.............Additional photos at https://goo.gl/photos/uhhAnxK8ouuQ72Hq6...............
26 Oct, Wed – Off at 0830 in the rain to catch what I thought was the 1155 Alaska flight to Vancouver and then on to Narita. We ran into slow traffic even before we hit Issaquah, but with the help of the HOV lane we still made it to the Sandstone Inn where we parked and caught the 0940 shuttle to SeaTac. By the time we got to the agent at the AK desk, after a long wait in line, it was after 0955 and our flight was at 1055, not 1155. And baggage for international flights has to be turned in at least an hour before the flight. We got sent down to Air Canada, our international carrier, and asked the desk agent if she was a miracle worker. It turned that she was (or that someone else was looking out for us) because our AC flight had been delayed two hours and we could still make it! We boarded the turboprop Bombardier aircraft and had a bumpy ride of about an hour to Vancouver in the back of the plane. In VYR we had to fill out a customs form and go through a passport check and then we were in the terminal where there were nice displays of First Nations carvings and a big glass wall aquarium. When we got to our gate we received two $10 vouchers for food so we had lunch at Hanami Café in the food court; the bowl of soup, soba noodles, brisket, and wontons was very bland, even with a packet of soy sauce. With a bottle of coke and a fruit salad the cost was just over $20, so we paid only $1. Our flight, on a Boeing 777, left at 1515 and it was more than nine hours to Narita.
--------INTERNATIONAL DATE LINE------
27 Oct, Thu - We arrived about
1700 local time. By the time we had cleared immigration and customs (including
the long walk from the jetway to the arrival hall) it was almost 1800 but we
had enough time to get our 1835 Keisei bus tickets (6200Y) to
Higashi-Tokorozawa near Kiyose where Barbara Yates (Summerhawk) lives.
Meanwhile, I had discovered that I had left my Kindle Fire in the seatback of
the Air Canada plane. I asked for help from the Narita Airport information desk
and they called Air Canada. Minutes later one of the information agents
delivered my Fire to C.J. where she was waiting near the Keisei ticket counter.
I had gone off to get some Yen at a Seven Bank ATM, ¥30,000 ~300USD. I also looked
at the SIM card vending machines and asked about SIMs at two shops. They seemed
expensive and I didn’t want to make a rushed decision so I put it off and we
went to catch our bus. It was a two-hour drive in the dark, much of it on
Expressway and along a river. There was only one stop before the Higashi-Tokorozawa
where Barbara was waiting to meet us at about 2035. She took us to her
apartment and after a short visit we collapsed into a bed made up on the tatami
mats in her library.
28 Oct, Fri – We got up around
0700 even though I woke up at 0600 and couldn’t get back to sleep. Barbara
provided a nice breakfast of granola, yogurt, and cranberry scones. With tea
and hot chocolate we were happy. Barbara headed out for a meeting with some of
her graduate students at 0830 so we had time to catch up and study the
itinerary Barbara had worked out. Later C.J. and I
went out for a walk
following the pedestrian path along a small river. We were trying to be careful
to not forget where we had walked so that we could find our way back. Along the
way we happened upon a shrine with two large demon statues guarding it. We
eventually reached a commercial area with a supermarket where we bought some
groceries for breakfast (¥1445). The weather started off overcast and then deteriorated to drizzle and rain but stopped before
we got really wet. We made it back by noon; Barbara got back around 1330 and
was pretty wet from her 40-min ride back from the university on her scooter.
After getting dried out Barbara drove us out to get some fish at the fresh fish
market. We also went to an electronics store to try to get a SIM card (Japan
Travel SIM card from IIJmio), but they didn’t have any SIM cards at all.
I did
buy an adapter so I could plug my 3-prong plug into the Japanese 2-prong
outlets (750). On the way back we stopped at a thrift shop so C.J. could look at kimonos,
but she didn’t find any that fit her idea of what she wanted. We also stopped
at a 7-11 which had all kinds of food and alcoholic beverages that you would
not find in the US. [Ancillary Justice by Ann Leckie] Barbara prepared
a delicious meal of yellowfin tuna, miso soup, salad, rice and veggies. And
cute, decorated pumpkin pastries. < C.J. and B in her yard>
29 Oct, Sat – Barbara went off
to her martial
arts class and got back around 0930. Meanwhile we had eaten
breakfast and sort of gotten ready for a trip into Tokyo. We all walked into Kiyose
and took the semi-express Seibu train to Ikebukuro station where we changed to
the JR Yamanote line and went as far as Harajuku Station. From there we walked
the short distance to Meiji-Jingu (shrine) under two large tori. Barbara got us
into a Shinto ceremony/ritual of prayer that included dance, flutes and a big
drum. We received a prayer plaque and some dried seaweed and some other items.
To see the modern side of Tokyo we walked to the crowded pedestrian-only,
narrow 
Takeshita Street. Since it was nearly Halloween lots of the
young people were in costume. We took a right off the main street and followed
a narrow path through an area with many hair salons. Then we found a
hole-in-the-wall restaurant and had lunch (chicken and tomato curry, ginger
beef, pasta with bacon cream (really smoked ham) which included a drink and
salad (3800). After lunch we walked up the main shopping street, which reminded
me of the Champs Elysees, and stopped at Oriental Bazaar to browse the wares
and look at kimonos, happi coats, and haori. Coming back down the other side of
the street we looked for the HIS info center that I thought I had spotted
earlier (the place that was noted as selling the Japan Traveler SIM cards). We
never found it and headed back to the station and on to Shibuya. We stopped for
a break at the Hachiko Gate
named for the statue of a storied dog who waited
for his master for years after the master died in the bombing during WW II.
Then we joined the huge crowd of people who were crossing the “Shibuya
Scramble” intersection. We walked with the crowd for a ways then cut back to
another street and had returned part way to the station when I spotted a BIC
Camera store. They had the SIM card and installed it in our phones, and they
finally began to work after much tinkering – data only. We got back to the
station at Shibuya and took the JR train back to Ikebukuro. It was pretty busy
there, too, but Barbara led us to a department store where C.J. bought some
rice paper for her scrapbook and B got another calligraphy brush. It was dark
by now and the lights and big screens on the building were very much what you
would expect from a big, modern city such as Tokyo. We got back on the Seibu
Ikebukuro line and rode through Nerima to Kiyose where we got off before the
next stop where we had started. Barbara didn’t want to walk home and it would
have been too hard to find a taxi at the next stop, Akitsu. We bought a pint of
Lady Borden ice cream at a convenience store (540) to eat with some cake
Barbara had in the refrigerator – we weren’t hungry enough for another meal. It
had been a very busy day with lots of new sights and experiences.
30 Oct, Sun – Up at 0630 for a
departure at 0830. We walked to the Akitsu train station (same as the day
before) and caught a train to Ikebukuro and then changed to another line down
through Yokohama to Hamakura. There we walked up a narrow, crowded street
filled with souvenirs shops and restaurants to the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu
Shrine. We saw a very formal wedding ritual and visited the outside of the
principal worship hall and other shrine buildings. We stopped at one of the
lakes filled with lotus plants and carp/koi, and had lunch at a lakeside bench.
From there we headed south down the main street to the train and bus station
where we caught a bus (200 ea) to the
Kotokuin Temple home of the gigantic
Great Buddha (Dai Butsu) (200 ea). It was very impressive especially
considering how old it was and how many years it had been standing (sitting)
out in the weather. From there we walked down toward the bay and visited the
Hasedera Temple (300 ea) which contained two shrines, one with an Amida Buddha
and one which was the Goddess of Compassion, Kannon, a pre-Buddha. There was a
good view of the bay from an overlook "Watch out for the kites!") and Barbara treated us to matcha tea and
a sweet potato-based pastry in the restaurant. Instead of walking the rest of
the way down to the bay, we caught a trolley-like train to the Enoshima station
and then walked across the pedestrian bridge to Enoshima Island. A long climb
up a very narrow street full of people, souvenir shops and small restaurants.
We were getting tired so we did not do the hike all around the hilly island,
but we did walk up a trail on the south side as far as the Ryuren no Kane (The
Bell of the Dragon’s Love). Since there was a selfie shelf, C.J. and I took a
picture of us with the bell and clanged it (which we hope will help us to
another forty years of love). I also took a photo of a bronze statue of
Yamada Kengyo, founder of his school of the koto,
a Japanese harp. Another photo of the three of us under a torii, in front of a
cave with a bronze dragon. We returned to the mainland and caught a train that
took us all the way to Ikebukuro, where we had dinner at a noodle shop (1000);
I had udon (thick, white noodles) with a fish wafer and C.J. had soba noodles
with vegetables. We caught the Seibu-Ikebukuro line train back to Kiyose where
we took a taxi back to Barbara’s (900), getting back around 1930.
