We have been in Tokyo but a few hours. First stop: a ramen shop where you buy your meal ticket from a machine, enter a private booth, indicate your preferences (richness, spiciness, noodle firmness, etc.), and hand it to a man behind a curtain. Result? Delicious.
We
have been back home for about a month now, settling into our regular
life in Boston. Benny is back at work, and Ali is getting ready to
start graduate school in the fall at Boston College. This past
weekend we went to Madison,
Wisconsin to visit our niece Ella, who is a little over a month old. She is
beautiful, energetic, and oodles of fun, and gives us another reason
to be back in the US, close to family and friends.
We
are still enjoying reliving our travels, and in that spirit bring you
the Best of (and Worst of) Frugal Moon.
Enjoy.
Places
Best Country -- Japan: What can we
say about Japan that we haven't said already? We loved the
food, loved the sights, and loved the overall feel of the country.
The tra
nsportation network is second to none, and the people are
warm and welcoming. And to top it all off, we discovered that
the myth of Japan being an expensive country for tourists really is just a myth. A couple traveling on a budget can get by on
$100/day, including accomodation, local transportation, and food.
Best Big City -- Tokyo, Japan: If you've been reading our blog (or the paragraph above!) this shouldn't surprise you. Wonderful parks, loads of cheap restaurants, great budget hotels, awesome subway system, towering modern skyscrapers -- and the serene Kamakura with its spectacular temples and shrines is only a day trip away.
Best Small City -- Matsumoto, Japan (Alison): Its wonderful castle -- one of the best in Japan -- would be enough to put it on any traveler's map (and the ginormous carp that live in the surrounding moat provide immense amounts of entertainment!). But on top of that, the surrounding town is picteresque, has wonderful restaurants and shops -- and the world's best ice cream shop. We were also lucky enough to visit the town with our friend and local guide Mary, who lives in nearby Okaya.
Best Small City -- Santiago de Compostela, Spain (Benny): Who says we have to agree on everything? Santiago, in Northwest Spain, is a wonderful and enchanting small city, with one of the most unusual -- and most visited -- cathedrals in all of Europe. And although the city is firmly entrenched as a sightseeing destination, it manages to retain its charm.
Best Town/Village -- Erice, Sicily: Although it was at the very beginning of our trip, Erice remains in our memories as truly unforgettable. Its narrow cobblestone streets are etched in our minds, and it had wonderful views from its hilltop perch. Not to be missed by anyone who happens to be near Palermo.
Best Park -- English Gardens, Munich, Germany: This was another unexpected treat for us. Munich was a late addition to our travels, but the perfect weather inspired us to spend several hours walking and biking through one of the largest urban parks in the world. Too add to its appeal, when you need a break from walking you can sit down in one of its many beer gardens to enjoy a cold liter or two of beer.
Best Hike -- Pigeon Valley, Goreme to Usichar, Turkey: This hike was absolutely magical,in the Cappadocia region of central Turkey.
Best Ruins -- Valley of the Temples, Agrigento, Sicily: Some people go to Greece to see Greek ruins. And, well, some people go to Sicily. This series of temples and monuments is perfectly preserved, and is an especially memorable sight around sunset.
Best Volcanic Site -- Vulcano, Lipari Islands, Sicily:
Although the volcanic cliffs of Santorini and the towering majesty of
Mt. Etna may be more famous, hiking up the small volcano and peering
into its smoking crater was an incredible experience. Of
course, it's always more
fun doing things with your sibling
and sibling-
in-law!
Best Religious Cave Site -- Ellora Caves, Ellora, India: To those of you who are wondering what this category is all about -- yes, we saw more than one religious cave site. Composed of Buddhist, Jain, and Hindu caves carved out of black rock, the caves are spectacular, and it can easily take a day to visit the nearly 30 caves. Our favorite was the Buddhist cave with the "wood beam" ceiling that was in actuality carved out of rock.
