Thursdaysd's East Asian Excursion

Hi Thursday, Hope you have a wonderful time. Your trip seems to have come around so soon. Sorry I haven't got any photos up yet of South Korea but I'm sure you are organised now and will really enjoy it. The ceramics are wonderful and everywhere, the scenery lovely and its all quite efficient so you will be fine. There are many many potters and potting areas. All specializing in a particular type so each quite different.

If you do manage to get to the south, the Boseong tea plantation is very lovely and very photogenic. Lots in the south is nice in fact. Roads are good and the service areas excellent all across the country. Museums and galleries everywhere are of a very high standard. English is not widely spoken but people are helpful - skills at charades are useful!

Bon voyage, Thursday! Eager to read of your exploits! Stay safe..eks

Yes, happy travels and take care! Amazing how hiccups appear out of nowhere eh? Hope it's all plain sailing from now. I'll be with you vicariously.

bon voyage

Wow time to leave already? Thursday's child has far to go

Waiting right here, alert, attentive and anxious for the details. Have a wonderful trip!

Aloha!

Have a fabulous trip! Looking forward to following your blog.

Have a wonderful adventure!

Bon voyage!

Looking forward to it.

Thanks for the good wishes. Successful kickoff - I'm settled in at the Jane ($99 + tax/night, free wifi) after an uneventful flight and a very good chicken and spinach curry (extra spicy as requested) and forgettable Reisling at Banjara. I did note that while First Class got me an assortment of nuts in a china dish, they weren't heated.

Have the trip of your dreams thursdaysd.

Bon voyage

Have a great trip. Vancouver is fabulous. My favorite Canadian city. I'll be looking forward to your trip reports.

How are you liking The Jane? Based on the photos at the web site, you're going to find Japanese hotel rooms altogether enormous after four days in a "cabin.". I actualyy quite like the train concept---it sort of sounds as if your journey's already begun.

Therese - well, I stayed at the Jane a year ago, so I'm fine with it. Obviously it's not for the claustrophobic, the seriously disorganized, or people who have to have their own bathroom. Also, I wouldn't stay there in the summer as the AC is too noisy to run at night.

I like the location - killer view of the Hudson (including distant sight of the Statue of Liberty) from the bathroom window, walking distance to Greenwich Village and a number of subway lines. Once I covered up all the little lights I slept well, and the room lights are bright. I've never had to wait for a shower - and there's plenty of hot water and rain head showers.

I find it amusing that while the cabins are cheap (great deal for singles) the downstairs bar and cafe are expensive and "in". Friendly staff.

I'm claustrophobic, but not in a way that The Jane's rooms would bother me (and I sleep with ear plugs, so a noisy air conditioner won't be an issue). It's now officially on my list if I'm traveling to NYC solo, particular if I can't get a decent rate on Priceline. I do so love Fodor's.

Long day coming up. My flight to Vancouver leaves at 10:40 pm tomorrow, landing at 4:30 am my time.

I'm hoping for good weather tomorrow, but New York, once again, hasn't been too kind to me. Lovely day Saturday, but wet and windy Sunday, and variable today. I did get to walk the Brooklyn Bridge (west, with the sun behind me and the best views in front of me - couldn't believe all the people walking the other way), and ride the Staten Island ferry, and I had a lovely travel chat with nywoman.

She also was kind enough to trek out to Queens with me so we could try Sripraphai that I kept reading about here. Afraid it wasn't worth the trek: Ambiance - fail. Too bright and way, way too noisy. Food - mixed. I liked the papaya salad but nywoman found it too spicy. We both thought the duck with Chinese vegetables was forgettable, but loved the pork with long beans.

I plan to spend tomorrow at the Frick, the Fashion Institute of Technology and maybe a repeat visit to the Rubin Museum of Himalayan Art - but perhaps I should go for a walk round Central Park to offset the linzertorte with whipped cream I indulged in at the Neue Gallery's Cafe Sabarsky today!

You're headed to my neck of the woods next - Vancouver! Weather's a big of a mixed bag for the next few days I'm afraid.

Glad to hear you are having fun and I look forward to following along on your trip.

Reached Vancouver - got to love the free wifi in Canadian airports! Also got to love business class - I had a much-needed shower in the BA lounge at JFK before leaving. My Cathay Pacific flight to YVR (889, goes on to Hong Kong) had lie-flat seats in pods (seatguru said they weren't all the way flat, seatguru is wrong) with lightweight duvets.

I was surprised to be offered dinner - my itinerary said beverage service. I ate the smoked salmon salad and cheese and fruit (nothing special) with port but skipped the main course. The wine choices looked good.

Came in over budget for NYC and got some sleep on the flight, so decided not to go for the $109 deal the Holiday Inn Express offered (at 2:00 am), and camped out at the airport Starbucks for the rest of the night.

Absolutely! As another budget traveller I would have done the same. Presume you can check in early afternoon and catch up. I have to say I wouldn't have passed on the business class wine choices though.

The Frick!!! What a wonderful respite from the city. Thanks for reminding me; I'll have to go back soon.

Hi gertie - I already had wine in the lounge - a rather nice Shiraz - and I drank port with the cheese. I wanted to get sleepy, not drunk, lol. Things are livening up around here, think I'll eat breakfast and then head into town.

Something to look forward to in Korea:



http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/27/world/asia/27iht-kiln.html?_r=1&ref=todayspaper

I love traveling along with you! Enjoy Vancouver, it's a wonderful city.

thursdaysd, CX's wine offering in business and first are excellent. Remember this on you future CX flights if you are fond of wine.

I am surprised to read you like their business class seats, I find them extremely uncomfortable. Another complaint is that because of how the seats are positioned passengers can't look out the window. Pity, because CX's service and FAs are usually very good. I've started to avoid CX long hauls now because of their seats.

Have fun in YVR.

Looks like a great start already, have a fantastic time. How long is the trip?

eks - great find, but I think I'll pass, lol. kathie - thanks.

jsm - I noticed the window problem on CX as well, but since it was a night flight I wasn't too worried. I also initially thought the seat uncomfortable, but since I actually slept, had to give it higher marks. I was on this exact flight, although from YVR to HK, nine years ago, and these seats are certainly better. The service was excellent - aware without being unnecessarily obtrusive.

Shanghainese - just over six months - the planning thread is linked at the top of this one.

I'm staying at the YWCA (semi-private room, senior rate) - http://www.ywcavan.org/content/YWCA_Hotel/808/26/0 - comfy enough, but $6/day for wireless - I had to come out and find a Starbucks. Weather isn't great but I visited Granville Island (touristy) and the Museum of Anthropology (long trek, needed longer there) yesterday and am thinking Stsnley Park and the Aquarium today before the rain really sets in.

The Museum of Antropology is a real gem. I'm glad you got there. I love going into the "back rooms" and being able to examine artifacts in the display drawers.

thursdays -- Granville Island is touristy, but the Indian Candy that you can get there is to die for. 'Indian Candy" is smoked and dried salmon, and it's beyond delicious.

The nuts weren't warm? That's just not right!

Happy to see you're on another adventure - I love reading your reports.

Vancouver is one of our favorite cities, but haven't been there for a long, long time. Enjoy! And prowl around Stanley Park and English Bay for me! There's a pretty okay restaurant called Rain City right near English Bay.

Loved Stanley Park! Also had a very good guide at the Sun Yat Sen garden. So far the aquarium and the "sails" lose to Sydney, but Stanley Park and the setting are winners. The Olympic torch looks a bit sad in daylight, unlit.

If you have another day and the weather is nice you might want to go to North Vancouver to hike. The scenery is spectacular and the hiking around and over the FREE suspension bridge is fabulous. We went by car, but you can do it by public transportation (water taxi and bus).

Spent a good chunk of yesterday hiking in Lynn Canyon - overdid it and am now limping!!! Hope this won't turn into a repeat of 2006's Sore Foot Tour. Am planning very slow day today (plus it's raining) - leave for Tokyo Sunday.

19-20 Sep 2010 - Back to Asia

When I was growing up in the southern UK, and later, living in the southern US, Asia was the fabled, the exotic, east (never mind that I was now flying west to get there). On the one hand, the land of silks, spices and tea ceremonies, and on the other, the land of swords and samurai and sadistic POW camps. When I finally visited for the first time, in 1997, what I found, of course, was some that was cliched and much that was not, along with sights, sounds, smells and tastes that endlessly fascinated. If someone had told me, when I boarded my flight from Jakarta to Sydney in the spring of 2005, that it would be a full five and a half years before I returned, I would have found it hard to believe them.

But fate, in the form of two broken bones, intervened. When I was asked whether I was excited about my 2010 RTW, I gave my standard answer: "not until I board the plane", but a truer answer would have been: "not until I board the plane for Asia". Not that I didn't enjoy myself in New York and Vancouver, but they were very much the amuse bouche - not even the hors d'ouevres. So perhaps one reason I failed to sleep on the Japan Airlines flight to Tokyo was due to excitement. Perhaps.

The woman sitting next to me would change planes in Tokyo for Hong Kong, and when I mentioned that Cathay Pacific had a direct flight she told me that it was much too expensive. Since I was "paying" with FF miles I hadn't checked the prices, but comparing CX and JL business classes I could well believe that CX was more expensive. Not that the service on JL was bad, but it lacked a certain "edge". I couldn't directly compare the food, as I had only eaten salad and cheese on the CX flight, but I didn't like having the appetizers (cold) and main course (hot) arrive together. I did give JL points for serving Cointreau with my coffee - my splurge dessert on the road is Cointreau and cappucino, although I seldom drink it at home - but CX had had a drinkable port.

The real downers were the lounge at Vancouver and the seats on the plane. The lounge didn't just lack the shower I had loved in New York (which I didn't need in Vancouver), but rest rooms. I was limping, and it was quite a long limp from the lounge to the public rest rooms. Then there were noodles and chips, but not much else, to eat, and the wine came in a box. And the seats? Not all the way flat. I don't know why, but those extra few degrees of recline make all the difference, at least to me. Something inside is on the alert for a fall, and I just can't relax. My verdict on JL's business class is that it's Economy Plus rather than First Class Minus, and not all that Plus.

I wrote the preceding paragraphs while not sleeping on the plane, followed by more not-sleeping and a ridiculous excuse for breakfast (plain pasta with a few canned mushroom pieces and some tomato dice, with fruit and ice cream???). Then we landed in a driving rainstorm. Not JL's fault, but it was their fault that my pack was delivered thoroughly wet. I had a layer of plastic between the clothes and books and the might-spill toiletries, but of course, it was the clothes side of the bag that was wet!

Fortunately, I had put the books and papers in plastic bags, and it seemed that those clothes that were wet were just wet - no black stains, although I have a slight one on my grey jacket from the straps. While my room at the Toyoko Inn Shinagawa would have been plenty big enough if I hadn't needed to completely unpack, it really was on the small side (though still comfortable and well-equipped) with everything I was carrying strewn around. The Inn was conveniently located just down from the train station and a collection of restaurants. Briefly tempted to eat Italian, instead I picked a place with pictures of the food (and English translations) where I ate some very good pork slices fried in ginger, with cabbage, rice and miso soup.

I am now getting rather worried about my ankle. I vaguely remember turning it in Vancouver, but it didn't hurt at the time. Then I went trekking in Lynn Canyon, and it did start hurting. Now I can put weight on the foot, but not flex it. Some 'net time suggests a sprain, for which the recommended treatment is: rest! I've done what I should have done to start with and wrapped it,which has gotten the swelling down some, but I'm thinking I may call my medical insurance people from Kyoto - I don't want to do permanent damage. (I know Bob is going to tell me I should have no trouble limping along on the rest of the trip...)

Sounds like some rest is in order, thursdaysd! Don't you hate when a pack/suitcase gets wet? I've learned to pack EVERYTHING in plastic, and am glad you had taken steps to keep your books and papers dry. Sending lots of good wishes that your ankle is OK.

Oh, so sorry your ankle is bothering you. I say take care of it now! Wrap, elevation, rest and anti-inflamatories...

Thanks kja. (Rest, with a whole new country to explore....) Would you believe that in all the months (actually, literally, years now) of traveling I've done with this pack, this is the very first time it's really gotten wet? It has a built-in rain cover I use when it's with me and raining, but I couldn't use it for flights, and in any case it only covers the side that stayed dry!

I hope you get better quickly. You are in the land of onsen. Get that ankle to one and soak it....works wonders

http://tiny.cc/uzh7x

Aloha!

Oh, great suggestion, HT!

Sorry about the troubles - it's only going to get better from now on. Elevate your foot whenever you can.

Yikes, this is no fun, t-d. I recall very similar issues -- was changing planes in Shanghai en route to Osaka when I had a misstep and went down like I was shot. 1 leg worked, the other could only be dragged -- after 2 days of that, I holed up in my room for a full day, and that restored me to about 80% mobility, which was fine.

ok, if you are not going to limp along, like a trooper, then i suggest you hire carriers who will transport you aloft for the rest of your trip.....cleopatra had them, why should you not...??

take two aspirin and some orange juice and you will be fine in the morning..

There is a very loud silence here. I do hope you are OK.

Hi Gertie - thanks for asking. I made it to Kyoto, and am still planning on continuing (bought a bunch of train tickets yesterday), but I am limping VERY slowly, which limits sightseeing, and am concerned about permanent injury. I stopped by a hospital very near my hotel yesterday, but there was hardly any English spoken, and they wanted a 5250 yen new patient exam before they addressed the real problem. I may try Kyoto University Hospital on Friday. (Today is a holiday and it seems the hospitals are closed!)

I talked with my insurance co. and they will cover an emergency room visit after a $75 copay. It didn't seem that the hospital I visited yesterday had an emergency room, or at least I wasn't in it.

Bob, not sure they have palanquins in Japan, although they do have taxis. However, this is a budget trip, if I were going to take taxis everywhere I'd have to come home a lot sooner. Maybe you could send some bearers?

Proper TR entry after I get my journal up-to-date and blog Vancouver.

Emergency departments are few, and holidays are tricky. There are e designated clinics and hospitals which accept patients after hours, weekends and holidays. They are published in the newspaper. You could ask your hotel about that option. Sometimes there is a new patient dee, sometimes not. If you get desperate come to Kanazawa early and we'll take you. They will certainly speak English at Kyoto university. They may not want to see you without a referral though, as many uni hospitals like to treat only difficult cases. Call before you go - or have someone call for you.

I have friends in Japan who will know where to find an English speaking doctor. I'll e mail you their details.

Thanks so much Kim (you're up early!). If it doesn't seem to improve today I'll have the hotel call the university hospital. This is the same ankle I injured years ago in Turkey, so it's weak to start with.

Good luck and I hope you feel better. Most doctors will speak at least some passable English. In fact, all of mine do, and I see quite a few. English speaking doctors are not a rarity. But, the reception staff may not have very much English at all.

ok, i have rounded up a few....gpanda will be in charge....don't count on him for much...he talks big but does not follow through....khunwilko is available... orgy is also on board... AO said she will help, but has to be carried in a chair when she is transporting you.... the moderator might even help on weekends (we can get away with murder then on weekends)... robert mcintosh can come too and bring a strong flight attendant to lift your bags overhead.... several guys on soi 4 said they would help if you also can assure them that their oxygen bottles can be refilled...
i don't know how much you weigh, but after eating all that asian food, it can't be much so this should work at least for the next month or two and then we can arrange for replacements or maybe you will be healed by then...

Best wishes for successful medical treatment soon! And I sincerely hope that you are able to enjoy what you are seeing, even if you are seeing things at a different pace than you had hoped.

thursdaysd - I first met you here online when you were doing your Sore Foot Tour of Budapest, Austria and Venice - that was when I was recovering from my accident in Japan when I fell and broke my foot!
I certainly hope you feel better soon. Maybe you should bite the bullet and pay the deductible for an examination.
Looking forward to traveling along with your report.
Feel better soon!

Kyoto International Foundation (Nanzen-ji area)
TEL：075-752-3010
many English speakers there. open on national holidays, saturdays, and sundays.
http://www.kcif.or.jp/en
you might be able to consult with the staff there.

Just realized you are in Kyoto - my former Japanese teacher is now living there - if she's around, maybe she has time to help you - email me if you want - my screen name with 'b1' added at hotmail dot com.

Really appreciate all the fodors help (and laughs - that's a motley crew, all right). Am waiting for 9:00 am local to make phone calls. Just ate breakfast at the Palaceside Hotel - unlike NeoP I thought it a better deal than the coffee place down the street - unlimited coffee and juice, and the toast and ham no worse. The coffee place was a nice room, though. This is clearly a tourist hotel, unlike the Toyoko Inn in Tokyo, where I was the only gaijin in sight. Normally I'd prefer the more immersive experience, but at this point good English skills at the front desk are welcome.

Quick update. I haven't turned up any options in Kyoto aside from the University hospital and the hospital I tried on Wednesday. On the plus side, the ankle is clearly not broken, and seems to be responding to rest and arnica and some very sticky white plaster things a pharmacy sold me - at any rate, I'm limping faster today, despite a more energetic than expected evening. I think I'll just keep going, and see how I'm feeling when I get to Kanazawa. I go to Koyasan tomorrow, and although it's a bit of a trek to get there it sounds like just the right place for a slow limp.

If I'd known last evening would require more standing than I was ready for (much of it on one foot, leaning on the hiking stick I took along as a cane, lol), I wouldn't have gone, which would have been a pity. The Welcome Guide I had contacted wasn't available during the day, and said their days usually ended at 5:00 pm, but would I be interested in going along with her to a Moon Viewing Ceremony in the evening? (See http://www.daikakuji.or.jp/english/event/index.html - Kangetsu-e) Well, of course I would, and it was a wonderful experience - the clouds went away and a full moon appeared at exactly the right moment, just as the Buddhist ceremony started.

You poor thing, at least you seem to be handling your ankle in a good spirit. Am following along on your amazing trip.

Sorry to hear that your ankle is bothering you. The 'sticky white plaster thing' could be Salonpas, a very popular brand made in Japan. It may give you comfort to know that it has been approved by the FDA. Here is some info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salonpas.

Quick update: I made it up to Koya-san, and then survived a long travel day to reach Tokushima (note to HT - I did see the Naruto whirlpools). I'm now in Takamatsu, and have decided to skip Matsue, instead going straight to Kanazawa tomorrow.

20-21 Sep - Resting Up and Random Observations

After I spread the entire contents of my wet pack around my very small room in Tokyo so the things could dry (I hung the silk sleep sack, which fared worst, over the shower rail) I limped back to the station in search of dinner. I chose based on the pictures outside, and ate some very good pork fried in ginger at a little place right on the station forecourt. Sleeping was less successful - I woke up at midnight, but after going back to sleep around 3:00 am slept through to 8:00 am. I had given up any thought of visiting the fish market because of my bad ankle.

Breakfast at the Toyoko Inn featured lots of good coffee and O.J., and an OK croissant, but what appeared to be tuna fish sandwiches on limp white bread and potato salad (which had also appeared with the pork at dinner). After I got everything back in my pack and returned to the station I had no trouble buying a ticket on the shinkansen to Kyoto with my Visa card, although I did need some help finding the right platform. Since I didn't have a window seat I couldn't see a lot, but given the amount of haze there wasn't much to see.

