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Two month of Japan

a travel blog by JuergenS

Hello to all of you!

I am going to travel through Japan for two months, starting July 10, and hope to create a blog that can represent my experiences, at least at a basic level. I plan to do this quite like a diary.

Having long since honed a desire for seeing the world, especially Japan, and being in the lucky position of having time and money align now, I am quite excited to set off!

One crucial part of this journey will be the language, and it will be interesting to see how far my Japanese will get me.
Oh, and don't forget the Japanese cuisine!
view all 931 photos for this trip

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Asakusa

Tokyo, Japan


Food imitations shop

Went to Asakusa today for the temple, the market and the shopping. Going around Tokyo is really easy, as the Yamanote loop line connects you to pretty much anything you might want to visit, perhaps with the addition of riding for a few stops on a different line.
Got off the station, a guy collecting donations for typhoon and quake victims talked to me and after that I explored the area.

Yes, it's a brewey

Nakamise-dori was my first stop, it's right through the Kaminari-mon (see below) and basically the street leading to the Senso-ji, the prominent temple of the area. It is a market and souvenir street with pretty much anything you might want to buy and way more. Seriously, if you ever feel the need to buy a last-minute-present before going home, this is the place. Real weapons (swords, spears, sai, ...) on sale as well.


Nakamise-dori

Nakamise-dori

Swords for sale

After browsing this madness I continued to the Senso-ji itself...


Kaminarimon


Senso-ji

Senso-ji

Senso-ji

Senso-ji

Temples need public phones too, apparently

Temple construction going on

Giant sandal

...and the shrine right next to it


Nearby shrine

There was this pigeon sculpture and many signs to not feed them. You remember the deer on the island in Hiroshima? Same principle, way more specimen expected.


Pigeon statue

Anyone got an okarina handy?

Loving to cook myself I really looked forward to my next stop: Kappabashi-dori, the Kitchen Town of Tokyo. Its a street lined with pretty much everything to do with selling, preparing, presenting, storing, ... food. You can buy quality knives, cheap bowls and as many plastic food imitations as you can fit in you window. Oh, and a Kappa is a mystical creature living in rivers --> The mascots of the street.


Kappa tile

Coffee equipment

Food imitations

Pans and woks

Giant bug on the wall

Anyone wants to create their own Chinatown?

Furniture

Bowls

Kappa doll

Going to Nikko for two days tomorrow for its oh-so-many World Heritage Sites and the National Park.

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 3, 2010 from Tokyo, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Nikko

Nikko, Japan


Akechi-daira ropeway

I am back from Nikko where I stayed at an really nice place called the Turtle Inn for a night, which gave me enough time to get a good look at the place and its sights.

Hopping off the bus I first saw the Shin-Kyo, a famous and loved bridge of the area, build where supposedly a saint was carried over the river by two giant snakes.


Shin-Kyo entrance

Shin-Kyo

Was on my way west from there, towards the inn. As I still had some time before check-in, I visited the Imperial Villa first, the past residence of the Emperor. Seems like they enjoyed a game of four-ball there, at least that's what the sign on the billiard table said.


Nikko Imperial Villa

Imperial Villa billiard room

Imperial Villa garden

Checked in after that at the Turtle Inn, got a handy map of the area and some info and was shown my room. The rooms are named after months here (I am assuming that there are twelve rooms, accordingly), and I got July. This inn got two onsen-baths for private use, which I really enjoyed later that day.

I still had a lot of daylight left then and decided to walk up to the temple and shrine complexes with its World Heritage Sites. First up was Taiyuin-Byo, essentially a more petite version of the main sight of the complex, the Tosho-gu.


Taiyuin-Byo entrance

Taiyuin-Byo

Taiyuin-Byo

Taiyuin-Byo

Its gates are protected by several guardians:


Fujin

Raijin

Guardian deity

Guardian deity

Taiyuin-Byo guardians

Taiyuin-Byo guardians

Taiyuin-Byo guardians

Taiyuin-Byo guardians

Inside the main hall photographing was prohibited, but there are a great many dragons painted on the ceiling, said to carry the prayers of the believers to the heavens. Some are holding crystals (prayers) and are on their way up, others are without and on their way back to collect more.

