Surprising South Korea

 21 April to 20 May 2023

After Japan we took our first trip to South Korea. We expected to only be here about a week but were surprised at how much there was to see and do. In the end we were here a month. First up is the mandatory tour to the DMZ. Korea was chopped in half with the communist side (North) and the democracy side (South). Lots of symbolism to see with monuments hoping for peace and the putting the 2 halves back together again as well as remnants from the war when the North tried to reunite them by force, and nearly succeeded. At Dora station they had powerful binoculars for spying on the other half and several tunnels you could explore where the North tried to tunnel through to invade secretly. They always get found out. The tour guide tried to give us a snapshot of how the other half live, long story short, not very well.

Next day activity was Namsan Mountain and N Seoul Tower. We walked from our hotel all the way to the tower. It was a steep path with many steps but glorious city views from many stops and viewpoints along the way. Nice greenery and plants on the mountain as well. We got to the top and enjoyed the views and had lunch. Afterwards we set off down the other side of the mountain to a botanical garden and had a long wander checking out the many plants, ponds and even saw a couple of chipmunks playing. After dinner at a gluten free restaurant we walked around the mountain and home.

The next day was a visit to Gyeongbokgung Palace. It had extensive grounds with lots of trees and buildings but along simple and similar lines. Afterwards we headed to Jongmyo Shrine, a nice enclosed garden area where previous royalty are entombed and revered with spirit houses.

After Seoul and needing some nature we headed east to Seoraksan National Park, staying in a hotel nearby with views from the window of magnificent mountains. After visiting the National Park office for maps and advice we decided to hike to Biseondae Rock. Beautiful views and mostly good trails we finished at the sign to Geumganggul Cave, rated éxpert' on the map. We decided to give it a go. The trail was hard, really steep and finished with a large amount of steps. We almost missed it as the steps stop off at views and we thought that was it. Then Elizabeth saw the cave so we headed up. Well worth the effort, amazing place and amazing views. The cave was done up like a temple with spiritual artefacts inside. Does this make us experts now?

We followed that with another big mountain hiking day. We decided to do the waterfalls trail. Three waterfalls here, Yukdam Falls, Biryong Falls and then to a lookout spot where you can see Towangseong Falls. The first two were fairly easy but then the steps kicked in, and steps and steps. Ouch. Finally when we got to the top the waterfall was more a trickle than a gusher. The views though were magnificent and while we were resting and eating a couple of. rascal squirrels came out to play. They were really funny and not scared of us, running around and playing with each other. We went to Sokcho that night for dinner and to buy follow on bus tickets. The following day was wet and wild so we had a lovely rest day regaining our hiking legs.

With fresh legs we decided to tackle the big one, Ulsanbawi Rock, A huge single granite rock of 6 peaks. Half way up you get to Heundeulbawi Rock. There were brilliant views from here and also had some ancient Buddhist temples with recorded meditation voice ringing out among the rock, plenty of colour, little buddhas and other interesting artefacts. After a punishing amount of stairs we finally reached the top that had multiple stairs to 3 different viewpoints. Of course we had to try them all. The far side you could see all the way to the ocean, the city and other little villages and fancy golfing resorts.

Next stop was the city of Gyeongju-si, home of the Silla dynasty (57BCE to 676). It had Buddhist leanings and would bury their nobility in wooden chamber tombs, covered by stone mounds. They then got covered by soil, and grass grown over them. Therefore in reality this whole city is one giant cemetery which is celebrated. Weird but true. We wandered around the free mounds, lakes, hills and viewpoints and also saw Cheomseongdae, an ancient tower that is thought to be an early observatory. The afternoon we spent at the Daereungwon Tomb Complex, a closed park that cost to see fancier mounds within a nice park complex, that allowed entry into one of the tombs to see the relics.

The next morning was a visit to Golgulsa Temple. The temple was a 40 minute bus ride away plus a half hour walk. Not so much a single temple but an ancient Buddhist grotto with a rocky outcrop consisting of many small natural caves each with little buddhas and carvings in them leading up through a system of steep stairs to the ancient Buddha at the top, over 1,000 years old. Very well preserved considering and has a quality about it that makes it feel very special. Finally that night we wandered out to see the lights on all the little tomb mounds littered around the city that we looked at the other day.