Kotokuin Temple home of the gigantic
Great Buddha (Dai Butsu) (200 ea). It was very impressive especially
considering how old it was and how many years it had been standing (sitting)
out in the weather. From there we walked down toward the bay and visited the
Hasedera Temple (300 ea) which contained two shrines, one with an Amida Buddha
and one which was the Goddess of Compassion, Kannon, a pre-Buddha. There was a
good view of the bay from an overlook "Watch out for the kites!") and Barbara treated us to matcha tea and
a sweet potato-based pastry in the restaurant. Instead of walking the rest of
the way down to the bay, we caught a trolley-like train to the Enoshima station
and then walked across the pedestrian bridge to Enoshima Island. A long climb
up a very narrow street full of people, souvenir shops and small restaurants.
We were getting tired so we did not do the hike all around the hilly island,
but we did walk up a trail on the south side as far as the Ryuren no Kane (The
Bell of the Dragon’s Love). Since there was a selfie shelf, C.J. and I took a
picture of us with the bell and clanged it (which we hope will help us to
another forty years of love). I also took a photo of a bronze statue of
Yamada Kengyo, founder of his school of the koto,
a Japanese harp. Another photo of the three of us under a torii, in front of a
cave with a bronze dragon. We returned to the mainland and caught a train that
took us all the way to Ikebukuro, where we had dinner at a noodle shop (1000);
I had udon (thick, white noodles) with a fish wafer and C.J. had soba noodles
with vegetables. We caught the Seibu-Ikebukuro line train back to Kiyose where
we took a taxi back to Barbara’s (900), getting back around 1930.
31 Oct, Mon - Morning?
Afternoon, walked downstream along the river past vegetable gardens and parks. Stopped at a
French bakery for croissants for breakfast and cheese bread for travelling on
the Shinkansen bullet train on our way to the Kii Peninsula on Tuesday.
Barbara and I went to 7-11 for food for dinner. We got a selection of prepared
items in fish broth. The seasonal oden
(hodgepodge) included sliced daikon,
fish cakes, devilroot spaghetti and something that looked like a white cloud,
plus more. I also got a fried pork patty (1523). At 1800 we went out by car to
watch Barbara teach her aikido class. Back at the house we packed a rolling
suitcase for our trip to Wakayama Prefecture on the Kii peninsula. Barbara had
already gotten the tickets and made reservations at a traditional Japanese inn
in the Kawayu Onsen resort area.
1 Nov, Tue - Up at 0700 to light rain. After breakfast we left around 0820 to walk to the Akitsu station. We caught the 0910 semi-express to Ikebukuro then changed to the JR Yamanote line to Tokyo station. There we boarded the Shinkansen to Nagoya (it goes on to Hakata on Kyushu Island). The weather cleared up and we even had some sunshine, but we could not see Fuji. We ate the lunch we had brought in the waiting room at Nagoya station and then boarded the express train for Shingu at 1241; we had non-reserved seats again since today was a weekday and we were travelling outside of rush hours. The first hour was through factory cities with lots of residential areas. Then we got down to the coast. We were not travelling as fast as on the bullet train and it wasn't quite as smooth but it was an express so we did not stop often. When we reached Shingu, Barbara got some information at a visitor info center in the train station. Then we were picked up by the car rental agent and taken to the office to co
mplete the
paperwork. It was almost an hour drive along the Kumano river to the Hongu area
and the Omuraya minshuku near the Kawayu Onsen. Once we checked in Barbara led
us across the river to the stone-rimmed onsen, a hot pool located along the
bank of the river. It was too hot at first and we had to put in a bunch of cold
water. We didn't spend a long time soaking because dinner was at 1830. It was a
many-course meal with three kinds of sashimi, broth with veggies and mushrooms,
another grill with thin sliced wa-gyu beef, onions, pepper and mushrooms, a
salty dried fish with a stick of ginger, pickled veggies and other stuff. I had
a big bottle of Asahi beer. What, no dessert? We tried looking for places to
stay in Kyoto and found some airbnb possibilities. Then we went to sleep early
on our futons with an extra pad on the tatami mats.
2 Nov, Wed - We didn't get up too early and B had already eaten. Breakfast was pretty weird for us Westerners. There was raw egg to mix in with the rice, three tiny fish to Cook on the grill, miso soup with tofu and veggies small dishes of pickled veggies, a piece of tofu with some veg on it, and other things. After we finished we drove to Kumano Hongu Taisha, a Shinto shrine. After climbing the steep Way of Prayer, we entered the shrine area where the three-legged crow symbol was
prominently displayed. Barbara once again arranged for us to attend a blessing by a Shinto priest. This time it was just the three of us and we were wearing white coats with kangi symbols. There was drumming and prayers and then priest waved the paper tree over us and shook a set of bells above us as well. No dancing girls but we did get a small sip of sake, the sacred rice wine. We also received a cedar prayer plaque. We exited down a stairway lined with prayer flags. Across the street was the new Kumano Hongu Heritage Center where we got info from the tourist association about a section of the pilgrimage trail, the Kumano Kodo (Nakahechi Dainichi-goe Route). We all visited a shrine to "the god who protects women" and the huge torii near the site of the former shrine. C.J. and I continued on for the rest of the 3.2 km trail to Yunomine and the famous Tsuboyu onsen, a tiny hot spring bath in a rustic cabin. The trail was very steep, mostly big steps on the Kumano Hongu side but it gained less than 300 meters. Barbara met us at Yunomine with tickets for the hot pool, 700 ea, and it was really hot; we had to pour a bunch of cold water in to get the temp down. Afterward we had lunch at a little shop nearby (about 1900, I gave B 5000). We drove back to Omuraya minshuku at Kawaya Onsen resort village.
We all took a walk up the road and across the
bridge. Under the bridge we found a rope swing across the clear, cold
river. Then we walked farther up the hill to a village with terraced fields.
Back at the minshuku C.J. took a nap. I wrote in my journal and then joined B
at the onsen. Unfortunately, someone had pulled the plug and drained it, and it
was slow to fill. Dinner at 1830 was another multi-course meal with sashimi, a
sliced of dried fish, beef, pickles, rice, soup with veggies, tofu, fish and
mushrooms. There was also a hot pot of chicken stew for the dining room which
was more full this night. Around 2000 we went over to the onsen and soaked for
a while in the hot water. The air was cooler than the previous night.
3 Nov, Thu -We had breakfast in our room with the rolls, bananas, tangerines and tea/cocoa that B
had bought in Hongu the day before. I got a shower in the
traditional Japanese bath but did not soak in the too-hot water. Since it was a national holiday there was a small procession with a portable shrine along the road right beneath our window. We headed off
on a long drive north through Hongu toward Totsukawa. We turned off on a narrow
mountain road and went 11km to a new-to-Barbara
6 Nov, Sun - We caught up on uploading photos and updating
journals. B left late morning to go
to her university for graduate student presentations and a dinner. C.J. and
I walked up the river and found another grocery store where we bought prepared
food for dinner and cocoa, granola, ice cream bars, and other stuff (2418). On
the way back we ran into a cul-de-sac and had to retrace our steps. The cat
almost got our dinner fish but we shooed him off the counter and outside. The
fish and breaded shrimp were pretty good after heating them up. There was lots
of rice and some pickled veggies. The ice cream bars, however, were a winner.
Barbara got back earlier than expected and we all got packed up for the trip to
Sky Asagiri which is located just to the west of Fuji-san.
7 Nov, Mon - We got started a bit before 0800 and it took somewhat over two hours to get to the office of Sky Asagiri. After we signed in and paid for a day of flying (4000 ea), we drove a half mile to the huge, grassy landing zone (700m) and unpacked our flying gear. It was 1111 when we loaded into one
of the
shuttle vans and drove up the hill. Launch was a large, tarp-covered area at
1000m. Others launched including a couple of the 15 tandems before I was ready
to go. I tried going left hugging the slope but the lift proved to be farther
out. I got up a little over launch but not the minimum of 250m over that was
required before going back to the higher ridge to the rear. So I flew back and
forth in front of the three launches for a while before sinking down a
bit. Just to vary the flight, I flew across the valley to the south/right to
another ridge. Not enough lift to maintain so I returned low to the main slope
below the launches. I was lucky to be able to scratch back up over takeoff.
Then I flew out to the SE to the small town and returned to the thermally LZ.
It was hard to get down but I didn't want to try to work back up so I landed
after several circuits. 41 min. C.J. flew for 1:11 and got a little higher but
not enough to go to the higher ridge. B landed before us and went out to the
7-11 and bought sandwiches, salad and some veg sticks. I thought we might go up
again but B wanted to take us to a waterfall, Jinga no Taki 
and a lake with a
great view of Fuji, not that the views from TO and while flying weren't also
amazing. On the way back to Sky
Asagiri we stopped at 7-11 to buy breakfast stuff (1400). When we got
back to the office we hung out a while and figured out which train we should
take from Shinfuji to Kyoto on Wed. Then we stopped by the dormitory to drop
off our luggage, and picked up Keiko to
take her to a sake store in Fujinomiya.
