TravelStream™ news feed for member misocutlet on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/misocutlet en-us Copyright ©2009 TravelPod.com Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:46:20 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/20/1258457287/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/20/1258457287/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/20/1258457287/tpod.html Sat, 21 Nov 2009 06:46:20 -0500 I Owe You One! Hong Kong & Macau

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Hong Kong, China

My flight arrived at Hong Kong International Airport at 805 in the evening. It was a long time ago to land the airport for the transit on my way to London, but I still remembered that the airport was huge (the fourth busiest airport in the world). I took a subway to the arrival gate this time as well. Then I bought a Tourist Octopus Card which includes free rides for MTR within three days and one way ride for Airport Express at HK$220. I thought the Airport Express was quite expensive, but it was very convenient to get to the city. I didn't know where Kowloon Station was, so I was on the train up to Hong Kong, although my hostel was located in Kowloon. So I took an MTR to Tsim Sha Tsui at Central. MTR Tsim Sha Tsui station was very close to Chungking house, it took only two minutes to find the building. My hostel, Ashoka hotel, was on the 13th floor of the building which was full of backpackers hostels, but only one elevator was available at that time. The hostel was quite austere and the tiniest hostel I have ever stayed. Hoever, the rate was not cheap at HK$150 for a 6 person dormitory. The receptionist was very friendly and he kindly posed in front of the hotel sign for a picture. He offered me a single room without extra charge. Although the room was the smallest I have stayed (again), I was glad at his offer. Anyway, from the beginning, my travel was very fun against my expectation. Even late in the evening, I was so excited that I went out of the hostel and strolled around the city. The first destination was Temple Street Night Market. Whenever I visit Asian cities, I try a night market. There were some interesting night markets in Hong Kong. The street is the closest to my hostel and it is called men's street, because the goods sold there are popular among men. Anyway the lighting-up along Kowloon park east side was beautiful and I walked up to MTR Jordan station with a drop at a bakery. The night market was still bustling even around 11 in the evening and I enjoyed window-shopping. There were a lot of palmists stalls near Tin Hau temple and a few karaoke tents. Nobody seems annoyed by the outdoor karaoke. Then I went back to Tsim Sha Shui, but not to my hostel. Actually, there was another destination for the night and it was Avenue of Stars. It was around midnight, although there were a lot of people and some professional photographers for tourists. Interestingly, the view of Hong Kong business district were still beautiful with building lights. I took a walk up to the end of the avenue, finding Bruce Lee statue and Jackie Chan and Jet Lee handprints. The Christmas lit-up buildings were gorgeous. Then I walked back the opposite way and sat on the harbor to see the night view of Wan Chai and Central just like Hong Kongers did. I liked Tokyo night views, but the night view was much more enchanting. Passing by the clock tower, only the remnant of the former Kowloon station, I went back to Chungking house.On the next day, I woke up without an alarm clock at 7. I checked up on the clock at the reception and checked out immediately, because I had a long list of places to visit for the day 2. The first destination was Ngong Ping 360 in Lantau island. It was a little bit far and inconvenient to reach from Tim Sha Shui. Unfortunately, the weather was also bad. However, I had no choice but to go there on the day, because that was the last day in Hong Kong. After I left Tung Chung airport, I took a cable car with two Hong Kongers up to Ngong Ping town on the peak of the island. The view was good, but I was sure it had been great if the weather was good. As soon as I left the cable car arriving at the town, I walked to the gate of Tian Tan Buddha, but the gate was still closed, so I visited Po Ling Monastery. It has nothing interesting in the monastery, but enough to kill time. The standard entrance ticket for Tian Tan Buddha site including vegitarian lunch and museum entrance was for HK$60. Then I went up the 268 steps up to the pedestal of the giant Buddha. It might be a little bit hard for young children and old people. The Buddha is 34m tall and it has a very small museum inside. The Buddha looked similar to Japanese giant Buddhas in Nara or Kamakura. There was another attraction in Ngong Ping and called Wisdom Path which was located within a 10 minute walk. It was just O.K., but the way to the site was greenery and I liked it. It didn't take much time to see Wisdom Path and I went back to the monastery to have lunch in the restaurant. After lunch, I didn't have time to waste, because I had a plan to visit Tai O village, but there was a kite show in the square situated in front of the bus station. One of the kites was huge and I couldn't pass on it. There were several failures before the kite flied and it was quite frustrating. So I left the square in 10 minutes, but fortunately, I could see the kite flying in the bus station. I had never seen such a huge kite before that I enjoyed the show.The next stop was Tai O fishing village. In fact, the purpose to visit the small village was to take a cruise to watch Chinese white dolphins. So I was very disappointed to hear that the cruise didn't go to watching area on that day. Another attraction was the seafood market, but I was not so interested. I was imagining that the village with stilt houses might be like old Hong Kong as an fishing village. Honestly, you can skip the village if you are not interested in the white dolphins. The next attraction, the Kung Fu Corner in Kowloon Park, was scheduled to begin at half past 2. So I left the village at half past one, but arrived in the park at half past 3, because the bus from the village took a long route to Tung Chung. Kung Fu Corner was a local event held in the park every Sunday. I watched pratitioners and lion dance performers showing their forms and dances. There were some locals and tourists watching the performances, although it was raining. It was fun as a local event, but I watched more breathtaking performances in the gymnasium of the park. It was a lion dance competition like "All Hong Kong Lion Dance Championship". I have seen some lion dances shows, but not any competitions. As a matter of course, performers were more skillfull in the competition. In fact, I did missed out on the next attraction, because of the exciting competition. When I left the gymnasium at 5, I had no choice but to skip the Victoria Peak or Symphony of Lights. According to the information on the Thorn Tree Forum of Lonely Planet, Symphony of Light was just so-so to a Hong Konger. So I made up my mind to go to the Victoria Peak, but that was a wrong choice. I took a Star ferry from Tsim Sha Shui to Central and a bus No.15 from there. That was the first mistake. I should have taken a bus No.15C to the Peak Tram station, because the tram is one of the attractions in Hong Kong. Unfortunately, the bus reached the top without stopping at the tram station. It was rainy and windy at the Peak. I took some escalators to the observation deck of the Peak Tower and paid HK$20 for a ticket in spite of the warning from the ticket clerk that it was foggy on that day. And that was true. Literary I couldn't see anything from the observation deck. It was disappointing, but at least I bought a magnetic plate with a picture of the great night view from there as a souvenir. I got it not for a good memory, but for unforgettable experience until the day I will see the expected great night view. Then I took a Peak tram to the foot of the mountain, although I felt miserable. At that time, Symphony of Lights had already finished. That was supposed to be the last day in Hong Kong, but I swore that I would definitely go back to Hong Kong and took a ferry from Wan Chai to Macau.       
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/20/1258460064/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/20/1258460064/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/20/1258460064/tpod.html Thu, 19 Nov 2009 08:30:14 -0500 I Owe You One! Hong Kong & Macau

