Well, it's been quite some time since Tony and Bettina have updated their blog. They have a new country to add to their travel blog - Japan. They are in the process of relocating to Nagoya, Japan. Tony has accepted a 2 year term position with his company. Tony has an exciting job, providing support to a Japanese partner which is helping to make a next generation commercial airplane. And so the work begins but the travel does not stop.
Tony rented a nice summer residence in Balboa Island, CA for his lovely wife, Bettina, until he settles into Japan. In the meantime Tony is roughing it up at the Hilton Nagoya. Bettina will arrive this week to help with the house hunting. So what is (Nagoya) Japan like you ask? Well Nagoya is certainly different than Newport Beach. or Balboa Island. Nagoya is an industrial city. It is not quite as sunny Newport Beach. The trains are really packed but are never late. It is very quiet on the trains, hardly anyone speaks. If they do, it is typically not in a very loud voice. It is against the rules to talk on your cell phone while riding the subway. Tony takes three trains to get to work in about 45 minutes. His work place is a massive factory which is located right next to the water. It has rained on and off this past month. The extremely hot and humid weather is fast approaching. Prices are not quite as high as expected - if you are an efficient shopper. Nagoya is known for having good, tasty food at cheap prices. The other night Tony went to a Yakitori restaurant which served every piece of chicken that you can imagine (liver, heart, neck, leg, etc). Tony liked the chicken sushi but the sake was even tastier. There are plenty of nice restaurants and shops located at the main train station which is one stop away from the Hilton. The city streets are very clean and very safe.
Here is a view of the city from the hotel room:
Sake and Sushi
Grey rain in Nagoya
-- Warm cozy restaurant
Tony has been working terribly long hours with his Japanese partners. He did get a chance to escape to Kyoto with a few colleagues for the day. Kyoto is huge and in one day you can just barely begin to scratch the surface. Kyoto is the home of the Geisha. The trip from Nagoya to Kyoto aboard the Shinkansen (bullet train) lasted about approx. 30 minutes. Train speeds can be as high as 300 km/hr (186 mph).
Here is a photo from the Kyoto Tower located just across from the train station. The really nice places are located on the outskirts of the city off in the distance.
Tony took a walking tour and saw many shrines and temples. The picture below was taken at the Chion-in Buddhist temple. This temple boasts the biggest wooden gate in all of Japan. It also boasts the largest bell in Japan (shown below), weighing in at 74 tons. It takes about 17 monks to pull the giant log back to ring the bell.
Tony took a walking tour and saw many shrines and temples. The picture below was taken at the Chion-in Buddhist temple. This temple boasts the biggest wooden gate in all of Japan. It also boasts the largest bell in Japan (shown below), weighing in at 74 tons. It takes about 17 monks to pull the giant log back to ring the bell.
Tony made many young friends while he was in Nagoya.
Children are openSmiling and laughing a lot
-- Never forget those fun days?
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Tony also visited Tokyo recently. Luckily, Tony and Bettina's good friend Nehal was next door, in Korea, on company business and flew into Tokyo for a mini-vacation. Tony traveled to Tokyo from Nagoya on the bullet train, once again, and joined Nehal for a site seeing tour. It cost approximately $100 and took 2 hours to get to Tokyo from Nagoya. Unlike Nehal, Tony was not too excited about Tokyo. It was just another big city with lots of shops and malls. Tony stayed in the area call Shinjuku. Shinjuku is a great place to stay if you plan to climb Mount Fuji. The main bus which travels to Fuji is located about 3 minutes from the Shinjuku subway station. Tony and Nehal tried to purchase a bus ride to Fuji but all seats were sold out. That was probably a good thing since Tony did not have all is his hiking gear in order. However, Nehal was determined and she purchased a ticket the following day. She was brave enough to "bag" the Fuji peak all by herself.
Here are some photos of Nikko which is home to many World Heritage sites. It is located about 2 hours north of Tokyo by train. Nikko is big. So big that that it would be best to spend a really long weekend there. It is a sacred place that was established in the 8th century by Shodo Shonin. It was a training center for Buddhist monks. That was until it was taken over by Warlord Shogunate Tokugagwa Iyesawa.
At Nikko, Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples scattered in the hilly woodlands peacefully coexist. It is one of Japan's major attractions.
Our good friend Nehal at the Shin-Kyo Bridge
Sayonara for now !!
