9 May 2019
OK, here is the story so far. We flew out of Brisbane with China Southern on time and arrived in Guangzhou in China believing that we would waltz up to the Accommodation Service Counter and have our hotel sorted for the night. Wrong…you can’t get through Immigration without a visa, so 1 and a half hours later we get our temporary visa and go in search for the counter that will solve all our problems. Wrong…but we eventually found it and were given a list of hotels to choose from, which we did, and then off in the bus to the hotel.
Checking in was a breeze and off we go to the room which looked OK until we tried the bed. Fair dinkum I think our dining room table at home would be softer to sleep on. The shuttle bus was due to arrive a 5:00am the next morning so it was off to bed and get ready for Japan.
10 May 2019
Got up in time to catch the shuttle bus to the airport and got a little bit lost inside…this place is massive. We eventually found our way to the right spot and on the way went through several security checks which is OK in my book. Went to the gate and ate the packaged breakfast provided by the hotel and whenever an Australian looking couple past by it was “are you on the Trip A Deal tour?” Hence, we met most of our fellow travelers then off to Osaka. Things went very smoothly when we landed even with the thousands of other passengers in the airport and met up with our tour guide who took us to a hotel then cut us loose for the rest of the afternoon and evening.
The Lady Tourist and I headed off to the big shopping mall about 20 minutes' walk away just to have a bit of a look around. It turns out that it was actually an outlet center similar to DFO but of the top end variety which was a bit disappointing.
As it was getting a bit late in the day, we decided that we would make out way towards the railway station which was where most of the restaurants are. On the way we took some short cuts through the narrow back streets because I know where we are going. The day was very warm and by this time we had a bit of a sweat up and were as dry as a piece of toast and as luck would have it I noticed one of the small houses we passed had some shorts curtains hanging over the door and a beer sign on the footpath. Not willing to pass up an opportunity we stuck our heads in through the door and, bugger me dead, inside was a small bar and about 6 stools. The young girl behind the bar invited us in and told us to sit down. I think that was what she said but my Japanese is not what it should be.
Seeing that we were a bit hot and bothered she got us a couple of wet towels wash our faces and refresh ourselves. Then through a bit of sign language we were able to order a couple of Asahi beers which were icy cold. We were trying to have a conversation with the young lady, but it was more a bit of a giggle as we did not really know what the other was saying. Soon an elderly Japanese gentleman come in and gave us a bit of the double take then proceeded to have a chat with us while the bartender prepared his usual drink.
We were having a great time with the old bloke and neither of us knew what we were saying but it was really funny. He then orders himself a bit of a snack and notices us watching with interest. Next minute he says something to the bartender, and she starts preparing another small dish of food and gives it to us. This turns out to be 2 pieces of salmon roe obviously mixed with something. Despite our protests we did not want to be rude and went ahead and had a piece each…holy hell it was a bit warm going down. The old bloke's eyes nearly popped out of his head when we did this and has a good old cackle. Apparently, you are only supposed to have a small bit at a time. 2 more beers love and be quick about it.
He then ordered us some raw salmon with a dob of wasabi on the side and some soy sauce to dip in. He must have thought that the Gentleman Tourist came down in the last shower and was going to have another laugh when I had a gob full of wasabi, but I outsmarted him and only had a little bit…yummy. The amazing thing about this was that he would not let us pay for any of the food or buy him a beer. We said our goodbyes and continued on our way to the railway station which was in the next block. Sitting outside the tavern were a couple of our fellow travelers so we struck up a conversation and decided to have dinner together which was a great end to the day.
More later.
11 May 2019
Today we set off in the direction of Fukuyama where we are spending 2 nights. From Osaka it is only a short distance to Kobe which is known for its sake production, so naturally we had to stop at a sake brewery to sample so of their wares and discover how it is made. This was actually a sales opportunity, but the samples were nice - normal, basic sake to fruit infused which was very moreish. I might add that this was at 10:00am and some of the passengers got a bit giggly.
From here we boarded the bus and took off towards the town of Kurashiki to visit the Bikan Historical Quarter which is one of Japan’s oldest merchant towns. Back in the day they built a canal to transport and store the rice grown in the area for transportation to Edo (now Tokyo).
How the town used to look.
From here we went to Fukuyama and were let loose for the evening in search of food and drink - I think we found the drink and not too much food.
More later.
12 May 2019
Today we set off towards Hiroshima and on the way, we stopped at a town called Miyajimaguchi to catch a ferry across to the island of Miyajima. This island is famous for a Shinto Shrine which appears to be floating at hide tide. As luck would have it, it was low tide when we got there. We wandered through the shrine which is an impressive structure and then had a couple of hours to wander around the island and catch a bit of lunch. I might add that the island is home to about 500 wild deer who wander around looking for a free feed when they can get one which is usually when the unsuspecting tourist is not looking.
We caught the ferry back to the mainland and headed off towards Hiroshima. The first port of call was the Hiroshima Peace Park to see the only original structure left standing after the bomb went off. The park is a very peaceful area and includes flower gardens and fountains and other monuments related to the atomic bomb and advocating world peace and the abolishment of nuclear weapons.
