14th – 18th May 2017
To get to Kyoto from Hiroshima, we had booked on another bullet train. We turned up, grabbed ourselves a bento box (like a Japanese school lunch) and boarded the train. Like the last one, it left precisely on time.
The trains in Japan were very efficient, if a bit confusing to use. There were quite a few times we were unsure which train to catch, and we got on the wrong one more than once. It wasn’t really the lack of English language signs that was the problem; it was the fact there are so many different types of train (local, rapid, express, limited express) which often head in the same direction but may or may not stop at each station on the way, depending on the type.
When we got to Kyoto, we dropped our bags at the hostel and headed over to Arashiyama. Found on the west side of the city, it contains an area where you can walk along paths through a bamboo forest. It’s quite nice…. but extremely popular. We would advise going late evening/early morning to avoid the crowds.
In the evening, we decided to visit a Japanese onsen (public bath). We were a little hesitant to do this, as the tradition states you have to bathe naked. However, we are all about trying new things, so decided to give it a go.
Arriving at the onsen, we paid our entrance fee and went into the changing rooms. It’s separate baths for men and women, so I said goodbye to Em and agreed to meet her in an hour.
I entered the changing room to find myself greeted by the sight of the bum of an old Japanese man bent over drying his feet. There were 3 other men in there, all of them completely starkers. I avoided eye contact by looking at the floor, and started to undress.
Once naked, I wasn’t entirely sure what to do next. Em and I had read the section in the guidebooks about onsen etiquette, but I was still uncertain. I followed one of the other naked guys through to the main baths, where I found the pools surrounded by very small stools placed next to showers. This bit was in the book! I knew I had to sit on the stool and use soap to wash myself before entering the water, so I did.
Once cleaned, I chose a random pool (there were several) and climbed in. The water was pretty hot. I felt a bit awkward at first, just sitting there, but over time I started to relax and stopped feeling uncomfortable at all the nakedness.
The baths also contained a sauna. I don’t really like them, but I definitely do like to get my money’s worth, so decided to go in and try it. I sat there with 2 other naked guys watching some bizarre Japanese game show on the TV for as long as I could stand, before the heat became too much and I had to get out (about 10 minutes). I left and got straight in the cold water plunge pool.
Going suddenly from intense hot to cold was a bit of shock for my body, and I started to go a bit dizzy. Two young Japanese boys climbed into the small plunge pool with me. The dizziness, plus the fact I couldn’t help feeling a little uncomfortable being naked in a bath with 2 boys, meant that I decided my time was up and headed back to get changed.
When I met Em later, she had surprised herself and enjoyed the experience. Her pools were far less busy than mine and she came out feeling very refreshed and relaxed. Maybe she is secretly an exhibitionist.
The next day, we had booked ourselves on a food tour. We had done one of these in Vietnam, really enjoyed it, and felt it helped us understand what to order whilst in the country. We had heard a lot about Japanese food before we arrived; it was on this tour that we realised that we actually don’t like it very much.
The problem is that neither Emma or I are big seafood fans (particularly Em) and everything is so…. fishy. The tour took us through the famous Nishiki Market, trying some of the different delicacies on offer. This included; fish broth; yuba (tofu skin, which had a very strange texture and was pretty disgusting); omusubi (rice balls), fried fish cake (which I liked but Em didn’t); Japanese omelette (a fish flavoured egg thing which was absolutely rank) and sake (rice wine, which was actually very drinkable). Although we didn’t like all the food, we did our absolute best to pretend to our guide that we did, and we had a great time. Just don’t ever make us eat a Japanese omelette again.
In the afternoon, we headed over to the Fushimi Inari Shrine. Famous for its thousands of vermillion torii (vermillion – that’s posh for orange, torii means entrance gates), it is one of the most famous sites in Kyoto. We were a bit worried it would be incredibly crowded like the bamboo groves. It was busy, but the crowds cleared the further you walked up the mountain and we were often left walking through the forest on our own. We really liked it.
In the evening, we headed out to the Gion district. Wandering the streets, we were very excited to see a real life Geisha! She was with a client, so we were not allowed to take photos. Also, I was way too slow to get the camera out.
On our last day in Kyoto we explored the palace gardens, saw some more temples, tried matcha ice cream and went to see a traditional Japanese tea ceremony.
The tea ceremony is performed before a cup of matcha tea is drank. In the UK, I just whack a bag in the mug, top up with water and then add milk (no… I’m not one of the weird people who put the milk in first). The Japanese tea ceremony took about 10 minutes, and was very precise and methodical. It was fascinating to watch, although I’m not sure I could be bothered with the fuss every time. The matcha tea was unusual (we normally drink Yorkshire Tea) but we enjoyed it, and as it’s also got one the highest caffeine contents for tea, perked us up a bit.
Although sad to leave Kyoto, we left the next day to head to Takayama. Takayama is located in the base of the Japanese Alps, an area we wanted to visit. Upon recommendation from a friend, we had booked to stay in a ryokan, a traditional Japanese style inn.
Our room in the ryokan had a futon bed, and the decor was exactly as we imagined. Dinner was served in a dining room between set times. Originally, we turned up to dinner in our jeans and t-shirts, only to find everyone else was wearing the traditional attire given to them upon arrival. After making a quick and slightly embarrassing exit to get changed, we returned and sat down for our meal. When I say sat, I mean sat on the floor. Em was alright with this but I’m not the most flexible and struggled to get my legs folded under the table.
The food (and there was a lot of it) was fantastic. Well, it would be if you liked Japanese food. To Em, it was like her own personal bushtucker trial. Sushi, octopus, squid, tempura prawns, fish soup…. she bravely tried a bit of everything (well, except the octopus).
In the morning, we arrived at breakfast to find that the food wasn’t too dissimilar to the meal the night before. Now, I can handle fish soup at 6pm, but for breakfast? I just couldn’t stomach it. Give me cornflakes or a bacon sandwich any day!
Although we weren’t really enjoying the food, we were absolutely loving Japan. The time was racing by, and we only had one stop left; Tokyo.
(Posted by Ben)
Emma & Ben... Far From Home 