My husband and I had spent some time in Tokyo and we now wanted to see the rural Japan. Our first destination was Hakuba in the Japanese Alps. It’s a ski resort and it’s easy to forget that you’re in Japan, as the houses are designed like Alpine ski chalets. It’s very beautiful and quiet with just a few shops and a little art gallery. We stayed at a comfortable ski hotel lodge. Nagano, where the 1998 Winter Olympic Games took place, is nearby and we saw the two ski jump hills that were used in the Games, as we drove by.
Our next stop was further south, in the ancient city of Kyoto. This is one of the most beautiful and traditional places in the country with a plethora of temples and shrines. We’d taken the train and Kyoto Railway Station proved to be a tourist attraction in its own right. It’s modern and huge with giant escalators that go up beyond the roof level to a viewing area with a panoramic view of the city. We stayed in a ryokan, which is a traditional guest house, with tatami, (rush straw) floors and screen doors.
Toji Temple is magnificent and has the largest pagoda in Japan in its grounds. Japan has castles too and Nijo Castle is a fine example. We saw a concert there, performed by three ladies dressed in kimonos, playing a stringed instrument called the koto. Upon consulting our Lonely Planet guide, (I don’t know what we would have done without it), we found a walking tour that took in a fascinating Buddhist cemetery and lots more temples and shrines. We came across a wedding on our walk and surreptitiously took a picture of the bride in her traditional bridal gown. We also walked round the grounds of the Imperial Palace Park. On our last night in Kyoto, we ventured into the Gion District, where the geisha’s are said to gather. Much to my husband’s dismay, we didn’t get to see one.
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After Kyoto, we boarded a train for nearby Nara, where we saw Kofuku-Ji Temple, which has a pagoda that is the second tallest in Japan. We also visited the Todai-Ji Temple. This contains a massive statue of Buddha, and I mean, massive. It was on to Nagoya, a bustling city and port. We booked into a Business Hotel, which is an economic form of accommodation, basic but comfortable. We explored the city center at night and came across a ferris wheel and a rock band playing live on the sidewalk. We’d been told the best shopping district was at Osu, so we went to the covered market there on the next day. We were hunting for a kimono to take back to our daughter and we found one at a lovely shop where the staff were so helpful. I tried it on for size and it looked wonderful.
After a Chinese meal in a restaurant at the top of the Towers Plaza, an up market shopping and restaurant complex, we took the Shinkansen, (bullet train) back to Tokyo. It’s true, the scenery does whizz past! The interior of the train resembles a passenger plane and it was very comfortable, and of course, fast. We knew that we would go past Mount Fuji but it was too cloudy to see anything, unfortunately.
Our touring was at an end and we’d packed a lot in. Japan is a fascinating country of contrasts. It’s a successful industrial nation but preserves its traditions well. The people are friendly and helpful and it’s an opportunity to soak up another culture.