Introduction to Japan

Four major islands, each of which we have or will be on, plus another 14,121 islands….we see them everywhere we look from the balcony of our ship.   The population of Japan is approximately 123 million people, which is 1/3 the size of the US, but the land mass of Japan is only 1/26 size of the US.  In other words, a lot more people in a smaller space.   I know it's just my imagination but I swear that after being on trains (local, express, and bullet), buses, subways, temples, shrines, gardens, castles, and towns, big and small, I honestly believe I have either seen or bumped into every one of those 123 million people 😊.

Before I launch into the many pictures I’ve taken, I think it would be helpful to provide some basic background on Japan and Japanese culture, which will help you understand the pictures a bit better.  In no particular order, I offer the following:

1. Being surrounded by water (East – Pacific Ocean, West – Sea of Japan, South – East China Sea and Philippine Sea, North - Sea of Okhotsk), every type of seafood imaginable can be found in their many markets.
2. There are two primary religions in Japan – Shintoism and Buddhism. Shintoism is a belief that nature is sacred.  Buddhism originated in India, where the Buddha taught that the path from suffering to liberation was through ethical living, meditation, and wisdom (obviously, he was not a MAGA believer).
3. There are many temples and shrines throughout Japan. A temple is a community-oriented facility for large groups, whereas a shrine is much smaller, where you pray for favors from various deities.
4. The entrance to most temples and shrines is through a Torii Gate. There are two main styles of Torii gates - Shinmei torii (straight, simple style) and Myōjin torii (curved style).
5. Before the middle of the 19^th century, Japan was primarily an isolated and feudal society. The Shogun was the military dictator.  The Daimyo was the feudal lord, and the Samurai was the warrior nobility. This all changed when Commodore Perry of the US made a surprise visit to Japan in 1853.  Thereafter, during the reign of Emperor Meiji, Japan began an aggressive campaign to engage with Western nations.
6. Also for those who interested in the price of items, which you will occasionally see in my pictures, there are 150 Yen to $1 US.

After 10 days at sea and crossing the international date line we arrived at our first Japanese stop - Hakodate (ha-ko-da-tay)

Hokadate is on the island of Hokkaido, which is the northernmost of Japan's four main islands.  It was a rainy one day stop for us given that it was my first time in Japan I was very interested  begin our Japanese experience.  From top to bottom and left to right you can see the following - welcome signs for our ship the Odyssey, seafood street vendors, beware of crows sign, Russian Orthodox church, Hakodate brewery and shrine.

Our next one day stop was the Port of Hachinohe (ha-chi-no-hay) which is located on Honshu, the main island of Japan

The big attraction in this port was the Hachinohe museum which was hosting a major exhibit of Pokeman art.  From top to bottom left to right - welcome sign, seafood display, spiked red crab, shrine and all things Pokeman.

Our next one day visit was to the port of Sendai (sen-di), with a population of 1+ million, also on the large island of Honshu.

Our primary mission in Sendai was to secure a Suica card for Kathie at the Sendai train station.  As with all of our major train station visits this was an adventure in and of itself.  A Suica card looks like a credit card and it can be used for almost all forms of transportation in Japan, excluding the bullet train.  As you walk through the turnstiles or board the bus or subway, you tap your card against the card reader.  In my case, fortunately, the Suica card is built into the IPhone so all I had to do was open my wallet app and it was ready to use.  From top to bottom, left to right - Samurai welcoming committee, Sendai train station, my first real Japanese meal and the refreshment that helps me get it all down :-)

Our next port was Yokohama which is located on the western shore of Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kanto region of the main island of Honshu, Japan.  It is the second largest city in Japan with a population of almost 4 million.

We were docked at a pier in Yokohama for 4 days and 3 nights and took the opportunity to split our time between Yokohama and Tokyo.  I'll start my picture journey with the sights in Yokohama and then move on to Tokyo.  We made a number of sightseeing journeys around Yokohama.  From top to bottom, left to right - Yokohama Bay Bridge, fountain and old Japanese cruise ship in Yamashita park by the harbor,  front and back entrance gates to Chinatown.

