Today was a free day. Proposal by the itinerary was to hike Yufuin Dake, with 1516 meters the highest mountain around Yufuin.
Of course I joined in for that – my destination was set: Yufuin Dake. It turned out a not too difficult or strenuous hike. I made it up to both summits of the mountain.
This morning we left Nagasaki and went on to Yufuin, a travel destination, domestically known for its hot springs.
To get to Yufuin we used the Yufuin No Mori Express, a special tourist train.
No mention of Yufuin is complete without an attempt to an introduction to Onsen:
Onsens are traditional, public Baths in Japan. They are part of many ryokans and usually follow the same approach. When one gets in, one gets rid of all clothes, these are put into a basket. Equipped only with a small (modesty) towel one enters the actual bath room (shared), takes a small chair and starts washing oneself. Once one feels clean, one can move over to the actual bath (which ideally is fed by a hot spring), the water may be very hot. After some soaking (duration really depends on the water temperature) one moves out, maybe takes a quick shower and finally dries oneself and changes into a yukata … and enjoys this clean, relaxed feeling.
This gallery contains 16 photos.
We left the ryokan this morning and took the tram up to peace park and the area where the explosion of the Nagasaki A-Bomb took place back in 1945. After the memorial we moved over to the museum, which gave … Continue reading
Today we left Kyoto – bound for Nagasaki – after about two hours journey on the shin-kansen we had a stop in Himeji – to visit Himeji castle and the attached gardens. Luggage was left in lockers at the station.
We continued to Nagasaki on a later train – and finally made it there in the late afternoon (after a crazy taxi ride, including a trip through a one-way street in the wrong direction). For dinner we went to do laundry, food was Korean, on the other side of the street from the laundry place and well timed to the wash and drying cycles. Afterward we went to what became the only drinking on this whole trip. We ended up in a bar with live music and had plenty of drinks and fun – essentially celebrating our freshly cleaned clothing 😉
This gallery contains 16 photos.
Today was our full day in Kyoto – covering the full monty … from the Golden Pavillion (or Rokuon-ji Temple) to the Ryoanji Temple with its stone garden and Ninnaji Temple. I left the group after lunch, as I was … Continue reading
This gallery contains 16 photos.
Today we left Takayama; the next destination being the cultural highlight of Kyoto In the afternoon we made it to the Fushima Inari Shrine; it took time to explore the shrine. After which we returned back to the center of … Continue reading
This gallery contains 20 photos.
Today started with a traditional Japanese breakfast – complete with traditional clothing. After breakfast we left for a walk around town … on another rainy day. We kicked it off with the “Festival of Floats” Museum, followed by a visit … Continue reading
Shin-kansen, the legendary Japanese high-speed train – known as bullet train in the US, standard speed of 300 km/h – and one of our main means of transport – below some impressions.
Also worth a mention: bento boxes … probably one of the quickest, cheapest and best ways to learn about local specialties in Japan. Bento boxes are virtually sold in all bigger train stations in Japan; they usually contain some local specialties, are conveniently packaged and comparably cheap (usually 800 to 1300 Yen or 5 to 8 Euros) – the perfect meal for a train trip. I had plenty of them … which finally gave me the nickname Bento Boy.
This gallery contains 4 photos.
Today we left Tokyo behind and proceeded into the Japanese Alps and the traditional town of Takayama and our first ryokan and onsen experience. The experience also included a traditional dinner: hida beef, grilled on a Magnolia leaf.
This gallery contains 20 photos.
We started this morning with a tour of Asakusa, after which we took the subway and train over to the main station (“Tokyo”). While Luke managed the railpass validation, we had the opportunity to walk down to the Imperial Palace … Continue reading