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Macau, China

It was about 930 in the evening when I arrived in Macau by ferry from Sheung Wan. On the ferry port, I immediately found an errand from Lisboa at the exit and got on a free shuttle bus to the casino. Actually, because the casino was close to my hostel, Auguster Lodge, I had decided to take the bus to Lisboa. The bus arrived just in front of Hotel Lisboa, so I was a little bit upset and I stopped by the hotel and wandered around inside a minute. Then I headed for my hostel. Wynn casino was located across Lisboa and Crown casino was also very close. The lighting-ups of those casinos were glittering and very impressive. My hostel was reasonable and very small, located on the 3rd floor in a building without an elevator, but convenient to go out and comfortable to stay. The receptionist looked like an Indian again and he explained everything for tourists in detail, although I was eager to go out to the city as soon as possible. Then I went out to see the remnants of Portuguese era which were lit up at night. It took only 5 minutes to get to the first destination, Senado Square. Honestley, that was overestimated. A few  buildings around the square were under renovation. Besides, the fountain was not working at that time (as well as during daytime on the next day). Furthermore, it must be better to see the square from the second floor of Leal Senado building located just across the square, because the design of the ground is interesting. Then I headed for Wynn Casino, although I was not interested in gambling at all. My purpose to visit the casino was watching Tree of Prosperity show. The show was very short, but gorgeous enough to take a look. The show is held every half an hour and I watched one from half past midnight. I was scheduled to watch the fountain show in Wynn, but the last show had been held at 11, so I missed out on it and went back to my hostel.On the next day, I got up at 8 and left for Guia Fortress. Macau is a small city, but sometimes it is better to take a taxi, because taxi fare is very reasonable, costing about one-third of that of Tokyo. Actually, I walked up to Guia Fortress and I wasted much time. A view from the lighthouse of Guia Fortress was good, but you can't enter the lighthouse and the chapel. On my way back, I tried to go to the ferry port to buy a ticket beforehand for Hong Kong International Airport, but I lost my way and gave it up.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/18/1246193339/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/18/1246193339/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/18/1246193339/tpod.html Fri, 13 Nov 2009 09:38:43 -0500 Eight Hour Transit in Guanzhou

