Hagi Takayama stay in February 2013, by Eileen from Singapore

Our stay was from Feb 15 2013. Thanks to Japanese Guest Houses, our reservations at Hagi Takayama were all taken care of. They arranged our shuttle pick up at 3.05pm (pick up is just outside the Washington Hotel, across the road on the right side, from the Takayama Station). Its about a 15min ride.

Hagi Takayama, by Eileen L. from Singapore

The ryokan has lovely views of the landscape because its located higher up on a hill. We were treated to beautiful snowy scenes from the large windows around the ryokan, as well as from our 10 tatami mat room balcony on the 3rd floor. The whole place is very clean and cozy.

View from Hagi Takayama

We would like to say a special thank you to Mr. Hiroshi Kawabe for his attentive & helpful service throughout our 5 night stay.

MEALS
Good kaiseki dinners with portions that were just nice for both of us. Tender slices of Hida beef.
Our meals were in the restaurant where great and friendly staff attended to the guests. When we were there during the winter, the latest dinner time was at 7pm. The cuisine was a good selection with very fresh ingredients and they changed the dishes every night for us, which was great.

Dinner at the Hagi Takayama

Breakfast is between 7am-8.30am (that means it ends at 8.30am altho one can sit around for a while till about 8.45am). We are not used to having breakfast so early, but on hindsight it was good to have a much longer day ahead of us if we ate at 7.50am.. Again, very thoughtful of them to change the main dishes during our stay eg it was nice to have 2fried eggs with ham on our 3rd morning.

Breakfast is semi buffet – each of us had our own personal tray of special items and we could also help ourselves to the free flow of beverages, croquettes, salad, porridge etc at the side table.

ONSEN
1. They have a public INDOOR onsen with lovely views on the 4th floor (6am – 9.30am is for men, 3pm – midnight is for ladies). Interesting wall designs in the wash area.

On the same 4th floor is a private onsen bath where reservation and charge is needed. Morning 6am-9.45am are for the men and afternoon 4pm – 11.45pm are for the ladies. We didn’t try it so no comments.

There are another 2 public indoor & attached outdoor onsens near the annex – a short walkway from the ground floor (or a quick dash in the freezing cold). Each bath is interchanged between men and ladies daily. Morning times are 6am-9.30am & 3pm-midnight. We really enjoyed the outdoor rock pool esp with the snowy view.

The dressing rooms in the onsens have a very good selection of toiletries.

SIGHTS:
As it was snowing and pretty cold most of the days (around -5 degrees C to 10 degrees C) we were more than contented to stay in, relax, catch up on all our reading, soak in the onsen early, just enjoying the accommodation. The views from the large window panes were lovely.

Hida Folk Museum

We did visit the Night illumination of the Hida Folk Museum – blessed with nice clear sky that night – it was an enjoyable outing. The ryokan has its own shuttle that took us there at 7.30pm and fetched us back at 8.20pm.

Pros: High on a hill with lovely views from their large windows. Everything was great for us and we will definitely return again.

Lovely snowy landscapes in winter but a little too cold for strolling. So it depends what you are looking for. This season is great for us because we just want to rest and relax and get away from the noise and hustle bustle back home.

Hida Folk Museum

Cons: Its too far to walk down to the little streets. So you will have to depend on the morning shuttle to get down to the little city for your strolls (last shuttle 10am). The afternoon shuttle starts at 3.05pm. In between, you will need to take a taxi.

TIPS: If you are planning on taking a train to Takayama – take note if travelling on a weekend. We came directly from the International airport in Nagoya to Nagoya station on a Friday morning (Feb 15).

Our SIA flight from Singapore landed at 8.30am. We cleared customs and immigration quickly and caught the Sky Express train at 9:07am to Nagoya station.

We reached the Nagoya Train Reservation Ticketing counter at 10.05am and managed to catch the 10:47am Limited Express Wide Hida View to Takayama.

If we had not caught the 10:47am train, we would have had a very very long wait for the 4th train, arriving at Takayama very very late. That’s because the next 3 trains after ours were fully booked.

We arrived Takayama at 1:10pm. The scenery (later half) from the train windows during the journey are pretty scenic. We had lunch at a quaint soba/ramen shop opp the street (get a map from the Tourist Information office just outside the Takayama station).

