Traveling back in history

Following capitals, I was traveling back in history. After Tokyo, my next (former) capital was Kyoto. I arrived there on a saturday, when the Japanese had a long weekend-holiday (saturday, sunday & monday). For this reason, the touristic sites were packed during these days! I was queueing to make a picture of the temple at Golden Pavillion, really.

Nevertheless, Kyoto is an amazing city! It is filled with old tradition, many temples, a neighbourhood with old wooden houses were geisha's live and the city is surrounded by mountains. I was supposed to meet with someone from couchsurfing again, but due to difficult communication (not having internet all the time) that failed. But next day there was a couchsurfing meeting at the river side and finally could meet this guy there and he showed me around Gion, this Geisha-district. It is nice to have a personal local guide, who can explain you a bit more about the culture. At one of the temples I visited, a student from Kyoto university offered me a free (private!) English tour and guided me through 'the mother of Buddha's womb', which is a pitch dark track underneath a temple, leading to some holy stone that when you turn it, will make your wish come true. Actually during this trip I have been to places/ done or touched things that all promised me that my wish will come true. I don't even know what to wish for more!

The first two days I stayed at K's house hostel, which is a big hostel chain, but didn't have this personal touch. OKI's Inn however, where I stayed the following two nights, was lovely again, run by a young couple really keen on meeting foreigners, in a narrow shopping/market street. I rented a bike there and saw so many things on one day! Compared to Tokyo, the public transport in Kyoto is quite crap. Only buses (where you enter at the rear and leave at the front where you also pay as you get off the bus) with queues to get on the buses that therefore are packed.

So I was happily riding my bicycle, but walked the path of Philosophy in the morning, running uphill along a small river, in a fresh morning breeze but with the sun already burning on your skin, announcing a hot afternoon. At the end of this path I reached the Silver pavillion. Again a beautiful temple but actually I was more impressed with the garden around it! Japanese gardens are so well designed and are very beautiful. In this garden you could also take a stairs after which you had an amazing view over Kyoto.

I met again with my Mexican friends and we saw a Maiko (geisha-to-be) dance, among other traditional Japanese performances. Next day I had my second hangover in Japan, again after drinking with them haha. Also, by coincidence, I bumped into the German guy I met in Gero and we had dinner together.
But talking about people I meet, the Japanese people are so nice! They are also very interested in foreigners I think, and even though they usually hardly speak English, they try to have a conversation with you. Today in the train there was a lady that gave me little presents and taught me how to make origami birds, without knowing more than 10 words in English, and this is just one example.

Back in history again, I went on to former capital Nara, where I only spent one morning because I had to head to Hiroshima. I went to the island Miyajima with the well known gate in the sea, and climbed the top of the mountain which offered me a great view!
This morning I saw the impressive Peace Memorial park and museum about the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima in 1945. The mayors of Hiroshima have been sending over 200 letters to every government that performed nuclear tests asking to refrain from doing that. Last letter in May this year, addressed to Obama.

Now I'm in Osaka, didn't see the city yet, but tomorrow I will have some time to get around here, before at 23:35 my plane will depart to Kuala Lumpur. I feel a bit sad to leave Japan already, I definitely could spend more time here, but new adventures are waiting and I think things will be very different in South-East Asia! Here everything is so clean, well organized, I haven't spent a night in a bad hostel, the Japanese are very trustworthy and everywhere it's very safe. I will miss it.

Bamboo groove, Kyoto

Golden Pavillion, Kyoto

Path of Philosophy, Kyoto
(reminded me of Philosophenweg in Heidelberg)

Maiko's dance, Gion, Kyoto

Garden in Nara

Deer do also visit temples in Nara

First I took the bullet train to Hiroshima...

... then had to hop on a tram like this

The famous Torii at Miyajima

View from the top of the mountain at Miyajima

A-bomb dome, one of the few building that was still standing after de bombing, and they left it in this condition. Other buildings had just vanished.

Japan alps

I left Tokyo last Sunday after only 3 hours sleep (the party was very good, a bring-your-own-booze-party organized by some expats) and actually I felt a bit sad about it. But what I visited next was awesome as well, although very different from Tokyo.

I went to Matsumoto, known for it's beautiful castle, and indeed IT IS beautiful. I stayed in a Japanese style hostel for the first time, sleeping on a futon bed (which you have to make yourself from a thin matress, another softer layer and then sheets and blanket). Apart from the castle, I didn't see much from Matsumoto, because I went on a day trip to Kamikochi for a walk in nature. Autumn is a popular season because of  the nice colours of the trees, but unfortunately I'm a bit too early and only a few trees have turned color (beginning at the top of the mountains and progressing downwards). On the other hand, the temperatures are very pleasant with on average 25 degrees celsius in the afternoon.



Matsumoto castle by night

At Kamikochi

Kamikochi

Then from Matsumoto to Takayama, which has an old traditional city center and where yesterday and today the autumn festival took place. At least it was supposed to be two days. Yesterday, however, due to rainy weather almost all activities were canceled. They have traditional floats of over 300 years that they don't want to be damaged by the rain. But I met some nice people in the hostel where I stayed and we enjoyed the day walking around, tasting a lot of traditional foods at the morning market and many different kinds of sake at the breweries (never thought there are so many differently tasting sakes).


