Author: alsolouis

Today we leave Tokyo [pause… deep breath… sigh]. All three of us do our best to ignore that fact. We don’t fly out until 8:00 pm – so that gives us heaps of time to do a bunch of stuff we should have done before right? Well… sorta.

It’s time to pack up one last time – and all of us are wondering how we collected so much stuff without even really trying – and we haven’t been near the duty free yet. Anyway, packing done, it’s down the spiral staircase of death at our air bnb one last time. This time though we are lugging our bags and by some miracle this time I manage not to smack my head.

As usual it’s first stop coffee – at the cafe massive office block just down the street. Then we roll – doing our best to look unencumbered – even though we are already sweating under the weight of our baggage (real and emotional natch) towards Ebisu station. We had spotted a bunch of storage lockers at the station previously and the plan was to dump our bags and head off for one last trip to Harajuku. Sadly all the lockers were taken by the time we got there so the only alternative we could think of was Tokyo station – we had to depart on the airport train from there so it made sense. Unfortunately we hadn’t bargained on how fricken massive and chaotic Tokyo’s main station would be. It was crazy crowded and spread across numerous levels – a whole heap of fun if you are dragging you bags along for the ride. Time for a lot more “sum mi ma sen”and go men na si.”Anyway somehow we found our way down to the bowels of the station where the baggage storage place was and somehow we managed to figure out how to use them.

Bags safely stored and train tickets for Narita airport purchased it was off to Harajuku. Jules was on a shoe mission and no-one was going to stop her – and besides Harajuku is cool. Things are much easier when you know what you’re doing and where you’re going – and this time for once we knew both of these things. We made a beeline for ABC Mart (a Japanese shoe store) and Jules grabbed the trainers of her dreams and then we grabbed the lunch of our dreams. Well, that’s what Jules and I thought anyway – Lou was less enthused. We headed back to a little place that we had visited once before in Harajuku – they do hand made sushi that is served to you – unrolled – on little “v” shaped trays. You then take the sushi and roll it up and munch – so fresh and the nori is so crisp because it hasn’t absorbed any of the moisture from the rice. It’s a little thing but the freshness of the ingredients and the crispiness of the nori just took things to the next level.

From then on the rest of the day was taken up with what I like to call “wistful wandering.” Which is basically walking the streets and subways without any real plan – but just that undercurrent of sadness that you feel when you know something amazing is coming to an end. We strolled from shop to shop trying our best to spend what little Japanese yen we had left – but before we knew it, it was time to head back to the organised chaos of Tokyo station to pick up our bags and jump on the Narita express to the airport. Narita is still being extensively renovated so the whole experience was a bit like being herded through a construction zone. Then it was onto the Qantas flight to Melbourne – with all the other Australians and a few bewildered Japanese. It’s interesting how loud and annoying your own peeps seem when you’ve been away from them for 3 and a half weeks. Anywa it was 26 degrees at 8 pm in Tokyo and when we landed in Melbourne ahead of schedule at 5:30 am it was 6 degrees! Welcome home.

The start of our very last full day in Japan, so I kicked things off with a little run around the back streets – going to miss these random runs. We chose a cafe for breakfast that was on the ground floor of a massive sky-scraper in Ebisu. It was packed full of locals with laptops – which meant they had wifi – and now that we have sent back our rented pocket wifi – this was a definite bonus. The coffee was also pretty good and the pastries were excellent.

We has a packed program for the day – basically trying to do a few of the things that we had missed out on during our first stint in Tokyo – it was only a couple of weeks ago but it feels so distant. First priority was to head back to Rappongi to visit the Mori Museum, which is a large museum in the Rappongi Hills complex (which is huge and fancy and chockers with shops). The Museum was funded by a wealthy real estate developer – so of course they have spared no expense.

We headed there to catch an exhibition by the famous Japanese artist Shiota Chiharu, but when we got there we discovered that there was also an exhibition called The Science of Pixar (entry was free if you purchased a Shiota Chiaru ticket) – winning! We zipped through the Pixar thing – which was excellent – basically taking you through the process used by Pixar studios to create their amazing digitally animated features. Also amazing was the view from the 42nd floor windows of the Mori Museum – Tokyo stretched as far as the eye could see (and it was a clear day).

