Kyoto: Temples, Shrines and ravenous deer

Thursday

Reluctantly, we made our way to Hiroshima Station to catch our Shinkansen train to our next destination, Kyoto. We made a quick stop off at the bakers beforehand, picking up a hot dog sort of thing each, a doughnut for me and an Apple turnover for Charlotte. Upon settling down in our seats we opened our treats and tucked in. The hot dogs went down well but it was the sweet selection that caused the issues. Charlottes Apple Turnover had a distinct lack of Apple present, making it just a puff pastry triangle and my doughnut wasn't full of tasty raspberry jam like at home, instead it was packed full of slightly sweetened, mashed red bean. It was hastily thrown back in the bag and disposed of. It was a struggle to get the taste out of my mouth for a while. There's something about foreign bakeries that always seem to lure you into a false sense of security, like disguising red bean doughnuts as jam ones or putting fig in things. Anyway, that slight disappointment took up most of the short 2 hour journey to Kyoto via Shin-Osaka station. After arriving in Kyoto Station we had to navigate the chaos and find the metro. Eventually, after a couple of visits to tourist info, we found it but still had to get our heads around the complexity of it. Unlike any other country underground train system in the world (as far as I know), Japan's seem to be partly nationalised, partly private. In London or Moscow (while I'm at it or Barcelona, New York, Warsaw, Beijing and Shanghai) you can get from one side of the city, to the other, changing lines multiple times, only needing one ticket for the whole journey. In Kyoto, there's only 2 metro lines, owned by 2 different companies, you can't get a ticket for the whole journey if you are using both lines and the stations don't show great maps of the other companies lines. While we were gawping in utter confusion, a kindly Kyotoite stepped up and helped us out, he was even going in the same direction as us so showed us the way to the platform, which again wasn't clear. Unfortunately, when we had to change lines, we lost our new friend so we're stuck figuring out the ticket machine alone again. This time a friendly guard helped us out, which was nice. We disembarked at our station and started to hunt for our exit. As we were walking down a corridor, the same guard walked past us giving us a smile and a wave. Either, he's magic or it's obviously quicker (and much cheaper) to walk the corridors that seem to link all the metro stations anyway. We had a short hunt for our hostel, despite them giving us terrible directions, it was relatively easy to find. We had almost all the excitement we could manage for the day by the time we arrived. The room was set out like a capsule hotel, with 10 beds, in 2 rows of 5, all situated along one wall. Because there is only one way to get into them, which is where our feet are when we lie down, it's like sleeping in a very spacious coffin, with a curtain for privacy, it would get very hot at night. All we did that evening was wander the shopping streets near by, with me picking up some socks to replace some rather worn out ones. We had dinner out, just picking a restaurant at random. The food was good, with rice, shredded cabbage and pork going down well, just the huge block of tofu that we left untouched.

Friday

Since arriving in Japan we had been nonstop and so being tucked away in our pitch dark beds, we didn't stir until quite late in the morning.  By the time I got up Charlotte had gone up to the kitchen to use the Wifi, as it was nonexistent in the room. Due to the almost constant illness between us since leaving Europe, we'd decided it might be a good idea to get rid of my beard, thinking that germs may be making there home inside. So, in about 10 minutes I went from looking 35 to my actuall 25. It felt so much better and it was good to feel the wind on my face once more. Anyway, we got out eventually and, having missed breakfast, went to get some lunch from the supermarket. For the first time in a long time, we were able to get bread, meat and cheese and make our own sandwiches. The only problem was that in Japan, it's not just bins that are hard to come by it also benches. We hunted for ages, perching ourselves briefly on a windowsill but it was in direct sunlight, so we had to move on as it was a pretty warm day. We finally found a seat, located in a outdoor smoking area, so we had to eat quick and get out due to the smell. We were well into the afternoon by now and still didn't have a map of the city, so we had to hunt one of them down before we knew what we wanted to do. There happened to be a tourist info place on our road, so that was easier than we'd expected. We decided to just go to the imperial palace gardens which were about a 20 minute walk away from our hostel. When we arrived, despite doing nothing all day, we were shattered, so we had a long sit down on a bench and had a rest. We decided to see the gardens while we were here and then head home, so we got up and  forced ourselves to be active. There were a few ponds filled with fish and gardens full of plum and peach trees. There were children playing and elderly couples strolling and it was a really nice place to be. Exhausted, we went back to our hostel and cooked ourselves some dinner of paprika chicken and rice.

