Nov. 30, 2008
Tokyo, Japan
Glorious Fall Weather
My BFF and BEST travel buddy Sandra visited me in Tokyo this week. She arrived late on Saturday November 22 and will be returning on Monday December 1. As she is a world traveler and backpacked Japan for about a month years ago, she is pretty capable of going around town on her own as I have to work most of the time she is here in Tokyo. However, we still managed to do a lot together and have so much fun.
Mt Takao
Our first fun activity was on Sunday Nov. 23 where we decided to hike up Mt. Takao which is about a one hour train ride from Tokyo. Fall foliage around Tokyo is at its peak now so I thought it would be fun to get some exercise and enjoy the beautiful "koyo" or fall foliage. I've never been to Mt Takao so was very much looking forward to it. You can either go up by cable car or do the hike. Since its only about 600 meters tall we decided to walk it.
After getting up early – around 6am or so and taking the dogs for a walk, we got dressed in layers to take the train Takao. Although we were early, the train was full of people dressed from head to toe in hiking gear. Once we arrived at the station, we saw hundreds of people who had the same idea as we had. He followed the masses and walked up the mountain. We huffed and puffed but as the road was mostly paved it was easy on the knees. I thought it was crowded but I found out later that the crowd we experienced was nothing like it is during peak hour which is about noon.
The Line to the Ladies Room at Takao Station
After about 1.5 hours we made it to the temple near the top of Takao. The day was perfect and the foliage was beautiful. The original temple was built in the late 700s and is very famous for the "Fire-walking Festival" where the Buddhist monks walk on burning wood while meditating.
The foliage by the temple was gorgeous
After walking around the temple grounds we walked for another 15 minutes or so to the top of the mountain. When we went over to a "viewpoint" we both shouted "oh my god!" so loudly that several Japanese folks laughed at us. I was not expecting a view of Mt. Fuji, but there she was in full view!
Mt Fuji from Mt Takao
It was actually a bit chilly up in Takao. After admiring the view of Mount Fuji, we toured another area of the temple grounds and found the beloved Jizo statues dressed in cute knitted hats and bibs. Jizo is one of the most beloved deities in Japan and is a Bodhissatva who protects children.
The perfectly lined up Jizo statues
Mount Takao is also closely associated with the Tengu – that is either an evil spirit or "kami" ,revered god. Its a supernatural creature and is supposedly half man and half bird. There are many stories of the Tengu in Japanese folklore. The Tengu's in Takao are said to protect the mountain and forests
One of the Mt. Takao Tengu's
After we visited some of the shops around the temple and I had a pine cupful of sake, it was time to head down. We decided to walk down instead of taking the cable car which was a mistake as we were faced with thousands of people making their way up the mountain. We were definitely going opposite the traffic!
Thousands of people making the pilgrimage to the top of Mt Takao. Thankfully we got their early so did not have to deal with the crowds going up. Going down was a different story as we had to navigate our way down through the hordes of people going up.
After the hike we took the train back to Shinjuku station and instead of going straight home, I took her to my fav department store Takashimya for lunch. As she is a fan of Tonkatsu (Japanese style fried pork) we went to a traditional Tonkatsu restaurant on top of Takashimaya. The line was long to get into the restaurant but we were seated in about 10 minutes. Because it was served traditional style, we were served roasted sesame seeds in a "suriboshi". Suriboshi is a Japanese style mortar and pestle but the pestle is made of wood and the mortar is porcelain with grooves. Sandra loved it and the "suriboshi" got on her list of things to buy in Japan.
I then took her to Tokyu Hands and showed her some of the latest gadgets that can be Xmas gifts. We then went to the basement of Takashimaya and bought salads to bring home for dinner as we both were tired and wanted an early night.
Kappabashi, Ometasando and Sushi Class at ABC Cooking
Monday, November 24 is a holiday in Japan and our original plan was to go to Kamakura to do some more hiking while visiting the serene temples of Kamakura. However, we woke up to a cold, clammy and rainy day so scrapped those plans. Also, Sandra was jet lagged and up since 2am! So instead, I took Sandra to Kappa Bashi or Kitchen Alley as visiting that area was one of her objectives of the trip. The day was cold and unfortunately many of the stores were closed. However, Sandra was able to find a Suriboshi and some beautiful porcelain as gifts. I was able to find the white Japanese made food storage containers that are made of special material so they do not stain.