RO #1 It is very humid. I live in NC, where the summers are miserably hot and humid, but although it's not as hot, it's even more humid. No Turkish bath effect, but just stand outside and you'll start sweating.

The countryside looked pretty, with tree-covered hills, but the towns were very crowded. I wondered what will happen when the population decreases, if it does. (My welcome guide in Kyoto said that people are just living in smaller groups - nuclear instead of extended families). Maybe the traffic situation would improve, at least, the traffic in Kyoto was horrible, and it took my taxi a long time to go the short distance to the Palace Side Hotel. I had opted for a garden view room, but since at this time of year all I could see were the outer trees, I'm not sure it was worth the extra. The hotel itself seemed old and tired after the Toyoko, and between the tour groups and the location it's not a place I'd revisit. The area is completely dead after the middle of the afternoon, with very few eating options, and it's not on a main bus route.

RO #2 The streets are immaculate. I mean, absolutely immaculate. No trash aside from a little leaf litter, and occasionally a few weeds. It's not just Kyoto - even a port city like Wakayama has the same freshly-made look. When I did see a stray beer can down an alley, it came as quite a shock. And not a pothole or loose brick in sight.

RO #3 In the UK, people drive on the left, but on escalators they stand to the right. Here they drive on the left and stand on the left. Although most of the time they walk on the left side of the street, this isn't universal. You also need to keep an ear out for cyclists using the pedestrians' part of the sidewalk.

The bento box I bought on the train didn't contain anything I recgnized as protein, so I ate a ham and egg sandwich (on limp white bread) at the hotel before going to sleep for the afternoon. This is my standard practice for jet lag going east - get up for dinner and then go to bed with everyone else - it didn't work quite so well going west. I ate dinner at the fairly nearby Tsujiya that NeoPatrick had enjoyed. I quite liked a big salad with tofu and greens (probably meant for sharing), and the chicken livers weren't bad (although I just ate much better ones in Takamatsu). I thought the chicken and mushrooms just passable. Surprisingly, the place seemed to be closing down at 9:00pm.

Back at the hotel I called my medical insurance companies, establishing that my regular insurance required me to visit an emergency room, and I would have to pay the first $75. I'd also have to pay up-front and get reimbursed later. My evacuation insurance had changed providers since my card was issued, and after a round of phone tag I finally got an email with the right contact the next morning.

#RO #4 Back in May Fodors posted some tips on etiquette in Japan, and in the ensuing discussion I was called an Ugly American for suggesting that your average female tourist, who wouldn't be attending high-powered business meetings or eating in fancy restaurants, didn't need to take a skirt. Well, I didn't bring a skirt, and I certainly don't need one! Far more women, of all ages and apparent socio-economic status, are wearing trousers than skirts in public. My Kyoto Welcome Guide, a woman wearing trousers, had a good laugh when I mentioned the discussion.

On the question of bread:

I am not a fan of white bread. It's usually tasteless, dry, and uninteresting. But the white bread in Japan is very different: the texture is moist (or, as the OP calls it, "limp"), and it actually has some flavor. Different people, different tastes.

rizzuto - also different habits. At home I eat a lot of whole grains, if I eat carbs at all. All this white rice and white bread and noodles is not really agreeing with me...

Bento boxes at stations are a tradition in Japan. Each station has its own speciality. They are one of the joys of our family trips on trains. You may not always know what it is but it will be delicious. Hope you find some good ones.
Weather should be cooling down soon, this is usually the best time of year in Japan.
The skirt stuff is nonsense, you did the right thing!

There is brown rice (genmai) all over Japan. Soba and buckwheat noodles are everywhere. Just gotta know where to look

Maybe one of our editors can tell you from their vast travel experiences where to locate some.

How big were the whirlpools? Did you get on the bridge to see?

Since you are in Takamatsu you may want to try looking for some Sanuki Udon,I know more noodles. At least these are wheat noodles

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e5408.html

Aloha!

OK, HT. If you go here: http://kwilhelm.smugmug.com/Travel/Round-the-World-2010-11/ gallery Shikoku and password shikoku, you'll find my (unedited) whirlpool pix. I went by boat, I didn't see anyone on the bridge, and it looked a bit high for good views. There's a bus from the station that gets you right to the boat, but it takes over an hour. Much faster to drive yourself, I would think, as we went round by the airport.

Off to eat noodles for breakfast...

Good news. KimJapan and a friend met my train in Kanazawa this afternoon and took me off to the doctor's, where they kept me company and translated. My ankle is sprained, not broken, and should be better in a couple of weeks. Meanwhile I have new sticky white plasters (with different medicine), and a heavier bandage, properly wrapped. My ankle feels happier already. This is an especial relief, because after I visited the Ritsurin Garden yesterday (perhaps a bit ambitious even at a dead slow speed), it had swollen up dramatically. I am very grateful!

Ooooof. I'm not sure if I'd classify that as "good news" or "not-the-worst-possible news." Certainly a good thing that you got some proper medical attention, and that you are no longer in the dark as to the actual status. Best wishes.

Thanks to KimJapan for helping out our intrepid traveler. I'm glad you know what you are dealing wiht now. Take it easy.

On RO#1, I think Kyoto has too much historical stuff buried underground, which is why they only have 2 not-too-useful subway lines, and I also find the traffic really bad.

On RO#3, when you get to Hong Kong (which drives on the left side like Japan and the UK), you'll find that people stand on the right side of the escalators and walk on the left.

I'm so glad to hear that, thursdaysd! I hope you continue to see improvement.

gertie3751 - the bento box I bought at Shin Osaka station yesterday was MUCH better than the one on the shinkansen to Kyoto. I guess the moral is "don't buy your bento on the train" although it is more convenient.

kathie Yes, having KimJapan's help made such a difference, and I really enjoyed meeting her and her friend and family.

22-24 Sep - Limping Around Kyoto, and more Random Observations

I started my first full day in Kyoto by visiting the Daini Nisseki hospital. I had asked the front desk people at the Palace Side for a nearby doctor specializing in bad feet, but this seemed to be a general hospital, and indeed, not to have the emergency room my medical insurance required. (KimJapan tells me that US-style emergency rooms don't exist in Japan - how to explain that to my insurance company?) Little English was spoken, but after I filled in the registration form, we established that there would be a long wait, and that I would have to pay a 5250 yen new patient exam fee. This wasn't what I had in mind, and since it was pretty clear I had a sprain, not a break, I decided to explore other options.

Instead of waiting to see a doctor, I took the subway back to the station to try to buy the train tickets for the rest of my trip. I do mean try... In Tokyo, I could have bought a Seishun Juhachi Kippu for 115 yen, good for five days of rail travel. I hadn't bought it then, because I wanted to check whether it would save me money (it didn't cover reservations). Now, in Kyoto, I was told that it had been discontinued Sep 10th! Plus, none of the three separate ticket offices I visited wanted to sell me tickets for other parts of the country. Finally, I gave up and visited the Nippon Travel Agency, where a helpful and efficient young woman sold me a pile of tickets, and also figured out for me the bus I hadn't realized (duh!) I would need to get from Wakayama train station to the Wakayama ferry terminal.

While I was at the train station - really two or three stations, with JR regular lines to the north, shinkansen and Kintetsu lines to the south, a full blown department store and plenty of restaurants - I visited the T.I. and picked up a bus map and transport passes. I lunched on the 11th floor on tempura.

R.O. #5. Hold on to your tickets. For both regular and underground trains you need to feed your ticket into the entrance/exit gates on the way out as well as the way in.

After lunch I played tourist and took a bus to Nijo Castle.This was so different from the English castles I grew up visiting I had a hard time registering it as a military site - until I took a good look at the massive stone walls. I took another bus (the Kyoto bus map is really helpful) to the nearby Nishijin Textile Center, but this was more of a tourist trap than I expected. I did admire a kimono parade, and found my way up to the rather desultory craft demos on the third floor, but didn't shop.

For dinner I tried a tiny okonomiyaki place round the corner from the hotel, but was disappointed to find the "pancake" was fixed for me in the kitchen, and again, was short on apparent protein (two smallish shrimp). I'm sorry to keep harping on protein, but I have border-line hypoglycemia, and adequate protein intake is mandatory. This time I filled up with quite good trout back at the hotel. Next morning I switched from NeoPatrick's pleasant coffee place down the street to the hotel's buffet for breakfast - the cost wasn't much different, and the hotel provided unlimited coffee and orange juice along with cereal, yoghurt and fruit, besides the watery eggs and limp bacon.

R.O. #6. Bus fares are complicated. Unless it's a fixed fare bus, or you have a pass that covers your entire route, you won't know your fare until you get off the bus. (I'm sure locals know, but we're talking travelers here.) You board at the back, taking a numbered ticket from a machine as you do so. You leave from the front, feeding the ticket and the correct coins for your fare into a machine by the driver. To figure the fare you check a display board at the front of the bus, which will show the fare that corresponds to your numbered ticket. However, the further you travel, the higher the fare, and you don't know the total for sure until just before your stop.The machine will give change, but in unpredictable combinations of coins, and you have to get the change before paying the fare.

Next morning I spent time on the phone following up leads from helpful Fodorites in the search for another medical option. However, it basically came down to the same hospital I had already visited. I actually rested for the remainder of the morning (it was raining) before heading back to the department store at Kyoto station for packaging for the gifts for my Welcome Guides. This time I ate (Chinese, as it turned out) on the Cube side of the station, with an excellent view north over the city. Then I went north by bus to the Daitokuji temple complex. It didn't look far on the map, but buses in Kyoto can take an unbelievably long time to get anywhere, especially if the route requires right turns.

R.O. #7. The few Prius's I've seen on the roads look like full-size cars here. Most vehicles look boxy, cut straight off right behind the rear wheels - probably for easier parking.

I got off one stop too soon for the main temple complex, but that meant that I actually wound up at Koto-In, the temple I was most interested in seeing. I loved it. Both the approach, down a long, shaded avenue, and the buildings, elegantly simple, but most of all the atmosphere. Here was the serenity I had expected from Kyoto. There were even a few trees with leaves showing autumn color.

Glad you are enjoying Kyoto. It's a joy isn't it. I do miss it.
Your comments on buses and such reminded me of my first few months in Japan: I couldn't read anything, didn't know what I was eating, couldn't figure out the system, was always on the wrong foot and in the wrong shoes at the wrong time. It took me a good 2 years to get the hang of it even slightly. You are doing well.
Good to hear you got your ankle sorted.

Thursday,great to hear that you're enjoying Kyoto.Do take care of yourself.You have a long haul ahead.
Brings back my '05 memories there.Visit the Funaoka Onsen,if possible, near Kurama-guchi Dori(if I'm not mistaken),a lovely old bath house,a wonderful experience.Any plans of going to Takayama ?

Thanks gertie.

inquest - my posts are way behind reality - I'm currently in Kanazawa, and will be in Takayama in a few days.

23-24 Sep - Better Days in Kyoto

Actually, one of my best experiences in Kyoto was Koto-In, which I mentioned in my last post. I could have stayed much longer, sitting on the verandah and admiring the mossy ground, the feathery bamboo, the trees showing the first hints of fall color, and soaking in the serenity, but I needed to be back at my hotel at 4:00 pm.

The Welcome Guide group I had contacted (there are several in Kyoto), had been unable to provide a guide for the days I wanted, but my correspondent had said that although guides usually went off duty at 5:00 pm, she would be going to a Full Moon Viewing ceremony, and would take me along if I wanted to go. (I think I had asked, in the lengthy questionnaire I had filled in, about any special activities for the Autumn Equinox holiday on Sep 23.)

I warned her about my bad ankle, but she suggested that we should go anyway, and checked with the front desk at the Palace Side for a bus route, so that I could avoid the steps at the train stations. We were headed for Arashiyama and the Daikakuji temple, originally a "detached" Imperial palace, and with plenty of chrysanthemum blossom decorations (hiding nail heads, for instance), to prove it. Fortunately, I took my hiking stick along to do duty as a cane, as I did more standing than I was ready for, but it was in all other ways a magical evening.

I saw few other foreigners. A handful of Japanese women honored the occasion by wearing kimono, although most people were in western clothes. Thanks to the rain and overcast skies during the day, my WG said that there were many fewer people than the previous year, which was fine with me. I bought us both bento boxes for dinner, and we sat on benches (actually, looked more like tables to me), to listen to a violinist playing well-known western music in one of the halls. (Moon River was one of the selections!)

The Buddhist ceremony started at 6:30 pm, and right on time the clouds parted to show a perfect white moon, equally perfectly reflected in the lotus pond behind the celebrants. Afterwards we rode a dragon boat round the pond, eating a sweet cake and drinking the bitter tea ceremony tea.Then my WG walked me round the imperial buildings, and we traded moon myths - green cheese for white rabbits.

R.O. #8.There seems little consistency among hotels when it comes to yukutas. The Toyoko Inn in Tokyo had a notice asking you not to wear one outside your room, while at the Dormy Inn in Takamatsu both men and women wore them to breakfast. Usually they come free with the room, but the (touristy) Palace Side in Kyoto charged 100 yen for one (per day if you wanted a fresh one each day). Mostly a yukuta is a single garment, which sometimes fits me and sometimes was designed for a person with a completely different body shape, but in Takamatsu (again) it was a pair of short trousers and a short jacket (tying on the right).

My last full day in Kyoto I started out by bus to visit the Nanzen-ji temple, only to find that the bus stop put me closer to Eikan-do, which I enjoyed much more. (Perhaps because I was too tired by the time I finally reached Nanzen-ji to fully explore the site.) Eikan-do had a brand-new elevator, with sprays of small maple leaves etched on its metal doors, to get me up to the main hall and the Buddha Glancing Backward. On the way from Eikan-do to Nanzen-ji I actually encountered a person-pulled rickshaw, but, unlike those I saw later on at Ginkaku-ji, it would have saved me very few steps.

I limped slowly on towards the east-west subway line, which, mirabile dictu, had escalators and elevators, and delivered me one stop closer to a Lonely Plenet recommended restaurant, Asuka, which provided me with a pefectly fine tempura set for lunch. Afterwards, I switched back to the bus to reach Ginkaku-ji - or as close as I could get by public transport, which wasn't very close.

I'm sorry if some people find this heretical, but I was very disappointed with Ginkaku-ji, which I thought totally not worth the effort it took me to get there. Perhaps if I had been up to trekking up the hill beyond the main buildings I would have felt differently. Perhaps if it hadn't been overrun with other tourists... Perhaps if I hadn't had to trek uphill through tourist central (all souvenir shops and cafes) to get there... (I did find a nice, quiet, residential street to get back down.) As it was, I felt that I had visited the temples in the wrong order, with the best (Koto-In) first, and the worst (Ginkaku-ji), last.

The day had not been good for my bad ankle, so after an exceedingly slow bus ride back to Kyoto station I retreated to my hotel to pack, and to eat an uninspired dinner. I would leave for Koya-san in the morning.

Status - Currently in Matsumoto, return to Tokyo tomorrow. The magic white plasters from the doctor in Kanazawa (plus a better bandage) really seem to be helping my ankle. I'm still limping, but faster. Plus I made it up, and down (much harder), most of Matsumoto castle today, which I couldn't have done a week ago. My journal is up-to-date, but I'm way behind on writing, so this post is mostly a copy of my blog entry, minus the pix.

Sep 25-26 - Not So Serene at Koya-san

It was not exactly Koya-san's fault that perhaps the best parts of my visit were getting there and back. The train rides were memorable - once we left Hashimoto the little local wound its way laboriously up through forested mountains, the sea of trees broken only occasionally by rural communities where the farmhouses clustered together amid the rice fields. At the end of the tracks I switched to a cable car, rising almost vertically higher still, and then to a (rather expensive) bus, which delivered me to my temple - if you spend the night on Koysa-san (aka Mt. Koya) you do it in a temple.

But good mountain scenery was only one of my hopes for the visit: I also looked forward to at least serenity, if not spirituality, from my temple stay (along with some good vegetarian food), and an atmospheric, even eerie, visit to the famous cemetery, Oku-no-in, where all Japanese Buddhists hope at least a piece of their earthly remains will be buried, to await the arrival of the future Buddha. These additional expectations were not met.

Part of the problem came down to scheduling: I arrived at my temple, the Rengejo-in, at 15:00, check-in time, to discover an unexpected 17:00 meditation, followed by dinner, after which the buses stopped. In the morning, a 6:00 religious ceremony would be followed by breakfast and check out, leaving me little time to catch the bus that would be the start of a marathon trip to Tokushima. In the end I skipped breakfast, which gave me a rushed 40 minutes at Oku-no-in - in bright sunshine, rather than gathering gloom.

I had known about the 6:00 ceremony, but not about the meditation - if I had known I might have tried to get to Koya-san earlier. The other problems were in no way my fault - except perhaps, by selecting the wrong temple, but it's hard to know which is the right one, especially when the first requirement is that they will accept a single foreign traveler. Initially, things looked good. The temple was quiet, the gardens were beautiful, and my room came with tatami mats and a kotatsu heater.

But, but, but... I returned from a brief trip to the village - just to look around - to find a tour bus disgorging its passengers! I would be sharing my temple experience with a fair-sized tour group (of Israelis, it turned out). Not at all what I had in mind. Plus, this particular group had no idea how to behave during meditation - people kept getting up and leaving, making a lot of noise in the process. Then a large guy moved next to me, and when his knee stayed touching mine I destroyed all the serenity I had built up in rush of anger (jabbing him with a sharp fingernail did get the knee removed, though).

Meditation was followed by a lengthy sermon, which ensured that dinner was served cold - tempura, tea and soup were all stone cold.... I had expected it to be served in my room. Instead, we ate in a large dining area, although I discovered the next morning that the Japanese guests had their own section, apart from the foreigners. (I did not appreciate being segregated.) I imagine the Japanese were spared the long talk by the 90 year old mother of the current head monk, mostly about the hardships of life in Koya-san during the war. I couldn't quite tell whether the Americans were being regarded as responsible, or as saviors. Of course, I might have found it more interesting if I could have heard it better, or if I hadn't been having trouble sitting on the floor with a bad ankle (I got a stool for the meditation, but not for dinner).

I had actually enjoyed the meditation (until the incident of the intrusive Israeli), but I found the morning ceremony a complete waste of time. In fact, I thought the whole thing might well be a fake for foreigners - until I noticed that there were Japanese guests there. The room was festooned with dangly gilt things, quite unlike the one next door used for the monks' private observances. The session ended with another long sermon, all in Japanese.

I had met a couple from Amsterdam on the train up to Koya-san, and when we met again on the train down we compared notes. They hadn't been entirely happy with their temple, Eko-in, either. Although the food was served in their room, it didn't have a heater. However, I think I would have preferred Eko-in, as it was much closer to the cemetery, and an evening walking tour was offered.

Rengejo-in is a Fodors' recommendation, and it's certainly true that the room, the gardens and the Japanese bath were all fine (but in the morning only cold water was available). I would suggest that anyone considering a visit to Koya-san find out exactly what schedule their intended temple keeps, how big it is (i.e. is there room for tour groups!), how the food is served (do you ant it served in your room?), and whether there are heaters. But even though I didn't have the experience I expected, I wouldn't want to discourage anyone else from going.