Saturday

We were slightly more energised today as we were going on a day trip we been planning before we'd even left on the trip. We walked to the station to save the stress of getting the metro again and hopped on a train bound for the city of Nara. And apparently, so had everyone else in Kyoto. The train was packed, so we had to stand the entire way. Our first stop when we arrived was the huge supermarket just outside the station, to pick up our lunch for the day (all I ever seem to do is write about food). After that, we walked through the nice looking town to Nara park in search of its main tourist attraction. The attraction is, or rather are, Nara Deer which wander freely around Nara Park. We sat and ate our lunch infront of a small pagoda slightly away from the park so no deters could steal our food. One did wander past but failed to notice us scoffing. When we finished we entered the park and were almost immediately surrounded by deer. They are really tame and only bother tourists if they see food. We picked up some 'Deer Biscuits' from a vendor and hunted down some willing deer. The funny thing about these deer is that if you bow at them, they bow back at you, so we wanted to find some bowing ones to feed out biscuits to. We found some and got some great photos in the process. I'm sure the deer only bow because they know they are going to get food but it's still funny and something different. We took a quick look at a temple which was down the road from the park and then made a snap decision to utilise our train pass and go to Osaka. So we wandered back through the park, avoiding rutting deer and deer poo and headed for the station. We had no idea what to expect from Osaka and when we got off the train it was utter chaos. We had no map, it was getting dark and as ever Japanese train stations are just mayhem. We wandered round the block, had a quick look around a department store, then decided that we'd seen enough and walked back to the station. It was fleeting, just ill planned on our part. We got a train to Shin-Osaka then hopped on the Shinkansen once more back to Kyoto.

Sunday

The weather was miserable when we woke up but we still wanted to get out and about as we'd been pretty lethargic since arriving in Kyoto. After breakfast, we obtained some umbrellas from the lobby and headed out into the pouring rain. We just wandered the streets looking for temples, shrines or anything that took our fancy. We managed to see a couple of these, one of which was staging a wedding at the time. We were also able to do a small amount of Christmas shopping for some family members but I can't go into detail until after the 25th December for fear of spoiling the surprise. For lunch we went very un-Japanese and found a Curry place that had a reasonably priced lunch menu. We found one more temple on our travels that day and the decided to call it quits as it was still pouring, we were slightly wet and a little bit tired. With plenty of rice still to use, we had the same dinner as our first night, Paprika chicken. We even picked up a couple of Japanese beers to go with it.

Monday

Due to our hostel being a fair distance from the train station and changes to the plan for Japan we checked out and moved hostels on our final day in Kyoto, which took most of the day. So we didn't really achieve anything of note. The only thing really worth writing about is that we ate out on our last evening at place that sold Okonomiyaki (the same dish we had enjoyed so much in Hiroshima), it wasn't as good as what he'd had before but it was still pretty tasty. We had an evening in preparing ourselves for our short 9 day residency in the highest populated city in the world, Tokyo.

We were tired in Kyoto, which effected how much we saw. The weather also hindered us somewhat and this was probably the least planning we'd done for a city for a long, long time. So we were a little bit disappointed in ourselves for that.

James and Charlotte

Temporary Hiatus

We will be revisiting China for just under a week, so we will be taking a brief hiatus from the blog. We will pick up again when we arrive in Vietnam

Love

James and Charlotte

Hiroshima: In the footsteps of Grandad Hosie

Monday

As we had a huge amount of choices in train time from Fukuoka, we chose one that wasn't horrendously early in the morning, as we are prone to doing. So we had time to wake up at our own pace and not to a piercing alarm call. Breakfast was some brekkie bars we'd picked up in a rush at the supermarket in Nagasaki. Knowing the accuracy of Japanese train times we were in no rush, only needing to leave our hostel with 50 minutes before our departure time. It was a beautiful morning in Fukuoka, in stark contrast to the solid rain we had experienced the day before. It was such a quick walk to the station, we hardly broke a sweat, which is a rarity, normally we get there perspiring like there's no tomorrow. There trains may be punctual but the stations aren't the easiest places to master. They are so busy and have so many different lines, there are signs all over the place. Ours was the Shinkansen, the renowned Japanese bullet train, which has its own set of platforms, separate from the suburban riffraff trains. The platform was a sight to behold. What look like sleek, white torpedos line the platforms, ready to whisk commuters and tourists of to places as far away as Tokyo in just a matter of hours. Unfortunately, we didn't manage a photo, when fully laden with bags and deciphering Japanese timetables, it's the last thing on your mind! Anyway, it was on time, we boarded and made our way to our seats. They were so plush, we were slightly concerned we may have stumbled into first class by accident but we weren't. It was all over in a flash though, a little over an hour of gliding through the Japanese countryside and we were pulling in to Hiroshima station. The stops are so short, we had to be on the ball to get off the train before it left with us still on it.

