Just adding a few more picks. I'll update the info later.
Friday, September 24, 2010
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
September Holidays - Japan Journey
Pictures: (top to bottom) (1) Peace Momorial Gardens, Hiroshima.
(2) Deer 
on Miyajima Island (3) Melissa standing on a foot bridge, Miyajima Island.
on Miyajima Island (3) Melissa standing on a foot bridge, Miyajima Island.(4) and (5) The famous Torii Gate, Miyajima Island (6) and (7) Typical Japanese Transport (Street Cars and the Shinkansen Bullet Train). (8) Enjoying a cold Kirin pint while researching our next destination. (9) Osaka Castle (10) Typical Public Toilet (11) Hmmm.... Udon Noodles in Himeji
TERM 3 down, we decided to leave our cozy Cardwell Range bungalow and ventured out of outback Australia to ... Osaka, Japan!
We booked this trip long ago because Jetstar Airlines had an amazing deal ($375 per person return) out of Cairns and to meet up with the youngest of the Paquin brothers. Unfortunately, Marc-Andre' decided to relocate to Taiwan and was unavailable to join us on our Japanese journey.
Insert tear!
We booked this trip long ago because Jetstar Airlines had an amazing deal ($375 per person return) out of Cairns and to meet up with the youngest of the Paquin brothers. Unfortunately, Marc-Andre' decided to relocate to Taiwan and was unavailable to join us on our Japanese journey.
Insert tear!
Day 1 - We set out for Cairns and spent an evening with the McShea family and Bundaberg Rum. It was a good night to say the least. The Courthouse is a good spot for food & drink.
Day 2 - Our flight for Osaka, Japan departed at 12:20 and arrived at 7pm Japan time (1 hour behind Australia). Our 7 hour flight was uneventful and we arrived to very little spoken English and 1 hour wait through customs. We made it to the train station and ate our first udon noodle meal before finding our hotel in Osaka. The hotel Shin-Osaka had slippers, kumono robes and odd toilets with many buttons.
Note: Public toilets are very simple squat-type holes. Poor Melissa!
Day 3 - We went to visit Osaka Castle and then boarded the JR line to Himeji to visit the "finest" castle in all Japan. Unfortunately, Himeji-jo was under restoration and we were able to admire its' real beauty only in photographs. We left Himeji and made our way to Hiroshima. The Sunroute Hotel was very nice.
Day 4 - We spent most of the day on Miyajima Island (Unesco World Heritage site) and photographed the famous orange Torii Gate. We walked along the many alleyways and stopped at several "touristy" boutiques and purchased a few souvenirs. We hiked part way up the Mt. Misen and enjoyed watching the wandering deer.
We spent the late afternoon walking through Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Museum. The exhibits were moving and it documented the horror of August 6th, 1945 (8:15am) when the US dropped the A-Bomb on this POW-free site. Although the Peace Memorial Garden & museum might sound depressing, the city of Hiroshima is not at all depressing. Hiroshima is a thriving city that has totally recovered from this nuclear holocaust. It's worth spending a few days here visiting others sites such as the Hondori covered Arcade or walking to Hiroshima Castle. We were glad we did. :)
Day 5 -6 Hiroshima to Kyoto
Day 3 - We went to visit Osaka Castle and then boarded the JR line to Himeji to visit the "finest" castle in all Japan. Unfortunately, Himeji-jo was under restoration and we were able to admire its' real beauty only in photographs. We left Himeji and made our way to Hiroshima. The Sunroute Hotel was very nice.
Day 4 - We spent most of the day on Miyajima Island (Unesco World Heritage site) and photographed the famous orange Torii Gate. We walked along the many alleyways and stopped at several "touristy" boutiques and purchased a few souvenirs. We hiked part way up the Mt. Misen and enjoyed watching the wandering deer.
We spent the late afternoon walking through Hiroshima's Peace Memorial Museum. The exhibits were moving and it documented the horror of August 6th, 1945 (8:15am) when the US dropped the A-Bomb on this POW-free site. Although the Peace Memorial Garden & museum might sound depressing, the city of Hiroshima is not at all depressing. Hiroshima is a thriving city that has totally recovered from this nuclear holocaust. It's worth spending a few days here visiting others sites such as the Hondori covered Arcade or walking to Hiroshima Castle. We were glad we did. :)
Day 5 -6 Hiroshima to Kyoto
We rented "mama charlies" and toured Kyoto on bicycles. We rode our bikes to the Imperial Palace and headed to the Nijo-jo and the Nightengale floor. We were surprised that we had to pay 200 Yen to park our bicycles. We made it to the famous bamboo gardens and rushed back to the Kyoto Station to catch our train to Kanazawa.
Day 7 - Kanazawa
We spent the morning touring beautiful gardens and the Kanazawa castle. The gardens were amazing and worth seeing.
Day 8 - Takayama
We stayed in a traditional Japanese Ryokans (hotel). The mats are on the floor and the bathrooms are shared. It is quite the experience sitting down on a small bench to shower and wash up. Takayama was a bit "tacky" and "touristy" but worth the stop.
Day 9 Fuji and Tokyo
We arrived in Fuji and the nice ladies at the tourist office gave us bicycles to tour around Fuji. We were trying to catch a nice view of Mont Fuji, unfortunately, it was cloud coverred and were unable to see Fuji's peak!
Day 10 - 12 Tokyo
Apparently, Tokyo is the most populated city in the world. It is huge and crammed with millions of people. We spent 3 days walking, shopping & sightseeing.
Day 13 Tokyo to Osaka to catch our flight back to Cairns, Australia.
Ahhh! Bullet Trains... fast, efficient and relaxing!
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