11-18 October, Japan

Kyoto maiko (young geisha in training) getting a lift on a rickshaw

We left the heat and bustle of Hong Kong to arrive in the peace and cleanliness that is Japan. We spent our first two days in Yokohama, Japan's second largest city just south of Tokyo. For a visitor it is hard to work out where Tokyo ends and Yokohama starts. These are large cities that are merging into each other. We took the train and underground from the airport and were particularly pleased to make our way to our hotel in Yokohama without getting lost! Train and underground stations in Japan can be incredibly confusing, especially when there are multiple entrances and exits and only Japanese symbols that provide information!

Leo, Yoshiko and Mette

While in Yokohama we met with Yoshiko and baby Leo. We spent the day together sightseeing and took the Sea Bass around Yokohama harbour. "Sea Bass" is a great example of how Japanese spell English words the way they are pronounced by Japanese. The intended name for the boat is Sea Bus - we understood what they meant. Japanese has fewer sounds than any other language and therefore it is more difficult for native Japanese speakers to pronounce English words. Consequently, we ordered "pulling" in a restaurant in Kyoto and were pleasantly surprised when we were served ice cream and something a bit like creme brulee. Both "d" and "r" seem to be pronounced "l" here, hence the number of Japanese who say "solly".

Window cleaners in Tokyo are never short of work as long as they have no fear of heights. Taken from the 45th floor of the Tokyo Government Building

Japanese peoples' command of English is by far superior to our command of Japanese. So far we have managed to learn 3 new phrases: Domo arigato which is thank you, koin randorii which is laundrette (oh yes, we are frequenting our favorite locale even here in Japan) and gochiso-sama deshita which means it was a real feast, we say that as a thank you for a good meal.

Waiting for the bullet train at Shin-Yokohama station

After enjoying a day sampling the bright lights and sky scrapers in Yokohama we made our way to Kyoto on the bullet train. Kyoto is possibly the most beautiful city we have visited on this trip. Kyoto was the home of the imperial family from 794 to 1868 and for a long time the nation's ancient capital when under Shogun rule, and it has been the centre of both religion and wealth creation. There are 17 world heritage sites in Kyoto and if you are interested in Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines it is the place to visit. By the time we left Kyoto we invented a new phrase which we call "templing", it's like sightseeing but involves specifically viewing temples and shrines in large numbers and at speed. Templing in Kyoto was fantastic fun, and completely different from templing in Angkor Wat. But we are now officially "templed out"!

View of Kyoto from one of the many temples

Kyoto house and Kyoto style combined front garden and garage

We stayed in traditional Ryokans and enjoyed the experience of minimalist living. When changing into yukatas we discovered the Japanese have yet to sew a yukata big enough for Stephen. We slept on floors covered with bamboo matting, which are soft and warm to walk and beautifully made with decorative fabric edgings. One of the striking things about Japan is the importance of making everything aesthetically pleasing. This also means that there are endless beautiful items that can be bought at a (high) price. Even as a Norwegian I can confirm that Japan is mostly expensive although it is possible to find inexpensive restaurants and shops outside of tourist areas.

Enjoying a cuppa in our yukatas at the Ryokan

Plastic food displays in restaurants help locals and tourists alike choose what to eat

Japanese rituals are many and elaborate, but ignorant westerners like us blundered through, I am sure we offended countless people by wearing slippers when we shouldn't have. But, what can you do when you have been wearing the same socks for six months and which now have many holes in them! In the Ryokans that we stayed in there were public baths which are popular among the Japanese. We were planning on using them, but chickened out when we contemplated the many options for losing face and even embarassing our fellow bathers. That is one experience to savour when we return.

Mette observing one of the local rituals cleansing her hands in holy water before entering a temple

On our last night in Kyoto we enjoyed some fantastic suki yaki at a restaurant where we had our own private dining room and lady in kimono who cooked for us at our table. Suki yaki is high quality thin slices of beef, tofu and vegetables cooked in a thick saki broth and then dipped in raw egg. It was truly memorable and puts leathery British beef to shame.

View through the temple door

The Golden Temple, Kinkakuji, one of the 17 world heritage sites in Kyoto

Monk on the run

Our last few days have been spent in Tokyo, meeting Naomi and enjoying a Japanese breakfast together, and one last bit of "templing" at the Imperial Palace before jumping on a plane homeward bound. Our visit to Japan has been quite special and we realise we have only scratched the surface of this fascinating country. We would like to return, but with bikes. It's good to plan for the future and now we have the destination for our next big bicycling adventure.

Naomi and Mette enjoying japanese breakfast

For those of you who have been following this blog, this is the end of our tale, it has been a very special trip for both of us. Sayonara for now, normal life beckons, we are both now really looking forward to a nice cup of English tea.

Stephen and samurai Colonel Sanders say sayonara!