Nearby is the Futarasan-jinja, a very old structure with a lovely spring.


Futarasan-jinja torii

Futarasan-jinja

Futarasan-jinja sacred spring

As most of the sites close at 17h that was it for day one, I soaked in the onsen, enjoyed a beautiful dinner of sukiyaki and fish and relaxed. After a good sleep and a "western style" breakfast I checked out and was on my way.

First up was the Gamman-Ga-Fuchi Abyss, an area with a great many of Jizo statues, the guardians of travelers. Halfway through their line is the Bake-Jizo, said to mock traveler who try to count them all.


Gamman-Ga-Fuchi Abyss

Jizos

Bake-Jizo, I guess

They are in different states of corrosion at some places:


Complete Jizo

Jizo w/o head

Gone Jinzo

Got on a bus and was on my way to the next point of interest, the Chuzenji-ko area with its lake and waterfall.
I got off one stop early and took the Akechi-daira ropeway up, from where you have a fantastic view.


Ropeway-station from above

View to the lake and fall

It's supposed to be a round-trip, but I left from the ropeway station and followed an old hiking/walking path through the surrounding hills and the forest to the lake itself.
A really nice tour, but I kinda seem to attract shoe-related problems, as my hiking boots decided to fail on my way. I took two pairs of footwear with me to Japan, one for hiking, one for everything else, and both managed to start looking their soles. One of my boots just barley hung there by the end of the hike, kept it up by tying it to the rest of the book with the laces. This really is a problem, as I was planning to wear them on my trip up the Fuji, an endeavor now in danger of being canceled (I am not going up my first mountain with loose soles and a new pair is not really an option). Anyway, after being lost for a moment and ending up a bit off the way I wanted to go, I reached the lake area.

Chuzenji-ko lake

Chuzenji-ko swans

The Kegon-no-taki is right next to it, 95m of falling water. There is an elevator down to its base, which I did not take.

Back to central Nikko, I finally entered the grand Tosho-gu:


Tosho-gu entrance

Tosho-gu gate

Tosho-gu

Tosho-gu

Tosho-gu

It is famous for its many carvings all around, especially for those of the three monkeys (see below), the Kirin (a mythical beast somewhere between a giraffe and a dragon) and the portraits of elephants by an artist who never saw the real thing.


Tosho-gu carvings

Tosho-gu elephants, I think

Tosho-gu elephant?

The three monkeys, depicting that a child should "see no evil, hear no evil and speak no evil". There are many other carvings of monkeys on that building, I am sure the interested will find info on them by themselves.


Tosho-gu monkeys

Famous three monkeys

More monkeys

Also,Ieyasu's tomb is there, located up steep stairs right next to the main area and surrounded by the forest.


Way to Ieyasu's tomb

Ieyasu's tomb

Went back after that, the travel from Nikko to Tokyo takes some time after all. In Utsuomiya I had some time to spare, waiting for the next Shinkansen to arrive, so I tried the gyoza (chinese dumplings) the area is known for.
Reached "home" in the evening.

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 5, 2010 from Nikko, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Cultural: The call of nature

Tokyo, Japan


Toilet sign at a shrine

Japanese toilets have a certain reputation in the West for being high-tech and sporting lots of buttons and a whole range of functions, from pre-warmed seats to blow-drying. But that's not the type you will find in your average station stall, the truth looks like this:

Japanese toilet

These are the classic Japanese toilets and you can find them pretty much everywhere. No technology, no seat. Found a site explaining the processes involved: http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~AD8Y-HYS/movie.htm .
Basically, crouch down, do you business, don't fall down and look out for cramps in your calves.

Now, that being said, Western-style toilets are getting more and more popular and you can often see toilets with some separately labeled stalls. Due to this, you can experience the following phenomenon in department stores: There is a line in front of the Western-toilet, the Japanese ones are pretty much deserted. So sometimes it's better to just go with the local version.


Western-style toilet

Western-style is pretty much just a name, by the way, as about the only fact the average European toilet has in common with those here is the fact that you sit down to use them. As I said before, the seats are heated, you can have fountains if you want, you can have them play music, you can have yourself blow-dried and there are different flushing-programs. Of course there are "normal" ones as well, the form and functionality always depends on where you are at the moment.

