We had our first misadventure of the trip on Sunday as we traveled by Shinkansen bullet train to Mishima, a city near the base of Mount Fuji. The bullet trains we’ve been on have all traveled at a speed of 170 mph. I was so busy writing my Miyajima blog post as we zipped along … Continue reading
Besides the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, there wasn’t much in Hiroshima of interest to us, so on Saturday we went on an excursion to Itsukushima Island, a short train ride along the coast to the southwest. Itsukushima Island is popularly known as Miyajima, which translated means “Shrine Island.” We scooted over to the JR Ferry … Continue reading
We left Kyoto on Friday for Hiroshima, a port city near the southwestern end of Honshu, the largest of the four main islands that make up Japan. Hiroshima’s sister city in the United States is Honolulu, symbolically linking the beginning and end of the Pacific theater of World War II. In Hiroshima city, we had … Continue reading
For our final day in Kyoto, we decided to visit the main tourist attraction, Kinkaku-ji, the Zen Buddhist Temple of the Golden Pavilion. The original Golden Pavilion was created in 1408, but it was burnt to the ground by a mad monk in 1950. A reproduction was built in 1955, complete with gold leaf covering … Continue reading
Having enjoyed our day out of Kyoto, we went on another excursion on Wednesday, this time to the city of Nara, 25 miles to the south. Nara was the capital of Imperial Japan from 710 to 784 A.D., the “Nara Period;” thereafter, the capital was moved to Kyoto where it remained until 1868. In 1998, … Continue reading
Two days in Kyoto visiting congested shrines and temples was enough to make us anxious to get out of the big city for a day. So on Tuesday, we got up early and took the train to the northwestern outskirts of Kyoto for a day outdoors. From the JR Saga-Arashiyama Station, we walked west through … Continue reading
After leaving the Inari Shrine, we visited the Rengeō-in Buddhist temple, commonly known as Sanjusangendo, a short distance to the north. “Sanjūsan-gen-dō” translates to “33-interval-temple” which relates to the building’s architecture of 34 columns, creating 33 intervening spaces. The number 33 has special significance with regard to the goddess Kannon, to whom this temple is … Continue reading
Sunday, April 15th, was a travel day. It was raining in the morning and when we tried to arrange for a taxi to the train station we were told that road closures due to the Spring Festival meant no cabs would pick up on our side of town. Fortunately, our landlord, Hiroto, graciously offered to … Continue reading
Our purpose for coming to Takayama was to attend the Spring Matsuri, one of two festivals held each year: the Spring Festival, every April 14-15, and the Autumn Festival, every October 9-10. Dale had read that there could be as many as 200,000 visitors for this event which is why we booked everything in advance. … Continue reading
The weather was wonderful Friday, the day we went by bus to see the Gassho-style houses 40 miles north of Takayama in the Shirakawa-go region, listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site in 1995. Here’s how UNESCO describes the area: Located in a mountainous region that was cut off from the rest of the … Continue reading
The city of Takayama is located in Gifu Prefecture in Japan’s Northern Alps, a little less than 200 miles WNW of Tokyo, although by going to Nagoya first we traveled a little over 300 miles by train to get here. Takayama’s sister city in the USA is Denver, Colorado, but it should be Jacksonville, Florida. … Continue reading
The afternoon of Monday, April 9, we flew from Hanoi to Tokyo on the same plane as Bob and Annie, arriving late and discovering to our dismay a long line to clear immigration at Haneda International Airport. Finally clearing customs around 11:00 p.m., we made our way to an airport hotel, grabbed a bite just … Continue reading
Back in Hanoi, we walked around town, stopped for an egg coffee, and then saw a water puppet show. I rank water puppet shows a close second to kabuki theater, something you only need to do once; egg coffee, on the other hand, is worth a repeat performance. We are now in the final phase … Continue reading
I miss Robin Williams. I remember him for three things: the TV show, Mork & Mindy; being the stand-up comedian and entertainer at Gator Growl at the University of Florida’s Homecoming weekend in 1982; and, for his role in the movie, “Good Morning, Vietnam.” I hardly remember the plot, but I’ll never forget his character … Continue reading
Tokyo is a very high-tech and modern city. Technology and electronics are everywhere and in everything and no more so than in the Shinjuku ward near its highly-trafficked train station. We took the subway there Sunday morning and had breakfast at the Starbucks there, sitting next to a young couple from California here in Tokyo … Continue reading
From our hotel, there’s a nice view of the Sensō-ji Temple, and off in the distance, the tallest free-standing tower in the world, the Tokyo Sky Tree. From the moment we checked in, getting to the top of the Sky Tree was on my list of things to do in Tokyo. The rain we had … Continue reading
To get our bearings and learn how to use Tokyo’s public transit system, we decided to limit our travels on Friday to a simple ride on the Ginza Line to see the Tsukiji Fish Market and a Kabuki play. The Tokyo subway and train system can be a bit overwhelming, although they do a pretty … Continue reading
We’re off on another adventure, this time to Asia, our first visit. Departing Vancouver International Airport at 2:00 Tuesday afternoon, we flew for 10 hours and landed at Tokyo’s Narita Airport at 5:00 Wednesday afternoon, gaining 7 hours by time zone, but losing 24 hours crossing the International Date Line. I think. Here’s what it … Continue reading