The following day was a travel day to Busan, but as weather was going bad we decided to head straight out when we arrived. We went to do the Songdo Cable car ride with a glass bottom. Was a lovely long trip over the ocean and looking down was interesting. The park on the other side had a wealth of activities, sculptures and hikes to choose from. You could walk across to a tiny island over a suspension bridge for an extra fee. The park had artworks, playgrounds and dinosaur animatronics called Amnam Park.

Haedong Yonggungsa Temple was our first stop the next day as it was still fine. Constructed in the 14th century on the side of a cliff it is a fairly impressive set of structures. We had a fairly extensive wander around checking out the various Buddhas and temples and people praying etc. They had a sign making the bold claim that it was the most beautiful temple in Korea. After that and after dinner we headed off to the Gamcheon Culture Village. This is a labyrinth like maze of streets and stairs built on the side of a steep mountain slope filled with brightly coloured houses and numerous murals and artwork on the sides and front of the houses. Nice for an afternoon and evening walk to enjoy the colourful views of the layered houses and cute little nooks and crannies of photo stops and sculptures.

As the weather turned bad we headed west to tackle the second highest mountain in Sth Korea, Jirisan, and its highest point Cheonwangbong Peak. After spending a day researching the peak we woke up early to get to the trail so as to complete it in one day. Our host had made us these rice and vegetable patties covered by tofu for lunch and 6 eggs. We left 2 eggs in the room for next days brekkie.

It was a punishing trail, mostly uneven rocks over steep trails. Punishing on the knees and concentration. We got to the top just before 2, having stopped for lunch at the rotary shelter like everybody else. I also spent too much time at Ssanggyesa temple because I took the wrong track, not realising it was to the temple only. About 20 minutes. Just after 2 we did the cross, getting to the Jangteomok shelter just before 4, the cutoff time before you are not supposed to go down anymore but stay at the shelter. We left a bit late, about 4:15 due to toilet and water breaks. We still thought we had plenty of time because at 3 hours down would be 7:15, just before dark. The trail down was fairly treacherous, with the trail teetering out at parts and climbing down required etc. We passed and then they passed us a group of 3 guys with one having similar knee problems to myself and taking things carefully. Water from the recent rains was crossing the path making some stretches slippery and wet. Nevertheless we kept up a persistent pace with few stops. It started getting later and later with signs and all trails revealing we still had awhile to go, which did not make sense if it was 3 hours long. It passed 7 and then 7:30 with lots still to go and then getting dark. I eventually used the torch on my phone to light the way and we caught up to 2 of the previous group having difficulty in the dark. I used my torch to try to help him and to shine enough light backwards to help Elizabeth. I stumbled a few times. At around 8:15 the other guy came back with a torch and a phone light and at about that time Elizabeth took a tumble with me and my stick breaking her fall. The guy gave her his phone so she had a light of her own and we all continued down, making it to the bottom at about 8:30. Our host who was going to pick us up was worried about us because I could not contact him due to internet issues. He eventually picked us up. Checking the map later we realised they had given us the wrong time for the last leg, with the map saying 4 hours and not 3. It would have been much faster to go straight down from Cheonwangbong but the longer path followed a stream down and with the recent rains it was gushing with plentiful waterfalls and lovely scenery.

After recovering from back in Busan we caught a plane down to Jeju Island. The plan for the first day was to check out all the sights South of the Island. This encompassed 2 waterfalls and a big rock. So we hopped on a bus to the first waterfall, Jeongbang Waterfall. This waterfall drains into the ocean and has quite a unique view. At the bottom of a flight of stairs with several lookout spots, you arrive at a rocky beach, from where you can view the waterfall in all its glory. Lots of people bravely balancing on the rocks trying to find a better vantage point. We did our own fair share of balancing while I looked for the perfect photo. We then checked the map and decided that the next waterfall was walking distance. The Cheonjiyeon Waterfall was located at the end of a long path through a luscious garden/forest area along a winding river. Quite a beautiful waterfall in a lovely setting, about the same height as the first one but wider. As we exited the park we could see a unique looking pedestrian bridge so we decided to go and have a look. It ended up being a bridge called the Saeseom Island Saeyeongyo Bridge, a cable bridge with a sail shaped tower that took you across to Saeseom Island. The island was a park and garden but we did not have enough time to explore because we had one more stop on out list of attractions and we were running out of day. We again decided to walk. Our last stop was Oedolgae rock. This was a large rock sticking up out of the ocean like James Bond rock in Phuket, Thailand. If anything, this rock was probably more impressive, if not at least as impressive. Lovely area around it. Time to catch a bus finally because the hour trip to the other side of the island is not really walkable.

