Holy Moly there’s a lot of people in Tokyo. We stayed in Shibuya and when the lights are red and traffic stops completely then pedestrians surge into the intersection from all sides. It was crazy. We couchsurfed with a local, so we were in a really great location. Couchsurfing is supposed to be free, but this guy quit his job and opens his home to travelers. It was still cheaper than staying in a Hotel. There was a guy from Australia staying there and a girl from Germany, so it was fun talking with them and they gave us good tips on places to go.
The first day we went to Asakusa which is “technology land” This is an area dedicated to Nintendo, computers, MP3s, anything and everything techno. They were giving away free anime things. People were in line for it. So, I caved and bought a new ipod touch. It was pretty much the same price I would pay online, but I needed to replace my stolen one. Next we traveled to find a traditional Japanese park a friend suggested. Instead we found the Ueno zoo. We were mainly excited to see a Giant Panda. The advertisements were everywhere for it, but guess what, once we got inside, no Panda. We were really sad. But, we still enjoyed walking around with local Japanese families, sometimes we were looked at as if we were a caged animal. Oh well. We ended the day with some tasty street food.
The next day we went to Disneyland. It was fun comparing it to California. The park is basically the same except everything is in Japanese. When we rode Pirates of the Caribbean the Pirate at the end speaks in Japanese and so does the robot in Star Tours. So funny. It was really cold, it even snowed. So, one of the shops had all you can drink coffee, so we took about a 2 hour break. We used fastpasses and went on many rides. It was a fun day. Once we got back to Shibuya we went out for Sushi. We are not big sushi fans, but we were in Japan and had to try it. It was great. We saw the men make it right in front of us. We just grabbed a plate of whatever looked good. Each plate cost about $3 and had 2 pieces on it. We tried sake too. I was scared, but after a year of Korean soju the sake went down smooth.
After Tokyo we used the rest of our JR pass and spent a whole day traveling to back to Fukuoka. We saw Mt. Fuji on the way and it snowed for awhile. It was a nice train ride. In Fukuoka we finished up souvenir shopping and ate our last little bits of Japanese food. Fukuoka was a wonderful way to end our trip. Nice little city with great shopping. We also visited the biggest wooden Buddha.
We are so happy we traveled to Japan. It was a little expensive, but we had a great time!
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
Kyoto and Osaka
We stayed in a Hotel in Osaka, but traveled to Kyoto too. We stayed right in the heart of downtown. It was hard to find the hotel because we had a map, but we arrived at night and there were so many people rushing the streets. We were total tourist looking at a map and asking random people where to go. At one point we felt as if we were at a loss. We were guessing to cross the street because it kind of looked right. Finally after waiting for a crosswalk I look up and what do I see….Our tiny Hotel stuck in between buildings. Yay, I was ready to throw our stuff down and get some grub.
Our hotel was in the middle of a busy shopping/restaurant area. So, there we many places to eat, but we were on a mission for Shabu Shabu. We found a restaurant and sat down. The waitress spoke a little English, but there were picture to point to. She brought us our boiling water and said, “60 minutes.” We thought, “huh, 60 mins till the food’s ready or is that when we need to exit the building?” We figured out that was how long we had to eat. All you can cook and eat for 60 minutes. It was like a dream come true for Jayson. We cleared 2 plates of meat, it was delicious.
The next night we found a restaurant that had all you can drink for 2 hours. We said, “score!” and went in. Well, the menu wasn’t in English and they didn’t speak very much English. We know we ordered something pork with something vegetables. All of a sudden a big boiling pot full of veggies and meat comes out. It looked great, but we didn’t know what to do it. We showed the waitress we were confused and she continually came over and stirred the pot and each time she would say, “wait.” She said wait about 10 times. It was funny, but we were happy because we were drinking all we could drink. The mysterious boiling pot was delicious, of course.
In Kyoto we went to Gion which is known as the Geisha district, but we didn’t see any Geishas. We went to Kinkakuji which is a beautiful Golden Pavilion. The area surrounding the temple was so peaceful and beautiful. There are so many places in Japan where you could sit down and find peace and quiet. It was great. We went to Chion-in Temple. This temple is known for its massive gate. There were many stairs to climb up before we reached the temple. This temple is known for the place where Henon fasted to death. We witnessed a Monk ceremony. We had to take our shoes off, sit on our knees and be very quite. It was an interesting ceremony with Monks humming and bowing. Very Cool!
Other than eating delicious food in Osaka, we spent a day at a natural hot spring. It was a trek to get out there, but worth it. We took the subway, bus, and tram to get there, but we traveled up beautiful mountains. We checked in and were given a bathing outfit. This outfit was to walk to and from the different bath houses, but then we split up and went into our gender’s bathroom. From there, take it off and jump in. Well, not really! We were the only white people there, so I felt a little awkward, but after 5 minutes I was in Zen mode. It was very relaxing and I felt so refreshed after. I recommend this experience to anyone visiting Japan. Just do as the locals do!
Our hotel was in the middle of a busy shopping/restaurant area. So, there we many places to eat, but we were on a mission for Shabu Shabu. We found a restaurant and sat down. The waitress spoke a little English, but there were picture to point to. She brought us our boiling water and said, “60 minutes.” We thought, “huh, 60 mins till the food’s ready or is that when we need to exit the building?” We figured out that was how long we had to eat. All you can cook and eat for 60 minutes. It was like a dream come true for Jayson. We cleared 2 plates of meat, it was delicious.