Then our most memorable visit in Yokohama was to a beautiful Japanese garden - Sankeien.  From top to bottom, left to right - a sign that explains the genesis of the garden, your intrepid travelers at the entrance, the large pond in the middle of the garden, exterior and interior of the guest house, one of the entry gates and a shrine, and lastly two 16th century pagodas. 

Tokyo

While in port in Yokohama we decided to do a one night, two day visit to Tokyo.  Depending on the number you want to choose, the population of Tokyo goes from a minimum of 10 million to maximum of 38 million.  Either way, just park yourself in the middle of the main Tokyo train station and its not hard to believe the 38 million number.  Our trip got off to a great start as we took the bus, next to our pier, to the main Yokohama train station for what should have been a 45 minute ride.  Two hours later we finally found the right train to Tokyo :-(.  Once in the main Tokyo station we needed another 10 minute train ride to get us to our hotel which was in the ward of Shinjuku.  An hour and half later we finally made it to the hotel and a much needed lunch and more than a few beers.  One of the advantages of living in a cabin on a cruise ship is getting use to small sleeping spaces, which is what the typical Japanese hotel has to offer.   What we didn't expect was a bathroom with detailed instructions on how to use the toilet...who'd guessed.  See pictures of lunch and toilet instructions (sorry about the poorly coordinated subjects ;-).  After an exhausting and stressful day we had a quiet dinner at the hotel and headed to bed for an early start to our 10 hour bus tour of Tokyo.

Our second day started with a walk in the park, and I mean that literally, to get to our bus tour departure spot, the LOVE statue.  For those who love trivia (pun intended), the statue was designed by American pop artist Robert Indiana.  Since our bus tour included quite a few stops I'm including a picture of our itinerary for your future reference.  I will provide a brief introduction of each destination before each group of pictures.  Here's Kathie and the LOVE statue and our itinerary.   

Our first stop on the tour was the very large and elaborate Meiji Jingu Shrine.  Emperor Meiji is widely credited with the "westernization"  of Japan in the middle to late part of the 19th century.  Where there were available signs that describe features in and around the temple/shrine, I have a included them as prelude to the picture.  I will start with some signs and artifacts from outside shrine and gradually work towards the area immediately around the shrine. 

As we moved toward the major buildings in the temple/shrine, we see the following from top to bottom and left to right - Main gate into the shrine, interesting sign about the trees inside the temple grounds, interesting architecture and building within the temple, and an exit Torii gate where you face the shrine, bow twice and leave.

Our next stop on the Tokyo bus tour was at the grounds outside of the Imperial Palace.  We were greeted by a statue of Kusunoki Masashige (1294–1336) who is remembered in Japanese history as one of the great samurai loyalists, celebrated for his unwavering devotion to Emperor Go-Daigo.  Further along the Imperial Palace grounds we see the moat and gate surrounding the Imperial Palace, the bridge over the moat and in the distance a part of the Imperial Palace.  Lastly turning our backs to the palace and looking across the parade grounds we some of Tokyo's skyline.  An observant person might recognize the lack of logos on these buildings...why?  Since the buildings overlook the Imperial Palace of the Emperor it's in respect for his position.

Next up on the tour was our desert stop and lunch stop...and yes it was in that order.  For desert we went to a Matcha shop.  Matcha is a finely ground powder made from specially grown and processed green tea leaves.  Matcha involves consuming the entire leaf in powdered form, which makes it richer in nutrients and caffeine.  Our desert came in the form of Matcha ice cream but we could have opted for a choice of tea, chocolate or beer.  See  the picture of desert below.   For lunch we went to the local JFC, for Japanese Fried Chicken.  And no Kathie had her version of vegetarian JFC.  See picture below.

