Time Flies
So I’ve been here almost a week now and it’s been a busy few days! Got over the initial woes of not having a clue what was going on and now I’m just getting on with things. I’ve adapted to the local bus and train services which are really easy to use so getting around by myself when I need to isn’t an issue. I’ve also got used to the whole bowing thing. Despite being told and reading about fixated stares from the locals, or the “gaijin stare” (gaijin meaning literally “outside people” in Japanese), I’ve yet to actually notice (with the exception of one old chap in a restaurant the other day, who barely broke his stare at us for the entire duration of his meal…having said that there aren’t many foreigners in this area!) – everybody just seems to get on with their own business. This is especially the case on trains where there is almost absolute silence, and locals have an uncanny ability to fall asleep and then awake exactly at their stop and then walk off. I had heard about this but as they say, seeing is believing. I’ve seen many people wake up miles after their stop after falling asleep on the Metro (thats the local train service back home).
I’ve also picked up some essential, but basic language – such as how to ask for a beer. I’m really enjoying the food. At the minute i’d say Sushi is probably my least favourite. It’s nice but there isn’t much to it, and it’s a bit of a gamble when in “i’ll try this one” mode – sometimes it can leave a nasty taste…..like raw sea urchin for example. Not reccomended. Lots of it is nice though and the fish is very fresh. You also get pieces with hamburger and fried chicken – an excellent combination of east and west in my opinion.
My friend was at work on Wednesday and he recommend that I get out and throw myself in at the deep end by taking myself to what will be the first of many landmarks which I will visit in Japan – Himeji castle, which is supposedly the most impressive in Japan. So off I went on a local train and then a “special rapid” and then walked from the station to the castle without incident. An achievement in itself! Was absolutely roasting though, and by the time I arrived at the castle you could be forgiven for thinking that I had actually been pushed into a pool. In fact, the small lake surrounding the castle was almost too much of a temptation……Everybody else looked the same though, so I didn’t really care. Entrance to the castle was 600Yen, which is less than £3, and so continued the “everything seems so cheap” trend that I have already come to love. As this was my first taste of historic Japan, I spent about an hour wandering around. As is common in many places here, shoes weren’t allowed, so I was handed a plastic bag for my trainers, and then directed to put on some highly stylish brown leather slippers, which were really far too small and made walking up stairs a bit tricky. I noticed that other people were just walking with their socks on though, so I ditched the slippers. Took quite a few photos. In one particular photo, an old gent stepped into the shot just as the picture was being taken. This resulted in him and his wife apologizing and bowing profusely!
By this time I was feeling very thirsty so I left the castle and wandered around the grounds in a mission to find either a vending machine or a shop. I thought I had eventually found one, but to my horror, I arrived to find it was a souvenir shop…no drinks there! Found one eventually anyway, then wandered round a bit more before heading back to the train station via an indoor market and getting back to base camp, again with minimal confusion.
Had ‘sukiyaki’ that night which is a very traditional Japanese dish made up of beef, rice, and other stuff – reminded me of a casserole actually. You dip your meat in raw egg too – was very nice. The Japanese seem to have a real thing for all things raw. They take it too far though, because I was recently informed that you can get raw chicken in some restaurants. Think i’ll be giving that one a miss…
On Thursday we went to Kyoto which was the old capital. To be honest I didn’t think it was that nice a city really apart from a few parts and getting around was a nightmare because it was so busy – but the box had to be ticked! Visited a few temples, including the Golden temple which was fantastic, and then had a wander round some very traditional back streets which were cool. Was good but now that I’ve been I probably won’t bother to go back.
That night we went into Kobe properly (I had passed through and seen small parts of it), and it’s probably the best city I’ve ever been in! Spotlessly clean and loads of shops etc. Also a really nice harbour. Had a quick wander around the 1995 earthquake memorial ground, which still has street sections persevered as they were after the damage caused on the day of the earthquake. Ate ‘okonomiyaki’ which is difficult to describe. It’s kind of like a big omelette with meat and noodles in – yet another culinary delight. Japanese food is amazing to be honest. I’ve tried loads already, including stuffing my face with Sushi, Homer Simpson style. The raw sea urchin however, was truly as disgusting as it sounds, but when in Rome….