Eating Hida beef in Takayama (Hida is the region around Takayama).
I was so hungry and it was so delicious that I could eat it all :P

The Japanese indeed eat a lot of rice. For breakfast, lunch and dinner (although you also have many other options for dinner, like different kinds of noodles), but also they make rice-wine (sake), rice sweets, rice salty snacks... Almost the same thing for soy beans actually ;)


Lady at Takayama morning market selling flowers

Last night was my first night to sleep in a real Ryokan. It's a traditional Japanese hotel and it had natural hot springs (both inside and outside) at the hotel which you could use 24 hours a day. It was a great experience! I got a kimono to wear, soaked in natural hot water both in the evening and next morning, had my own tea in my room and got a delicious Japanese breakfast. And of course slept on a futon in my room with tatami mats on the floor (google if you don't know).



Does a Kimono suit me?

Onsen (natural hot spring) at Ryokan in Gero

Today I returned to Takayama and this time the weather was great and I could enjoy the festival and also went to see traditional farm houses in an open air museum. Now I'm just relaxing in the hostel with lovely owners (a couple with a very cute 1 year old son). Tomorrow I'll head to Kanazawa (to stay there just for one night) and then to Kyoto.

I was also searching the internet a bit to start reading about Malaysia/Borneo but I still get lost a bit in all the information since I don't know anything yet about what you can do/see there. So I'll postpone again....


Me and Claudia (from Chili) in front of one of the traditional Takayama festival floats



Chichimae (Lion's dance)



Takayama festival floats

Old farmhouses

Best of Japan

I promised to give this title to the blogpost with the following picture:

Best of Japan!

One of my first days in Japan and I have already tasted the finest sushi of Japan, made in front of our eyes by the sushi master that you can see on the picture.

I met Kikusa after more than 24 hours of traveling (the last part, finding a specific train station in Tokyo, went surprisingly well) and after not having seen her for two year. The first minutes I couldn't really believe I was actually seeing her here, in Tokyo, but after a very short while it felt so naturally again and because of her soon I felt very relaxed to be in Tokyo.

I cannot describe everything I experienced, noticed and did in the first days because it's just too much. But I'll try to give a short summary.

The day I arrived we didn't do too much because of course I was tired and jetlagged, but we did grab some amazing Japanese food and I took an amazingly relaxing bath (just what you need after long travel). Next day we woke up very early to go to Kikusa's family's house where her mother prepared us some traditional Japanese breakfast. Kikusa's family was so friendly to me, really amazing people. Then we headed to Nikko by car to see a bunch of beautiful shrines, had another Japanese meal and relaxed in a natural hot spring bath (like!!). This is a real Japanese experience and highly recommended :)

After coming back to Tokyo (actually not Tokyo, but Saitama prefecture, where both Kikusa and her family live), Kikusa's father took us, including Kikusa's mother and sister, to Japan's best sushi restaurant. I thought I had eaten sushi before in the Netherlands, but that is all uncomparable to what I have eaten here. Extremely fresh, made with love and with an amazing service! Oyshi (means delicious)! Although Kikusa had to act as an interpreter for most of the time, we could really have nice conversations and a lot of laughs. Thanks to them again.

Next day: the real Tokyo. Old next to new, modern next to traditional, quiet next to crowded and so forth. And with Japanese everywhere ;) I think pictures will explain.

This is just a (quite random) selection of pictures that I took.

On Friday, Kikusa had to work again and I was on my own. Felt a little weird, but I was very glad that I already had got a feel of Tokyo and could find my way around a little bit. But what an enormous city! There's not just a thing like 'the city center' because Tokyo consists of 23 neighborhoods, all with their own character, sightseeing spots and people. First I searched for my hostel, dropped my luggage and went wandering around in the neighborhood. In the evening I decided to go to the couchsurfing event taking place that night and met some nice fellow travelers. Walking back to the hostel and had a skype chat with Ewoud (for me it was 3 am, bit weird to be on the phone at that time, but in Japan it's 7 hours later than in The Netherlands).

The hostel is serving breakfast, which is very nice. Not only because of the food, but also because it is the perfect occasion for meeting other guests. I met two Mexicans with whom I could enjoy Tokyo today. Half of the things we visited I had already seen in my previous days, but anyways I had good company :)

Ok I'm finishing up again. Probably we'll be going out to party in half an hour (a thing I didn't do yet while in Tokyo). I could write so much more but I just don't have the time for it (yet). Tomorrow I'll leave Tokyo already and will take the bullet train for the first time, to Matsumoto. Maybe on the go I'll be able to write more.

I'll end with some more photos.

Eating soba

Tokyo Tower

Some very colorful shop

Shibuya crossing on a rainy day

Shibuya crossing on a rainy day

When in front of a shrine/ temple: throw a coin (5 or 50 cent are best, because the numbers are pronounced the same way as the word 'luck'), clap your hands twice, fold them together and pray, bow again.

Child in traditional clothing (I don't know about the ceremony)