From Kyoto we went to Kanazawa. A city I had never heard of before we started planning this trip. It is on the west coast of Japan. I found it to be quite lovely and accessible. Maybe I was just acclimating, but it felt easier to navigate and not nearly as hectic as Tokyo...but then again isn't everywhere? We were a bit ambitious upon arrival and scheduled an afternoon tour of the sights. After our bullet train ride, we managed to find a bit of food for lunch before our tour guide arrived. She was very well intended but our group...mostly Augie, was not quite in the mood for a detailed tour. Our first stop was a gorgeous park, Kenrokuen Gardens. Once the boys, mostly Augie, saw the snow all bets were off! When the guide said, "Look at that beautiful park"! Augie said, "Can I go run over there?" When the guide said, "Look at this historic shrine", Augie said, "Can we find more snow?". We finally had to surrender and admit none of us were giving the tour guide her due diligence and we decided we should kindly say goodbye to her and let the kids play in the snow. I will say, the park she took us to initially was amazing! There were these rope structures around all of the trees and plants to protect them from heavy snow. The whole town had these structures over their shrubs and trees and they were pretty cool looking.
Rope tents to protect the trees.
This huge tree was supported by many poles!
Look...a temple!
Small guy, small snowman.
The power of a dirty mound of snow!
Our main reason for going to Kanazawa was to use it as a launching pad to the snow. We rented a car on our second day, and our goal was to see Shirakawa-go village, a small village with thatched roof houses. Turns out it was not only our goal but thousands of other people's goal that day! Crazy traffic! We drove and drove and drove looking for a parking lot that would let us in to park, to no avail. We did however find snow covered field with an easy pull in parking place. We happily spent the next hour or more running around in the snow! We were very glad we loaded up on lunch food before we headed out for the day. We (mostly Augie and Kelly) had snowball fights, made snow angels, ran around and just fell into the snow, there was so much joy in that field! Thatched roofs had nothing on this! The field was pristine when we arrived and looked like a war zone when we left! There were of course others who could not find parking and joined us in the field of dreams.
Upon arrival before we trampled it all!
He could have spent the entire day here!
After being such a trooper through so many tours, it was time to be a kid!
The next day we drove farther north towards Nagano. If you are of a certain age, you remember Nagano as the 1998 Winter Olympics destination. We visited the Togakushi, ancient cedars and shrine. The drive up the mountain to this area was steep! It was totally worth it! There was a snow-covered trail that led to the ancient cedars. They are truly majestic! What a beautiful and peaceful walk, aside from the happy 5-year-old wanting to throw snowballs. It was probably my favorite walk through nature in Japan. I understand how having a shrine in this beautiful natural oasis makes perfect sense. Those cedars are over 800 years old!
We found a lot more snow!
I see the cedars!
TJ and Thomas entering the cedar walkway
Torii Gate entrance
After a night in a ryokan near Nagano, and our final onsen soaking it was time to get back to Tokyo. We returned our rental car and took the train to Tokyo. We spent our last few hours walking around the Imperial Palace gardens, after we sent Kelly and family off to do their own thing. We were all leaving the next day and our flight was at 7 a.m. so we stayed at an airport hotel. It was also New Year's Eve. Talk about a different holiday season! We said goodbye to 2025 at an airport hotel sharing a hamburger and fries at the only restaurant at the hotel that would serve us. All of the nice restaurants told us they were "fully booked", even though there appeared to be many open tables. We never expected to need reservations that night...at an airport hotel! Oops.
Quite the light display at our airport hotel!
Happy New Year! 2025 was a good one! Hoping for more of the same in 2026!
Our time in Japan was so amazing! We saw much of the country and still not nearly all of it. I feel like I learned so much and was able to experience the culture! I enjoyed exploring the food and found some definite favorites. The tuna sashimi with fresh ground wasabi in Kanazawa was melt in your mouth decadently delicious! I learned to really appreciate things like quiet trains, super clean everything, warm toilet seats in winter, peace and order.
Takeaways in no particular order -
-There are no hand towels in bathrooms and not always blow dryers for hands. Bring a handkerchief or drip dry.
-A warm toilet seat with a light on a cold night, ahh. The older houses and older buildings are not necessarily warm in winter so take the warmth where you can get it! And press all the buttons.
-Sleeping under a cloud of duvet and silky soft sheets in a cold room is one of the coziest experiences!
-7-11 not just junk food!
-The beer is good, the wine is not. Sake goes best with sushi!
-The quiet on the trains and in the train stations. Everyone is minding their own business.
-No trash cans in public! Yet the streets and public areas are immaculately clean! You carry your trash with you until you get home. Bring a bag!
-So many people!
-Life is low...we slept on the floor, sat on the floor, ate on the floor(but not often). Chairs and seats are small because most Japanese people are small. I felt too tall for Japan. I will say with all the crawling around on the floor my body did adapt and gave me huge respect for anyone over a certain age, you go!
-Almost everyone we talked to was very polite, kind and helpful. But...rules are rules and you are expected to obey the rules.
I think by now we both feel a little like I did when we left Japan...ready to move on. Not that it wasn't amazing, because it was, but I knew there was something completely different and equally exciting ahead for us.