What a disappointment, especially when you were looking forward to the temple bit. There really does seem to be a disconnect between what you (or I or many, many individuals who might make the trek to the temple) are expecting, and what the people who arrange for and allow the tour buses are thinking. Any tour bus is going to be disruptive -- you could have a bus full of Carmelite nuns and there'd still be plenty of noise and movement.

Sounds like the trip to/from was worthwhile.

I'm sorry that your experience of Koya-san was so different than mine! I stayed at Shojoshin-in, right next to Okuno-in - no sermons, no required meditation, great food served in semi-privacy (screens separated diners from each other), gorgeous gardens. . . .

Glad to hear your ankle is improving.

So sorry your Koya-San experience was not up to your expectations. Like others, I'm glad to hear that your ankle is improving. I'm looking forward to the next installment!

I join the last three posters and am really sad that your Koyasan night was so disappointing - your trip, of course, has a completely different scope than mine which was part of a 11 night trip to Japan. I was able to stay two nights in Koyasan which allowed me a whole day to sightsee including a morning walking tour of Okunoin. My inn was not that crowded and served me - a single traveler - in my room for both my dinners and breakfasts. I had the time to do a lot of research since it was not a long trip like yours.
I am glad your ankle is doing better now and hope that you have many other experiences that will dull your disappointment with Koyasan.
Yes, those steps at Matsumoto castle were quite steep in parts....it always amazes me how some older people can almost run up and down while I am grabbing the bannister for dear life.

Thanks for the good wishes.

I seem to remember looking at Shojoshin-in, but I can't remember now whether I couldn't get a single room, or I thought it was too expensive. Koya-san WAS expensive - my one night cost 13,650 yen - nowhere else I stayed was over 10,000 and most were under 8,000.

I should probably have splurged more for Koya-san, but I was saving for an expected splurge in the Japan Alps when I booked there.

rizzuto - the train trip WAS good, although the bus ride from Tokoyama to Matsumoto was even better!

Sep 26 - Trekking to Tokushima

The day I spent getting from Koya-san on Honshu to Tokushima on Shikoku would have been a bit of a marathon even without a bad ankle. As it was, I felt both relieved and exhausted when I finally reached my hotel, the surprisingly plush Agnes, after traveling on five buses, two trains, one cable car, one ferry, and, finally, one taxi. (Maybe this will convince Bob I'm really a trooper!)

I was woken before my alarm, set for 5:30, went off, by the sound of wheeled luggage in the corridor. After a cold wash, and the religious ceremony I mentioned above, I drank some soup before the proper breakfast started, finished packing and checked out. Fortunately, I had allowed plenty of time for checking out, as I only just made my first bus, to the cemetery. Since I was limping rather slowly, I allowed more time than normal for gettng around. The bus back to the temple to retrieve my pack was followed by the bus to the cable car. These days my head for heights is not what it was, but I had no problems on the cable car.

The local train to Hashimoto was waiting when we got off the cable car, and while the ride down was not as scenic as the ride up, I still enjoyed it. Hashimoto station was being renovated, and seemed short on things like escalators, elevators, and options for lunch, but I made my next train, for Wakayama, with no difficulty. Even though it was Sunday, at one point I shared the otherwise all-male carriage with half a dozen school girls, in full uniform - plaid skirts, knee-high black socks, blue sweaters and bow ties.

When I had planned this day, I had somehow overlooked the fact that the Wakayama train station might not be next to the ferry dock! Fortunately, the efficient young woman in the Nippon Travel Agency in Kyoto had fixed this potential problem, arranging my trip so that I easily made the single mid-afternoon bus connecting the two. It was quite a long limp on an elevated walkway from the bus to the ferry, but seats, toilets and vending machines were available while I waited to board.

The ferry was unlike any I had ridden before. Up front, a small, enclosed section had airplane-type seats, but no view, and cost an extra 500 yen. In the main section, one area had regular seats facing a TV (showing golf when I checked), and the other two sections were just floor - plus an area for kids. I apologize to those who would have stayed on deck (from where the view was, in any case, largely obstructed by both superstructure and haze), but instead I gratefully dropped my packs, took off my boots, lay down on the floor and closed my eyes. Aaahhh...

I did sit up on occasion to check the view, lots of water and some small islands, but mostly I enjoyed the break. After we docked in Tokushima, following the Japanese off the boat, I couldn't help noticing that it was as immaculate as when I boarded. Finding the next bus, to Tokushima station, was easy - the bus stop was right outside the ferry terminal. I had chosen a hotel very close to the station, but even so I decided to treat myself to a taxi. The unfortunate driver had to ask his mates the location of my hotel - I doubt he had ever driven there before! I thought the 550 yen well spent

The Agnes had been a mid-range listing in Lonely Planet, so I was pleasantly surprised by the gleaming marble lobby, the good-sized room, and the excellent (if expensive) four course fixed price Western meal I ate in the "cafe". Smoked salmon with marscapone and mousse, soup, a large, perfectly cooked serving of delicious wagyu beef with vegetables, and an elaborate creme brulee with ice cream plus a very drinkable glass of red wine cost me 4,500 yen and partly made up for the disappointing temple meal. Although this was considerably more than I generally spend for dinner, it was offset by the cost of my room - 6,300 yen. Recommended. (http://www.agneshotel.jp/ )

Status - My ankle is doing much better, although the Tokyo subway system was a real trial. I thought Moscow had the longest interchanges around, but Tokyo's are worse, and at least Moscow has escalators! I made it to Seoul yesterday, and Japan Airlines managed to keep my luggage dry this time - I suspect it was buried - there was a soccer team on the flight with the most incredible quantity of luggage, ALL of which was delivered first. Maybe the extra weight explains the decidedly bumpy landing.

Sep 27-28 - A Glimpse of Shikoku

While my main objective for Tokushima was actually out of town in Naruto, there were a few in-town sights I might have visited if I'd been walking better, principally the Awa Odori museum showcasing the town’s dance festival, and its associated ropeway. After checking the distance, and considering the likely view from the ropeway, I settled for just visiting the Naruto whirlpools.

Before I took the taxi to the Agnes, I had gone up to the information office on the 6th floor of the station building to find out how to get to Naruto. The young woman helping me, despite our almost complete lack of a common language, had been thorough, and it was my fault I just missed a bus. No matter, I settled in for coffee, lunch and wifi at Starbucks before successfully catching the next bus (an hour later).

The bus took over an hour to reach the dock for the sightseeing boat, as it followed a winding route that included a deserted airport, but I still arrived in good time for the second-best boat of the afternoon – the whirlpools are at their best near the full moon (just a few days earlier) and at high and low tides. High tide on September 27 was at 8:00 am, so I had settled for low tide, and I didn’t want to take a later boat since I would still need to catch a train to my next town afterwards.

I’m glad I went, but I have to say that I found the whirlpools, especially on a damp, overcast day, a little disappointing. Maybe closer to eddies than whirlpools – although I did see one perfect circle, which I unfortunately failed to get on camera. After all, just how ferocious could they be when my boat was able to sail right through? I suppose those given to motion sickness might feel a bit queasy, but no-one on my boat seemed bothered. In a row-boat or a small sail boat, of course, I would have felt differently!

While the train from Tokushima to Takamatsu wasn't a shinkansen, just a "limited express", it still seemed pretty fast to me, and it did the lean on the curves thing I'd previously experienced on French ICE trains. Once again, I took a taxi to my hotel, rather than sorting out the buses, and although the Dormy Inn (booked through agoda.com) wasn't as classy as the Agnes and I had to go out to find dinner, it was fine (well, aside from the fact that it served noodles for breakfast and I'm not a noodle fan). In fact, the young woman on the front desk said she was upgrading me, and my room was definitely a double, but it faced a blank wall. Looking more carefully at houses and apartment complexes in Japanese towns I concluded that the lack of view wasn't unusual.

I had allowed a full day for Takamatsu to make sure I had enough time to fully appreciate Ritsurin Garden, one of the most famous gardens in Japan. Since I was limping, I followed the route recommended for wheel chairs, and skipped much of the northern section, and anywhere with steps, but I still had a lovely time. Checking the back of the map for the garden, I can report that development occurred in stages from the 1570s to the 1740s, and that the landscaping is considered "typical of the elaborate daimyo style gardens of the early Edo era".

Even with few flowers out, I found the garden beautiful. I also found it completely unnatural. Not in the sense that a French garden can be unnatural, with everything laid out in geometric forms, or that an English park is supposed to look like wilderness, but isn't, but that the existence and shape of almost every twig was the result of conscious decision on the part of the gardeners. Indeed, I spotted a couple up a tree busy pruning, and fine wires forcing branches to grow in the preferred directions. Even while I admired the results, the carefully contrived vistas and the twisted trunks, I was conscious of what had produced them. I love the Japanese pine trees, with their contorted branches and fine needles: they remind me of the junipers in the south-western US, surviving despite adversity. But in this case, as so often, the adversity is man-made.

I took a bus to the station where I lunched on excellent fried chicken and cabbage salad, before catching a little local train to visit Yashima-ji. Yashima-ji is temple no. 84 of the 88 temples that form the Buddhist pilgrimage circuit of Shikoku island. Several small groups of pilgrims made brief visits while I was there - I rather suspect they arrived by four-wheeled transport rather than on their own feet. Some wore all white clothes, with an elaborate sash round their necks, and carried staffs and bells, but others just wore white jackets or vests.

Back at the hotel I visited the Japanese bath on the top floor, where a security code was required to enter the women's bathroom. I had the tub, tiled, with a cluster of rocks in one corner, to myself - I don't think that late afternoon is prime bathing time. I dined at a little izakaya place just round the corner from the hotel - the waitress was very upset when I ordered chicken liver skewers (by the Japanese name) and tried to get someone to translate to make sure I knew what I was doing. I did, and they were delicious!

Despite your ankle it sounds like a wonderful trip.

Indeed, you are a trooper!

Thanks Kathie!

Yes, Nywoman, Japan was very interesting, although I'm glad to have reached Korea. Am holed up in a love motel (very amusing) with minimal net access, maybe will get some writing done.

I'm glad to hear that your ankle is improving and that you are managing to see quite a lot despite your limp!

Irony - I was sitting on the bus from Seoul to Danyang, wondering when I would have enough time to catch up on my journal and trip reports, and do some trip planning. I figured there would be no down time until I reached Hong Kong. I tried writing on the bus, but it was too bumpy, and besides, there was scenery out the window. Then, when I reached Danyang, I found it smaller and quieter than I expected, and that I'd have to spend an extra morning waiting for a bus. I was just muttering to myself about this, when I remembered that I had wanted some down time.... (Then I found an earlier bus, and plenty to do, so all I really managed was to get my journal up to date.)

Sep 29 - 30 - Kanazawa, friends, and a doctor

After I made it to Tokushima, still limping, I decided to skip Matsue and go straight from Takamatsu to Kanazawa. It would mean missing a town that sounded interesting, but would save me a long travel day, and get me to a doctor a couple of days earlier. Since my Matsue hotel was a Toyoko Inn, I had no trouble canceling my room, and JR changed my Takamatsu to Matsue tickets to Takamatsu to Kanazawa without penalty (I hadn't bought the Matsue to Kanazawa tickets).

When I finished packing in Takamatsu, I realized I didn't have my hiking stick, which had been doing duty as a cane. I started to think this trip really was jinxed, but happily I had merely left it at the front desk the night before, and it was ceremonially handed over to me when I checked out. I needed it, as the day involved changes at Okayama and at Shin Osaka (where I bought a nice bento box for lunch). The first train was a double-decker, which meant more stairs, and limited my view when we crossed the Inland Sea as I was downstairs. The scenery after Kyoto was also worth seeing - more mountains.

KimJapan, whom I had "met" on Fodors, and who had so kindly volunteered to help me with the doctor, met my train, along with a Japanese friend. The two of them escorted me to the clinic, translated for me (both forms and people), and took care of my bags. I was so grateful! After an exam and some X-rays, the doctor told me my ankle wasn't broken, but would need another two weeks to heal. He gave me some new, more potent, sticky white plasters, and wound a heavy duty bandage round my foot - much wider and tougher than the Ace bandage I had been using. Getting the foot back in my boot was quite an exercise!

After some excellent coffee, KJ delivered me to my hotel. I had picked it because friends of mine had stayed there the year before - or so I thought. It turned out they had put the wrong link on their blog, and had actually stayed at another, nicer, APA hotel nearby. Not to worry, this hotel was cheaper, and the difference helped cover my doctor's bills. (Bills plural, as it turned out I was also charged for a translation of the initial bill.) I had a nice time eating dinner that night with KJ and her friend and family - my conveyor sushi experience.

Then next morning KJ's husband R played tour guide for me, taking me round some of the historic districts, to a favorite house and garden, and to the Omi-Cho market. I always like markets, and was interested to see the prices. Local produce costs more than imported, not as a reflection of the cost, but because the Japanese don't want to eat "foreign". We lunched at the market on some good soup, and I tried some sesame sardine. In the Nagamachi district I saw some lovely, heavy, modern glass - but not something I wanted to carry!

We finished up at the station, where I bought the bus ticket I'd need to get from Shirakawa-go to Takayama. I really enjoyed the day, and ended it by eating dinner at a place very close to my hotel, Kotatsu. I had okonomiyaki again, this one, with beef, was MUCH better than the one in Kyoto, and I also had a delicious mushroom "salad":. Saving my feet by dining close to home really worked out well.

Kudos to KimJapan! Aren't Fodorites wonderful?

Still following along. Finally some good luck in meeting up with KimJapan. I hope to do so one day soon! Can't wait to get your impressions on S-Go and Takayama. Funny you mention the mushroom salad as it is one of our favorites in Japan, so many flavors....

Aloha!

Kathie - absolutely.

ht - really liked the Japan Alps! See you're headed for Korea as well, some lovely countryside here, too.

Oct 1 - 2 - Another Garden, Another Guide

I spent much of the next day in Kanazawa exploring Kenrokuen, which Lonely Planet said was one of the top three gardens in Japan. I can well believe it. Again, it was totally manicured - I spotted several guys up trees, pruning - but beautiful. Since it was larger than Ritsurin, with many more trees, it didn't feel as unnatural. I particularly liked the low, star-shaped ground cover that looked like moss but wasn't. Along with the oldest fountain in Japan, the garden was well-provided with streams and ponds, but not with places for lunch. I eventually wound up sitting on the floor, which was very hard on my bad foot, much as I like tatami.( I noted that I was seated out of sight of the locals.) Alongside the soup, rice, spring roll, shrimp, veggies (including edamame) was a serving of a local "stew" with chicken and gluten bread which I enjoyed much more than I expected.

At the far end of the garden I visited the Seisonkaku Villa, unfortunately covered with scaffolding while the roof tiles were replaced. When I left I started having real trouble walking on the gravel paths, and headed for the nearest bus stop. I ate dinner at Kokatsu again - this time I was greeted as a regular and besides the mushroom salad, shrimp okonomiyaki and the house specialty (spicy bacon and cabbage) that I ordered, I was brought a dish of tofu and fish roe. Another good meal.

The next day, originally my only full day in Kanazawa, I had arranged for a Welcome Guide, asking that we explore some of the crafts for which the city is famous. We started at a geisha house - I hadn't realized that the house where they entertained clients wasn't the house where they lived. The client sat in the main room (with his back to the alcove, oddly), and the geisha performed in the smaller, adjoining "waiting" room.

I found our next stop, the gold leaf "museum", especially interesting. What starts as an ingot is taken down in successive stages to foil so thin you can practically see through it. The kimono painting place was less successful - probably only really interesting if you want to try it yourself. After lunch we visited the Museum of Traditional Crafts, which turned out to actually exhibit modern versions of the crafts. We had walked all the way up one side of Kenrokuen to reach the museum, and when my guide wanted me to walk back down I insisted that there must be a bus we could take instead. Walking up had been tough, but walking down would be much more difficult for me. I don't think my guide had really appreciated that I had difficulty walking, despite the bandage and the stick! Fortunately, a study of the maps turned up a bus.

I just had time for a quick shower before KJ and family collected me for dinner - at a place where we cooked the food ourselves on a brazier. I love these kind of meals, and it really doesn't work well for one person. So my visit to Kanazawa ended with good food and good company.

It was certainly a pleasure to meet and spend time with you! How's your ankle doing?

Hi Kim! Thanks & thanks for asking. It was doing much better - I had stopped bandaging it. But the other side of the ankle is hurting now - I think it got tired of compensating! It had a hard day yesterday, but is a bit more rested and happier today.

Oct 3-4 - Sleeping under thatch

The Shirakawa-go and Gokoyama regions of Honshu island used to be extremely isolated, especially in winter, home to rice farmers and little visited. Not any more - tunnels through the mountains have brought expressways and tourists to its doorsteps. But for those relying on public transport, some areas are still hard to reach, and I was thrilled when Kim offered to drive me. I'd sleep in popular Ogimachi, where I could get a bus on to Takayama, but first we'd visit Suganuma and its gunpowder museum.

With Kim's daughter studying for exams in the back seat, we headed for the hills. I can't get enough of mountain scenery, especially when there are rivers as well, and was also interested to see the haystacks (are they still called haystacks when they're made of rice stalks?), with bundles of stalks draped over poles and topped with plastic against the rain. But the signature sights here are the farmhouses. Large, two-story buildings, with unique thatched roofs, they're called gassho-zukuri or praying hands, after the shape of the steeply-sloped roofs. We saw a thatching job half-done, and I was struck by how thick it was, compared to the thatched cottages I was used to seeing in England. But the color of the new thatch was the same soft yellow.

I thought that Ogimachi was fairly crowded, despite the looming clouds, but Kim said she'd never seen it so empty! We were able to get seats in her favorite restaurant, Irori, where we were seated round an irori or central fireplace. The food was delicious - mine was a hida beef "set". In the US I seldom eat beef, as I've developed an allergy to either bovine growth hormone or the antiobiotics used on factory-farmed cows, and grass-fed local beef is expensive and not always available. I make up for it when I travel, and the Japanese beef is, of course, famous. I saw no need to try to find Kobe beef (or the money to pay for it) when hida was so good.

The farmhouse we visited, ancestral home of a well-off family, reminded me a little of the houses in Bhutan, with different activities on different levels. Here the attic level had been used for raising silk worms, but I paid more attention to the quite remarkably massive beams forming the roof supports. I would hate to be within range of one of those during an earthquake! Despite the thick thatch, and the insulation likely provided by snow drifts, I'm sure these houses were seriously cold in the winter. I remembered growing up in England, before my father installed central heating, when only the side facing the fire was warm (wing chairs were invented to trap the heat). Since I would be spending the night in a farmhouse, I was glad it was only the beginning of October!

After we went up to the best viewpoint (by car to save my foot), Kim delivered me to my farmhouse and headed back to Kanazawa. I was sorry say goodbye, and very appreciative of her help and friendship. I was not as isolated that night as I had expected, though. At dinner, served around another irori, I found that only one of the other guests was Japanese, and the other two an Australian couple at the end of a four month trip home from London. I felt sorry for the Japanese man, who apparently did not speak English, as we indulged in travel chat. He seemed to enjoy the meal as much as we did - a more elaborate version of my lunch.

