Back again

I was looking through some old files and discovered this blog!  I'll have to get back to this and start adding information when we go somewhere wonderful!

Otaru

May 7

I think Otaru was one of my favorite stops. This lovely little town has ski hills overlooking the city and beautiful arts and crafts stores along the canal. I guess it reminded me of home.

Many antique warehouses in the old city along the harbour have been restored and now house restaurants, microbreweries and glass blowing shops. We spent the day wandering and enjoying the sites.

Hakodate May 6

When I think of this town I'll always think of the incredible fish market we visited! The fish was very clean and fresh - actually a lot of it was still alive! They had every type of crab imaginable, squid, tuna, sea urchins, anything a person could possibly want. A few crabs were trying to escape their tanks but the vendors just caught them and put them back! It was an experience I'm happy to have had.

Tokyo May 4th

Tokyo was an amazing city. It was a holiday week so everyone was out celebrating their day off. It made for streets that were probably even busier than usual.

Our "mission" was to find the Harley Davidson shop in Shibuya. I'm happy to say we succeeded! When we got out of the train station it looked pictures of Times Square in New York. People every where and huge digital bill boards covered the sides of the buildings. One incredible thing is Shibuya is only one small area of this gigantic city. It sure makes all our cities seem small!

When we got back to Ginza they'd closed off several blocks of the city and it was wall to wall people. I have to admit I found it rather over whelming.

These fire boats welcomed us to the harbour. For the holiday they shot pink and blue water out of their cannons. This picture is from the morning when they hadn't found their colors yet!

Kagoshima

April 30

This was our first stop in Japan. We were quite a ways south and docked across from this active volcano. I don't know how I missed adding this stop!

Kyoto Chion-in Temple

May 2
We traveled from Kobe to Kyoto for the day and experienced a lovely transition from new Japan to old. We went from the monorail, to a railway, and then to a subway before we walked around the ancient Nijo Castle. It was originally built in 1605 and contains the Honmaru and Ninomaru Palaces. We walked on a Nightingale floor and enjoyed the lovely squeaking sound we made as we toured the palace. The gardens were exquisite and the spring flowers were in bloom. The rock work was incredible considering when the walls and buildings were constructed. It must have been a magical time in Japanese history when the shoguns lived in these wonderful palaces.
Another stop was the Chion-in temple where we enjoyed the lovely stairs and hills of this large and gorgeous complex. The ancient cemetery was beautiful and peaceful. I think this was one of my favorite places in Kyoto because it was good to see so many local people enjoying their day off at such a spiritual place.

Nijo Castle Kyoto May 2

Castle walls and moat