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Guangzhou, Guangdong, China

We were supposed to be there for 8 hours, but the flight from Delhi was delayed and we left the airport at half past 8 and had only 6 hours left for sightseeing. We waited for a bus to the city center for half an hour. We paid 20 RMB and got on a bus for the city.  On the way, the city looked beautiful, because we had been in India before China. It took about 1 hour to get to the city. It was irritating to my mom, but I was calm. Just after we got off the bus, we caught a taxi and showing the Chinese words "陶陶居” to the taxi driver, headed for Tao Tao Ju, a fine dim sum restaurant. On our way, we realized that we didn't have time enough to eat dim sum, because ordering is always time-consuming. So we changed our plan on the spot and showed the driver the words "陳家祠", Chen's Ancestral Temple in English. Fortunately, the direction was the same as that to Tao Tao Ju. It was the only tourist spot of Guangzhou which I was interested in. There is nothing to see in Guangzhou as a lot of bloggers say, so I didn't expect a good tourist spot but a good Chinese restaurant. It may have been better to go to Dao Dao Ju. "To eat or not to eat: that was the question." In the end, we took "not to eat" and headed for the temple. It was raining on the day in Guangzhou, especially in Chen's Ancestral Temple. After we paid 10 yuan for a ticket, we entered the temple. In the picture of my guide, the temple looked smaller. So the size was far beyond my expectation. It is not like a temple, but a celebrity's house. The fine decorations on the roofs were harmonized with the Chinese mansion. The temple is not a must-see, but not so bad at least in Guangzhou. When we left the temple, I thought we had time to visit another tourist spot like Six Banyan Tree Temple. However, my mom was confused, because she thought we didn't have so much time. I should have known her feelings and taken a taxi from there to the airport immediately. However, I tried the metro, because I had known the metro ticket like a medal was interesting. Come to think of it, it was nothing, compared to being late for the flight and it was not so expensive to take a taxi in China. Anyway, in the end, we took a taxi from Guangzhou East Station to the airport, paying 120 yuan.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/11/1128180180/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/11/1128180180/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/11/1128180180/tpod.html Thu, 12 Nov 2009 04:14:19 -0500 Miscellaneous Japan, UNESCO's World Heritage Sites