After we smashed the Museum shop for Pixar merch, we headed over to the Shiota Chiaru exhibition – which the Museum website described as follows: “Shiota Chiaru: The Soul Trembles. The Largeset (sic) and Most Comprehensive Exhibition Ever, Illuminating The Artist’s Entire Oeuvre. Luckily the exhibition itself was way better than the description. We had seen her work before in Hobart as part of MOFO (she set fire to a piano and created a huge weblike structure using red string) and were keen for more. It was super amazing – lots more huge installations with string (and suitcases), lots of paintings and video footage of some of her past work. Definitely glad we made the effort.

By then it was lunchtime – yay! And we just happened to be very close to Afuri – which is an excellent Ramen Noodle place that we had visited on our first few days in Tokyo – double yay! Jules and I opted for their “light broth” ramen which is served with poached chicken in a clear and tasty base – with a slight citrus tang courtesy of the yuzu they use in the broth. Maybe I’ll open a Ramen Shop in Hobart – we are really gonna miss it.

One thing we are not going to miss is the Tokyo rain. It can go from zero to raging torrent in a heartbeat – which is what it did while we were on our way for just a little more shopping in the uber hip suburbs of Daikanyama and Naka Meguro. Luckily it was warm rain so we just got a little squelchy without the shivers. Anyway the rain eventually eased as wandered from bespoke denim shop to super fancy ice cream shop. Speaking of the ice cream shop – it was the scene of one of our final Japanese humiliations. After purchasing three cups of very expensive ice cream, we stood inside the shop in a little alcove that we assumed was where you were supposed to eat your ice cream. Fools! The staff quickly (but of course politely) informed us that you were not allowed to eat ice cream in the ice cream shop – sure. So outside we went to eat in the rain looking dolefully back in at the smiling staff and the nice dry alcove. The shopping continued – but it was all a bit la di da for our tastes – in my opinion the suburbs of Ebisu and Shimo Akitazawa were way cooler.

Later Lou lead us across town in search of “Waltz” a supposedly super cool music store that specialised in the sale of cassettes… yes cassettes. We eventually found it on a back street. It was beautifully organised and full of excellent vinyl, CDs and of course – cassettes. We probably would have bought some stuff – but the owner was distinctly unfriendly (very unusual in our experience). From the moment we walked in the door (and we were the only people in the store) his frown just got deeper and deeper. In the end we took the hint and left – sayonara crabby!

From there it was back to Ebisu and our accommodation for a little break before heading out for drinks and dinner – in that order. Drinks first – at Buri a “standing bar” a short walk from our accommodation which is famous for its frozen sake – yes please. The staff were super friendly and helpful and made some suggestions about sake to try – we just went with whatever they reckoned. They came back with three jars of sake that were super cold – almost to the point of freezing. Then with great ceremony, they smacked the tops of the sake jars with their and magically the liquid sake crystallised – turning into instant slushies. Kinda gimmicky but great fun – and just what we needed in the Tokyo humidity.

Feeling a little more relaxed, we strolled for 10 or so minutes to Yasube which is a very popular gyoza dumpling place that was recommended to us by our air bnb host. We joined the queue and tried to stay dry (it had started to rain again). After staring hungrily at the diners inside for 30 minutes or so we were shown to our spot (a little bench next to the kitchen). What a cracker of a place for our last Tokyo dinner! The gyoza were served fried or steamed (with a bowl of accompanying broth – the staff showed us how to eat the two together using your soup spoon) and they were “next level.” We ordered plate after plate of the delicious little buggers. I also dried the deep fried whitebait on a stick and a delicious salad of thinly sliced capsicum with sesame and nori. Oh and we also drank beer. So very very good. It was only s short stroll home to sleep and dream of gyoza heaven.

Quick light brekky for the start of our last few days in Tokyo. Then, as usual, it was off in search of decent coffee (is my addiction showing?). This time we hit the jackpot (thanks Google). Just near Ebisu train station we found Sarutahiko Coffee – the real deal once more. They roast their own beans and made us a super strong espresso, but not before I caused the barista a great deal of pain by requesting a single origin double shot with soy milk. Apparently this was breaking one of their coffee rules because the acidity in the coffee would cause the soy milk to split. It took about 5 minutes for him to explain this to me (mainly using mime) – in the end I put myself in his hands and let him do his thing – which he did – excellently…