B had promised to buy her a special bottle of sake for winning the PWC. Back at
the dorm we joined seven SA pilots for a big communal dinner cooked by
Sawada-san, and Keiko shared some of her sake. We had sashimi and then a big
steamed dish of fish, mushrooms and veggies, then nabe, a soup, and finally a
bowl of rice cooked in broth with garlic and raw eggs cooked in. Someone
provided a box of ice cream pops, a great end to an interesting meal. We were
somewhat out of it as the on!y two people who did not speak Japanese, but it
was not uncomfortable.
8 Nov, Tue (Election Day in the US) - Up at 0700 to sunshine and overcast after a surprisingly
comfortable night. It wasn't as cold as we had expected and C.J.
had piled up enough futons to be relatively comfortable. We had breakfast and
then went to the Asagiri office and across the road to a Circle K for lunch
cheese and salad. At the office the staff let us use Barbara's guest passes
which cut the day pass fee almost in half (2000ea- we still owe B). We went to
the LZ and got a ride up for an early flight which turned out to be my best one
as later in the day it was more cloudy (34 min). C.J. stayed up for 1hr14m and
B and I went back up with a vanload and had sledders (7m). After lunch B took a
walk and I went up again for my third flight. It was better and I managed to
outlast the other pilots but flew for only 13 min. During the day B mentioned
that she was tired of borrowing a harness every time she wanted to fly. I
offered to sell her mine since I was getting a new one at Christmastime. She
thought that was a good idea so I'll be going home with a lighter wing bag.
Then we went back to the office stopping along the way at 7-11 for B and me to
get money from the ATM - 50,000¥ this time. At the office we could not get the
WiFi to work. I paid for the dormitory lodging (8000) and did some journaling.
Then on to another onsen. It was about 25 miles away but the trip was worth
it. Entry to the onsen (Yurari in Yamanashi Prefecture near Kawaguchi lake) cost 1100Y ea but once you 
got your locker key on a
wristband the whole experience was included; you went into a shower room where you sat on a wooden stool and
washed and shampooed until clean. Then there were several soaking pools. The
first one was indoors but for the others you went down a flight of stairs to a
bubbling outdoor pool with a view of Fuji (photo, left). Next to that was a gazebo, the
"flavor pool", where there was today the scent of cypress. Indoors
was the " carbonate pool" with quiet music. I skipped the sauna
and the cavern as well as a pool of cold water. C.J. and Barbara had their own
set of similar pools. B got a massage and then met us in the gathering room
furnished with pads for sitting on the tatami mat floor. By now it was after
1715 and we were hungry so we went to the basement to the Fuji Sakura
Restaurant where we got a great meal. C.J. had a rice bowl with salmon sashimi,
miso and pickled veggies and I had the tonkatsu breaded pork cutlet again with
grated radish daikon, rice, miso and pickled veggies. Then we had "soft cream"
ice cream cones for dessert. We paid for Barb's dinner (4865 total). When we
came out of the onsen it was raining lightly and we drove in rain all the way
back to the dormitory. We spent some time sorting through what was going with
us to Kyoto and what could be sent back with Barbara.
9 Nov, Wed – Slept in a bit since there would not be any early flying and besides we expected it to be windy and there probably would not be any flying at all. That’s what we found when we got up and
ate
breakfast. B said that it was kind of useless to drive up to Asagiri just to
take the bus back down to Shin Fuji, and she was willing to drive us down
herself and then return home via the expressway south of Fuji, a way she had
not used before. We thought that that made sense so we packed up, loaded the
car and then took a walk around the local area looking for a better view of the
now snow-dusted Mt. Fuji. We got a good view from the river bank and bridge, a
great view from the Nishi-Fuji Public Library deck, and an excellent view from
a playfield even higher above the town. By the time we got back to the
dormitory, we were ready to start off on the next adventure so Barbara dropped
us off at the Shinfuji JR station. We figured out how to get tickets for the
Tokkaido Shinkansen (from the ticket window rather than the machine) (21,600¥ including reserved seats which we had not expressly refused).
We grabbed a couple of ice cream
bars (280) from a kiosk on the train platform
and then bought a bento box to eat on the train (1080). We had a pretty good
view of Fuji as we pulled out of Shinfuji around 1212 but not as good as we had
earlier. We could see snow-covered mountains far to the north as we zoomed
through the coastal plain on the Kodama (which means we stopped at more stations
than on the faster Shinkansens. Still, we arrived in Kyoto at 1444, right in
the center of town – faster than an airplane flight plus transport from and to
the airport. We had some difficulty figuring out which platform to go to for
the JR Nara line which we had to take just one stop to Tofukuji Station. We got
it sorted out by asking and pointing and finally just getting on a
train. It
was a short ride and when we got off Taikei was waiting at the station exit. He
guided us to his little house which we were to have all to ourselves as he
lives somewhere else. He showed us
around and then sat down with us and helped
plan our stay in Kyoto. [Later we combined his recommendations with Barbara’s].
Since we needed some groceries, he took us back past the Tofukuji Station to
Higashshi-oji-dori street which had restaurants, supermarkets and bakeries, and
was a good place to catch a bus as several lines ran along it. When we got to the
Fresco supermarket we said goodbye to Kaitei hoping that we would be able to find
our way back to his/our house. We got milk, yogurt, granola, bananas, cheese,
tangerines (1831) and stopped at an almost closed bakery for a couple
croissants. Just outside Fresco we bought a half dozen pieces of fried chicken
from a small food truck for dinner (600). We did find our way back to the house
and, after eating the chicken, we used our computers to find out the incredibly
awful results of the US election. It was freezing in the living room (and just
as cold up the steep stairs in our bedroom) and we finally brought down the
electric heater. We got our email answered or deleted/junked but didn’t get
around to writing in our journals. By 2200 we were ready for bed so we brought
the heater upstairs and left it on for the first part of the night. I had found
what looked like a gym mat and put that under C.J.'s futon so she was sort of
comfortable hip-wise.
Afternoon, walked downstream along the river past vegetable gardens and parks. Stopped at a
French bakery for croissants for breakfast and cheese bread for travelling on
the Shinkansen bullet train on our way to the Kii Peninsula on Tuesday.
Barbara and I went to 7-11 for food for dinner. We got a selection of prepared
items in fish broth. The seasonal oden
(hodgepodge) included sliced daikon,
fish cakes, devilroot spaghetti and something that looked like a white cloud,
plus more. I also got a fried pork patty (1523). At 1800 we went out by car to
watch Barbara teach her aikido class. Back at the house we packed a rolling
suitcase for our trip to Wakayama Prefecture on the Kii peninsula. Barbara had
already gotten the tickets and made reservations at a traditional Japanese inn
in the Kawayu Onsen resort area.
1 Nov, Tue - Up at 0700 to light rain. After breakfast we left around 0820 to walk to the Akitsu station. We caught the 0910 semi-express to Ikebukuro then changed to the JR Yamanote line to Tokyo station. There we boarded the Shinkansen to Nagoya (it goes on to Hakata on Kyushu Island). The weather cleared up and we even had some sunshine, but we could not see Fuji. We ate the lunch we had brought in the waiting room at Nagoya station and then boarded the express train for Shingu at 1241; we had non-reserved seats again since today was a weekday and we were travelling outside of rush hours. The first hour was through factory cities with lots of residential areas. Then we got down to the coast. We were not travelling as fast as on the bullet train and it wasn't quite as smooth but it was an express so we did not stop often. When we reached Shingu, Barbara got some information at a visitor info center in the train station. Then we were picked up by the car rental agent and taken to the office to co
mplete the
paperwork. It was almost an hour drive along the Kumano river to the Hongu area
and the Omuraya minshuku near the Kawayu Onsen. Once we checked in Barbara led
us across the river to the stone-rimmed onsen, a hot pool located along the
bank of the river. It was too hot at first and we had to put in a bunch of cold
water. We didn't spend a long time soaking because dinner was at 1830. It was a
many-course meal with three kinds of sashimi, broth with veggies and mushrooms,
another grill with thin sliced wa-gyu beef, onions, pepper and mushrooms, a
salty dried fish with a stick of ginger, pickled veggies and other stuff. I had
a big bottle of Asahi beer. What, no dessert? We tried looking for places to
stay in Kyoto and found some airbnb possibilities. Then we went to sleep early
on our futons with an extra pad on the tatami mats.2 Nov, Wed - We didn't get up too early and B had already eaten. Breakfast was pretty weird for us Westerners. There was raw egg to mix in with the rice, three tiny fish to Cook on the grill, miso soup with tofu and veggies small dishes of pickled veggies, a piece of tofu with some veg on it, and other things. After we finished we drove to Kumano Hongu Taisha, a Shinto shrine. After climbing the steep Way of Prayer, we entered the shrine area where the three-legged crow symbol was
prominently displayed. Barbara once again arranged for us to attend a blessing by a Shinto priest. This time it was just the three of us and we were wearing white coats with kangi symbols. There was drumming and prayers and then priest waved the paper tree over us and shook a set of bells above us as well. No dancing girls but we did get a small sip of sake, the sacred rice wine. We also received a cedar prayer plaque. We exited down a stairway lined with prayer flags. Across the street was the new Kumano Hongu Heritage Center where we got info from the tourist association about a section of the pilgrimage trail, the Kumano Kodo (Nakahechi Dainichi-goe Route). We all visited a shrine to "the god who protects women" and the huge torii near the site of the former shrine. C.J. and I continued on for the rest of the 3.2 km trail to Yunomine and the famous Tsuboyu onsen, a tiny hot spring bath in a rustic cabin. The trail was very steep, mostly big steps on the Kumano Hongu side but it gained less than 300 meters. Barbara met us at Yunomine with tickets for the hot pool, 700 ea, and it was really hot; we had to pour a bunch of cold water in to get the temp down. Afterward we had lunch at a little shop nearby (about 1900, I gave B 5000). We drove back to Omuraya minshuku at Kawaya Onsen resort village.
