Lessons Learned from Backpacking in Japan: Don't bring Toothpaste

Let me explain.

When packing for a three week trip to a foreign country which youd never visited, you packeverything you'll   need and not want to go searching for in the unfamiliar stores in an unknown languagge. But when youre backpacking, this becomes trickier because of the space and weight issue. We were really good in this department, but nowI know we could have been better. So many things we didnt need to bring. Which brings us to toothpaste, and toothbrushes if we get down to the details.

Its not that we didnt brush our teeth for three weeks, or that we didnt use toothpaste, its that every hotel left fresh toothbrushes and toothpaste for us. Even when we were staying five nights, as in Kyoto, they threw out the used one and put two new packs every day. 

Why am I saying this? Because this happened in every hotel, even in the simplest of the hotels. 

Oh, and another thing that you dont need to bring? Shampoo, Conditioner, Body soap. Hotels have those in every room in huge bottles. No little sample sizes for Japan, here they have full sized luxury brands, Really, my hair had never felt softer and looked shinier. Also, for those hotels with onsens, there are large bottles there of everything. And thats not necessarily only the fancy ones. The guest house we stayed at in Hakone, had an awesome onsen, probably one of the better ones we:d visited. They too had plenty of the good stuff. 

So in short, with the shampoo and conditioner and all the other stuff, probably would have saved over a kilo in each bag. Oh, and we brought with us two towels, just in case. Not necessary either.  

Next lesson - bug spray and after bite. Dont let them tell you its not mosquito season. No one told this to the mosquitos. I dont remember when, or IF, i was ever bitten like I was in Japan. And this is even after I bought bug spray; those monsters were impervious. Or maybe it worked and the bites would have been more and worse had I not sprayed. They get through your clothes, they make no noise, the bites swell up and they itch like -------- . It took me two weeks to get over the itch of some of them and the scars are still visible for most of them. 

Sweetener - if you prefer to use sweetener rather than sugar, dont worry, its around. But I still recommend you carry some around with you. I had brought along with us a little sweetener mushroom from Israel. Its a small plastic container with sweetener tablets. It saved me a few times when there was no starbucks around or in the mornings and the hotel had breakfast coffee but no sweetener.

Speaking on the Train - in general, dont do it. Specifically, if you must, speak quietly only when on a train, and not at all on the phone. If you must, get up and stand in the space between the cars so that you dont disturb any of the other passengers. 

Arigato Goizomas - learn it, live it. Thank you very much - for everything. 

Sumimasen - Still havent learned for what it cant be used. Excuse me, hello, youre welcome, pardon me, sorry. You think Canadians apologize a lot? HA! Japanese live the apology. Theres even a Japanese company specializing in apologizing. You can hire someone to go and apologize to someone youve wronged in case youre too embarassed (or dont want) to do it in person (sorta contradicts the purpose of an apology, but whatever). 

Dont blow your nose. This is one of the rules Ori and I continuously ignored. I feel I must inform you and let you make your own decision. What do they do? They pull it in. Yup, its even grosser than you think. 

Eating and walking. Thats a difficult one. One which we still havent figured out. When we did the walking tour with our Japanese guide, we were given samples of some kind of red bean cookie (umm, acquired taste). We were about to walk away but she stopped me and told me to finish eating it while at the booth. She said it wasn't polite to eat and walk. Maybe she was referring to free samples. Why do I question it? Cause we were at several markets and festivals and peple ate and walked all the time. then again, maybe its just something her mother told her and isnt widespread in Japan. So this is one quandry that remained unsolved.

Negotiation - Dont do it. Japan isnt Hong Kong. And I dont say that from experience, at least not one gained from my time in Hong Kong. Rather from being told this by a salesman. This kinda shocked me because Im not normally the bargain hunter nor negotiator. I was buying several not cheap pieces such that the total was getting up there. All I did was ask whether there was a discount for multiple pieces. The wife looked at her husband, he looked at her, said some stuff in Japanese and then turned to me and said in an angry quiet voice - This is NOT Hong Kong. I was so shocked all I could do is apologize several times. On second thought, all I did was ask if a slight discount was possible. Youd think I ran over his dog with a smile. So basically, save yourself the embarassment and dont ask. Either pay the price or be ready to walk away without a glance. They wont be calling you back. 

