Trip to Nikko, Japan

I got invited to go to Nikko, Japan this past Saturday.  Nikko is very beautiful. I had read about it and seen photos in the Japan travel books I have and was told by a lot of people that it is extremely pretty in the fall when the leaves change color. Nikko is about 2 1/2 hours north of Tokyo. I went just for the day and it is possible to see most of the sights in that time period but staying overnight probably would have allowed to see a bit more.  Because of the heavy traffic that is constantly entering and leaving Tokyo, we had to schedule our travel time so that we would avoid the heaviest traffic times.

 

 

Nikko is home to the famous Tosho-Gu Shinto Shrine. Parts of the shrine are about 400 years old and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. From what I read, there are a number of Japanese national treasures located at the Shrine. It is most famous for being the resting place of the famous Japanese leader and shogun, Tokugawa Leyasu. I was told that he was the leader who unified the northern and southern parts of Japan hundreds of years ago.

 

Across from the path to the shrine is the famous Sacred Bridge. I read that it is one of the three most famous bridges in Japan. I don't think the bridge itself is that beautiful but the surroundings around the bridge are what make it so pretty and popular.

 

 

To get to the shrine you climb up a path mostly lined with stone steps and trees. There are a number of good luck charms you can buy at the shrine. They also have wooden blocks with the animals from the Chinese Zodiac that you can purchase and write your wish on the back and then hang up so it comes true. The shrine consists of a number of important buildings. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

1. The stable of the Sacred Horses  - From what I read there are 3 sacred horses that live at the shrine. They rotate through spending time at the stable. I don't know why each horse is considered scared. I think in general horses are considered a sacred animal in Japan. At the top of the stable are carvings of monkeys. One of the carvings is the famous "Hear no evil. Speak no evil. See no evil." This saying originated in Japan because of the carving at the shrine.

 

 

 

There was a very pretty 5 tierd pagoda at the shrine as well. Each tier represents a different element.

 

 

 

Before you enter the main section of the shrine, you can rinse your hands. It is a symbolic gesture of cleansing yourself before entering.

 

 

At the back of the shrine is the building with a famous sleeping cat painted above the doorway. This cat is a symbol of peace and extremely popular in Japan. 

 

 

After you walk through the doorway of the sleeping cat you take a path and steps up to the resting place of Tokugawa Leyasu.

 

 

I took a video of a priest demonstrating how to rid the shrine of evil spirits but I could not get it to upload. Sorry.  It involves waving a stick with white paper with a series of bows and claps. It was quick and interesting to watch. I will try later to see if I can get the video posted. 

 

Here are some pics of some of the other beautiful  parts of the shrine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Afterwards, we walked down to the car and headed up the mountain. We went up a road known as the "abc" or something like that. The road has switchback after switchback and each section is a letter of the Japanese alphabet. When you reach the top of the mountain, you have completed the alphabet. At the top you are literally in the middle of mountains.  There was a small town full of restaurants and shops and you could rent boats to go on the water. We didn't have time to spend at the lake or look at shops but I did get some pics and then we headed off to the famous Kegon Falls.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kegon Falls is one of Japan's most famous waterfalls. I was hoping to be able to walk down near the water but it is a bit dangerous so you have to stay at the barricaded viewpoint to see it. It is famous for it's beauty and high number of suicides (unfortunately). The falls are extremely pretty. I love waterfalls in general so this was the part I was most looking forward to.

 

 

 

 

After the falls we hit the road to head back to Tokyo. It was a really nice day trip and again it was nice to get out of the city for a bit. I was hoping to see more colors on the trees but maybe next year.  I definitely recommend Nikko to those who visit Japan. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Beauty of Onsen

First I want to apologize for the lack of pics in this post.  I could not take photos in the onsen for obvious reasons. Here is the link to the onsen that I went to so please click on it to learn more. You click where it says "hot springs" to see pics.

http://www.fuji-yurari.jp/

Here I am relaxed and in my pj's after going to the onsen.  This was taken outside the front door. No pics allowed inside.

Sunday night I experienced my first Onsen. Japan is pretty much a giant volcano and there are many hot springs throughout the country. By many I mean probably a few thousand at least. For those who do not know, an Onsen is a bathhouse with hot springs.  They have various onsens all over. Some are more simple and plain and others are fancier and more private.  Most all onsens are divided into the men side and the women side. I think there are a few where it may be mixed or you can rent a private space for a "romantic date" or something. 