We all took a walk up the road and across the
bridge. Under the bridge we found a rope swing across the clear, cold
river. Then we walked farther up the hill to a village with terraced fields.
Back at the minshuku C.J. took a nap. I wrote in my journal and then joined B
at the onsen. Unfortunately, someone had pulled the plug and drained it, and it
was slow to fill. Dinner at 1830 was another multi-course meal with sashimi, a
sliced of dried fish, beef, pickles, rice, soup with veggies, tofu, fish and
mushrooms. There was also a hot pot of chicken stew for the dining room which
was more full this night. Around 2000 we went over to the onsen and soaked for
a while in the hot water. The air was cooler than the previous night.3 Nov, Thu -We had breakfast in our room with the rolls, bananas, tangerines and tea/cocoa that B
had bought in Hongu the day before. I got a shower in the
traditional Japanese bath but did not soak in the too-hot water. Since it was a national holiday there was a small procession with a portable shrine along the road right beneath our window. We headed off
on a long drive north through Hongu toward Totsukawa. We turned off on a narrow
mountain road and went 11km to a new-to-Barbara
parking lot for Tamaki shrine deep in an
old cedar forest. We walked in and visited the various buildings but skipped
the additional 20 min. walk to a boulder 
supposed to be the center of the
universe. Taking a different route we drove down the mountain and reached route
169 and then stopped at Doro Kyo where the boat tours stop on the way through
the famous, beautiful gorge. No food was available so we ate some of the
tangerines we had bought at the shrine (500) and some trail mix and crackers
and figured we'd eat lunch later. We drove a long way south past the turnoff
for Hongu and our Kawayu
resort area to a county park with a very nice swimming
hole [Too cold even for B in Nov]. A little way farther we came to the trailhead
for Kuwanoki Falls and hiked up a rough trail the 20 min to a very beautiful
waterfall. Then we retraced our route back to the north to Hongu where we found
a grocery store that had all the items we wanted for breakfast and snacks
(2000). It was only a short drive from there back to our minshuku/guesthouse.
C.J. and I had another chocolate ice cream cone since we had missed lunch (600).
Then we hung out in our room until dinner while B headed over to the onsen
again. We got C.J.'s iPad Wi-Fi working and used it to look for airbnbs in
Kyoto. We chose one near the train station and sent a reservation request.
Dinner was multi course again with the entrée being shellfish. We came back to
the room for a cookie before making one last trip across the bridge to soak in
the onsen. When we returned we found that our request for an airbnb room had
been approved so that is one less thing to worry about.
4 Nov, Fri - We got up at 0700 and had breakfast with B, using the food we had bought the previous
day. Then we packed up and drove south to Shingu and west
to Kii-Katsuura where we were going to spend the night. We drove about seven km
up into the hills to Nachi, an area containing the tallest waterfall in Japan,
Nachi-san Seiganto-ji Buddhist Temple and Kumano Nachi Taisha Grand Shrine plus the
Three-storied Pagoda. Parking
was at a premium and we finally chose a lot with a friendly attendant
who told us that there was no charge, "But please buy a soft cream when
you return." She also gave us walking sticks to use while we were
walking to the falls and the shrines. We went first down to the base of
Nachi Falls. B bought
our 300 Y tickets to the falls viewing platform,
then we climbed to the three-tiered pagoda (300 ea) where there was a good view of the falls
and all the way back to the ocean. We also went to the temple and shrine.
Descending the stairway under a large torii, we stopped at a noodle shop to get some lunch. We ate a bowl of soba
(1800) outside in a garden with a view of the pagoda and falls. Down at our
parking lot, C.J. bought a carved stone owl at the shop (1300). I looked at a
wooden sword like those used in Aikido for practice but decided to wait to buy one until
Kyoto. We drove back to Kii-Katsuura and consulted a TI about where our hotel
was and stopped there to drop off our bags. B got gas for the rental, then we
dropped the car off at the Toyota dealership. We walked through town to the
waterfront and caught a courtesy boat shuttle to Nakanoshima Hotel on an island
on the bay. [The other hotel (Urashima) that B was more familiar with was closed for renovation.] We were assigned an escort to show us where the trail was to the viewpoints
on the summit. The first one had a bubbling hot water footsoaking pool and a
view of many of the smaller islands and the returning fishing boats. The higher
one was in a clearing and had similar views plus low-thermaling raptors. 
We
hung out for a while as the sun went down behind the mountains then headed back
to the hotel where B stayed to enjoy the onsen in the hotel, and we (after
getting Haggen-Daz from a vending machine) took the boat back to town and
checked into Hotel Hana (6000). The manager spoke enough English to explain how
things worked and we got another tatami room with futons and a tiny table, all
much smaller than at our recent minshuku. Wi-Fi worked well and I looked up
where in Kyoto Tofukuji Station was located - where our airbnb host said he
would meet us on the 9th. When B got back she checked with the hotel mgr about
a place to eat but there did not seem to be much choice. However, when we went
out we found a nice little restaurant where we sat at a counter. Lucky we got
there when we did because it filled quickly. B and C.J. had unagi (eel) and I had a good meal of tonkatsu (breaded pork cutlet) (2700). B went
back to the onsen after dinner and we found our way to an ATM in the post
office and took out 50,000Y. Back at the hotel we caught up on our journals.
bread for
later. Hana Hotel had a hot and cold water machine plus coffee, tea and cocoa
powder. Around 0900 we checked out and left out bags in a coin locker (100Y and
when you returned the key you got your money back). B had called the wife of
her sensei, Yoko Satio, and she met us at the station then walked to the harbor
with us. We bought tickets for a boat tour at 0940 (3200) and boarded at 0930.
We got seats on the upper deck where we could move around from side to side.
Great views of the craggy islands and peninsula. We went right through a very
narrow channel and had good views of two sea cave tunnels. We stopped briefly
at the whale museum and cruised by an onsen marked by a rock formation shaped
vaguely like a camel. When we returned, B went off with 
Yoko while C.J. and I
walked along the harbor to the end. Then we walked to the old cannery which had
some big murals. Along the way we stopped at a footbath onsen in a park. We
headed toward the station along the covered shopping street and bought another
box of cookies (210). Eventually we walked under the tracks and retrieved our
suitcase and met up with B shortly before noon. We already had our tickets this
time with reserved seats (we owe 1760, 9800, 4830 ea). Our express to Nagoya
left at 1224. B had brought back some sushi to share for lunch. I slept for the
first couple of hours. We did a quick train change to the Shinkansen in Nagoya
and bought a bento box of teriyaki pork to eat along the way and a bottle of
sparkling cider (1000?). It was dark most of the way to Tokyo so we did not see
Fuji once again. We got into Tokyo main station and changed for Ikebukuro still on
the JR Yamanote line. We bought croissants and a little loaf of bread at the
same French bakery (853). From there we caught the Seibu line semi-express to
Akitsu (300x3 = 900). Then we walked back to B's house after stopping at 7/11
for milk, yogurt and eggs (and an ice cream sandwich 130).
supposed to be the center of the
universe. Taking a different route we drove down the mountain and reached route
169 and then stopped at Doro Kyo where the boat tours stop on the way through
the famous, beautiful gorge. No food was available so we ate some of the
tangerines we had bought at the shrine (500) and some trail mix and crackers
and figured we'd eat lunch later. We drove a long way south past the turnoff
for Hongu and our Kawayu
resort area to a county park with a very nice swimming
hole [Too cold even for B in Nov]. A little way farther we came to the trailhead
for Kuwanoki Falls and hiked up a rough trail the 20 min to a very beautiful
waterfall. Then we retraced our route back to the north to Hongu where we found
a grocery store that had all the items we wanted for breakfast and snacks
(2000). It was only a short drive from there back to our minshuku/guesthouse.
C.J. and I had another chocolate ice cream cone since we had missed lunch (600).