Went back to Kobe on Friday as it was my friends flatmates birthday. And special occasions call for special events – although I underestimated just how special. I was informed that we were going for Kobe Beef, in the longest established restaurant of it’s type in Kobe. Before I went away my friends dad said that if I went, I would never eat a better steak – the cows are fed on beer and butter. The chef cooked it right in front of us – you could tell it was good fillet, because when he was cutting it, it was like cutting butter. The result? The best meal I’ve ever had! Wasn’t cheap mind – just shy of £30 (5600Yen) for 4 courses and that was the special lunchtime rate. The same meal in the evening is more than double that. The problem is that this will be hard to top. It’s like when Jeremy Clarkson drove the Bugatti Veyron and he said he was saddened because motoring was now probably as good as it would ever get – this can be said for Kobe beef. Back home this would easily be a £100 per head meal. Then went up Mount Rokko on the cable car which offered some spectacular views of Kobe and it’s many man made islands.
Yesterday (Saturday) I spent most of my time lazing on the local beach catching the rays. Was a scorcher too – 38 degrees! Needless to say I was rather red by the evening. We went out that night with a chap called Keizo who my friend (i’m sick of saying “friend” – his name is Andy!) knows from the gym. A real character, and insisted on paying for everything! Went to see a modern Japanese house made entirely from wood which was great, then headed to a restaurant for ‘Yakiniku’, which is a Korean BBQ. You cook the meat yourself at your table. I think Health and Safety would have something to say about this at home. Keizo warned us that the place was a bit of a dump and that we “may see cockroach” but that the food was great and he went there with his family all the time. Considering he lives in a huge house with 2 Mercedes, I didn’t doubt the place for a second; and yet again I was not disappointed with the food. Didn’t see a cockroach either. After that we went to an Onsen which is a traditional Japanese public bath. Again it’s just something that has to be done! It’s a bit odd at first because it’s not customary in England to go into a spa in your birthday suit…but got used to that fairly fast. There was this one part in one of the baths which electrocuted you. One seat was very mild but the other one was pretty strong and seemed to provide a source of amusement for one older guy sitting in the other side of the bath when the westerners couldn’t take the electric chair. I should imagine my sunburn probably got a few chuckles too. Red….white…..red….. After that we briefly went to Keizos’ house and had my first taste of Sake (pronounced Sack-Ay) which is traditional Japanese rice wine. This one was plum flavour….reminded me of sherry. Keizo made an amusing comment about the Plum Sake: “Looot of sugar. Make you fatto.” Was good to be able to see things from the perspective of a Japanese person – an opportunity that other travellers may not get. Apparently it’s unlikely for a foreigner to be invited into the house of a Japanese person unless they know them very well. I certainly consider myself to be priviliged.
I decided to buy a new digital camera as my 3 year old Canon was looking in a rather sorry state – Managed to get a cracking Nikon for £47 less than at home with memory card, case etc – deal for only £103. Not spent a great deal of money this week either – so it’s a justifiable purchase. Dispite us clearly being foreign, the guy behind the still still tried to ask if we wanted to pay in installments (this took about 10 minutes to realise)! Apparently, it’s not uncommon to have customer service nightmare in Japan.
So that’s enough for now. Next time you hear from me I will probably be in Thailand. All is going well, the people are very friendly and incredibly polite. There are a few odd things – for example the spines on magazines are on the right so they read the magazine in the opposite way to us, although still read pages left to right. Also every shop has its own theme song sort of thing, which are about 30 seconds long and repeat constantly – amusing at first but then get a tad irritating (I will get a sample!). There are also vending machines everywhere, and cars turn off their lights at traffic lights at night. Also whenever you buy something in a shop, the cashiers have a tendancy to rabbit on and on in Japanese, even though it’s obvious I have absolutely no idea what they are saying. Finally, getting cash is a bit of a nightmare! For such a developed country, it’s strange that their cash machines look like they have been in service since the late 70′s!
Bye for now.