After lunch we had an opportunity to stroll the streets in the Asakusa shopping district as we walked through the impressive Torii gate toward the Senso-ji temple.  The Senso-ji temple, originally built in 628 AD, is Tokyo’s oldest and most famous Buddhist temple.  It is dedicated to Kannon Bosatsu, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, and is one of the most visited spiritual and cultural sites in Japan. From top to bottom, left to right - Asakusa gate, side view of the Senso-ji temple, 5 story pagoda next to temple, main gate to temple and decorative statues in front of temple.

From the ancient we went to the ultra modern.  Our next stop was the Tokyo Sky Tree.  The Sky Tree was built in 2012 as a digital broadcasting station to replace the Tokyo Tower.  The other skyscrapers in Tokyo had gotten to tall for the Tokyo Tower to be effective.  The Sky Tree stands 634 meters high or for you "feet" oriented people 2080 feet.  We rode a very fast elevator, holding 40 of your "closest" Japanese friends, up to the Tembo Deck which is 1050 feet up the Sky Tree.  From there we had a glass-enclosed 360 degree view of greater Tokyo. 

The final stop on our very long bus tour involved a boat tour of Tokyo Bay.  As with much of everything else in Tokyo our boat had an ultra modern look to it but one of the sights we saw was very familiar.

Upon leaving Yokohama our next port was Shizuoka.

Shizuoka's primary attraction is its proximity to Mt Fuji.  Since we didn't really have time to travel there we opted instead to use our time in Shizuoka has a launch pad for our inland excursion to Kyoto and Osaka.  From the port in Shizuoka we traveled to main train station where we boarded the Tōkaidō Shinkansen (bullet train) for a 2 hour trip to Kyoto station.  Top speed on these trains is 180 mph and the ride is very comfortable.

Kyoto

Kyoto, once the imperial capital of Japan for over a thousand years, and is known as the cultural heart of Japan.  It is home to more than 1,600 Buddhist temples, 400 Shinto shrines and beautiful gardens.  While I have quite a few pictures from our one day bus tour of Kyoto, it won't cover the 2000 temples and shrines....it will just seem like it :-).  We'll start the pictures with our bus tour itinerary and visit to Kiyomizu Temple.  Kiyomizu-dera, or the “Pure Water Temple,” was founded in 778.  The temple takes its name from the Otowa Waterfall, whose pure waters are divided into three streams that visitors can drink from—each believed to bestow a different blessing: longevity, success in school, or good fortune in love.  I saw the three streams.  I saw the people drinking out of them.  But if you thought I was going to use the same cups everyone else was using then, as they say in NYC, "fagetaboutit".  From top to bottom, left to right - tour itinerary, entrance to Kiyomizu, large and small stages within the temple, Buddha statue in main hall, shrine on the grounds, 5 story pagoda.

Next up on the tour was one of our favorite temples - Sanja-san-gen-do.  Its name means “Hall with 33 Spaces Between Columns,” referring to the temple’s long wooden structure that measures 120 meters, making it the longest wooden building in Japan. Founded in 1164 and rebuilt in 1266 after a fire, the temple is famous for housing 1,001 statues of Kannon, the Buddhist goddess of mercy.  From top to bottom, left to right - Sanjūsangen-dō temple, Kannon Buddhist statue (1000 arms/eyes), 1001 Kannon statues in the temple, garden and shrine on temple grounds, children's shrine (red skirts indicate a shrine where you pray for children).

Our next stop was Kathie's favorite - an all you can eat Japanese buffet.  As you can see from the first picture below I had a mouth-watering meal of green stuff, brown stuff, black stuff, rice and yellow stuff....and all the "stuff" was delicious.  Kathie can tell you what she had but I'm sure it was equally delicious.

From lunch we had a short walk up the road to the Sagano bamboo forest.  I think the pictures will be pretty self explanatory.