From there we jumped on the subway and made our way across town to the world capital of nerdishness – Akihabara. This was one of Lou’s must do things on the trip and we were somewhat reluctantly caught up in his wake. He was keen because Akihabara is Tokyo’s centre of electronics, anime, manga and other trash pop culture stuff. Wikipedia says “Akihabara is famed for its electronics retailers, ranging from tiny stalls to vast department stores like Yodobashi Multimedia Akiba. Venues specializing in manga, anime and video games include Tokyo Anime Center, for exhibits and souvenirs, and Radio Kaikan with its 10 floors of toys, trading cards and collectibles. Staff dressed as maids or butlers serve tea and desserts at nearby maid cafes.” Yep – that just about covers it – including the weird “Maid Cafes” – look ’em up. Another mind-blowing experience. Neon and nerds everywhere and a labyrinth of tiny electronic stores and stalls – kind of like a fish market – but for electronic things.

Lou made a beeline for Mandarake which is one of largest anime and manga stores in the world. Seven floors of comics, DVDs, Cosplay stuff, “adult” videos (with separate floors for ladies and gentlemen) – the Thunderbirds section alone was bigger than our loungeroom. I expected order and cleanliness – but it was much more chaotic than that – lots of glass cabinets – lots of nerds – and that distinctive nerd fragrance (aka not showering as often as would be considered desirable). Lou and I picked up a few comics and a bit of vinyl – but by that time Jules’ tolerance for the nerds and their unique fragrance was running low. Luckily it was lunchtime, so using the fantastic Japanese restaurant guide site Bento ( https://bento.com/ ) we found a great fried chicken place. Mmmmm garlic sauce! By the way can’t recommend Bento enough – we used it all the time and it was invariably accurate and excellent.

Much to Jules’ relief we left Akihabara and headed over to Shibuya for an afternoon of shopping. First stop was a super cool shop called Fake Tokyo that Jules had read about. It was supposedly full of super cool retro stuff that was swimming against the fashion tide. Turned out to be three floors of second dodgy hand clothes (including a Billy Joel tour t-shirt from 1989 – I think I used to have that one!) managed by a couple of very sneery too cool for school Tokyo dudes. What a waste of time! Fake alright. Luckily there were some other excellent shops around Shibuya so we managed to amuse ourselves for the remainder of the afternoon – pretending we actually had the cash to buy Calvin Klein underwear etc.

After a little rest (and some refreshments) back at our Ebisu air bnb we headed out to dinner. Our air bnb host had left a stack of excellent recommendations for restaurants and this time tried a soba noodle place that she suggested call Kaoriya. We had to join a queue of mainly locals outside and eventually we scored a seat at a large communal table inside. It was worth the wait – cold soba noodles served on bamboo mats with a bunch of different dipping sauces – we had a sesame dipping sauce and a roast duck dipping sauce. Pick up the noodles, dip in the sauce of your choice, slurp, repeat, drink beer, sake – so good! Got a little lost on our way home – but we got there eventually – and hey it’s all about the journey right?

The last travel day of the trip (if you don’t count the flight home). And it was a big one. Even though Hakone is only a short distance away from Tokyo. Getting from A to B in this case involved many modes of transport. We prepared for the journey in the best way possible – with an early morning dip in the onsen. We’ll miss our Hakone accommodation – despite the fact that it was a bit damp and smelled a little sulphurous (you get that when your house is built on top of a hot spring). 

It was a midday checkout (so civilised) but we ended up leaving a bit earlier and jumping on the funicular one last time – this time heading down the steep hill into Gora. From there it was straight on a “switchback” train from Gora to Odawara. Not being a train nerd myself, I was previously unaware of the joys of the switchback train. Basically it’s a train that you can drive from either end – which means on very steep terrain you can simply zig zag down (or up) a hill by going in a series of straight (diagonal) lines changing ends of the train each time – prolly not explaining it very well – look it up whydontcha. But it was fun and there were stacks of train nerds with telephoto lenses stationed everywhere along the route snapping away and changing lenses with abandon. The landscape was wild, green and steeply spectacular.

From Odawara we caught the Shinkansen to Shinagawa and then finally onto the Tokyo subway (so many modes, so many crowded escalators with giant  . This time our around we were staying in Ebisu – which is the next suburb along from Shibuya (Tokyo’s night club and neon heart) but Ebisu is a bit quieter – and cooler IMHO. Anyway we made it to our Air BnB early – but they let us leave our bags there while they finished cleaning. We had a couple of hours to kill and we discovered that we were staying quite close to two of our favourite museums – a photography museum and a beer museum (yes!). Serious stuff first – we had a good look around TOPS – which is the Tokyo Museum of Photography. So a lot of cool stuff including a photo series shot on a coal mining island off the cost of Japan – whole families stacked on top of each other and they, in turn, were stacked on top a coal mine. Looked a bit like Hell with black dust instead of fire.

