My Travelogue
JAPAN
On a Japanese vacation
We started off with landing in Osaka and then took Haruka train to Kyoto. Checked in Rhiga Royal hotel close to the station. Good place. Will recommend.
In the last two days we visited the important shrines, castles, palaces and the temples. The tour guides were very friendly. They aroused my interest in the “science and philosophy” of the Japanese gardens and of course the history of shogun and samurai, emperor and the aristocrats. I must say that trail in the thick Bamboo forest at Tenru-Ji temple was so blissful. And the weather was perfect – just about 19 deg C
Got interesting insight about “Kyoto people” and “Tokyo people” – our Tour Guide explained the difference with stories about his mother in law who hailed from Kyoto. It seemed that the way a Kyoto person speaks is a bit “diplomatic” i.e. not very straightforward as compared to an outspoken Tokyo person! Besides, a Kyoto person has the pride of being the ancient “capital city” of Japan.
But I liked the way he summed up when we passed over the famous Kyoto University – this place produced 8 Nobel Prize Winners he said and Tokyo University produced 15 Prime Ministers of Japan. I then understood the difference between the two cities.
In the evenings after the day long tours, we experimented with the Japanese food in small family run restaurants. We chose places where owner could speak English, make recommendations, modify for us the recipes and even let us take videos of the cooking! I like such informal, easy. “learning” and “charming” little places and company of friendly people.
Just returning from a dinner with Udon noodles soup, with tofu and greens and Asahi Superdry beer to go by ….. our last evening in Kyoto.
We left Kyoto in the morning and took a superfast bullet train to Odiwara. The train reached dot on time. Always a precision work in Japan.
We took a taxi to go to Hotel De Yama in Hakone. The road climbed up, winding through thickly forested hills. The winds were getting a bit chili and in the next 30 min, the road hugged the magnificent Lake Ashi. Hotel De Yama is situated bang on the lake but tucked in a private forest, facing Mountain Fuji.
I always keep one short break in the tour program like stopping over to relax in Hotel like De Yama. This hotel is an expensive place, very exquisite with personalized attention, woody decor, large rooms, hot spring bath and great views from the room (see pictures).
You do spend money here- but I must say that places like De Yama are simply worth. And you need a reason to make money in life – isnt it?
So, we decided to pamper ourselves, walked around the property and dined at a French restaurant “Vert Bois” with all the Oomph, the style and expensive cutlery. We had a thick french onion soup, sumptuous lamb strew and grilled vegetables with rice on the side.
I noticed that the waiters and waitresses were perhaps better dressed than us. The people eating around, mostly Japanese, looked real rich over generations! I could imagine Aristotle Onassis sitting there. Wish I knew Japanese to understand what they were speaking about – must be something about properties and take overs involving billions of Yen.
Enjoy some of the pictures we took yesterday. Today we will head towards MotoHakone – a little town of handicrafts, boutique food joints and a shrine on the bank of lake Ashi.
We took the hotel shuttle to Motohakone. Motohakone is a small “village” at the bank of Lake Ashi. A very picturesque place and pretty. Good location to write stray blogs.
We strolled around the streets. Picked up nicely carved pairs of chopsticks with Fujiyama engraved for our daughter and son-in-law. “Don’t clean these chopsticks in dish washer” the lady owner cautioned us. “These must be hand-washed”. I like when the shop owners give you such caring tips.
We found an old fashioned coffee place on the main street serving coffee with cheese cakes. I love coffee shops that sport old wooden furniture, large tables, comfortable chairs and tall windows with curtains. Such places encourage conversations.
After some more walking and shopping, we found a restaurant that had an English menu with pictures. The system was that you go in and write your name on the register. The owner comes out and announces the name of the guest as the table is available. We did not have to wait too long.
This place had Japanese style sitting in a room on the first floor. It had a grand view of the lake. We stuck there for an hour as it had not only good food but in addition a wifi that worked!
I guess many restaurants run well because of the offer of “free wifi”. Some drink coffee just because of the availability of wifi and more so to stay alive on the WhatsApp. (Apparently, this is the secret why Starbucks gets good business despite its pricey and drab coffees!).
After 3 pm, the weather got chili as cold winds starting blowing over the lake towards us. We saw people returning from the boat cruise with shiver. It must be close to 12 degrees.
We, like others decided to retreat and return to the Hotel. We picked up a bottle of “Chilean” wine on the way to warm up or fight the “chill”
Next morning, we left this heavenly place and boarded the train to Tokya from Odiware station. We entered the ‘Monster’ city.
Japan Vacation (continued with last stop in Tokyo)
The best way to experience Tokyo was to start with the Tokyo Tower.