After dinner I decided against an evening stroll - it looked too dark, and the ground too uneven, for me to risk it with a bad ankle, and I had a bath instead. The tub was wooden, just big enough for one person, with wooden covers to keep in the heat. Aside from my usual problem of getting too hot under a duvet, I slept fine on the tatami mats in my room, although I would have been happier with somewhere other than the floor or the small table for my belongings. Unfortunately, I was woken early by the sound of heavy rain, and while I did get about 15 relatively dry minutes for photos, the rest of the morning was solid rain.

Breakfast was Japanese, except for the egg. Three of us had scrambled eggs alongside the soup, rice, pickles and vegetables, but the Japanese man had what appeared to be a boiled egg. Not so! It turned out to be raw, and after stirring it up a little with his chopsticks, he drank it down with apparent relish. I'll take mine scrambled any time...

thursdaysd,

Mmmmmmmmm I love Hida beef.....and Miyazaki beef and of course Kobe beef. oh sooooooo tender.

Raw eggs for breakfast and at lunch and dinner to dip your sukiyaki beef into, yuk. I usually get the look when I scramble the egg and drop it into the steaming hot sukiyaki sauce to cook it a little at dinner,lol. Linda hates when I do that. Really gets a rise out of the locals, they just shake their heads muttering gaijin or something of the sort

We are considering a car rental for the Ogimachi- S Go area in a future visit. Has the opening of the new highway expanded the public transport, i.e. bus systems any or is the car the way to go in that area?

Too bad about the rainy weather but they have had a hot and dry summer so I think they need the water. Have you seen any fall colors in Japan and if so where and when? Can't wait for the S Korea part as our launch time is getting close.

Aloha!

Hi ht - I did do the dip the meat into raw egg thing, but I draw the line at eating raw egg straight!

KimJapan could answer the bus question better than I can, but I certainly think a car would be the way to go if you're willing to drive. There is a web site with a good map of the bus routes, maybe this one: http://www.nouhibus.co.jp/english/index.html , but basically you're going to Ogimachi on the way from Kanazawa to Takayama. I thought the best scenery was between Takayama and Matsumoto.

Occasional tree with fall color, but nothing major.

Where are you going in Korea? My photos (aside from any I take tomorrow in Seoul) are up at http://kwilhelm.smugmug.com/Travel/Round-the-World-2010-11 - the galleries are all protected but the password is just the name of the gallery, lower case.

I got English-language TV back today to find out there's a typhoon possibly headed to Taiwan, my next destination!!!

Also following along with continued great interest. With plaudits to thursdays for both the reports and the perseverance, and to KimJapan for the Fodorite support.

Raw egg: blecch.

Thanks for reminding me of how much I enjoyed hida beef! I envy you your night in a gassho-zukuri. I saw one in Takayama, and like you was stunned by how thick the thatch was and how enormous the beams are. Amazing!

Status - CX lounge at Seoul Incheon waiting to board delayed flight to Taipei. Wondering why I'm flying TOWARDS a typhoon...

Oct 4-5 - Art Nouveau in Takayama

I forget now where I heard about the museum in Takayama devoted to Art Nouveau. It certainly wasn't in Lonely Planet, which doesn't mention it at all. I am a huge fan of Art Nouveau - I've been known to go to Washington just to catch an exhibition, and on my last trip to France I went Nancy specifically because I had heard that it was the home of the French version. So, Takayama would have made my itinerary even if it hadn't been a convenient stop between Shirakawa-go and the rest of the Japan Alps.

It was still raining when I left the farmhouse, but I did a better job than JAL at keeping my luggage dry. Between the built-in rain cover for my Eagle Creek backpack, and my umbrella, only my long-suffering feet got a little damp on the way to the bus stop. I was more concerned about my lungs, but happily a local woman pointed out the "No Smoking" sign to the elderly gentleman puffing away under the shelter.

The no-smoking revolution has yet to hit Japan. I actually thought I had mis-heard when I was asked whether I wanted smoking or no-smoking seating at the first restaurant I entered. I live in a tobacco state, and I haven't been asked that question for several years. But public transport is smoke-free.

The bus ride to Takayama disappointed - mostly tunnels and mostly rain. I was glad to check into my surprisingly posh hotel (the Spa Alpina), and go out to find lunch. Eating soba noodles and beef in a very popular little place near the station, I also found a companion. An Australian woman sitting next to me at the counter said that she, too, was an Art Nouveau fan.

While I enjoyed her company, and we indulged in a beautiful (and delicious) afternoon tea together, I got a reminder that I travel better solo. I left my umbrella in the stand outside the museum, and it wasn't until the next day that I realized that when we left I had forgotten to retrieve it.

The museum was worth the loss of my (easily replaced) umbrella. Most of the major figures of the movement were represented, with plenty of glass, and rooms devoted to Majorelle (France) and Mackintosh (Glasgow). The prize exhibit was an amazing Lalique glass fountain that once graced a Paris arcade.

The next morning I was back to Japanese sights, taking a taxi to the town's float museum. Takayama has two big celebrations each year, which feature two- and three-story high floats. In between times four or five of the floats can be seen in the museum (the rest are in tall, narrow "garages"). Unfortunately they are behind glass, which makes photography difficult, but they are unquestionably spectacular. Probably even more so on parade, but I have an aversion to crowds... Then I took a look at the morning market, which was just packing up, and wandered through the historic section, which I thought not particularly interesting. Too many souvenir shops for my taste.

I had eaten sukiyaki for dinner (at Suzuya), even dipping the meat in raw egg. Although I draw the line at drinking raw egg neat, I have to admit that the sukiyaki tasted good. I could have done without raw egg showing up again at lunch, though, which I ate a rather up-market place next to a butcher's shop.

I got to the bus stop (just outside the train station) in plenty of time for my ride to Matsumoto, as I wanted to be sure of a front seat, but no more than six other passengers shared the bus with me for the whole two-hour trip.

Sounds like a good place to stay in Takayama. I also was not crazy about its "historic" section...like you, I found it too souvenir oriented, and that was 10 years ago. The are nouveau museum seems to have been of enough interest though to make the trip worthwhile.

To answer about the bus Kanazawa to Shirakawago. There are 3 buses in each direction per day. BUT, they only go to Shirakawago. Much nicer and less crowded are the villages in the Gokayama area. Kathy and I only stopped at one, but there are several. We went to the most compact one, Sugunuma, but along the same road are several more of much the same yet slightly different. We've made a day of them several times. One of them, whose name escapes me now, has a "prison" house up at the top of a steep hill that I always think is interesting, but with Kathy's ankle I didn't take here there. There are very occasional buses between the villages, but I've never seen one of them in all of our trips out there. Taxis...also never seen one. Rent a car, for sure, or if I'm free, we have a 7 seater .

Thanks for the info. We are planning on driving the "Romantic Road" in a future trip from Nikko to Ueda City in the Nagano Prefecture and had also wanted to explore more of Matsumoto area. The Goko & S Go village areas would be a nice addition to that drive so will probably do those areas then also.

We need to make a stop in Kanazawa for a few days on that future trip and say hello to those people with the 7 seater

Aloha!

More well-written stuff, still both interesting and useful. I've been hoping to get to Takayama during one of the festivals, probably somehow combining with a visit to Naoshima/Benesse Art Site. (That trip is at least 18 months away. If your umbrella is still outside the museum, I'll pick it up for you.)

I loved the Museum of Art in Takayama! I believe I read about it in the Rough Guide, and it was even better than I had hoped. Glad you enjoyed it!

Rizzuto, the umbrella may still be there when you get there. I was recently returned upon my return my pocket translator I had left in a Kakunodate hotel more than 19 months earlier,lol

thursdaysd, We are only going to Seoul this trip but hope to use it a spearhead into further future S Korea trips in the future. Love your pictures on your blog. I can see from your pics what your eyes focus on during your travels, very interesting, you have a keen eye for the detail.

I think I remember a lady from Australia doing a report sometime ago on this forum about the Art museum in Takayama maybe that is where you read about it? Now you have me looking to add Takayama to the never ending list of places to see in Nippon,lol

Aloha!

HT, good thing you didn't leave a take-away package of sushi in the Kakunodate hotel; it might not have kept as well as the translator.

Typhoon Megi brought heavy rain and landslides to northern Taiwan. I hope you have arrived Taipei OK and that your travel plans in Taiwan are still manageable.

Greetings from Tainan! Landed safely through clouds and rain in Taipei yesterday - much kudos to Cathay Pacific who managed to keep the luggage dry (am I still annoyed with JAL? - you bet!) Very humid and rather windy with intermittent heavy rain, but got some sightseeing in yesterday - LOVED the temples - so old China. Advice from T.I. is to NOT go up to Sun-Moon Lake on Sunday, and am thinking of spending the two nights in Taipei, since I had to go back there to get to Taroko Gorge.

Hope everyone in Hong Kong and southern China stays safe.

rizzuto - the umbrella is an expensive folding model designed to survive being blown inside out (some brand beginning with K), pale blue with white design....

ht - if you're in Insadong in Seoul (hopelessly touristy but usefully situated between two palaces), I had good lunches at a place on the third alley on the left going south on the main street (Insadong Gil 12) - it's the first place on the left, and does a proper traditional spread for one person for a very reasonable price. Try the beef and mushrooms. Also, not to be missed macarons - the rose raspberry is good but the brandied pistachio is fabulous - at a place called Armandiere on the north side of the big street north of Insadong.

Status - in Tainan, waiting for Megi's rain bands to come through tonight and tomorrow morning. I'm on the ninth floor with lots of windows (the hotel upgraded me) and the wind is really whistling out there!

Oct 5-7 - Matsumoto

I loved the ride to Matsumoto - lots of mountains and not too many tunnels (although one was so long it had cut-outs for breakdowns). I had wanted to stay in a ryokan between Takayama and Matsumoto, but even with KimJapan's help I hadn't been able to find one that sounded good that was both near public transport and willing to take a solo foreigner. So I had decided to just stop off in Kamikochi on the way for a little hiking - obviously I had had to abandon that plan, too, and just went straight through. I had booked the Toyoko Inn in Matsumoto, and found it, like the one in Tokyo, a great deal for a single. The room might be small, but it had everything I could want. As with every room I stayed in in Japan, aside from the temple and the farmhouse, it had AC and en suite bath, and secure internet. (While I appreciated the security, I rather missed the freedom of wifi, as the wired connections kept me chained to the desk.)

I'm not quite sure what I ate for dinner the first night. I do know that the first dish was steak - tasted good but a little tough. Since I was still hungry I followed it with some chicken on sticks. I'm still wondering what part of the chicken could be crunchy... The next night I played it safe, eating steak and salad, with an actual knife and fork instead of chopsticks. I also found a "French" cafe at the train station where I lunched on a chicken salad pita - followed by an absolutely delicious chestnut and sesame roll just oozing cream.

My main sightseeing objective in Matsumoto was the castle, which kept me occupied for most of the morning. The associated museum didn't interest me much, but the castle was a great improvement over Nijo in Kyoto. The same formidable foundations were topped by three black and white towers. I was pleased that my bad foot held up while I climbed the steep stairs inside, although I skipped the topmost floor, and came down most of the staircases (more like ladders) backwards. Apparently it's the oldest wooden castle in Japan - many castles having been destroyed during the Meiji Restoration in the 1800s. I found it rather surprising that it had survived since 1595 - was it never besieged, or did the Japanese not use fire arrows? Surely it would have been fatally easy to burn it down.

In the afternoon I took a bus to Utsukushi-ga-hara Spa, picking it over Asama because LP said the setting was more beautiful. I suppose it was pretty enough, but you couldn't see the hills from the bath, so I'm not sure it was relevant. The "town" was dead, and the bath was only technically outdoors, with just a small triangle of sky visible between the walls and the roof.

A word about Japanese buses: you board at the back, taking a numbered ticket from a machine. You leave at the front, dropping the cost of your ride, in coins, into a box by the driver. You find the cost by looking at your number on a screen at the front. But, since the amount is determined by the distance, you don't know what it will be until right before you get off. And you need the correct change. (You can get change from the box by the driver, provided you know you need it.) I'm sure this system works well for locals, who already know the cost of their trips. It's a real pain for strangers, who don't.

The morning of the 7th I took the train back to Tokyo and urban Japan. Not that Takayama and Matsumoto are villages, Matsumoto has nearly a quarter of million inhabitants, but they are completely dwarfed by Tokyo, with twelve and a half million. I was traveling through cityscape (not very attractive cityscape) well before the train pulled into Shinjuku. I had saved Tokyo for last because I'm not generally fond of very large cities, and I didn't want it to color my reaction to Japan. I was right to do so...

Sprained ankle , missing umbrellas, typhoons.....yikes! Got to love those small city buses and trying to figure the fare. If you have far to go it usually won't cost more than 1400 yen till the end of the line if on the country buses from town to another town take a look at the sites below

http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2015.html

http://www.nouhibus.co.jp/jikoku_pdf/english_naka.pdf

BTW, I was over at your blog again and you have some fantastic pictures there.

Aloha!

Hope all the wind and rain goes away soon so you can resume your wonderful adventure!

Thanks ht - glad you like the pix. More (all raw footage) at http://kwilhelm.smugmug.com/Travel/Round-the-World-2010-11 - the passwords are the name of the gallery.

I really am starting to think this trip is jinxed! It's probably my own fault for complaining that my 2004-5 RTW went so smoothly there were no good stories, lol!

Stay safe. I've been thinking about you as I read of the typhoon hitting Taiwan.

Love your Kanazawa and Japanese Alps photos - we were in a lot of the same places! But I can't get into your Kyoto and Koya-san ones...I tried to do everything lower case adding spaces on either side of 'and' and '-' but only got error messages....
Glad you're feeling better - it's hard to do those castle steps with good feet.

Mara - sorry - that was the first one up and was japan - have changed it to kyoto. Totally unedited - best ones are on the blog - mytimetotravel.wordpress.com

Kathy - thanks. Looks like I may dodge this one. Glad I didn't go further south, though. And whistling wind? Thought it was a figure of speech. It's real!

great pics, thanks

Great pictures and blog.

I have been following you, when I can, with great interest.

Thanks for taking us along, thursdaysd.

How's the ankle now? I hope much better....if still a problem, try ice for about 5 minutes at the end of a day....brings the inflammation down and helps with the healing process. This works for me anyhow. Good luck.

I haven't logged on to Fodors for a while, thursdaysd I am sorry to hear of your troubles and I do hope the rest of your trip goes better. Hope the ankles heals quickly.

Bob - glad you like the pix, didn't realize you were still reading. I'm still waiting for the bearers to show up - a covered palanquin would be good....

The ankle is a lot better, thanks, although that foot in general is still unhappy. I have been taking taxis more than usual, they've been quite cheap in Korea and here in Tainan, but it's not always feasible. Typhoon brought a few bouts of heavy rain, but nothing major here.

Tokyo Metro "System" wins booby prize

Fair warning: This is a rant.

In the last nine years I've been on the road a total of 31 months, and in that time I've ridden a number of the world's subway systems in both Europe and Asia. Until this trip I thought New York had the grimmest system and Moscow the longest transfers, and they tied for worst. No more. Tokyo's is hands down the worst system, or rather non-system, I've encountered.

First, it's not one system, it's three. Buy a ticket for one set of lines, even a supposed "day pass", and it doesn't work on the other two. Buy the wrong ticket in a station serving two systems and you're stuck with it. It's for a given distance, right? So you try to use it at another station on the same line, can't do that either.

Since there's more than one system, there are multiple stations in the same place. Want the Asakusa station? There are three. One is for the regular trains to Nikko - that I can handle. But the other two? Both subway stations. Need to transfer? Often that means trekking up one set of stairs, out into the rain, back in and down another set of stairs. And a nice big sign showing you where the station is? I saw precisely one, in Ginza. Even if you get to stay in the same station, it's a route march to transfer.

About those stairs. The Japanese may have come to grips with the needs of the blind (although those special strips in the pavement do seem to stop in odd places) but not with those with mobility issues. Escalators? Elevators? You jest, right? Maybe there's one elevator for an entire looong station. If so, it's likely at the end you're not. Maybe there is one escalator, or even two. Going up. I could get up stairs reasonably well, it was going DOWN that I had problems. Escalators going down? Of course not. Escalators going all the way from platform to ground level? Again, no.

Then there's the language issue. I'm not unreasonable. I know I'm in Japan. I'm willing (and able) to to look at the maps and figure out the price. I'm willing to use the terminal that says it will provide English-language help. I can make a pretty good guess at how the ticket machines work. But I need for the map I'm looking at to include the line I want to use... I'm convinced that the Japanese make it more difficult than necessary on purpose to generate stupid foreigner stories. Case in point:

I'm staying in Asakusa. I'm leaving from Haneda Airport. The helpful lady in the T.I. office wrote the route out for me in great detail (very simple, one train change, no platform change), starting out on the Asakusa line. So when I get back the night before, ON the Asakusa line, after I follow the arrows to the exit I want and clear the ticket barrier, I look back to see the arrows pointing the way to the Asakusa line, and I look round for a ticket machine for that line. But I'm now in the Ginza line station, and even the English language terminal won't recognze Haneda as a destination. So finally I ask the guy in the ticket office. Guess what? He has a nice big sign, in English, telling you how to buy a ticket to Haneda - HIDDEN IN THE OFFICE!

He could put it up on the wall, and let the foreigners read it at their leisure, but then they'd know what to do, and that would be no fun, right? Then I find another catch. I want to buy a ticket today, when I have no luggage, to use tomorrow, when I will have luggage. Can I do that? No, I can't. (Good thing I noticed the tickets were date-stamped.) When I express quite mild dismay at this news I clearly violate the Japanese code, because the guy goes completely blank on me. I cease to exist and he just stands there. (I know that technique - I've used it on persistent Indian salesmen.) Well, I feel the same way about the Tokyo subway non-system. Total fail.

How frustrating!

thursdaysd - thanks for fixing the Kyoto photo album password - great pictures - again, we were at some of the same places in Kyoto and Koyasan!

I liked your Seoul pictures as well. I am Korean drama fan and the outfits the guards at that building were wearing come straight from hundreds of years ago....

Sorry you had so much trouble with the Tokyo subway system - since my trips are not RTW but just to Japan I have bought the combination JREast Suica pass to use from NRT on the Narita Express - then you can use the pass on any form of Tokyo transport, I believe. Plus that pass can be refilled and it's good for ten years. Also you can use it in shops as a cash card although I haven't tried that myself.

I only got lost once in Tokyo transport - my last trip - on the way back to NRT I was transferring from the Yamanote line to the Keisei at Nippori and somehow ended up on the street in the rain - I must have missed an important sign....but I figured it out eventually.

I agree that there are not that many down escalators - but I seemed to find more elevators in Japan train stations this past year than I remember - particularly in the smaller stations when I was traveling in the Chubu region - I was quite surprised actually - since I stayed at 8 places in 12 days I did a lot of moving around...

