A Weekend in Miyajima and Hiroshima

Thanks to our 14 day unlimited Japan Rail passes, we have been able to cover a lot of ground in Japan in a short amount of time. After the completion of the Gion Matsuri festivites in Kyoto, we hopped on three trains and a ferry to arrive on the island of Miyajima. Miyajima is a UNESCO World Heritage Site located about 30 minutes from Hiroshima and therefore one of Japan's most visited tourist spots. The Itsukushima- jinja shrine along with the famous Tori gate are both located there. The gate appears to be floating in the water at high tide. We arrived around 3:30 PM when the tide was still high so we were able to catch a glimpse of the gate surrounded by the sea. The gate was pretty while it stood tall in the ocean but in my opinion the real beauty of it was at sunset which occured during low tide. The color from the sunset behind the gate as well as the bright spotlights illuminating the reddish-orange gate made for pretty pictures. The island basically shuts down at 5 PM when all the tourists return to the mainland, so at sunset there were also fewer people around.

Tori gate at low tide

Miyajima is home to the friendliest deer

That awkward moment when you think a deer is about to chase you

We've heard that the Japanese experience is incomplete without spending at least one night in a ryokan which is a traditional Japanese inn. So that night we did as the Japanese and opted for a ryokan. It had tatami mats covering the floor, minimal decoration, and many sliding doors. This also means that the beds consist of futons on the floor. At first, I was skeptical about spending as much as I would for a Western-style hotel in exchange for sleeping on the floor but to my surprise, I had a good nights rest and no complaints.

The next day we did some more sightseeing around Miyajima and took the ropeway to the highest point of Mount Misen. After hiking around the attractions at the summit and appreciating the views we decided that we would make the one hour trek back into town instead of taking the cable car. Just as we were leaving, ominous, dark clouds rolled in followed by thunder in the distance. We were hopeful that the rain would go in another direction but we were not that lucky. Suddenly, there was lightening, thunder, and buckets of rain. We were soaked! Along the hike at the summit, we met a kind group who warned us of the approaching storm and had also gifted us two origami cranes. They saw us again while we were hiking down and stopped to lend us an umbrella and a plastic bag for our backpack. Within 15 minutes, the rain stopped and we made it to a view point overlooking the entire town. After sharing in their "japanese orange" snack session we parted ways with our generous new friends and made our way back to town.

Cable car to Mount Misen

We took a ferry and short train ride to Hiroshima. It was already dinner time when we arrived so we did not have any time to see the attractions. We were tired and famished from our day so we went out for Hiroshima's soul food, okonomiyaki. Okonomiyaki is a dish which consists of a savoury pancake, eggs, cabbage, meat of your choice, noodles, cheese, a special dark sauce and green onions. We found this Hiroshima specialty at Okonomi-mura, a 4 story building filled with little restaurants, each vying for our business and putting their own variations on the dish. We went with one that had a lot of locals and figured that would be the best one. The dish was cooked right in front of us on a griddle and we even ate it off the griddle too which kept it nice and warm through the entire meal. This hearty dinner was just what we needed. After washing it down with some sake, we were ready for some rest.

Okonomiyaki

The view from our hotel room in Hiroshima

This morning we went to the Atomic Bomb Dome, Children's Peace Monument, and The Peace Memorial Museum. All are located in the Peace Memorial Park so it was easy to walk from one place to the next. Making our way through the park was like walking through history. It felt surreal to be where the first atomic bomb used against humanity had been dropped. Traveling has brought history to life by allowing us to see and experience it in a tangible way that we never could if we had never left the comfort of our home.

 

Land of the Rising Sun

We did it! We made it to our 11th and final country, Japan! We arrived a week ago after catching a red eye out of Hong Kong. I've taken several red eyes before but the view out of the airplane window was the best airplane sunrise I've ever seen which I find ironic considering we were headed for "the land of the rising sun". Flying above the clouds it felt as if we were somewhere between space and earth as the sun illuminated the curvature of the earth. We took heaps of pictures but I must admit that they barely do it any justice.

