Our first stop, Tokyo, Japan... Tokyo is a huge city, very similar to many 'western cities.' The metro was very complex but rather easy to navigate around. I did stop and point at maps a lot in order to get to our destinations. Tokyo is broken into several sub-sections. I particularly enjoyed Harajuku! It has great shopping, people watching, and was fun to walk around. Out hostel was in Asakusa, a great area of town.. known more for its "traditional tokyo" feel. One of the "must see temples" is in this area and it was easy to get on the metro from here.
We took the speed train to Kyoto, it was a little more expensive than we planned, but definitely worth it. I LOVED Kyoto... it offered a more traditional Japanese culture. We stayed at a guesthouse, with bamboo mats and a prerequisite shoe removal upon arrival. It was rainy the first day, but fortunately for us, most of the walkways in the shopping district were covered. We ate fried rice and sprouts for dinner. That night we went on a walking tour and spotted a few Geisha-
The next day, we explored the temples.. the Silver Temple was undergoing repairs, but the grounds (with bonsai trees, lilly ponds, and zen gardens) were definitely worth the trek up to it. The Golden Temple was amazing, it was packed with tourists from all walks of life. We walked down the 4km, Walk of Philosophy, a small path along the river, in search of a golden buddah. We never found the Buddah, but the walk was nice. Kyoto is still a big city but we were able to escape into the green country with a 10 min bus ride. We took busses throughout the town, it was cheap and a great way to see the city..
Overall the culture of Japan is very orderly and spiritual. I enjoyed the peace and quiet (I can say this in retrospect after being in Thailand for a few days.) The food was yummy too... We ate a lot of Soba Noodles and drank green tea.
Next destination, Bangkok, Thailand.. (6 hour flight)