I am also sorry about your experience in the Tokyo transportation system. Maybe because I already know it is actually many separate systems, and I can read Chinese characters, I did not have any problem with it at all when I was there last year.

In fact, I'm surprised at how much English they have now on their maps, which I believe is added before the 2002 FIFA World Cup. And I also like that each line has a Letter and each station has a number. Very easy to tell and calculate how many stops.

Thursdaysd!! I love a rant Though I've got suggest, as gently as I can (which probably isn't very), that you might really want to work on your invective. A liberal sprinkling of stuff like "heartless bastards," "motherless manure-eaters," and "with an amorality that Nixon would admire" can serve the dual purpose of entertaining some of your readers and making you feel a little bit better about the whole thing.

All that said, you're sort of right (though I think you've understated the number of subway lines), and sort of not. The biggest key that I look for is the map that's on the train platform in subway and JR stations. That one os going to show any escalators/elevators, and it's also going to show at least some neighborhood destinations in English. The other thing I try to do is some advance planning: writing down all my routes before I leave the hotel. This map shows the subway lines and the JR Yamanote line, but it crucially does not show other JR lines (which can be especially useful fro cross-city trips):
http://www.tokyometro.jp/en/subwaymap/pdf/routemap_en.pdf

You are also correct about the system having been developed to confound foreigners. However, you neglected to mention the pass system, which, working in conjunction with hidden signs, etc., makes it all incomprehensible for most.

Well, a few "expletive deleteds" might get me banned these days... Besides, when I was growing up the challenge was to see how rude you could be without actually descending to invective.

I probably should have bought either a Suica or Passmo, but when I asked the T.I. people about which I should get they said it wasn't worth it for such a short trip (since I went to Nikko one day I only used the subway for a day and a half). While it would have saved some of the aggravation, I would have missed an illuminating incident.

Tokyo is definitely NOT on my must revisit list, however...

We are now in Odawara after visiting Tokyo and Kyoto with 3 kids and I have to agree with you about the Tokyo subway system. We used it for 4 days every day for 2 or 3 trips. I'm pretty sure I could write a 'moms guide to the tokyo subway'.

My 4YO knew that the JR Yamanote line was crowded and that he would not get a seat. He just sat by the doors and pouted. Don't you wish you could do that?

My DH and I had SUICA passes as we purchased the NEX / Suica deal at the airport. We just reloaded them as we went. Easy! But, at every station tourist and non-tourist I tried to buy Suica or Pasmo cards for the kids and was met with blank looks. I finally figured out the machines and how to get child fares. Not easy if you were transferring lines. But dooable.

I used the Jourdan website in advance to figure our where we would need to change, put the printout on my iPhone and then I could select the right fare / transfer from the machines. I could also look at a map of the destination station and figure out where to exit (key in Tokyo stations). For example, at the Ginza station (no matter which line) the Sony store was exit xx (I don't remember now).

Hi sdfamily - hope you're enjoying Japan - kudos for tackling it with three kids!

Status - I'm staying at a beachfront hotel just north of Hualien, Taiwan, and although the typhoon has passed it sounds nearly as bad outside - winter winds, I'm told. So strong they nearly blew me over! Car and driver for Taroko
Gorge tomorrow - apparently it's calm in there. My foot had a rest today and looks almost normal.

Oct 7-10 - Tokyo and Nikko

Some people are beach people. Some people are city people. I’m a mountain person – nothing lifts my spirits like seeing a mountain in the distance, getting closer. There are a few big cities I like – London, Paris, Vienna, Lisbon – but I approach places the size of Tokyo (12.56 million people) with caution. In fact, I put it last on my Japan itinerary just so I’d have time to get used to the country before tackling it, and I was a little sad to see the rice fields give way to a rather depressing cityscape well before my train pulled into Shinjuku station.

I was staying in the Asakusa area, for several reasons: it sounded like a lower-key, more historic neighborhood, it was home to a temple, Senso, that I wanted to visit, it was close to the train station I needed for a day trip to Nikko, and it offered, I thought, an easy route to Haneda Airport for when I left (see my previous post for how that worked out). I stayed in the same small ryokan, Kamogawa (http://www.f-kamogawa.jp/home/top/index_e.php ) that friends had used last year. I found the area, especailly the approach to Senso-ji, much more touristy than I had expected, but the staff at the ryokan were friendly, one man even walked me to nearby restaurants when I asked for recommendations.

I had picked Nikko over Kamakura for a day trip from Tokyo partly based on opinions expressed here. I'm not quite sure what I expected - old, atmospheric temples in good condition, I think. What I found were rather shabby-looking temples, mostly overwhelmed by school and tour groups. Rinno-ji was covered in scaffolding for renovations, but it looked like the three gilded Buddhas, the largest in Japan, were permanently located in an inconvenient passageway. I joined the groups making the pilgrimage to the tomb of Ieyasu, the founder of the Shogunate, although when I discovered just how many steps I’d have to go up, and worse, down, I wished I hadn’t. I didn’t find the site particularly interesting, when I finally got there, either.

The best part of the day came near the end, when I walked slowly down an almost deserted path flanked by towering cedars rooted in moss, to reach a subsidiary shrine with few visitors. Since I spent around four hours on suburban trains getting there and back, the excursion took an entire day. But at least I picked a dry day – the next morning, the rains started up again.

Besides Nikko I visited two museums, Ueno Park, and the Ginza district. The Shitamachi Museum turned out to be quite small, with the second floor devoted to a special exhibition with no English explanations. I thought that the Edo-Tokyo Museum, much bigger, gave a better feel for historic Tokyo, although most of its exhibits were reconstructions (and it was a lot harder to get to). In Ueno Park I saw the first dirty pavement of the whole trip, and the first homeless men. Also for the first time, I had the feeling, possibly quite wrong, that it might be better to be gone before dark. While I enjoyed the shinto shrine I visited (lots of torii and lots of steps), the shrine to Tokugawa Ieyasu was being renovated. I paid my respects to the nearby flame from Hiroshima and Nagasaki, which earned me, to my surprise, a very strange look from a local.

My first target in Ginza was the Sony Building, which was having a massive promotion around the Charlie Brown cartoons. (I couldn’t help wondering how much Charles Schulz’ estate was taking in as a result). Its popularity was evident, but I didn't find much of interest in the building myself. I had planned to eat lunch in one of the Ginza department stores, but found the selections both more western and more expensive than I had expected. I eventually wound up waiting around 30 minutes (the top floor restaurants were very popular on a Saturday) to eat at a place advertising its use of fresh, local, produce. And for the first time in Japan I enjoyed an actual salad bar and raw veggies! I also enjoyed some quality people watching. I saw a grand total of six other westerners during my half hour wait, but plenty of locals. Further to the matter of skirts, more women were wearing trousers, and those in skirts were split between knee-length and dowdy, and fashion-forward frills. Fur (probably fake) and frills seemed to be the key-notes for the winter season in Japan.

For my last dinners in Japan I picked okonomiyaki and an izakaya. It turns out that Tokyo has its own, sloppier, kind of okonomiyaki - I stuck to the firmer version. I ate twice at an izakaya on the same block as the ryokan, feasting on excellent skewers of chicken, chicken liver, duck and shellfish, and drinking sake. Looking at the rain pouring relentlessly down on my last evening, and remembering that I would be flying JAL again, I packed everything inside the plastic garbage bag that was usually just a layer between the toiletries and everything else. Despite my limp, and my problems with the Tokyo subway, I was glad to have finally visited Japan, although I much preferred the smaller cities and the countryside to Tokyo and Kyoto. Now I was ready to move on, although I regretted the scheduling which required me to get up at 5:00 am to catch my flight to Seoul.

thurs... yes i am reading...of course.... and don't you feel much stronger a person for having continued the trip... buck up, move on, keep trucking....don't give in to every pain or broken bone or heart attack... ignore it all and keep moving...

"don't you feel much stronger a person" - not especially. I'll feel a much stupider person if I do permanent damage....

On the subject of keeping moving, I guess Bob missed my earlier saga along these lines since it was on the Europe board: http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/the-sore-foot-tour---budapest-austria-venice.cfm

Oct 10-12 - Flat, metal chopsticks

Once I had the ticket, getting to Haneda airport was easy - aside from the need to get up at 5:00 on a rainy morning. So was checking in, since my business class award allowed me to sidestep the zoo that was the economy class section. Since a new international terminal was due to open October 21st, perhaps the zoo is a thing of the past, and perhaps the new JAL lounge is also an improvement. At least this one had its own rest rooms. And the food on the flight to Seoul Gimpo was a noticeable improvement over that on the Vancouver-Tokyo leg, featuring a two-level bento box.

Since the forecast had been for rain, and I was flying JAL again, I had taken the precaution of packing everything in plastic. Although JAL did manage to keep my bag dry this time, I had an inordinately long wait for it to arrive. Apparently a soccer team had traveled on the same flight, and ALL their immense quantity of luggage was unloaded before anyone else’s! Then I had a little trouble finding my hotel from the limousine bus stop, as the map I got at the T.I. counter in the airport had positioned it too far west.

Shortly before I left on this trip, I had been introduced to a Korean couple, long time friends of friends, about to move back to Seoul after a second sojourn in the U.S., and they had kindly offered to help me with my visit to Korea. They had recommended the Ibis Ambassador in the Gangnam district, south of the river but close to where they lived in the upscale Apgujeong area. While the Ibis was both more western and more upmarket than my usual hotels, after several nights on the floor I appreciated some extra comforts. I started by taking advantage of the guests’ discount for the Japanese style hot bath in the basement. While the location was convenient for meeting up with my friends, it wasn't so convenient for the main tourist sights - Seoul is a big city, and even on the metro it took quite a while to reach the palace quarter.

I will admit that my first meal in Korea was a mediocre nasi goreng in the Ibis' bar, but when D and M asked what I would like to try for dinner I opted for a traditional Korean meal. While I certainly enjoyed the food, I also had my first adventure with Korean chopsticks. Now I’m no fan of chopsticks – I find it perverse that people who love noodles choose to eat them with chopsticks – but I am reasonably competent with the normal round variety. In Korea they aren’t round and they aren’t made from wood or plastic. They’re flat and metal and I had no end of difficulty with them. The chopsticks are usually kept in a box on the table, together with long-handled metal spoons, but don’t imagine the spoon is just for soup. An insistent waitress later gave me a lesson in how to use the spoon: you pick up some rice with it, you add pickled vegetables with the chopsticks, and then you dip it in the soup. I felt like I needed an extra hand.

No Korean meal is complete without pickled vegetables – lots of little dishes with different kinds. You’ll also get soup and rice, and whatever you’ve chosen as the main dish. The little dishes may contain other treats – at one meal a whole fish showed up! Some restaurants presented me with additional implements – tongs and shears. These are for kimchi or noodles or both – you lift the long strands with the tongs and cut off a sensible length with the shears.

I spent my first full day in Korea in tourist mode, starting at the Gyeongbok Palace. The layout would be familiar to anyone who has visited the Forbidden City as it follows the same north-south, public to private alignment, but many of the buildings were destroyed during the Japanese colonial period (1910-1945) and the Korean War. While the remaining (or reconstructed) buildings were attractive enough, I found a temporary exhibition of Korean crafts more interesting. I finished my tour in nice time for the changing of the guard. The costumes were no doubt authentic, but the whole performance felt too much like playacting.

I lunched in the highly touristy Insadong section nearby, in a small restaurant just off the main street. At least at lunchtime, they provided a traditional Korean meal for solo diners, at a very reasonable price, and I recommend their beef and mushroom bulgogi. (It's on Insadong Gil 12, first place on the left.) After lunch I skipped the souvenir shops and instead visited the nearby Jogye Buddhist temple. A volunteer English-speaking guide explained that the women filling the main hall were praying for their children's success in upcoming examinations. She also said that the temple practiced Korean Zen Buddhism, which I found surprising, as the temple and the ceremony in process seemed very un-Zen to me.

I finished the afternoon in a French patisserie just north of Insa-dong, called, I believe, Armandier. The coffee was good, but the brandied pistachio macarons were to die for.

I'm enjoying your report. Hope your sightseeing has not been too impacted by the rain/typhoons in the area. And hope your foot is feeling better. Looking forward to more.

Any day that ends in a pâtisserie is basically good.

Are the chopsticks flat-oval, or flat-like-a-knife?

You can find the same stainless steel chopsticks (stored in a box) at many Korean restaurants in L.A.

shelleyk - thanks. I missed out on Sun-Moon lake because of the typhoon, but was otherwise mostly unaffected. My ankle is better, but the rest of that foot is now unhappy...

rizzuto - not oval. More like flat skewers. The ends kept wanting to cross.

rkkwan - do they have the tongs and shears too?

The flat metal chopsticks are new to me. I think I'd have trouble with them, too.

Status - my feet finally seem to be doing better! I spent a good part of the day at the Yingge ceramics museum (free, and excellent) and was still able to walk almost normally. One more day in Taipei and then I fly to Hong Kong.

Oct 12 - Danyang and the Love Motel

Plan A for Korea had me traveling north west to Seorak-san National Park for a couple of days hiking. Plan B had me heading south west for Danyang instead, as it would take such a long time to get from Seorak-san to anywhere in the south. A traveler I met in Gyeongju told me that Seorak-san really was beautiful, but since my bad ankle would have kept me from hiking, and there wasn't anything else to do there, my change of plan worked out well. Danyang is on the edge of two other National Parks, Worak-san and Sobaek-san, but there were other attractions, according to both Lonely Planet and Rough Guide (seems Fodors doesn't have a guidebook for Korea).

When my friends traveled beyond Seoul (other than for D's two hour commute by train) they went by car, but D looked up the buses for me - I'd leave from Dong Seoul bus station, just five metro stops from my hotel. I didn't have a hotel reservation in Danyang - I had had another Korean friend of a friend contact one of the hotels, which said I didn't need a reservation, and the (very helpful) Korean Tourist Office agreed, although with a note of regret.

A heavy haze blanketed Seoul the day I left. I thought it might be pollution, but it never lifted, even as we finally cleared the suburbs half an hour out, and began driving through heavily forested hills. I enjoyed the scenery, and was amazed to read in the Rough Guide that by the end of the Korean War the hills were mostly barren. The subsequent reforestation program must be the most successful in history - you'd never guess today that the tree cover is just 50-60 years old. (Well, if you were an expert I'm sure you'd know it wasn't virgin forest, but it looked fine to me.) I had had no difficulty buying a ticket for the bus right before it left, and only five other passengers shared the ride with me. Like many of the buses in Korea, it made no intermediate stops.

Rough Guide said that the hotel I wanted to try first, the Sky Motel, was located between the ferry pier and the bus terminal. But the ferry terminal had disappeared since the book was published, and after an unsuccessful search along the waterfront I tried the only hotel that looked at all inviting - Hotel Luxury. My inability to find a normal entrance was the first clue that it was actually a love motel - access was through the basement parking garage, only. Then there were day and half-day rates for the rooms. I picked the cheapest room, just under $50 a night, and found it plenty comfortable. True, there were rather more mirrors than I was used to, and the big TV screen dominated the bed, but it was roomy, and had a deep bath and separate shower. And as a long-time member of Planned Parenthood (my grandmother was an early campaigner for birth control), I was pleased to see that the welcome kit handed to me at check-in included condoms. (Not that I had a use for them myself, nor for anything else in the kit.)

Looking for a place for lunch I couldn't believe the number of empty restaurants - maybe they do better in the summer. I picked the only place with customers, although it really catered to groups, and served me way more food than I could eat. After lunch I discovered that the Sky Motel was above the restaurant, but if I had found it earlier I would have missed out on the love motel, which I found amusing. Since the information desk in the bus station was now staffed, I asked for help with the next leg of my journey, to Gyeongju. The three-way conversation (she got an English-speaker on the phone) was initially unproductive as they thought I wanted to leave that day - apparently you don't forward-plan your trips in Korea. Then I was told that I couldn't go via Andong (where I had thought I might visit a folk museum), and the only bus to Daegu (a major transfer point) didn't leave until 13:25. They wanted me to take the train, which left even later.

Wondering what I would do with an extra morning in Danyang, I took a taxi to the first attraction on my list, Dodam-sambong, three small islands in the lake formed by Chungju Dam (which drowned most of the original town of Danyang). The rocks were pretty enough (see http://bit.ly/9rLWFt ), and a musical fountain had been installed nearby, but even if I had climbed the rather steep steps to the stone arch on the nearby hill the place couldn't have kept me occupied very long. I took a bus back to town, where I drank bad cappuccino, bought some things for breakfast, and discovered that the only power point in my room was under the bathroom sink.

Dinner, at a place advertising itself as "green" but serving me packet soup and a huge Wiener schnitzel with minimal veggies was chiefly memorable for the small boy across the room who kept glaring at me with obvious but inexplicable hatred.

Oct 13-14 - Danyang and Daegu

So, I wasn't going to be hiking in the national parks. Instead I took a local bus across the river and up into the hills to visit Guin-sa, a modern temple belonging to a Buddhist sect called Teon-ta, founded by the monk Sangwall Wongak, in 1945. The site, a valley in the mountains, was as spectacular as I expected. What I hadn’t realized was that the valley wasn’t level, and that the final building was a long way up. And, of course, down. (I actually went down some of the slopes backwards, as that put less strain on my bad ankle.) After trekking all the way up, and admiring all the elaborate decoration (and noting the ongoing construction), I was rather taken aback to discover that the statue inside that last temple wasn’t that of the Buddha, but of the founding monk, in traditional Korean dress. If that doesn’t bother you, it looked like you could stay in the complex, and the setting is lovely. You’d probably need someone who speaks Korean to arrange it.

The afternoon also involved more stairs (including a long, narrow circular staircase) than were good for me. These were in a cave, Gosu-donggul, which I thought really not worth the effort. There were quite a few interesting formations, but the rock was mostly a muddy grey, which rather spoiled the effect. I preferred the view above ground, strolling slowly along the river bank. I also enjoyed dinner – pork with garlic and pepper sauce arrived in a foil-lined dish over a heater. I was supposed to wrap it in lettuce leaves, but I always have trouble with that.

While I wasn't sorry to have visited Danyang, I didn't want to spend the best part of another day there. Careful perusal of the bus timetable turned up a morning bus that appeared to go both to Daegu and to Busan. I knew that there were plenty of buses to Gyeongju, my real destination, from Daegu. I couldn't buy a ticket ahead of time, but the morning of the 14th I was finally able to buy a ticket, and to board the bus, although the driver kept saying "changing, changing" with a very worried expression. I took this, correctly, to mean that I would have to change buses at some point. I did, but it couldn't have been easier - all the Daegu passengers were shepherded off one bus and on to another, with no opportunity to stray, and the driver even moved my pack for me. Piece of cake.

Unfortunately, getting from the North Daegu bus station, where the bus terminated, to any of the other bus terminals, or to the train station, proved not a piece of cake at all. The driver of my bus told me to take a taxi, but not only were there no taxis in evidence, I though it was a bit far for a taxi ride. A very helpful local lady carefully read all the bus timetables, and agreed with the driver that there was no bus connection. Finally I took a bus headed for an area with a subway stop - only to be told by the driver when we got near that the subway wasn't working! When I failed to find the stop for the bus he told me to take instead, I gave in and took a taxi to the train station - now much nearer - but I had to waylay a passing pedestrian to translate my destination.

