Hotel Fuga Nikko

Toured the temples at Nikko today. Very impressive, but the fact that everything was in Japanese (no English) and I don't know much about Buddism, it was really a matter of walking around and admiring these cool buildings. I bought a picture book rather than trying to take a bunch of amateurish photos - maybe I can get my daughter to translate?<br><br>Because of this, touring the site only ...

... sprich gestern, das Wasser ausgelassen... was man ja eigentlich nicht tut, weil man sich ja eh vorher waescht bevor man reinsteigt... naja, dazu sind wir ja hier, um dazu zu lernen und nicht, um schon alles angeberisch zu wissen. Pft XD<br><br>So ca. in ner halben Stunde machen wir uns mit Freude auf zum Bahnhof, wo`s dann zurueck nach Utsunomiya geht, wo wir dann hoffentlich moeglichst problemslos einen Shinkansen Richtung Aomori bzw ...

... and scallop), beef, tempura and some unknowns that tasted great. Washed down with a big, cold Asahi beer!<br><br>Then, bath time. Wow. First time in a Japanese bath. Private, not a sento, but hot enough to peel paint and just the thing for sore muscles. The whole Japanese process where you shower/rinse first, then get in the tub to soak.<br>

... Nachbarschaftsfestival, gleich um die Ecke von unsrem Hostel in Tokyo. War echt witzig, Japaner LIEBEN karaoke. Ich hab Beweismaterial XD<br><br>Gestern hats auch zum ersten Mal geregnet, seit dem wir hier sind. Hat uns also unsere eigenartige Aufbruchsstimmung noch verstaerkt. Aber heute ists wieder so sonnig und warm wie eh und je. Optimale Voraussetzungen fuer ne Wandertour, ne XD<br><br>Also, uns gehts nach wie vor super gut, abgesehen von etwas ...

Today I went on my first outing on my lonesomen (without the aid of my guide Toshimi). I decided to go Nikko, a town north of Tokyo which features an interesting temple, a beautiful lake, and a fresh mountain air experience. After a little confusion at the train station I finally got on the right train which would take me north of Tokyo and toward my destination. Half of the fun of using the train as transportation is you get to see a ...

... was its roar. The main hall of Toshogu was boring and I skipped the Sleeping Cat carving and Ieyasu's tomb, because I had to buy an extra ticket for them. The last important place to visit was Taiyuin temple, which is Iemitsu's tomb. It was simpler and more peaceful than Toshogu and I liked it.<br> <br>The ticket for 2 shrines and 1 temple cost only 1000 yen and I think the price is ...

... and neither one of us wanted to trek up a mountain. We found some very good and cheap (by standards) meals at a restaurant with views of the mountain and lake. Time quickly escaped us so we headed back to the bus to go towards town again and got off at Shinyko Bridge. The bridge was one of my favorites, looked like a postcard with the mountains in the background and fog under the bridge. We ventured into some temples and ...

... hacia de millonario. Me parecio entender que la geisha se lo intentaba ligar para casarse con el porque tenia pasta y el millonario se da cuenta y le da calabazas.<br><br><br>En la siguiente obra me dormi porque no pillaba ni unao. La dejamos a mitad y nos fuimos a ver los museos de tortura. Habia algun que otro chisme bastante macabros, como una tabla con forma de sierra, donde hacian a los prisioneros sentarse (estilo japones, sobre las rodillas), para luego ponerles ...

... on a lump. Didn't matter, they were all happily wrapped up. Now, I'm sure there's an explanation, but I don't care.. it's enough for me they looked like Buddhas-cum-Millwall supporters. Do Millwall wear red? Sorry can't be bothered to research that. And I had them all to myself! Woohooo. Only so much fun can be had with stone buddhas in the rain though, so after a last hurrah in the temple area again, where I climbed a slidy set of wet stairs so high I ...

... perfect and draw the ire of the Gods. Smart. Nikko is also the origin of the 'see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil' monkeys (who knew?). Someone carved the monkeys and then someone else (not sure who) gave them their name and claim to fame. I scored a very cute monkey mug at a souvenir store. Hopped on the train and made our way to Tokyo station. There Nick went home and I boarded a bullet train for Gifu-Hashima (near Nagoya) to begin my second week with Yves.