16 May 2023, Elizabeth’s birthday, and our original plan was to hike up the big one, Mt Hallasan. But we missed the 10am bus to the national park by 3 minutes. We caught a bus east, which then proceeded to break down on us. We then waited for another bus and caught that to where we needed to change buses to the Manjanggul Cave. Got off and then realised due to the breakdown we missed the connecting bus. With an hour and a half until the next one we revised our plans again. We then caught a bus to Seongsan Ilchulbong. This is a peak on the coast with a cone formed by volcanic eruptions. There was a long trail of stairs to the peak where you got views of the town and ocean below and the crater within. We then high tailed it down because we still wanted to make it to the cave. We caught a bus getting there with an hour to spare before it closed. Manjanggul Cave is a lava tube 9km long, making it the 12th largest in the world, created by flowing lava and having the biggest lava column in the world. This cave was really cool, literally and figuratively, walking along a floor created by flowing lava.

Finally we made our way to a Mexican restaurant for dinner. Birthday 62, done and dusted.

Finally the day for the big day hike on Mt Hallasan, Sth Korea's biggest mountain. After 2 days of hiking around the sights south and east, I was not sure I had the legs for this hike. The Yeongsil trail was rated as a moderate to hard trail of around 5 to 7 hours long depending on where you start. We had a false start taking a trail we thought was going to the trailhead but instead took us to a temple. Aarrggh the bane of my existence is all of these friggin temples. Retracing our steps back to the car park we realised we were going to run out of time if we lost another 45 minutes getting to the trailhead. So we took a taxi for $10, not bothering to bargain because we were in a hurry. This was very lucky because by the time we started it was only 20 minutes until the official cut off time for starting the trail.

Finally we were off and hiking. The trail starts challenging with lots of stairs through lush forest opening up as we got higher to impressive views. The sky started closing in and looked threatening as we got higher, though the path got easier. It opened to vast plains and vistas, then closed in again, then became rocky and very, very windy. I assume this is a natural wind tunnel as the track was well serviced here with ropes and handrails. Elizabeth was regretting a decision to not bring her jacket but persevering with the hike like the trooper she is. We finally reached the end of the trail at a shelter that had a medical bay, toilets and rest area. We stopped to eat our lunch of nuts, chips and banana and discussed which way to go down, as there was an alternative track. We chose the alternative Eorimok trail as we like variety. This trail was longer but we were hoping more sheltered. The trail was more sheltered but harder as it was mostly a rock track. Most of the track was in fairly dense forest and so was green, calm and relaxing, until vehicles started coming down along a monorail that ran down beside the track bringing down items from the shelter. We ended the day breaking a record by walking 20.1 km and 30,480 steps.

The next two days were wet so we stayed mostly in, just going out for a wander and gluten free cake supplies. On the second day we went to a show called "Cookin Nanta". This was essentially a comedy done in mime about some very accident prone chefs preparing for a banquet. 

Our last day in Sth Korea ended up being fine so we checked the map for anything we had not seen and found the Cheonjaeyeon Waterfall. This turned out to be much more than expected. It was a total of 3 waterfalls and a bridge with nymphs adorned on it over to a simple temple/pagoda with lovely markings and large garden areas. The first waterfall was fairly dry with a blue pool in front of it but had rock formations in long geometric structures that looked quite unique. The second waterfall was broad and bouncing off rocks near the top before tumbling to the bottom. The third waterfall was narrow and secluded but gushing out the top. Afterwards we wandered over the bridge to the temple and different views and enjoyed the lovely colours and paintings adorning the temple’s roof and sides.