The confusing coin lockers in the train station were almost the final straw, but luckily some equally puzzled locals figured out that you had to feed twelve separate 100 won coins into the locking mechanism before it would work... I retreated to the top floor of the Lotte department store attached to the station, where a bowl of excellent tofu and seafood soup, consumed in a quiet and comfortable restaurant, considerably improved my attitude.

I had been interested in stopping in Daegu to see the traditional herbal medicine market written up in Lonely Planet. Possibly the market has changed since the book was researched. Or possibly the author had been over-using some of the merchandise. Either way, I found the nearby food market more worthwhile - how often do you see a life-size octopus made out of candy? The medicine market had been cleaned up, with everything packaged in plastic and neatly stored indoors, and no hands-on activities on offer in the cultural center.

Since I had to go back to the train station to collect my main pack, I took the train instead of a bus onto Gyeongju. Probably the same train I would have taken if I'd spent the day in Danyang. Comfortable enough, but with an extremely annoying and persistent squeak. Not one of my better travel days!

Is Insadong a narrow, winding pedestrian-only passageway?

Didn't see metal chopsticks when I was in Korea in 1998.

Some of the Insadong area has narrow and winding pedestrian alleys, but the main street is pretty straight, wide, and carries cars (maybe only during the week).

The impression I got from my Korean friends was that the metal chopsticks were traditional.

I was certainly told the chopsticks were traditional and we used them all over the country. Not anywhere near as easy to use as wooden ones! I saw them for sale all over Seoul and in markets and shops everywhere - often packed in little pouches.

Interesting Thursday, about dipping the loaded spoon in the soup. We weren't told that but were told it was impolite to use the chopsticks in the mouth. That is, use the spoon for rice and pick up little bits from the dishes with the chopsticks to transfer to the rice bowl. However we seldom saw any of the Koreans doing this as they just got stuck in. The only thing that seemed to matter was that you didn't pick up your rice bowl to eat. This actually made it difficult as you are sitting on the floor and don't get really that close to the table and so you need to be a dab hand to get food from the bowl to the mouth without accident!

I'm enjoying your report and looking forward to more.

Oct 14-16 - Historic Gyeongju

Taxis are pretty cheap in Korea, so instead of a long limp I took a taxi to the Sarangchae Guest House (http://www.kjstay.com/ ) in Gyeongju. At first I thought I had made a mistake – the place looked a bit worn and tired – but it turned out to be a great travelers’ hangout. Not something I want all the time, but a nice break every now and then. It was a bit far from the nearest bus stop, but the tumuli (or Silla tombs) for which the town is famous were right next door – looming atmospherically over the containing wall at night. I was sleeping on the floor again, but this time, in accordance with Korean custom, the floor was heated! In fact, it was heated so efficiently that several guests, including me, asked for the heat to be turned down after the first night. Once again, I had no problem sleeping, but I did miss having somewhere to put things.

The tombs are basically large rounded hillocks, covered with grass. Originally they held coffins, protected first by wooden and later by stone chambers, which were covered with rocks and then earth. Over 670 of these tombs still remain in and around Gyeongju, the tallest 25 meters high, although some of the contents have been removed to the city's museum. The Silla or Shilla king Munmo was the first to unify the Korean peninsula, in 668 C.E., and the dynasty ruled until 918. Like the contemporaneous Tang dynasty in China, the kingdom developed a flourishing culture and luxurious lifestyle. However, after a while all the hillocks started to look alike - I certainly didn't need to see all 670 of them!

About the time I decided I had seen enough tombs for one morning, I acquired a companion - a man staying at the same guest house. I'm not quite sure why he decided to join me, as I was limping quite slowly, but we did seem to have a similar agenda. My first priority was to locate the intercity bus terminal and try to buy a ticket for my next destination. Once again, I found out how hospitable the Koreans could be. A young couple who were visiting the town put us in their just-parked car and drove us around to find the bus station. People on Twitter had suggested I might have trouble traveling in Korea outside Seoul, as few people would speak English, but I found those who did going well out of their way to be helpful.

After lunch we took a bus to the museum, where we found several large school groups who seemed delighted to see westerners. I have two museum speeds: dead slow, where I read all the labels and/or listen to everything on the audio guide, and super-fast, where I stand in the middle of each room and do a 360 to see if anything catches my attention. This museum rated dead slow, especially the rooms holding the gold artifacts from the Silla tombs. The last stop of the day was a different kind of dead slow. The guide books said that the Bomun Lake area, a few kilometers out of the center, had been developed as a resort area, and it sounded like a good place to get coffee.

Not on an October afternoon, evidently. We finally had the front desk staff at one of the big hotels track down someone to make coffee for us. The next week the finance deputies for the upcoming G20 meeting were supposed to be staying at Bomun Lake, maybe it would be livelier then. Or maybe there'd just be a bunch of security. (I was glad to be leaving the country before the G20 meeting proper got underway.)

The next day I was back on my own, and I took the circular bus out to Bulguk-sa. And I do mean out. None of the maps I saw of Gyeongju were to scale, and the distances were much further than they looked. The first temple on the site went up in the 500s, but it has been rebuilt, destroyed and rebuilt several times. The last restoration was completed in 1972, and the result is impressive. And despite the crowds, I got a real sense of peace from the building housing a statue of Gwaneum (the Goddess of Mercy). Unfortunately I was less happy with the Seokguram grotto, on the mountain above Bulguk-sa. While I understand the reason for the glass that blocks access to the main part of the grotto, it also blocks the view of all but a few of the carvings lyrically described in the guidebooks. Since getting there involved a bus ride plus a 1.2 kilometer round-trip hike, I felt cheated.

Back at the guest house I found a small TV crew shooting a travel show and looking for interview subjects. Since I hate having my photo taken, and I much prefer to write rather than speak, I was very glad when someone else volunteered. That night I ate dinner with her and her companion - a good minced beef BBQ (bulgogi) with the usual side dishes at a Lonely Planet recommendation, Pyeongyang. The flexible steel "snake" over the table turned out to be an extractor fan. On the way back we passed an outdoor concert of traditional music, but while we admired the costumes none of us cared for the music. Back at the guest house the owners had started a fire in a metal drum, as the night was on the cool side, and a group of us sat around it sharing travel stories. The heated floor was more welcome that night.

I am amused by the comments about the chopsticks. I have used chopsticks since a kid, and the shape of the cross-section makes no difference - round, square, oval, rectangular, triangle. To me, it's the material that I don't like, as metal chopsticks feel cold in the mouth.

I agree with rkkwan re the chopsticks: it's not the shape but the material. Not only is metal cold in the mouth (or too hot if you're using them to move food around in a skillet) but the coefficient of friction between metal and food is typically too low to permit handling of slippery food. Scoring or abrading the metal surface helps, but then you've still got the cold/hot thing to deal with.

According to the wiki people a little about chopsticks:

* Chinese: longer sticks that are square in cross section at one end (where they are held) and round in cross section at the other (where they contact the food), ending in a blunt tip.
* Japanese: short to medium length sticks that taper to a pointed end. Japanese chopsticks are traditionally made of wood and are lacquered. Some chopstick sets include two lengths of chopsticks: shorter ones for women and longer ones for men. Child-sized chopsticks are widely sold.
* Korean: medium-length stainless-steel tapered rods, with a flat rectangular cross section. (Traditionally, they were made of brass or silver.) Many Korean metal chopsticks are ornately decorated at the grip. They are sometimes used to put food on a spoon, which then brings food to the mouth.
* Vietnamese: long sticks that taper to a blunt point; traditionally wooden. A đũa cả is a large pair of flat chopsticks that is used to serve rice from a pot.

Enjoying your report thursdays and loving even more the pics on your blog site

Aloha!

Interesting information on chopsticks. I agree that metal (and to some extent plastic) is more slippery than wood, and that's what makes it difficult for those of us who didn't grow up eating with chopsticks.

Glad to know there are still people reading this!

Oct 17-19 - Avoid Jeonju!

Jeonju made it onto my itinerary because of a brochure from the Korean Tourist Office. Large section of traditional houses, it said. Stay in a traditional house (hanok), it said. Stay in a hanok (Seunggwangjae) owned by the grandson of the last king. Lonely Planet also spoke highly of Seunggwangje: "live like a king at Jeonju's best hanok". Sounded good, although I had remarkable difficulty making a reservation - no English on the web site, no email address on the web site, no response to a phone message left by a Korean-speaking friend-of-a-friend. Finally, a helpful man in the Seoul Tourist Office made the reservation for me, and I confirmed it, as requested, the week before I was due to arrive.

My day got off to a bad start. Although the bus station was closer than the train station to the guest house, it wasn't close enough I wanted to walk it with my pack. But when I asked for a taxi I was told that I couldn't get a taxi because a marathon was taking place. So I walked. Actually, I walked right through the middle of the marathon... Then the bus stopped for a lunch break, but only for 20 minutes. Finally, the taxi in Jeonju had a lot of trouble getting me to the right place (possibly because a festival was in progress).

So, I was very ready to be treated like royalty. Instead, the woman apparently in charge kept waving me away as if I were in the wrong place. After I rechecked the name over the gate (in Korean characters) I made it clear I thought I was in the right place. The hanok's courtyard was full of tourists taking photos and poking into corners (not an encouraging sight for someone who values privacy) and one translated for me: there was a problem with my reservation and I needed to spend the first night somewhere else. The somewhere else turned out to have a shared shower room as the entry way, with a shared toilet in the courtyard. When I said this was unacceptable, a lot of loud phone calls ensued, and I was eventually told my room at Seunggwangjae would be available at 5:00pm. I should have bailed at this point, instead I spent a couple of hours checking out the festival, drinking coffee and finding an English speaking contact at the local tourist office.

At 5:00 I found out that their solution to the problem was to have the man currently occupying "my" room move out, which of course he refused to do. I don't know whether they double-booked the room, or he asked to stay longer and they didn't tell him he couldn't, and I don't especially care. What bothered me was the totally unprofessional way they handled the situation. The "assistant" dealing with me (via phone calls with the very helpful woman in the tourist office) finally offered to comp me a room at another hanok for one night, but by that time I wanted nothing more to do with him or his operation, plus I didn't want to have to move the next day. I wound up instead at the Hotel Hansung, sleeping on the (heated) floor but with actual shelves to put things on.

The Hansung was in the modern Gaeksa shopping and eating district, which I actually preferred to the historic section. Since new "historic" buildings were under construction it wasn't clear how many of the advertised 800 hanoks were original, plus those in good repair were mostly occupied by shops, with the occasional cafe or museum. In other words it was a big tourist trap. At least the Gaeksa district was full of young locals enjoying themselves. I wasn't very impressed with the region's signature dish, bibimbap, either, but perhaps I was just in a bad mood.

(Note: I communicated with the man who made my reservation, who was properly apologetic and who assured me that they will no longer recommend the Seunggwangjae. I still need to send feedback to Lonely Planet, although the last time I sent a complaint (about the "tour guide from hell" in Romania in 2006) it had absolutely no effect and he's still listed.)

good grief.

Really. You have proved your mettle as a traveller, now it's time for things to get easy and for you to get some pampering!

That doesn't sound like a great experience. I'm with Kathie it's time for things to change.

Me too. I'm following this closely thursday. I keep getting this image of you hoiking that bloody backpack on your shoulders and limping down the road, pausing only to scoff a bucket of pig's offal before finding your next inch-thin mattress on some Korean floor.

Your latest little adventure is one that would have had me checking in to the nearest, most expensive hotel I could find. Situations like this are really hellish for the solo traveler, with or without a common language.

So bravo you, thursday - but I too think it's time for you to love yourself a little more and reward yourself with some pampering.

What Dogster said

Thanks for all the good thoughts! Actually, the Hansung was the SECOND hotel I tried after the hanok disaster - the first one was just too grim. And the Hansung really wasn't bad - sleeping on the floor has been fine aside from not having anywhere to put things - and being too hot the first night on a heated floor. And I mostly ate well in Korea.

Does foot and body massage in Taipei count as pampering? And a visit to a hair salon in HK? Plus my last two days in HK have been rainy, so I mostly stayed indoors - over a glass of wine, over coffee, and eating Pret a Manger salad and sandwiches in my room - after two months of eating out every night, it was nice to eat in for a change.

Here's the last Korean installment - I'm typing this in the Cathay lounge at HK airport waiting to board my flight to KTM (after a welcome shower), so I don't want to get too many countries behind! BTW dogster, nice to hear from you, where are you now? Istanbul?

Oct 19-21 - Back to Seoul

Buying a ticket for the bus to Seoul was no problem - although I had to move fast to make it onto the 10:00. This time the food stop was only for 15 minutes, and I didn't bother to try to eat. Once I got checked in back at the Ibis (intercontinental comforts again) I had a chicken sandwich in one of the little cafes on the street outside, followed by coffee at Starbucks on the main road (called, oddly, Teheran-ro). Unfortunately, I couldn't use their wifi as I needed a Korean ID number to sign on, but then I didn't really need net access to write a blog post. Dinner was chicken and rice near my friends' apartment, followed by a walk round their upscale Apgujeong neighborhood.

My last full day in Korea was much like my first, except that this time I visited Changdeok Palace instead of Gyeongbok. Built on hilly terrain, Changdeok doesn't follow the usual south-north layout, but is more spread out. I was most interested in seeing the "secret garden" behind the buildings, but when I learned that the mandatory tour would last two hours, I bailed at the half-way point. Aside from not wanting to stress my foot, I was getting hungry, and the grey day wasn't the best for photographs. I do think the grounds would be lovely on a sunny day, though, especially after the leaves changed.

I ate lunch at the same place off Insadong as before (chicken this time), and had coffee and macarons at the same patisserie. I also took a look at a shop selling embroidery recommended in Lonely Planet, but thought the work not as good as that I'd seen in Suzhou, while the prices seemed similarly high. I considered visiting one of the markets, but the map I got from the T.I. said that they mostly sold clothes, so I visited the COEX mall near the Ibis instead. Plenty of clothes for sale there, too, but dressy new ones.

The Korean countryside had impressed me, and I'd like to go back when I could hike, but now I was ready to move on. I ate dinner at the hotel - the beef bulgogi was much better than the nasi goreng had been - and packed. Then I set the alarm for 5:15, which got me out of the hotel and into a taxi at 6:00. CALT, the City Air terminal, was really walking distance, but Korean taxis weren't that expensive. I ate breakfast in the Cathay Pacific lounge, and then again on the flight to Taipei. (Since I figured I could call that brunch, I had a glass of good Shiraz with it.)

Woo hoo. Kathmandu. Give my regards to Michelle and Pujan. O.K., we can all relax now.

BTW, still in Oz, leaving in a week for Istanbul. Hanging on an Indian visa, right now.

Parts of your trip sound like they were way beyond "off the beaten track". Hope the rest of your trip has mostly good experiences, no double booked rooms and no cancelled flights.
I am enjoying your trip report and am waiting for more.

Wow, Hong Kong to Kathmandu is quite a transition! I wasn't sure the car from the airport would make it to the hotel - it had a squeal like a soul in torment. The Courtyard is definitely a traveler's oasis - but dogster, Michelle and friend would like to know why no wedding as scheduled?

Weird flight - stops in Dakka but you can't get off the plane if you're going to KTM, and you can't get on it there to fly to KTM! Since I was stuck on the plane for a while, here's the first Taiwan piece.

Oct 21-23 - Typhoon Megi and Me

I really am starting to think this trip is jinxed. I should never have complained that my 2004-5 RTW went so smoothly there were no good stories.

The love motel in Danyang had a big screen TV looming over the bed, but no Engligh-language programming. The guesthouse in Gyeongju probably had CNN or the BBC on the TV in the communal sitting area, but I never looked at it. The hotel in Jeonju had a normal-sized TV but no Engligh language channels. And 'net access wasn't great anywhere. So it wasn't until I got back to the Ibis in Seoul on Oct 19, scheduled to fly to Taiwan on Oct 21, that I turned on CNN and heard about Typhon Megi and the death and destruction in the Philippines. And CNN seemed to think that she was most likely headed for Hong Kong, not Taiwan.

Now, I live in North Carolina, where hurricanes are commonplace, (and a typhoon is just a hurricane by another name), and if I were at the beach and was told to evacuate you'd better believe I'd be first in line to get away. But, living a couple of hundred miles inland, we usually just get wind and rain as the outer bands hit. So it wasn't until my plane landed in Taipei, and I saw the tree tops streaming horizontally before the wind, that it ocurred to me that I should take typhoon Megi a bit more seriously. There is, after all, very little inland on Taiwan.

I take no credit for the fact that I was headed southwest, while the typhoon's worst impact was in the northeast, where the coastal highway took a major hit, and one busload of mainland Chinese tourists was swept away (they're still looking for the remains). But heading southwest turned out to be the smart move. I took a bus from Taipei airport to the high speed rail station at Taoyuan, and then the train south to Tainan, where a free shuttle bus took me into town. (The high speed rail stations are all an inconvenient distance from the towns they profess to serve.) Fortunately, I didn't believe the map in Lonely Planet, which incorrectly suggested that the Cambridge Hotel was walking distance from the ordinary train station where the shuttle dropped me. Besides, it was raining. I took a taxi.

The hotel, for some inscrutable reason, upgraded me to a suite. Loads of room. A table and four chairs. An easy chair and foot rest. A desk chair and wired 'net access. A big bed and a big bathroom and a bigger window. In fact, the window was a whole arc of glass, but up on the ninth floor this wasn't as great an idea as it sounds.When the wind really got going it whistled. I always thought that was a figure of speech, but no, it really does whistle, loudly. I also had CNN, but I think I'd have been better off without it, as I watched the projected track of the typhoon turn north towards me.

I normally avoid embassies. I think the only time I'd contacted one while traveling before was in Pakistan right after 9-11 (back then it was the British embassy I used), but after watching CNN I decided it might be prudent to check in. Turns out that in order to keep the mainland Chinese happy the US doesn't have an actual embassy in Taipei. Instead it has the American Citizen Services office of the American Institute. The duty officer on the other end of the email exchange thought I'd be better off in Taipei, but since he said it was raining heavily there, and it was raining only intermittently in Tainan, I stayed put. And really, the typhoon was largely a non-event for me. Some heavy rain, one day, but not sustained. But I did cancel my trip to Sun-Moon Lake up in the mountains and booked a hotel in Taipei for a couple of nights instead.

My first trip to Asia was to China, and there is something about Chinese culture that says "Asia" to me at a visceral level that other cultures don't quite match. And Tainan said "China" to me very loudly. In fact, you could say it was more Chinese than China. It was the capital before Taipei, and has a number of historic temples, and those temples looked to me the way I imagine mainland Chinese temples looked before the Cultural Revolution. Just as Myanmar feels like southeast Asia a few decades ago, Tainan's temples felt like China a half century or more back.