Then we hung out in our room until dinner while B headed over to the onsen
again. We got C.J.'s iPad Wi-Fi working and used it to look for airbnbs in
Kyoto. We chose one near the train station and sent a reservation request.
Dinner was multi course again with the entrée being shellfish. We came back to
the room for a cookie before making one last trip across the bridge to soak in
the onsen. When we returned we found that our request for an airbnb room had
been approved so that is one less thing to worry about.4 Nov, Fri - We got up at 0700 and had breakfast with B, using the food we had bought the previous
day. Then we packed up and drove south to Shingu and west
to Kii-Katsuura where we were going to spend the night. We drove about seven km
up into the hills to Nachi, an area containing the tallest waterfall in Japan,
Nachi-san Seiganto-ji Buddhist Temple and Kumano Nachi Taisha Grand Shrine plus the
Three-storied Pagoda. Parking
was at a premium and we finally chose a lot with a friendly attendant
who told us that there was no charge, "But please buy a soft cream when
you return." She also gave us walking sticks to use while we were
walking to the falls and the shrines. We went first down to the base of
Nachi Falls. B bought
our 300 Y tickets to the falls viewing platform,
then we climbed to the three-tiered pagoda (300 ea) where there was a good view of the falls
and all the way back to the ocean. We also went to the temple and shrine.
Descending the stairway under a large torii, we stopped at a noodle shop to get some lunch. We ate a bowl of soba
(1800) outside in a garden with a view of the pagoda and falls. Down at our
parking lot, C.J. bought a carved stone owl at the shop (1300). I looked at a
wooden sword like those used in Aikido for practice but decided to wait to buy one until
Kyoto. We drove back to Kii-Katsuura and consulted a TI about where our hotel
was and stopped there to drop off our bags. B got gas for the rental, then we
dropped the car off at the Toyota dealership. We walked through town to the
waterfront and caught a courtesy boat shuttle to Nakanoshima Hotel on an island
on the bay. [The other hotel (Urashima) that B was more familiar with was closed for renovation.] We were assigned an escort to show us where the trail was to the viewpoints
on the summit. The first one had a bubbling hot water footsoaking pool and a
view of many of the smaller islands and the returning fishing boats. The higher
one was in a clearing and had similar views plus low-thermaling raptors. 
We
hung out for a while as the sun went down behind the mountains then headed back
to the hotel where B stayed to enjoy the onsen in the hotel, and we (after
getting Haggen-Daz from a vending machine) took the boat back to town and
checked into Hotel Hana (6000). The manager spoke enough English to explain how
things worked and we got another tatami room with futons and a tiny table, all
much smaller than at our recent minshuku. Wi-Fi worked well and I looked up |
| Hana Hotel sign |
5 Nov, Sat - I took a shower in the traditional bath; apparently, most folks
take their showers in the evening since during that time you could make a
reservation but not in the morning. We had breakfast from the rest of our
purchased granola, yogurt, milk, but we saved the cheese and raisin
bread for
later. Hana Hotel had a hot and cold water machine plus coffee, tea and cocoa
powder. Around 0900 we checked out and left out bags in a coin locker (100Y and
when you returned the key you got your money back). B had called the wife of
her sensei, Yoko Satio, and she met us at the station then walked to the harbor
with us. We bought tickets for a boat tour at 0940 (3200) and boarded at 0930.
We got seats on the upper deck where we could move around from side to side.
Great views of the craggy islands and peninsula. We went right through a very
narrow channel and had good views of two sea cave tunnels. We stopped briefly
at the whale museum and cruised by an onsen marked by a rock formation shaped
vaguely like a camel. When we returned, B went off with 
Yoko while C.J. and I
walked along the harbor to the end. Then we walked to the old cannery which had
some big murals. Along the way we stopped at a footbath onsen in a park. We
headed toward the station along the covered shopping street and bought another
box of cookies (210). Eventually we walked under the tracks and retrieved our
suitcase and met up with B shortly before noon. We already had our tickets this
time with reserved seats (we owe 1760, 9800, 4830 ea). Our express to Nagoya
left at 1224. B had brought back some sushi to share for lunch. I slept for the
first couple of hours. We did a quick train change to the Shinkansen in Nagoya
and bought a bento box of teriyaki pork to eat along the way and a bottle of
sparkling cider (1000?). It was dark most of the way to Tokyo so we did not see
Fuji once again. We got into Tokyo main station and changed for Ikebukuro still on
the JR Yamanote line. We bought croissants and a little loaf of bread at the
same French bakery (853). From there we caught the Seibu line semi-express to
Akitsu (300x3 = 900). Then we walked back to B's house after stopping at 7/11
for milk, yogurt and eggs (and an ice cream sandwich 130). |
| Nemo-chan |
7 Nov, Mon - We got started a bit before 0800 and it took somewhat over two hours to get to the office of Sky Asagiri. After we signed in and paid for a day of flying (4000 ea), we drove a half mile to the huge, grassy landing zone (700m) and unpacked our flying gear. It was 1111 when we loaded into one
of the
shuttle vans and drove up the hill. Launch was a large, tarp-covered area at
1000m. Others launched including a couple of the 15 tandems before I was ready
to go. I tried going left hugging the slope but the lift proved to be farther
out. I got up a little over launch but not the minimum of 250m over that was
required before going back to the higher ridge to the rear. So I flew back and
forth in front of the three launches for a while before sinking down a
bit. Just to vary the flight, I flew across the valley to the south/right to
another ridge. Not enough lift to maintain so I returned low to the main slope
below the launches. I was lucky to be able to scratch back up over takeoff.
Then I flew out to the SE to the small town and returned to the thermally LZ.
It was hard to get down but I didn't want to try to work back up so I landed
after several circuits. 41 min. C.J. flew for 1:11 and got a little higher but
not enough to go to the higher ridge. B landed before us and went out to the
7-11 and bought sandwiches, salad and some veg sticks. I thought we might go up
again but B wanted to take us to a waterfall, Jinga no Taki 
and a lake with a
great view of Fuji, not that the views from TO and while flying weren't also
amazing. On the way back to Sky
Asagiri we stopped at 7-11 to buy breakfast stuff (1400). When we got
back to the office we hung out a while and figured out which train we should
take from Shinfuji to Kyoto on Wed. Then we stopped by the dormitory to drop
off our luggage, and picked up Keiko to
take her to a sake store in Fujinomiya.
B had promised to buy her a special bottle of sake for winning the PWC. Back at
the dorm we joined seven SA pilots for a big communal dinner cooked by
Sawada-san, and Keiko shared some of her sake. We had sashimi and then a big
steamed dish of fish, mushrooms and veggies, then nabe, a soup, and finally a
bowl of rice cooked in broth with garlic and raw eggs cooked in. Someone
provided a box of ice cream pops, a great end to an interesting meal. We were
somewhat out of it as the on!y two people who did not speak Japanese, but it
was not uncomfortable.8 Nov, Tue (Election Day in the US) - Up at 0700 to sunshine and overcast after a surprisingly
got your locker key on a
wristband the whole experience was included; you went into a shower room where you sat on a wooden stool and
washed and shampooed until clean. Then there were several soaking pools. The
first one was indoors but for the others you went down a flight of stairs to a
bubbling outdoor pool with a view of Fuji (photo, left). Next to that was a gazebo, the
"flavor pool", where there was today the scent of cypress. Indoors
was the " carbonate pool" with quiet music. I skipped the sauna
and the cavern as well as a pool of cold water. C.J. and Barbara had their own
set of similar pools. B got a massage and then met us in the gathering room
furnished with pads for sitting on the tatami mat floor. By now it was after
1715 and we were hungry so we went to the basement to the Fuji Sakura
Restaurant where we got a great meal. C.J. had a rice bowl with salmon sashimi,
miso and pickled veggies and I had the tonkatsu breaded pork cutlet again with
grated radish daikon, rice, miso and pickled veggies. Then we had "soft cream"
ice cream cones for dessert. We paid for Barb's dinner (4865 total). When we
came out of the onsen it was raining lightly and we drove in rain all the way
back to the dormitory. We spent some time sorting through what was going with
us to Kyoto and what could be sent back with Barbara.9 Nov, Wed – Slept in a bit since there would not be any early flying and besides we expected it to be windy and there probably would not be any flying at all. That’s what we found when we got up and
ate
breakfast. B said that it was kind of useless to drive up to Asagiri just to
take the bus back down to Shin Fuji, and she was willing to drive us down
herself and then return home via the expressway south of Fuji, a way she had
not used before. We thought that that made sense so we packed up, loaded the
car and then took a walk around the local area looking for a better view of the
now snow-dusted Mt. Fuji. We got a good view from the river bank and bridge, a
great view from the Nishi-Fuji Public Library deck, and an excellent view from
a playfield even higher above the town. By the time we got back to the
dormitory, we were ready to start off on the next adventure so Barbara dropped
us off at the Shinfuji JR station. We figured out how to get tickets for the
Tokkaido Shinkansen (from the ticket window rather than the machine) (21,600¥ including reserved seats which we had not expressly refused).
