island

Wstning

Hakone, Japan

Sun, 22 Oct 2017 14:30:00 +0900

Day 6 - 22 October 2017 The plan today was to say goodbye to our hotel in Tokyo and drive initially towards Mount Fuji and Lake Kawaguchi, with an aerial gondola ride on the Katchi Katchi Yama Ropeway and a short cruise on Lake Ashi to get to our next hotel at the lakeside town of Hakone. Sadly continuing torrential rain and an approaching typhoon meant a change of plan. Instead we drove to the Mount Fuji Visitor Centre and then continued by road to Hakone, stopping for a while at the Narakawa Art Museum on the shore of Lake Ashi. This was well worthwhile just for the views of the lake. Dinner tonight was in the hotel - the Hakone Hotel. It’s just an overnight stay before we move on. What will the weather bring next?

Lake Ashi - from the Art Museum

The view from our bedroom at the Hakone Hotel

Asakusa, Japan

Sat, 21 Oct 2017 10:20:00 +0000

Day 5 - 21 October 2017 A leisurely start to the day, leaving the hotel at 9.30am for the short drive to the Asakusa district of Tokyo. First stop was the Senso-ji Shrine, an ancient Buddhist temple and the oldest temple in Tokyo. In contrast to the Toshogo Shogun Shrine we visited earlier in the week this area was bustling with activity and had lots of small traders plying their wares in the area between the two traditional gateways to the Shrine. This was followed by a boat trip down the Sumido River to the modern vibrant area of Ginza, crammed with designer and other mainly up market shops. We had lunch at an ‘ale house’ called The Lion (recommended by our guide) and I have to say it really was good - not at all what you might expect from the description. Food was a delicious crab salad. After lunch we had a look in a few shops, including Mitsukoshi with its Harrods like food hall. A foodies’ delight! Another couple of shops later and we were off for our first trip on the underground to get back to the hotel. Very civilised compared to the tube in London. Orderly queuing and no jostling to get on. We went to a Thai restaurant this evening for a change.

Senso-ji Shrine

Nikkō, Japan

Fri, 20 Oct 2017 11:00:00 +0900

Day 4 - 20 October 2017 A two hour drive north of Tokyo took us to the Nikki National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage site. A steep ascent with some forty-eight hairpin bends took us to our first stop at Lake Chuzenji, above the town of Nikki. About ten minutes further on from there is the Kegon Waterfall, one of the most famous waterfalls in Japan. Unfortunately both of these were shrouded in mist today - but they are very much ‘must do’ visits on any tour of Japan. Lunch had been arranged for us in a small traditional Japanese restaurant back down in the town of Nikki, and this was very nice indeed. Moving on after lunch our last stop in the park was at the Shinto Toshogu Shrine, built in 1617 to house the spirit of the first Shogun. Photos don’t really do justice to this magnificent construction. More to come!

Lunch- sizzling salmon Japonese style

Kegon Waterfall

The lantern walk.

Tokyo - 2nd day, Japan

Thu, 19 Oct 2017 14:10:00 +0900

Day 3 - 19 October 2017 Today saw us explore a number of places in Tokyo - the Tsukij Fish Market, part of the gardens of the Imperial Palace, the Shinto Meiji Shrine and Honda's Tokyo visitor centre where we had a demo of their state of the art advanced robot called ‘Asimo’ - advanced step in inovation. Unfortunately, today has been exceedingly wet - pouring down the whole time so obviously we didn’t see things at their best. Fortunately it did ease off a little in the evening so we could stroll back into town for something to eat - same restaurant as last night.

Outside the fish market

Typical stall in the market

Not just fish!

Couldn’t resist this one

Part of Imperial Palace gardens

In the lake at the Imperial Palace

Shinto Meiji Shrine

Honda F1 car

Asimo the robot

Meet the robot

Tokyo - 1st day, Japan

Wed, 18 Oct 2017 14:10:00 +0900

Day 2 - 18 October 2017 Transfer to our hotel - the four star New Otani - took about 40 minutes in the busy Tokyo traffic. It’s a really nice place in Tokyo’s business district, close to the Imperial Palace and the Japanese Parliament. After such a long day, activities this evening were limited to a short stroll from the hotel to a vibrant area packed with eating and drinking establishments where we settled on the Itamae Sushi Restaurant for our first true taste of Japan - rice bowls with salmon and shredded crab, miso soup and a variety of vegetable accompaniments. Oishi! Finally a quick drink back at the hotel and then some much needed sleep to refresh us for tomorrow.

Itamae Sushi Restaurant, Tokyo

London Heathrow

Tue, 17 Oct 2017 15:00:00 +0100

Day 1 - 17 October 2017 Arrived London Heathrow for direct overnight flight to Tokyo by All Nippon Airways Boeing 777-300ER. Departure time 1900 hours and flight time 11 hours 40 minutes.

Boeing 777-300ER