Accommodations
Best Luxury Hotel -- Renaissance
Marriott, Mumbai, India: the only truly luxury place we stayed
in, it was a wonderful stopover on our marathon, multi-day journey
from Tokyo to London. The buffet breakfast was delicious --
fresh fruit that we could actually eat! -- and the mattress was super
comfy.
Best Budget Hotels -- Kimi Ryokan, Tokyo, Japan; Elif Star Caves, Goreme, Turkey (tie): :Let's be honest here -- were it not for the generosity of someone who shall go unnamed, the Marriott would not have been on our list. Kimi Ryokan, in the Ikebukoro neighborhood of Tokyo, was awesome. A traditional Japanese inn, the rooms had tatami mats and futons and big fluffy blankets. And nothing beat using the traditional cypress bath. Elif Star Caves was a small pension carved into the cliffside in Goreme. The room was comfortable and romantic, with a nice view of the valley, and the bathroom was absolutely enormous. The owner -- a chef -- cooked up a wonderful breakfast every morning, and provided lots of useful information on local sights and transportation options.
Worst Hotel -- Johnson's the Nest, Alleppy, Kerala, India: Don't listen to what your guidebooks say about this place. Despite receiving favorable reviews in both Lonely Planet and Rough Guide, this place is a dump. Although the owner is nice enough, the shack we were given out back was dark, noisy, buggy, and overall really uncomfortable and unpleasant to stay in.
Food
Fans of our blog (do they even exist?)
are probably wondering why we didn't put this category higher up.
Well, that's because we were hoping you would get bored by this
point and skip it over, thus not noticing how much we've eaten on
this trip! But for those of you who are reading....
Best Fine Dining -- Oxo Tower Restaurant, London, England;
Sushi with the Enomotos, Tokyo (tie): Thanks to our friends in
Boston (Dave and Jessie), we had a wonderful lunch at this swanky
spot overlooking the River Thames. It was a three course
extravaganza (with cocktails to start, of course). Although we
don't know the name of the restaurant, our k
ind hosts in Tokyo (the
Enomoto family) treated us to a wonderful sushi dinner our last night
in Tokyo. The fish was fresher than fresh. Basically, if
you haven't had sushi in Japan, you haven't had sushi. And what
Benny wouldn't give for another piece of ankimo.
Best Restaurant in Our Budget -- Tanjoor, Aurangabad, India: Surprisingly, Aurangabad -- a small, rather nondescript city several hours east of Mumbai -- was full of culinary delights, this choice among them. The black dahl (lentils), veggies, and naan bread were all superb. And the whole meal came to around $7.
Best "Soup as a Meal" Meal -- Santoka, Kyoto, Japan (Benny); Seibu Department Store Restaurant, 8th Floor, Tokyo, Japan (Alison): We have a friend who insists, quite firmly at times, that "soup is not a meal." Our time in Japan shatters this proposition to pieces. As for Benny, his favorite by far was Santoka in K yoto, where he enjoyed ramen with tender (so, so, so, so, so tender!) pork cheeks (did we say tender?) It was absolutely stupendous -- probably one of the 10 best things he has ever eaten. Ali's favorite was tempure udon served in a noodle shop on the 8th Floor of the Seibu Department Store near Ikebukoro Station in Tokyo.
Best Street Snack -- simit, Turkey: You could call it a toasted sesame coated bagel or pretzel, but if you did you would be shortchanging one of the the world's greatest street snacks. Costing around $0.35, these healthy, crispy, moist, delicious treats formed the backbone of our Turkish snacking (it should be noted, however, that snacking is an entirely different activity from a meal, and oftentimes takes place several times a day).
Best Sandwich -- doner kebab, Turkey: We're not sure why,
but the Turks sure have a knack for producing cheap and healthy
s
treet food. Doner kebabs follow
in this enviable tradition --
tasty bread (pita or french style baguette type bread) filled with
lean chicken or lamb roasted on a rotating spit, tomato, lettuce,
yogurt sauce, and chili. Man, we could use one right now!
