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| Japan
has always been a fascinating country to me. I remember as a kid my
favorite cartoons and TV shows were from Japan. Such as Doremon, Atom
Boy and Ultraman. Japanese culture also invaded my life daily in various
forms from martial arts, cars, arcade games, Nintendo, Sega to sushi.
What else did I know about Japan? Pearl Harbour, the Nanking massacre
and the cruelty the Japanese dealt to my grandparents during WWII.
I wanted to know how such a small country could have such an influence
over the rest of the world? |
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Pachinko parlor, Shinjuku |
So
I traveled to Japan in February 2001 to visit some friends and to
see the country. I arrived visited the mega-metropolis of Tokyo,
a truly amazing city with concrete as far as the eyes can see. Honestly!
You can check this out too by taking a free lift up the Tokyo Metropolitan
Government office building (aka Tokyo Tocho) in Shinjuku! And at
night the neon lights comes alive and in places like Shinjuku, Ginza
and Akihabara you are surrounded by a sea of people. My favorite
place in Tokyo are the bridges beneath the railway in the Ueno district.
There were all sorts of shops selling everything from fried squid,
biscuits, cooking utensil, sun glasses, jewelry to tacky shoes and
clothes.
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Tokyo
Tocho |
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| Nikko,
only an hour North of Tokyo is a sacred site from the 8th century
filled with shrines and temples. It was a sunny but chilly day
when I visited and everything were covered in snow. The magical
effects of snow made the scenary soft and beautiful. I took
many photos as this was the first historical area I visited
in Japan. It was fascinating to see the constructions of the
Japanese temples and shrines, the design were mostly simple
yet elegant. That was of course, before I arrive at the gates
of Yomei-mon. The gates are covered with details from animals,
mystical and otherwise pasted with glimmering gold leaf and
red lacquerwork. The walls are decorated with intricate painting,
colored relief carvings and paintings of flowers, dancing girls,
mythical beast and Chinese sages. I had most of the ground to
myself due to a distinct lack of tourist. This factor combining
with the beautiful scenary made Nikko my favorite place in Japan. |
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"Hear
no evil, speak no evil, see no evil"
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The
gates of Yomei-mon. |
Nikko
and it's shrines. |
Collection
statues of Jizo, Gamman-Ga-Fuchi Abyss |
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| I
met up with friends while in Tokyo, one was Makoto - a great
dude without dye hair like every other Japanese! He lives in
Funabashi, his room is up in the attic... Which suites his lifestyle.
Makoto you see, is a rather good photographer. He develops his
own prints and he collects antique cameras. Being up there gives
him all the privacy he needs. I also caught up with Rui, whom
I traveled with through parts of France and Portugal in 2000,
he is a chief and has help brush up my cooking skills! :) |
Rui, me and Makoto |
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Golden
temple, Kinkaku-ji |
Kyoto
and Nara was next on my destination, so after a farewell to
both Makoto and Rui, I jumped on an overnight bus for an 8 hour
journey to Kyoto. Too bad I din't see Mt Fuji along the way
- never mind, I bought the postcards. :b Kyoto is a beautiful
city compare to Tokyo. It is surrounded by shrines, temples
and castle. So it was no surprise to learn that this was an
ancient capital of Japan. I spent my days wondering through
various temples and Shinto shrines, walking along its famous
teapot lane, and hanging out in Gion district in order to get
a glimpse of Geisha's and Maiko's on their way to work. |
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| Upon
leaving Kyoto I caught another bus to Hiroshima. I wanted to
visit the Peace Memorial Park and it's adjoining museum, in
which it told of eye witness accounts regarding the horror of
the 6th August 1945, and saw the clothes left by many of the
dead after the atomic blast. I found it to be sad and a very
sobering experience. But the city can take pride now for it's
rebuilding effort as it is pleasant to wonder around. I also
found Hiroshima to be a vibrant city without the crowds of Tokyo
or Osaka. |
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Buddhist
monks praying for peace... |
Statue with thousands of paper cranes stitched together. |
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The
Atomic dome with paper cranes in the foreground. |
Peace
statue with Hiroshima castle in the background. |
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| After
Hiroshima I hitchhike to Osaka, it was a great experience as
I was taken onboard trucks and vans by people who could hardly
speak a word of English. It seemed like most people mistaken
me to be a Japanese which was why they gave me a ride in the
first place! I knew that bit of fluff on my chin helped! :)
One great person I met while hitchhiking was Shige, a delivery
person who has been driving for the past 8 hours from Kyushu
when he stoped to pick me up. He was friendly and invited me
to stay the night with his family in Shiga, I accepted the invite
as I wanted to "see" a typical Japanese house. I really
like the Japanese houses, with their tatami mats to sit on the
ground without bulky couches. Everything was built with space
saving in mind, from the foldable mattress, removable door frames
to lightly built tables. I had a great time hanging out with
Shige and his family, we got on well and I have promise to visit
them again the next time I visit Japan. |
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I
left for Osaka the following day. Osaka is another mega metropolis,
it is Japan's second largest city and therefore pretty happening.
There is a district called America Mura, with it's own Statue
of Liberty. Most kids here are pretty trendy spotting retro
American clothes while skating around the block. I found these
Americans-wannabe's quite hilarious. I visited the park by
Osaka-Jo (Castle) on the weekend and saw more hilarious sights.
Japanese punks and bogans banging away rock-&-roll style
to hip swaying fans. It must've been hard to dance to the
distorted sound as all the bands were playing 10 metres from
each other! Then I encountered Japanese Goth hanging out with
others walking around in white and pink wedding dress. I think
they were all spoting a sign saying LOOK AT ME I AM DIFFERENT!!!!
:)
Whilst
in Osaka I stayed with Aki - another Japanese backpacker I
met in Spain. Aki lives in a modest house with his parents
and brother. They have a small snack store out front and his
mum sells a delicious dish called Ekonomi-yaki (made of octopus
and other stuff) - VERY YUMMY!
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My mate Aki!!!
In front of the Umeda Sky Building. |
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It's
all fake! |
Other
then that, there are loads of brilliant food, remember what
I said about food in Japan!!!! I wish I had more time too, as
I din't get to eat everything I wanted to nor see all the places
I wanted to see. I found the Japanese to be extremely polite,
friendly and very helpful, even if they hardly spoke any English.
Advice for people who are keen on Japan would be to get a Japan
Rail pass. Bus is another cheap option, but if you have time
I think hitchhiking is pretty safe plus you get to meet the
locals close up. :) |
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| Finally,
I want to send out a big "WHAAAAAAASUP!" to Akihiko
Sekitani (Osaka), Makoto Ueno (Tokyo), Rui Maehara (Tokyo),
Nicholas Despopoulos (American ESOL teacher in Osaka), Yun Hyongseok
(Korean travelling in Osaka), Shige Tugo and family (Shiga).
I had a really good time hanging out with you guys, and I hope
to see you all again in the future!!! |
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Recommended
reading
Lost
Japan by Alex Kerr ISBN: 0864423705
Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden ISBN: 0099771519
Links
Japan Travel
Update
Lonely
Planets Japan Guide
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