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Abashiri, Hokkaido, Japan

It had been a while to travel in Japan, since I had visited 9 countries around the world. Compared to the other countries, however, this country was no less attractive. I know it has a lot of attractions in any countries from my experiences, and the more we know about a country, the more fun we can have in the travel in the country. It is true that there were boring countries to me, but as a whole, it resulted from the case that I didn't know much about the countries and travelled. On the other hand, it is also true that I am likely to be unaware of beauties of my country, because I am too much interested in travelling abroad. Now I should explore them myself as a Japanese national and introduce the experiences to foreign friends. *The List of World Heritage Sites of Japan I have visited (13 sites as of September 2009): Shirakami-Sanchi beech forest, Yakushima ancient cedar forest, Himeji-jo (Himeji Castle), Buddhist monuments in the Horyu-ji area, Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto, Historic Villages of Shirakawa-go and Gokayama, Hiroshima Peace Memorial (Genbaku Dome), Itsukushima Shinto Shrine, Historic Monuments of Ancient Nara, Sacred Sites and Pilgrimage Routes in the Kii Mountain Range, Shiretoko Peninsula, Gusuku Sites and Related Properties of the Kingdom of Ryukyu, Shrines and Temples of Nikko*The List of World Heritage Sites of Japan I have not visited (1 site): Iwami Ginzan Silver Mine @Hiroshima(2006.4.2-3) I planed the travel for my mother's birthday. On the first day, we visited A-Bomb Dome and Peace Memorial Park. We took a tram from Hiroshima Station. It was comparatively crowded even on a weekday. A-Bomb Dome was one of the 14 World Heritage Sites of Japan, but it took the least time to appreciate the dome, because we couldn't enter it. Peace Memorial Park was too large to see everything, but Peace Memorial Museum was a must-see. The entrance fee was 50 JPY (0.5 USD), not free, but very cheap, although the displays were great to show how the A-Bomb was scary. Peace Memorial Hall was less interesting, even if it is an important building. It was similar to the remenbrances of overseas. Then we headed for Hiroshima Castle. It was a wooden restored construction with an interesting appearance. Itsukushima is another World Heritage Site. It is famous for the Red Torii Gate in the sea, which was chosen as one of the theree best views of Japan. I didn't know why there were some deer in front of the ferry port. Anyway, the red main building was beautiful with a performance stage, which reminds us Japanese of a period drama scene. There were a lot of domestic and international tourists. I was asked to take a photo of a couple from overseas in broken Japanese. However because I talked to them in English, they looked surprised to meet a English-speaking Japanese. @Ise(2006.5.4) The Grand Shrine of Ise This is the most important shrine in Japan, although it is not a World Hertage Site. In the past, "the Grand Shrine" meant this shrine. A lot of school children visited the shrine for a shool excursion. But that was my first time to visit there. Two precincts, Naigu Inner Shrine and Gegu Outer Shrine, are separated and Gegu was easy to access on foot from Ise Station. From Gegu, we took a bus to Naigu. Okageyokocho Row was close, where the infamous Akafuku rice cake main shop, which became infamous after deceptive labelling, was located. We walked through the row and up to Isuzugaoka Station. We also visited Sarutahiko shrine, which is much smaller than Ise Grand Shrine and, in my opinion, not worth a visit. @Oirase & Shirakami Mountain Range(2007.10.3-5) From Tokyo, we took a Tohoku Shinkansen bullet train to Hachinohe and then took a bus. There is a hiking trail along Oirase Mountain Stream. Actually, we expected the autumn leaves on the stream, but the beginning of October was too early. We walked from Ishikado to Nenoguchi on Towadako Lake, the best part of Oirase. After we ate udon noodle soup in a small restaurant beside the bus stop, we headed for Hirosaki. We stayed in Hirosaki Toei Hotel on the day, and the next day we headed for Nishimeya via Nishimeya village hall from Hirosaki Bus Station. The terminal was in front of Aqua Green Village Anmon with some tour buses. Then we tried Tsugaru apples at a stall near the bus terminal, because we had found apple gardens on our way and it reminded us of the specialty of Tsugaru (Aomori). They peeled and cut the apple on the spot with a peeler and the apples were really good. Beyond the bridge, we started hiking to Anmon Waterfalls. Honestly, wild beech forest was not so interesting, but the gorge and waterfalls were beautiful. @Shirakawa-go(2007.1) It was unusual to go on a trip with someone except my mother, but this time, I went to Shirakawa-go with a friend from my workplace. In my original plan, we were supposed to go sightseeing in Kanazawa as well. But the train for Kanazawa was late due to heavy snow. So as soon as we reached Kanazawa, we had to leave for Shirakawa-go. Luckily, we caught a bus immediately then. It is a World Cultural Heritage Site in Gifu Pref. of Central