Trail toilet

"normal" toilet

Another thing one should remember is the topic of paper: Many public toilets don't have it, so bring it. I am talking both toilet paper and paper for drying your hands here. For this, there are these vending machines, where you can buy two packets of tissues for 100yen. The use in public toilets and wiping your face of sweat is by the way pretty much the only use paper towels have in Japan, as cleaning your nose in public is considered rude. Also there are always some people in crowded areas handing out tissue packets with ads on them, it's a popular form of advertising.
Get some of these, just to be on the save side and avoiding unpleasant surprises.

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS


permalink written by  JuergenS on August 6, 2010 from Tokyo, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Left and right of Shibuya

Tokyo, Japan


Harajuku girls

Covered the area around Shibuya (meaning train stations nearby) today, more precisely Harajuku, Yoyogi, Ikebukuro and Roppongi.

I started at Harajuku, where the "Harajuku girls" are probably themost popular "sights" on weekends. Cosplayers, lolitas (cute/goth) and kimono/yukata clad people meet here to pose for hordes of (wannabe)photographers and to confuse some tourists.
Today some kind of official shooting was going on as well, as there were guys with TV cameras taking interviews.
Harajuku girls and co:


Passing harajuku girls

TV interview

Harajuku girls

Group picture

Harajuku girls

?

The madness from above

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Right behind the gathering area lies the Yoyogi park, a popular area for cycling, relaxing, walking, jogging and all kind of social events. There were groups rehearsing for performances, training their moves (martial art and other) or just picnicking and sunbathing.


Yoyogi park

Yoyogi park

Yoyogi park

Yoyogi park

Yoyogi park

Yoyogi park entrance

Yoyogi park map

Yoyogi park

Yoyogi park

There were all kinds of musicians around as well:


Yoyogi musician

Yoyogi musician

Yoyogi musician

From the entrance you can see this stadium for sporting activities.

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Next to this park is the Meiji shrine, dedicated to the Emperor Meiji and his companion, the Empress. They played a very important role in Japanese history, but I won't give you a lesson on that now, there are enough sources out there. Lets just say they worked towards an Japan open to the world and established the mentality of "learning from the best without loosing the Japanese spirit". Basically Japans trait of picking something up from the market, enhancing/altering it and turning it Japanese.
The Emperor seemed to have a thing for the French, thus the wine he received as a sign of goodwill (on the other side of the road are the classical sake barrels you see at shrines).


Meiji shrine

Meiji shrine wine

Meiji shrine

Meiji shrine

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Did a quick sidestep to Ikebukuro but wasn't in a shopping mood. Otherwise the Sunshine 60 might have tempted me, a 60-storeyed building of shopping malls and offices.


Sunshine 60

Ikebukuro

Animate

Ikebukuro

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Roppongi is probably the most popular nightlife area of Tokyo, with restaurants, bars and clubs for every taste.

Also, there is a Hard Rock Cafe with an ape hanging from its side.


Hard Rock Cafe Roppongi

King Kong@HRC

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 7, 2010 from Tokyo, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Kyo no Tanabata

Kyoto, Japan


Illuminated bamboo with wishes

I am back to Kyoto for two nights to tie up some loose ends (mainly culinary), attend the Kyo no Tanabata festivities and use my rail pass to its fullest *g*
Got the guest house, checked in and was off again. One of the major advantages of having a home-base is the fact that you can travel light and leave you heavy stuff behind --> Exactly what I did.
Anyway, I organized some stuff for the future (made some phone calls, troubled some LAWSON-employees [not my fault that even they can't handle their vending machines]) and got myself some delicious food. Post about the culinary side of this trip in the making.

