We arrived at Narita Airport where we were greeted by Hans, our tour guide for the ten-day tour of Japan. After settling in at our quaint hotel, T Mark City Hotel in Omori, we walked down to the nearest department store to have our evening meal. The food court was just like the Australian ones so you could get any type of food you want. Tim couldn’t speak Japanese but ordered McDonald’s using their photographed menu on the counter.

In the morning, T Mark City Hotel provided breakfast of all flavours, from bacon and eggs to traditional Japanese food. There was plenty of food but very little fruit because it was expensive. Satoshi’s mum met with us that morning to join us on the Tokyo tour.

Our first stop was The Meiji Jingu Shrine - a key Shinto religious site that was dedicated to the Imperial Family in 1926. It is set amongst a forest of evergreen broadleaf trees such as chinquapin, oak and camphor. In all, there are 365 species of trees from all over Japan. There were men who were sweeping the paths with these long brooms, keeping the paths nice and tidy.

Next up was Tokyo Tower. The tower was inspired by the French Eiffel Tower and shows significant resemblance. Although it was a hazy day, we could see a lot of Tokyo from the tower. There were high rise buildings after high rise buildings all around us. Amazingly, we spotted St Andrew’s Anglican Cathedral of Tokyo right near the Tokyo Tower tucked in amongst all the buildings. Our next stop was the Imperial Palace East Garden in the middle of Tokyo. You can only get access to the two bridges. The rest of the garden is not open to the public.

St.Andrew's Cathedral can be seen in the middle of the photo. The problem with being on a tour is that one cannot always see specific things even though they might be very close by!

Our next stop was the Sensoji shrine at Asakusa. The famous huge lanterns named, “Kaminari Mon” translate to “Thunder Gates.” From the thunder gates there is a long arcade-like walkway which leads to the main shrine. Along the walkway, there are many shops selling gifts, charms, fortune telling papers and lots of sweets and snacks. The huge shrine was surrounded by many tourists and it was very hot. We found a spot to have our lunch. It was an American-themed restaurant, so of course there was meat and three veggies!

The Kiyosumi Garden was the next stop on our tour. This was originally a garden for a merchant during the Edo era (1603-1868). The founder of Mitsubishi bought it to entertain his guests and then it was given to the City of Tokyo. The garden is the home to several species of turtle (one of which has a soft shell) and koi carp in the lake and it is a nice peaceful interlude in the busy city life outside of the gates.

Our final stop of the day was to visit the ‘Statue of Liberty.’ Yes, Tokyo does have one too but it is a lot smaller than its famous sister on Liberty Island, New York. It was given to Japan in 1988 to commemorate Franco-Japanese ties for a year. It turned out to be so popular that they decided to erect their own in 2000.

Satoshi and Junko (Satoshi’s mum) decided to stay and go on the Yurikamome which is an automated (no driver) transit system around the Bay of Tokyo. They went into Shibuya to check out the famous crossing and the statue of Hachi the loyal dog who waited for his master at the station even after he died.

This watermelon was grown to be a cube shape to make it easier to transport.

Most of the next day was spent travelling. We ventured out of the big city to Mt Fuji. Although Tokyo is mostly known for its city, it does have a lot of forest and mountains in its rural regions. Buses could only go up to the 5th Station at Mount Fuji. It is located 2300m above sea level. Mount Fuji is 3,776m above sea level and is a dormant volcano. The sheer size of it and its distinct shape makes it easily recognisable. No wonder it has been a centre of Japanese culture. We were fortunate enough to see the volcano without the clouds which often cover it.

We had lunch at Mt Fuji then went down to Lake Ashi to see it from a boat. We stayed the night at Richmond Hotel, Matsumoto. After having dinner at McDonald’s, we ventured to the Matsumoto Castle. It was illuminated with spotlights and it was very peaceful and calming.

The next morning, we moved onto Takayama. The older part of the town has been preserved and more modern develpments added nearby. You can see how the town was. We had a look in the governor’s house. There were many rooms which could all open into a bigger space with sliding doors. The house was old but, because it was made of wood, many components of it have been replaced with new wood. Our tour guide, Hans, told us that you entered the house through certain doors according to your rank or status.