Seoul Sth korea

DMZ

Namsan Mounain

Gyeongbokgung Palace

Jongmyo Shrine

 Seoraksan National Park

Sokcho

Ulsanbawi, Seoraksan National Park

Gyeongju-si

Golgulsa Temple

Busan and Songdo Cable Car

Haedong Yonggungsa Temple

Gamcheon Culture Village

Jirisan & Cheonwangbong

Jeju 

Jeongbang Waterfall

Cheonjiyeon Waterfall

Oedolgae Rock

Seongsan Ilchulbong

Manjanggul Cave

Mt Hallasan

Jeju

Cheonjaeyeon Waterfall

Japan from waterfalls to sulphuric pools

3 April to 18 April 2023

Now on our own we decided to head to Kegon Falls, one of the top 3 waterfalls in Japan and not far from Tokyo. This meant a train from Tokyo, then a local train to Nikko and then a bus to Lake Chuzenji, 1200m above sea level and reaaallly cold. Lovely location and walking distance to the falls. Kegon Falls was a lovely, long waterfall that fell about 100m. It was different because after viewing from an observation area you then took an elevator down to the bottom of the waterfall. From here you have access to several levels of a viewing platform from which to enjoy nature in all its glory. From that vantage point you could see another small waterfall to the side and myriad tiny waterfalls in the rock adding to the big waterfall and meeting into a gushing river below. 

We then went looking for hiking trails to get to the Hangetsu Observatory. Several paths were tried but it was a bit early in the season and a lot of tracks were still impassable. The last one followed around the lake and then cross to a trail. We ran out of time in the end and needed to turn around after hitting significant slippery ice. It was an enjoyable day out in the forest nevertheless and we finished up having walked 27,000 steps.

The next day was a huge travel day to Sapporo with 1 bus and 4 trains and including a train going underwater to cross between the islands of Honshu to Hokkaido. Our first day in Sapporo we visited the port city of Otaru. We wandered the canal area and perused the old buildings. That night we tried out a Yakiniku restaurant where you grill your food yourself on a small grill placed in front of you. The next day was wet, wet, wet. So stayed in most of the day enjoying the hotel facilities, especially the gym and onsen. Late afternoon we went out for dinner and passed the famous TV and Clock Towers.

Caught a train the next morning to head down to Noboribetsu and Jigokudani (Hell) Valley. We got in about 12 and rushed our luggage down to the villa we were staying in. This was a full-on house set up in the Ryokan style. Beds on the floor etc. We got back to the station just in time to catch the bus to the valley. This bus ends at the Noboribetsu Onsen in a tourist town and a short walk to the sights. Once there it was awesome. A huge valley with cliffs of all colours, belching caverns and sulphuric pools. Following the paths took us close to lookout views of the valley and then wound around through forest until you got to Oyumi Lake, huge, black around the edges, turquoise water and smoking. The way back was through eerie bare trees, with the sun glowing through light grey clouds with dense light green foliage covering the ground.

Continuing back onto the main island of Honshu our next stop was Matsushima Bay. The only thing planned was a 50 minute boat trip and getting there early we got great seats for a lovely trip around the bay looking at the various islands. We followed that with a walk uphill to the Shin Tomiyama Lookout  with beautiful gardens, houses and views on the way. We came across an old boulder with a plaque that said it was thousands of years old and the cavern in it had been made by waves when the area had been under the sea. On top of the boulder were trees including a cherry blossom in bloom. The lookout itself was in a lovely wooded area with many trees and cherry blossoms and a large stone tablet that had a lovely poem about Matsushima inscribed upon it. The view itself was vast and amazing. Afterwards we went down to see Godaido of Zuiganji Temple. This temple was on a rock out in the bay and you had to cross 2 bridges onto other rocks to get to it. It was nearly all wood, was weathered and old and showing a lot of character. Finally was Fukuurajima Island with access via a long, red, pedestrian bridge. The island was amazing with fantastic views out to other islands, amazing plant and tree life, lovely paths and hiking trails.

Had a wonderful day with Adrian, Mariko, Liam, Jack, Kaori and Masataka, with a brief encounter with Tomoko at the end. It began with lunch at a sushi train restaurant grabbing at sushi as they went flying past. After lunch we went to an enormous, only in Japan games pavilion. Chock a block full of automated games to test every skill available including basketball, tennis, soccer pitches, baseball and normal arcade games all on several levels. Dinner was at a hotpot restaurant with an endless supply of food items to cook at our tables.   

