November 2016, part two - Kobe and Himeji

In Kobe we visited the museum of earthquake that happened here in January 1995 (more info about the earthquake here and here). It was a really strong experience similar to the Museum of atomic bomb in Hiroshima we visited later. We went through an earthquake simulation, movie showing in a cinema, dioramas and lots of photos and videos of the earthquake and its consequences. The Japanese have documented this catastrophe to the smallest details. Part of the museum were also presentations of nature forces and prevention of natural disasters. There were also really passionate volunteers (mostly Japanese elderly) throughout the tour who commented on the displayed stuff and insisted we really check everything, but there was just not enough time (and we were really hungry).

Flowers on the streets of Kobe

We were accommodated with traditional Japanese futons (thin mattress which folds up easily) on tatami (floor mat from compressed rice straw). You're supposed to leave your shoes at the reception and use slippers in the common areas of the accommodation. And then you leave your slippers by the door of your room and on tatami you only step in socks or barefoot. I liked sleeping on tatami. It was actually comfortable and it had a nice smell of bulrush and wood.

Our room in Kobe

Japanese conveniences

On the next day we took a Shinkansen (Japanese bullet train) to Fukuoka with a stop in Himeji. Travelling by Shinkansen is very comfortable, with no shakes and vibrations. Inside the train you almost feel like you're standing still despite the fact that it can reach a top speed up to 300 km/h! Bullet trains have a separate tracks so they are not affected by any other train delays. Currently the most northern city covered by Shinkansen tracks is Hakodate on Hokkaido and most southern one is Kagoshima on Kyushu. The two cities are around 2,240 km apart and the journey by Shinkansen takes only 11 hours and 31 minutes with only one change in Tokyo. In comparison by car it would take 29 hours! The trains are clean, with modern toilets and powder rooms. One thing to mention is that you are expected to be quiet on the train (there are even signs which warn you not to type too loud on your laptop keyboard!). If you need to make a call you should take it to the quiet room or outside. There are also not usually restaurants on the trains so you should buy a bento (Japanese take-out meal) at the train station. The conveniences continue on train platforms where there are signs on the ground which tell you exactly where the doors to your car will be (if you have a reservation) when the train stops. So there is no pushing when getting on the train and people simply make a queue because they exactly know where to stand. Due to the fact that the major stations get very crowded there are signs and arrows that points you to where you should stand on the stairs not to be in the way (people will usually go up on the right side and down on the left side).

In general are most people in Japan polite and one sign of this is wearing face masks. It is not due to  the air pollution but mostly for health reasons - for example they are sick and don't want to spread germs or they don't want to get sick especially the ones who come to contact with a lot of people (sales clerks, organizers at the train stations...). Due to lot of crowds especially in big cities like Tokyo there are certain restrictions like it is not permitted to eat or smoke while walking. For me personally especially that people don't smoke while walking and I don't have to breathe it when I walk behind them is a big plus. There are a lot of places reserved specifically for women, like train cars, train toilets or whole floors at the hotels. This has a bit of a darker reason - it is due to gropers or men who would bother the women. This way women feel more safe.

Platform with car number that is 'Woman Only'

Hands-free sensors for flushing and seat lowering in Shinkansen train

You always know where the door will stop exactly

Now to shopping. In the convenience stores like 7-Eleven, Lawson or Family Mart you can get all kinds of food, magazines or practical items. They are on every corner and also contain ATM machines and space to eat food bought there. Knowing Japanese is useful especially when buying pastry because sometimes you don't know if the stuff you buy is sweet or salty. It happened to me that I was under the impression that I bought chocolate filled bun and in reality it was curry :). Some other tasty specialties include omelette wrapped in ham inside fried pastry or soy noodles in hot-dog bun. The bread as we know in Europe is practically non-existing in Japan. You can get sort-of french baguettes but in most shops there is just US-style toast bread (mostly sweet :).

My typical 7-Eleven shopping basket usually contained:
1 banana (which is quite expensive in Japan, approximately 1 EURO for 1 piece),
1 onigiri (or omusuby, which is cooked rice in seaweed in a shape of a triangle, usually filled with salmon or tuna with mayo),
1 piece of pastry (melon pan is the best),
1 package of Pringles (or Chip-star),
1 beverage (usually green tea).

It is no exaggeration if I say the vending machines are on every corner in Japan. Keep your change (or charged Suica/ICOCA card) and try the crazy flavors. I mostly bought tea but they also had like corn and beans in a can...

The beverage selection in vending machines is really huge. Red-colored are hot ones and blue-colored are cold ones.

Geishas, samurais and ninjas

In Himeji we took a while to find lockers to store our baggage because we were on our route to Fukuoka and have just make a stop to see the famous castle here. Himeji Castle is overall the largest and most visited castle in Japan. It was built in 1333 and had its last extensive renovation from 2010 to 2015. More on the castle here.

This is it - the magnificent Himeji Castle

Straight from the Himeji train station we could see the castle in the distance. On the way there there was a lot of stands, markets and a lot of tourists because this castle is very famous. The castle complex is quite huge and contains a water moat. We had to take off our shoes inside the castle, put them in plastic bags and take them with us. I was glad I took thick socks because it was pretty cold in the castle. The interior was a little disappointing because there were no weapons displayed and you could only use the app on your phone to virtually 'see' them. There were lots of wooden stairs, slopes and empty rooms with a shrine on the top floor.

The top floor of the castle: shrine with sake bottles (throw money in the chest, ring the bell and say goodbye to your problems),  tourists with shoes in their plastic bags, cool masked CCTV and a guy posing for the picture :)

The castle is really photogenic

On the exit from the castle we were 'cut' by a ninjas plastic sword and then took pictures of geishas and samurais on the castle grounds. They were posing happily and were urging us to take a photo with them (for free) but I rather take photos of them.

Geisha within a crowd of tourists

Overall I recommend Himeji castle to tourists who want to see Japan as they know it from movies. History (and with it all the cliches) is breathing on every corner. Although the castle interior is a little bummer, the castle grounds are big and worth exploration. You will take a lot of pictures.

The longer sword wins the battle

Lastly one of the most 'Japanese' views I was able to film.

Part 3 Fukuoka