Hikone

Why did we go to Hikone? Well, I guess the answer to that is... because we could. We were looking to make full use of our Shinkansen tickets, and because we had booked our lodging in Tokyo for the full 10 days of our trip, day-trip destinations was the way to go.

To go to Hikone, one takes the Hikari line of the JR Tokaido Shinkansen to Maibara. And from here, one stop on the local JR line brings one to Hikone. From the train station, it was a lovely 15 minute walk to the castle.

But before going to the castle, because it was almost lunch time, we decided to accomplish the other reason for our trip to Hikone. That was to find the Hinai Jidori Hokkoriya, a restaurant serving Hikone's must eat Oyako-don. Finding the restaurant would not be a problem, we were told, "just follow the line". Unfortunately, being a weekday, there were very few people in Hikone, so there was no line to follow. But with some help, we found the place, along a road lined with traditional Japanese shops and houses.

There were only 3 choices on the menu: large Oyako-don, large Hikone Ramen, and their special, small Oyako-don with small Hikone Ramen. We, my hubby, my brother and my two sisters chose the latter.

The Special

The ramen was good, but I guess you won't find a "bad" ramen in Japan. The oyako-don, a Japanes rice bowl dish where chicken, scalions and egg (the visible ingredients at least) are simmered in a sauce and served on a bowl of white rice was....marvelous! The rice topping was runny, gooey and absolutely delicious! And what is Oyako-don in English? .... Parent-Child Donburi!

The meal was accompanied by ice cold Japanese draft beer! To say we were sated would not be an exaggeration! It took a lot of will power for us not to just return to the train and sleep our way back to Tokyo.

We forced ourselves to proceed to the castle. Upon reaching the base of the castle, we almost turned around to walk back to the train station! We didn't realize how much climbing we had to do!

The photo above was taken after I climbed the first set of steps! Notice how winded I was? And there were many more steps to go! Finally getting to the base of the Castle, we looked back to where we had come from, congratulating ourselves on a hundred calories lost! 

view from the castle

Hikone Castle is one of the oldest original-construction castles in Japan and has the distinction of being one of four castles listed as national treasures. This castle was built during the Tokugawa Shogunate and followed the Edo period of Japanese architecture characterized by simple lines and the use of wood in its natural state. 

In the castle's main keep, symmetry, simplicity, purposeful planning, patterning and regularity, a reflection of Japanese character is on striking display.

Climbing up to the castle keep shows how secure and easily defensible the Castle was. In addition, if somehow a horse and rider or a foot soldier survived the climb (as arrows and rocks would undoubtedly have rained down from above), the foundation of the castle itself would have been difficult to bring down.

Original foundation of main keep

Inside, everything is of wood, the beams, the floors, the pillars. Wood that has been polished to a high gloss through the centuries. Smoking is strictly prohibited in this all wooden structure and so is picture taking. 

At the base of the Castle, lies the Genkyuen Gardens, a Japanese landscape garden with a huge pond in the middle surrounded by walking trails.

There are little rest areas, where one can enjoy a cup of tea.

On the way back to Tokyo, I remembered that I was suppose to prepare dinner that evening. Thank God for Japanese groceries! In Maibara before boarding the Shinkansen, we bought freshly cooked tonkatsu which accompanied by sashimi and sushi bought in the grocery near our apartment made an excellent, satisfying meal!

And by the way, tongkatsu in Japan (even the grocery bought ones) is very good! No fancy cooking, no tedious preparation (cooking it myself a couple of times testifies to the ease of preparation and cooking). But why does it taste so much better here in Japan? My husband says, "it's the meat!" Oh yes....the meat, the secret ingredient! 

On the Shinkansen , Hakone, the Onsen and Kobe Beef

It has been ages since my last blog. Have I been busy? You could say that! Doing what exactly? Well travelling for one, but most importantly enjoying my first and only (so far) grandchild!

Although I have quite a bit of places to write about, I have decided to blog about our latest trip first. What, you may ask, makes this trip to Japan special? Well on this trip, we not only traveled with my mother, most of my siblings, my son and daughter-in-law, but with us, on her first trip abroad, was our grand-daughter.

We flew to Tokyo which was to become our base for the next 10 days. We rented a lovely apartment in the Shinagawa area. A two bedroom affair with a spacious living room, a fantastic kitchen and a Japanese style bathroom.

View from our living room windows

and at night

The apartment was about a 10 minute walk to the Shinagawa station, the main station for the Shinkansen, the famous bullet trains of Japan, and also a major subway stop to and from Tokyo. Because of this, it is always packed with people. When we first went to the station to use the subway, we were quite overwhelmed as literally hordes of people, walked briskly towards us! But as we were to find out later, this was nothing compared to the Shinjuku station, where 3 million people pass through everyday!