Oh, Kit Kat - theyre everywhere and not in milk chocolate. There are flavours youd never even imagine. Im sure youve heard of green tea kit kat and can imagine dark chocolate kit kat. But what would you say to wasabi kit kat, spicy chilli peppers kit kat, red bean sandwhich kit kat, and so many more. Google it if you want the full list. We broke down and got a few of them, including a limited edition Rum Raisin kit kat (oh and the pumpkin kit kat we could have skipped over). I suggest trying the odd flavours, at least for the experience. Youll never know which one will have chemistry with your pallet. 

Trains are never early or late. If youre running to catch a train in the hope it will be 30 seconds late, stop running, it wont be there a second after the set time. Take your time and catch the next train. And early? Nope, if theres a train on the track in advance of the set time, dont get on it, its not your train. Thankfully, neither of these lessons come from learned experience just conclusions made from observing the trains over the three week period. 

Budgeting - Yes, Japan is not cheap by any measures, but its also not the wallet breaking trip that everyone was warning us about. It is possible to be budget conscious in Japan. We set an approximate budget in advance of the trip and pretty much stuck to it. Of course, you could blow the budget with ridiculous hotels the whole way through, but you could also do that in Tel Aviv and New York. You could also eat Kobe beef several times on your trip (meals START at 18,000 yuen - approx $180 per person), and you could do Kasekai dinners (starting price about the same as that of Kobe dinners),  and spend an interesting evening with a Geisha (about $300 per person), etc. In short, there are endless options of blowing the budget. But I think that Ori and I made the right decision about skipping out on the Kobe dinner (especially after hearing a review of "Ive had better steak") and we definitely had more fun chasing a surprise sighting of a Geisha than paying to sit with her for a few hours and probably not being able to communicate on top of it all. Theres no reason to go to all the temples. Actually, I would go further and say, dont try to go to all of them, or even most of them. After a day in old Kyoto we were totally templed out. In terms of food, we were always able to find delicious food in affordable prices. And we didnt skimp, Ori had a beer with dinner and we had dessert if we felt like it (and if it was available). There are endless options of Udon and Soba restaurants, and even better if they also serve tempura. And dont get me started on the sushi. Oh sushi, I miss you. 

In short, totally doable and soooo worth it. 

So thats it for now, I think. Ill let you know if theres anything more and you let me know when youre going (Ill need a refill on my kit kat pretty soon)

Last day in Japan

Buddha must have thought that we'd had enough sunshine on our trip. We woke up to rain. What a lousy way to spend our last day in Tokyo. Oh well, nothing to do but equipe ourselves with raincoats and umbrellas. 

We went off to see the Tokyo Business Forum which is well known for its crazy architecture. I have to agree, the place is truly impressive. 

and then headed towards the imperial palace. Though its closed throughout the year, there are gardens which are open on the east side of the palace. We decided to head over there on foot. But with each step we took, we got wetter and colder and it was still so very far. We saw a bit of the palace from the outside of the grounds, and then some other part of the palace buildings 

And then I gave up. I knew Ori was going along with the wet plan of the garden for me and didnt really care whether or not we saw it. So, as we saw this place, I said - ok, lets go. Im done. I need heat and to be dry. He happily agreed and we were treated to a little show by a couple of swans on our way to the JR station. 

We got to the trainstation and felt much better. 

For a few days now Ori has been saying that he wants to get a haircut as soon as we get home. He joked about getting a cut while in Japan. Well, why put off till tomorrow what you can do today? So right there in the subway station we saw a cute little barbar shop with three chairs and three barbers. We walked in, paid for the cut at the machine and waited for Oris turn.

Easy, right? Nope. try explaining how short or what you want done when you dont share a language. It took a while, and there were a few seconds of apprehension, but in the end, all is fine and Ori's hair is freshly cut and vaccumed (yup, they vacuume the top to catch all the little bits)

Then we got on the subway and continued our last exloration of the city. This is Oris natural position on the train. Its not that he doesnt know the stops by heart or how long it takes to gt from point A to point B and how long between each stop. Its just that he likes to follow the electronic board as it moves us along from stop to stop. 