Tokyo Tower is a communications and observation tower in the Shiba-koen district of Minato, Tokyo, Japan. At 332.9 metres, it is the second-tallest structure in Japan. The structure is an Eiffel Tower-inspired lattice tower with two observation decks. Now you have in Tokyo a new tower that is double the height and the tallest in the world, situated close to the Asahi building (see pic).
We went to the lower deck to experience the jungle of tall buildings all across (see pics). We could also see a few green patches, some of them were the royal cemeteries.
To me the interesting part was to see building of Tata Consultancy Services right opposite the entrance of the Tokyo Tower (see pic). And it gave me a nice feeling and a sense of pride! (see pic)
Our tour guide gave us a running commentary explaining the important structures in each direction e.g. towards Haneda airport, towards Yokohama etc. We were lucky to have a bright sunshine on our side but the distant sky was rather misty and hence we could not spot mount Fuji.
Life in Tokyo is in tall buildings, over fly overs and in the trains. Even the view from our room in hotel Keio Plaza from the 25th floor (see pic) was of this kind. – where all we noticed was tall structures surrounding the hotel, vehicles rushing on the complex web of highways/flyovers and trains crowded with commuters moving like caterpillars! No wonder why people in Tokyo go to pubs to drink at the end of a busy, tiring and stressful day!
Tea Ceremony
Vacation in Japan (continuing in Tokyo – The tea ceremony at Happo-en Gardens)
Tea ceremony is a special event in Japan and has to be experienced. We chose to visit tea ceremony at one of the most traditional and an enchanting place in Tokyo – the Happo-en’s garden. The garden skillfully incorporates the basic principles of traditional garden landscaping and has been carefully composed. It includes several features of historic importance, such as a display of bonsai trees and the “Muan” and “Kakuhoan” teahouses, transported and rebuilt on site, all harmoniously blended to create an oasis of tranquility in the concrete jungle of Tokyo.
The tea making process involves eating a sweet first, performing the rituals before drinking the tea, and later expressing gratitude to the tea and the tea maker. Our tour guide coached us on all the steps that had to be meticulously followed. We rehearsed a bit to be sure! We were taken to the Muan tea house. The taste of the matcha tea was unique and refreshing but perhaps more enjoyable experience was the very tea preparation process.
We took a walk after the tea, This garden sports Bonzai trees that are more than 500 year old. The waterfalls fill a large pond next to the hut making soothing sounds and cooling the air. This combination is hypnotic. There were plenty of giant gold fish moving around in the water. I thought of becoming a fish for a while and swim around in the pond, converse and make new friends! There were few wedding ceremonies taking place in the garden in small groups. So wise of these couples and their parents I thought. Instead of splashing the food and the wealth in marriages, (that most of us do), these kind of marriages at locations like Happo-en Garden appeared so private and sensitive; respecting and experiencing the nature.
Don’t you think that this should be good enough an inspiration for a truly eco-friendly or nature-senstitive living? And certainly these moments will serve as good memories to share later with the children.
Vacation in Japan (Last day in Tokyo)
We had lunch at a Japanese BBQ place at Mokushundo. Mokushundo is an unusual restaurant tucked in the valley of a “forest” in the beautiful Hotel Chinzanso – right in Tokyo city. This forest (which is actually a well designed garden) boasts of lush Meji-era flowers, cherry trees, hot springs, a stunning three-story pagoda, and a 100-year-old tea house!
Mokushundo was built in early 1920s and serves authentic dishes cooked on hot lava rocks from Mount Fuji. We asked for BBQ – vegetables (with mushrooms, sweet potatoes and asparagus) to go with slices of beef and pork and tangy sauce. Our hostess (see pic) was very friendly and ensured that all the portions were well done. We ordered for some Sake (see pic) and spent nearly hour and a half relishing the food and the drink.
I would certainly recommend you this lunch place at Hotel Chinzanso. Where will you get such a place for BBQ sitting in a lush green “forest” and right in the heart of the city?While walking up the “valley” to the lobby of the Hotel, I noticed a Koshin stone monument that dated back as far as the Sengoku period. This was a period when the Koshin faith with roots in Chinese Taoism, was very popular. These monuments signify the spiritual and financial wealth of the common folk.
Take a look at the picture that shows three headed God (or Goddess?) with six hands holding weapons resembling Goddess Kali. Apparently, this monument has been there much before the hotel and hasn’t been shifted over last 200 years! Some food for thought isn’t it? There are such 6000 monuments scattered around in Japan.
We depart for Mumbai tomorrow after spending todays evening in the light of the neon signs of the streets of Ginza. We will hit for a small place that serves Japanese craft beer. I plan to go for Iwate-Kura.
