Day 1 - Kaizuka

Kaizuka at night

This was our first trip to Japan, and were scheduled to fly into Kansai Airport, near Kyoto around 9pm. Rather than spend another hour travelling into into Kyoto that night we booked a room in the Sunshine Inn, small hotel in Kaizuka, which is only a short train ride from the airport.

Drink dispenser with Australian tourist
holding Lonely Planet Japan guide book

We arrived at Kaizuka railway station which was deserted. Eventually we found someone who could speak some English who directed us to the hotel nearby, and we managed to find the hotel and book in. It was now after 10pm and we were quite hungry, so after dropping our luggage, headed out to find some food. Kaizuka isn't really a tourist destination, so there were very few signs in English, and even fewer restaurants open at that time of night. On our way we passed something that we were to realise was very common - a cold drink dispenser standing alone in the street, which for some reason we don't have in Australia. Probably too susceptible to vandalism.

The Genta Saloon and Roast Chicken bar

Inside the Genta - our first experience
of a local Japanese bar-restaurant

Eventually we found and the Genta restaurant, advertising Roast Chicken, which seemed promising. We went in and the menu was completely in Japanese and unfortunately no-one spoke English. The best we could do was to point to plates of food that others were eating and indicated that we'd have the same.

Tired, hungry, but happy

We were tired and hungry, so after eating some chicken , rice and vegetables, headed off to find our way back to the hotel.

On the way we heard what appeared to be shouting and thumping, so fearing that there was some altercation going on, we pulled into a doorway, only to be confronted by the sight of a large group of martial arts students, in their white uniforms, hot-footing it down the street with the last one banging a drum to keep the beat. If anything was worth photographing, that was, but we were completely taken aback and couldn't get the camera out in time.

Day 2 - Kyoto

Manhole cover in Kaizuka

View of Kaizuku from the hotel room

Our booking included breakfast, Japanese only. The fairly economical Sunshine Inn was mainly occupied by students, and we met a few at breakfast, which consisted of fish, pickles and a small cup with a type of junket with cooked octopus at the bottom - a bit of an acquired taste. The view from the room we were to realise was typically Japanese, with the cityscape criss-crossed by power lines and dotted with small shrines and temples. In the distance we could see Kansai airport  - didn't realise we were so close. After breakfast we caught to JR Train to Kyoto. Japan is incredibly well-served by trains as most settlement is on the narrow flat plains along the coast and there is a combination of local and long-distance trains, both government and commercial.

Kyoto Railway Station

Where are we? - in Japan

We arrived at the huge Kyoto railway station and there was no confusion about which country we were in as a feature of the station is a giant statue of Astroboy (Tetsuwan Atomu) at the entrance.It was only a short walk (although it felt further dragging our bulky suitcases in the heat) to our accommodation, Miwaya Ryokan. A Ryokan is a traditional Japanese type of accommodation, where you sleep on tatami mats on the floor at night which are then rolled up during the day to provide a living space.

Inside the Garlic restaurant

Unassuming entrance to
Miwaya Ryokan

We spent the rest of the morning exploring central Kyoto, and ended up having lunch in Isetan, a huge Japanese department store with a number of small restaurants - Something similar to Market City in Sydney, but much nicer. We had a nice hot lunch in the Garlic restaurant, and surprisingly felt quite at home for being in a foreign country for less than 24 hours.

In the afternoon we took it easy, exploring a little more of Kyoto, before having a light meal and hitting the mat.

Day 3 - Kyoto

Today was to be our big exploration of Kyoto. The morning we spent walking around Kyoto, just taking in the sights and atmosphere of the city centre.