Then to the Ebisu Beer Museum. Words fail me. The place was massive and incredibly over the top – a shiny cavernous space with gold and brass and lush carpeting everywhere. It was a long way from the Cascade Brewery Tour that’s for sure. They conduct regular tours but we gave them a miss – although we could see the (exclusively Japanese) tour groups seated at a series of elevated tables tasting beer and doing beer quizzes or something – it was very Japanese. And we were very Australian so we went straight to bar to sample some of the more unique beers they make at Ebisu. I’m aware that I have mentioned drinking Japanese beer a lot – but I haven’t really talked about the beer itself. This is controversial – and maybe my palette is blown from drinking too many over the top Australian craft beers – but I really found it hard to tell the difference between Kirin and Asahi and Sapporo. They’re all perfectly drinkable – and taste great when the beer is icy cold and it’s a hot day (which it always was) – but there is a distinct sameness to all of them. But hey – it was hot, we were in a museum and the beer was cold – no complaints.

We checked in to our accommodation – which was by far the smallest place we have stayed in. Sure it was two stories tall – but the rooms were tiny and the ceilings were very very low. I’m not that tall but I was constantly smacking my head on cross beams and door jambs. To make things trickier it was accessed by an external metal spiral staircase – tricky to navigate with massive bags of stuff. One of the best things about the accommodation though was the extensive local restaurant tips provided by our “host” Meg. This was a godsend – especially on our first night in Ebisu – so we took Meg’s advice and walked down to a local Yakitori (grill) place called Tatsuya. It was packed, so we ended up in their basement with about 80 or 90 other patrons. We were the only non-Japanese in the place, there was no English menu and the staff spoke zero English. Yikes – luckily we knew enough Japanese by now to order beer, a Highball and some fried chicken – but after that we were stuck. I was dreading ordering something errky – grilled pork rectum was supposedly on the menu, as was horse meat. Fortunately just when we were really struggling, a bloke next to me (who was there with a bunch of work mates) leaned over and said in flawless English “would you like some assistance?” Yes please! From there it was all smooth sailing – delicious grilled things (no pig’s bum or horsey) arrived in front of us with minimal hassle. And we made a bunch of new pals – including one who was definitely the Japanese Morgan Hart.

A big day and a disjointed stumble home to the spiral staircase of sleep. 

Another morning run that I really shouldn’t have attempted. Gora and Hakone are so fricken hilly – every street is like Forest Rd and Mellifont St combined. But I still wake so early and I figure I may as well have a look around while everyone else is sleeping. In the end it was worth it though as I stumbled across a small shrine – deserted in the early morning. The sun came out briefly to reveal a  spectacular view across the valley, and some giant “geta” (those Japanese wooden clog things). It seems the Shrine was somehow devoted to them so there were a series of giant shoes made of metal (not wood) lined up outside – weird. 

Once everyone else had struggled out of their futons, we strolled down once more to Paseo Cafe for another excellent pastry and some passable coffee. It turns out that the real selling point of the cafe though is that they operate some kind of Cavalier Spaniel rescuer service. There were two puppies curled up in blankets by the entrance to the cafe when we were there – so cute – and they sold T-Shirts. 

Then it was up another massive hill to catch a bus across the top of the mountain and down the other side to Lake Ashi. Our original plan was to catch the cable car over the top of the mountain and over the top of the active volcanic crater of Mt Owakudani and then down to Lake Ashi. This is a big deal and supposedly very spectacular – so it’s very popular with tourists (including the Japanese). Unfortunately the cable car was not operating due to a bunch of recent volcanic activity. They wouldn’t even let you walk in the area as there were poisonous gases being emitted.  We saw evidence of this as we rode the bus, in the distance we saw huge wastelands of smouldering vegetation with steam or smoke or something drifting up. And the aroma of sulphur was everywhere – so romantic!  