After shopping at Kappabashi, we dropped off our bags at my apartment and took off to Ometesando. As it was cold, we had lunch at Chabuya in Ometesando Hills where I introduced Sandra to gourmet Ramen. It hit the spot as it was warm and delicious. We then went to Kiddyland where she bought a baby gift and a Hello Kitty apron for herself as she was cooking Thanksgiving dinner for me and my friends this week! After walking around Ometesando including a visit to UT Qlo's Tshirt store, we finished at Natural House, where Sandra was able to find the herbal tea she takes when traveling (albeit its twice as expensive in Japan) and I bought some Oden ingredients to make tonite. Oden is basically, fish cake and vegetable cooked in a broth and is eaten with rice. Its a popular winter dish in Japan.
The next day, I went to work and Sandra who is supposedly on vacation, ended up working the whole day in my apartment. I picked her up in the evening as were were going to ABC Cooking's Sushi class. ABC Cooking is where I take bread making classes and they have these one day classes on special topics. We were to learn how to do nigiri sushi and rolls. We made an eel/cucumber roll which was much easier than the nigiri. I now have a lot more appreciation for sushi chefs. We somehow, successfully made our sushi dinner. Although it did not look perfect it tasted very good!
Janet and Sandra with the Sushi they made
Tsukiji Fish Market and Sashimi Breakfast
On Thanksgiving morning, we got up very early to visit the Tsukiji Fish Market which was also on Sandra's list of things to do in Tokyo. Although she was OK with going by herself, I've had a craving for sushi since the sushi class and love eating a sushi breakfast at Tsukiji, I accompanied her. Tsukiji is the world's largest fish market and has to be the cleanest! Tourists are no longer able to see the tuna auction and there is some controversy about having tourists walk through the wholesale market as the the market prides themselves in cleanliness. Anyhow, we carefully walked the aisles while trying very hard not to disturb the merchants and the buyers.
The head of a poor tuna. The Japanese are the largest consumers of tuna in the world. Given the declining number of tuna worldwide, foreign governments are pressuring the Japanese government to enact some conservation initiatives which basically means cutting back on eating tuna. I try and eat tuna only once a month although I ate it 3 times in November! So will try and skip tuna in December and January which is hard to do in Japan
Man carving the tuna from New York. Check out the knife!
Huge Scallops! I have no idea what is to the left of the scallops
A beautiful display of fish
Baby Octopus
After touring the fish market it was time for breakfast. We found a small place (10 chairs or so) that had the most delicious Tekka-don (Tuna on sushi rice) for about 1000yen (It was my third tuna of the month!)
Thanksgiving Dinner
As I had to work on Thanksgiving Day, Sandra graciously offered to cook Thanksgiving dinner. Its been two years since I had a Thanksgiving Turkey so I ordered a 18-20 pound turkey from Kinokuniya. It was funny to watch the reaction of people in the store as I carried the huge turkey around the store. Since several of my friends are expats, I invited them and also some of my Japanese colleagues but only three of my Japanese friends were able to make it. We had a full menu: Roasted Turkey Martha Stewart Style, Vegetarian Chestnut Stuffing, Sandra's special barley and pasta, Sandra's special Cranberry Chutney, Green Bean Casserole, Mashed potatoes, cheese/crackers, shrimp cocktail and wonderful desserts that the guests brought. Sandra cooked away all day in her Hello Kitty apron but I was able to help out with the stuffing. We all had a great time, stuffed ourselves and enjoyed a real American Thanksgiving!
Sandra cooking Thanksgiving dinner in her Hello Kitty apron
The dinner
Weekend in Hakone
Sandra was able to get us a free night at the Hyatt Regency in Hakone so we decided to take the 1.5 hour trip out of Tokyo to the mountains of Hakone. Hakone is a resort town south west of Tokyo and is known for the Onsens (Hot Springs). Its been about 30 years since I've been to Hakone so was very much looking forward to the trip.