There are no words to adequately describe the Shingkansen, the Bullet Train, that Japanese technological marvel , which allows one to travel to most parts of Japan in record time and in the utmost of comfort. An astonishing fact is that it is celebrating it's 50th anniversary! (According to a friend, California is starting to develop it's own bullet train. But when it will be completed is anyone's guess!) And yet, it shows no sign of age and is as clean as one would expect a new railway line to be. The ride is so smooth, and so quiet, that one is unaware it is travelling at speeds of 150 to 200 MPH! And when a train that is not stopping at the platform where you are waiting for your ride, passes, you hear a whooping sound, your hair whips from your face, and you see momentarily.... a blur, and then it is gone. 

We noticed that the rails of the Shinkansen don't lie flat on the ground but is tilted to one side away from the waiting platform. We were told that this is to prevent the giant draft generated by the train as it passes by, a draft that can literally lift you off your feet!

Because of the Shinkansen, we were able to go to a lot of places during our 10 day trip. My husband, a consummate researcher especially when we are planning a trip, insisted (based on web information) on our acquiring a Japan Rail Pass which is available for sale only outside of Japan. We ordered online, a 7 day pass for around $350, for travel on the Green or first class train, as per the website advise, in order to ensure the availability of seats at any time. The pass was delivered within 48 hours to our home, from Paris, France! Go figure that one out! The pass needs to be activated in the Shinkansen ticket station upon arrival or as in our case, on the first day we used it. This pass also allowed us to use the internal trains and subway lines of the JR rail. With all these privileges, the $350 we paid for the pass was well worth it and more!

So where did we go on the Shinkansen? First up was:

HAKONE

Because there is outlet shopping in Gotemba, on the way (more or less) to Hakone, we decided to stop there before proceeding to Hakone. Taking the Shinkansen towards Nagoya, we stopped at Odawara station. From there we transferred to the regular train lines. We took the Odakyu line to Shinmatsuda station. From there a short walk to the Matsuda station, brought us to the Gotemba line going toward Numazu, for which one of the stops was Gotemba. At the station there were shuttle buses to bring us to the outlet. 

Gotemba Premium Outlet

I must say, I regretted stopping at the outlet as it resembled any premium outlet one sees in North America. Having said that.... I still couldn't resist the shopping....Anyway from there we needed to find our way to Hakone, where my mom and some of our party had proceeded with the van they had hired. 

We took a bus to Gora, that drove us through spiraling, narrow  mountain roads. It was getting dark at the time, so visibility was limited, therefore stopping at bus stops that consisted of nothing more than a bench by the road side was unanticipated to say the least. At the station, difficulty communicating where we were going, nearly made us board a train that would take us all the way back down the mountain! In the nick of time, on instinct , we all literally jumped off the train and scrambled into the funicular that would take us to Hakone! 

Outside Gora Station

Arriving at our stop, a platform beside which a small sign told us where we were, we went down a small street surrounded by trees. It was rather chilly and there was a breeze eerily rustling through the trees, raising goose bumps on my arm. Dragging our bags (that was the point when I regretted stopping at Gotemba) through cobbled, steep roads, we found (with the help of some kind soul) the Hyatt, where we were billeted for the night.

The long drive and uphill walk was well worth it. The place is built to blend in with the environment and was elegant but cosy. We were all given yukatas, traditional Japanese kimonos, tanzens (jackets), as well as getas (wooden flip flops) to wear while we were there. We arrived in the midst of happy hour, which we enjoyed in the seating room surrounding a fireplace. 

Hyatt seating room

That evening and the following morning, my husband, son, daughter-in-law and some other members of our party enjoyed the Onsen, the hot springs for which Hakone is known. Before entering the Onsen, one is required to wash and scrub every part of the body, and then to proceed to the Onsen sans a stitch of clothing. 

We have visited and lived in several countries, where public baths are part of the culture, like Italy and Korea, but, coming from a culture that tolerates nudity only in the privacy of one's home and bathroom, and I might add educated in a strict private girls' school run by nuns, I didn't have the "guts" to try it.  My family though tells me that it "was heavenly"! So maybe next time.

Hakone is a charming mountain town, which we regret not having had the chance to explore at all, since we only stayed that one night. But we did get to eat at Itoh Dining by Nobu (a Michelin star chef with a restaurant in London), a Kobe Beef Restaurant, tucked away in one of the side streets of the town

Nobu's restaurant

The meal was simple, a salad with a Japanese dressing:

And teppan Kobe Beef with a glass of red house wine:

Simply a steak, you say? Oh no! put the steak in your mouth and take a bite....a flood of flavor fills your mouth and shoots up to your brain! Wow....I will never forget that taste, that sensation! 

So what is the difference between Wagyu and Kobe beef. A Japanese friend says only this: "All Wagyu is Kobe but...not all Kobe is Wagyu"