Each train station is massive and contains a million passages and just as many exists and lots of shops. All is clean and sparkly and no garbage anywhere in sight. They are often very nicely decorated as well - this is Shinjuku (I think).

Oh, and I finally bought my tea pot! Yayyyy. I have been driving Ori crazy with my search for the perfect traditional caste iron tea pot. Whenever I saw one, they would be either too small, too big, painted some colour (which is nice, but not the traditional black that Ive wanted for years) or the problem most often seen - wayyy too expensive. Yamamoto, our guide in Shirakawa-go said that I would be able to find one near the temple at Asakusa. So off we went in search of the tea pot. Again the same problem. I was starting to think Id made a mistake not buying the one I saw in Kyoto, or that maybe I should give up on the black and get green. Green is nice. I like green. On a whim, we went into the tourist information office in Asakusa and asked. They immediately knew what I wanted and looked it up online and took out map after map after map. They dont do single maps here - ever. There is always an accompanying map to the first one and sometimes a third. So we got a map of the area, a map of the cookware district (thankfully within a few short minutes walk) and a list of the stores on the block of the cookware district. We also got to see a photo of the store logo and Ori was told to take a photo of it so we would know how to identify the store. And off we went to find my tea pot. We indeed found a street of kitchen supply stores and eventually even found the one that was recommended. It unfortunately did not have my tea pot, but two doors down- success! 

Photos to come at a later date as its already packed away. Or you could always come for a cup of tea sometimes. :)

We went exploring the Sony building and tried out their experimental stuff. I left Ori alone for a few seconds and this is what I came back to find. He had no idea I was watching him. 

We then went walking around Ginza but then it started to rain again so we headed back to the hotel to drop off the heavy bags (caste iron tea pot, remember?) and go look for a place for our last Japanese dinner. As wee were walking to the hotel from the train station we heard Klezmer music. We both looked at each other and thought - odd place to hear this. And we went exploring to see from where the music was coming. This was the origin - 

Crazy. I think someone got more than a little confused. Arabian nights playing Klezmer music. Thats TOkyo for you. Always showing you something new. 

On to dinner. The hotel recommended a place nearby and we werent disappointed. 

Definitely recommended. Too bad I dont remember the name right now. But it was within walking distance of our hotel which was great. 

We put off getting back to the hotel as long as we could (yuck, packing!) but we still had some wine to finish off and I had a bath with my name calling out to me. Woohoo. 

So there you have it. Thats it for our honeymoon. We've had a fabulous three weeks and now its time to go back home and back to reality. 

Cheers to you, our family and friends. Its been great. 

We hope you enjoyed reading as much as we enjoyed writing and experiencing it. 

Here comes the sun...

So Buddha smiled on us once again and cleared up the rain just for us. We woke up to a beautiful blue sky without a cloud in sight. We decided to give the boat ride another try and to go back to the first park of Hakone, down the mountain, and try the Open Air Museum now that its not raining. 

We went downstairs for breakfast, without much enthusiasm. We werent disappointed - it was probably the worst breakfast ever. I should clarify that it was the worst breakfast for us, not for Japanese. I think in Japanese standards, it was gourmet. They really did outdo themselves in presentation and variety. Too bad none of the options offered were to our liking. 

I could forgive them our not liking the food, but what I dont understand is the lack of milk for my coffee. When asked, they pointed me in the direction of the fake creamers. Yuck. 

We both had rice for breakfast. 

Packed up, we left for the boat. Upon arrival, we were told that we could get on the boat to the other side of the lake, but that then we have to switch for the way back and because of the strong window, they cant guarantee whether there would be a return ride as they might cancel. Okkkaaaaaay, thats a no go. But at least we got to see the dock in its full glory under the clear sky. 

And here's the boat we took yesterday, and would have taken again, had it not been for the strong wind. 

We decided to take the cable car back while it was still running. Strong winds which stop a boat will most definitely stop a cable car from running. 

We had it all to ourselves :)

OMG it was amazing! There we were, enjoying the lovely scenery of the green and blue of the trees and lake which we couldnt see last night.

and suddenly, there it was - MOUNT FUJI.

In all its glory.

