Top 15 Moments in Japan (Part III)

This is the third in a three-part series countdown of my Top 15 moments in Japan; a look back at some of the funniest, unique, and treasured moments I could only experience in Nippon!

5. Petting the wild deer of Nara. Nara is a short commuter train hop from Kyoto and boasts one of the largest buddha statues I’ve ever seen. We walked from the train station to the temple and I started seeing pockets of wild deer roaming about town. I got extremely excited like I normally do when I see dogs and wanted to pet them. Hiro told me to simmer down for there were much more deer to come! He wasn’t lying, THEY WERE EVERYWHERE. I petted a few but they soon lost interest when they realized I carried no cookies. There were a number of vendors that were selling cookies, but the deer were only interested in chasing after the children. I did see one scrappy deer queue up at a hotdog stand. Though they were wild, they were very polite. They knew to bow their head when they begged for food!

4. Having tea under a parasol at Kinkaku-ji. Kinkaku-ji is a buddhist temple in Kyoto best known for it’s main structure that’s covered in goldleaf. After exploring the grounds and taking about 200 photos, we took a break for tea and some cookies. It's always nice to take a break and just take it all in. Sometimes, I'm guilty of just rushing through to see everything. It was cold and I remember holding on to the tea cup for some warmth. We sat on a bench that doubled as a table with a parasol to protect us from the sun. No need for it though as it was cloudy that day.

3. Watching the sunset over Kyoto from Kiyomizu-dera. I remember my first thought when I saw this massive structure perched on the mountainside – wow. The temple is old – current structures were built in 1633 – and looks like it could withstand another 400 years. We got there just in time to watch the sun go down over Kyoto and illuminate the temple just right.

2. Staring at snow-capped Fujisan across the water. I’m not normally impressed by volcanoes. I was relatively young when I saw my first volcanic crater, probably around 7. One of my earliest memories was the fear of falling into the former crater that has now become a lake. We were riding horseback and the image of the horse and I falling into it kept creeping into my head. Fast-forward to 2010 and I found myself marveling at the gorgeous Mt. Fuji. It’s truly as majestic as people say.

1. Running through the torii gates at Fushimi Inari. It was probably one of the sites I anticipated the most, and it did not disappoint! It was right after the new year and one of the most solemn times in Japan, especially in Kyoto. The temples and shrines are teeming with people. For those unfamiliar with Fushimi Inari, it is a shrine set at the base of a mountain with multiple trails up the mountainside to smaller shrines. Trails are covered by hundreds, if not thousands of torii gates, and the traffic through these gates were generally unidirectional. It was only a matter of time before groups can become separated and sure enough, I did. What ensued was a frantic run up and through the trails, unable to read signs in hiragana. Trail junctions seemed similar and leading to the unknown. Panic didn’t set in and though I felt the urgency to find everyone, being lost made the experience that much more spiritual.

Top 15 Moments in Japan (Part II)

This is the second in a three-part series countdown of my Top 15 moments in Japan; a look back at some of the funniest, unique, and treasured moments I could only experience in Nippon! My account may not be able to do them justice but I will try my best.

10. Chasing kimonos. Did I feel dirty? Not really … but the girls in their dress kimonos looked absolutely gorgeous. After the new year, it’s tradition that girls who are turning 18 during the year wear their dress kimonos and visit the shrines and temples around town. I guess it’s their form of a debut, quinceanera – a coming out of sorts. Everywhere I turned, a beautiful girl in a kimono would walk by. I was hooked! I chatted up a few and took photos with them. Knowing that wasn’t gonna go anywhere, I decided to pay more attention to the sites, and what better place to take it all in than Kyoto! That lasted for a good while until an episode with three girls who asked me to take their photo. We kept running into them as we exited the temple and went into the shops right outside. Some banter exchange went on and found out the one I was interested in is actually Chinese and from Australia.

9. Getting invited into a Japanese kitchen in Osaka. Chef’s are quite protective of their kitchens. It’s their space, their sanctuary. To be invited into the kitchen at a restaurant, in my opinion, is almost as personal as being invited to their home. So when the chef invited me into the kitchen after our dinner in Osaka, the best meal that I had during the trip, I was extremely honored. We were taking photos of everything, trying to hold on to every last bit of memory from that experience, and I wanted a picture with the three masterful chefs when the head chef invited me into the kitchen! It was a tight galley and frankly, I couldn’t believe all our food came from that tiny space.