We grabbed a couple of ice cream
bars (280) from a kiosk on the train platform
and then bought a bento box to eat on the train (1080). We had a pretty good
view of Fuji as we pulled out of Shinfuji around 1212 but not as good as we had
earlier. We could see snow-covered mountains far to the north as we zoomed
through the coastal plain on the Kodama (which means we stopped at more stations
than on the faster Shinkansens. Still, we arrived in Kyoto at 1444, right in
the center of town – faster than an airplane flight plus transport from and to
the airport. We had some difficulty figuring out which platform to go to for
the JR Nara line which we had to take just one stop to Tofukuji Station. We got
it sorted out by asking and pointing and finally just getting on a  |
| Our Airbnb house |
 |
| Crossing the tracks at Tofukuji Station |
10 Nov, Thu – We got up around 0700 and turned on the heater.
It was gray, cold and gloomy but not
raining so we dressed warm, made our usual
Japan breakfast of granola, fruit and yogurt, and studied the possibilities for
the day. We finally decided around 1000 to walk to the Kyoto JR Station and get
some info at the TI, especially about the buses. It was an easy and interesting
walk. The station was a huge building with a soaring atrium. We went to a
couple of information places and bought two all-day bus passes (1000). Then we
had to figure out how to find our bus because there were multiple platforms. It
wasn’t too hard, really, because the lines and destinations were labeled in
English as well as Japanese. We caught Bus 101 which took us to Nijo-jo Castle
in about 20 minutes; the LED readerboard on the bus let us know which stop was
coming up and there were announcements in both English and Japanese as well. As
we got off the bus we could see by the huge stone walls that this really was a
feudal Samurai castle (completed 1603-1626). We bought our tickets (1200) and
went in through the incredible Kara-mon Gate to the Ninomaru Palace. We left
our shoes at the entrance and followed the tour route to see some of the 33
rooms and 800 tatami mats of the Shogun’s grand rooms, reception halls and
living quarters. A few had lifelike figures representing the Shogun and his
wives (?). The paintings on the walls were not just decorative but designed to
awe the Imperial ministers and other dignitaries. It was in this palace that
sovereignty was returned to the Emperor after 264(?) years of military rule by
the Tokugawa Shoguns. From there we walked through the Ninomaru Garden and then
crossed the inner moat and another gate to enter the more castle-like Honmaru
Palace (not open to visitors at this time). There was a bastion from which
there were views down into another garden area across the moat. We exited, after
we had both been interviewed by different groups of middle school students,
across another moat bridge and walked around the walls CCW. Then we ran the
gamut of the souvenir sellers and exited from the Castle. It didn’t seem too
far so we decided to walk to the Kyoto Imperial Palace Gardens. Going N we
crossed Marutamachi St and found an ice cream shop. It was around 1300 so we
got a couple of good “homemade” ice cream cones/cups (810). Then we followed
Marutamachi east until we reached the southern entrance to the huge (700x1300m)
park that contains the Imperial Palace. We walked over to look at what was
supposed to be a “gorgeous” carp pond, according to Lonely Planet, but there
were no carp. Still the pond and arched bridge were photo-worthy. We worked our
way north sometimes on wide gravel paths, other times through the pines and
maples planted many years ago. When we came to the palace, I was surprised to
see people entering a gate on the west side. The palace was open Tue-Sat, but
it closed at 1600. We just made it in five minutes before the last admission
time (no charge) at 1520. There was a tour route signed with English
descriptions of the buildings and gardens. The gardens were particularly fine.
We left shortly before the gates were closed and continued across the width of
the park to the far side. We were sort of looking for a place to eat that
Kaitei had told us about, the ton-katsu restaurant. We went east a couple of
streets to Kawaramachi-dori Street, a main N-S arterial and asked a parking attendant
for the “tonkatsu restaurant”; he right away pointed down the street to the
south and, sure enough, when we got there the sign had a chop mark with “katsu-katsu
ton-ton” on it. We had a great dinner
with pork cutlet (with a special sauce), shredded cabbage salad, miso soup,
pickles, and rice, plus tea and water (2390). Since it was only 1630 or so, the
small restaurant was not crowded. By the time we were finished it was dark out
and we had to figure out how/where to get a bus or buses that would get us back
to Tofukuji. We decided to walk south on Kawaramachi and catch a 202 on
Marutamachi. But we couldn’t find a bus stop so we walked a bit farther than we
had planned. Finally, after we had crossed a bridge over the Kamo-gawa River
(which also flows near our Airbnb), we found a bus stop and waited just a few
minutes before hopping aboard for the 30 min ride to just a short walk from
Tofukuji Station and our house. It wasn’t as cold in the house but the heater
took the chill off while we caught up with our journals and emails.
 |
| At the Katsu Katsu Ton Ton Restaurant |
11 Nov, Fri – We woke up early enough but didn’t crawl out of
our futons until almost 0800. Breakfast was soon dealt with and I was still
washing my hair in the kitchen sink when Kaitei dropped in with a student. He
brought us a cake and some dish detergent. We had decided on going north to
Kurama for the onsen there since the weather looked good for hiking around. At
Tofukuji we caught the Keihan line train to its northern terminus at
Demachiyanagi Station (540) where we changed to the Eizan Line for the scenic
trip to Kurama (840). We had to stand for the first several stations then we
got to sit down and watch the subdued autumn colors through the wide windows on
the two-car train. At Kurama, a very small tourist-oriented town, we failed to
find a bakery so we were without bread to go with our Camembert for lunch. We
originally planned to go up through the Nio-mon Gate of the Kurama-dera Temple
(600), climb up the stairs past the Yuki Shrine to the Honden (Main Hall) of
Kurama-dera Temple. But once we got there, we figured we ought to go farther
and at least get to the high point between Kurama and Kibune, a small town in
the next, lower valley. I had seen a poster advertising an onsen in Kibune
(which did not cost 2500 each for the “Day trip course”) and thought maybe we
should try to make the whole trek from one valley to the next. It was only a
couple or three km so when we reached the nondescript high point, we continued
through the Cryptomeria forest (Japanese Cedar, a member of the Cypress family,
and known as Sugi to the Japanese) stopping only briefly at the Osugi Gongen
Shrine and the Mao-den Inner Temple. [We didn’t stop at all at the Reiho-den
(Treasure Museum) since we don’t seem to be doing museums this trip.] The trail
going down on the Kibune side was long and pretty steep and we were glad that
we were going that direction unlike the many parties that were climbing up from
the lower valley. Once we reached the valley floor we followed the flow of
tourists up into the narrow town hoping to find a noodle shop. It was
mid-afternoon and many restaurants were closed and the ones that were open were
priced for well-heeled (and high-heeled) city people on a holiday. We walked
all the way to the last shrine, Okumiya (inner shrine) of Kifune Shrine and
then walked another quarter hour expecting to find the onsen. We ran out of
town before we found the onsen, but one elderly couple we asked pointed
down-valley when we asked, so we retraced our steps. We passed the two other
shrines we had visited on the way up, Yui-no-yashiro and the large Kifune
Shrine. It was after 1530 when we passed the trail terminus and it was already
closed for the day – they didn’t want people on the trail in the dark; there
were signs indicating that a bear had been spotted nearby in June. Just a few
minutes down the valley we came to the onsen and, since it had a restaurant as
well, we stopped to talk with the one young woman at the desk who spoke
English. It was past time to eat so we settled in the almost empty dining room
and I had a delicious dinner of egg-drop soup with udon noodles (a big bowl!)
while C.J. had beef on a rice bowl, pickles and miso (2515). Then we signed up
for the hot baths which were more expensive (3000) but less extensive than the
ones near Mt. Fuji. On the men’s side there were three tubs inside and two
soaking pools outside. The water temp was about 45 deg C which was hot enough
for me. I was actually looking for a cold tub but there was only a warm (maybe
40 deg) tub. I bought a razor (100) to shave my neck because we had brought
only a towel with us. Obviously, in a Japanese onsen, you don’t need to bring
much since clothing is not optional; it’s forbidden. We met in the relaxation
room after an hour and, after a couple of photos, we started walking down the
road, 20-25 min walk to the train station. We could have taken the shuttle bus
for 160 ea but part of the way was lighted so that you could appreciate the
autumn colors of the maple trees even at night. Other parts of the narrow road
were really dark and I resorted to turning on the LED flashlight tool on my phone
occasionally. When we reached the train station (Kibuneguchi) we got tickets
just to Kyoto since there wasn’t much English explanation about doing a
transfer (There had been back in Kurama) to the Keihan Line (840). The train
again slowed down as we went through “the maple tunnel” which, at this time of
the evening, was lighted. Back at Demachiyanagi C.J. got some photos of the
murals and we changed trains to the Keihan Line (540). We were feeling pretty
confident about our ability to get around after a couple of days on our own,
but we still felt confused when we exited from the Keihan Line East Gate.