We continued on to Kyoto but as we had been there before we headed more for the outskirts and another recommendation, the Bamboo Forest and the Arashiyama Monkey Park. As we arrived early afternoon we decided to get out and see the monkeys straight away. Perched at the top of Arashiyama Mountain it was a bit of a trek but once at the top it was lush and full of mischievous monkeys with sweeping views of Kyoto. We had to wait until the next day to visit the bamboo forest with trails lined by very high, tightly packed, thick bamboo leading on to random tracks and eventually heading up a steep rocky path for some wider views. After refueling with some gluten free vegan cakes we continued on to the UNESCO listed Sogenchi Pond Gardens. It was a beautifully landscaped and well maintained large garden area with a huge pond and many different varieties of plant life and trees including some still blooming cherry blossoms among shrines and temples. Also from here were clear uninterrupted views of the bamboo forest, much better than that seen on the tourist path. Our last day was miserable but since we were in a love hotel we decided to have a relaxing day in.

Lastly we hopped on a 250 kmh train to fast track it back to our final Japan destination, Tokyo, where we were gifted a final perfect view of Mount Fuji. We filled our final day with a last minute frenzy of Tokyo sights. First up was the 450m high Skytree Tower with a lift up to 350m followed by another lift up to 445m where you then walk around a spiral gradient to make it to the top. Very expansive views of the sprawling forest of skyscrapers that is Tokyo. Next we walked to the Senso-Ji Temple which started by walking down an ancient looking, bustling street market towards the temples and gardens at the end. After a refuel with their famous gluten free rainbow cake at Shochikuen Cafe we went for a wander through Shiba Park and the Zojo-Ji Temple. That ends our second and long enjoyable visit to Japan.

Kegon Falls and Chuzenji Lake

Otaru

Sapporo

Noboribetsu and Jigokudani Valley

Matsushima

Hamamatsu

Kyoto

Tokyo

Cherry Blossoms with a dash of Sake

 15 March to 2 April 2023

On arrival into Japan we went straight to Nagano to fulfil a wish to visit the Jigokudani Monkey Park and see the fabulous Snow Monkeys. From Nagano the visit required a 50 minute bus trip and a 40 minute walk filled with expansive scenery, tall trees, old wooden buildings and a small continuously erupting geyser. Once we paid to get in and leave our bags we walked up alongside a rushing river, mountains going up all around and noted that there was still snow around. Amongst all of this and just across from a bridge was the hot pool with monkeys lounging around picking bugs off each other to eat, drinking out of the pool, the odd skirmish and general clowning around like little, well, monkeys. They were super friendly, walking among the people at will, sometimes pulling on their clothes and one even tried to take my hiking stick, but in general they, and the humans, behaved themselves. It was amazing and we watched them for about 2 hours before racing down to catch the bus back, needing to power walk as we had only left ourselves about half an hour.

We decided today to go for a walk to Jitsukyama Park. It was about a 6 km trek and we needed the exercise. Unfortunately when we got there we found it was closed. Shame because it was a sunny lovely day. Luckily it was a great walk with high views over the city and mountains, gave us a different view of the town, its buildings and architecture and went right through Zenko-ji Temple, a 1400 year old Buddhist temple in a huge garden setting full of huge manicured trees making it look like a giant’s bonsai garden.

We then headed down to Fukuoka where we will start our cherry blossom tour. Being a few days early we spent our time regaining fitness in an Anytime Fitness gym, exploring the city and chasing up some dedicated gluten free bakeries for tasty treats. 

Our home for the next 12 days was one of 3 buses packed full of Australians, 153 of them. First stop in Fukuoka was the shrine at Dazaifu Tenmangu, popular for students praying for exam results. This was a walk through numerous tori gates getting you purified and then over 3 bridges, one each for past, present and future. Finally at the shrine you prayed, having been super purified. The gardens and again the trees were so beautiful and majestic. We then went to a sake brewery where we got to sample sake. The smaller the number the better the quality as it represents how much of the rice grain was used, so a lower number meant more of the husk was removed. They also had a bubbly one and non alcoholic and plum ones. I liked them all but Elizabeth went more for the plum (sweeter) and non alcoholic. Finally we went to the Hakata Machiya Folk Museum to see traditional ways of living. This town is famous for a summer festival that concludes with different districts racing each other with the men carrying huge carved floats. Quite dangerous. They have to run 5 km, and do a sharp turn against a pole where some people get trapped all while wearing underwear like the sumo wear and a top. Looked quite ridiculous but they all take it super seriously and have been doing it for a long time.