Ori and I had a cable car all to ourselves, actually we had both cablecars to ourselves, and all we could do it photographs Fuji, and do selfies with Fuji, and look at Fuji.

Thats when we knew we'd done everything we'd set off to do on our Japan Bucket list. Narita Buddha - check, Golden Pavilion - check, Fuji - check, check, check to so many other things. And yet, there are so many more things to do and places to see. We are far from feeling satiated with Japan. Ori has been talking about coming back and we've not yet left. 

We got to the museum stop, dropped our bags in the lockers by the train station only to learn that the lockers at the musem were a quarter of the price and just as big if not bigger. Oh well. My lesson for you to learn (in case you should be looking for a place to stash your bags when next in Japan). 

The Hakone Open AIr Museum seemed interesting in the Lonely Planet but to say that is to totally underestimate it. It was amazing. It was perfection. Nature, Scenery and Art, Wow. As we exited the tunnel, the space openned up to us - green lawns, trees and sculptures of every kind. 

There was Rodin and Miro, Moore, and many others.

There was even a Picasso museum, where paintings, lithographs, sculptures, pottery and much more were on display in one small building. 

The curator of the entire museum is a genius! This is a definite must see when in Japan. After the Picasso, should you need a rest, you could have a seat and soak in the citrus foot spring bath. 

Sitting and relaxing we were greeted by a group of Israelis on an organized tour to Japan. They asked us to photograph them (especially the woman in the top left corner).

Her friend, I think Leah was her name, started talking to us and when she heard that we were on our oneymoon, she gave me a big hug and kiss and blessed us lots of luck and many trips in our future. Ori is still shocked this happened. I on the other hand was flattered but not that surprised; I find that Israelis outside of Israel often treat strangers as long lost friends. 

In the middle of all this, across from the foot bath is a tower with a round staircase. Its nice from the outside, but amazing from the inside!

The whole tower is made up of a glass mosaic, reminiscent of Chagall's windows at times. In this tower, you feel like you are walking inside the mosaic. The light shines through the glass and you are transported into a magical place of light and colour and imagination and pure happiness. 

Here are but a few of the many other pieces at the museum - 

Having seen all that the museum had to offer, we headed back to our bags and the trainstation. Tokyo here we come!

This was supposed to be another one of those multi switch routes which would have gotten us to Tokyo many hours later. Ori had read about another train company that goes directly from Hakone to Shinjuku station, which is where our hotel was. It would save us over an hour and a half of precious time in Tokyo. The problem was that it wasnt a JR train and so it wasnt included in our pass. Yes, no, yes, no. Hmm what to do. When we got to the Hakone train station we saw that this train was suppsed to leave within a few minutes. On a whim, we asked one of the attendants\conductors how much a ticket is and discovered it was only 870 yuen. We decided that 1740 yuen (approximately $16) was worth it to save the hassle of switching threee more trains and to get the extra time in Tokyo. The Japanese conductor pressed all the necessary buttons on the machine, we put in the money, got our tickets and he put us on the train. Good decision. Tokyo, here we come. 

The ride was smooth and simple but we missed out on our opportunity to ride the Shinkasen one more time. Next visit to Japan. 

In Japan, you enter the train station with the ticket and you exit with the same ticket. We went to the ticket attendant to ask which direction was the exit to our hotel and she thought we were there to show her our exit tickets. As Ori is asking about the directions, she looks at our tickets and starts flipping through a binder. Turns out that the conductor at Hakone had put us on the Romance Car limited express (which actually means super express, as in limited trains are this express). Anyways, her point is that we didnt pay enough and she wanted us to add another 870 yuen per person. Now, had we known it was double the amount, we might not have taken it. Who knows. But its not like we made the cheaper decision on our own. A company conductor did all the purchasing process for us and this highly annoyed me. In the three weeks in Japan we've done everything by the book. It didnt seem fair that we had to pay extra just because someone else made a mistake. A mistake by the way which I still dont understand how he made, but thats irrelevant. Anyways, go explain this to someone who doesnt speak English and I dont speak Japanese. The exchange went something like this. She pointed at the binder that had a page with explanation in English that we needed to pay extra.  "You must pay more" "I no pay more" (somehow, English is understood better when grammar is simplified and filled with mistakes, dont ask me, but its proven correct thus far). We went back and forth a few times like this until a young man shows up to help. He speaks English. A colleague of the woman saw that we were all lost in translation (or mistranslation) and he went and got this young man who works in the station travel information desk. We explained the situation and once we told him that we had a JR pass and that we would have just taken the JR had we known the full cost but that someone on their staff processed the purchase for us. He then explained everything to the woman in Japanese and showed her our JR passes. As soon as he got to that part she started understanding, agreeing with him\us and suddenly she was appologizing profusely for the confusion. Wow, what a turn around. We apologized as well, thanked her and wished her a good day. The young man, we thanked as well and gave him a chamsah key chain with the travelers blessing on the back in English which we had brough to Japan from Israel for exactly such situations where we meet kind strangers. 