Best Salad -- Greek salad, Greece: fresh tomatoes, cool cucumbers, mild onion, and tangy feta. Delicious.
Best Restaurant Ambiance -- Goreme Restaurant, Goreme, Turkey: this small, quiet, and intimate restaurant had great food at reasonable prices and live music every night. Low tables and cushioned floor seats were comfortable and romantic.
Best Pizza -- White Pizza, Rome, Italy (Alison); Turkish pizza, Usichar, Turkey (Benny): Ali's favorite from Rome was a tasty concoction sans tomato, and with flavorful spices, cheese, and garlic. The Turkish pizza lacked cheese, but the spiced meat and fresh lemon was light and made a great snack.
Best Beer -- Pivovarsky Dum, Prague, Czech Republic: Wow! -- we never knew that beer could be this good. Both the dark and light beers had the perfect amount of carbonation – not too filling – and neither was too bitter or too sweet.
Best Ice Cream -- Matsumoto, Japan; Rome, Italy (tie): Folks may be surprised to see Japanese ice cream as one of our favorites, but the ice cream from Matsumoto was something special, with a perfect texture and flavor (strawberry, milk, and sweet potato flavors). And we're still singing the praises of the rice and pine nut flavors from Rome.
Most Special Dining Experience -- Ma
uritzo's, Vulcano, Sicily,
Italy: the food we had here
may not have been the best of our trip (although it was excellent).
The
real pleasure here was the personal service provided by Mauritzo,
with wonderful explanations of each dish, and heavenly homemade bread.
Best Coffee -- Italy: the Italian coffee was second to none. But what made it extra special was the price – a coffee at a bar could routinely be enjoyed for around $1.
Worst Coffee -- Japan: We loved everything – and we mean everything – in Japan, except for the coffee, which was weak and flavorless. But hey, no country is perfect.
Best Tea -- Chai, India: the chai in India was awesome – super sweet and milky, it was great with breakfast or for an afternoon pick me up.
Best Breakfast -- masala dosa & chai, India (Benny); wheat porridge cylinder stuff, Varkala, India (Alison): We were split on best breakfast (although both were Indian). Benny was partial to masala dosas – crispy pancakes made out of fermented rice flour batter, filled with spicy potatoes and onions, and served with chutneys (especially delicious with chai!) Ali was a huge fan of the wheat porridge cylider stuff. We have no idea what it is called, but it is wheat and coconut steamed in a tube, then served with banana, milk, and honey, and mashed together to make a sweet yet light breakfast.
Best Fish -- Trattoria Cavallero, Catania, Sicily: we can't remember the name of the fish, but man was it good. The whole fish was baked in salt, and it was sweet and flaky.
Best non-Caffeinated/non-Alcoholic beverage -- ayran, Turkey: A drink made of water and yogurt was cool and refreshing, and went perfectly with a kebab.
Transportation
We
can't forget that traveling would be impossible without
transportation, whether it be planes, trains, bikes, or boats.
Sometimes we got places on time, and in comfort, and
sometimes....well, not so much.
Best Long Haul
Flight -- Air India, Tokyo to Mumbai:
It probably had to do with the fact that we were on a 747 that was
only 30% full, but regardless, this was a great flight. We each got
to spread out over several seats, and the traditional Indian meals
were delicious. Bonus? Bollywood for inflight entertainment!
Worst
Long Haul Flight -- British Airways, London to Mumbai:
This flight wouldn't have been that bad – BA has nice planes and
decent service – were we not woken up in the middle of the flight
by an announcement that our oxygen masks would soon be dropping.
They didn't. The experience was a scary one, especially because it
took the staff a while to tell us that it was a system error.
Whoops.
Best Train System -- Japan Rail:
There is no competition here. High speed rail. On time.