After taking the Odakyu Romance Car from Shinjuku station to Hakone Yumoto, we had to transfer to the quaint Hakone Tozan train that goes slowly through the mountains and thru several switchbacks. We were very pleased to know that the fall foliage was still there. The scenery was gorgeous from the train.
View of Hakone from Hakone Tozan train
Once we got to our station – Gora, we had to transfer to a cable car to take us to the Hyatt. Gora is known for very expensive vacation homes and the beauty of its forest. We found the whole area to be peaceful and beautiful. However, the signs to the Hyatt were all in Japanese so it will be difficult for non-Japanese readers to find it.
Cable Car to Kami-Gora – our station where the Hyatt is located
Sandra is from Canada so is used to beautiful fall foliage but she fully enjoyed the foliage in Hakone as its different. In Canada and in the States the leaves are big but in Japan the leaves are delicate and small. The forests of Hakone are surrounded with Japanese maple trees and the small, delicate leaves were golden, red and ocher.
The fall colors of the Japanese Maple Leaves
The first activity we did was visit the Hakone Open Air Museum which was recommended by my friend Tal who visited me in Japan last year. It is located in the Fuji Hakone Izu National Park and opened in 1969 as Japan's first open air museum. It also houses a Picasso museum where we enjoyed some of his pottery work and some paintings and drawings that I've never seen before. We spent a good couple of hours there as the grounds were beautiful. Below are some photos from the park.
The Open Air museum also had a foot bath from Onsen water so we decided to rest our feet and enjoy the bath. The water was warm and to energize our feet, oranges and lemons were also in the water.
Sandra enjoying her first onsen foot bath.
After a nice day at the open air museum and lunch at Restaurant Roi (pronounced ruah as in King in french not roy) where Sandra had their specialty meat pie and I had a very good beef stew, we decided to take the cable car all the way to Lake Ashi to check out the views. We had Hakone Free pass tickets which are 5000yen each and allows you free rides on majority of transportation within Hakone including roundtrip train tickets from Tokyo. We first had to take the cable car from Gora to Sounzan which was pretty uneventful except for the views of the mountains. We then had to switch to a ropeway that will take us to Owakudani (Hell's Valley) that was uneventful until we went over a mountain to howling wind conditions with steam coming out of vent holes in the mountain. We got off at Owakudani and walked to a store in the fierce wind. The winds were so strong it was difficult to walk. However, we got a great view of Mount Fuji! Owakudani is also famous for black eggs. They are eggs boiled in the sulfur rich onsen waters and therefore turn black. Eating one of the eggs will elongate your life by seven years!
After Owakudani, we switched ropeways again and took it all the way down to Togendai which is where Lake Ashi is. As it was getting late and freezing cold, we turned around and went back to the hotel.
The Hyatt in Hakone is amazing. Our rooms were huge with an enclosed balcony with a view of the mountains and Enoshima bay. Once we got to the rooms we immediately changed to our robes and headed down to the lounge where a wood fire was burning and had a couple of glasses of wine which were complimentary. We then headed to the Onsen which was heavenly and returned to the lounge for a couple more glasses of wine. We called it a nite around 8pm while eating wasabi chips and watching Derailed with Clive Owen in our room.
Magnificent view of Mt Fuji from Owakudani
The steam vents from Owakudani (Hell's Valley). The whole valley smells like sulfur. If you look carefully, people are lined up to enter the famous inn that serves black eggs.
The famous black egg that when eaten adds seven years to your life.
Kami Gora Station: The cable car station where the Hyatt is.