And then we went on our way to our hotel. 

Throughout our trip, we have been pretty economically smart about accommodation. Its not that we stayed in hostels or crappy hotels. But we didnt stay in four star hotels, despite sometimes the price tag (Kamikoche for example, was near 30,000 yuen ($300) for the night, and that was relatively cheap for the area. But for our last two nights Ori surprised me and upgraded us to a four star hotel in the middle of Shinjuku. While I really enjoyed the places we had thus far, I was also looking forward to a little luxury at the end of our trip. Walking to the hotel, we were surprised by our surroundings. It was both interesting, shiny, but with a little sleezy mixed in.

The hotel lobby was lovely and that room was great. Unlike all the other hotels in Japan, here we had an actual queen sized bed. The room was slightly small but it exactly what we needed. There was a bathtub and special chocolates (yummy!) on the bed along side two origami cranes and a personalized welcome and congrats for our marriage from the hotel.  

Within a few minutes, there was a knock on the door and in came a bottle of white wine that Ori had preordered for us. It was perfectly romantic. 

We had a glass of wine and headed out to greet Tokyo once again. Oh and to have dinner. Dinner tonight was to be at No-Midori. What's that you ask? You mean you don't know nom nom No-Midori? Thats ok, neither did I before I started reading about Japan. But heres a little clue - 

Yup - Shushi!! We had to wait about 35 minutes but it was totally worth it. Last time we were around, we gave up on the idea when we heard it was over two hours' wait time. This time, we waited. It was also a cultural experience. Outside the restaurant there is a number machine. You get your place in line to eat and you take your place in line for waiting. There is bench outside the restaurant where people sit and wait. After the bench, people stand in line. When a number is called, usually those sitting first in line get up and go inside. Then the entire row of those sitting on the bench get up and move to the front of the bench, freeing up spots on the end of the bench, and so on until you get to your number. Theres no such thing as sitting in a freed up spot on the bench. So we stood in line to sit on the bench and then we sat in line to get inside the restaurant. Interesting method. 

Full and happy we walked back to Shibuya crossing and then took the JR back to Shinjuku to check out the golden-gai. It is a collection of connecting streets full of tiny little bars.

And when I say tiny, I mean seating 3-8 people each. Id say the majority served an average of 4-5 people.

Most charge a cover to enter. We werent actually there to drink but to look around and check out the area. We werent the only ones. We saw a few other Westerners look and leave without having entered a place. 

Happy and more than a little exhausted from the long day we dragged ourselves back to the hotel, had some more of the wine and dropped off to la la land. 

Oh No! Tomorrow is our last in Tokyo. Sigh... 

Rain rain go away, come again after we've left Japan

We woke up in Hakone to the sound of rain. Lots of rain. We'd been warned about the coming of a typhoon, but it was a day early. So much for the open air museum. Of all museums in Japan, this is the one that I didnt want to miss. We left the hotel with rain coats and an umbrella all set to brave the weather. We got as far as twenty feet out of the hotel before we decided there was no point in going to an OPEN air museum in such lousy weather. Further, we needed to take a fenicular and cable car to get to the next hotel, both of which might close down if the weather intensified, in which case we would be without accommodation for the night. It was a monday and we might have been able to find a hotel in the area we were at but there would be nothing to do there. nothing. 

So we went back to the hotel, got our bags and walked back to the train station. There we got on the fenicular.

After that, we got on a cable car. After that, another cable car.