We made our way out of the maze of Hiroshima station and into the warm November sunshine. The trolley car stop was right outside and we hopped on to get to our hostel. We had both fallen for Hiroshima by the time we arrived at our stop. We crossed over so many rivers and canals it was like being back in Amsterdam. The weather was beautiful and everyone had a smile on their face. It was only a short onward journey to our hostel and we could relieve ourselves of our bags. We aren't usually ones to go straight out and about exploring but due to what seems like strict Japanese routine, check in is always at 3pm and never before. So we headed out to see what we could find. Our location was only 5 minutes walk from Peace Memorial Park, which is Hiroshima's alternative to Nagasaki's Peace Park. It is situated where 2 canals or rivers (I'm not quite sure which...) split as they head towards the sea. We wandered through the green park, where there were hordes of Japanese schoolchildren having lunch while on a schooltrip. We headed for the tip of the park, where the "waterways" split, where there is a T-shaped bridge, joining the park to the banks either side of it. This T bridge was used as the target for the atomic bomb when it was dropped on Hiroshima. We veered to one side where we could see a bench by the waters edge, situated directly opposite the Hiroshima Dome, which, although some of the building was destroyed, survived the blast despite it close proximity to it and it still stands there today. This was one of our favourite bits so far. It was peaceful, despite being in the centre of the city, there was history all around us, the weather was lovely for November and it wasn't spoiled by pollution or well anything. As the title of this post suggests, the clan Hosie has a small bit of history with Hiroshima. My Grandad (my Dads Dad), also named Russell Hosie, went in with the Royal Engineers almost immediately after the Atomic Bomb was dropped to assist in the cleaning process. I never knew him as he passed away well before I was born, so it was nice to be following in his footsteps in a way. He also managed to take some photos while he was here, so with the help of some family members, they tracked the photos down and managed to email them to us, so we could compare. It is safe to say that Hiroshima is in much better condition than it was when my Grandad was here, with just rubble as far as the eye could see. We ate our lunch sat on that bench and watched the people sail by on the ferries and sightseeing boats milling up and down the river. We tore ourselves away from our bench to have a look around the main shopping street, which is a long covered area full of department stores and video game arcades. I'd been on the lookout since leaving Europe for an exotic football shirt and after some assistance from the Internet, we managed to find a store that sold them. The local team are called Sanfrecce Hiroshima and have a great looking shirt, I'm sure they are a great team too but not so sure there shirt is worth paying £65 for. I was really disappointed, after having looked in Russia, Mongolia and China, I was sure Japan would turn one up but I just hadn't banked on it being so expensive. It was soon forgotten about though, we made our way back to our hostel and checked in. After a busy day, we didn't fancy cooking ourselves so we decided to go for some local cuisine once more, opting for the 3rd best restaurant in town according to a certain travel advisory website. We'd had a nose earlier when we'd walked past, with an English menu and reasonable prices, it looked pretty favourable.

It only served one type of dish, Okonomiyaki. Which, when in Hiroshima (it varies around Japan) in a fried noodle dish made with egg and various toppings and ingredients. They prepare it in an open kitchen for all to see (we would later read at a different Okonomiyaki restaurant, that a proper Okonomiyaki should take 15-20 minutes to prepares), it is then placed on a large metal hot plate infront of you, that takes up most of the table. The diner is then armed with a square shaped sliced, some chopsticks and a small plate and you go at it. It was a unique experience and the food was absolutely delicious to boot. We knew it would be a winner when we arrived and there were people queueing outside, just to get a place in the queue inside. The queueing was painless though, as we were kept amused by watching an elderly Japanese woman chatting to an Australian couple ahead of us in the queue. It went on for some time, then all of a sudden, the Japanese lady shoved a load of money in the Australian man's pocket and made a break for it down the road. We all stood around looking a bit confused. The man's girlfriend/wife had to dash down the road after her in order to give it back. By the time all this had been settled we had been moved in and seated so we've no idea what the outcome was. The crazy lady was loitering around outside while we were making a pigs ear of eating our traditional Japanese dish, so she was probably a regular eccentric. We paid our bill, which was around £5 each (bargain) and made our way home, through our new favourite place in the world, Peace Memorial Park. It was just as nice at night than during the day. There is a small archway in the middle of the park, placed in such a position, that when you look through it from the front, you can see the lit dome of the Dome through the centre of it. Wonderful! We dodged the odd kamikaze frog as we wandered through but they (or we, they may have been poisonous ones for all we know) got through unscathed. It had turned out to be a rather busy and very enjoyable day and we were in for another one the next.