The Kyo no Tanabata is, as the name suggests, Kyoto's Tanabata festival and lasts a week. During this time the city is decorated with lots of bamboo, to which the locals attach their wishes.
Tanabata is the time of the year when two stars are said to meet, the legend being that Hitoboshi and Orihime (our two stars in question) fell in love with each other and neglected all their work in the heavens. This made the ruler of those realms angry and so he separated them, putting the Milky Way between them. He was moved by their love, however, and allowed them to meet once a year --> Tanabata. In the west the stars are called Altair and Vega.
Tanabata is celebrated either on 7/7 or 8/8 of the year and its custom to write the wish you want the stars to fulfill on a strip of paper and hang it on a bamboo.
Ok, enough info, here are some pictures:


Entrance

Lights from afar

Illuminated bamboo with wishes

Main grove?

The Kamogawa and the Horigawa (rivers) are the sites for the main decorations, with lots of illuminated stuff and floating LEDs, representing the Milky Way.
Till know the pictures where from the Kamogawa site, the Horikawa ones follow.


Chimes

Bamboo deco


Grove and floating LEDs

Fabric and lights


Floating LEDs

Start of the fabric

There is more to see, but as I had another day in Kyoto I postponed that and went home. Took this opportunity to do some planning of the next two weeks, after which my girlfriend will finally join me here in Japan. By the way, I was staying at the same guest house like last time for these two nights.

Turns out it rained the next day, intervals of soft sprinkles and downpours, heavy on the latter --> Bought an umbrella from a Convenience Store, still not the weather you want to be exposed to. Got some lunch and headed for the shopping arcades. Ended up in a cinema in the end and confirmed that many movies are NOT dubbed in Japan (well, except for animation) but subbed, a strategy I really like.
I didn't get to see the rest of the Kyo no Tanabata, but that's a) tolerable and b) nothing I can do something about.

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 10, 2010 from Kyoto, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Odaiba and Comiket preparations

Tokyo, Japan


Rainbow Bridge

Tomorrow marks the start of the three-day-madness that is Comiket 78, so I did some scouting today and got a good look at Odaiba as well.


Tokyo Big Sight

Started off at the Tokyo Big Sight of course, the venue for the Comic Market.

Some preparation going on there, both the on-site Conbini and Comiket crew stocking up on what they need to satisfy the masses to arrive tomorrow.


Conbini prep

Comiket catalogues

Well, now that I new where it is and how I get there, I was off to explore the rest of this man-made island.

================

While walking around I found these tiles, depicting star constellations. Some of them I knew and recognized, others, however, I could not make out at all. Heck, if not for the name I might not even have looked at some from the correct side. Wikipedia helped, once I was at home, but I still find the picture of Puppis confusing.


Constellation

Constellation

Constellation

Constellation

Also came across some girls advertising Red Bull and introducing the Japan-sized cans (a bit smaller than the ones at home). They where pretty surprised when I told them that I came from the same country as the stuff they where handing out *g*.


Red Bull ad car

Austria ^^

By the way, it started raining while I walked around. Typical.

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One thing you should not miss in Odaiba are the enormous shopping malls with included gourmet restaurants and indoor amusement parks. Yes, different rides, houses of horror and lots of games under one roof. For those who like more physically challenging games there is the Muscle Park, where strength and skill are necessary to win.


Aqua city

Decks Tokyo Bay

Muscle Park

Indoor theme park

Came by this JUMP shop as well, lots and lots of merchandise and interesting crossovers.


JUMP shop

JUMP shop

Chopper - Overview

Zoom on nose

They where doing a lot drawing in front of it, meaning that you can buy a ticket and win whatever letter you draw (A-I I think), A and B being the grand prizes. Bought a ticket, got a B and am now the owner of a really big Whitebeard statue (One Piece).
Picture:


Edward "Whitebeard" Newgate

Still not sure how I will fit him in my trunk with all the other souvenirs, but nice nevertheless ^^

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Right outside the Decks you can see the Statue of Liberty of Odaiba and the Rainbow Bridge.


Statue of Liberty

Some other pictures:


Outlook from Big Sight

Harbour cruise anyone?

Ferris wheel

Museum of Maritime Science

Flame of Liberty

Odaiba

================

I also visited the National Museum for Emerging Sciences and Innovation a.k.a. Miraikan, probably the most rewarding science museum of Japan. Lots of interesting info (if you like science, that is), interactive displays, and a stunning range of areas. You start of with the basics of science and research, enter space-related areas, go over to life sciences and end up at the earth as a whole. I really recommend a trip there, if the opportunity arises. They have their normal exhibition as well as a changing special exhibition, the latter of which I will visit in the next days as well.