After Takayama, we drove for an hour to Shinakawa Mura. This little town is famous for its thatched houses. The quaint town has little drains parallel to the road but they had koi carp and goldfish in them. The upstairs rooms of these houses are the perfect temperature in which to keep silk worms.

We then travelled to Yokaichi to stay at the hotel for the night. As this was going to be such a long trip, Hans, put a DVD on, “Memoirs of a Geisha”, a film about the hard life of being a Geisha in Kyoto. It gave us a bit more of an understanding of the Japanese culture, especially in Kyoto. That night, we found a KFC at the department store in which to dine.

The next morning, we travelled to Kyoto. We walked around the neighbourhood where some geishas still live. Unfortunately, it was too early to see any real-life geishas roaming around. We then went to the Fushima Inari Shrine with its one thousand torii gates. It was a very hot day and we only went up to the second level. Apparently, there are many more torii gates that lead to a shrine.

Our next stop was the famous Kinkaku-ji (Golden Pavillion). A two-storey Zen temple which is covered in gold leaf and set next to the lake.

After that, we went to a Kimono centre where they make kimonos and you can purchase them there at a price. We watched the Kimono Fashion Show in a beautifully air conditioned environment. The bus dropped us off in Dotonbori in Osaka. This a lively shopping/eating area of Osaka right next to the creek.

There are many chemists in Japan because there is a huge demand from the Chinese market to get any Japanese pharmaceutical products from Japan. In fact, there are so many Chinese people who visit to get supplies from Japan that there is also a high demand for extra suitcases! The Chinese people buy a suitcase and put all their pharmaceutical products into their extra luggage to take home to sell in China.

After touring in Dotonbori we stayed the next three nights at Soetsu Fresa Inn, Yodoyabashi. After having dinner at Osaka Station Shopping Complex, we went to the Pokémon Centre. Satoshi and mum went on to explore Dotonbori and rode the Don Quixote ferris wheel whilst Tim retired for the night.

The next day was the Hiroshima tour. This was an optional tour for $550 AUD. Satoshi and Junko decided to pay their own way there. The tour included the train fare to Hiroshima because the bus would have taken 5 hours, one way whereas the bullet train makes the journey in only 1 hour and 25 minutes. Hiroshima is 327km west of Osaka and is the site of one of the nuclear bombings of World War II.

When we arrived at Hiroshima, we made our way down to Miyajimaguchi where we caught a ferry to Miyajima. Once you arrive on the island, you are greeted by deer who come up, hoping to get some food. The island is nicknamed Itsukushima (or Divine Island). There is a shrine on the island which you can explore. The famous landmark on the island is the torii gate in the middle of the sea. Although it was drizzly, it was worth the trip.

Satoshi and Junko made their way up the mountain to catch the ropeway to the top of the island. Most of the island is densely covered in trees. Satoshi went to the peak and discovered that because it was covered in clouds, he saw nothing but clouds.

After spending the morning at Miyajima, it was time to return to Hiroshima. Once we got to the centre we saw the Genbaku Dome (Atomic Bomb Dome). It is the remains of the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall. It was the only standing building for miles after the atomic bomb obliterated everything else. The dome is now a memorial to remind people of the horrors of the war.

Across from the dome, you can see Sadako’s Crane memorial. If you are not sure of the story of Sadako. This is the short version:

Sadako was diagnosed with leukaemia from the radiation of the atomic bomb years after the bombing. According to legend, folding a thousand paper cranes grants you a wish. Sadako folded 644 and died before she got to a thousand cranes. Sadako’s friends folded the rest of the cranes and placed the thousand paper cranes in with Sadako in her casket. After her death, Sadako’s friends and schoolmates lobbied to create a memorial to her and all the children who died because of the war. Sadako’s crane memorial and the Genbaku dome forms part of Hiroshima’s Peace Park. The final stop at the end of the Peace Park was the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. This museum is unlike other museums. Everyone is walking around in the dark, quietly and respectfully reading the descriptions written on the displays. It is such a sombre feeling. The reality of what happened hits you and you feel so sad and uneasy about the whole situation. You walk around with tears in your eyes. There are images of the burns, scars and effects of the bombing. So many innocent lives were affected. The one good thing, I suppose, that has come out of this is that Japan has now become a peaceful nation whose people now understand how important it is to keep peace. Sadako’s memorial has a small plaque attached, “This is our cry. This is our prayer. Peace on Earth."