 

You get naked at the onsen. There are some where you can wear a swimsuit or undies but most all traditional onsens require you to go in completely nude.  The idea of going to an onsen didn't bother me at all. I was actually excited to go.  The American view of body image can be hard to break though here in Japan. The Japanese have no hang ups or concerns about being naked in front of each other at the gym or the onsen or anywhere. It is very normal and no one cares what your body looks like. In the states women are so concerned about their tummys, stretch marks, boob size, etc... so it can take some getting used to and you have to change your mindset about the body in general in order to feel comfortable.

 

So at the onsen they give you a key to a locker. You put all your things in the locker and keep the key on your wrist. You can use your key tag to purchase things at the onsen like extra massages or drinks.  You get completely naked and then head off to the shower/rinse area. I sat on the small wooden stool provided and used the shower head to rinse off completely. You have to soap down and you can wash your hair if you want to but once you actually go into the pool you cannot put your head or hair in - just your body. So after I got all soapy and rinsed, I headed down with the other ladies from the camping group and a few of their daughters and we hit the hot spring. I had a long towel and a short towel. You can use the long one to kind of cover yourself up as you walk around the small one can be to cover your head and hair. 

 

The hot spring was definitely hot. It was necessary to sit on some of the rocks with half your body outside the water to make sure you didn't get too hot. There was a smaller pool that was actually ice cold water. I had one of the girls put my towel in the cold water and she brought it back to me and I put it on my back. It was "take your breath away" cold but was a nice contrast to the heat of the pool I was sitting in.  After a bit we went into the enclosed pool that had a lower temperature and was infused with eucalyptus. It was really nice in there and we stayed for awhile. After we were all prune-y we headed back up to rinse and clean off again and head back to our campsite at the lake nearby. 

 

I really loved the onsen. It was so relaxing and felt great. It is a very beautiful thing to feel comfortable in your body and with the bodies of other women that surround you - no judgment, no comparing. Also, the onsen is for all people of all ages. Because I work and live in a tight expat community, my friend's daughters also attend the main campus of the school I work for and it was a bit strange that as a teacher we would be doing this all together (American culture at work). But it was absolutely no big deal at all and it was great to see these young girls be in a place where they could learn to be appreciative of the human female body. 

 

I am looking forward to experiencing onsen again regularly here in Japan.

Lake Motosuko

 

I was lucky to have a long weekend break and so I went with my new friends Chloe and Holly up to Lake Motosuko near Mt. Fuji. We went with part of a larger group of church friends and families from my school.  Chloe was able to secure us a tiny cabin that we stayed in. We had a small fridge and stove and complete bathroom. There was a small room with two bunk beds and the thin mattresses provided did little to provide cushioning but I was glad to be in the cabin and not in a tent.

                                    

 

The lake was really nice. The water was very clean and clear and there were a lot of coy fish that you could see right near the shore.  The water wasn't too cold either.  I tried wading a bit but the rocks were super uncomfortable to walk on. I had left my rafting sandals at the cabin so I didn't spend too much time walking in the water. 

                                     

 

 

There were a number of small mountains and hills all around. Lake Motosuko is one of five lakes that are around the Mt Fuji area.  The view of the mountain from the lake was really nice. This first pic is just one of the smaller mountains in the area. The second is the view of Mt. Fuji from the lake.

 

 

 

 

 

There was this yellow boat submarine thing that you could ride to the other side of the lake and back. It had a glass floor that you could look through to see all the fish in the lake. I opted to not take the ride. A bit too hokey for my taste.

 

 

I did try to row a boat and I sucked at it.  I went it alone and had a hard time with the oars. I was trying to think about the last time I had rowed a boat and I think it was in 3rd or 4th grade at camp Namanu.  

 

 

 Hanging out at the campfire with Holly and Chloe.  Our friend Carolyn provided us with some tin foil dinners our first night and we were able to make some smores as well. 

 

 

Sunday morning I hiked a trail with my friend Fumiko and her husband and kids. It was a fairly easy uphill hike and at the top you were supposed to be able to see the mountain but there were too many clouds that rolled in so I only was able to get a shot of the very top of it peeking out.

 

 

That night we made banana boats at the campfire which I hadn't done in years. I loved banana boats as a kid and was happy to make and eat one after so many years. After eating we headed off to an Onsen. My experience at the Onsen is in my next post so feel free to check that out.

 

 

 

Overall it was a nice weekend. It was nice to be outside of Tokyo and surrounded by nature. I read and finished The Maze Runner while away and it was great to have time to read a book all at once.  It was nice to be more casual with people and to also get to know people better too.  I feel a bit lonely here at times so I was glad to be able to work on developing some more friendships with people during the weekend.