Would You Like Sumo Sake?

Documentation:

Canadians require a valid Canadian passport to enter Japan and it is expected that they have it on them at all times as there is a chance that police may ask foreigners to produce it at any time. Tourist Visas are not required, however all visitors to Japan will be photographed and fingerprinted upon arrival.

Don't Believe Us? Check it out for yourself: http://voyage.gc.ca/countries_pays/report_rapport-eng.asp?id=140000

Japanese Customs

Bowing:

To Japanese people bowing is a very important part of their culture when it comes to showing respect to others. While Japanese people know that the type of bow and the length is determined by who they are bowing too, it is not expected that tourists would fully understand this custom. A simple bow of the head or quick bend at the waist is essentially all that is expected from tourists and any attempt is generally appreciated by the locals.

Tipping:

Do NOT do it…EVER!! Tipping is considered offensive by the Japanese. They believe that the price given is the price you should pay for the services you receive, no more. While it is customary for us to tip waiters/waitresses, cab drivers etc, try and remember to NOT do it while visiting Japan.

Table Manners:

A couple things to remember when dining in Japan:

- At the beginning of a meal most restaurants will provide you with a wet cloth for you to wash your hands with before you eat. Do NOT use it to wipe your face or as a napkin. When you finish washing your hands, fold it and place it at the end of the table
- Slurping noodles and making loud noises while eating is perfectly acceptable. When you slurp hot food, it is polite and shows that you are enjoying your food.
- When eating with chopsticks it is absolutely ok to raise the bowl to your mouth to make it easier to eat…especially when eating rice!
- Just before eating, no matter what or where you are about to eat it’s polite to say “itadakimasu” which translates to “I will receive”

Food

Sushi and Wasabi - Sushi is a very popular dish in Japan and is often served with Wasabi a green paste that is extraordinarily hot, so only use in very small quantities

Ramen - DELICIOUS, you must try this in Japan, it's the best thing you will eat while in Japan

Sake - a rice wine, that is something you should experience, although almost everyone you meet will tell you it's an acquired taste!

Our last day in Hiroshima

We opted to sleep in this morning, because after last night we definitely needed a good sleep. Our new friends sure know how to party and definitely gave us an education last night. Haha Good Times.

When we finally got up this morning and got moving, we headed over to Hondori Street, literally translates to Main Street, which is the retail heart of Hiroshima. We spent a while wandering around, although we didn’t end up buying much of anything. We did try some fantastic Japanese food...even though I’m not sure what it was at this point. Haha

This afternoon we decided to take a day trip to Mitaki Temple which is just a short train ride out of Hiroshima. It is located in the valley of Mount Mitaki, it’s a temple of Kanon the Japanese Goddess of Mercy. The name of the temple comes from the three waterfalls that flow down the hill and through the temple’s gardens. Mitaki Temple is very serene and quite a relaxing place to be, especially because it is so incredibly beautiful!

We had another fabulous day in Hiroshima and are now sadly getting ready to leave this fine city tomorrow morning.

Mitaki Temple

We are in Hiroshima!

We arrived last night via train and went straight to our hostel because we were exhausted and needed to catch a good night’s sleep. However once we got to our hostel we ended up meeting a great group of people and stayed up talking to them for quite a while and have plans to go out with them a little later tonight.

The one thing we learned today is that the sadness of Hiroshima’s past cannot be fully understood until you are there and visit the memorials and museums. It wasn’t till then that we understood the magnitude of what had happened.

Our first stop was the A-Bomb Dome which was a commercial building in Hiroshima before the atomic bomb. Today it is part of the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and helps serve as a haunting reminder to what happened. The A-Bomb Dome is one of very few buildings that partially survived the bombing.

A-Bomb Dome

From the dome, we continued to walk around the park and take in the many monuments that have been designed to all reflect on a different aspect of the bombing. One of the more prominent statues is the Children’s Peace Monument, which is a statue of a little girl holding a crane above her head. The monument was based on the story of a girl named Sadako Sasaki who initially survived the bombing but died 10 years from leukemia. We also saw the Memorial Cenotaph, which was one of the first monuments built in the Park and has the names of all the victims inscribed on it. Near the Peace Memorial Museum is the Peace flame which has been burning continuously since it was lit in 1964. The Peace Flame will burn continuously until all the nuclear bombs in the world are destroyed. Our last stop was the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum. It was more than worth the time and inexpensive price to get in(50 yen, only $0.70 CAD!!). The museum is divided into sections including, what the city was like before, including before and after models, the affects the bomb had on citizens, the destruction of the bomb, personal accounts from survivors and material things such as clothes, watches, and other personal affects worn by victims.

Children's Peace Monument

Back at the hostel we met up with our new friends from the night before and made plans to go out and enjoy Hiroshima’s nightlife tonight, so we’ll see what happens…

The Kyoto Imperial Palace was great!

The Kyoto Imperial Palace was great! It has that traditional Japan architecture to it which makes it absolutely gorgeous and amazing to see in person.
Also, because you have to apply for permission to go on the tour it was a good idea we decided to go early this morning because group sizes are a maximum of 9 people and the crowd grew as the day went on wanting to go in for a tour!
It was also great that they offered English guided tours so we were able to understand everything told to us which made it that much more fascinating learning about the amazing facts and history the Palace holds!

The Gates of the Kyoto Imperial Palace

Inside the Palace

When we were done at the Palace we went over to the Gion-Matsuri Festival that takes place during the month of July, and it is one of the most popular festivals in Japan.
The festival was created to appease the gods that were believed to cause fire, floods and earthquakes.
The main event is the parade that occurs but there are also events on the days leading up to the parade.
Today was the day of the parade; it was very beautiful and colorful!
There were also amazingly decorated floats called Yamaboko floats. The floats in the Yoiyama Parade are divided into two groups, Hoko and Yama, and are collectively called Yamaboko (or Yamahoko). There are 9 of the larger Hoko (long pole or halberd) which represent the 66 spears used in the original purification ritual, and 23 of the smaller Yama which carry life-size figures of famous and important people. All the floats are decorated with beautiful tapestries.
They were absolutely amazing!

One of the floats in the parade

It was cool to see the parade and all the culture that was involved in it! Seeing the people in traditional dress was really amazing as well.

Overall, we have a great day in Kyoto!

Today we are going to Kyoto!

Today we are going to go and see the Kyoto Imperial Palace in Kyoto Gyoen Park. It is open to the public but you have to apply in advance in order to receive permission to view the palace. You only have to apply about 20 minutes before you desire to go on the tour.
It was built in A.D. 794, Kyoto was known as Japan’s capital city and the emperor’s residence until 1868, when the capital city was changed to Tokyo. So now the emperor lives in the Tokyo Imperial Palace but he ordered the preservation of the Kyoto Imperal Palace. Kyoto has a population of 1.4 million people, it is now Japan’s seventh largest city!
Here are some facts about the Kyoto Imperial Palace that we have learnt from talking to other travelers in the hostel!
Guided English Tours: 10am and 2pm Monday – Friday; 10am on 3rd Saturday of the month
Access: Subway Karasuma Line Imadegawa sta. stop 5min. walk, City Bus Karasuma-imadegawa stop 5min. walk
Entrance Fee: admission free but application indispensability

We’re excited to go so we will check in and let you guys know how it went!