Locations Visited: Tokyo, Kawagoe, Hiroshima, Miyajima Island, Fukuoka, Kyushu Island, Himeji
Language Spoken: Japanese
Words Learned: こんにちは (konnichiwa)– Hello; ありがとう (Arigato)- Thank you; はい (hai)– yes
Oh man, am I excited to share this leg of the journey! If any of my students know anything about me, it’s that Japan (日本) has been #1 on my “Places I Will Visit in Life” list, and they are honestly probably sick of me teaching about it every spring as the cherry blossom season comes around learning how to sing and play “Sakura” and taking a look into Japanese culture. Nicknamed “The Land of the Rising Sun,” Japan is an archipelago, or series of 6,852 islands with four primary islands containing most of the land and population. Springtime in Japan is famous for the “sakura” (桜) or cherry blossoms which turn entire cities and countryside all shades of pink and white for a few days during the bloom- but much more on that later.
Japan as a country has been around for a very long time, dating its original formation back to 660BCE with evidence of people here even long before then. The rich and long history is a big draw for many people to come and visit, and the warm and welcoming culture make it hard to want to leave. Delicious foods, beautiful shrines, and stunning nature wait around every corner. I’m so excited to share it all with you, so buckle up, grab some sushi, and let’s go!
Tokyo Pt. 1
Everyone knows of Tokyo. It’s one of those cities in the world that almost anyone has heard of alongside other greats like Paris, London, Rome, and New York City. I was a little nervous about getting here because Tokyo is absolutely gigantic, even when compared to some of those other cities I already visited earlier this journey. But I was also mostly excited, and I couldn’t wait to hit the ground running. With over 13.8 million people within the city, there is definitely not a lack of excitement or things to do. I was ready to finally experience all of the beautiful culture for myself (and eat some delicious food along the way!)
I really did hit the ground running. My plane landed super early, and I made my way immediately to drop off my bags at the hostel and start exploring. The first thing I wanted to see was Mt. Fuji in the distance, so I quickly made my way to the Tokyo Metropolitan Building in the Shinjuku District and went up to the top floor observation deck. I was super lucky, because the day was clear enough that Mt. Fuji could be seen on the horizon. Honestly, this was a high point of this entire journey so far. I’ve dreamt for years of getting to see this view, and I couldn’t believe I was there. I mean, come on… this volcano is so large that I could see it from the middle of Tokyo. How cool is that?!
I then walked my way to the Shibuya District where a famous Shinto Shrine is in the middle of a lush park. The Meiji Shrine is a major location to visit in Tokyo, and it did not disappoint. One thing you’ll start to see a lot of in my photos are the Torii Gates. They’re the arches in some of the photos below. Sometimes wooden, sometimes stone, sometimes painted a bright orange, they mark the space where a sacred place begins and ends, usually the shrines. Japan is filled with Shinto shrines from extremely large to very small, and so torii gates are everywhere. I kinda nerd out when it comes to Japanese culture (I blame growing up watching anime, playing Japanese videogames, and just all around being a nerd at heart), so seeing actual torii gates and real ancient Japanese culture for the first time was something that I can’t even describe. I had prepped my whole life for this moment.
There are lots of traditions and ways to show respect at Shinto Shrines. Outside of most shrines is a place to wash your hands using bamboo cups. Afterwards, you cross the torii gate(s) and head to the main area. There are places to leave money offerings to the spirits, and it is good luck to give 5 yen coins as an offering as they’re more rare. When you do so, you throw your coin, bow twice, clap twice loudly, and then bow once more. The clapping is to catch the attention of the spirit. Even if you do not practice Shinto, it is still respectful to do this, particularly in the major shrines.
Afterwards, there are fortunes, charms, and prayer plaques that you can purchase. It is common for students to come to a temple before big tests or when they need help and get a fortune or a charm to help them out. If your fortune is bad, you tie it up on a special place next to the temple to have the bad energy cleaned. I got a charm from one temple that said I would be lucky in having a job one day- so fingers crossed! Anyways, I went into all of this because I would be visiting a lot of shrines over the next few weeks, and it’s important that you understand why they’re so important to visit. They’re the center grounds for many festivals and events, and tend to be where a lot of the daily life stems out of! They’re really special!
I’ll just touch the highlights of the rest of my time in Tokyo from here on (otherwise I may have 5 posts just on Tokyo itself!). A lot of my time in the city was just spent wandering around and eating as much as possible- including finding as much gyoza (pork dumplings) and ramen as I could and drinking all of the bubble tea that was in the city. My favorite area for both and just fun food in general that I kept finding myself in was the Harajuku District. This is a trendy, artsy area where all the cool new things are, so obviously I had to hang out here a lot. I got incredible food each visit with the highlights being the giant fluffy pancakes, and rolled ice cream tacos in a waffle cone shell! This truly was living my best life. There was also a really cool Alice in Wonderland store that my mom had found online that she wanted me to try to discover and I managed to stumble on!