The ferry was leaving just after we arrived so we jumped straight on and sailed the 6 or so kms to the other end of the lake. Lake Ashi is volcanic so the shoreline juts down sharply into the water – and it is so densely forested – really spectacular and one of the most beautiful lakes I have ever seen. Dotted here and there, clinging to the shoreline are a series of Shrines that you can only really see because of their bright orange Shrine gates. The whole vista was so serene – until it was spoilt by a giant tacky fricken pseudo mock pirate ship that came around the bend. It turns out there are actually three of these fake pirate ships that sail around the lake – each is painted a garish bright colour and each has fibreglass figures of pirates fixed to their decks – so cheesy – and so popular with the tourists. Our lovely flash ferry was almost empty, but the pirate ships were checkers – so many philistines sailing the seven seas aaarrrr!

Anyway we eventually docked (is that the right seafaring word?) at the other end of the lake at Hakone-Machi – a tiny town with a few tourist restaurants and souvenir shops. From there we decided to walk around the lake to the next town of Moto-Hakone. It was a lovely walk – and on a clear day (i.e. almost never at this time of the year) you can supposedly see Mt Fuji rising up above the lake. Fortunately we all have very vivid imaginations – Jules and Lou swore they could see an outline through the haze and fog – but my eyes are old and failing so I had to take their word for it.

On the way around the foreshore we stopped at the house and gardens of Onshi Hakone Koen. The house was apparently once used by the Japanese Imperial Family, the upstairs verandah is a prime Fuji viewing spot – but as I say – not today. The gardens were beautiful though – and they even contain what is allegedly one of the 100 most beautiful bridges in the prefecture – okey dokey.

We had a soba noodle lunch with a truckload of very loud Chinese tourists before jumping on a ferry (10 people got on our massive ferry and hundreds got on the day-glo pirate ship – morons) back to the bus terminal at Tōgendai.  

There was just time for a little rest before schlepping it down the hill to the local convenience store for beer and noodles etc. Luckily the funicular made what the uphill slog much more bearable. 

And then – the best part of the day – another onsen session in our own private onsen. What a luxury. We are getting much better at it now – we even know how to best balance the washcloth on your head to keep your head cool while your body broils. If it’s good enough for the Japanese… 

We all woke late after last night’s onsen marathon. It had rained all night and at this elevation it felt like we were in and above the clouds all at once. The rain stopped while we were doing the yoghurt and juice thing in the so-called “breakfast nook” of our accommodation – which is more a tiny table and chairs on the tatami floor overlooking the garden. I’m not complaining.

Around 11 am we struggled down the hill a couple of hundred metres to a local cafe called Paseo – the lovely lady who runs this tiny place bakes her own bread and makes decent coffee. We had found our morning go to place – ace!

Later we strode further downhill to the tiny township of Gora to peruse the tacky souvenirs, pick up more supermarket supplies and eat some excellent soba noodle soup for lunch before taking the funicular back our accommodation. Really that little outing was just about getting our bearings in Hakone/Gora. Once we had stashed our stuff we headed straight back out to the Hakone Open Air Museum – a brisk 20 minute downhill walk away. Now I must admit I was expecting something a little bit dinky – a few average sculptures rusting away in a field – but boy was I wrong. The museum is massive (70,000 square metres), incredibly well maintained, and featured some really amazing works by Japanese artists, and others from around the world including Henry Moore, Joan Miro, Calder and a bunch of others that I should remember but don’t. There were also a few indoor pavilions including one devoted to a bunch of work by Picasso. I don’t know about you, but after watching that Hannah Gadsby stand up show “Nannette,” I really can’t get as excited about Picasso as I used to. Lou is certainly firmly in the anti-Picasso camp and initially even refused to enter the exhibition space. Anyway, Picasso controversy aside – the Open Air Museum was incredible with a whole bunch of immersive amazing works. V glad we made the trek.

From there it was just a short uphill slog to our fave bar of the moment – the Gora Brewery and Grill – this time we skipped the grill and focused on the brewery – i.e. we drank beer and didn’t eat anything. Excellent fuel for the funicular ride home and straight back into our own private onsen. Later we remembered to eat – microwaved convenience store noodles – which in Japan are not nearly as bad as they sound. Noodles and Japanese TV – an excellent pairing and the perfect antidote for insomnia.

Our last morning in Kyoto – so we woke early and Jules and I decided to go for a run before brekky – a decision that we soon ended up regretting. While the Gion area of Kyoto is full of cute tiny streets with shrines and ryokan everywhere – it is also quite hilly. So many stairs! The reward though was an another end of run coffee at “% Arabica” – it’s a weird name but it’s great coffee.