8. No sleepless nights in the tatami room. Having traveled quite a bit in the last two years and jumping from hostel to hostel or crashing with friends, and sometimes when I’m lucky (or tired of being dirty) an occasional five-star hotel, I definitely know how valuable it is to catch a good night’s sleep. Hotel Aono was exactly what I needed for Japan! I had the tatami room to myself and it was absolutely amazing. To feel the woven tatami mats under my feet after walking all day and crawl into that warm and soft futon was nothing short of heavenly. It felt like I was staying in a Westin heavenly bed, but more traditional and that’s the good thing about it! Thanks to my amazing hosts, I now want a tatami room in my own home down the road!

7. Zooming by 4 seasons on the Shinkansen. It was a cold, crisp morning in Kamakura. We left before the sun was up and we were taking the shinkansen, the bullet train, from Yokohama to Kyoto. It turned an otherwise 5-6 hour drive to a 2 hour train ride. It was like going on a flight, except there were no security lines to go through with your shoes of, and about a 10 min transfer from the local train. The seats were comfortable, with large windows and there was a train steward that sold snacks and drinks. No need to purchase anything as I brought my own green tea and octopus. As we zoomed on by from Yokohama to Kyoto, we got to see a lot of different landscapes. Although, it was a bit cloudy and we missed Fuji-san. The crisp winter day, turned rainy within a matter of minutes and as we approached Nagoya, it began to snow and the snow covered hills started coming into view. As we approached Kyoto, it started to get sunnier again outside and we walked out to a “warm” city. Two hours … 4 seasons … and not a minute late. Why can’t we have such efficient and reliable transportation in the US?!?!

6. Eating at a Kaiten-zushi. Kaiten-zushi are sushi restaurants where sushi are presented on little plates that go on a conveyor belt (or as I’ve learned, train tracks in Australia, aka the sushi train), passing through bar seating and tables. We were sat at a table and the sushi just kept on coming. Ika, unagi, saba, tuna, salmon, etc. … we just kept on plucking away. No plates are taken away after consumption as that is how they tally your bill, by counting the number of plates and different kind of plates you have devoured. I don’t quite remember how many plates we took, I think it was somewhere around the ballpark of 30 or so. In any case, we were stuffed. This was the only meal I had in Japan that involved sushi. There’s so much more to their cuisine but it was really good sushi. I am now addicted to saba.

Top 15 Moments in Japan (Part I)

This is the first in a three-part series countdown of my Top 15 moments in Japan; a look back at some of the funniest, unique, and treasured moments I could only experience in Nippon! My account may not be able to do them justice but I will try my best.

15. Shopping for a shaver. Only in Japan can you find six or seven floors of pure electronics! The options were endless but I really wasn't in the market for anything in particular. Daigo-san, Hiro's friend who met up with us, just recently landed a new corporate gig and wanted to check out some electronic shavers so he can look clean-cut every morning. So off we went to the first floor, leaving Hiro to fend for himself in espresso machine land where he would was eventually assaulted by a two year old girl. The selection was quite extensive. Daigo inquired with the salesperson behind the wall display. We could only see him from the nose-up. He blurted something in Japanese and recommended an $80 shaver. It was my turn and I asked Daigo to ask on my behalf what he would recommend. After having not shaved since leaving the US, my beard was pretty thick. From behind the display wall, eyes open wide and in a sharp tone, the salesman exclaimed something in Japanese, eliciting a huge laugh from Daigo. It didn't take long for me to realize he was pointing to the big gun ... the top of the line shaver that looked more like a transformer than anything else. Eight blades and the size of my two fists, combined, the decepticon shaver cost over $400!!! It was big enough to shave my entire face in one or two swoops. We had a good laugh about it but I thought I'd save my money for the duty free shop ... or maybe I just decided to stick to my old school gilette razor.

14. Encounters with familiar art in an unfamiliar place. This one is for Liz! One of the very first people I've ever met up with abroad, Liz took the train into London from Leicester and accompanied me to the Tate Museum in November of 2007. Outside was one of Louis Bourgeois' creations, Maman. Liz commented on how she's encountered these spiders multiple times and gets that eerie creepy feeling. Fast forward to Japan in 2010. Walking through Roponggi Hills, I was surprised to run underneath one large spider. Pretty impressive to have such large artwork by one artist spreadout across the globe. No pictures of me poking the eggs this time around...