On our return journey from Nagoya station to the airport – Our flights was 10.30am and we caught the 7:20am Sky Express.

Its really worth paying a little more for the Sky Express train. We noticed that the other trains and platforms were pretty packed by 7.15am.

By Eileen Lee

Aurelie and Alex C. in Japan

Aurelie made this video gathering all kind of things that might surprise foreigners in Japan.

This is the first episode relating their trip during Japanese Autumn, in Osaka.



In the second episode they stayed at the Yunoshimakan in Gero Onsen and at the Fujioto in Tsumago.

Looking forward to see the second part...

Discount for transport in Japan

One of the best transportation deals available to travelers to Japan is the JR Rail Pass which gives you unlimited train rides on almost all JR Trains including the Shinkansen Bullet Trains. This one pass can save you hundreds of dollars and pays for itself with just a round trip between Tokyo and Kyoto. This pass is only available outside Japan so you will need to purchase it before you arrive. For more information please see http://www.japanrailpass.net/ and when you are ready to purchase your JR Rail Pass please visit ACP Rail.

Many airlines are also offering discounts,

For not resident in Japan;
JAL and ANA offer several passes that have to be purchased in your country. For more information please see below:
The "One World Yokoso-Welcome to Japan Fare"
http://www.jal.co.jp/yokosojapan/

The "Star Alliance Japan Air pass"
http://www.ana.co.jp/wws/us/e/wws_common/fare/special/airpass.html

Finally but not last; the Low-coast Airlines offer very attractive prices. Here are the most popular low-cost airlines in Japan:

Peach Aviation
http://www.flypeach.com/home.aspx

Air Asia Japan
http://www.airasia.com/jp/en/home.page

Jetstar Japan
http://www.jetstar.com/jp/en/home

Sapporo Snow Festival

After a long and hot summer, let's think about a nice plan for this winter. The Sapporo Snow Festival (Sapporo Yuki Matsuri) is the most popular winter festival in Japan. Every year about 2 millions visitors join this event. Hundreds snow statues are built every year in February. In 2013, the festival will be held from February 5 through February 11.

Snow Festival in Sapporo

Hotels will quickly become fully booked, so you better arrange your itinerary soon. At Japanese Guest Houses, we will do our best to find an accommodation for you: http://www.japaneseguesthouses.com/db/sapporo/index.htm
The festival is main organized in the Odori park This is where you will find the most popular snow sculptures. While some statues are human size; other ones are huge !

Light up in Sapporo

The Susukino Site, in this "bubbling neighborhood" (especially at night), ice statues are exhibited. We recommend you to visit it at night; there is a light up until midnight, every day.

Finally the Tsu Dome Site; this one entertains families. There are several snow slides around the dome. Inside the dome; like in every Japanese festival you will find numerous food stands. The Tsu Dome Site opens daily from 9:00 to 17:00.
Interesting numbers;

• Number of Snow or Ice Sculptures in 2012: 228
• The amount of snow transported for the festival is around 32,500 tons
• 2.416.000 visitors for the 62nd Snow Festival (2011).

Snow slides in Sapporo

Kodaiji temple in Kyoto,

The Kaisan-do hall view from the main hall at Kodaiji temple

Kodaiji, one of the greatest temple in Kyoto. It's located up on the hill above the Gion district. It's very quiet and always get some wind that you really enjoy during hot summer days! It was established in 1605 by the noblewoman "Nene" (Kita-no-Mandokoro) in memory of her husband Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536-1598).
Kodaiji gives a very good representation of Japanese architecture and Zen Buddhism with exquisite craftsmanship and Japanese gardens.

Zen garden at Kodaiji

The garden was redesigned by the well known architect Kobori Ensyu (1579-1647). The garden is particularly famous for its stone layout. It is said that the in the south section a group of stones represents a crane and in the north section, in the pond an island has the shape of a turtle; however I guess this depends on everyone’s imagination. Personally I couldn't see the crane or the turtle !

The Iho-an tea ceremony house

 The Iho-an is a tea ceremony room. This house and the Onigawara-seki (two other tea houses located on the top of the hill) are good examples of the design of the Kodaiji.

Bamboo grove at Kodaiji

Down from the hill, visitors pass throw a bamboo grove, another typical element of Japanese gardens.