The next night we found a restaurant that had all you can drink for 2 hours. We said, “score!” and went in. Well, the menu wasn’t in English and they didn’t speak very much English. We know we ordered something pork with something vegetables. All of a sudden a big boiling pot full of veggies and meat comes out. It looked great, but we didn’t know what to do it. We showed the waitress we were confused and she continually came over and stirred the pot and each time she would say, “wait.” She said wait about 10 times. It was funny, but we were happy because we were drinking all we could drink. The mysterious boiling pot was delicious, of course.
In Kyoto we went to Gion which is known as the Geisha district, but we didn’t see any Geishas. We went to Kinkakuji which is a beautiful Golden Pavilion. The area surrounding the temple was so peaceful and beautiful. There are so many places in Japan where you could sit down and find peace and quiet. It was great. We went to Chion-in Temple. This temple is known for its massive gate. There were many stairs to climb up before we reached the temple. This temple is known for the place where Henon fasted to death. We witnessed a Monk ceremony. We had to take our shoes off, sit on our knees and be very quite. It was an interesting ceremony with Monks humming and bowing. Very Cool!
Other than eating delicious food in Osaka, we spent a day at a natural hot spring. It was a trek to get out there, but worth it. We took the subway, bus, and tram to get there, but we traveled up beautiful mountains. We checked in and were given a bathing outfit. This outfit was to walk to and from the different bath houses, but then we split up and went into our gender’s bathroom. From there, take it off and jump in. Well, not really! We were the only white people there, so I felt a little awkward, but after 5 minutes I was in Zen mode. It was very relaxing and I felt so refreshed after. I recommend this experience to anyone visiting Japan. Just do as the locals do!
Hiroshima
Busan, Korea to Hiroshima, Japan
I think we should change our Blog name to Adventures in Asia. I never imagined we would travel this much. We are so fortunate. And, every time we travel to another Asian country we are surprised how each country is so different. We heard so many stories about Japan before we went there, but nothing anybody said could prepare us for the experience we had. We heard Japan is quiet, peaceful, clean and kind. These statements were all true and then some. I swear, rolling my travel suitcase through Hiroshima at 4pm was the loudest thing I heard on the street. People will more out of your way and they are very helpful. On the subway you can’t talk on your cell phone. Actually, nobody talks on the subway. We were smushed between Japanese people and everyone was standing in silence waiting for their next stop.
We took the hydrofoil ferry from Busan, Korea to Fukuoka, Japan. It took 3 hours and the boat has a front fin that lifts the boat above water when jets are on. We purchased the Japan Rail (JR) pass for one week for $350 each. We were able to take the JR many times and saved a ton of money because individual tickets are expensive. Our first trip we took the JR from Fukuoka to Hiroshima. It was 6pm by the time we got there are we were ready to try our first Japanese meal. The hotel suggested a local restaurant. We ordered Okonomiyaki which is a Japanese pizza with noodles, cabbage, veggies, egg, and bacon all fried and crispy topped with teriyaki sauce. We could watch the restaurant cook right in front of us. We fell in love with this dish and had it 3 other times during our trip.
Hiroshima is the world’s center for peace. The city is spotless, quiet and the people are kind. We visited the Peace Memorial Park. The museum had artifacts from the time when the A-Bomb exploded. I can’t really describe in words how amazing this place is. The park really moved me. They suffered so much, so now they try to spread peace around the world. Paper cranes are sent from people around the world to represent their promise to peace. They continue to ask countries to stop developing atomic bombs. This was a great way to start our trip in Japan. Our pictures explain more about our experience.
I think we should change our Blog name to Adventures in Asia. I never imagined we would travel this much. We are so fortunate. And, every time we travel to another Asian country we are surprised how each country is so different. We heard so many stories about Japan before we went there, but nothing anybody said could prepare us for the experience we had. We heard Japan is quiet, peaceful, clean and kind. These statements were all true and then some. I swear, rolling my travel suitcase through Hiroshima at 4pm was the loudest thing I heard on the street. People will more out of your way and they are very helpful. On the subway you can’t talk on your cell phone. Actually, nobody talks on the subway. We were smushed between Japanese people and everyone was standing in silence waiting for their next stop.
We took the hydrofoil ferry from Busan, Korea to Fukuoka, Japan. It took 3 hours and the boat has a front fin that lifts the boat above water when jets are on. We purchased the Japan Rail (JR) pass for one week for $350 each. We were able to take the JR many times and saved a ton of money because individual tickets are expensive. Our first trip we took the JR from Fukuoka to Hiroshima. It was 6pm by the time we got there are we were ready to try our first Japanese meal. The hotel suggested a local restaurant. We ordered Okonomiyaki which is a Japanese pizza with noodles, cabbage, veggies, egg, and bacon all fried and crispy topped with teriyaki sauce. We could watch the restaurant cook right in front of us. We fell in love with this dish and had it 3 other times during our trip.
Hiroshima is the world’s center for peace. The city is spotless, quiet and the people are kind. We visited the Peace Memorial Park. The museum had artifacts from the time when the A-Bomb exploded. I can’t really describe in words how amazing this place is. The park really moved me. They suffered so much, so now they try to spread peace around the world. Paper cranes are sent from people around the world to represent their promise to peace. They continue to ask countries to stop developing atomic bombs. This was a great way to start our trip in Japan. Our pictures explain more about our experience.
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