Nationwide. Affordable. Clean and comfortable. Nuff said.
Best
Overnight Trip -- Hellenic Rail from Thessaloniki to Istanbul:
Sure, the 1970s French railcars were a bit dated, but the retro style
was part of the appeal of this 14 hour train ride. We had a private
cabin with comfortable beds, and the border crossing went smoothly
(relatively speaking).
Worst Overnight Trip -- Bus
from Prague to Munich: Not
much to say except that this option should be avoided -- too short to
get any sleep, too many stops, and noisy.
Best
Aquatic Transportation -- Blue Star Ferries, Greece:
Besides the awesome private submarine that we rode around in for a
few days, this was the best aquatic transportation of our trip (oh
yeah, we were kidding about that submarine....or were we?) The
ferries were luxurious yet affordable, with comfortable seats and
nice facilities, including DVD rentals and several restaurants.
Most
Walkable City -- Tokyo, Japan & Paris, France (tie):
Tokyo may have been huge, but it was surprisingly easy to walk
around, with wide sidewalks and great pedestrian design. Paris was
equally easy to walk, with every street and narrow alley containing
architectural gems.
Best Metro System -- Paris,
France: the Paris Metro and
RER (commuter rail) go everywhere, and it seems like there is a
station on every block. The only drawback? A lack of air
conditioning makes some rides oppressively hot.
Well, that's all for now folks. Of course there are plenty of more things we could write, but we'll keep it to this for now. If any of you have questions about the places we visited, please feel free to get in touch with us. Our experience was amazing, and we would love to share any tips that we have. And we'll be doing additional postings every once in a while to keep in touch.
After our wonderful time in Nagano-ken, we headed south to Kyoto -- one of the top tourist destinations in Japan -- and then to Kyushu, the southernmost of the major Japanese islands (where we are now). We are continuing to have a wonderful time, but unfortunately a pretty nasty flu hit both of us at the same time, so we had to slow down our travels for several days.
Kyoto
Kyoto is one of the most visited cities in Japan. When we arrived at the train station, we were not immediately taken away by the city's beauty. On the surface, Kyoto is like many large Japanese cities -- new, modern, and clean, but lacking character. However, one we wandered the streets of Kyoto, visiting the many temples and shrines, we began to realize why Kyoto is such a big draw. Although we managed to see quite a bit here, our sickness kicked in upon arrival, so we weren't able to see as much as we would have liked.
We first visited Higashi Hongan-ji, a Buddhist temple that we rebuilt in 1895 after a fire. We also visited Nishi Hongan-ji, another Buddhist temple in downtown Kyoto. But perhaps the most spectacular sight that we visited in Kyoto was Fushimi-Inari Taisha Shinto shrine, on the outskirts of the city, which was dedicated to the gods of rice and sake. For those of you who may be unfamiliar with Shintoism, it is the native religion of Japan, and involves the worship of gods, which can represent a place or object (thanks, Wikipedia). The most beautiful aspect of the shrine complex is the thousands of orange gates, or torii, which line the pathways. This video really gives you a sense of what it is like to be there (as always, if you are reading this over e-mail you need to go to the website to see the video):
Another highlight of Kyoto was the Nishiki Market (thanks, Seth!), where we saw some of the more unusual -- and expensive -- items available for purchase in Japan, like these $100 strawberries (suffice it to say, we did not buy any). Also, Benny enjoyed one of his more delicious meals thus far in Kyoto, indulging in some ramen with tender pork cheeks at a really nice ramen shop called Santoka -- highly recommended if any of you reading this ever end up in Kyoto. And of course, no visit to Kyoto would be complete without a visit to the stunning Kinkaku-ji, famously known as the Golden Temple.