Japan. We stayed in Yosobei Gassho House, had dinner around the fireplace with other guests, and bathed in the cypress bath. It was a wonderful experience in the traditional house of the glittering snow world. I met a British in the guesthouse, but I was a little bit nervous to speak poor English to him in front of my friend. I visited the village in the middle of winter, but it seems that the summer scenary is also good. Hida Beef potato cake was expensive 200 JPY (2 USD), but very tasty. The view from Shiroyama observation point was great. We also visited Wadake farm house it is a must-see in Shirakawa-go. @Shiretoko(2007.2.11-13) We joined a tour with a bus from Memanbetsu airport surrounded by snow. Thanks to the tour, we could have visited all the attractions in Doto area without any troubles. On the first day, we headed for Shiretoko. Our hotel was gorgeous Hotel Shiretoko. Moving to Utoro by hotel limsine bus, we watched the Winter Shiretoko Aurora Fantasy Show in Ryuhyo Nature Park beyond the Oronkoiwa Rock. The show lasted only a 20 mins program, but it was fun to walk around Utoro Harbor at night. The Godzillaiwa Rock which looked like Godzilla was also located in the harbor. In the next morning, we joined a Ryu-Hyo Walk Tour in which we walked on the drift ices in Okhotsuku and also bathed in the sea with a dry suit. It was a good experience. On our way to Abashiri, we caught a glimpse of Oshinkoshin Waterfall and wild Ogiro hawks. Then a nature guide got on our bus and gave us a guide. However, the main attraction to us for the day was drift ices in Okohtsuku Sea. The amount of drift ices is getting less and less these days, and so we were lucky to see them from Icebreaker Aurora in Abashiri. Actually, the icebreaker scheduled before ours were all cancelled, because there were not enogh ices drifting around the area. The Abashiri Prison Museum was very vast and interesting. I had been to some prison remains in Ausrtralia, but that was the first time to visit a prison of Japan. Come to think of it, there may not be other prison remains in Japan. The other attraction was Okhotsuku Ryu-Hyo museum. It housed some landed drift ices. The ticket included a sled ride and that was rather fun. On our way to Akanko Lake on which our hotel was located, we dropped by Mashuko Lake. Usually, it is misty around there, but luckily it was clear on that day. The area is famous for milk. So we had hot milk in the souvenir shop and bought a box of milk chocolate for a friend. In Akanko Onsen, the Lake was iced and the Akanko On-Ice festival was held just in front of our hotel, New Akan Hotel, which was one of the most gorgeous hotel I had stayed. I enjoyed the rooftop bath twice in the evening and the next morning. In the festival, a local was explaining how the lake was iced with the ice block cut out of the iced lake. I also enjoyed riding a snow mobile. At the end of the festival, I watched a firework show. Then I entered Aynu Kotan theater for 900 JPY, where Aynu native citizen of the area performed their taraditional dances and music. On the last day in Doto area, we visited Mihoro Pass. We got a splendid view of Kusharoko Lake. The pass was slippery with snow, when we walked up, but the scenary from up there was a must-see. @Mt.Koya My mom and I joined a tour to Mt. Koya for 4500 JPY per person. It took 6 hours to reach the temple from the back of the Nagoya Station. The bus seat was too small for me and it was really hard just to sit. The time we spent in Mt. Koya was only 2 hours. In the short time, we visited Okunoin with a guide, passing throgh the huge grave yard including Ieyasu's Tomb. We also visited Kongo-Sanmaiin which had a national treasure pagoda, but I was not sure why it was a tour destination, because it was not so impressive. Still, it seems to be designated as a World Heritage Site. By the way, I already blogged about Kii Mountain Range in another entry, Central Japan. Mt. Koya is just a part of the mountain range and it is impossible to see everything there in a few days. @Kii Mountain Range(see "My neighbourhood") @Yakushima Island(see "Kagoshima" blog) : I love this island the best out of the sites listed in this blog entry.@Himeji Castle(2008.5.17) The latest trip in Japan was for Himeji Castle. I visited there, just because I had to go to Osaka to take TOEFL and the castle happened to be close to Osaka. It is very accessible on foot from Himeji train station. It was designated as a World Cultural Heritage Site and a National Treasure of Japan. Considering that there are only four national treasure castles in Japan (Himeji, Inuyama, Hikone, and Matsumoto), Himeji Castle is a must-see. In fact, there were more tourists from overseas in Himeji than I had expected. I felt the castle was well-preserved, and partly well-restored and well-prepared for both domestic and international tourists.@Nikko (see "Tokyo Hot Spot")
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/15/1232876940/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/15/1232876940/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/15/1232876940/tpod.html Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:32:14 -0500 The Westernmost Islands, Okinawa