Later we packed up and trundled down to the bus stop to piss the local commuters off once more with our massive bags on a crowded bus into the heart of Kyoto (su mi ma sen!). Lou picked up his developed prints from his old skool film, we made a quick stop at another cool record store for one more little slice of vinyl heaven and then it was on the Shinkansen for Odawara. We were so deeply buried in our respective digital worlds that we very nearly missed the stop for Odawara. We were stuffing phones and laptops into bags and scurrying off the train with only seconds to spare. Lou forgot his “bum bag” (he’s so fashionable) but we were saved by the locals in the seats behind us who dashed to the door waving the bag – phew!

Today’s objective was to get to the Hakone area – more specifically to Gora – which is a tiny place up in the mountains not far from Tokyo. It used as a by the locals as a getaway from the summer heat of Tokyo – it’s also popular in the winter – kind of like a Japanese version of Sydney’s Blue Mountains but without the Hydro-Majestic. The main attraction for us in Gora were the numerous onsen (Japanese bath houses) that are scattered everywhere around Hakone. These bath houses are fed by natural hot springs that bubble up everywhere, largely due to the nearby active volcano of Mount Hakone. A bit like Rotorua – including the sulphurous smell that drifts everywhere. Japanese bath houses are generally gender segregated and you bathe starkers. The only problem is that most of them have a strict rule prohibiting people with tattoos from bathing – something to do with the Yakuza or whatever. We had been researching onsen that permit tattoos – but as it turns out we needn’t have worried because our Air BnB came complete with it’s own onsen – for reals!

We took another dreaded bus from Odawara up to our accommodation – unlocked the gate, strolled through the traditional garden, unlocked the door and entered a whole other world. Lou was first through the door and I heard him exclaim “This is lovely!” And it was – it’s a huge place that could accommodate about 8 people, futons on the floor, rice paper sliding doors, tatami, a mural of Mt Fuji on the wall of the living area (yes really) – and of course the kicker – the aforementioned private onsen – which is fed directly from the thermal spring. It’s big enough to hold at least 4 broiling bathers, and the whole huge room is filled with steam, a separate shower and a door that opens onto the garden. All plans of visiting public onsen evaporated with the steam.

But we needed food so we trekked down the incredibly steep streets to find a convenience store. We stocked up and were delighted to stumble across Gora Brewery and Grill on the way back. Craft beer, grilled shishito peppers, spicy edamame and local fish cakes – so very very good. We even discovered the local funicular on the way home – which made the uphill trek way more bearable.

Arriving back at our accommodation once more it was straight into the onsen, where we quickly became wrinkled pink blobs – but relaxed wrinkled pink blobs. So lovely. So lucky.

The other were still snoozing, so I slipped out into the quiet Kyoto streets for a walk and hopefully a decent coffee. I was almost instantly rewarded. About 300 metres from our accommodation was a little hipster coffee place called “% Arabica.” This place was the real deal, they roast their own beans, make drip filter and espresso coffee – and they instantly understood my order – bliss. And the coffee – double bliss!

Today we were doing one of the top 3 things on Lou’s Japan list – we were going for a day trip to Osaka. Osaka has a reputation for lots of things – the locals are supposedly brasher and some say it is the food capital of Japan. Anyway Lou had done lots of research and he was super keen. On the way out of Kyoto he fed his disposable camera obsession – and we fed our faces with some super delicious donuts from the uber hip Koe Donuts. But Lou had to wait a little longer. First Jules and I dragged hime to the Kyoto Botanical Gardens. We were expecting big things – and little things including a Bonsai exhibition. The reality was quite different. The gardens were nice with a small “n” – a little run down and quite small. Obviously run on a shoestring by a bunch of enthusiastic volunteers. A shame really in a city with as much class and style as Kyoto. Then we jumped the Shinkansen for the 35 minute trip to Osaka.

Arriving at Osaka station was overwhelming. I wasn’t prepared for how huge and how busy Osaka would be. The station is really poorly signposted – at least if you’re an English speaker, and we wandered round and round trying to find our way out of the fricken place. Eventually we gave up, and gave in – to our hunger. We had lunch at a sushi train place in this huge food hall called Eki Marche connected to the station. I thought it was excellent, Lou thought it was “meh” – tough crowd.