Adjoining the forest was the Tenryu-ji temple.  This is one of the city’s most historically and culturally significant Zen Buddhist temples. It was founded in 1339 by the shogun Ashikaga Takauji to honor Emperor Go-Daigo.  From top to bottom, left to right - Temple sign and front view of the temple, the garden and shrine at the temple.

A drive across town to north Kyoto was our next to the  last stop and it was simply "golden"...you'll see why immediately.  Kinkaku-ji temple, aka the Golden Pavilion, was originally built in the late 14th century (1397) as the retirement villa of the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. After his death, it was converted into a Zen temple according to his wishes. 

The top two stories of the pavilion are covered in gold leaf, giving the temple its world-famous appearance. Each floor is built in a different architectural style:

• 1st floor: Shinden-zukuri (palatial style used by aristocrats).

• 2nd floor: Buke-zukuri (samurai-style).

• 3rd floor: Chinese Zen hall style.

From top to bottom, left to right - Front view, back view and two side views of the temple and surrounding gardens.

Now for our last stop of the day, if you love the Torii gates that you've seen so far, you'll love this last shrine - Fushimi Inari Shrine.

This shrine dates back to 711 AD, making it one of Japan’s oldest shrines. It serves as the head shrine for tens of thousands of Inari shrines across the country.  The shrine is best known for the tunnel-like pathways created by rows of closely spaced red-orange torii gates.  These gates are donated by individuals and businesses, as acts of gratitude or prayer for luck and prosperity. Each features the donor’s name and date inscribed on the reverse. From top to bottom, left to right - Entrance gate to shrine, first set of gates, second set of gates with inscriptions of donors and shrine.

We left Kyoto the next day and took the express train to Osaka station and then the local train to the Osaka Expo aka Worlds Fair.  Kathie had put a lot of planning into trying to secure reservations for the most popular pavilions but as the old saying goes "you can plan Expo visit BUT accidents will control it".  As it turned out we never really had any pavilion reservations so we just wandered around the Expo stopping in "common" pavilions that catered to smaller countries.  We did this until we ran out of common pavilions and by then the oppressive heat had taken its toll and we headed for the train station to get us back to where are ship was now in port in Kobe.  Here's a few pictures I took while wandering around the Expo.

KOBE (ko-bay)

From the Expo we rejoined the ship in Kobe (as in the famous beef).  There was a local train line that ran right next to the pier where we were docked and it facilitated us getting around.  Additionally the next few sightseeing destination were very close to the train station.  If you've been following our journeys, by now you realize we enjoying going to animal oriented sights.  In this case it was the Kobe Animal Kingdom which was Just a few steps from a train station stop.  Most of the facility is inside what appears to be a giant greenhouse and seemed to be air conditioned.  The primary orientation of Animal Kingdom was on smaller animals, birds and other "creatures".  From top to bottom, left to right - lights out section with barn owls and bat, feeding time for the ringed tailed lemurs, very tired South American bush dogs, Red panda sign and picture, Binturong sign and picture, Shoebill Storks, Ocelot and Serval cat.

From the animal kingdom to the nature kingdom, our next visit was literally steps away from main Kobe train station.  This is where we found Nunobiki Falls which originates on Mount Rokko above Kobe.  The falls are actually a series of four cascades—Ontaki, Mentaki, Meotodaki, and Tsutsumigataki—each with its own character and beauty.  Nunobiki Falls is considered one of the “divine falls” of Japan.  The source of the water at the top of falls is Nunobiki Reservoir, which supplies the drinking water for the city of Kobe.  Further up the mountain you will find the Nunobiki Herb Gardens.  There is an aerial tram that will take you from the train station level to the very top where the Herb Garden starts and you can walk down through the Herb Garden to the midpoint where the trail to falls begins.  We started walking at the bottom and enjoyed each successive set of falls and then took the tram up to the Herb Garden then walked down through the Herb Garden to the midpoint for an aerial tram ride to the bottom.  From top to bottom, left to right - sign describing the falls, various pictures of the four falls, sign and picture of the reservoir and spillway, aerial tram car and view of Kobe port, the top station and pictures of flowers, vegetables and herbs.  