Next stop was Nagasaki and its associated Atomic Bomb Museum and Peace Park. This was a cut down version of Hiroshima's, which is still our favorite. Also visited Dejima Port, an artificial island run by the Dutch to facilitate world trade but now reclaimed and made into a museum.

Went to the town of Unzen to go and see the dormant volcano named Unzen Jigoku (Unzen Hell). Not so dormant as the steam from the fumaroles combined with mist and clouds caused nearly 100% visibility loss at times. During clearer times the active fumaroles were easily seen blasting out their sulphuric smells and bubbling pools were everywhere. Very thrilling. On our way down to the port for the ferry ride to Kumamoto we passed a huge park that was covered in cherry blossom trees in full bloom. The driver did a 3 point turn in the bus and took us back, whereupon the whole bus streamed out like kids in a bouncy castle running around taking pictures of the marvelous scenes of cherry blossoms in such a lovely setting.

The next day our first stop was Kumamoto Castle. We went into the castle and went straight to the top on the observation deck for the magnificent views. Lots of cherry blossoms in bloom enhancing most views. We then went to Suizenji Park which was fabulous with a miniature grassy Mt Fuji, the beautiful sculpted trees, wide lakes full of fish and birds and a cherry blossom area that was dropping so many blossoms it looked like snow. Lastly was Mt Aso, one of the largest caldera active volcanoes in the world. We walked to the centre, up a mound to see panoramic views of it. 

Out of the frying pan and into the fire our next stop after the volcano was Beppu and a tour of super hot lakes collectively called the Hells of Beppu (Jigokudani Meguri). We visited about 7 of them. They were all different colours depending on the chemical structure of the area. We saw bright red ones, turquoise, blue, orange, green and also grey bubbling mud lakes and a geyser that erupts every 30 to 40 minutes. When we got back Elizabeth and I used an Onsen for the first time. Complicated process. You are meant to go down in your robe and with 2 towels. You select a locker and completely undress, totally nude and place your clothes and big towel in locker. Then you go into the bath area and wash publicly under showers first and then go and sit in the bath. The little towel you can use for modesty on the way and then put on your head while you sit in the bath. Then when you come out you are meant to wash yourself thoroughly, men were shaving, brushing teeth and hair etc, and then dry, dress and go back to your room. I took a few shortcuts. Rinse, clean, in and out and had my proper shower in my room.

From there we went on to Hiroshima and a tour to Myajima Island. First time here in 2012 it was raining and the torii gate in the water was covered due to renovations. Today was a beautiful sunny day and the torii gate was freshly painted and on full display. We went for a big hike along random paths ending up quite high with a gentle waterfall with awesome views on the way. Next stop was the Peace Park and the Atomic Bomb Museum. We rushed through the museum so that we could spend the majority of the time in the peace park. We walked around and saw all of the peace monuments and displays. Went on to our new favourite restaurant for dinner and then went back to the peace park to see it at night. The flame, main monument and the dome were all lit up and looked peaceful in the night light. Still people were coming up to pay their respects. In the end we did 16 km of walking and about 24,000 steps.

We spent the next day travelling to Osaka via Himeji Castle, a white castle which is the biggest in Japan. Had a lovely complex of 9 Japanese gardens as well. Very beautiful with all the white cherry blossoms and some pink ones too. Perfect blue sky which made the white blossoms stand out much more. 

For our free day in Osaka we grabbed a train and went to Nara and its deer park. In this huge park are many, many deer. They are not wild anymore and are largely domesticated due to their frequent experiences with tourists. You are encouraged to buy crackers to feed the deer with and the proceeds go to protecting the deer. You hold the cracker up and the deer bow their heads to ask for the cracker. They are very friendly but skittish. As well as the deer, the park itself was huge and lovely with lots of lakes, cherry blossoms, trees and temples. Many wedding groups and coming of age girls were having photos taken in pretty colourful kimonos in the lush surroundings.

