Japan is a country I have long wanted to visit, with the technology that takes you one step closer to the future, one of the world’s most chaotic & quirky cities (Tokyo) and a long history of culture & tradition everywhere you turn.
I was invited to visit Japan as a part of the Visit Japan Campaign by Fun Japan team and for me, this was a dream coming true. This time instead of just staying in one city we were supposed to go for quick multi-city tours in Tokyo, Kanazawa, Osaka and a ski trip in one of Japan’s famous ski resorts in Nagano.
We commenced our trip in Tokyo, the gateway to Japan and a city to experience the Japan I always heard of.
UENO JOSHI TOUR in Ueno, Tokyo
We spent our first day exploring Ueno with our two beautiful guides in Kimino and discovering its many hidden Jewels. Starting from the hustle and bustle of Ueno Park, over to the peace and serenity of the Japanese Tea ceremony. It was a beautiful transition and an unreal experience to hold traditional Japanese tea cups that were as old as 300 years.
After taking a quick lunch, we arrived at Jamyoin Temple (deity of children and travellers) having over 20,0000 jizo statues. There was no better place to start our journey as travellers in Japan.
Moving on with our tour we visited the Ken’el-ji Temple, one of the largest and most beautiful temples around Ueno park. Lastly to conclude out Ueno tour, we walked in the Yanaka Cemetery where the former shogun of Japan, Tokugawa Yoshinobu rests till this day.
Enjoy the snow in Yamanouchi, Nagano
After enjoying the quick walking tour with UENO JOSHI in Ueno, Tokyo, we headed for Nagano. Surrounded by mountains and famous for its snow-covered peaks, Nagano welcomed us with snow showers. Nagano looked like a beautiful painting and I couldn’t wait to experience this side of Japan any longer.
For our Nagano hotel, we stayed at Shiga Kogen Prince Hotel, surrounded by snow-covered peaks and a wonderful host, there was no better place to start our journey in Nagano.
Next day early morning we proceeded to Jigokudani Snow monkey park and as the weather was in our favour, we were lucky enough to find some snow monkeys taking a dip in the hot springs. I must admit, although I’ve seen monkeys do weird things in India, this was unlike anything I’d ever seen. I captured as many cute monkeys as I could in my frame before heading back to the road.
On our way back we also visited the Yutanaka onsen town, a traditional Japanese town famous for its rich hot spring resorts and I was amazed to find literally hundreds of onsen on the streets here.
Arriving at the hotel, we were accompanied by the manager of the hotel for enjoying snow activities. I was stunned to see the beauty of snow-covered Nagano and soon realized why it was called skiers paradise.
An unforgettable “golden” experience in Kanazawa
After spending two nights in Nagano, we made our way to the city of Kanazawa. Kanazawa is no doubt one of the most beautiful cities in Japan and the Kanazawa station’s unique architecture and beautiful Tsuzumi-mon gate in a torii-like style, are somethings that sets it apart from the rest.
Onwards from the station we made our way to visit Higashi chaya district that took us back in time with its beautiful wooden buildings and showed us the history, culture and traditions that breathe on in Japan to this day. We also tried to craft some accessories by our own hands using Kanazawa’s renowned Gold Leafing technique which was my highlight of the day. Taking our craft back home with us as souvenirs was the definitely a plus.
Our last stop for the day was Kanazawa Castle. This was our only castle visit during our stay in Japan and it was as pretty as a picture.
Right up there with the castle there was Kenrokuen garden, the best gardens I’ve ever seen in Japan. It was beautiful to walk in peace around the park but I was mesmerized to see the beauty of blooming cherry blossoms and other flowers in the garden.
After walking around the city all day we decided to visit a local Sushi restaurant for dinner. As it was my first time tasting sushi, I was recommended a Sushi set and Japanese sake set by my co-traveler Jimmy. In addition to this the Sushi master also taught me some Sushi etiquettes which made this experience even more memorable. The taste of Sushi was unlike anything I’ve ever had. It was great and I can’t wait to have another one again. There couldn’t be a better way to end our day after a whole day travel.
Special visit to the shrine of love
As it was fourth day of our campaign and the first day of the month, our two beautiful guides (Hydro & Maria) had already planned a visit to the Keta Taisha shrine, also known as the shrine of love. This was the first time I was attending a prayer ceremony in Japan. This was a beautiful experience for everyone in the group and we all prayed together to find their true love.
Visit the energetic city- Osaka
After a three-hour express train from Kanazawa, we finally arrived at our last stop, Osaka. After a quick break at our hotel, we headed over to the streets of Datonbori, and I soon realised why it was named “Japan’s Kitchen”. Osaka is the city where traditional and modern Japan merged together as one.
The busy streets and glowing neon boards added even more colours to our evening and we took some group pictures with the famous Glico Man. Dotonbori is a perfect place to taste some Japanese street food and as we all were pretty hungry, we got some take away street foods, including Takoyaki (octopus balls) before heading to the Tonbori Base Café & Info, where we can order drinks and enjoy our take away foods in the center of Dotonbori.
My last stop in Osaka at this night was Karaoke center, where we sang some Japanese and English songs along with my amazing friends. It was a perfect end to my amazing and unbelievable journey to the land of the rising sun, JAPAN.
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