Heading up the hill to the
Kiyomizu-dera temple

The gate and pagoda

After lunch we caught a bus to the base of the temple complex of Kiyomizu-Dera. Officially Otowa-san Kiyomizu-dera is an independent Buddhist temple near Kyoto. The temple is part of the Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities) UNESCO World Heritage site.  There is quite a long and winding cobbled path to the temple which is situated in the hills east of Kyoto. Because it's a major tourist attraction as well as a local place of importance, there are many small stalls and shops selling souvenirs along the way. It was mid-afternoon by the time we arrived and there were already many people heading back down the hill, with bags of shopping, including groups of school children.

The bell tower and bell-ringer

The three storied pagoda

The temple was founded in 798, and its present buildings were constructed in 1633. It takes its name from the waterfall within the complex, which runs off the nearby hills. Kiyomizu means clear water, or pure water.


The present structures consist of a Romon (two storied gate), Sanjunto (three storied pagoda), Shoro (belfry) and other minor buildings.

Tree branches supported by bamboo

Detail of construction without nails

The temple was impressive, not only for the size, but also its setting, overlooking modern Kyoto which is now butting up against its boundary. Although the main features were the buildings, there were many small details and incidental objects that caught our eyes, for example the bamboo structures supporting extensive tree branches that would hang to the ground under their own weight. Also, there is not a single nail used in the entire structure.

Taking in the last rays of the afternoon sun

View over Kyoto from the temple

The complex is vast, and there are many smaller buildings spread throughout the grounds serving different functins. For example there is a matchmaking shrine. Jishu Shrine possesses a pair of "love stones" placed 6 meters apart, which lonely visitors can try to walk between with their eyes closed. Success in reaching the other stone with their eyes closed implies that the pilgrim will find love, or true love. We thought we should give that one a miss, as we didn't like the thought of falling and injuring ourselves while in Japan

A traditional geisha house

That night we actually ate dinner in the Kyoto Station Hotel which also had a number of small restaurants. Before returning to the Miyama Ryokan we walked into the old town which has traditional cultural activities (geisha houses) and architecture and were fortunate enough to see a geisha arriving for the evening - no photo though.It seems there is still a demand for this traditional style of entertainment, but it's definitely on the wane in popularity and only exists in more traditional places like Kyoto.

Day 4 - Kyoto, Nara

By now, Frances was starting to hang out for a European breakfast. Three days of fish, rice & pickles for breakfast was taking its toll. So this morning we walked to Kyoto station and had breakfast at Pizza Cafe and the coffee and pastries really hit the spot!

Entrance to the park where you can buy
film and deer food

The Great Southern Gate

Today we caught the JR (Japanese Railways) local to Nara which is about an hour away. Nara was the capital of Japan from 710 to 784, and is famous for its many temples and shrines.

The first place we visited was the Nara Park which contains the monumental Todai-ji (Todai Temple) and a number of  Sika deer, regarded as messengers of the gods in the Shinto religion, roam the grounds freely. The day was overcast with intermittent rain, although quite warm and not the best for photography. This is my first trip with a digial camera, having made the switch from film, and it's interesting to see that there are still stalls selling film. In a few short years, this whole market will collapse and be overtaken by digital cameras and mobile phones.

Agyo, one of two great Nio
gate guardians within Nandaimon,
created by Unkei, Kaikei,
and other sculptors in 1203

One of the many shrines and/or
places for contemplation

Shortly after entry to the park you pass through the Nandaimon, the Great Southern Gate which really gives meaning to the word 'portal'. A massive construction of timber, and housing a pair guardians in the Daibutsuden. The giant wooden sculptures are situated at either end within the gateway - protected by mesh and impossible to photograph adequately.

The grounds themselves are beautifully laid out, with many small pathways winding through the trees and dotted with small shrines and places to sit and contemplate life.

Outside the Todai-ji

Photograph of a ceremony at Todai-ji

The Todai-ji is the main feature of the park and is suitably impressive. located in an open area which magnifies its size and provides space for huge numbers of people during major ceremonies.

For example, in 752, the eye-opening ceremony was held with an attendance of 10,000 people to celebrate the completion of the Buddha housed in its Great Buddha Hall.