We also took a day trip to Osaka to see the Hanshin (Osaka) Tigers face off against the Yomuri (Tokyo) Giants in a spring training baseball game. Clearly, the Tigers were outmatched in this game, but the on the field play aside, what made the game so interesting is what was going on in the stands. Unlike an American sporting event, where cheers and chants from the crowd are somewhat spontaneous, there was staff on hand to coordinate the appropriate cheers for the appropriate moment in the game. It was interesting to see, and it was definitely a change from an American baseball game. Here is a bit of video footage from the game:
Hiroshima
From Kyoto, we moved onto Hiroshima, which is of course most famous for being the first city on which an atomic bomb was used. Yet despite this sad history, Hiroshima was a vibrant, fun, and engaging city, with nice neighborhoods, good restaurants, and friendly people. At the
center of the city is the A-Bomb Dome -- pictured right -- and the Peace Memorial Park. The former was the Hiroshima Industrial Promotional Hall before the bomb exploded right above it. The Peace Memorial Park, across the river from the Dome, contains numerous memorials and a museum. We found a couple things about the museum and memorials quite impressive. First, it would be understandable and expected that the museum would memorialize all those who perished in the bombing. But the people of Hiroshima decided that simply memorializing is not enough, and consequently the primary mission of the museum and memorials examine the causes of all armed conflict. Particular attention is given the current status of nuclear proliferation throughout the world. Secondly, we found that the exhibits in the museum were incredibly fair and even handed. The museum explored WWII and the events preceding it from a perspective that was critical of all those involved -- Americans, Europeans, Japanese, and others.
Beppu
From out sobering visit in Hiroshima, we then went to Beppu, in northern Kyushu. Beppu itself is a spa town, full of onsen, or Japanese hot spring baths. Beppu is also famous for The Hells, hot springs which are too hot for bathing, and are decorated in a variety of themes, most of them quite cheesy, and frankly, not really worth the time, effort, or money of visiting.
Kagoshima
Kagoshima, the largest city in southern Kyushu, was our next stop. Kagoshima stands in the shadow of Sakurajima, a huge volcano which has erupted in the not too distant past. The city is so close to the volcano that the city is often covered in a fine layer of volcanic ash (although we did not experience this ourselves). Also, Kagoshima is known for its fine weather, but except for our first full day (pictured here), we had the absolute worst weather of our travels in Kagoshima, with near constant rain the last two days. Still, we did manage to see some great sights. We spent one afternoon at the Kagoshima City Aquarium, where we saw the world's largest species of crab, some neat jellyfish, and a whale shark. On our last day in Kagoshima, we took a ferry to the base of Sakurajima, and enjoyed a relaxing afternoon at an onsen.
Fukuoka/Hakata
Today we arrived in Fukuoka/Hakata, the largest city in Kyushu. So far, we have really enjoyed ourselves, and have visited some wonderful sights. The Fukuoka Asian Art Museum had a wonderful collection of contemporary art, which was a nice break from more traditional forms that we have seen on our travels, and we also saw the largest wooden Buddha in Japan at Tocho-ji. Fukuoka/Hakata is also known for its ramen, so we enjoyed a delicious dinner at Ichiran, a famous ramen shop where you can specify the fat content, noodle firmness, and other characteristics of your ramen noodle soup.
But of course, what is Japan in the springtime without blossoms? On a stop at Shofuku-ji, a zen Buddhist temple founded in 1195 by the man who brought green tea to Japan, we finally saw some more of the blossoms that we had been longing to see since Tokyo.
Next Stop -- Osaka (and sumo?)
With our time in Japan (sadly) winding down, tomorrow we head to Osaka, where we are hoping to get lucky and snag some tickets to the spring sumo wrestling tournament (which we have been enjoying on TV).
Note: for those of you who are receiving this via e-mail, you need to go to the website to view videos.
Last Night in Tokyo
Our last night night in Tokyo the Enomoto family took us out for a fantastic sushi dinner. We can't emphasize enough how delicious it was. It was also amazingly fresh -- every twenty minutes or so the chef would take a fish out of the tank, kill it in front of the customers, and cut it into sashimi or make it into a sushi roll. Once it was made they would ring a bell and call out what it was, and the customers in the restaurant would raised their hands to try to be the first to try it. Benny especially enjoyed the ankimo, or monkfish liver sushi.