13. People watching on the subway. It was my last night in Japan, and after seven days of train and subway use, the experience remained a novelty. For one, the trains were always "on time" , although I remember the shinkansen being a minute behind at one point. Aside from the timeliness, the train culture is quite different from the US. The silence within the train cars were deafening at times. Though I was using my inside voice, I always felt like I was an obnoxious yank yelling at the top of my lungs at a bar on a Friday night. I was secretly waiting to see some semblance of disorder ... mischief. After running through Tokyo to catch the last train back to Kamakura, a drunken business man stumbled onto our end of the train. He was a goner. Eyes rolling, asian glow at 100% and non-stop movement from side to side and front to back. One hand was clutching onto his briefcase and the other was desperately trying to open the door into the conductor's cab. I was amused and so was everyone else. Amusement turned to awe  and into worry when the man started balancing himself as the train moved along the tracks half bent over. Was he going to hurl? fall over? or worse ... hurl and fall over on me? Despite his drunkenness, he managed to get off at one of the stations without asking where he was. Was that his stop? I'm not sure.

12. Crossing the world's busiest crosswalk. You've probably already seen it. Perhaps, not in person, but you've most likely already seen it. It's been in a number of ads especially those for communications, networking or something about time. Shibuya crossing is the world's busiest crosswalk. Everyone pours in from all directions in this massive intersection. Any hint of slight hesitation could mean getting separated from your party. I didn't even realize how busy it was when I first crossed it until I saw it from above. I think the trick is to just walk with purpose and confidence ... much like a freight train. Because, in all reality, who would want to walk across the path of a freight train?

11. Flowing with the masses at the train stations. Coming from Boston and the frustration I have with the T, you can understand how I would be extremely impressed by the Japanese train system. What do you mean by I can actually look at the schedule and expect it to be correct? You actually know how long until the next train comes? That's too much to expect, no? Apparently not! The Japanese people are highly dependent on their public transpo system to get them around. It was pretty evident why they would depend on it. Mainly because it's dependable but frankly, it was probably the easiest way to get around. There seemed to be train stations everywhere, especially in Tokyo. And every train station is busy! But it was orderly and everything flowed.

Kore wa oishii desu!

Everyone knows I take a ridiculous amount of photos. For every shot I post … I probably have at least five shots of the same thing, if not more. In my defense, sometimes you just have to find that difference in lighting and angle.

Two days ago, I got a message from Kevin, Hiro’s former cycling teammate who met  up with us in Japan. He had been traveling recently and apparently took one too many photos of his food – enough to have left an impression on his friend who later forwarded an article from the New York Times; First Camera, Then Fork. Perhaps I’m not such an oddball after all … well that’s highly debatable.

Everyone is doing it. What you may ask?! Taking photos of their food. More and more people are not just taking photos of their food when they travel, but actually taking pictures of everything they ingest. From grilled cheese sandwiches to your good ol’ hamburger, everything seems to be photo worthy.

After reading through it, I was inspired to look through the food portraits I took on my eight day jaunt in the land of the rising sun.  In all, I took around 100 food photos … don’t worry, I didn’t post them all.

  

How do you deal with Asian squat toilets?!

Checking out the travel section of the NY Times has undoubtedly become one of my routines. The In Transit section and the Frugal Traveler  provide some of the more interesting stories and perhaps the most useful tips whilst traveling. Today's In Transit section had me linked through to Budgettravel.com where I ran across this article: Q&A: An around-the-world trip, minus the plane.

Interesting ...

I read on through the interview and sure enough, there were some pretty unconventional ways of getting around - I'll let you guys know if I manage to hitchhike from Singapore to Australia ... on a freighter. Seth Stevenson's account of his journey can be found in his book, Grounded: A Down to Earth Journey Around the World (pictured here).

I would start with the interview first on Budgettravel.com ...  Here's my favorite part:

Q: What surprised you most about the trip?
A: Once you become accustomed to living out of a backpack, it's amazing how little you miss the possessions you left back home. We'd put some things in storage, and at one point I realized I wouldn't care one bit if all those objects burnt to ash and blew away.
Also, before you go: You might want to have a game plan—or at least be emotionally prepared—for dealing with Asian squat toilets.

Why do we travel?!

"Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime." - Mark Twain

One of the first photos I ever took along my travels.