Fortunately just around the corner (after we grabbed two ice cream bars for
dessert at Family Mart) (302), was the RR crossing we had waited at several
times so we were re-oriented. We were home by 2000 and had plenty of time to
check email, write in our journals and do some online shopping (Groupon had a
deal on refurbished Fitbit Charge HR and C.J. wanted a way to compare her
results with mine).
12 Nov, Sat – Up at 0700 and out after discussing our plans
for the day. We decided to walk over to the Kyoto Station and buy four day
passes for the bus (2000). Then we caught the #5 to just south of the
Heian-jingu shrine. We left the bus right in front of the big, orange tori and
close to a tourist info office in an old trolley car. We had bought a
chocolate-covered roll and two raisin buns at a bakery in the station (681) and
we sat down to eat the chocolate one. Poor us! We hadn’t had any pastries for
breakfast, well, except for the jelly-roll like cake that Kaitei had brought
for us. When we were finished and I got up and started to walk away, I banged
my shin on the edge of one of the row of granite cubes we had been sitting on.
Luckily, C.J. had one last band-aid so I didn’t bleed all over my pant leg. In
the area before the entrance gate to the shrine, part of Okazaki Park, there
was a big Saturday market with people selling crafts and food. We braved the
crowd and walked all through it but didn’t find anything we had to have. When
we entered the shrine grounds, we found many families with kids dressed in
kimonos. There was lots of photography going on. Since we weren’t there to take
part in any prayers, we went on to the garden (1200) and spent most of our time
strolling the paths and taking pictures of the views across ponds. We even did
a few selfies. About halfway through we chose a scenic lunch spot and shared
some Camembert and one of the raisin buns. When we exited, we went around the
west side of the Heian-jingu and checked out the Kyoto Handicrafts Center, full
of expensive stuff including new Samurai armor and swords. I asked about wooden
kendo practice swords and they sent me across the street to a well-stocked
martial arts store, Tozando, where I bought a short practice sword (1750). Then
we walked east along Marutamachi a long ways to get to the Philosophers Walk, a
surprisingly busy paved path along a narrow canal. We stopped in one gallery
and bought a fabric wallhanging of The Wave (2500), and at another alley we
looked through a bunch of stuff for sale at a charity bazar. After getting a
soft cream vanilla-matcha, and a mango smoothie (800), we turned uphill from
the Philosophers Path to visit Honen-in, a quiet Buddhist Temple. On the way
out we walked through an extensive Buddhist cemetery. It was about 6 min
according to the directional sign north to Ginkakugi Temple (1000), a busy
destination for many of the tourists, few of whom were Westerners. The main
attraction was the garden extending up a steep hillside and the autumn colors
of the trees. We hardly noted the “silver pavilion” which a retired Samurai
built (and never got around to covering with silver leaf). It was close to
1700, almost closing time for the temple when we left. A shop along the way out
of the temple had some headbands and C.J. thought one would be a good gift for
Wally’s bear, Ludwig (250). We took the first bus that came along even though
it would take us to the Kyoto Station rather than back to our Airbnb. Since it
was an “express” we figured it would take less time but, despite it being a
Saturday, traffic was slow and it took us longer than we expected to get to the
station. Fortunately, we managed to get seats. It was well after dark when we
reached the station which was really busy with lots and lots of people rushing
around to catch their train or bus. We stopped to watch a fountain with colored
lights, and we noted the huge decorated Christmas tree (not really a tree) and
other holiday lights. Then we flowed with the tide of people through the
station until we found our bakery with the good raisin rolls (and another
chocolate pastry, too (570). We had walked part way home before we came to a
restaurant that we thought might have an English menu (for Japanese food, of
course), Washoku Sato. At each table there was something like an iPad where you
could choose your language and get a picture and limited description of the
various offerings. We opted for one meal of soba noodles with a bowl of broth
with a few slices of grilled wild duck. I got a bowl of rice topped with
avocado, a cooked egg, and very small pieces of seafood, and a bowl of udon in
broth with seaweed, plus some tasty Japanese pickles and a small beer (2400).
We walked the rest of the way home just stopping once at a 7-11 to get yogurt
and bananas (381) for breakfast with our granola. It must have been after 2000
when we got back.
13 Nov, Sun – We didn’t get going until after 0930, but we
got a bus right away at the Tofukuji bus
stop. We got off at Gojo-zaka and
walked up the hill. At the junction we veered right onto Chawan-zaka and looked
into a couple of shops with kimonos. The last one we stopped at had haori or
happi coats and yukata for sale at very low prices. It turned out that they
were returned rentals that the shop was selling off. C.J. found one she liked (1620).
Then we stopped at a fabric shop and C.J. bought a package of small pieces of
kimono fabric (760). Meanwhile we were astounded at the crowd that was pouring
up the approach to Kiyomisu-dera, a very popular Buddhist Temple. When we
reached the intersection with Kiyomisu-michi, another approach road at the base
of the big pagoda at the entrance, there was an even bigger crowd. Many people
were wearing kimonos (some rented, I suppose) and there were not as many
children as there were at the temple/shrine on Saturday. We paid our entry
(1000) and flowed along with the crowd looking for the features that Lonely
Planet had described. There was the brightly-painted pagoda, of course, and the
big bell, the two rocks 18m apart that foretold if you would find your true
love soon (impossible to try to walk between them with eyes closed in today’s
crowd), the temple itself, and the walk through the hillside garden with the
autumn colors. We went up to another, smaller pagoda (described as good luck
for birthing) for the view back across to the main temple. From the temple we
went down Kiyomisu-michi (where C.J. found a nice tea canister with sencha tea
for Ginny (800?)), then San-nen-zaka Path both chockablock with restaurants,
cafes, and souvenir shops. We turned right into Ni-nen-zaka and noted the
ancient teahouse, Kasagi-ya. We detoured through the really old neighborhood of
Ishibei-koji for the atmosphere. We skipped going up to the shrine, Kodai-ji,
but below it teams of young people were dancing or marching or doing tai ch’i,
or maybe all of the above. Continuing on we came to the entrance to
Maruyama-koen, a large park, where we stopped to eat our raisin roll with
Camembert cheese while a man in costume played the flute with accompanying
recorded music…or maybe it was all recorded. After checking out the large carp
in the pond we moved on to the huge San-mon gate and steep stairs of Chion-in,
a temple of the largest Buddhist sect in Japan. We did not go into the enormous
modern main meeting hall, but we did sit in the plaza for a while with ice
cream bars from one of the ubiquitous vending machines (280, cheaper than one
soft cream!). As we were leaving by the northern gate a large group of people
came out of the hall and were issued twig brooms and baskets and set to sweeping
the grounds. Just down the block to the north was the unmarked (in English)
entrance to Sho-ren-in which was not crowded with tourists and rated a star in
Lonely Planet. It had some nicely painted sliding panels and a small but interesting
garden including a pond with a rock supposed to resemble the back of a bathing
dragon. We took a side path and came upon a building where we met a woman in a kimono who offered to perform the tea
ceremony with us. I hadn’t considered it and the 1000Y per person made it less
likely that I would. [In retrospect, that was probably a great deal for a
Japanese experience.] C.J. and I got to ring a big gong/bell by pulling back a
log and letting it go to hit the side of the bell. That brought to an end the
temple visits for the day. We walked a short distance to Sanjo-dori and caught
a #5 bus, the first one that came. Then we had to squeeze ourselves through the
crowd to get off at Sanjo Station where there were no Kyoto City Buses (only
Keihan) heading for Tofukiji. After a few minutes of studying our maps we
decided to walk back to Higashi-oji-dori and catch the 202 back to Tofukuji.
