I have done FAR too much in the past two weeks to possibly write about it all. I could write the length of a textbook about all that I saw but, since I don't have that kind of time and you don't have that kind of attention span, here is a very brief synopsis of my winter holiday:
-rode the Bullet train to Kyoto (feels like being in an airplane)
-saw Kinkakuji (The Golden Pavillion)
-walked through the gardens of Heian Shrine and saw the biggest torii gate in Japan
-saw 1000 Buddha statues in Sanjusangendo
-drank beer and listened to Christmas music on the steps in Kyoto Station
-walked through the rows upon rows of red torii gates of Fushimi-Inari all over a mountainside in the dark (and told ghost stories the whole way through because it was so unbelievably creepy)
-returned to Nara and it's thousands of deer
-ventured a little farther away from Nara Park and saw some other temples
-rode the Bullet train to Hiroshima
-ate Hiroshima-style okonomiyaki (it was absolutely delicious but I think I prefer Osaka's)
-celebrated Christmas Eve at an izakaya
-visited the site of the world's first atomic bomb attack while snow fell peacefully on the skeletal remains of one of the only buildings that remained standing after the blast
-visited the Hiroshima Victims Museum and saw the faces of so many people who suffered one of the worst deaths in world history and read the horrifying accounts of survivors (...merry christmas...)
-visited the Hiroshima Peace Museum and saw the Peace Flame
-took a ferry to Miyajima Island and saw the famous torii gate in the ocean
-hiked to the top of Mt. Misen for a 360° view of southwest Honshu (in the snow!)
-saw the Eternal Flame lit by Kobo Daishi (remember Koya-san?) that has been burning for 1200 years
-rode the Bullet train one last time from Hiroshima to Nagoya
-rode 6 hours of local trains from Nagoya to Tokyo (right along the base of Mt. Fuji)
-went to my very first Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland!
-visited almost every district of Tokyo (Asakusa, Akehabara, Omotesando, Harajuku, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ueno, Ikebukuro and Roppongi)
-saw the Tokyo Tower
-crossed the famous, giant, insanely busy crosswalk in Shibuya
-saw the infamous Maid Cafes in Akehabara
-shopped in Harajuku
-saw what little of the Imperial Palace is actually visible
-went to Kamakura and saw very historic temples and the second largest Buddha statue in Japan
-went to Yokohama (which I dubbed Far East Vancouver for it's uncanny similarities) and saw the famous Ferris wheel
-found a cat AND bunny cafe (No, you don't eat them, you just play with them. 'Cafe' is a bit misleading I understand...)
-ate ramen from one of the 9 best ramen shops in Japan in the Yokohama ramen museum (the world's first food theme park)
-browsed shops in Yokohama Chinatown and walked along the port to the man-made island that houses the Ferris wheel
-slept in a capsule hotel (definitely something one has to experience in Japan but I don't think I would do it again)
-rode Tokyo's brand new (and very expensive) monorail to see the Rainbow Bridge (wasn't worth it)
-rode 6 hours worth of local trains back home again (ahh, Mt. Fuji...)
-went to my host grandmother's house for traditional Japanese New Year's Eve (possibly the coldest house on the planet. I think a house is too cold if you can see your breath inside. Apparently the Japanese do not agree...)
-ate tradition Japanese New Year's Eve dinner (...not my favourite meal in Japan to be sure)
-watched the Japanese version of Rockin' New Year's Eve complete with all the J-Pop you can stand (which isn't a lot)
-headed out in the freezing cold to the local temple at midnight to pray for the New Year (and I was given sake and dried squid!! Yum, yum but that sake was not nearly enough to thaw me.)
-went to another local shrine where we prayed again (and I was given red bean mochi soup and mandarin oranges!)
-woke up the next morning to more traditional New Year's food (...) and watched sumo wrestling
-came home later that night to a very much needed hot shower and good night's sleep.
I told you I did a lot. I am still catching up on sleep but I think the memories that I have made it all worth it. I have to say, Hiroshima was one of the most amazing places I have ever been. I will never forget the image I have of the burnt, broken remains of the atomic bomb dome surrounded by the green grass, perched beside a peacefully flowing river while snowflakes fell innocently from the sky. It is the most beautifully sad thing I have ever seen. As cliché as it may sound, I hope the world never forgets what happened in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Reading and studying the effects of the bombing and the aftermath of the bombing do not do enough to convince the world powers that nuclear weapons should never be an option. Actually being there, standing right where the bomb fell and reading the heart-wrenching stories from people who witnessed the living hell that was unleashed on earth is enough to make you sick to your stomach and so unbelievably scared of the power that we have developed to destroy ourselves. If you ever have the chance to go to Japan I encourage you, above everything else, to visit Hiroshima. The feeling it will leave you with is not one that is easily forgotten. (And that's my little 1970's Ban the Bomb speech for you. Sorry.)
Wishing everyone a happy, healthy, successful New Year!
Akemashite omedetou! (if you can sound it out, you know how to say 'Happy New Year' in Japanese!)
Britt
I really miss a warm house.
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