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Naha, Kyushu-Okinawa, Japan

I had never been to Okinawa, although it is the most popular tourist destination of Japan. Honestly, it didn't look so attractive to me, because I thought Okinawa was just a beach resort and there was nothing I am especially interested in. However, when I decided to travel three days, which are the longest holidays I can take now, Okinawa was the best choice as far as I can think of. Besides, my mom, a 75 year-old lady, was eager to travel at least once in Okinawa, even though she didn't know much about tourist attractions of Okinawa. All the cost of the three day travel was about 42k JPY per person with ANA tour program. Not bad. On day 1, just after we arrived in Okinawa at half past one, we headed for DFS Okinawa in Omoromachi where we were supposed to rent a car. The monorail from the airport to DFS was comfortable, although we were starving because we had planed to eat a flight meal, but it was not served. So we bought some Chinsuko, Okinawan sweets, at the monorail station and filled in our empty stomachs. Anyway, the rental car prepared for us was better than that we expected. I hate to say this, but that was the first time to drive a car with a car navigation system, because I don't drive in an unknown area so often. At first, it confused me a couple of times until we got to Shuli Castle, but I got used to it immediately and it became a must during our stay in Okinawa. The first destination was Shuri Castle located in Naha, which is the most touristy castle of Japan. It was rebuilt in 1992 and the original foundation parts are still under the ground. So the castle building itself is new and beautiful. Compared to the other castles of Okinawa, it is easy to imagine what original Okinawan castle was, because the other castles were all ruins without the main buildings. After we parked in the parking lot near Shurei-mon Gate, we walked up to the main buildings. In front of the gate, there was a stage which had Okinawan traditional dance shows. The shows were interesting, but we didn't have enough time to watch all the shows. Paying 800 yen per person for a admission ticket, we passed the gate to the main buildings. Immediately, we found the most picturesque building of Okinawa there, which had completely different appearance from those of Japanese castles. It was mainly colored in red and closer to the palaces I had seen in Korea and China. We took a break in the tea room of a building there, having traditional Okinawan cookies and viewing the castle garden with limestones. In the main hall, we could catch a glimpse of the remnants of the foundation wall, which explained the castle was destroyed by fires and the battle of WWII and rebuilt on the remnants. As a matter of course, the remnants were just ruins which never attract a lot of tourists like the rebuilt building do, but even the glimpse a little bit excited me, because that was a proof of the existence of the original one. Usually, I prefer ruins to rebuilt ones, but this time both parts were seen and rebuilt parts were also interesting. So, all in all, Shuri castle was definitely worth a visit for me. It was almost six in the evening, when we left the castle. So it was time to go to our hotel, Tokyo Daiichi Hotel, in Okinawa City which was one hour far from the castle. The hotel was located on a hill, so the night view of the city from the 13th floor where we stayed was beautiful. Unfortunately, it was not convenient for shopping in Okinawa, even in a big city like Okinawa City. Leaving my baggage in our room, I went out for a convenience store around the foot of the hill and walked about half an hour, which resulted in a waste of time. Instead, I found a take-out diner. On my way back to the hotel, I tried a shortcut, although a crew member of the diner told me the best way to the hotel. Luckily, I got there in 10mins without being lost, but I should have realized that Okinawa was not so convenient to live in. On the second day in Okinawa, first of all, we visited Nakagusuku Castle. We paid 300 yen admission fee and, just after that, we found cherry blossoms, Kanhi Zakura, blowing in late January in Okinawa, much earlier than the other parts of Japan. To tell the truth, we didn't expect it in Nakagusuku Castle, but in Nakijin Castle. That's why we decided to skip Nakijin Castle later. The castle was a beautiful ruin but much less popular than Shuri Castle, although it is also a UNESCO's World Heritage Site. However I guess some people like it better, because it inspires our imagination. Especially, the farthermost area of the castle park seemed like a real ruin, not restored part, and I liked it. The view of the Pacific Sea from the top of the castle wall was also wonderful. The second destination on day 2 was Southeast Botanic Garden. I was not sure if it was fun for us who had visited tropical botanic gardens in Japan and overseas many times. "Unfortunately", however, we had advance tickets for the garden, which was originally included in our tour program, and the garden was situated just on the way to the next destination, Ryukyu Mura. So we tried it, found out it was enjoyable for children or a family, not for us, and left for Ryukyu Mura immediately. Ryukyu Mura was more attractive with the world's thickest rope, buffalo working to mill sugar canes, Okinawan traditional sweets, and Eisa dance. In the restaurant, we tasted Okinawan buckwheat noodle soup, which had some ingredients of Chinese noodle soup. They also gave us tumblers with some drink coupons in exchange for ANA coupons. We had a good time there even for one and a half hour visit. Manzamo is said to be the best natural beauty of Okinawa. It is a cliff shaped like a elephant trunk and a vast field on it. However, we didn't have to spend much time in seeing everything in there, so that we left twenty minutes later than we arrived. In my opinion, it was not a must-see, but still the scenic site with the coral reefs. The last, but not least, destination on day 2 was Churaumi aquarium. Before I went to Okinawa, I thought we didn't need to go there, because we were able to see fish in any aquariums. In addition, aquariums are generally more expensive than other attractions. The aquarium was far from other attractions and that was another reason why I didn't want to go. Anyways, I didn't know why it was so popular among tourists. However, my coworkers told me to go there definitely, even if they had never been there, because of the world's largest tank and whale sharks. So I took a chance against my will. I drove 53kms from Manzamo and reached the aquarium at 4 o'clock. It was Monday, but there were a lot of tourists, probably the most tourists in Okinawa. To get tickets in exchange for our coupons at the entrance counter, they gave us some money back, because the admission fee was discounted after 4. Needless to say, the best attraction was whale sharks swimming in the largest tank with 60cm thick acrylic panel. I took so many pictures in front of the tank until I got the best shot. I can't say I fully enjoyed the aquarium, but it is sure that I took the most pictures there of the all the attractions in Okinawa. Our hotel, Onna Marine View Palace, was close to the Onna beach. We arrived there about 8, although we left the aquarium before dusk, because we were caught in a traffic jam and paid a visit to the Confectionary Palace, which was a gift shop and restaurant located on the way to the hotel. We had champloos, traditional Okinawan dishes, and they were inexpensive, but very good. After we arrived at our hotel, I enjoyed Awamori, Okinawan spirit, for the first time. Because I had seen souvenir bottles of Awamori in Ryukyu-mura village, I wanted to taste it at least once in Okinawa. The hotel gave me a complimentary drink ticket, although I had to pay extra 300 yen, and that was a perfect chance to taste traditional Okinawan sake.On the last day in Okinawa, firstly, we visited Seifa-Utaki, a spiritual place. Old Okinawans had some religious rituals in the middle of the forest. The routes in the forest were paved with stones and surrounded by attractive tropical trees, but some parts of the routes were slippery and it is better to use a cane sometimes which you can borrow for free at the starting point. In the most important site, two large rocks were naturally put together to make a route to the altar, where we can see the Pacific Sea through the bush. Seifa-Utaki had less visitors than the other attractions in Okinawa, but very beautiful and worth a visit. After leaving Seifa-Utaki, we visited Okinawa World with Gyokusendo Cave, which has one of the largest limestone cave system in the East. There were some strange shaped stalactites and stalagmites. The ticket for the park was the second most expensive, 1200 yen, but we had had a coupon of ANA beforehand, so we couldn't miss it. At first, I thought the cave was too long to my mom who has poor eyesight, but the route was easy and bright enough to walk along and especially after she got used to the darkness, there was no problem and even she walked much faster than me. By the way, the park had another attraction, Eisa. To tell the truth, we had seen it in Ryukyu Mura, but this time it was better than that with more performers, a spacious stage, a lion dance, and a huge drum placed on the stage. Unfortunately, we were forbidden to take pictures during the performance, because of a lot of troubles in the past, but they allowed us to take some picture in the end of the show. After the show, we had lunch in the restaurant next to the stage, where I had green caviar for the first time, although it is an Okinawan specialty. It was not especially good, but the bowl with green cavier and some seafood was very good. Then we headed for Shikinaen Garden which was our last destination and a World Heritage Site recognized by UNESCO. The garden had some Okinawan tastes and it was more like Japanese garden than Chinese one. There were twin limestone bridges on the pond: one bridge on the pond was interestingly rock-made and the other bridge was beautifully stone-made, which may have some meaning I don't know. Finally, I encountered Deigo, the Okinawan prefectural flower blowing in the spring. Usually I am not interested in flowers so much, but the name appears at the beginning of a popular Okinawan song, Shimauta and that's why I stopped to see it closely. Unfortunately, it was not blowing at that time, but the bark of the tree was so stout. On our way back to Okinawa DFS, we passed a graveyard. Interestingly, it had Okinawan gravestones shaped like houses. They may cost much more than our simple ones, but may be able to house more dead bodies.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/14/1222350420/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/14/1222350420/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/14/1222350420/tpod.html Tue, 10 Nov 2009 06:22:00 -0500 Milton Keynes with John

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Milton Keynes, England, United Kingdom