Miraikan

Mobile robot

LEGO Mindstorm

LCD globe

Miraikan - Tech area

My heat image

From tomorrow on it's Comiket-time, this should be interesting.

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 12, 2010 from Tokyo, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Comiket - Day 1

Tokyo, Japan


Summer Wars group

Comiket 78 day 1 is over and my feet are tired. Bought some stuff, got some more for free and rubbed shoulders with countless other visitors. But from the beginning:


Miraikan-line
Wanted to enter the Miraikai again before going to Comiket to avoid the crowds (two hours waiting are quite possible if you reach there at the point of opening) and was greeted with the picture on the left. This line obviously ends at the entrance of the Miraikan, loops back (as you see in the picture), reaches the facade again, goes on along it to the opposite corner of this - very big - building, turns at the corner, continues there, then loops back to reach the facade again and ends near the corner opposing the entrance. Oh, and the markings on the street suggest that an even longer line is expected and manageable, by a slalom through eight trees, for example.
If I wanted enormous lines in the morning I would have gone to the Comiket first --> exactly what I did then.

===========


Entering - Riding the masses

After exiting the station I found a loop though the area in front of the Big Sight, but this was not really a line but a lot of people walking in the same direction. Didn't cost much time, but the sheer number of visitors is amazing. The venue can handle it, however, it really is BIG. Many halls, multiple storeys and you walk quite some time from one end to the other. Of course all the circles (35,000 of them, approximately) selling their stuff and all the potential buyers checking it out are taking the time spent exploring the area to a whole new level. Pictures are banned except for the cosplay areas, but it was an interesting experience in there. From the small circles selling their doujins to the big companies and makers having their booths with long lines in front of them and lots of stuff to hand you can get pretty much everything you need to satisfy your otaku needs.


Cosplay area - Day 1

And there are the cosplayers, great numbers of them. Not much more to say, just take a look:

Angel Beats pair

Mario

Fuehrer (the second one of the day)

Nara mascot

Mugi&Mio [K-ON!!]

Street Fighter

Sailor scouts

Mari [EVA]

I am thinking EVA02

Asuka&Rei [EVA]

Railgun pair

Kuroko [Railgun]

Uiharu [Railgun]

Ranka [Macross Frontier]

Macross Frontier pair

DRRR!! pair

Kuririn [DB(Z)]

Thriller Bark pair [One Piece]

One Piece group

BASARA group

Kurushitsuji group

Romance of the Three Kingdoms (I guess)

By the way, I saw someone dressed as Hitler inside, but not on the cosplay area, thus two Fuehrers.

Also there was this line with people putting their stuff into boxes and handing it to the guys at the stand --> I am pretty sure they are sending it home this was, a business opportunity well taken, if you ask me.

As I said before, pictures are banned inside, but I came across this spot on my way out, should give you a feeling for what's going on:


Circle hall

Circle hall

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 13, 2010 from Tokyo, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Comiket: Day 2

Tokyo, Japan


Sneak-peek

After sleeping in I was off to get some more Comiket-experience today and I sneaked some pictures out this time. Being able to use the "ignorant foreigner" once in a while is actually quite handy, especially in an area with next to none English explanations. So, w/o further ado, here are some pictures of the inside:

Sneak-peek

Sneak-peek


Ero-boards

Room to move!

The last one was taken quite late in an area where a lot of the booths were already sold out, hence the few people. 50m ahead it was the usual crowd.

To give you an idea of the difference in pure numbers to yesterday, here is the cosplay area in comparison:


Cosplay area - Day 1

Cosplay area - Day 2

Yes, Comiket today was stuffed!

Was there for a while but it was hard to move, not even mentioning taking pictures. The ones I got:


Haruhi group

DRRR!! group

Hebi-hime with her trademark pose [One Piece]

Nami [One Piece]

Yui [K-ON!!]