That night Harue also helped Alison try on a Kimono. Ali discovered that it is quite a long process to put on a Kimono. It involved special undergarment, two layers of robe, and about four belts tied and adjusted just so. Wearing a kimono certainly helps you have good posture, but it is difficult to take deep breaths and we are sure that eating a big meal and wearing a kimono do not go together since the belts fit quite tightly.
Nikko
After Tokyo, we headed to Nikko, a small town north of Tokyo which houses several world heritage sights. Nikko is a big tourist destination, but it was really quiet during our visit there -- probably since it was a weekday in the winter. It was a cold and wet day, but we still managed to walk all around and see many shrines and temples, including this beautiful bell. The temples and shrines are all set along the mountainside and within a forest so it was very peaceful and beautiful surroundings.
Nagano-ken
March 6th
From Nikko we went to Okaya, a small city in the region of Nagano-ken, where we stayed with Mary, a friend of Ali's aunt Marilyn from upstate New York. Mary has lived in Japan for about 30 years. Staying at her place in Okaya, Nagano-ken (the region of Japan famous for its mountains, and for hosting the 1998 Winter Olympics) provided us with a wonderful base to see some spectacular sights.
The ride to Okaya took us through gorgeous snow capped mountains and away from the warmer weather of Tokyo. Nagano-ken, since it is in the what are known as the Japanese Alps, is much cooler, around 6 degrees Celsius in the day and below zero Celsius at night. Okaya, Mary explained, is called the bellybutton of Japan and is in the middle of Nagano-ken on the edge of a large lake.
During our first day in Okaya Mary took us to see one of the local temples. There are four temples in town, and the temple we saw was called the Fall (as in the season) Temple. Mary told us about a local festival held every six years where men ride rolling logs down a hillside. She said that several people had been crushed by the logs which are basically whole trees!
Mary also took us to her family's cemetery, and we learned about some of the associated traditions. People in Japan are cremated, and while some ashes can be found in the cemetery people do not necessarily put ashes there. Rather there are stones with family names on them (sort of resembling gravestones in the US), and then on a family's 'plot' you will also see several large rocks. Mary told us that when someone dies a rock is placed on the 'plot,' where it will remain for 33 years (after that point the rock is removed). When visitors come to the cemetery they will fill a bucket with water and wash the stone with their family name on it. Upon leaving the cemetery visitors are supposed to wash their hands.
We also learned that within most Japanese homes people have small shrines dedicated to their ancestors. In the one in Mary's home they have a book which has all the names of people who have died in their family from the last 1000+ years. The names are listed on the date that they died and each day Mary will turn a page in the book to show the names of the ancestors who died on that day. Mary also explained that the names in the book are not the names given at birth to those who had passed away. When a person died, she told us, the Shinto priest will give that person a new name which will have one letter in common with the birth-name. Each morning the tradition is to place a fresh glass of water on the shrine, burn incense, ring a bell, and say a little thank-you or prayer to the ancestors. It is also common to place fresh flowers at the shrines, and to place food when eating meals.
March 7th
Our second day in Okaya we visited the home of a friend of Mary's named Matsuko where we had lunch with an English conversation group (Matsuko, Hiromi, and Eriko) that Mary has worked with and become friends with over the years. Matsuko first served us some beautiful and delicious Japanese sweets. They came from a sweet shop that was over 100 years old, and each sweet was symbolic of a flower or poem. Next we made sushi together. Matsuko, Hiromi, and Eriko showed us how to spread the rice properly on the seaweed, where to place the fillings, and how to roll the sushi using a special mat. We did well, except for our rolling was not quite as effortless as the rest in the group. Along with our sushi, Matsuko served a plate of several small edible delicacies -- shumai, a single cherry tomato, a slice of sweetened egg, and two sweet beans which were about an inch and a half in length.