John picked me up at the Heathrow airport in the evening and drove me to his house in Milton Keynes. I felt it was a weird, too modernized city, which was unlike an antique English city which I had wanted. But I couldn't complain, because he gave me a free accommodation and drove me around England almost everyday in his car. It was a wonderful experience, but, unfortunately, the first and last time to travel with him. I can't see him, even though I am eager to do, because he is not on this planet anymore... He lent me his digital camera so as to take photos, because I didn't have one. Come to think of it, I was very stupid to travel abroad without a camera! Now I want to show him my pics taken while I backpacked abroad just like he often did.Surprisingly, things were very expensive in England and I didn't want to spend much money. So I always ate sandwitches or pasta cooked in his house. During my stay in England, I visited a lot of cities such as London, Bath, Oxford, Lake District, Blackpool, and Hay on Wye and John's friend's places in Preston and Hereford. I met and stayed with Mr. and Mrs. Nakamura in Hereford for a couple of days. Although John had talked about them many times before, it was the first time to meet them. We took a walk in the neighborhood including horse trails and it was a comfortable exercise in the morning. In London, Tower of London, City Hall, Tower Bridge, British Museum, Parliament Hosuse with Big Ben, Trafalgar Square (only a glance) and everything in London were impressive. I took a double-decker sightseeing bus, which made it easy to see the appearance of London, and I was impressed with the architectures, although John told me that they were just impressive "appearance". We spent a wonderful night in watching a busk show at Piccadelly Circus and run to catch the last train for Milton Keynes, and both of them were the most unforgettable experiences.A friend from Sophia University was studying in Wales University for a Ph.D. He happened to visit London and so I sent email to meet him there. We had an appointmet to see each other at the British Museum front gate, but I was late, because I was lost on the way and in the museum after I got into the museum from another gate. We didn't see much there, but he liked a special exhibition which I was not interested in. However, he gave me a postcard from the exhibition as a souvenir. At Lunch, he started talking to a waiter and I was surprised at his good English and depressed at my poor English at the same time. Then we walked up to Charles Dicken's House where we got students tickets, although we didn't have student ID's. It was a small house, but he was glad to visit there, because he majored in English literature. The next destination was the London Dungeon. There was a long line to the entrance of the attraction. Actually, the guide at the first room was difficult enough to upset me. I was impressed with Jack the ripper of the last part of the museum.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/16/1239101760/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/16/1239101760/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/16/1239101760/tpod.html Mon, 09 Nov 2009 10:00:44 -0500 The First Step to Overseas, Portland OR

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Honolulu, Hawaii, United States

It was my first and last time to travel overseas in the university days. At that time, my mom was alive and kicking and she was so fond of travelling that I was invited to travel with her sometimes. It was very lucky that we could travel to a foreign country and particularly Hawaii, one of the best places to take a vacation for Japanese and Americans. Actually, I don't remember so much about the travel and all I can do now is make a list of the places we visited.Diamond HeadWe preferred mountains to beaches even in Hawaii!Polynesian Cultural Center We enjoyed the Polynesian dance show at night. I got detailed information at the box office, but actually I couldn't understand English. I remember that the bus going to the park was filled with native Hawaiians.  Sea Life ParkIt is suitable for a family trip. We also enjoyed sea animal shows, but I was not sure that it was a must in Hawaii.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/10/1225604580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/10/1225604580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/10/1225604580/tpod.html Sun, 08 Nov 2009 08:54:48 -0500 Autumn Seoul, South Korea

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Panmunjom, Korea Rep.