Looking for a good place to stay near the Kodaiji:
Ryokan Motonago: www.JapaneseGuestHouses.com/db/kyoto/motonago.htm
Tamahan: www.JapaneseGuestHouses.com/db/kyoto/tamahan.htm
Rikiya: www.JapaneseGuestHouses.com/db/kyoto/rikiya.htm

Hot Spring in Takedao Onsen

Looking for a hot spring in Kansai, near Osaka?
Arima Onsen is the most popular hot spring in the area, however it is not convenient to access and it can be really crowded. How about Takedao Onsen?

Outdoor bath at Takedao Onsen

The Koyokan Bettei Azale offers premium quality hot spring baths. This is a off the beaten tracks spot; most Japanese people living in Osaka don’t even know about it. Takedao Onsen is located 40 minutes away from Osaka, on the Western side of the agglomeration.
From Osaka station you will have to take the Fukuchiyama line. If you take an express train don’t forget to change to a local train in Nishinomiyanajio (express trains do not stop at the Takedao Onsen station).

Indoor bath at Takedao Onsen

Takedao Onsen is hidden between Takarazuka and Sanda, in the Muko valley. This valley is so small that the train station was built inside a tunnel. Once you will get off the train, you will find yourself surrounded by nature. You will also notice that it’s a very quiet place; the only sound is coming from the river.From the exit of the train station, go on your right and walk 5 minutes. You will have to cross a dark tunnel, luckily it is only 50 meters long (about 160 ft); and on the right you will find the entrance of the Koyokan Bettei Azale.

The Koyokan Bettei Azale is a luxurious ryokan (Japanese Traditional Inn), renovated 3 years ago. It offers all the modern comfort, though it didn’t lose its Japanese charms. The Ryokan has 12 Japanese combined Western Hanare (Private Guest Residence) with private bathroom and views of the river or mountains.

Takedao Onsen

As a Hot Spring Ryokan, what I really appreciate about the Koyokan Bettei Azale is its baths. The baths are clean, quiet (few people know about this place) and though you go there on Saturdays you might be the only person using the baths. I went there last Saturday and I could enjoy the baths all for myself. It was great!!

I first took a quick shower beside the indoor bath. Then I could relax in the outdoor bath, listen to birds…what a relief when you come from the city center of Osaka.
For information the water temperature was 39 C degrees (Around 100 F), which is quiet mild.

After the bath I would suggest you to have a drink on the terrace, and just enjoy your time.

Kurashiki

Before or after Naoshima, “The Modern Art Island”, let’s step back in time and experience old Japan in Kurashiki !

Kurashiki is located in Okayama Prefecture, on the coast of the Seto Inland Sea. The town was an important river port. As a result, a number of elegant warehouse-style buildings were built to store rice, which was a valuable commodity during the Edo Period (1600-1868). Most of those typical warehouses have been preserved in the “Bikan district”. A walk along the quiet willow-lined canal will give a good image of traditional Japanese architecture. Often there are artists sitting by the canal making and selling trinkets.

The "Bikan district" in Kurashiki

Getting to the Bikan District is not hard just follow the signs from Kurashiki station. It takes about 10 minutes on foot from the JR Kurashiki station to the “Bikan district”. For a true Japanese experience, the Tsurugata Ryokan will welcome you; located in the heart of the "Bikan district" this traditional ryokan will serve you traditional Kaiseki dinner and breakfast (From 18,900 yen per guest per night).

The Ohara museum in Kurashiki

Magosaburo Ohara was a textile tycoon (1880 – 1943). Ohara financed trips to Europe for his friend, painter Kojima Torajiro, to study art.  Torajiro brought back artwork of El Greco, Gauguin, Monet, Matisse, and others. These pieces composed the museum’s initial collection when it opened in 1930. Later on, the museum also added artwork from Japanese and Chinese artists to its collection.

The Kurabo Museum

The Ivy Square was originally the first spinning mill in the region and the layout was based on mills in Manchester, England. Now the Ivy Square sometimes has live concerts or beer gardens.

Often called "The small Kyoto", Kurashiki is a beautiful town, very quiet and with a fantastic atmosphere; so if you are looking for a traditional stay or a romantic visit, Kurashiki is a great place to go.