The bronze Daibutsu (Buddha)

This is the world's largest bronze statue of the Buddha Vairocana, known in Japanese simply as Daibutsu. It's awe inspiring in a very different way to Western churches or Middle-Eastern mosques.

The park and its shrines and temples are also popular for weddings and school visits, and we saw both while we were there. The school groups were all very neatly attired in very formal uniforms which is the norm in Japan.

Kasuga-taisha

Within the complex is also the Kasuga Grand Shrine (Kasuga-taisha) which is a Shinto shrine. The interior is famous for its many bronze lanterns, as well as the many stone lanterns that lead up the shrine. It is also painted red, which is more common for Shinto shrines. It appears that Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines happily co-exist in Japan as both are integrated into the cultural life. It was here that we saw a wedding in progress.

Fusion Dining restaurant

By now we were getting hungry and decided to eat at a restaurant in the grounds at Fusion Dining. The restaurant was quite small, the people friendly, the food excellent, and not too expensive. It was an absolutely beautiful experience dining in such peaceful surroundings.

Ice-cream in Japan is obviously better
for you than in Australia

Nara manhole cover

After lunch we explored the old Nara precinct with its traditional houses and discovered an excellent local shopping district.
I was surprised to find that Nara had its own manhole cover design, similar to Kaizuka. Now I'll look in each city to see if they have their own versions.

Cooking takoyaki (Wikipedia)

Every country or region has its own street snack foods, and in the Kansai region it's takoyaki (octopus balls). A takoyaki is a ball-shaped Japanese snack made of a wheat flour-based batter and cooked in a special takoyaki pan (small semi-circular indentations in a metal hotplate). It is typically filled with minced or diced octopus (tako), tempura scraps (tenkasu), pickled ginger, and green onion.That afternoon we tried our first afternoon takoyaki-on-a-stick which was quite delicious.

We quite enjoyed our day in Nara, much smaller than Kyoto and with a more relaxed feel. That night we had dinner in the at Miyama Ryokan (too tired to go out) with a bottle of Merlot we'd brought with us.

Day 5 - Kyoto

This morning we by-passed the Japanese breakfast and had coffee and snacks at the Pizza Cafe in the Kyoto railway station again. Rather than just explore by ourselves, Frances organised through the tourist information centre for us to be taken on a free guided tour with a student. Students volunteer to do this as a way of improving their English and also to interact with people from other countries. We met Ryutaro at the information centre and we began our guided tour of Kyoto. He was very friendly, with a good sense of humour, and spoke quite good English. Ryutaro pointed out some of the historic and cultural aspects of Kyoto, one of which being the many small shrines that dotted the roadways, often in the most unlikely places.

Nishiki Food Market

A mushroom shop

Pickled vegetables

Next we went to the Nishiki Food Market & Teramachi area, which had a bewildering array of Japanese foods. Visits to local markets are always eye-opening as it's here that you see foods that never seem to make it out of the country, being either to specific to the region, or too strange for foreign palates. For us, the range of fish & seafood, very expensive mushrooms (the shape as well as size determines the price) and pickled vegetables were the most interesting.

A modern ceramic Tanuki,
with big tummy, staff,
giant scrotum, straw hat,
sake flask, and promissory note.

Design student display and workshop

We also saw our first Tanuki statue. The Tanuki is a magical raccoon or fox-like dog with shape-shifting powers. It was traditionally a trickster & spook, originally evil, but now a benevolent modern-day icon of generosity, cheer, and prosperity found often outside Japanese bars & restaurants. The intention is for patrons to be generous ("come in, don’t be stingy"). It is also used as a wealth-bringing icon adorning gardens.

Myrtle ST homestay business card

While walking, we came across a design student display, where students were creating design on the spot for visitors to the display. We asked them to design some "business cards" for us for the homestay in Myrtle St. Within a very short time, a student knocked-up a design AND printed a few copies for us to take away - very impressive.