I just visited one of Hong Kong's major temples, which you would think would give me the same feeing, but compared to Tainan's temples it was positively plain. Every inch of the main temples was decorated. Dragon columns galore. Wall carvings everywhere. Heavy, smoke-darkened embroideries over the altars. More gods than you could reasonably remember. Of course, I took photos, but I also joined the locals in making offerings in a couple of temples where I thought it might do the most good. I chose the Jade Emperor at the Altar to Heaven and the oldest temple to the sea goddess, Matsu. They weren't very big offerings, just a 100 NT worth of goodies and incense at the first, and 10 NT worth of incense at the second, but I figured that at this point I could use any help going. Besides, it felt good to do something other than watch. At the Altar to Heaven the woman who sold me the offering explained that I should light all the incense sticks at once, and then leave three for each god or goddess I was honoring. And when I finished she handed me a bottle of water. Still don't understand that!

The colonial remains in the Anping secttion of town were much less inspiring. True, I visited them the day the typhoon came closest, and had to dodge a couple of downpours, but I got only slightly damp. The authentic remnant of the Dutch fort consisted of a short section of brick wall, although the reconstructed building, in use as a museum, came in handy as a shelter during the worst of the rain. The overgrown and rather eerie English "tree house" was even less worth seeing, although in clearer weather the views of the river might have been better. The most interesting sight was the rapid removal of water from the nearby Matsu temple when the rain temporarily stopped. The front courtyard wasn't covered, and was sunken, but had drain holes. The forecourt was swept dry.

When the rain started up again I grabbed a handy taxi and retreated back to town and the upmarket Shin Kong Mitsukoshi mall. After lunch in the "Thai" restaurant (more Vietnamese dishes than Thai), I did a little browsing, but was shocked by the prices for Gore Tex, and for luggage. Aside from the mall I didn't eat particularly well in Tainan, Lonely Planet being enamored of street food, while I wanted a sit-down restaurant out of the weather. I ate some local specialties at a small place across from the hotel, but while the shrimp rolls were fine, the seafood toast was bizarre (a hollowed out chunk of bread with pieces of unidentifiable seafood in a cream sauce) and the pork tended too much to fat for my taste.

I am looking forward to the next episodes. Tell my prospective bride that I have passed my proxy to Kimmie, the dog. One pooch is much the same as another.

I wonder if you'll go up to Phulbari.

I've been following along, hoping your foot/ankle problems would improve. You are one touch cookie!

Your Anglicized Korean spellings=My Anglicized Korean spelling:

Gyeongju = Kyongju
Bomun = Pomun
Seokguram = Sokoram
Bulguk-sa = Puhlguksa

We got up in the middle of the night in order to see the sun rising from the East Sea shine its light on the Buddha at Sokoram. When we got there, there was a huge scaffold over the front of the grotto. Quite a let down!

Ah, you are in Kathmandu! I'm looking forward to your adventures. When the crush of Kathmandu gets to be too much, there is a lovely little haven on the edge of Thamel, the Garden of Dreams. We loved wandering there. They do have a cafe that offers lunch, but we didn't try it.

The dog is unimpressed by the news of the engagement.

I will be going to Phulbari tomorrow for two nights.

I'm staying in room 405 at the Courtyard, but they now have a generator, so I won't be walking into the wall in the middle of the night.

I did the mountain flight this morning, in beautiful clear weather, and it was absolutely fantastic. But I have no desire whatsoever to climb any of them.

thursdaysd typed: I did the mountain flight this morning, in beautiful clear weather, and it was absolutely fantastic. But I have no desire whatsoever to climb any of them.

You obviously did not listen carefully to the annoying song from The Sound of Music.

(Actually, most of the songs from SoM are annoying.)

SoM: so true!

That mountain flight is stunning, is it not? BTW, I also have no desire to climb and of them - or, for that matter - to listen to any of the songs from the Sound of Music.

Christopher Plummer (who played the role of Colonel von Trapp) referred to it after his performance as "The Sound of Sewage."

Thursday, I have been reading this saga while sitting with my foot up, enclosed in some kind of ortho boot, for the last four weeks, instructed not to walk. So I can't imagine you limping all over Asia and having to endure various discomforts. Empathizing but enjoying...

I can just picture Plummer complaining while counting his loot.

Well, I think we'll lose thursday for 48 hours. Ain't no internet up at Phulbari. Thursday, if you get this; Govinda is the clue. Trust him. Let him take you around the village. He can arrange a motorbike to get you to Namo Buddha.

Make pals with the women. Go visit the school. Remember, it's isolated so take any luxuries you need.

Dog's residence of choice is the Sun House - but I'd go for the Cavehouse, just because it's so odd. Just organise buckets of hot water in advance and washing will be a breeze.

By the sound of it, you might just get the views. Ahhh.

The Dog spot is the bench by the helipad. Sit there and commune. Who knows, you may become Dog. You're looking at Tibet.

And leave a tip. You'll see why.

Oh, and an extension to your Namo Buddha jaunt is to continue along the ridge road to Depcha and see what you find. Untouched medieval village, I'm told. That's for my next trip.

Are you good with motorbikes?

Oh, LAleslie --- in a boot for four weeks?? So dreadful!! Hope your're up and about soon. I can't stand being incapacitated. I'm very spoiled . . . and very neurotic.

Just so the luxuries I need to take don't include food! I plan to borrow "The Age of Kali" from the Courtyard library, and I just picked a South India LP as I need to do some work on that leg. But catching up on the writing and enjoying the scenery are really what I'm planning.

The Courtyard people weren't enthusiastic about the motorbike idea. I've done motorbikes in Cambodia, but they're not my preferred mode of transport.

LAleslie - so sorry to hear about your boot. Hope you're better soon.

Thanks guys. Gotta sit and gaze at my navel for two more weeks. Going quite insane. Reduced to reading the first Stieg Larsen book.

"Buckets of hot water in advance"? Hmmm. Sounds like another Thursday adventure. Look for the Dogster Memorial Grease Spot.

OK, here's another piece on Taiwan to hold you until I get back from Phulbari.

Oct 24-25 - Taipei, Part One

I had given up my plan to visit Sun-Moon Lake on the advice of the T.I. office in Tainan, although looking at the rainfall maps later I thought they had been over-cautious, but after tourist-trap Jeonju I wasn't eager for another such experience too soon, and it sounded like Sun-Moon Lake had become over-popular with the mainland Chinese tourists now flooding the island. So I wasn't too sorry to be going to Taipei instead. I did baulk when the T.I. people at Taipei Main Station suggested I should reconsider my visit to Taroko Gorge, and after they called the T.I. in Hualien they agreed that it would be OK.

I had booked a room at the Fullerton 315 at the Internet rate (although I couldn't get their on-line form to work and had to use email), but while the room had the usual comforts, it didn't have a functioning window. Still, the hotel was close to an MTR station, and had the excellent Very Thai restaurant right next door. I had a very Thai couple of days, eating one lunch and two dinners there. Papaya salad, green beans, wet chicken curies, dry beef curry - all recommendable.

I can't second Lonely Planet's recommendation of the public baths at Beitou, though. For one thing, it's quite a long trek to get out there, especially as I had to change trains twice. But, more to the point, the changing rooms are awful. A few wooden cubicles, with cold-water showers, and wet floors, and then you have to stash your clothes in one of the nearby lockers - assuming you have the right change. After the Japanese baths these were a real let-down. I should have tried one of the hotels instead.

My first full day in Taipei I visited the two prime tourist sights: the Longshan Temple and the Palace Museum. For a change, the day started out hot and sunny, and my umbrella finally got to function as a sunshade. A major ritual was underway when I arrived at the temple, with tables of offerings filling the courtyard, and rows of devotees, many of them women in black robes, chanting along with the monks. I waited for it to finish before taking photos, and again, there was plenty to photograph. I noticed one woman busily polishing possible smoke stains off an already gleaming incense burner, and others whisking away the profusion of fruit and flowers.

The Palace Museum was very hard on my feet, and in the course of the afternoon filled up with tour groups. While I enjoyed the special exhibition on the Southern Song dynasty, and I thought the exhibits reasonably well displayed, the museum failed to live up to my expectations. Maybe they were too high, but I thought there was a distinct shortage of jade and of Tang artifacts. I felt this even more strongly later when I visited the Taipei History Museum, which had plenty of both. I did skip the bronzes and the later ceramics, neither of which do much for me, and had coffee and an elaborate chocolate cake in the cafe instead. At which point I got to look outside and see that it was raining. Again.

The high-speed trains only run down the west side of the island, so the next morning I took a regular express to Hualien. On the way I chatted with an Australian Peace Corps volunteer about my own age, on holiday from Thailand, but she was staying at the upmarket Silks inside the gorge, and we parted company at the station, where a young man with a sign was waiting for me.

i'd take chocolate cake over most bronzes anyday

This is getting to be a gastronomic tour of East Asia. I guess bad weather= more eating!

30 years ago I stayed in a monastery in Taroko Gorge. It was full of cockroaches that clattered about and woke me in the middle of the night. Hope you are avoiding that.

Have they moved that incredible collection of jades out of the Palace Museum? I thought that was one of the highlights.

LAleslie: How did you wind up in a boot?

thursdaysd: "White Moguls" is even better than "The Age of Kali." I also enjoyed "The Last Moghul" much more than I thought I would. There's nothing bad about William Dalrymple . . .

Bob: I'll take the bronzes over chocolate cake!

Stress fracture, Indiana. It's cause, a mystery. Did nothing traumatic. That I remember. (Ah, maybe that's the key.)

Chocolate cake over bronzes. Now it becomes clear.

LA--heal quick and strong! I don't think the Love Boat can cope with two palanquins...

The more palanquins, the more handsome Nubian slaves to carry them.

Personally, I think the Love Boat could do with a few Nubians. I think we could find a use for them...

Yesss. I can do Nubians. Not sure about the Love Boat though

Goats? - I like their ears.

For those who have NO idea what Mary is talking about...

http://www.ultimategoatfansite.com/news/meet-the-breed-anglo-nubian-goats

A palanquin carried on the backs of four Nubian Goats was not exactly what I had in mind.

Well, thursday must be coming down from the hills today - or is it tomorrow? I imagine there'll be recriminations... lol.

They might come in handy if the Love Boat runs aground-you could always milk or eat them

I doubt they would give a very good ride for those in need of a palanquin but they are handsome.

Hopefully Thursday will check in soon and stop this silliness.

While the cat's away...

I think Nubian men might be better palanquin bearers, but at this point I'm not fussy.

I'm back in KTM, but only for one night - I'm taking a 7 am bus to Bandipur, likely also short on wifi. Plus Michelle's father just arrived and a celebration dinner is on the schedule for tonight.

There will a full post on Phulbari at the appropriate time....

Meanwhile, to get back to Taiwan (you haven't forgotten Taiwan, have you?)

Oct 26-28 - Loving Taroko Gorge

After a quick stop at the T.I., I followed the young man with the sign to the Bay View's shuttle bus. The photos on the hotel's web site (http://www.hotelbayview.com.tw/english/006.html )had convinced me that I needed some beach time, or at least a beach view, along with my visit to Taroko Gorge. The hotel turned out to be a bit further out of town than I had expected, but was otherwise very comfortable, with helpful staff and the shuttle bus to and from the train station. My ocean view room was as pictured on the web site, but unfortunately the weather, and therefore the view, was not. Instead of placid blue waters, I was seeing - and hearing - an angry grey sea breaking high and white as it hit the beach.

The typhoon had passed, and the English-speaking man running things at the Bay View told me that the ferocious winds whipping the trees out front were just normal winter weather. If so, I would recommend avoiding winter! I took a car and driver south down the coast road (the section to the north had suffered badly in the typhoon), and the views were really too hazy to see, and the winds too strong for taking photographs. Spectacular in the sunshine, I'm sure, but when you have to fight to stay upright, you can't appreciate much besides shelter.

Taroko Gorge, on the other hand, had plenty of shelter and not much wind, and all the magnificent views anyone could want. I spent a whole day there with a car and driver, and most of a second using the (rather unreliable) buses. While I'd say it's good by bus, it's wonderful by taxi, as you can stop when and where you want. Of course, the earlier you start the better, as otherwise you'll find the best viewpoints infested with tour buses. Even my taxi driver (a rare woman driver), who makes her living from tourism, complained about the number of mainland Chinese visiting. (Perhaps they don't take taxis.)

The typhoon had affected some of the trails, others have been closed even longer, and the one I really wanted to try, the "Tunnel of Nine Turns", was off limits. I did hike a few shorter trails, doing the one that was my clear favorite, the first part of Shakadang, the morning of the second day. The Shakadang River shone crystal clear and glacial blue in the sunshine, while the main river, swollen by the typhoon, was burdened with loads of grey silt. The gorge is narrow with high walls, somewhat reminiscent of Zion, and I would certainly recommend a visit if you're thinking of going to Taiwan (do think about it).

I ate lunch twice at Tienhsiang, where the bus turned round, and a few services were located. Not liking the look of the eating places by the bus stop (even Lonely Planet remarked on the "awful food") and not wanting to trek up to the Youth Activity Center on the off-chance they would have food, I ate expensively at the Silks Hotel. Very nice set Asian meal the first day (although I still wonder how you are supposed to eat ribs with chopsticks), so-so pizza the second. Elegant surroundings both days.

Eating dinner was more problematic. The Bay View provided a so-so breakfast, and free coffee or tea all day (and night), but didn't do dinner. The women on the front desk suggested a taxi into town and the night market. Again, I was in no mood for street food. The only place open near the hotel served western food - soup and steak were quite good, if also quite expensive. The other night I insisted that I wanted a Chinese restaurant in town, and eventually they came up with a place for me. Not a word of English on the menu, but a combination of a very helpful waitress with a little English and the no-so-helpful food section of my guidebook worked. I ate egg drop soup with baby shrimp, spring onion pancakes and sweet and sour chicken. With beer.

It's time for us all to send healing thoughts to thursday's bottom.

Eagle eyed readers will have noted this key sentence in her last post; 'I'm taking a 7 am bus to Bandipur...

which is an odd place to go. Unless she meant Bharatpur. Either way, thursday's derriere needs a group hug. It's been a long and winding road...

No, I did mean Bandipur - I visited Bharatpur on the way to Phulbari. More accurately, a 7:00 am bus to Dumre, where I got a shared "taxi" up to Bandipur. Unfortunately, no views as yet. It was a tourist bus, (a "regular" tourist bus, not the Green Line which is what my taxi driver said "Courtyard people" usually take) so the seats were a reasonable size. It's my lower back that complained, but thanks for the thought. Bus on to Pokhara tomorrow - it's only another couple of hours, I think.

I've pretty much decided to skip Tansen after doing Phulbari and Bandipur, and add time to Pokhara.

Last piece on Taiwan:

Oct 29 - Nov 1- Back to Taipei

I had been unable to get a ticket on an express train back to Taipei, or even a slow train at a reasonable hour, so I left before breakfast to catch the 7:20, sharing my carriage with what appeared to be a school basketball team. This time I stayed at the See You hotel, booked through agoda.com, reasonable limping distance to the train station, and almost within sight of the terminal I'd need for the airport bus. My room was fine, but breakfast was at a KFC down the street. After abandoning the soggy bun and dubious fried chicken the first morning, I picked up energy bars and yogurt and ate in my room the other days. On a better note, immediately opposite, clearly visible from my window, was Rose House, specializing in tea - and roses. The ambiance was very 1950's English, but the jasmine tea and the coffee were fine.

Although I had planned four nights in Taipei because it sounded like there were several worth-while day trips, the weather wasn't good enough for the coast, or, I decided, the tea and wood-carving villages, never mind the National Parks. Instead I mostly visited museums, of which there were plenty. I started with the Museum of World Religions but thought the one in Glasgow was better - although Taipei does have an Egyptian sarcophagus and a piece of the Kiswa - the black cloth that covers the kaaba in Mecca. The Historic Museum was another matter, both for its permanent collection and for the fabulous special exhibition of artifacts from the Famen underground temple on the mainland (near Xi'an). These were from the Tang period, one of my favorites, mostly silver, mostly intricately decorated, with lots of birds rather than dragons. One statue looked remarkably like a Sphinx, and the lion statues reminded me strongly of the Khmer lions in Cambodia. No English labels or audio guide for the special exhibition, but I enjoyed it anyway.

I finished that day at the Discovery Center, with displays on the history of Taipei, and when the next day dawned grey and cloudy I went to the ceramics museum at Yingge. Surprisingly, this remarkable museum was free. Very interesting information on the whole process, starting with techniques for finding and handling clay, included a section on modern uses of ceramics in industry. While I wasn't much impressed with the "art" pieces in the top floor gallery (I think I recognized one arrangement from MAD in New York), the teapot competition in one of the outer buildings included some pieces I admired.

Even better, the museum staff told me about a free "holiday" shuttle back to the train station, and reading the leaflet, I found another shuttle going to Sansia, which had a temple I wanted to see. Unfortunately, the temple was mostly covered with scaffolding. Then I worked my way through the street fair going on around it, packed with people, and decided I had seen enough stalls and enough street food that I didn't need to visit the Shilin night market

My last day began with the 2-28 Peace Park (commemorating a massacre on 2-28-47 at the start of a period of martial law). Good thing I didn't also want to visit the 2-28 museum, as it was blocked off, along with several nearby streets - a demonstration was underway. Although the speeches sounded fiery, the crowd seemed small and unalarming, and plenty of police were on hand. After a brief look at the Chiang-Kai Shek Memorial Hall (I'm no fan of Chiang-Kai Shek) I took the metro east in search of a Thai restaurant recommended by a local sitting near me at lunch in Taipei 101 a couple of days earlier. While Home's was fine, I preferred Very Thai.

On the way a massage place with attractive prices caught my eye. So tempting... Initially I resisted, taking the metro to the zoo as I had planned. But the gondola to the tea houses in Maokong didn't run on a Monday, and the zoo was less appealing than I expected, with many animals sensibly sleeping out of sight. I went back and had the massage - 30 minutes feet, 30 minutes upper body. Bliss.

That night I packed, ready for another early airport bus. I'd finish the East Asian leg of the trip with five nights R&R in Hong Kong - rest and resupply.

Well, that'll be even more interesting. I have no idea what's at Bandipur. Tansen can be easily skipped unless you have a yen for goat execution at the temple there.

After Pokhara, are you driving down to the border?

Yes, indeed, (possibly) a good thing to avoid demonstrations that could be political. Is it not the Taiwanese legislature that gets in the news for 15 seconds every 9 weeks because of fistfights breaking out in their legislature?

It's interesting hearing about Taiwan and Nepal simultaneously.

I'm very much looking forward to what you have to say about Phulbari.

OK, am now in Pokhara. My first hotel didn't work out, and I just checked into a second. No views at all - the clouds have been down since my second night in Phulbari. I'm planning three nights here, the bus down the Siddartha Highway, and three nights in Lumbini, but I need to book a hotel there or I'll wind up at one of the monasteries and I feel like a bit of comfort between bus rides.

Don't know about fist fights in the Taiwan legislature,but relations with China are, of course, a very touchy subject, as are relations between pre-1945 residents and later ones.