Let's just start with a few statistics. The population density of Tokyo is 6,224 per square km and the population density of Sugar Land, TX is 2,434 per sq. km. The population density of the Shinjuku train station is 18,232 per sq km! My initial impression of Japan was shaped by this reality. So many people! Shinjuku Station was the first place we visited on our first morning in Tokyo following our 14-hour flight. We dove right into the deep end! We wandered the crowded halls of the station, with a wide-eyed lost look on our faces, for what seemed like an eternity. We wanted to get a Suica card (a multi-purpose card used for subways, buses, taxis and some trains...and convenience store purchases!) and find the subway to see the Meiji Jingu Shrine. After several "discussions" about where to go for the things we needed and finally successfully procuring them, we left the station for some much-needed fresh air with a feeling of accomplishment. How that many people can commute in relative silence and order, in an immaculately clean station is amazing!
We had two days in Tokyo before our daughter and her family arrived. On our first day we explored a bit of Tokyo, a drop in the bucket, and managed to walk over 11 miles. We saw the Meiji Jingu Shrine and beautiful grounds surrounding it. We happened upon a traditional wedding procession. We walked back to our hotel...long walk. We also visited the food floor of a nearby department store, it's a thing! We are talking world class food...chocolates, pastries, sushi, Kobe and Wagyu beef, bento boxes, all artistically presented and gorgeous! It was overwhelming between the amount of beautiful food and the number of people shopping! We took a quick nap before our 5 p.m. food tour. We love food tours and love taking a tour on our first day. We get a lay of the land and a bit of inside information. The food tour was perfect! I needed an education in Japanese food anyway. Boy did I get an education! 3 stops and at least 15 different foods plus drinks.
The beef...oh, the beef!
Lisa learns to drink sake... At this place they fill your glass until it overflows into the box exactly to the brink. The sake in the box is exactly enough for another glass once you finish the first one. Yikes!
Where sashimi is delicious and fresh grated wasabi is next level delicious!
I guess it is an iconic location.
The crowd parted and made way for the bridal party.
Entrance to the shrine. Every shrine has a well where you wash your hands before entering. Shrine or temple? Shrines are Shinto and Temples are Buddhist
Just a small display in the food floor.
The next day was spent catching a cold. We took the bus to a village near Mount Fuji, hoping to see Fuji in all its glory and to visit the village of Oshino Hakkai in the five lakes area. It is known for its crystal clear eight ponds throughout the village. Yes, it was a bit touristy! Still beautiful. Fuji was shrouded by clouds, and we just had to imagine it. We climbed the 400 steps to the Churieto Pagoda hoping the clouds would break and we would get that iconic view of Fuji but no luck, all we got was a good workout. We managed the bus, train, bus gauntlet and filled our day with some interesting sights and noodles! On the ride home I felt a tickle in my throat...that tickle took a couple of days to develop into a full blown cold. Merry Christmas to me!
Churieto Pagoda
Just pretend!
The water is as clear as glass!
Soba noodles to warm me up!
This concludes the adult portion of Japan. Once Kelly, Chris and the boys arrived we shifted to family mode. Family mode made us very glad we arrived a few days early! With some good sightseeing and sleep under our belt we were ready for the energy level to change.
First Impressions at a glance-
Looking back, I would say arriving in Tokyo was overwhelming for me. I thought I was prepared. I knew it was a huge city and had no aspirations to see all of it, but I did expect to be able to see more than we did. I expected to struggle with the language and believe me...I did. Seldom do we go to a country that I make no attempt to learn at least some of the language. Aside from "arigato" and politely bowing, I had nothing! Thank goodness the signs we needed had English subtitles...and we had Google translate!
The people are so quiet! No one talks on the train or the subway. There is not a low hum of conversation in the stores. They speak quietly, which was not good for my increasingly hard of hearing husband. I have a new role..."his ears". The streets are relatively quiet, many electric cars which are quiet and not many sirens.
Everyone wears black or navy...mind you it was winter and everyone was wearing a coat. At least all the neon lights at night brightened up the world. With our first couple of days being overcast, it initially seemed a dark and dreary place. Once the sun came out the world changed.
Everything is so neat and orderly! I really liked this. The food is artfully plated. The merchandise in the stores is beautifully displayed. Everything has an order and the order is followed.
Talk about artful plating!
Convenience stores...namely 7-11 and Lawsons. Not your mother's convenience stores. There was a 7-11 in our Tokyo hotel (they are everywhere), a nice upscale hotel, and it had everything! I love going in and just browsing. The prepared food section was extensive and yes, the egg salad sandwiches are epic. I also discovered another favorite sandwich, paper thin pork ham, cream cheese, cucumber and wasabi. True confession, I can't tell you how many quick snacks we consumed from 7-11. From breakfast to road snacks to quick lunch to wine...yes, wine.
My personal favorites.
Bowing. I still am not clear if I was supposed to bow back...but I did. There is something about a person bowing to you that makes you just want to return a bow. It is both a sign of respect and a sign of humility. It seems gentle and kind. I appreciate this. My heart warmed at every bow. A simple acknowledgement of the other. Something our culture could use a little more of.
And now I digress...the toilets! I had heard about Japanese toilets before we went. Let me just say, I am sold! First, in winter...heated seats! Even in public bathrooms, the toilets are clean, warm and include many wash and dry features. Go to a nice hotel room and wow! Lights, music, heat, wash, dry, and then sanitize after use. I still wonder what it is about a culture that puts such an emphasis on pottying. No arguments from me. I am a believer.
The food...well, that will have to be another post.
I will leave you with this little video of an iconic location to make a point. There are a lot of people here! Our last night before the kids arrived...we did the Shibuya Scramble!