Naruto pair

Ace [One Piece]

Ace and Sanada Yukimura crossover

Ace - Tatoo redesign? [One Piece]

Brook [One Piece]

Rin - [Kodomo no Jikan]

Captain Jack Sparrow

Yu-Gi-Oh pair

After buying some stuff I left and visited the special exhibition of the Miraikan: How modern technology could realize the tools of Doraemon (a popular robotic cat who helps the protagonist with various tools he brought from the future). They had exhibits on brain analysis, automatic speech translation (Japanese to English, Chinese and Korean --> speech to text), meta-materials and much more. Of course it was designed to be interesting for kids, but the science behind the tools was explained in English and interesting.


One-man helicopter

Adaptive/"learning" robot

Cybersuit

On my way back I came by the Tokyo International Exchange Center Festival 2010, the center being right next to the Miraikan and all. They got a booth for every country their students come from, from Africa to France.


Tokyo International Exchange Center Festival 2010

Tokyo International Exchange Center Festival 2010

Tokyo International Exchange Center Festival 2010

French booth

Getting there was a real hassle this time, unlike yesterday, with the whole station transformed into a maze to use every inch of ground for lines to the boarding platforms...Took a while, to say the least. Well, it was Saturday, Obon and in the summer holidays, so there were way more people traveling around.
What I didn't expect was this sight on the way back: The line doubled in length and now reached all the way out of the station and filled the plaza there! I heard that there was going to be a Fireworks Festival on Odaiba today, but for it to get so crowded...I was glad to get out there, the journey back to Tama Plaza was quite easy with few people traveling in that direction.

One heck of a line

I won't attend the third and final day of Comiket 78 tomorrow, still got some stuff to do and quite enough of being stuck in a crowd for a while. All in all worth it, however ^^

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 14, 2010 from Tokyo, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Culinary: Special meals and sets

Tokyo, Japan


Sukiyaki - Overview

Another culinary post, this time about set-meals and some of the more expensive dishes I enjoyed.
I will give you an description and some pictures, so lets get this started:

Oil-Yaki


Oil-Yaki

A DIY-meal where you are served pieces of meat and different vegetables and cook them up in an oiled pan (hence the name). Oil-Yaki goes side by side with Sukiyaki and Shabu Shabu and is pretty much as pricey as them.
The place I went served multiple courses and the first piece of meat was done by a waitress donned in a kimono to show how it's done. Three qualities of meat can be chosen, I went for the one in the middle. Needless to say that it was extremely delicious.

Sweets after lunch

Hors'dourves

Overview

With sides

Fruits after lunch

Oil-Yaki sign and price

By the way, one can save some money by going to expensive restaurants for lunch and not for dinner, there are lunch-specials and discounts pretty much everywhere.

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Sukiyaki (Ryokan/Inn dinner)


Sukiyaki - Closeup

Got this at the Turtle Inn in Nikko for dinner, another must-try. Sukiyaki is a pot-dish that cooks up nicely in front of you. This one had lots of veggies at the bottom of the pan and thinly sliced meat on top. You turn the meat once, tip every bite in raw egg (or, if you don't like that part, cook it up in the pan to cover the whole thing) and dig in.
This actually was only a part of the whole meal, there was also fish and some sides.

Sukiyaki - Sides

Ryokan/Inn - Fish

What's left...

Sweets after dinner

============

Steak/cutlet set
Not really a steak but they called it a Steak Set nevertheless. Not much to say about this one except that the restaurant I ate back then had an interesting mix of Italian, French and Japanese atmosphere.


Steak-set sides

Steak set

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Tonkatsu set


Tonkatsu-set

I am pretty sure I already wrote about these, but the set with Miso soup, cabbage and rice and free refills was really nice.

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Ramen and Gyoza


Ramen set

These two go together as a classic set and most Ramen-shops serve them both. You enjoy your Ramen and nibble on the Gyoza on the side.

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Gyoza and Ramen


Gyoza and ramen set

In Utsunomiya and Gora things are a bit different, as the Gyoza are the main part and the set I had made the Ramen a side-dish. These areas are specialized in Gyoza and offer a wide variety.