We found out later that the whole Kita (Umeda) area of Osaka (the northern part of the city) is connected via underground walkways. I wish we’d known that earlier – we spent a solid hour navigating across massively busy roads and huge pedestrian overpasses just to cover about 2 kms as the crow flies. But the Crowes were walking and the Hampson was getting super crabby as we tried to find some cool shopping centre or other. We eventually made it (and discovered the underground walkways) – but not before I did my narna. These things happen when you’re travelling.

Things improved dramatically after that, when we caught the subway over to the Minami (southern area) of town. First stop was Amerika-Mura which was an enclave of hip shops, bars, cafes, tattoo parlours etc. I began to understand why people might like Osaka. The crowd was younger – and quite a few locals even had tattoos – a rare sight on the trip so far. We stumbled across what was by far the best record shop we have found in Japan so far – Flake Records. They had an amazing set up. It was easy to sample lots of the Japanese music, they had an excellent range of overseas stuff including truckloads of Australian stuff (even the new record by Amyl and the Sniffers!). And – they sold beer! Lou and I bought up big on Japanese stuff and I attempted to engage the owner in conversation. He wasn’t buying any of my puppy dog enthusiasm though – I’m guessing he sees a lot of tourists. Gotta stop trying to be friends with every record store owner I meet…

Later we walked down into the Dotombori area which is packed with shops, clubs and bars – mostly under covered walkways. And not for the first time I noticed how many Chinese tourists were around. On this occasion there seemed to be thousands of Chinese tourists lugging huge duty free bags full of cosmetics and fancy trainers. Not sure what the deal is – but some of the stores (e.g. the Onitsuka Tiger shoe store) were overflowing with tourists grabbing at shoes and demanding to try things on. It was a little ugly.

We eventually made it to the Dotombori-gawa (canal) which is kind of like Osaka’s answer to Times Square – huge neon signs, masses of people and so much activity. There was an even some terrible boy band doing some kind of promotional concert on the banks of the canal. The sun was setting and I was officially overwhelmed.

Luckily Lou’s research came in handy. He wanted to go to a nearby bar called Craft Beer Works Kamikaze – and we were only too happy to be dragged along. The bar was excellent – 23 local and international craft beers on tap, lovely people and after a couple of excellent beers we were ready to rejoin the fray. We strolled back up towards Amerika-Mura, bought some take away Takoyaki from an allegedly Michelin Star Rated place and sat down to people watch and eat (and drink convenience store beer) in the square in the heart of Amerika-Mura. Does it get any better?

The train home was (as always) on time and super fast. After such a huge Osaka day even navigating the Kyoto buses was a breeze. Sleep.

Another travel day today – we were sad to leave hip and happening Hiroshima, and to make things worse we had to take the street car to Hiroshima’s main train station. Normally I love trams – but they ain’t much fun if they’re crowded and you’re lugging a 30 kg bag. You can feel the locals politely sending beams of hatred your way as you “su mi ma sen” (excuse me) and “go men na sae” (sorry) your way along the crowded carriage rolling over toes and pinning old men to the walls. You enter via the centre door, but you MUST depart via the front door – all very logical and Japanese – but as I say – not much fun with baggage.

Before we knew it we were on the Shinkansen (bullet train) bound for Kyoto once more. We had decided to stay in a different part of town on our return to Kyoto. This time we were staying in Gion which is on the eastern side of the river and a far cry from the centre of town where we stayed last time. Gion is old Kyoto. If you imagine your stereotypical ancient Japanese street, with lanterns, cobble stones, ryokan (traditional Japanese guest houses), tea houses, shrines around every corner – then you are probably pretty close to imagining Gion. It was a lovely labyrinth of tiny streets, if a little touristy – and the tourists include the Japanese who obviously love to come and stay. The other thing tourists in Gion love to do is dress up in Kimono (complete with fans and little handbags and those clonky wooden shoe things – you know the ones) and get their photographs taken in front of traditional settings (shrines, ponds, waterfalls, vending machines etc). Typically the Japanese men/boys photograph their girlfriends/wives in the full outfit – but you occasionally see Gaijin (i.e. foreign) tourists doing the full kimono trip – which always looks a little off to me – but hey globalisation is a thing amirite?