From here we went to the Peace memorial Museum which was recently renovated and opened in April of this year. This is a very somber place and displays photos from just before the bomb and many after the explosion. Also on display are many artifacts that survived including clothing and many household items which have been burnt and melded together by the heat. There are also many photos showing the burnt and damaged bodies of some of the folks who survived the explosion.
From here we made our way back to Fukuyama for dinner and an early night.
More later.
13 May 2019
We finished off our stay in Fukuyama and headed back to Osaka for the next part of our adventure. Our first stop here was Osaka Castle. This is a very popular destination for tourists even through the castle has been reconstructed.
We endured this for a few hours and were picked up and taken to our hotel for the night. There is a restaurant attached to the hotel so some of thought that this may be a good spot to dine as we would not need to go out and find a restaurant.
What we did not count on was that the joint was run by Japan’s equivalent of Basil Fawlty. When confronted by 6 extra guests, joining the 2 existing guests, poor old Basil had a bit of a hissy fit and said that he was “busy, busy, busy” and we struggled to get any service after the first drink. Bugger that, we up and left and found another establishment and were a bit concerned as we had to go there the next morning for breakfast. Turns out Basil doesn’t do the breakfast shift, so it was all OK.
More later.
14 May 2019
Today we leave Osaka and head for Nagoya. Before we left Nagoya we stopped at the rose garden where all of the roses were out in bloom. We may have missed the cherry blossoms but apparently the rose season is still important,
On the way we called in to Kyoto which used to be the capital of Japan until 1864 and stopped at the amazing Kinkaku-ji (the Golden Pavilion).
Some of the countryside on the way to Nagoya.
More later.
15 May 2019
Our first visit today on the way out of Nagoya was to the Atsuta Shrine which is one of Shinto’s most important shrines. Yes, another darned shrine…bit like being in Europe and looking at castles.
From here we headed off to Matsumoto which is one step closer to Mount Fiji which is one of the main aims of this tour. As it is a long journey, we broke it up with a visit to Narai-juku which is one of the old towns that serviced the travelers on their way to Tokyo. Now they make a living selling souvenirs and lunches to tourists.
We continued our walk around town and discovered a small neighborhood bar similar to the one in Osaka. A few beers were called for. You would not believe it but the sumo wrestling was on TV and they all had a laugh with the barmaid at my expense.
The usual crew got together, and we went to a small restaurant near the hotel that only seated 8 people and what a lovely feed we had. Good night was had by all.
More later.
16 May 2019
Today we left the nice town of Matsumoto on our way to Mount Fuji’s 5th Station, which is 2,300m above sea level. This is the furthest point that you can drive to and when the climbing season starts in July it takes another 6 hours to hike to the top. According to our guide the road only opened last Sunday due to the snow coverage.
We were all hyped about seeing this iconic mountain but the higher we drove the lower the clouds got, and you guessed it…we could see bugger all when we got there.
From here we went back down the mountain to the Fujisan World Heritage Centre and watched a short video on how Mt Fuji was formed…all very interesting.
Next stop was Lake Ashi for a short cruise to view the mountain from a distance…ha ha ha. The Japanese certainly know how to dag things up. Have a look at the cruise boat.
From here we headed to Yokohama to check into our hotel. Once settled the usual crew headed off looking for some dinner and drinks. This has been one of the highlights of the tour because you never really know what you are going to get.
More later.
17 May 2019
We set off this morning for the short drive to Tokyo. On the way out of Yokohama we drove past the industrial area by the harbour. There is plenty of industry!!
Once we hit Tokyo we headed to the Meiji Shrine, a key Shinto site that was dedicated to the Imperial Family in 1926. On the way we passed the soon to be completed Olympic Stadium which is beside the huge forest area that encompasses the shrine.
We headed for the Imperial Palace East Garden for a bit of a look but we were not allowed in. The speculation was that an important overseas guest may be visiting (maybe Mr. Trump?)
Having missed out here we went to Asakusa Kannon (Sensoji) Temple which is one of Japan’s most important Buddhist sites. Fortunately, this site is surrounded by street stalls selling souvenirs and street food, so we were able to get some great food.
From here we went to the Ginza district which is the premier shopping destination of Tokyo. We went up to the garden rooftop of a department store known as Ginza 6. The real estate here is worth 20 million yen per square metre.
Back down on the street all of the topflight shops were in evidence but thankfully we did not have the time to look.
Now it is off to the hotel.
More later.
18 May 2019
Last day of our tour and our guide has arranged for an optional extra for those interested and most were. The first stop was the Japanese Rock Garden which has been in place for 3 generations, is situated in the middle of Tokyo and covers about 60 acres.
Next stop was the Tokyo Fish Markets where we expected to see heaps of fresh fish laying around waiting to be be sold be this had all happened before we got there and what we saw was heaps of alleyways full of stalls selling the fish either cooked or raw depending on how you wanted to eat it.
The next stop was the Tokyo Harbour area which, unfortunately was undergoing reconstruction but offered great views of the Rainbow Bridge and of the city.
Next stop was the Toyota car showroom where we could have a look at a few flash cars.
That was the end of the day, and we had the rest of the evening to ourselves and prepare for our flights home tomorrow.
Gentleman and lady Tourist.
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