Tim headed back with the tour while Satoshi and Junko stayed on a little longer. Most stations in Japan have different types of bento boxes with their speciality dishes. It took Satoshi and Junko a long time to find the meals which they wanted at Hiroshima Station. In the meantime, Tim found a huge Ferris Wheel in Osaka and was going to meet Satoshi and Junko there but the public transport took longer than they thought and they could not meet Tim before the last ride of the day.

The next day was an unexpected bonus. As everyone wanted to do another day with Hans, we went to Kobe (which is a Port city west of Osaka). Kobe was affected by a devastating earthquake in 1995. The first stop in Kobe was a sake brewery (Japanese rice white wine). The brewery had a small museum explaining the process of the production of sake. They also had a photography section of the museum where we could take funny photos of drinking sake.

Our next stop was visiting the memorial of the Kobe earthquake which consists of a small section of the original wharf left in the condtion it was in after the earthquake. Hans told us several times on our tour that Japan is a disaster country. The Japanese people are incredibly resilient and do what’s necessary to recover quickly. Incredibly, parts of Kobe’s port were open for business the following year. They had a three year rebuild project and the city rebuilt very quickly because, if it didn’t, the economy would have been affected greatly.

From Kobe, we went north, through the mountains. Japan’s motorway system is so good. All major cities are connected by motorways and if there is an incident the GPS suggests an alternative route to get to your destination. Incredibly, there was a freeway junction in the middle of the mountains too!

After going through the tunnel, we ended up in Arima, a small town built around its hot springs. According to Hans, this is the holiday destination for locals and not really for foreigners. Satoshi and Junko went into the hot springs along with some of the group. Tim found a toy museum in Arima, it was comprised of four floors of toys from yesteryear. Although the lady in the toy museum could not speak English, she was able to communicate and work the toys for Tim. Tim wanted to stay longer but it was time to go.

Tim was intrigued to find this "Mr Machine" toy. He had one when he was about 10 years old. The toy was able to move around, open and close it's mouth and emit sounds all via a clockwork motor. It was possible to completely disassemble and reassemble the toy.

On the way back to Osaka, we went through the only freeway exit that goes straight through a building. Apparently, the company bought the land before the freeway exit was going to go through, so the building was built around it to accommodate the freeway exit.

That night, Tim, Satoshi and Junko went to the Umeda Sky Building. It has an observation deck with a 360º view of Osaka, a huge city with tall buildings everywhere. The view was marvellous. The building was built in stages, the centrepiece was lifted until it got to its proper position.

We spent the next morning at Osaka Castle. It was quite a walk from the car park to the Castle. It was another hot day. The latest rebuild of Osaka castle was in 1997. The inside is all modern and houses the museum. It is fully air conditioned, has lifts and modern toilets too. It was disappointing that we didn’t have enough time to see all the exhibits in the museum properly. It was the history of the castle grounds.

After the castle, it was time to leave Osaka. The bus driver took us to Kansai Airport (Osaka’s main airport). Another bus took half the group to Itami Airport. So we parted with half of the group. From Kansai Airport we flew to Narita Airport. After killing time at Narita airport, it was time to part with Junko. She was very sad and teary to see Satoshi fly home. She even stayed until the plane flew out which was another two hours after the parting. It was a wonderful and memorable trip and such a nice country to visit. We only spotted three bits of graffiti in all the time we were there. The people were lovely, respectful and friendly and were willing to serve you in the best way possible.

Some English signs and other things in Japan made us smile:

How on earh do they know which wire does what?

The water was, indeed "cold and delicious"!

Inside this toilet cubicle was a chair in which one can place one's toddler while completing one's "business"!

It was a happy and interesting holiday and it was good to experience some of the culture of a country which is quite different to Australia in many ways, but also the same. If we went again, we would choose to go at another time of the year because the humidity and heat in July were quite oppressive. All the public areas of the towns and cities were neat and tidy but, from the look of the outside of many of the homes, it appeared that this is not necessarily the same in more private areas. Smoking is still more widely accepted in Japan than it is in Australia. We found this a little difficult, especially when restuarants have smoking rooms, sometimes with the doors open or otherwise constantly opening and closing allowing the smoke out! Japan includes much spectacular scenery, especially outide of the major cities and is well worth a visit! We would take the journey to Japan again if the opportunity arises.