I also found time to visit the National History Museum and learn more about Japan’s long and incredible history, and walk through the parks. I had a decent background knowledge, but it never hurts to take time to expand what you know, and there’s no better place to do it than right at the source itself. I finally spotted my first fully bloomed sakura tree and was so excited! It was much earlier than the rest, so I was going to have to wait a while to see the full bloom still, but it made me so excited for what was to come. I also made my way to the Imperial Palace grounds and got to explore the parts that were open to the public for a bit. It was wonderful getting to walk through the beautiful Japanese gardens and architecture.
I found time to also visit the local Pokemon Center, because I couldn’t go to Japan and not enjoy my own Pokemon journey as well. All of the Pokemon were dressed up in the sakura to celebrate the cherry blossom festival!
My last stop in Tokyo was a visit to Tokyo DisneySea because it is also my mission to visit every Disney World in the world. DisneySea was really incredible, with everything being water-themed and rides including 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Journey to the Center of the Earth. I won’t waste time talking more about it, but it is DEFINITELY worth visiting if you ever find your way to Tokyo. Check out some of the pictures!
Kawagoe (Day Trip)
I took a day trip up to the ancient Edo-Period castle town of Kawagoe during my time in Tokyo. I love big cities, but I was looking forward to getting into somewhere a little smaller and more authentic, and a friend from my hostel came with me! Our main goal was the “candy street” that Kawagoe is famous for, but we also wanted to enjoy the local shrines and see the traditional architecture that still stands through the city. I loved it here. We ate ramen and just wandered our way through the shrines and small streets. The blossoms were just beginning here as well… but nowhere near full bloom yet. Each day gets just a bit closer!
The Edo-Period took place between 1603 and 1868 and was the final period of the ancient traditional Japanese culture before moving in a different direction as a country following 1868. Kawagoe still has much of that history preserved and alive in the beautiful building that line the streets, and it provides a great glimpse at what Japan looked like back in time.
Lake Kawaguchiko and Mt. Fuji (富士山)
This was such an exciting day! I left my hostel early in the morning with my bags and headed off to Lake Kawaguchiko, a small lake just North of the base of Mt. Fuji, the famous active volcano that has been used in Japanese artwork, mythology, and culture throughout the country’s history. Like I said before, I’ve always dreamt of seeing this for myself, and I decided to spend the night near the base. I was a bit sad because it was took early and the year (and therefor too cold) to safely hike to the summit, and I was going to have to settle with enjoying it from the ground. It just means I have an excuse to come back again one day to hike it!
When I finally got to my new hostel, I rented a bike and headed down to the lake to find as many beautiful viewpoints as I could and just take in the landscape. I got a picnic lunch and just sat by the edge of the lake for hours enjoying one of the most beautiful views I’ve ever seen. Easily this became one of the top 5 days of my entire journey so far. I mean, look at how beautiful this volcano is. There’s no wonder why the ancient Japanese thought it was such a sacred space. Just standing where I was near the base was enough to make me speechless. It was one of the most awe-inspiring things I have ever seen, and that includes against things like the Pyramids, Taj Mahal, and everything else from this trip.
I got up really early the next morning before leaving to catch the sunrise over Fuji-san. It was so cold, but I was only frozen in awe of how incredible it was. This photo isn’t zoomed in or anything. I couldn’t believe this was the view from the roof of my hostel, and I was quickly getting sad that I would have to leave soon. One day I’ll be back to climb it’s peak, but for now I’ll just be thankful to have gotten a chance to enjoy it’s beauty on such a perfect day.
Hiroshima
This was a city I knew I had to visit during my time in Japan, but this time it wasn’t for the culture or the beauty, but to come and learn more about one of humanity’s darkest days, and to pay my respects to the survivors and the hope of how we can move forward. My first thought walking around Hiroshima once I got there was how beautiful, modern, and clean the city was, but something was off. I couldn’t quite place why I was feeling so uncomfortable, and then it finally hit me. Everything was so clean and modern because the entire city had to be essentially rebuilt in the past 60 years from the ground up. The beauty I was experiencing came at an incredibly high cost.
On August 6, 1949 at 8:15AM, the United States dropped an atomic bomb over Hiroshima, devastating and destroying the city, and causing years of suffering and struggle in its wake. This was one of only two uses of the atomic bomb use in actual conflict, the second being the Japanese city of Nagasaki just three days afterwards. I won’t tell you what you think about the ethics of war and/or the use of the atomic bomb- I know what I think and feel about it. But I will share what I learned while here.