Travel day to Shizuoka followed Osaka and included a bullet train. The trip was broken up by visits to a Japanese confectionery factory, if you call a biscuit made of eel confectionery, and a green tea farm. After dinner we went for a wander and visited Sunpu Castle. It's just castle ruins but the trip to it had many lanterns dotted with cherry blossoms and once we went through the castle facade we found ourselves in a huge park with what seemed like a festival going on. Rows and rows of food stalls of all types, lights everywhere and a stage that had quite energetic Japanese dancing going on in exquisite costumes. The energy reminded me of Bollywood dancing but with a samurai twist to it and twirling umbrellas. 

The next day was our final long travel day to Tokyo. It was broken up by a picture stop at Mt Fuji, a cruise on Lake Ashi in a pirate ship followed by a gondola ride to Mt Hakone and hot volcanic smoking vents.

Last day on the tour was a free day in Tokyo. We found our way through the insane subway with its maze of multi level tunnels to the Imperial Palace where it was the last day to walk down Inui Street. It was only opened for 1 week for the cherry blossoms and this was its last day. We got in, after going through 3 checkpoints for temperature and sanitising, bags, and lastly for a security scan, and walked down the street. Most cherry blossoms were now past their prime but exploding in bright, lime green leaves. After that we went through the public gardens of the palace. It was a nice end to the tour, especially as we bumped into quite a few tour buddies there.

Snow Monkeys of Nagano

Zenko-ji Temple in Nagano

Fukuoka

Nagasaki

Unzen

Kumamoto

Beppu

Hiroshima

Himeji Castle on way to Osaka

Nara

Shizuoka

On our way to Tokyo

Imperial Palace in Tokyo

Travelling in Taiwan

 23 February to 12 March 2023

Our first stop in Taiwan was Taipei. We only allowed one day and so used it to hike up Elephant Mountain and go to the once world's tallest building Taipei 101 (now number 11). Elephant Mountain was quite challenging with a lot of steps but the views of the city were phenomenal. Taipei 101 was expensive and visibility poor so we only looked at it at ground level. Cool looking building though.

The next day we took the train down to a tiny town called Fushi, next to Taroko Gorge. We struggled to find a place that would do vegetarian and gluten free and were lucky to find a single vegetarian restaurant called Truku, that was open for only 2 hours a day. A local tour of the gorge followed the next day and was a great day. We walked along Shakadang River seeing its crystal clear turquoise coloured water finishing with a swim in her undies by Elizabeth and a chewy snack of millet cake. Next stop, Eternal Springs Shrine with a walk up to Changuang Temple and a ring of the bell tower. Then there was the Tunnel of 9 turns. An amazing ledge built into the mountain along a raging river. Then cross the Buluowan Suspenion Bridge and finishing up at Swallows Grotto. A fantastic day out. The next day we caught a bus back into the gorge and added Xiaozhuilu and Lushui trails to our visited list and went back to the Tunnel of Nine Turns. That place is amazing!

The next day we continued on our trip down south on the east side to a little town called Yuli. The tiny town is surrounded by mountains and so we hired some bicycles. On a 10 km circle route we passed vast rice paddies framed by clear, lush, green tree covered mountains on a morning of clear skies. Awesome beautiful ride.

Next stop on our trip around Taiwan was Kaohsiung. Our first full day was on the 2nd March which coincided with our 26 year anniversary! We hopped on a bus and headed over to Lotus Pond where we spent a leisurely 3 hours traversing its 3.2km. Along the way crossed a bridge to an island full of a large variety of birds being looked down upon by a giant emperor, then on to the Tiger and Dragon Pagodas and finished up with the Spring and Autumn Pavilions. That night we went for a stroll to Love River coming across a scenic cruise to finish up our anniversary on.

Continuing on our journey we travel around the bottom and head up and centre to the Alishan National Scenic Area. 2,000m up and consisting of numerous mountains, ponds and forests it is a bit of a trekkers' haven. The place had an internal train system to get you to and from trail heads and on day one we caught the train to the Shuishan trail and hiked to the 2,000 year old giant tree, the marvelous Magnolia garden, the sacred and 3 generation tree and finished at the fabulous garden of cherry blossoms called King Cherry. Next day we headed off to Mt Ogasawara on the Sunrise trail. We had clear views to Jade Mountain, the highest peak in Taiwan. We went down to see the cherry blossoms again which had a whole different atmosphere and feel about them as the clouds and fog came in. On the last morning we caught the train to the sunrise spot as it came up over Mt Ogasawara and then caught the bus for a 3 hour ride to Sun Moon Lake.