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Yakiniku


Yakiniku - Gettin' fired up

Similar to Oil-Yaki but still different. Here you order your meat by plate and grill them at your table over flame. The grill is a griddle over an either gas or charcoal fueled flame. There are all kinds of beef and toppings, I had two types one of which had garlic on it. Originally a Korean dish, it is often accompanied by Kimichi.
Also I tried their high-grade beef nigiri. Again, not cheap but incredibly good.

The grill

Dipping sauce (not the beer)

Basic yakiniku

Garlic roast

Beef nigiri


Kimichi

That's if for today, hope you didn't get to hungry reading *g*

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 16, 2010 from Tokyo, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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Climbing Fuji-san

Mount Fuji, Japan


Me at 8th station

Finally took the time to climb Mt. Fuji, or Fuji-san, (3776m) this week and went for an overnight hike (start in the evening, be at the top at sunrise, descent before lunch). The mountain is divided into 10 stations and road leads up to the 5th one at 2300m, which is the starting point for the usual climbing route.
I took a Highway Bus from Shinjuku in the late afternoon and reached the 5th station of Fuji-san a while after nightfall. Due to the difference in altitude, one is advised to spend about 30mins at this station to get used to it. Altitude sickness is nothing to take lightly after all.


Souvenir shops

Of course there are some souvenir shops here, this station gets the most traffic after all. The wooden sticks you see in front of the shop are worth buying for two reasons: First, having a hiking stick when climbing a mountain doesn't hurt, and second, on every station you will find a guy with a kind of barbecue that will burn the stamp of the station into your stick as proof that you reached there (for 200yen, of course). Makes a nice souvenir.

The wait was also useful to get a look at the area, as I had no idea where to go. After a while I saw a departing group with a leader that looked what she was doing, so I followed them to the next station. Turns out you have to go slightly down from the bus terminal for 20mins before actually starting the climb. From there on it's harder to loose the path than to follow it, so I was alright by myself.
It takes about 4,5 to 5 hours to reach the top from any of the 5th stations, but this can of course vary greatly. When I reached the top a girl phoned pretty much everyone she knew (judging from the length she took) to tell them that she just broke the world record and climbed the mountain in 2,5 hours. I took the usual time.
Did some pictures of the climb, but with it being the middle of the night and all I didn't really get good ones.


Sign

Sign, nearly down

Blurry flights

Going up

There was still a lot of time left till sunrise (at about 5:00 on that day) so I took a look around and rested a bit. Even though it's summer, up there temperatures at night are still near the freezing point. Wasn't pleasant, built a insulated blanked from a thin silk sleeping bag I carried and a foil thermal blanket I carried in my first-aid back (yeah, I took one, paramedic and all...). As time went on more and more people reached the top and searched for the best viewing spot, I could see the lines of little lights as guided groups made their way up in the dark. The wait was definitely worth it, for the sunrise was stunningly beautiful.
Pictures:


Sunrise in the making

Sunrise in the making

Sunrise in the making

Sunrise in the making


First glimpse at unexpected spot


Sunrise

Sunrise

Sunrise

Sunrise

Sunrise

Nearly done


Sunrise done

After getting the stamp of the summit and deciding against circling the crater I started my descend. Took less time, was way more crowded and put a lot of strain on my knees, but what goes up must come down. Was glad for the water and food I brought, the prices at the stations are extremely high and you need LOTS of water to do this.
Pictures:


Summit

Flag of Japan

Gazing down

Crowds...

Summit station

Crater

Crater

Going down

Shrine

Viewing up

Beyond the clouds

Beyond the clouds

Bento break

Still that far to go?

Entering the clouds

Construction/repair in progress

Offering rides?

Goal in sight

Souvenir area in daylight

Tired warriors

Did some souvenir shopping back at the 5th station and took the bus home, arrived at Tama Plaza in the afternoon and went to bed early.

All in all an arduous but definitely worthwhile activity, made some good memories and I now have the hiking stick to prove it *g*.
And as the Japanese saying goes: "Everyone is wise to climb Fuji-san once, but a fool to do it twice".

So long and stay tuned,
JuergenS

permalink written by  JuergenS on August 18, 2010 from Mount Fuji, Japan
from the travel blog: Two month of Japan
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