Though it was morning, the rain was so heavy that we could not see a thing. Occassionally the trees were so close, we could see some green, but otherwise it was just white outside from the rain. 

I was so disappointed. This was to have been a fabulous day and the rain ruined it. No museum, no view. And the view from the cable car was supposed to have been great. We were supposed to have seen Fuji from the top of the cable car route. We got to the top of the mountain and it was still quite early. Much to early to try and get into early checkout, if its at all possible. So we decided to go on the sightseeing boatride. Yes, in the rain, but we figured we should take advantage of the time and the opportunity to go on it, should it too cancel due to rain. 

Apparently, we weren't the only ones who had the same idea, and the boat was full, with at least two other groups in addition to the individual travelers like us. We could see that on a clear day, the view would have been amazing. We could see the green of the surrounding mountains, and as we got closer to the shores (there were multiple stops) we could see quaint little cottages.

There were even a few red Torii's around. 

We got a salut from the captain/pirate and disembarked. 

We then decided to head to the hotel. This was the only hotel that I had chosen throughout the trip (Ori chose all the oters) and I was really hoping that I didnt bomb on this one time. We started walking according to the directions given by the hotel, or maybe it was booking.com. Whatever it was, it chose to give us simple directions rather than short directions. There we were with our packs, in the rain, frustrated with the situation and the thing sent us walking an extra ten minutes needlessly. Of course, we didnt know this until we were past the halfway point of the walk when we had to walk back in the same direction from which we had just come. 

We got to the hotel, of course several hours before check in time, but the hotel, and the entire area, was empty. We thought they might let us check in early. But no, thats not the way things happen in Japan. You think Canadians are square? You havent tried checking in early in Japan. Can we check in? Hmm, yes, at 3pm. Yes, I know checkin is supposed to be the, but its raining and we're wet. Can we check in early? Hmm, room ready. Check in at 3pm. Okkkaaay. Never mind ten.  We went out for lunch and got back at 2:30. Thankfully, we found a great little restaurant just a few minutes away and it was delicious. Ori had udon, I had soba and they made us vegetable tempura - yumm! And all this was eaten with a view to the lake. Yes, it was still raining, but there was some elegance to the grey sky and rain hitting the water. 

I think we really confused the guy when we got back before three pm. He went back and asked for permission to let us check in a whole thirty minutes early. You have to understand, we were still wet, tired, at least not hungry, and we were just told that our bags are already in our room. Why cant you let us go into the room? So, maybe they took pity, maybe they just didnt want us hanging around the reception area anymore, but they let us in. The room was nice, the beds were comfortable, and we had tea and cookies waiting for us in the room. We relaxed and waited around until 4pm - the time we booked the private onsen. I was super excited for that. So far, we had gone separately, which was great, but still, not the same. This place (one of the reasons I chose it) allowed couples to book private time in one of two of their open air onsens. We put on our Yukata and the jackets and went to the onsen. We had to walk outside for about five feet but there were umbrellas. Once you're in the dressing room, you lock the door for the duration of your blocked private time slot. We walked outside and stepped into the onsen. There was a half roof over the onsen itself, but we could definitely see the sky and the rain and the trees. In fact, there were plants on one side of the onsen. It was really beautiful  and romantic. I dont think anyone else was crazy enough to go outside and so the only sound we could hear was that of the rain. Of all the onsens I had been to on this trip, this was by far my favourite.

We went back to the room and waited out the time till our six pm dinner. Another Kasekei dinner. Though the one in Koyasan was great, the other few that we'd eaten had been less than successful. You be the judge - 

Well, we didn't leave hungry, but it was less than satisfying. I dont know what it is about the Japanese cuisine that has to put sweet syrups on most everything. Steamed vegetables and syrup, cooked fish and syrup. At least they took into consideration the food restrictions and didnt serve us pork but rather fish. That part of the meal was good. Drinks were free so Ori had a couple of beers but for me it was a little less than exciting Everything was carbonated, including the cocktails. After the second trial, I gave up and stuck to water. 

That was it for the excitement of the day. We had booked another private session in the onsen but by then the weather had gotten so bad that neither Ori nor I wanted to brave the outdoors even those two seconds in order to get into the water. We each went to the separate indoor onsen and met up a few minutes later in the room. 