Tuesday

5 o'clock the alarm was buzzing, not impressed. Far to early but we were keen to get to the island of Itsukushima, to catch the low tide. The island is more famously known as Miyajima, which in Japanese means the Shrine Island. We had to catch a train from Hiroshima, along the coast and then catch a ferry to Miyajima. Fortunately, all this was included on our JR pass, so we didn't have to spend a ¥en. We had to make low tide because of Miyajima's most famous sight, the floating Torii Gate. A Torii marks the entrance of a Shinto shrine, symbolically marking the transition from the profane to the sacred. This one in particular was marked by a Japanese scholar as one of the 3 sights of Japan, when included with the Itsukushima Shrine, for which it marks the entrance too. When the tide is out, you can walk across the sand and walk through the gate, which is said to bring peace (I think...). So, we managed to get the first boat over at about 7 o'clock. The boat only took about 10 minutes, so we over in no time. A few people on the boat seemed slightly more keen to get to the gate than us though, as they sprinted off the second the boat had docked. I had come down with a cold yet again, so I wasn't the most enthusiastic person that day, as much as I wanted to be. We slowly walked along the waterfront, working our way around the deer that you aren't allowed to feed. It was chilly by the water but we were well wrapped up in our big jackets, despite it being a really sunny morning. We took a few snaps with the Torii and even managed to nab someone else to take one of us without the selfie stick. We even wandered through the gate, although the tide was rising rather rapidly, so we had to dodge a flaw large pools. Another benefit of arriving early, is that you avoid huge crowds. Apparently, it is a fairly popular tourist destination and come midday there are hordes of people being marshalled by tour leaders with megaphones. So it was nice for the area to be so peaceful. We hadn't managed to have breakfast at 5 in the morning, so we took a stroll through Miyajima town to see if we could find somewhere relative cheap to have some food. It was completely closed though. It hardly seemed that anyone had got out of bed yet, so to kill some time, we just had to sit around the port until the island started to wake.

It took a good hour but after retracing our steps, we stumbled across a cafe that said it was closed but was actually open, so we went in and got ourselves a fried breakfast, which really warmed us up. After our breakfast, we wandered back in the direction of the gate and decided to enter the actually shrine. We wanted to stay until the tide had come in and the gate looked like it was floating, so we had some time to kill. We followed what the locals were doing and gave a hands a wash in the water provided before we entered. There were various things you could do along the way, like make a donation and say a prayer but we decided not to do these and just enjoy the atmosphere. The shrine is set right on the seafront, on elevated wooden walkways, so when the tide comes in, it also seems like it's floating. We had plenty of time to kill, the tide didn't come in fully until about 1pm, so we just wandered through the gift shop lined streets and sat and watched the crowds pour in to the area. As the time passed, we moved to a better location and sat on a sand dune, where we had an unobstructed view of the Torii gate and there was nobody really around us disturbing the peace. This turned out to be our new second favourite spot in the world, it was peaceful, despite the crowds across the water, the weather was great and warm, despite the chills from the cold and the view was spectacular. If I'd been up for it, we would have definitely sat there all day. I was shattered though, so we got our pictures when the tide had come in and "floated" the gate and we went to catch our ferry back to the mainland. Along the way we did stop for a quick lunch, at the same cafe we'd had breakfast but it was a thoroughly disappointing Beef Curry, with about one piece of meat with it, we weren't impressed and regretted stopping for it. The journey home was easy and when we arrived back at our hostel I flopped on my bed and slept for a few hours, while Charlotte caught up on some travel admin. I was so bad for the rest of the day, that Charlotte had to cook me dinner, while I struggled to maintain consciousness on a sofa in reception. The dinner was great though, really giving me a boost (I've got to say that as Charlotte cooked it).

Wednesday

We didn't have a huge list of things to do today, which was nice, to really relax for a morning for the first time in ages. Our priority though was the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. Half of it was under renovation, so it was nowhere near as thorough as Nagasaki's but it was still very interesting. We had to make our way through the endless crowds of school children but it still only took us about 20 minutes to get through it. On the way out, after some encouragement from Charlotte, I went up to the desk to offer them my grandads photos, if they wanted to exhibit them. After speaking to someone with slightly better English skills than the lady on the reception desk, they said yes, they would like them, which was nice. We did think that maybe they were just saying yes to be polite but I'm sure that wasn't the case. For our last stop, we went to Hiroshima Castle, which was only a 15 minute walk from the museum. It looks surprisingly castly, it had a moat and sort of a drawbridge. The first area was just a small courtyard but we could enter a chamber (providing we removed our shoes and put on some funky slippers) and take a look around a museum area. The only thing of great interest here was a large drum that we both took turns giving a test. After the small courtyard, we went into the main area of the castle and walked the grounds for an hour or so. Despite the very late Autumn heat, the leaves in the trees had started to turn and the gardens looked really nice. We headed to Hiroshima Station to sort our tickets for our journey to Kyoto the next day, then headed back through the main shopping area to pass some time but nothing really caught our eye.

We loved Hiroshima, easily our best stop yet and regretted only having 2 full days there. On the other hand it was possibly the most eager we had been when visiting a city, so we had covered everything worth covering, even if there wasn't a huge amount to see. That doesn't mean we'd get bored if we went there again though, maybe to catch a Sanfrecce Hiroshima match.

The ancient city of Kyoto is our next stop on the Shinkansen

James and Charlotte