Anyway after arriving at Kyoto station and jumping on another overfull bus with overfull bags, we arrived in the general vicinity of our accomodation (another Air BnB thing). But could we find it in the maze of streets? Of course not – what we did do was wander blindly and piss off the locals and other tourists with our trundly baggage – we sounded like rolling thunder. Which pretty much matched our moods after half an hour of high humidity random walking. In the end I simply sent our host a photo of the ice cream shop we were standing outside of – and she came and found us. The accommodation was ace – two stories – connected via a very very very steep staircase and two actual separate bedrooms. Lou was sad not to be sharing a room with his parents again – but he made the best of it.

The rest of the day was a blur of strolling past temples and shrines (not sure what the difference is – but there seems to be one), streams and ponds and the occasional actual geisha. How much picturesque beauty can a single tourist stand? It was all too much so we retreated to a Sake Bar for a little sake sipping, then we headed over for a return visit to the excellent Hachi Record Store and Bar. By then, we were dead on our feet and not at all prepared for the long walk home – or for the fact that both of the restaurants we tried to visit were inexplicably closed – first world problems I know. In the end we settled for a beer and ramen (they even had vego ramen) at the local ramen shop. Ta da!

Our second full day in Hiroshima. We headed out relatively early and booked seats on a ferry that runs from the river outside the A-Bomb Dome out to the island of Miyajima. We had a few minutes before it departed so we dashed to a nearby Tully’s Coffee place (it’s a chain we’ve seen everywhere in Japan but have been too scared to enter) for coffee. It was as you would expect…

You can actually get the train and then a short ferry to Miyajima but we were glad we caught the direct longer ferry. Apart from about a gazillion American college students being American all over the place, the trip was lovely. Cruising under the numerous bridges on the river and then speeding past a series of beautiful little smaller islands on the way to Miyajima.

The main reason most people visit Miyajima is for the famous giant orange Otorii Gate which is partially submerged at high tide. Apparently Miyajima was a sacred island, and common people wishing to visit the island were required to sail through the gates before setting foot on the island. That’s gone by the wayside now, because we disembarked nowhere near any gates and then strolled along the waterfront towards the beautiful Itstukushima Shrine. On the way to the shrine, the first thing we noticed were the wild deer that were wandering everywhere “interacting” with the tourists – which essentially means they would harass you if they thought you had any food. Anyway they were super cute – including a mother and baby deer (I’m sure there are proper words for them) that were lolling casually on the ground completely blocking the entrance to one of the souvenir shops.

Itstukushima Shrine was amazing, at hight tide the water laps away beneath you, there are numerous shrines and halls and an incredible view of the Otorri Gates. We made it just before the tide dropped too low, so the gates were still partially submerged and still (unfortunately) partially scaffolded for maintenance. Still an incredible sight though – supposedly once of Japan’s top three most visited (and photographed) sites. Also incredible was the Senjokaku Pavillion that is perched part the way up a nearby hill – a massive hall with great views and some beautiful timber.

Jules was keen for a bit of hike, so as some light drizzle fell we walked part the way up Mount Misen. It was a beautiful walk, wild deer, maple trees, waterfalls, ponds with carp, the occasional shrine – hiking in this humidity is thirsty work. So eventually we trekked back down and headed straight to Miyajima Brewery for a few craft beers and some lunchy snacks.

After that we only had time for a quick stroll through the “old town.” Ice cream sandwiches that looked exactly like cute teddy bears mau have been consumed, Momiji (the local cakey biscuitey thing in the shape of a maple leaf) definitely were consumed. Then it was on the short ferry back to the main island, and a street car back to our accommodation for a little rest. Beer and ice cream will do that to you.

Dinner that night was more Hiroshima style okonomyaki at Nagata-ya. A little place just across the river. It was popular, a bit touristy due to the location, but hey – we’re tourists and it was delicious (again).

But the day wasn’t over yet – Lou dragged us into a massive Taito gaming arcade – 5 floors of the weirdest gaming shiz I have ever seen. Some of the floor were obviously just straight out gambling – they were full of smoke and Pachinko machines. But other floors had retro arcade games and we also stumbled across a Taiko Drumming Game – kinda like guitar hero but with taiko drums. Lou of course was excellent at this game and I got my arse handed to me several times. Jules refused to play for fear that she would show us up. Afterwards we went up to the next floor to find a whole bunch of those Japanese photo booths which are enormously popular here. Mostly they are used by Japanese women and everyone loves the way you can use the booths to “face tune” (digitally enhance) your image. So when in Japan… we gave it a go. I looked so beautiful surrounded by pink love hearts – not a wrinkle in sight.