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SUNSET OVER TOKYO

HOME AGAIN!

Well, all good things have to come to an end and we arrived home on Saturday evening … weary but happy travellers.  We spent our last couple of days in Japan at Nikko where there are a series of fabulously decorated shrines, including a frieze with the original three wise monkeys.  Nikko is in the foothills of the mountains.  The weather continued cold and we had very heavy snow one afternoon.

We spent our very last day in Tokyo buying all the little bits we wanted to bring home.  It fulfilled our every expectation – busy, noisy, crowded and exhausting.

We were very lucky to be offered an upgrade by BA so we had a very comfortable flight home – a very uneventful journey.  And, as every good travel show should end with a sunset, here’s one over Tokyo taken from the 45th floor of the Tokyo Metropolitan City Builidng.

SNOW & MONKEYS!

After leaving Kyoto we travelled up into the mountains to a lovely old town called Takayama.  We were quite high and the temperature was noticeably cooler than previously.  The flowers are about a month behind those we saw in Osaka and Kyoto.

We stayed at an old Japanese inn, known as a ryokan.  It was next to the river and we had a room overlooking the river and the early morning market, which we visited this morning before we left.

Takayama is close to an area known as the Japanese Alps, and we could see snow covered mountains from the town.  Today we travelled by bus to Matsumoto.  The bus climbed high into the mountains as it left Takayama and we were soon above the snow line.  The road was quite clear but the snow at the side of the road was several inches deep.  The scenery was very beautiful, as the road wound its way up and then down the other side.  We crossed a dam and went through many tunnels.  Along the way we saw two snow monkeys.  One crossed the road in front of the bus and the other was sitting by the side of the road.  Nobody else on the bus got excited about them so we assume they are not uncommon, but it was a very special sighting for us.

CHERRY BLOSSOM TIME IN KYOTO

After leaving Osaka, Steve and I travelled to Koya-san which is the home of Japanese Shingun Buddhism.  It’s regarded by Japanese Buddhists as a very holy place because the founder of Shingun Buddhism is buried there in a state of eternal meditation.  To reach Koya-san we travelled on a mountain train that wound its way up the mountains, which are wooded with streams and waterfalls, to the terminus and then we transferred to a cable car!  We stayed in ‘temple lodgings’ – a simple hotel run by Buddhist monks.  It was remarkably peaceful and relaxing after the hustle of Tokyo and Osaka.  We visited the various temples and shrines, as well as the massive cemetery where the founder is buried.  We also went for a walk through the woods along the path that women pilgrims used to have to take in the days before they were allowed to enter the town.

Then we came back to the real world and are now in Kyoto.  We met up with Megan and Antony for a guided walk through the Geisha district on Weds evening, and were lucky to see several ‘maiko’ on their way to work.  Yesterday the four of us had a guide for the day who took us to the Rock Garden Temple, the Golden Temple and the Heian Shrine with its meditation gardens – and finally to the food market where we saw all manner of food … turtles, sparrows ….  It was a fascinating, though exhausting, day.  We learned a lot from our guide who went out of her way to give us as much information as she could.

And the cherry blossom is coming out so Japan is becoming frenzied!!  We weren’t anticipating seeing the cherry blossom but it’s out early because of the mild winter, so this is a special treat for us.  It:s a very big deal for the Japanese.  There are cherry blossom festivals, and on Wednesday we came across a big party underneath a tree, where they were giving out free sake!  You can get pickled cherry blossom flowers, cherry blossom ice cream (which is quite delicious) and cherry blossom tea (which isn’t!).  Today we’ve been on the train and the hillsides are turning pink – it really looks stunning!

THE WEDDING HITS THE HEADLINES (& AN EARTHQUAKE!)

This morning there was a report about the wedding in the local newspaper.  The municipality had asked Matthew and Naomi if they could film the wedding for their publicity.  They wanted to record a traditional Japanese wedding.  Then, it seems, they discovered that this traditional Japanese wedding included a foreigner.  Matthew is the first foreigner to have been married at the castle at Kishiwada, and the result was that there was a lot of local interest.  There were TV cameras and reporters at the wedding!

I’ll try to describe the wedding, though it won’t be easy.  We firstly gathered at a typical old Japanese house with tea garden.  Matthew and Naomi were already there preparing.  Matthew was dressed in his hakama, and Naomi was being dressed in her kimono together with traditional hair style and head piece, and make up.  As the time for the wedding drew near, we were taken to the bridge over the moat at the entrance to the castle (Steve was pleased because he saw turtles in the moat).  The first chery blossoms are just coming out.  Matthew and Naomi arrived at the bridge in a rickshaw.  We walked in a slow procession over the bridge and up the steep path to the door to the castle.  The procession was led by a flute player, followed by Matthew and Naomi, then Steve and Naomi’s nephew Koudai who carried traditional lanterns, then the rest of us walking slowly.  At the door to the castle Matthew and Naomi stood to one side while we walked past and up the stairs.  The ceremony took place on top floor of the castle.  It was quite a short ceremony with some speeches and the exchanging of vows and some sake tasting for the bride and groom.  Then Matthew and Naomi went out on to the balcony of the castle while we all went back downstairs and they waved to us.  Then lots of photos and they were taken back to the house by rickshaw.

Later, in the evening, we went into Osaka for a very happy and jolly party with more friends and family.  There were lots of formal and informal speeches, and a very delicious meal.  Afterwards, the young people went to the Big Wheel (one of the biggest in the world) while we came back to Naomi’s parents house and had a long conversation about places of interest in Kyoto (which we will visit later)

This morning, soon after we got up, there was an earthquake.  It was quite a big quake but its centre was off the coast of Nagano which is quite a long way away.  We just felt the smaller effects at the edge of the quake.  It was a very strange experience!

AT THE PARTY

AFTER THE CEREMONY

BEFORE THE WEDDING

MATTHEW & NAOMI’S WEDDING

We have had a very lovely day today celebrating Matthew and Naomi’s wedding.  You can see the castle where the wedding took place here http://www.city.kishiwada.osaka.jp/hp/kankou/1-jisya-bukkaku/1-09-kisiwadajyou.htm.  It’s now late in the evening and we are very tired, but here are a couple of photos too

MOUNT FUJI FROM THE TRAIN