What a magical, delicious, incredibly hot place!!
For a relatively spontaneous trip to a relatively distant land, my travels in Japan were a piece of cake (specifically, the coffee cream filled, fish shaped cake from 7 Eleven which fuelled my fortnight of exploring).
From Heathrow I flew to Abu Dhabi and from Abu Dhabi to Narita airport in Tokyo where I followed fellow passengers with similarly sized rucksacks and observed (and copied) as they purchased both sim cards and suica cards (Japan's oyster equivalent). Once they had disappeared impressively quickly into the metro station, I was left to my own devices to make my way to central Tokyo and the Ginza neighbourhood, home to my first hostel.
First up: Tokyo! Some call it a concrete jungle, others 'the city of 808 villages'. I'd say it's somewhere in between. Sky scrapers border lily pad filled lakes and ancient shrines back onto arcade-like streets. It very much has its own identity and is like nowhere else I've ever been.
From Tokyo I night bus-ed to Kyoto. The first of four, I spent 90% of this journey awake and hopped off at each of the regular rest breaks throughout the night. Although I appreciated the sleep I got on later journeys, I'd never trade it for the mountainous views I got at 4,5 and 6am at random bus stops in the middle of the Japanese countryside that first journey.
Hot, unshowered and unable to check in to the next hostel until 10 am (the bus had arrived at 06:50), I googled "swimming pool near me" and when that came up blank, tried out "beach". Although I still can't claim to have swum off Japan's coast, I did have the most refreshing dip of my entire life in Lake Biwa - Japan's largest freshwater lake. After a quick "crocodiles in Lake Biwa?" search, I plunged in and spent about an hour bobbing around while families splashed around in the shallows and jet skiers zoomed along the horizon. After travelling in Japan in August, I will never ever complain about the cold again (until November, at least..). It was the hottest place I've ever been, so that swim was pure bliss!
I had three nights in Kyoto but it felt like three weeks! There was just so much to see, do and eat. Beyond the epic food market which weaves through the centre and boasts everything from kit kat saké to quail egg headed octopi...., there are shrines galore, a bamboo forest complete with neighbouring monkey sanctuary, many different hikes and lots of onsen (hot springs!) While I couldn't face the latter, I explored all of the above and was even blessed with a refreshing soaking whilst passing through the 10,000 torii gates on the Fushimi Inari shrine walk in a thunderstorm.
From Kyoto I travelled to Hiroshima, where I stayed in a tiny hostel in the centre of the city. After seeing the obvious sites and accompanying (extensive & impressive) museum, I hopped on a tram and then a ferry to Miyajima island - home to the renowned floating Torii gate (if you catch it at high tide, that is...) and some very attentive bordering on aggressive deer. I lost several fights with the beasts as they snaffled plastic packaging off various benches.
After just one night in Hiroshima, I caught my penultimate bus to Osaka. A different world entirely. Neon lights lit up every building, street performers danced on floating barges and you couldn't walk two paces without passing a street food stand. It was in Osaka where I tried my first Okonomiyaki - a sort of pancake encased, noodle scramble topped with waving bits of dried fish. FAR more delicious than it sounds!
Although I was glad to have witnessed the arcade-like energy of Osaka, it was a day trip to Nara which really won me over. Leaving the frenzy of the city for the green, rolling hills and yet more deer (friendly ones this time), was the perfect end to my travels.
Then it was time to re-roll my clothes, spend my remaining suica balance on obscure 7 Eleven snacks and take a bus back to Tokyo. After a minor heart attack upon seeing a "12 hour delay" sign next to my flight number at the airport (thankfully an error?), I boarded the first of two long flights which sandwiched my 15 hour layover in Abu Dhabi. I may or may not have given in to the premier inn and enjoyed not only an unlimited buffet breakfast but a rooftop swim overlooking the desert..... 15 hours wasn't long enough!
And with that, I say sayonara!