And finally the people of Kobe were so happy to see us go they sent a band and fans to bid us farewell. 

Kochi (co-she)

Not much to report on Kochi except that Kathie spend over an hour in little Japanese post office trying to mail Pokeman trading cards to her granddaughter.  Because of the late start to the day and time spent in the P.O. we just buzzed through a few sights and caught the shuttle back to the ship.  Here's Kochi castle (1611) and one of the many Samurai statues we've seen throughout Japan.

Hiroshima (he-row-she-ma)

This was a special visit for us.  To think that we would be standing at the exact site where an atomic bomb detonated was "unreal".  Here's a few factoids about the bombing of Hiroshima.  Prior to the bombing of Hiroshima, on August 6, 1945, it was a thriving industrial and military city of 360,000.  The bomb explode 1800 feet above city center directly over a hospital.  It destroyed 70% of the buildings in the city, which at time were made of wood, and it killed over 140,000 people (men, women, children, infants).  Despite the devastation, Hiroshima rebuilt over the following decades. It was designated a City of Peace in 1949.  We visited Peace Memorial Park where there are number of monuments and the Peace museum.  From top to bottom, left to right - our welcome sign at the port, ground zero sign, the Atomic Dome building from the front and the side, memorial tower to mobilized students (by the end of the war the Japanese had conscripted girls and boys as young as 10 years old to work in munition factories), monument to the children killed in the bombing, burial mound memorial where the ashes of 70,000 people who could not be recognized (unknown victims) are buried, the Cenotaph for the A-Bomb Victims which contains the names and recognition to the known victims, a view from the Peace Museum of cenotaph and dome, the Peace Museum.  I've intentionally spared you pictures from inside the museum because many are too horrific to share.

From the horrors of an atomic blast, the next day we enjoyed the "surreal" beauty of Hiroshima's Shukkeien garden. Shukkeien—literally “shrunken scenic garden”—was created in 1620 by tea master Ueda Sōko under the commission of feudal lord Asano Nagaakira.  It was designed to compress the grandeur of rivers and mountains into a compact, walkable space, it spans about the size of a baseball stadium. The style used is known as kaiyū-shiki teien, or excursion-style garden, with circular paths guiding visitors through miniaturized landscapes.  Most of the garden was destroyed by the A-bomb and has been rebuilt gradually over the last 80 years.  We walked the entire route of the garden and I hope that some of the pictures do just a little justice to grandeur and beauty we strolled in.  From top to bottom, left to right - explanation sign, rainbow bridge, your intrepid travelers, sign explaining bridges, islands and pond, picture of some bridges, picture of some islands, a memorial and sign to A-bomb victims, herb garden sign, bamboo forest, tea plants, emperor's main house and one of the many tea houses.

You can't do a tour of city with Kathie without looking for a castle.  And sure enough we found Hiroshima castle, which by the way was turned into rumble from the A-bomb, but now has been rebuilt in its original design as a very interesting museum of historical Japan.  Hiroshima Castle was originally built in 1589 by the feudal lord Mōri Terumoto and is known as a flatland castle because it was built on a plain.  I'll provide more detail and pictures of the history of Hiroshima as we move through the museum in the castle.  From top to bottom, left to right - Castle gate, castle moat, sign and tree that survived A-bomb, castle after A-bomb, rebuilt castle.

Inside the castle museum you'll find a number of Japanese historical artifacts.  From top to bottom, left to right - Samurai warrior uniform, Samurai military uniform, Samurai "party" suit, Samurai helmet, Samurai swords, dining sign and apparatus and view of Hiroshima from the top of the castle.