It was great to arrive in Tokyo and be met by Pat & Toshio. Pat first met Toshio 37 years ago in Yokohama. We headed from Narita to Yokohama to meet up with Toshio`s wife Seiko. That evening we spent hours chatting and having a few drinks - we were very late to bed but had a great evening.
Pat and I toured Yokohama and checked out the Gourmet Food Halls where you could actually have a meal with all the tasting that goes on - even ended our tasting off with Sake. We had an hour to fill in so headed to the Sheraton for the Happy Hour. We met up with Toshio & Seiko and went out for dinner - we finished off by visiting a bar where we received a great welcome. The barmen put on a magnificent display of cocktail making - bottles were flying in every direction. They built a tower of glasses and poured alcohol over the top - this was then lit and we had a magnificent display of fire - at the end a cocktail was poured and it was delivered to yours truly. In the taxi on the way home we sang Waltzing Matilda - the taxi driver was stoked as it was the first time anyone has ever burst into song in his taxi!
We spent the weekend at Izu-Hanto about 100 klms south of Yokohama. During the day we headed up Mt Fuji (Japan`s highest peak) to the 6th level. That night we stayed at the Harvest Club with sweeping views across the mountains to Mt Fuji - our room had a wall of glass so the views were spectacular. That evening we had a traditional Japanese meal and sampled some sake. On our way up the peninsula the following day we visited Odawa Castle which was built about 800 years ago. Izu Peninsula is a great place for touring - we saw many rallys - including VW`s, sports cars and hundreds of motor bikes.
Takahashi, a friend of Toshio`s took us out to Kamakura. Kamakura was one of Japan`s original capitals from 1185 to 1333. We had a great day out with Takahashi and walked for 6 hours checking out the area and sites. We visited Enoshima island and went into Enoshima Iwaya cave which has been formed by wave erosion over a long period of time. The view over the coast from the observation tower at the top of the island was great.
Last year we met Mariko at Chitwan National Park in Nepal - she lives and works in the Tokyo area so we were happy to be able to catch up with her for lunch at Chibuyu.
Toshio, Pat and I took off for a 3 day trip out through Matsumoto in Nagano Prefecture and headed up to Mt Tateyama. We visited Kurobe Dam which was built to overcome the serious shortage of electric power in the postwar period. We travelled the Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine Route by train, bus, trolley bus, cable car and gondola up to the lodge where we stayed. The resort is closed from December to April due to the heavy snowfall. Outside the resort the roadway is quite spectacular with 10 - 12 metre banks of snow on each side. We rugged up and went out in the cold evening for a walk along the roadway. The Mt Tateyama (3,015 mts) area in the Northern Japan Alps is called The Roof of Japan - the mountains are snow covered and spectacular.
We travelled to Unazuki and stayed in Traditional Japanese accommodation. Our meals were served in our unit by a waitress in traditional dress, a kimono - she looked after us the whole time we were there. Our beds were rolled out and put onto the tatami mats on the floor - very traditional - our pillows were like little bags of seed (husk of buckwheat). We had a great night`s sleep on futons on the floor. We took a 3 hour train trip up to into the magnificent Kurobe gorge from Unazuki to Keyakidaira and return - this gorge is spectacular and is considered to be Japan`s finest v-shaped gorge. We took a train up the west coast and then boarded a Shinkansen for our return trip to Tokyo.
The Shinkansen is the bullet train which is the fastest and best known train service in Japan - it reaches speeds of up to 300 km/hr. The overall train service in Japan is truly amazing - trains are always on time, clean, and efficient. No smoking areas in stations are strictly adhered to - there are even special rooms on platforms where smokers may go - nobody drops rubbish - it is all put into bins or taken home. The use of English language is not as prevalent in Japan as in China and Japan does not have an English TV station - so we just watch the news in Japanese!
Seiko and her friend Karolee took us to Disneyland and Disneysea for the weekend (while Toshio worked) - we all stayed at a swish hotel at Disneyland. It is really great to stay there on location - you can slip back to the room for a nap anytime! In the evening we headed out to see the Electric Light Show and the Fireworks. Disneyland is certainly a great place to visit.
Toshio went out one day to visit his Mum - she is 99 years old and has just had a birthday. She sent 2 origami birds (cranes) home for Pat and me - lovely souvenirs for us to keep from his Mum. We said goodbye to Toshio and Seiko and headed south out of Yokohama.
We took the early morning Shinkansen to Kyoto and then changed trains to Nara where we were met by Atsuko and Koichi, friends of Colin & Linelle`s. While in Nara we visited the Todai-ji Temple - a historical site which was originally built in 752. This temple houses the largest bronze statue of Buddha in the world and is made from 437 tons of bronze and 130 klgs of gold.
Koichi took us for an evening walk up to Amagashi-no-oka, which is a beautiful area not far from their home. I suspect this was a little warm up for the next day. Atsuko & Koichi's daughter, Takako, played music for us on her grand piano and oboe - she is a member of the Amateur Orchestra in Kashikara City - very enjoyable! Koichi has now retired from teaching and Atsuko continues to do volunteer work - she prepares text books in braille for blind school children.
The following morning we drove for 2.5 hours to the mountain area of Yoshino-Kumano National Park. Here we spent 3 hours hiking on Mt Odaigahara 1,200 mts above sea level. It is so picturesque in these mountains of Japan - every corner brings yet another beautiful view. Needless to say we were pretty tired and exhausted at the end of our hiking so we had a treat in store for us. We headed down the valley to Kodokora Hot Springs where we had a traditional Japanese-style bath and soaked in the hot pools - it was great sitting outdoors in the hot pools straight from the hot springs!
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