The hiroshima dome

The city recovered and beautiful

View from the peace Museum

The Shrine to all the dead with the view to the eternal flame and the dome

The childrens peace shrine

Hiroshima

If there was ever a need to make an argument against the nuclear proliferation then a visit to this city wins hands down.

The devastation recorded in photographs and in the filmed memoirs of survivors is chilling real testament that the devastation is unforgettable.

Amazing but overwhelming.

So glad we made it a long day but got here to see it.

A little bit of shopping late in the day and another pair of sneakers for the princess.

Off tomorrow to get her dressed as a geisha and then to Tokyo and onto the plane for home.

A big trip with so much crammed in.

The weird

The man walking in Ginza with a ferret cradled in his arms dressed in hello kitty dolls clothes.

The dog at the market wearing a samurai outfit.

Americans trying to work out how to order food and what they are actually ordering.

The most impressive

The golden temple

The intersection at Shibuya

Senso-ji

The imperial palace

The low lights

Bad bus signs in Kyoto

Sore feet from too much walking

Am coming home a few kilos lighter due to the no alcohol and the 8 hours of walking each day.

Can't wait to tell you all about it in more detail.

Do yourself a favour and come to Japan. It's terrific.

yes they liked big gates

the house was pretty impressive too

but this is the style i like

What about that to look at each day?

pretty

Well Kyoto

A city of Temples, Shrines and a really confusing bus system.

Whilst the lonely planet guide describes it as an efficient system it is only when you can find the right bus to get on at the right stop. And those stops can be a little harder to find than the maps they hand out would have you believe.

Which is why Alessandra and I spent 3 hours getting to a temple and Zen garden which is about 500m from the one we had just visited!!!

When we couldn't work it out we retraced our steps and caught the bus from the start point. Sheesh.

But other than that minor glitch and our $80 breakfast (hey the views were sensational and the food pretty good), a mistake we won't be making twice, the day was excellent.

The day started with a visit to Nijo-jo a fuedal palace built in 1603 with squeaking nightingale floors to allow the detection of intruders and 400 year old paintings on the walls of the rooms used since that time. Quite spectacular and massive.

From there it was a bus ride to Kinkaku-ji the golden temple. And it is just as spectacular up close as the photos depict. Wonderous to see it covered in gold leaf and the gardens are just as nice. Clipped to within an inch of their life, just as I like them.

From there after the legendary bus journey we made it to the quintessential Zen garden at Ryoan-ji. This arrangement of 15 rocks in a sea of white gravel, laid down sometime between 1333 and 1576 is spellbinding.

From there with a bit of luck we caught a local train with no other tourists and made our way to the renowned bamboo grove next to the temple of Tenryu-ji. Amazing to wander through and photographs do not do it justice.

We managed to make it back to the hotel by a mixture of bus and train and then after viewing the state of origin highlights made our way downstairs for a soba dinner. Another tick to the japanese experience. Regarded as the staple meal of Japan. Buckwheat noodles in stock. made more delicious by the addition of a couple of tempura prawns which were very tasty.

A big day and hopefully off to Hiroshima tomorrow if I can work out the JR lines we need to take to get there.

can't get over how nice the room is

bullet trains are roomy

the welcome good luck oragami cranes in the hotel room

more shopping arcades

The view from our room

Nice interior

Sound asleep as the country rushes by

Successfully negotiated the rail system in Tokyo and achieved freedom.

The bullet train service is nothing short of sensational! Centre to centre and so relaxed and really really fast.

Alessandra loved it judging by how much of it she slept for.

Got to the Hotel in Kyoto with few dramas as it is directly above a subway station. And it is stunning. 9th floor with sensational views and the epitome of luxury. And for $160 Aus a night.

What was most impressive was the service. So polite and so warm. It is something Australain hotel managers should come and see.

We had a wander around the local streets and were delighted to find that sneakers here are about half the price of Aus or less so a few pairs are coming home. And they have bigger sizes. New jeans and some funky caps and t's are next on the agenda in between the zen garden and shrines. Should be a busy few days.

Great dinner again tonight with no english menu and us picking the dish from the plastic food displays in the window. All part of the colour of travel.

Big day of shrines and temples tomorrow and perhaps off to Hiroshima Friday.

The night life in Shibuya

yes they can drive in tokyo (in an automated car)

It's little but oh so cute

If concentration was speed I'd be world champ

Funky bridge

Yes its a building built to look like a boat. What else? It's the maratime museum.

Funky buildings

Yes its very very crowded

My that's a big temple

They do big buildings from up here

Tokyo tower dwarfed in the background

The last full day in Tokyo dawned clear and warm and with a packed itinerary it was just as well.



Trying yet another private rail line we headed off to the area of Odaiba which is a reclaimed area on the bay full of funky architecture and lurid development.

It was a terrific train ride over the rainbow bridge which curls back on itself. You can walk over it but Alessandra and I chose to take a ride on the "hello kitty" ferris wheel and enjoy the view instead. We stopped off at the Toyota Museum and Alessandra had a ride on a small electric car while I took a very determined turn in a GT racer simulator. Let's just say that I won't be changing careers based on that drive.

We headed back into Tokyo proper and off up to Asakusa and the oldest temple in Tokyo Sensoji. Having got my temple etiquette down pat over that last few days I was able to confidently show the tourists how to wash each hand separately then wash out the mouth and spit it in the trough. We were even able to complete a prayer at the shrine but refrained from the customary clapping at the end of the prayer lest we look like idiots.

Hot? Over 32 and with high humidity in the midst of an unshaded lane of tacky souvenir shops with wall to wall people. It didn't stop Alessandra spying a bag with valentino on it which is coming home with us after some spirited debate.
From there it was a few sub-way changes and inventive use of the JR pass which got us back to Roppongi and a visit to the observatory and views over Tokyo which had been denied to us when we went up on Sunday into cloud cover. Gives you a tremendous sense of how huge this city is.
Shopping done and with gifts in hand it was back to the Hotel to change and shower after a long hot day.
Off to Shibuya for dinner and to be amazed at the mass of humanity that flows in and around that area. Think the George Street crossing at the top of the mall times a thousand every 3 minutes. At ten o'clock at night!!
We again took the risk of ordering from a Japanese menu and again scored well with some mystery chicken dish and gyoza. A small issue with the bacon and soy bean hot pot but it went down a treat. And I love Japanese ginger-ale.
Sad to be leaving but looking forward to the journey to Kyoto tomorrow on the shinkansen ( bullet train) and to a different city.
Tremendous memories of Tokyo and it is certainly somewhere worth a visit, even if just to appreciate how polite the people are when living in what must be trying circumstances. We have been amazed at how smoothly it all functions and how polite and civilized they are to each other and to dumb foreigners.
A real pleasure to be a visitor here.