After a good nights sleep and another onsen experience, we decided to explore Lake Ashi, visit the ancient cedar road and visit the Hakone shrine before heading back to Tokyo. We bundled up after nearly freezing to death the day before only to find out that the weather warmed up quite a bit and the wind over Owakudani had died down. We took the cable car/rope way all the way to Lake Ashi again and took the "sightseeing boat" across Lake Ashi to Hakone machi. Lake Ashi is a crater lake and on clear days one gets a good view of Mt. Fuji. Unfortunately, as the winds have died down the clouds obscured our view of Mt. Fuji. Taking the gaudy sightseeing boat was fun though as it was a pirate ship and saw many tourists taking photos with the pirate statues on the ship.
Lake Ashi
View of a remote shrine from Lake Ashi
The Pirate Ship we took for sightseeing around Lake Ashi
Once we got to Hakone machi it was time to find a place to eat. We found a fancy looking hotel called Hakone Hotel which is part of the infamous Fujiya Hotel of Hakone. The Fujiya Hotel is one of Japan's oldest and most famous resort hotels. It was built in the late 1800s and is known worldwide for its exceptional service. Since the Hakone Hotel was on the lake we decided to check out their lunch menu. It turned out to be a buffet lunch for 2500yen! The selection was fabulous as it included sashimi, salads, a great roast pork, pasta and fabulous desserts. We also had a local Japanese white wine which was OK and the service was impeccable!
The view of Lake Ashi from Hakone Hotel
My appetizer selection from the buffet: Green pea mouse, sashimi, shrimp salad, Japanese potato salad, Ciabatta and a tomato salad
My dessert which included a Lychee like fruit but it wasn't a lychee although tasted very similar.
After eating way too much as the food was delicious, we decided to walk through the Old Highway of Cedar Trees to the Hakone shrine. Rows of cedar trees were planted in the late 1600s as Hakone became recognized as a resting place for travelers. Today about 400 of the trees survived. Walking through the old highway was a nice break from the bustling sidewalks of Hakone machi.
The path led us to the Hakone shrine which is known for Road Safety. Our goal was to get travel safety amulets for our friends but we lucked out as we witnessed a traditional Japanese Shinto wedding! The Hakone Shrine is a beautiful shrine and well worth visiting as its one of the oldest shrines in the Kanto area (build in mid 700s)
The Old Highway of Cedar Trees
The entrance to the Hakone Shrine
The traditional Shinto wedding at Hakone Shrine
The bride, groom and bride's mother
After we got our amulets we walked back into town to catch the bus to Hakone Yumoto station. We decided to take the bus as it will give us a different view of Hakone. Although the views were great, the bus was crowded at the beginning and I had a tough time keeping my balance with my backpack and camera as the road was very curvy. However, it emptied out halfway thru the trip and we were able to sit down and got a very nice view of the infamous Fujiya Hotel and surrounding town. We then ran into traffic so the 40 minute bus ride turned into about a 70 minute long bus ride. We made it to town safely though as we had our travel safety amulets and were able to change our tickets to an earlier direct train to Shinjuku.
Once in Shinjuku, we went to Tokyu Hands to buy some gifts and also bread from Takashimaya as we were looking forward to left over Thanksgiving food as our dinner which includes a Turkey sandwich with cranberry sauce.
Sandra's Last Day in Tokyo
After a wonderful time in Hakone, suddenly it was Sandra's last day in Tokyo. We decided to go to Roppongi Hills and Tokyo Midtown. At Roppongi Hills we went to the top of Mori building and got a magnificent view of Tokyo. We then enjoyed the Mori Museum where they had a very interesting exhibit on modern Indian art. As it was Sandra's last lunch in Tokyo we went to Kushinobu in Roppongi Hills for Kushiage. Kushinobu Roppongi Hills is a branch of the famous Kushinobu in Osaka. Kushiage is basically fried meat, seafood and veggies on a stick. Sandra had beer with it and I noticed they had Mitaki shochu from Yakushima, so I had that on the rocks!
View of Tokyo from Roppongi Hills Mori Building Observation Deck
After our lunch we walked to Tokyo Midtown and thru the small but pretty garden. There too the Japanese maple leaves were in full fall color. Although Sandra had to work alot during her vacation, we managed to still have a good time in Tokyo and the environs during the beautiful fall season.
Japanese Maple Leaves from the Tokyo Midtown Garden