That was it for the day. So very different from all the other days on our trip. We hope that tomorrow wont rain too much and that we'll be able to get back to Tokyo at a reasonable time to actually do stuff. 

Here's hoping Buddha smiles on us and clears up the weather.  

Arrival in Hakone

Soo. another day in transport and we've managed to avoid the rain thus far. WooHoo!

We left Takayama after a quick revist in the morning market and stroll in the old part of the town. It 

really is very quaint. I was surprised to see so many people there after the festival. I was convinced the place would be dead. However, it actually looked busier than the days before. the streets were packed with strolling groups and even a Japanese scavenger hunt. 

We left Takayama on the train to Nagoya. As we got to the train station, they wouldnt let us onto the platform. The ticket guy asked us to wait another twenty minutes before entering. Odd, but ok. Theres no point in arguing or asking here, you just do. When we were finally let in, I noticed photographers everywhere. I mentioned it to Ori, but didnt think too much about it. Probably making a train movie or a JR commercial, I thought. But then as the train left the station, we saw hundreds of others with their cameras. And Japanese people dont have regular cameras, they have the ultimate cameras and tripods with zoom lenses and all kinds of crazy photography paraphernalia. In short, easy to spot them, especially when in hords. At every stop there were more people taking pictures of the train. I could even spot some photographers on the road taking photos. We had no idea what was going on. I felt like we had unknowingly borded the train meant for participants of the next hunger games and that everyone was cheering us on our way. Finally, a ticket checker came by and explained that we were on the very train celebrating 80 years. Thats right, that same route at that same time has been running for eighty years and we were on it. Woohoo, lets take some photos and delay the trains arrival in Nagoya by 20 minutes and almost make Ori and Sivan late for their next train. Thankfully, it was only almost missed - by 3 minutes. 

We made it to the Shinkansen to Odawara, then another train to Gora (what a train! I think it was a few hundred years old). On this train, we met a very interesting character. Meet Mr. Toot (strawberry), or how Ori likes to call him Tooti man. Of course we dont know his real name, so we made one up after we saw strawberries on his money belt, and of course his eye glasses are the shape of strawberries as well. 

He was quite a character. His entire outfit is yellow and red. Even his shoes were interesting. They are Japanese flip flops with a wooden sole. The top part was originally white but he painted half of one red and half of the other yellow. He talked to himself in what we think is Japanese the whole time. 

Suddenly, he starts humming to himself, totally off key. And guess what? Ori turns to me and says -Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake. Crazy that he recognized it from the odd way he was humming it. The whole ride, about an hour, he talked to himself. I think that was the time I wanted to be able to understand Japanese the most out of this trip. I think it would have been totally cool to know what he said. I think he was actually laughing at us. My theory is that he's this big time tycoon that is bored on the weekends and does crazy stuff to stimulate his creative side and have fun. And that all his self talk was about how hes probably driving us Westerners crazy. Thats my theory. Ori thinks Im too imaginative and that hes just one loon away from the loony bin. 

So there we are on this train that is creaking and stopping every few minutes. The conductor leaves the train at every stop. I think hes actually changing the track direction by hand each time. It feels like its going to break down any second and were sitting there listening to Tooti man. 

We finally get to Hakone and its too dark to see anything. Thankfully the directions to the guest house at which were reserved, the Hakone Tent, were very clear and within four minutes we arriived. The interior design was as cool as their photos. Wooden walls and carvings  It was kinda like a nice hostel but with private rooms and an onsen. That's right, this guest house had one of the nicest onsens I'd seen so far. The room was small but it was decorated in rough stones and felt like you were in some cave carved out of a mountain or some hidden water hole. It was great. All the other ones were more modern and large. This was fun, felt much more authentic. 

Ori had his turn at the men's onsen and we met at the bar and chatted with a few other people. I had my first brown cow in years. It was a nice calm evening. 

Not a busy day, but interesting nonetheless. Looking forward to going to the next hotel in Hakone tomorrow. We need to take a fenicular and a cable car to get to the lake (yup, going up in order to get to the lake). We only hope that we can do it considering the predicted weather forecast. 

Fingers crossed 

Night night