Three nights in Lumbini might be stretching the magic of the place - by about, hmmmm, two and three-quarter days. All you'll see there is concrete replicas of what you've already seen... however, Lord Buddha's birthplace is a buzz.

One night, then leave. Unless you're planning a religious conversion. Tansen is your logical stop en route.

I think, actually, that Nepal is located somewhere in central Australia and all that Himalaya stuff is a lie. As you're learning, those mountains aren't just elusive - in Pokhara, after 6.00 a.m. they are a murky fantasy. Do not get up at 5.30 for the dawn.

The scenery down to Lumbini is great - until you hit the plains. Then you're virtually back in India. You may notice the subtle difference.

Me? I'm off to Abu Dhabi tonight.

With a 7-8 hour bus ride to get there I'm going to need some recovery time, plus I'll have another bus ride to the railhead in India when I leave to rest up for. I was figuring one day for the new monasteries, and one day for a possible trip to Tilaurakot.

I know the mountains are there - I saw them on the mountain flight out of KTM, and at Phulbari, but they're certainly hiding out now. At least Pokhara is a bit more laid back then Thamel - and I've moved down the south end of Lakeside where it's quieter.

Have a good flight & a good trip, though what you're going to do with all that time at sea I can't imagine!

I warn you, the hotels in Lumbini are pretty sterile and grim, catering exclusively for package religious tours, in for a night then out again. You'll be unusual. I stayed in some horrid concrete place almost opposite the main gate. I'm told it was the best of a bad lot.

Look in your astronomocal calender - maybe there's a full moon or something. If there is, book your accom before you leave.

I'm about four hours off leaving. It's 5 p.m. and the dry cleaners have failed to return my clothes. Same day, some day service. lol. Just what I need. There have been words...

As for the 8 days without sighting land bit: well, I have a plan. Famous last Dogster words. I'm glad that Pulbari provided you with mountains.

Good thought, dogster! I'll be there the nights of 19, 20 and 21, and a quick on-line check says the full moon is on the 21st! Full moon in Kyoto, and now full moon in Lumbini - pure serendipity.

Not sure when you were there, but there's been quite a bit of building going on. The backpacker sleep of choice now is at the Korean monastery - room and three meals for the price of a donation - and I had originally planned to join them. But... part way across Nepal I started thinking AC, bathroom, mosquitoes, and began looking for a hotel. I just reserved at the new, Japanese owned Hotel Kasai - with discount for a three night stay. http://www.lumbinihotelkasai.com/

Still no views at Pokhara so I hope to get the Hong Kong piece(s) done today, then I might actually be posting about the country I'm in for a change.

Hi from Abu Dhabi. I'm pretty much crazed with jet-lag.

I spent 5 very dull days in Pokhara two years ago, trapped by a non-flight to Jomson and never once saw the mountains.

I'm happy you have a full moon. Lumbini might be rather good. I'm having Eid. [Is that how you spell it?] The gods are excited. Me? I'm just exhausted. Only your reports on Kathmandu, Courtyard and Phulbari will keep me going.

Still following along Thursday. The hotel in Lumbini at least looks new and reasonably comfortable - not sure about "washies" though and no soap or shampoo apparently unless you take the suite! Have a comfortable rest and looking forward to the rest of your travels.

Dogster get over the jet lag quickly - we will all be waiting for more stories. Happy Eid.

dogster - sounds like you need a good sleep. Have you reached IST yet? If so, I'd add a visit to a hamam - maybe http://www.cemberlitashamami.com.tr/ Of course, you'll have plenty of opportunity for sleep on that boat.

MaryW - nice to know someone's still following along! I read "Washle" as typo for "washlet" as in Japanese toilet. I just restocked shampoo and soap in Pokhara, and am glad to see "hairdryer" - I abandoned mine after JAL got it wet.

Clouds are still down here. But I visited the Peace Pagoda and the Tibetan settlement yesterday instead of writing.

I'm getting that familiar/unfamiliar traveler's disorientation just reading this, hopping from Korea to Nepal to Taiwan to Melbourne to Abu Dhabi. (Eid is spelled right.) I'm jet lagged and I haven't even been anywhere.

Sorry you have not seen the mountains yet.
Hopefully the clouds will clear before you leave the area so you can enjoy the beauty of the Himalayas.

Maybe the sun will come out...and you'll get some good pictures too.

magical - I did see the mountains - flight out of KTM and from Phulbari, just not the last week....

Nov 2-3 - Getting Organized in Hong Kong

Aside from mundane considerations having to do with how to get from A to B on my OneWorld award, I had two reasons for stopping off in HK. First, I figured that after a couple of months traveling I would need a rest, and second, I wanted to try out some of Cicerone's walking recommendations, especially for the outlying islands. A bad foot and bad weather combined to put a stop to the walks, on the one hand, but to make a rest more attractive on the other.

Someone expressed surprise on one of my planning threads that I would consider HK a suitable place for a rest, but all that a rest requires is that you sit still - in your hotel room or a cafe, preferably a comfortable one. It doesn't much matter whether you're in Hong Kong or Honfleur, you simply need to stop. Now, I'm quite good at doing that at home - I just need a good book or my computer - but I'm terrible at doing it on the road. There's always something else to see, somewhere else to check out. Even with rest in mind, I was planning a trip to Macau and several walking tours...

I'd only visited HK once before, in 1997 just after the handover, at the end of a pricey Smithsonian tour of China - my first taste of Asia. I'd had a big harbor-view room Kowloon side - this was back when I was still working, and wasn't traveling on a budget - I'd been taken on a walking tour of Central and up the Peak on the tram, and I'd ridden a bus to Aberdeen on my own for a boat tour of the harbor. And I'd had no particular interest in returning until I read Cicerone's posts and figured you didn't have to be a shopper to enjoy HK. Having already stayed in a harbor-view room, I decided not to pay extra to repeat the experience, and instead booked a no-view room at Bishop Lei on the island. For most of my visit no views were available, so I was very glad I wasn't paying for something I couldn't enjoy!

The "express" bus to Taipei airport was no better than the cheaper "regular" bus, and the airport reminded me of Newark, but Cathay Pacific business class was as comfortable as ever, and provided food even though the flight took around 90 minutes and good noodle soup had been on offer in the lounge. At Hong Kong airport I had a useful talk with the T.I. people, got some cash, picked up a transport pass (Octopus card) and then rode the sleek and smooth Airport Express to Hong Kong island, where I treated myself to a taxi up to my hotel. (Bishop Lei has a shuttle, but I didn't have a schedule - despite an emailed request for one.)

After I got sorted out at Bishop Lei it was after 2:00, and it seemed a good day for afternoon tea - I didn't need lunch, but I wanted something to bridge the gap to dinner. I don't have much of a sweet tooth - much more a salt and spice one - but I do have weakness for scones and clotted cream, and had asked on Fodors about the best place for them. Although the Penn had been the easy winner, the Mandarin Oriental on the island had been mentioned, so I headed there. I had to wait until 3:00 for afternoon tea to start (and a good 15-20 minutes more for any food to show up on my table), but I enjoyed the five savory and five sweet morsels and the two scones that eventually showed up. I have to say that the ambiance in the Mandarin's somewhat Art Deco lobby was more business-oriented than I expected.

I had also asked on Fodors for a recommendation for someone to cut and color my hair, which had reached the critical stage. Since I would pass Cicerone's stylist at Tala’s on Shelly St. on the way back to my hotel, I stopped off there. Although Renee was on holiday, Lisa did a good job for me. Tala's is right next to the mid-level escalators, which delivered me reasonably close to Bishop Lei. I enjoyed riding the escalator, especially after I found the sky walk from the IFC Mall which kept me off the street, although I wouldn't want to live in one of the neighboring buildings. Not only was it fun to check out the assorted businesses, by watching the locals I discovered I could get a $2 credit on my Octopus card from a machine part-way up.

For dinner that night I walked down (rather too far down for my bad foot) to Elgin St. in search of India Today, from Cicerone's restaurant recommendations. Since it seemed to have closed, and I wasn't very hungry, I ate tapas at Enoteca instead. Very good chicken strips and wild mushrooms with wine, but a little pricey, I thought.

The next morning I continued working my way down my things-to-do-list, calling the Adventist Hospital for an appointment with the on-duty orthopedic specialist. (Adventist was another Cicerone rec - THANKS, Cicerone!) The taxi ride to the hospital was longer than I had expected from the map, but the views were good. The verdict on my foot was that it was still recovering from the sprain in Vancouver. Good news - no permanent damage likely. Bad news - I would keep limping for a while.

The last item on the list, buying guide books for Nepal and India, didn't work out. Warnings that books were expensive in HK turned out to be all too true - I should have bought in Taipei. After seeing what Dymocks at the IFC Mall wanted for Lonely Planet Nepal, I figured that since my Kathmandu hotel would pick me up at the airport I could wait. Then I headed back to the Pret a Manger I had seen on my way into the Mall for lunch. I am very fond of Pret, especially their crayfish and rocket sandwiches, and don't understand why I have an abundance of McDonalds in my town and not a single Pret, when McDonalds now owns Pret. (Even worse, the US Prets I have visited don't seem to stock the crayfish sandwich.)

Just checking in to let you know how much I am enjoying traveling with you! You certainly are a trooper. Enjoy, and keep up the bulletins! eks

Hello Thursday, I'm still here too.
Your HK bit reminded me of when I was there last April. I too had used it as a 'rest' though I stayed with friends out on Cheung Chau. I guess you didn't get out there with the bad weather? It was bad in April too.
I have to say you have had really bad luck with weather this trip. I would have hated it, always moan about the rain.
Your tales of the mid-levels escalator and Dymocks brought it all back, I can see, hear and smell HK all around. You were right in the middle of things there.
And yes, it's hard to find hairdressing facilities when on the road. I've often thought that would be a useful addition to Lonely Planet.
Good to hear the ankle is no worse than a sprain that will recover though it doesn't sound like rest and recovery is on your schedule right now.
Looking forward to the next bit.

Hello eks - nice to see you here!

Hi gertie - yes, LP is remiss on the hair dressing front - too many male authors, maybe. My usual technique is to head for an expensive hotel and ask there. Cheung Chau coming up.

This next piece was written (in pen) over an after-dinner Cointreau - hope it makes sense.

Nov 3-5 - Hazy Hong Kong

I arrived in HK on a sunny, clear day. For some reason I expected this desirable state of affairs to continue. How naive. Aside from the day I left, sunny but hazy, the weather got progressively worse each day. I abandoned thoughts of visiting Macau altogether, although I did take a ferry to Cheung Chau after visiting the hospital and lunching at Pret my first full day.

Despite the sun the views quiet from the ferry were much obscured by haze. After walking past a long line of waterfront cafes on the port side of Cheung Chau, I discovered the completely (in November, at least) beach side, a short walk away. I thought the island quite scenic - a good escape from HK if needed.

When the next morning dawned grey I set off for Kowloon-side markets. Finding the first, the bird market, took more walking than I expected. As I followed the signposts provided by the T.I., I even imagined I might be walking in circles. When I eventually reached it, the market seemed to be shutting down for the day - or perhaps for lunch. I thought it sad - the birds beautiful but caged. I couldn't quite figure out the pecking order that gave one bird his own cage, and condemned others to crowded quarters. Although I had come to see the birds, I noticed that everything to do with their care and housing (and display) could be bought there - including live food.

The flower market, equally small, at least raised no moral questions for me. At the jade market, reached by a short subway ride, I actually spent some money - all of $5. The adjustable string holding the jade pendant I bought in New Zealand in 2005 had finally given way in Taiwan, and it had occurred to me that the jade market was the perfect place for a replacement. This market filled two big halls, but I saw little variety in the merchandise.

As rain set in after lunch I headed for the Art Museum, only to find it closed. (My fault, it's always closed on Thursdays.) So, what to do on a rainy afternoon in Tsim Sha Tsui? Tea at the Penn, of course! Tea there runs from 2:00 to 7:00,and at 2:45 I was third in a slow moving line. Here I chose not to get the full tea, just scones and cream, but they were bigger and better than those at the Mandarin, as was the setting - a white and gold colonial confection. I could have used more cream, but can't you always use more cream?

Then I completed my market survey by getting off the escalator at Hollywood Rd. for antiques, and I could not believe how many Tang-era artifacts - or at least Tang-style artifacts - I was seeing. (Perhaps Cicerone can explain if she's reading this.) The night before I had eaten Thai food at Soho Spice on Elgin St. - not up to the Thai food in Taipei, I thought. This night I made a reservation at Red on the top floor of the IFC Mall (good service but slightly overcooked sole) before riding the Star ferry to Kowloon and back. All for the views, of course, but the weather did not co-operate.

The next day I actually got to visit the Art Museum, but concluded that I might have temporarily overdosed on Chinese museums - although the "Tour Guide to Canton II" kept me amused for a while. Afterwards I really started to slow down. With the museum cafe closed, I ate lunch at the Union Bar and Grill in the IFC Mall (yes, I was there a lot), and while the food wasn't great the large - and I do mean large - glass of very good Shiraz was above reproach and kept me occupied well into the afternoon. After coffee at Starbucks I picked up salad (crayfish and smoked salmon) and a sandwich (chicken and avocado) at Pret, and ate dinner in my room.

After Taiwan I found the room at Bishop Lei decidedly small - I wouldn't want it as a double - but I ate breakfast there every day (coffee, OJ, yogurt and energy bar) and dinner (from Pret) twice. After two solid months of restaurant meals I enjoyed eating "in".

Istanbul calling. Too jet-lagged to write. Too confused to write but let me congratulate you on your post-Cointreau prose. Write more drunk. It works for me.

The whole world is watching.

See how jetlagged? I wrote virtually the same sentence twice. Hopeless.

Hi Thursdaysd - I am still following along as well and am happy to read that your foot is improving.
Speaking of Pret a Manger, I am a big fan as well - the first one in the US opened in NYC down the block from the Stock Exchange when I worked close by a few years back. Now there are many in Manhattan and I was at one today. Back then I used to ask the Manager about the crayfish sandwiches and was told it was a problem keeping the fish fresh while importing them. They were sold briefly in NYC also back a few years. FYI, MdDonald's didn't own Pret, only had an investment which they sold to a British private equity co in 2008. Sorry to go off topic.....continue to enjoy your wonderful trip!

OK folks, quick check in to let you know I made it to Lumbini, and the Hotel Kasai is in no way a hellhole. The bus ride, on the other hand - 'fess up dogster, did you take the bus or a car and driver?

Anyway, no wifi here, I'm typing on the computer behind the reception desk! Unless I find a 'net cafe, you won't hear from me again until Lucknow on the 22nd. Play pretty.

Car and driver. lol. I'm no fool. You'll find internet somewhere. All those monks love a computer.

I had a strong reaction at Lord Buddha's birthplace. I'm not quite sure why. You'll see the stone. Hopefully, the place will be full of pilgrims for you. I think it's pretty damn boring otherwise. Replicas don't do it for me, particularly as I've been to most of the originals.

That said, I bet you have a magic time. We'll all be waiting.

I'm in Bangkok, but still following your adventures. You are gutsier than I am, taking a bus in Nepal... glad you made it to Lumbini.

I always seem to be behind here! Nice to hear you got to Cheung Chau Thursday. I spent a lot of time hanging out in those restaurants near the port and consuming vast quantities of fish! Also managed to spend half a day in the Art Museum and the rest in the posh new development on Kowloon side. Not as lucky as you at the Penn for tea...the queue was long and hardly moved at all. I guess once you get a table there you hang on to it like grim death. Gave up and went somewhere unmemorable.
Your travels in Nepal are all new to me, never been, enjoying the trip.

My Lumbini hotel just got its wifi working, in the lobby, at least, so here's the last Hong Kong piece. Off to India tomorrow.

Nov 6-7 - Hong Kong Wrap

My last full day in Hong Kong I looked out my window to see another grey, wet day. Pulling up Cicerone's list of "off the beaten path activities in Hong Kong" on my computer, I decided to visit Sam Tung Uk Museum - a restored Hakka village - at the far end of the red subway line. Fortunately, the museum was only a short walk from the station, as the rain was coming down in sheets. Unfortunately, part was being renovated. But I found it interesting anyway, with a typical front-to-back, public-to-private orientation, and a small exhibition chronicling the change from farming to industry to high-rise housing in the surrounding area.

The subway had surfaced briefly at Kwai Fong station, near the end of the line, and I had noticed a large mall with covered access. I decided to stop off there for lunch on the way back to the island, thinking I might eat where the locals ate. But it turned out that the locals liked to eat dim sum, while I don't. I finally settled for so-so green curry at a Thai-Viet-Malay place. In the course of the ride out and back, I realized how seldom (as in almost never) I had seen "mixed" groups - just Westerners with Westerners and Asians with Asians. And aside from one British family also eating Thai, I saw no other Westerners in the mall or on the outer reaches of the subway line.

I devoted the remainder of my last day in east Asia to the "rest" part of my program, with coffee and chocolate cake in the IFC Mall, and dinner in my room. Then I packed. The next day I would fly Dragonair to Kathmandu, but not until the afternoon. I still had a morning in Hong Kong, and when it dawned sunny, I went up the Peak in the hope of finally getting a good view. Since I'd already been up by tram I took a taxi, but this turned out to be a very slow way of getting there. Perhaps because it was a sunny Sunday, there was a major traffic jam on the way up. And even though it was a sunny day, the view wasn't that great as the persistent haze hadn't cleared.

I took a bus back down, getting off earlier than I needed to for the restaurant I had picked for lunch: La Creperie, on Queen's Road East. Here the savory crepe wasn't bad at all, but my crepe Suzette was served cold. It was a good thing I arrived a little early, as people were waiting for tables as I left. I rode a tram back to Central - a packed tram, in contrast to one I had ridden earlier in the week. Then I realized that I'd run out of time for a last ride on the escalator, and flagged down another taxi.

At Bishop Lei I reorganized my luggage and then took the shuttle back down to catch the Airport Express. Dragonair didn't have a business class check-in line, so for the first time this trip I had to use a kiosk and then drop my bag at the counter. But I did get to use the Cathay Pacific lounge. And have a shower.

Heya from somewhere near Turkey. Looking forward to KTM.

Hi dogster - you at sea? How was Istanbul?

Thursday,thought it was appropriate to continue here..I arrive in Mumbai & will be attending to business for a couple of days & then will meet up with friends in Goa,till Christmas.Will be in India for a week after,maybe till New Years.Plans still fluid.
I still find Hyderabad crowded.Don't miss the Salar Jung museum,the sound & light at the Golconda Fort (Call to check for timing;Ph;23512401)& well of course,to tickle your taste buds, the Hyderabadi Biriyani at Biriyani Paradise(the Sunday Brunch at the Nizam's Club is fantastic,but one has to be taken there by a member).Eagerly waiting for your report.

Hi inquest. I'm getting ready to start a new thread for south Asia, this one's taking too long to load, and I can't tag more than five countries. Thanks for the info on Hyderabad - Gorakhpur and Lucknow were/are incredibly crowded - 30 minutes to go less than a mile! Did have very good mutton kebabs at Fordors rec Tunday Kebabi.

Yes start a new thread! We leave tomorrow for Seoul and don't know what kind of connection we will have for download speeds

Aloha!