Like I’ve told you before when visiting the WWII concentration camps in Europe, it’s important as travelers for us to not just go to the places that are beautiful and fun, but also to the places that make us confront pieces of human that aren’t so nice. If we don’t face it, we’ll never grow from it, and it will be doomed to repeat again. Many people, children included, unfortunately lost their lives that day or dealt with the affects of radiation for the rest of their lives. I know many of my students read Sedako and the Thousand Paper Cranes, the story of a young girl whose radiation exposure. led to the development of cancer. Legend has it that if someone makes 1,000 paper cranes, a wish will be granted, and she set to do just that. Unfortunately, she passed away from her sickness, but her story sparked a huge movement, and a monument to the children affected by the bombing still stands in the main park of Hiroshima.
While in Hiroshima, I spent time in the Atomic Bomb museum learning about the impact of the bomb and then walking around the Peace Park where memorials still stand, including the flame that will stay burning until all atomic weapons are gone from the Earth. I also visited the Atomic Bomb Dome, a large building that was below the detonation whose frame is still standing as a reminder. Hiroshima isn’t all sadness, though. I also managed to visit the Hiroshima Castle, rebuilt following its destruction, and inside was a museum about the history of the area throughout time. I love the style and architecture of Japanese castles.
Miyajima Island (Day Trip)
From Hiroshima, I took a day trip to Miyajima Island. This was a place that was easily in my top 5 places I wanted to visit during this entire journey, so to say I was excited was an understatement. The entire island is considered a sacred space, with temples, pagodas, and sacred sites throughout. One thing that’s really special, though, is the floating torii gate that is in the water by the Itsukushima Shrine. At low tide, you can walk up and pass through the torii on foot, but at high tide, the water comes up past the gate, making it look like it’s floating on water. This gate is another major symbol of Japan, and I was so excited to get to explore it and the island all day!
While here I made a new friend who was an expert on Japanese symbols and icons, and she gave me lessons about all that we saw. Including these little stone children who acted as protectors to travelers. We walked through temples, walked around and enjoyed the torii gate, and took a cable car up to the top of the mountain for some beautiful views of the whole island! This island is filled with a feeling of peace, and one of my favorite parts were all the wild deer all over the island. They loved to come up to people, but we weren’t supposed to feed them. Everything here met up with my hype and excitement, and I could not have enjoyed it more. Check it out below!
Back to Hiroshima
Following Miyajima Island, I hurried back to Hiroshima for an arts festival. I heard there was a chance to see some musicians play the Koto, which my students all will know is one of my favorite instruments in the world. I didn’t expect to get to actually play one! They gave me a quick lesson and then we played “Sakura,” a famous traditional Japanese melody that is played to represent all the beautiful blossoms of the season. This was easily one of the coolest things I’ve ever done. I was so lucky to play with two local musicians and get it on video! Check it out below!
Fukuoka and Kyushu
After my time in Hiroshima, I headed down to Fukuoka on the southern island of Kyushu. I had a few days in the area, and I was really excited because the blossoms were beginning to really open up here. Since Kyushu is so far south, temperatures are a little higher, which means an earlier spring and earlier blossoms. I had no set plan while on Kyushu- I just came to explore some new places until the blossoms began to open up towards Osaka and Kyoto where I would be going next.
While here I spent time at Fukuoka Castle where there was a fun sakura festival, and I even got sakura ice cream! I also took a day to just jump on the train and see where it would take me for the day. I stumbled on a really beautiful small town called Yanagawa which was filled with small canals and boats. It reminded me a lot of Venice, Italy but more natural and quiet. I absolutely loved it here and spent hours just walking alongside the canals watching all the boats and enjoying the beautiful day. Honestly, this was one of the prettiest places I had seen yet on this trip.
I also found my way to the city of Kumamoto where I wandered around the castle area and enjoyed more of the blossoms until heading back on a train to my hostel back in Fukuoka. The castle here was destroyed by a recent earthquake. Japan is right along a fault line, and earthquakes can be somewhat common here. I couldn’t go explore the castle since it was been renovated, but it was still really nice to look at from the outside!
Himeji
My last stop on my way up to Osaka and Kyoto was an overnight in the small city of Himeji. I came to Himeji with only one mission- to explore it’s large and beautiful castle! Himeji Castle, or the White Heron Castle, was initially built in 1333 and went through many reconstructions over the years until it was finally completed in 1618, where it has stood pretty much untouched for over 400 years. Now, y’all, this was a castle. I thought the ones that I had seen before were impressive, but this was a whole different level. I spent over 3 hours just walking through the rooms and the castle complex. Check out the photos below!
This is only half of the adventure in Japan. There is still so much left to see as the road leads me to Kyoto for the Sakura bloom. This country is so beautiful, and I’m enjoying every second of it! Get ready, it’s about to get a lot more pink, and some of my favorite sights are still ahead! Until then,
Have Courage, & Be Kind,
Mr. Weavil