On the way home from lunch we drove around the large lake and took a trip to the grocery store. Seeing grocery stores in other countries is truly one of the best ways to see some of the cultural or at least culinary differences. We saw snacks of dried scallops, a huge variety of mushrooms, all different sizes of squid, many types of dried fish, and several vegetables that we haven't seen before.
March 8th
We took the train to Nagano city, about a two hour ride from Okaya. We wandered around shops and visited the huge temple called Zenko-ji. Zenko-ji was founded in the 7th century and supposedly houses the first Buddhist image in Japan. You can't actually see the image, but the temple complex is still very impressive and beautiful. In one smaller temple we saw 3 monks performing a service which included chanting, drumming, ringing a bell, burning incense, and lighting a small fire. Right outside the temple complex, we passed a shop where they were hand making some fresh soba (buckwheat) noodles, and we were able to get a good video of this -- it is really quite impressive:
After visiting the temple we went to the M-Wave -- the large speed skating rink from the 1998 Winter Olympics. It was a little bit sad to see how quiet the large arena was, and how little it is used. It housed the Olympic museum and we seemed to be the only visitors. We watched a 3-D movie about the games and then walked around the small museum, the highlight of which was a bobsled simulator (a real bobsled placed in front of a video screen that showed a bobsled course from the athlete's point of view). On the way back to to Okaya at the Nagano train station we managed to get some -- uh, great -- footage of Japanese teenagers break dancing:
March 9th
Today we went with Mary to a really lovely town called Matsumoto. We began our day at another fantastic restaurant called Kura where Benny and Mary ate basashi, or raw horse meat (they say it is great). Benny & Mary basically discovered that they are culinary soul mates, enjoying such delicacies as fish cheeks, chicken hearts, and turkey necks. We also had sushi and great tempura.
Then we visited the Matsumoto-Jo castle. Built in 1595 it is one of the oldest castles in Japan that is still standing. Since they are made from wood, many of the other castles in the country have burned down. From outside Matsumoto-Jo appears to be 5 floors, though it actually has 6 floors. One floor has no windows, so it is invisible from the outside. This '
hidden' floor housed samurais who would be on call to fight in an attack.
Outside the castle is a moat where huge carp live. The carp surface to greedily eat bread crumbs fed to them by visitors. A few local Japanese men gave us bread to feed the fish and asked us where we were from. When we told them the US, they told us (in Japanese -- Mary translated) to "Say hello to Matsuzaka" (for those of you who are, sadly, not baseball fans, Daisuke Matsuzaka is the Red Sox newest addition, a 26 year-old pitcher who is considered the best Japanese pitcher).
After the castle we went to a small folklore museum which had small exhibits from the area's history, including traditional dolls, large wooden phalluses (somehow used in a local festival, the details of which are pretty foggy to us), and examples of toys and technology through the years (like crock pots, telephones, and calculators).
We will be sad to say good-bye to Mary tomorrow. It has been a lot of fun to stay with her, and we will miss her awesome home cooked Japanese meals. Thank you for everything Mary. But we are looking forward to our next destination -- Kyoto. Sayonara for now.
Tokyo & Kamakura
We are in love with Japan so far. Both of us have enjoyed it more than any other country we have visited. It may be a bit early to say this, but so far it seems that everything is just a little bit better: toast (its thick and delicious), toilets (high tech with tukkas washers built in and heated seats), trains (comprehensive, fast, smooth).