Due to the language barrier, jetlag, and rigid Japanese customs, the first day in Tokyo was rough! We've been traveling for 5 and 1/2 months and just as we thought we were mastering this whole traveling thing, Japan reminded us that we will never know everything about traveling. We were interrogated and had our bags searched by airport immigration upon arrival. (I suppose nearly a dozen stamps in our passports over half a year is suspect.) We then struggled to figure out our train route to our hotel. The icing on the cake was when our hotel was unable to accomodate us with an early check-in after finally making it there. In their defense, it was 7 AM when we arrived. Despite the shortcomings, we made the most of our day with a tasty Udon lunch while exploring Shinjuku. After settling into our room that evening, our whole world shook. Literally, it shook! We were experiencing an earthquake. Jonathan woke me up and I was confident that we were going to die. We were on the 9th floor of the building and we felt the building sway for a good minute. Jonathan, on the other hand, was cool calm and collected and thought it was "fun". The good news is that we didn't die and were able to spend another two nights in Tokyo, earthquake free.

The Scramble AKA Shibuya Crossing

 

We stumbled upon a Kirin Brewery

Tokyo fashion

From Tokyo we took our first bullet train to Takayama. Japan is partly famous for its extensive and efficient railway system and it did not disappoint. The Shinkansen (bullet train) can go up to speeds of 200 miles per hour! At those speeds you can almost feel the G forces. We've taken ALOT of modes of transportation on our travels but this is by far my favorite. The bullet train is quick, roomy, punctual, clean, and direct. What more can you ask for? We arrived at our destination refreshed and ready to see the friendly town of Takayama.

Bullet train

Sunset in Takayama

View from our hike in Takayama

The view from the onsen on the top floor of our building

After a couple of days in Takayama and getting one last onsen session in, we took a train to Kyoto. This was not a bullet train but it still had all the benefits besides extreme speed. Next to our train were rushing streams, bamboo forests, and green mountains. Fortunately, the slower speed allowed us to peacefully view the picturesque countryside.

We made it to Kyoto in time for the Gion Matsuri festival, the biggest festival in Japan. The belief is that the events of the festival will ward off bad spirits. The day we arrived in Kyoto was the night preceding the parade, the main event. This meant that we were able to join the kimono clad crowd in viewing the floats and munching on unhealthy street food. The next morning we gathered on the sidewalks of Kyoto to see dozens of huge floats pulled through the streets by teams of chanting citizens. After getting our fill of the festivities, we visited the Imperial Palace Park. That evening we made our way over to a Trip Advisor recommended sushi restaurant. Unfortunately, once again we were lost in translation and ended up at the wrong restaurant. After sitting down in a private booth we quickly realized it was not a sushi restaurant. We managed to somehow explain that we only wanted drinks and slid out of there as fast as possible. We made it to the right restaurant a couple of blocks away, waited 30 minutes for a seat, and chatted with two Brazilian travelers about the World Cup before finally getting some sushi. Considering it was the best sushi we have ever had, we agreed that it was well worth all the effort to get there.

We had toro for the first time and loved it!

Currently, we are on a bullet train and headed to Miyajima for the day and we have plans to visit Hiroshima tomorrow. So far, we are enjoying our adventures in Japan and I look forward to sharing the rest of the trip with you!

 

 

10 Reasons Why I Love Thailand

The first time we went to Thailand we enjoyed it so much that we had to make sure we exited the country before our one month visa expired. We left Thailand before getting in trouble with immigration and made a southeast Asia loop traveling through Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos. We then reentered our beloved Thailand through Chiang Mai and spent another 10 days enjoying more of the sights, sounds, and tastes of this beautiful country. The political situation had changed since we were first there and we were warned about returning because of the possible unrest. The military was now in power and a curfew was in place up until we arrived. We were stubborn and didn't let the political issues stand in our way of returning to Thailand. As with any other country, we planned to use our own wise judgement and get the heck out if we felt any imminent danger. Thankfully, during our 10 days back in Thailand we felt not one sign of unrest. Yes, we did notice the military scattered throughout Chiang Mai but the citizens were peaceful and carried about their daily lives as usual. FIFA World Cup fever probably caused more of an uproar than anything! Although our combined stay surpassed one month, we were still sad to leave one of our favorite countries. I suppose when you fall in love with a country you will never have enough. Thailand has a way of grabbing your attention with its infectious charm and in turn it makes it increasingly difficult for you to let go. With that said, these are the 10 reasons why I love Thailand:

1. Incredible food- pad see ew, pad thai, thai pancakes, mango sticky rice, masaman curry...the list goes on! Thai food is one of my favorite cuisines and I discovered dozens of new favorite dishes while we were there. There are so many more dishes that are not on the menu at the Thai restaurants at home which we were spoiled with daily in Thailand. We ate at markets, mall food courts, and restaurants which all equally delivered amazing food. We loved the food so much that we took a cooking class to learn to make it on our own. Please excuse me as I tease you with some food porn:

Chefs in training

3. Natural beauty- limestone karsts, mountain ranges, blue waters...I'm sure you've seen the postcard images, well I'm here to confirm that it really is that beautiful.2. Budget friendly- Thailand overall is the cheapest country I have ever been to. Double room accomodation for as low as $12 per night and $1 for a plate of excellent food. The cheap finds alone make it easy to stay in this country forever!

4. Khao Yai national park- After Bangkok, we made our way east to this amazing national park. For two days we explored the natural wilderness of Thailand. We saw wild gibbons, scorpions, monkeys, whip snakes, great hornbills, and even a king cobra among many other creatures. The hike was picturesque and we drove around for a couple of hours afterwards hoping to see wild elephants. Despite not seeing the gentle giants in their natural habitat, we had an incredible and unforgettable experience.

Giant millipede...not my thing

No, thats not a branch. Thats an oriental whip snake.

Bat Migration from a cave just outside of the national park

5. Historic ruins- Thailand is the only country is Southeast Asia never to be colonized by the west. The Thais are prideful in their rich history and monarchy. We were able to see 1,000 year old ruins and some even from the Angkor period as well.

Ruins in Phimai

Ruins in Ayuthaya, the former Thai capitol

6. Friendly Thais- We felt welcomed in Thailand. We felt how important it was to the Thais to share their culture and history with us. We appreciated it and embraced their warmth and genorosity. When you have been traveling for so long, it is even more comforting to feel welcomed in a foreign country.

We met this awesome gentleman the night before we left Thailand. We had to peel ourselves away from him to make our early flight.

7. Markets- Every city and town has its market and many times there are multiple ones. There are morning markets, day markets, night markets, all kinds of markets. They sell food, goods, souvenirs, books, flowers...everything! We even saw stalls selling bugs for eating which didn't quite appeal to my palate. The markets are your one stop shop and an easy attraction to go to regardless of the time of day. It also doesn't hurt that bargaining is the norm at the markets.

offerings

Those aren't Easter eggs...more like 1,000 year old eggs. But really 100 day old eggs that were burried and now ready to be eaten. The smell is worse than the taste.

Dried fish anyone?

Fresh fruit shakes= my refreshment of choice

Mango wood bracelets

8. Easy and cheap transportation- Did I mention cheap already? Well I guess I'm just trying to drive the point home. Cheap and efficient public transportation... I'm in! Even flights within Thailand are cheap. We took a third class, no air con, hard seat train a couple of times while we were there and they were efficient. Obviously, we weren't looking for luxury so we appreciated it that much more. We could have upgraded but we were just looking to get from A to B. Buses and tuk tuks are also easily at your service.

Bangkok Train Station

9. Culture and religion- Thailand's predominant religion is Buddhism. Therefore, there are a plethora of temples with ornate Buddhas to see. I'm not sure how many we saw but I know it was a lot. It is possible to get "watted" out so it is important to take it easy and possibly tone it down to only a couple a day. I learned a lot about Buddhism while in Thailand. The festivals, monarchy, and religion are all somehow intertwined and shape the culture of Thailand.

Doi Suthep Temple in Chiang Mai

The steps to Doi Suthep

Getting our blessings on

10. $4 foot massages- Thai massages are also about $4 for an hour. However, I found the Thai massages to be more like passive yoga and not very relaxing so thats not what I am going to advertise. The foot massages, on the other hand, are a God send after putting those Bangkok kilometers on your feet. They also incorporate some foot reflexology which is making me a believer.

 

I've been asked many times what my favorite place has been on this trip and it is always a difficult question to answer because each place we have been to has its own unique strengths. It easier to say the places that excel in certain areas such as cuisine, public transportation, markets, etc. Thailand encompasses many of those strengths, which is why I love Thailand.