South Korea is close to my country, Japan, and there are a lot of direct flights from some airports, including Central Japan International Airport near my house. The flight ticket cost only 31000 JPY (30 USD). I didn't know why I had never been to South Korea, even though it was the second popular country next to China among Japanese. Nov.2nd Getting off near the bus stop in Insadong, I headed for Seoul Backpackers. Actually, I called in the hostel at the Incheon International Airport and checked the availability. I spoke to a receptionist in English, but another receptionist who spoke Japanese waited on me. My 6 male dormitry room had an Onldol heating system and an own bathroom. Then I went to Insadong street to eat bibimbap for dinner. In the evening, I watched the movie Pirates of Caribian II on the large screen of the hostel, but it was noisy around there, and I couldn't enjoy it. When I arrived at Jongmyo, the ticket office was already closed, but the gate was still open. So I tried to get throgh the gate. Then a office lady appeared and said, "Are you Chinese?" in Chinese. I don't speak Chinese at all, but I understood the question, because I had been asked the same question many times. So I said,"No. I am Japanese" in English. Then another lady showed up and spoke to me in Japanese. Eventually, they gave me half an hour to see the shrine. Beyond Jongmyo Shrine, Changgyeonggung palace was located. Unfortunately, I was asked to get out soon at the closing time. I also visited Gyeongbok palace, but I was getting tired of Korean old buildings. Just at that time, I happened to see a ceremony in the square. I was lucky to see the traditional ceremony there. In addition, I got another luck. Just inside of the palace, there was a tourist information office with a beautiful Korean girl. I was able to reserve a ticket for Panmunjeon Tour. To tell you the truth, I had given up the ticket, because I asked about it both in a TI office on Insadong street and in my guesthouse, and they told me that no tickets was available. I was really glad to get the ticket. Anyway, I walked up to National Folk Museum located at the end of the palace, although I didn't enter the museum. The animal statues placed in cicle ware picturesque. Namdaemon Night View was great at that time, but now... There was a market near Namdaemon, which I bought a large backpack and an apple. When I bought an apple, the fruit vender was confused, because of my bad English pronunciation. Nov.3rd Taekwondo was difficult martial arts to a guy without flexibility. I tried one day training course in a Hoki Taekwondo. My master was late for the appointment and so I almost went back to the hostel. He was a good English speaker and we talked about karate as well as taekwondo. Anyway, I found myself too old to practice martial arts, especially because I was lack of flexibility. I wrote my personal motto on a fancy paper so as to hang it on the wall of the training hall and, instead, I got a certificate of the course and a souvenir pin badge. Suwon has a World Heritage fortress. Just outside of the Suwon Station, there was a tourist information office and a bus stop for the Suwon Fortress. When I asked the directions to Suwon Fortress in the TI office, I was glad to hear a reception lady applaud my English. Getting off the bus in the middle of Suwon, I started at Haenggung palace, climbed up the hill, and walked clockwise along the wall of the fortress. On the way, Hwaseomun water gate was beautiful with some birds. I also wanted to visit Korean Folk Village as well, but unfortunately I had no time. Nov.4th Before going to Panmunjeon, I revisited Namdaemun to see guard change. It was worth while seeing. I also dropped by Daehamun just to see a cermony. I watched it from inside, but it may have been different to the view from outside. Panmunjeon tour was operated in two languages, English and Japanese. It was very popular, but I barely booked a ticket. Before entering the Joint Security Area(JSA), all the participants wached a educational video, signed on a visitors declaration sheet, and got a budge for the tour. Actually I had prepared trousers in Seoul to join the tour, because LP guide said jeans were prohibited. However, there were some visitors wearing blue jeans. Soldiers there looked very strict and a little bit scary without any moves. I found a watchtower on the side of North Korea, they looked at our side all the time. In the tour, we entered a conference house located just on the border, which meant half of it was in South Korea and the other half was in North Korea. So I entered North Korea, too! The bridge to North Korea, Freedom Bridge, was closed by a gate with a lot of flags and streams. I peaked into the opposite side, but nobody was seen. In the tour, the Canadian sitting next me enjoyed it before the day. So I decided to try it after the tour. Actually, I knew there was a Jimjilbang near my house of Japan, but I had never tried it. This time, I was happy to take a native Jimjilbang in Korea. Unfortunately, because nobody spoke English there, I almost entered women's bathroom! On the Myung-dong Street, I found a rental DVD room, DVD Bang. It seemed like for couples, but I tried it alone. We don't have it in my country, Japan, but I think it would be a good business even in Japan. Unfortunately, there were not many videos in the shop. Nov.5th On the last day in Seoul, I had no time to go sightseeing. I wanted to visit Changdeokgung palace, although I was tired of Korean traditional building at that time. By chance, it was close to the bus stop where I caught a bus to the airport. So I took a picture of the gate and finished all my travel.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/13/1257603579/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/13/1257603579/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/13/1257603579/tpod.html Sat, 07 Nov 2009 10:07:28 -0500 Last Time in Sydney

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Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia

Canberra is a small city, but the capital of Australia. I couldn't find an available accommodation in Sydney on New Year's Day. So I travelled to Canberra, although I didn't even know what was interesting in the capital city. I arrived at the bus station and looked for my hostel, Canberra City YHA, which I had booked at Perth. It was the cheapest hostel in the city, but it was not so cheap, considering my experiences there. There are two parliament houses, old and new ones, and they are the only attraction I got interested in. The main purpose of the buildings is not tourism, so as a matter of course, they were not so fun. The city itself was also boring. It reminded me of the super-boring Japanese city, Tsukuba, which is built for academics. Canberra is the city for politics. So it is very natural that both cities should not be amusing to tourists like me. Australian Institute of Sports looked good at first, but it was not good. That may be because I had expected too much. There was a merry-go- round in the square near the hostel, which may be set to make the city merrier.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/13/1257413116/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/13/1257413116/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/misocutlet/13/1257413116/tpod.html Thu, 05 Nov 2009 05:17:20 -0500 Last Time in Sydney

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Kerikeri, North Island, New Zealand

Paihia looked interesting compared to Auckland. Waitangi Treaty Ground was a memorial place not only for me, but also for New Zealanders.I watched a show of Maoris and saw their large canoe and meeting house. I also visited Twin Kauri by bike, but it was too far and a offspring of Maori gave me a ride on my way to a pier to take a boat. Even after that, other townies helped me to get to the Kauri. Russell was commercialized as "Romantic Russell", but even after I visited the small town, I didn't know what was romantic.Then I went up to Kerikeri. Kerikeri is a real rural town, but the nature was beautiful especially along a river. I met a hedgehog near the YHA hostel.
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