When we first arrived in Tokyo we were immediately impressed by how clean this country is. It is a megalopolis yet truly spotless -- a stark contrast from India. We were also impressed by the efficiency of everything. When we arrived at customs a long line was starting to form, and just as quickly as it had appeared several more customs workers came on duty to move people through more quickly. Then we took the train from airport to the city, and again were amazed at the efficiency of everything. On the train platform the place where the doors would be were marked. People neatly formed two lines at those spots, and then as the train pulled up (door lining up exactly with the platform marking) the two lines split to either side to allow passengers off the train. Then the two lines neatly filed onto the train. On the train itself there are electronic boards posting which stop you are currently at, how long it will take to get to the future stops, and when you arrive at a stop the board even shows which direction to walk for exits and transfers.
We checked into our hotel, Kimi Ryokan, a traditional Japanese inn. Our room had mats on a bamboo floor to sleep on, and there was a traditional Japanese cypress bathtub to bathe in. That first day we were pretty jet lagged so didn't see too much. We did visit one of the worlds largest department stores near our hotel and had lunch there. Department stores in Japan are a great place to eat because most have a floor with many restaurants. Most menus are in Japanese only so luckily most of the restaurants have displays of the (plastic) food in windows outside or picture menus. We have been doing a lot of guessing and pointing in order to order. Anyway, our first day we had a delicious meal at the department store of udon soup with tempura shrimp and vegetables. We also visited one of the worlds tallest escalators and saw a small art gallery with some really nice black and white traditional Japanese watercolors. Later that day we walked around an area of Tokyo called Shibuya. It is an area where many young people go to hang out. It has many shops and restaurants. It is loud in this part of town (many other areas of Tokyo seem very quiet for such a big city) and bright neon covers many buildings. We had dinner at a place with a picture menu, and were pleased to pay only $5 per person for a meal of rice, seafood or meat, miso soup and salad. Japan can actually be very affordable if you are careful and are willing to shop around.
Our second day we began with a visit to the Imperial Palace Gardens. We saw some beautiful plum blossoms, but otherwise the park did not have much in bloom since its winter. Next we explored an area called Ginza. It is an upscale shopping area that was very nice. We had lunch at a ramen restaurant -- counter space only. We arrived at 11:55 and it was pretty quiet. 10 minutes later the restaurant was completely filled with people on lunch break. All around us people in designer clothes loudly slurped up their noodles and quickly headed back to work. After Ginza we went to an area of Tokyo called Shinjuku. Like Shibuya it is like Times Square in New York but spread out over a much bigger area.
Our third day we began by visiting the huge fish market here (Tsukiji), the largest in Japan. It was a maze of stands selling every kind of seafood imaginable. We saw teeny octopus, whale meat, huge chunks of tuna, eels, and mussels bigger than our heads. The workers rushed around and you had to watch where you walked so as not to be splashed by the water from the bins and tanks that they pulled fish from. We then went to the Detached Palace Gardens, which were really lovely. We saw cherry and plum blossoms, many varieties of trees, and ponds. The garden was such a peaceful setting to wander around, and such an interesting contrast to the huge buildings all around it. From the garden we took a boat down the river to Asakusa (a part of Tokyo) where we visited the Senso-ji temple.
That night we went to stay with the Enomoto family (we met them through Benny's good friend Jeff who spent two summers teaching in Japan). They graciously invited us to stay with them in their home and our first night Harue cooked us a delicious traditional Japanese dinner called Sukiyaki. A large pot of broth is heated on the dining room table and you cook tofu, vegetables and beef in the mixture. Using your chopsticks you take out bites and dip them in egg to eat it.
They also took us to the beautiful city of Kamakura, about an hour south of Tokyo on the train. The city is filled with lots of beautiful shrines (lots of pictures in the photo album), and because it has been such a warm spring we managed to see several beautiful flowers already in bloom. We were also lucky enough to witness a traditional Japanese wedding, and a took a short video of it which we posted here:
We also posted some pictures from our last few days in India, which include Bangalore and Mumbai. Tomorrow we head to Nikko, a city couple of hours north of Tokyo that is also famous for its shrines and temples.
Note: we will be adding captions to the two new photo albums shortly, when we have a bit more time.