That worked out fine and we even had seats for the last part of the ride. We
got back to the Airbnb around 1730 after passing our restaurant of choice for
the night – too early to eat. After relaxing a while and writing in our
journals we headed back out to eat in the little family restaurant that Kaitei
had recommended and given us 100Y coupons for. The place was small and had two
employees and served ramen/Chinese noodle. We got the bowl with roast pork and
a side order of gyoza/Chinese dumplings. Good hearty food – not much like the
Top Ramen served in the US (1410). We got back by 1930 and caught up on our
photos and journals and emails. Kaitei’s cake was a welcome dessert.
 |
| Fall colors at Kiyomisu-dera Shrine |
14 Nov, Mon – We got up around 0800, finished up the bananas,
yogurt, milk and granola, then packed our bags. Kaitei said we could leave them
in the house for as long as we wanted but we decided at the last moment to take
them with us to visit Tofuku-ji, the temple. We figured that we could leave
them in coin lockers at the station and not have to go back to the house to get
them. Besides, it was starting to rain lightly and we knew we weren’t going to
walk over to Kyoto Station; we’d take the JR Nara line train the one stop to
Kyoto. Well, that didn’t work out because there were no coin lockers in
Tokufuji Sta. We ended up wheeling them along on the short walk to Tokufu-ji
(along with a surprisingly large stream of other temple visitors). Whe we got
there we saw that the attraction was the red maples in the ravine overlooked by
two bridges, part of the temple grounds. We skipped paying for the viewing
bridge since we had already crossed the ravine on another, no cost, bridge. We
did, however, pay for entry to the shrine that was surrounded by four gardens
(800). There were pillars set in raked and mounded sand, large boulders in
pleasing groupings, and moss-covered mounds of earth representing something
significant to Buddhists of this particular sect (info in the brochure). There
was also a garden containing a checkerboard of stone and grass. By the time we
had viewed all the gardens and headed outside to put on our shoes the rain had
tapered off. The umbrella was not necessary on the walk back to the station
(although the Asian tourists seem to be fond of using umbrellas anyway). We
bought our tickets for Kyoto using the automated ticket dispenser (280) and
were soon in the bustle of the big station. We tried to leave the platform area
to go out to the Shinkansen office but our tickets would not let us through the
turnstile. It turned out that the turnstile opened into the Shinkansen
platforms so we had to go to the nearby JR office and buy tickets first
(25800). The tickets this time were for non-reserved seats and could be used
anytime in the next four days. We wandered around trying to find the Sizuya
Bakery to get some more raisin rolls for lunch with our cheese but couldn’t
find it. After asking we got directions to the next floor down and bought a
roll, a chocolate bun and a ham-and-something roll for lunch (540). Back up on
the platform we lined up with other people for the non-reserved cars 1-3 and
were off toward Nagoya and Tokyo at 1218. The train car was pretty full and at
first we did not get seats together but shortly one of my seatmates switched
with C.J. so we had an aisle and center seat. There’s no crowding on a
Shinkansen like there is on an airplane so we had plenty of kneeroom. I
couldn’t figure out how to get on the wi-fi but it hardly mattered since we
were in Tokyo after a little over two hours – the Nozomi-class Shinkansen makes
fewer stops than the train we rode to get to Kyoto. An attendant came through
with a cart with food and drinks, but unlike on airplanes, nothing was free. We
ate our rolls and cheese and drank our own water. In Tokyo Station we
remembered that we had to stay on the JR but change to the Yamanote Line so we
followed the signs for transferring. We were surprised to find that we were not
charged; our Shinkansen tickets got us all the way to Ikebukaro. There we
followed signs for the Seibu (private) Line, and stopped in the big Seibu
department store (Maison Kayser Bakery) and bought some bread and rolls to take
to Barbara (1166). We got a little help finding the right train/platform from
the Seibu information person and got on a semi-express. Somehow it had slipped
my mind that we were not going to Kiyose, but to Akitsu, so when we got to
Akitsu, we had to go to the Fare Adjustment machine and pay 30Y more each
(600). It was cool and damp, but not raining as we walked the 20 minutes or so
from the station to Barbara’s. We got there just in time for B to whip up a
mishmash (she said) of tunafish, leftover rice, Campbells mushroom soup, Kraft
Parmesan cheese, and some bean sprouts. It was really tasty. We cleaned up
after B left for her Aikido class. Tomorrow we can put her reserve in my old
harness and square up finances. We are planning to take her out for dinner. B
said she’ll take us to Higashi-Tokorozawa for the 1130 bus on Wednesday, and
that will be the end of our trip to Japan – it didn’t seem like three weeks.
15 Nov, Tue – After breakfast we removed my reserve from my
harness and installed Batbara’s. There is a really short lanyard on hers, but
she has already used it once and it worked, so, okay. C.J. and I got mostly
packed up. B checked the schedule and found that the 1130 bus from
Higashi-Tokorozawa doesn’t get to Narita until 1445. That’s too late for our
1610 flight time (Weird that it takes 3hr 15min when it took us only about two
hours from the airport to H-T). The next earlier bus is at 0715 so it looks
like we’ll have a lot of time to explore the airport. We squared up finances
with Barbara; she wanted only our share of the train fares to/from Wakayama
less the $250 for the harness (35,000). There were lots of other things she
paid for like the rental car and meals and the first rides on the train into
Tokyo, etc. Later we went out for a walk along the river and up the valley wall
to a bluff. The land was a patchwork of houses, apartments and vegetable
gardens. We turned back after we reached the large, white statue of Kannon that
we had seen in the distance on our previous walk. Later Barb drove us to a
restaurant where C.J. and Barbara had hou-tou, a seasonal soup with really big
noodles, and I had shabu-shabu, a stove with boiling water with a piece of
seaweed, and a plate of thin-sliced pork, vegetables, rice and udon, with two
dipping sauces (one peanut). No one spoke English as far as I could tell and
the menus were totally in Japanese. Lucky for us we were with Barbara. (3715).
On the way back we stopped for breakfast stuff – bananas and yogurt (386). I
set the alarm for 0555 – all good trips begin in the dark.
16 Nov. Wed – We got up at 0555, early enough for me to wash
my hair and for us to have breakfast. Barbara drove us to Higashi-Tokorozawa
and waited with us in the warm car. The bus was right on time (0715) and took
all of our bags to check (6200). I dozed most of the way to Narita. When we got
to Terminal 1, we got a cart (free) and wheeled our stuff to the far end where
the Air Canada counter was not yet open - schedule showed it would be manned at
1315. There was plenty to see on the two floors with restaurants and shops, but
I was glad that we had already bought our souvenirs. Later we did buy a fancy
bottle of sake with two small cups (3000) at a duty-free store. After 1315 we
went to the AC counter and checked in, receiving our boarding pass for this
flight (but not for the Calgary to SEA leg, more about that later. Once rid of
our checked bags we could go together to the 5th floor and the food
court where we ate our last Japanese meal: ton katsu for C.J., and Katsu don,
for me (2000) out on the deck overlooking the runway. Then we had to go through
security and immigration, no Pre-Check here. Once at our gate we didn’t have to
wait too long to board and we were off at 1610. Long flight in the dark to
Calgary with a couple of forgettable meals. I watched a movie but it was hard
to hear the dialog so I probably wouldn’t bother doing it again.
------International Date Line------
16 Nov, Wed – We arrived in Calgary at the new international
terminal which had just opened on 31 Oct around 0930, earlier than we had left
Narita. That wasn’t the only weird thing: first, we were held at security
because we did not have a boarding pass for our next flight. Then a security
guy had to take us down to the Alaska ticket counter to get the missing
boarding pass. It wasn’t open and would not be for another half hour or so.
Good thing we had more than four hours before our flight. When the gate agent
showed up we checked in, but C.J.’s ticket had been canceled! Tasha, the agent,
tried a number of things and then sent us to the Air Canada agent to see if she
could do anything. AC just sent us back to Alaska saying that AK had control.
It took another half hour and a long hold on the phone with Air Canada before
Gavin (Wei), another AK agent got the okay to print a boarding pass for C.J.
Meanwhile, we had not found our checked bags on the carrousel and had to file a
missing baggage report with AC. We were hoping that they had just gone on to
SEA (but without going through customs…) We stopped for a celebratory Starbucks
Frapucchino (10CDN on my SB card) then headed for our gate through another
security check, pre-clearance for the US. This time we got to use the Global
Entry kiosks, but C.J. could not get the fingerprint scanner to register her
prints so she had to go to the general entry kiosk. The TSA guy I was talking
to gave us some hints about making the fingerprint scanner work – blow on your
fingers, or try first rubbing them on the back of your neck. Finally, we loaded
onto our 737 and flew mostly in the clouds (but with a few mountain views) to
Seattle, coming in over the city from the north. We touched down around 1130,
PST. Since we had already cleared customs in Calgary we could go directly to
the baggage claim where we breathed a sigh of relief as our bags showed up.
(Cart $5) Then it was only a short wait for the Sandstone shuttle (5). But when
we reached the car the remote would not work, “Uh oh my remote battery must be
dead.” No such luck, the car battery
was the one that was dead. The shuttle driver could have given me a jump start
but I was parked head-in and his cables would not reach. I had to call AAA and
the truck was there within an hour. The tech tested the battery and declared it
dead. I could probably have made it home but I decided to play it safe and
bought the AAA battery (144) with 3-year free exchange, plus 3-yr prorated
exch. Then I picked up C.J. who had fallen asleep in the motel office and we
drove the HOV lane to Issaquah and then home to North Bend. We stopped at Papa
Murphy’s to take advantage of a 50% off deal I had gotten on my email account.
But it had to be ordered on online. So, we used my phone to complete the order
while the pizza guy put the take-and-bake Combo together (10). The house was
cold and the yard was leaf-covered, but no trees or big branches were down. I
built a fire while C.J. baked the pizza. We didn’t last long after we had
eaten, and we slept through until I had to get up at 0700 for an 0930
appointment at Greg Nash’s dental office. Whoo hoo, what a trip!
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