We started our time at Sun Moon Lake with a walk to 9 Frogs Stack, a statue of 9 frogs on top of each other in the lake, and found that you could see all 9 frogs as the water level was so low. The ground was so dry it had that cracked pattern on it. We then caught a bus to Wenwu Temple and walked to the top to see the intricate carvings and wide view of the lake. We then continued walking and then hired bikes from a bike shop to Touche Dam. We missed the last bus and had to catch a taxi back. 

The next day we were going to take the cable car to see the view but when we got there it was not open yet and very expensive. Instead we walked to the Cien Pagoda and climbed to the top where we had panoramic views of the whole lake. We met a couple from Taipei who shared some stories of their life in Taiwan and took us to the Xiangsha Visitor Centre. After being dropped off in town we took the boat to the other side of the lake. The next day we took the train to Taichung.

In Taichung we visited the 921 Earthquake Museum, being the date (21 Sept 1999) a huge earthquake occurred in this area. Very interesting and informative and based around a school that was decimated showing the cracked classrooms and a huge uplift through a running track on the school oval. Afterwards we went to a fully gluten free bakery for snacks, the only one we found in the whole of Taiwan.

On our last day in Taiwan we went to the Dakeng Scenic Area  This area had a huge choice of hiking trails of various difficulty in a large clean green area. We took a tough trail that had a surprisingly large number of people out enjoying nature and was peppered with market and food stalls. Going straight up to a viewing platform we took a different trail down which was more quiet without a lot of stalls or people. Afterwards we decided to treat ourselves to the 2nd best icecream shop in Taichung, “Fourth Credit Union”. I made the assumption that the most famous one (Myahara) might be too busy. Both of them in old fancy renovated buildings looking more like jewellers' shops than ice cream. The main also carrying a huge range of premium chocolate displayed behind glass like jewellery overseen by stern looking posh staff. The second best was more our speed and had easy seating for eating your ice cream. Some of the stuff people were buying looked like works of art. We had a standard 3 scoops with toppings, yum.

Bond, James Bond...Island

 15 to 21 February 2023

From the island we headed to Patong Beach in Phuket. After settling in we wandered down the famous Bangla Road watching the street performers and perusing the go go dancers from the bars you can see from the street.

The next day we took a day tour, organised through our hotel, to Khao Phing Kan. More commonly known as James Bond Island because of the unique rock formations used as a backdrop for The Man with the Golden Gun. The movie I remember being the first movie I ever saw on the big screen many many decades ago. The tour included stopping at a cave to see the big reclining Buddha and going on a canoe trip around Talu Island. Then we arrived at James Bond Island and enjoyed a pleasant walk around the whole island seeing the fantastic views of the rock and scenery and cave formations.

Following morning we went to a gym that let you pay daily, we got a discount by paying for the week. Then breakfast and a swim at the beach before heading for an afternoon city tour. This was a full on tour that kept us on our toes. We went down to the most southern most point, Promthep Cape to see a lighthouse done up as a temple. Then off to see the Big Buddha, climbing all the steps to see it up close. Next was a cashew factory where I learned that the nut grows on the outside and the fruit is edible followed by a honey place with much tasting occurring. We ended up at Chalong Temple where some visitors filled up a big metal outside stove with fireworks and then lit it. The sound was deafening and ongoing. We found out this is done by people that have had their prayers answered.

Also interesting that our guide tells us that military service is done by ballot where each year the military work out how many recruits they need and they get chosen by picking marbles out of a bowl. Black you get to live your life, yellow you have to devote it to the military for the next 2 years for a low salary. Our guide did not have to go and so devoted a month as a monk instead.

On our last day we wanted to finish on a nature hike. We found Kathu Waterfall was not far and so hired a tuk tuk to go visit. The driver was nice enough to wait for us while we wandered up the trail and took in the waterfall.