Ryutaro, Ric & Frances at Nijo Castle

Next we went to visit the Kyoto Nijo Castle. It is a flatland castle which consists of two concentric rings (Kuruwa) of fortifications, the Ninomaru Palace, the ruins of the Honmaru Palace, various support buildings and several gardens.

Ninomaru Palace with the wide
decorative and defensive verandah

We spent quite a while exploring the grounds and buildings which are set up as exhibitions of the period during the Tokugawa shogunate in the 1600s. Particularly interesting were criss-crossing metal strips attached beneath the verandahs. These strips squeak with even the lightest pressure from above, so theoretically even the quietest ninja assassin could not sneak into the building unnoticed. It was quite funny watching school students in their socks trying to walk across the boards without making them squeak.

Example of  a Kyoto train carriage

The tour finished around lunchtime, so we took Ryutaro to lunch at the Zest restaurant, and gave him a donation for his time. It's always much better to have a local guide. Not only do they have more local knowledge, but they are also more passionate about their locality. The rest of afternoon we spent seeking out interesting places based on the Lonely Planet guide.

Typical hotel room size

By now, after 3 days sleeping on the floor in the Ryokan, we decided to move to a hotel with a real bed, and chose the Hotel Station West only a short distance away. We didn't realise though how small the rooms were until we moved our luggage in - there was not enough room to lay them down AND walk past the bed. In fact the room was only slightly larger than the double bed that could only be accessed from one side! At least we had a better sleep. That night we had an excellent dinner at the hotel dining room, accompanied by the remainder of our wine.

Day 6 - Kobe

Kyoto National Museum

Again it was breakfast at station, then headed of for a little shopping in the Teramachi area before going to the Kyoto National Museum. The museum displays and explains the culture of Kyoto, how it came into existence and developed, as well as what influenced that development. The Permanent Exhibition has a historical museum introducing history and culture and an art gallery displaying works of painters of Japanese painting and Western painting, sculptors and artisans associated with Kyoto. The museum really gave a good insight into the history of the region.

Kobe harbour area

View of Kobe Harbour district

We decided to go to Kobe for the afternoon and caught the train for the hour and a half trip. By the time we arrived at Sannomiya Station we were starving, and had lunch at the very stylish Dining Road & Deli Cafe.

Kobe has always been a port city, and was one of the cities to open for trade with the West following the 1853 end of the policy of seclusion. In 1995 It was hit by the Great Hanshin Earthquake, 7.2 on the Richter scale. 6,434 people in the city were killed, 212,443 were made homeless, and large parts of the port facilities and other parts of the city were destroyed.

The wave-shaped Orient Hotel

Central Kobe with the mountain backdrop

The port area has been completely rebuilt in a modern style, and feels similar to Darling Harbour in Sydney or Docklands in Melbourne in that  shopping and entertainment facilities have been incorporated into its maritime functions. The weather was very overcast and grey, making photography quite difficult. We caught a ferry out to Port Island which has shipyards and a museum, but the most interesting part was looking back at the city with a massive hotel on the foreshore that looks like a giant wave - It's called the Orient Hotel, but may be better described as the Tsunami Hotel?

View of Kobe from the funicular

A wedding on the mountain above Kobe

One of the attractions of Kobe is a funicular that you can take to the top of the mountain behind the city. Great for panoramic views, and the location is also popular for Western style weddings. There is also a very large greenhouse garden there which is used for growing herbs and medicinal plants.

Like something in a boot?

We spent a little time in the city itself but it was not really remarkable and after looking at some small specialist shops under the railway viaduct, headed back to Kyoto.

Japanese theatre

That evening we went to a performance of traditional Japanese theatre (a potpourri of theatrical styles rather than a single performance) at the Goin Corner. This is only for foreign tourists as a full performance can be a trial for non-Japanese.

Afterwards we had dinner at the Asian Restaurant (Chinese for a change) and then back to the hotel.