I wasn't totally sure what I was going to do today. I knew my original plans were mussed up with the change of timing for the Fuji climb and I was originally supposed to go to Yokohama today but I had already done that with Marina in the previous Tokyo stint. I chose instead to go to Nikko because it had been mentioned a few times as a great visit. I woke up at 5:30am and just sort of messed around a bit at first then chatted with my brother for a few minutes before getting cleaned up and heading downstairs. The breakfast room was full out mobbed. I didn't even bother trying to get food but I was able to sneak in and get a quick cup of coffee. It was 7:00am and the entire room was full of Japanese people. I dare you to find an American hotel breakfast room filled with people at 7 on a Sunday. After the cup of coffee I set out to the JR station and took the Keihen Tohoku line to Tokyo Station (it arrived just a minute before the Yamanote line and they share a stretch of stops and platforms. At Tokyo station I booked a seat to Utsunomiya which was the first leg of the trip. Unfortunately I didn't pay attention and the girl didn't give me a green car seat, but fortunately the car had few people in it and the ride was short anyway. At Utsunomiya I had to switch to a JR local train to Nikko. The Nikko line is basically just one way to Nikko and back. There is no reserved seating. That ride took about 50 minutes or so and there was a couple of Tourist Information guides in the car who were giving passengers information. The woman I spoke with gave me a map and explained what to do and how to do it. They were trying to sell bus tickets sort of but I suspect most tourists don't want to walk the distances. She said it was probably a 40 minute walk to the World Heritage park. I figured that was my better option especially because the general rule is it does not take me near as long as their suggested times. Looking at the map it also seemed it couldn't really be that far. The distance seemed to be the same as the size of the grounds of the world heritage site.
When we got to the station I immediately started the trek to the park. It was uphill most of the way but the slope wasn't that bad. The first thing you see is a couple statues and a sacred bridge, the Shinkyo Bridge. You can pay a fee to walk across the bridge and when I got there a bunch of people were doing so. I chose to just walk across the regular bridge this time and get to the park instead. Once inside the park the first major item it seemed you should see is the Rinnoji Temple. However the temple is being restored right now so instead you see a picture of it on some corrugated aluminum siding. None of the temples in this region allowed pictures inside so for that reason Rinnoji was a disappointment. Nonetheless I trudged on through the grounds and found the Togoshu Shrine and then clambered my way up the 200 steps to Ieyasu's graveyard. A day after hiking Fuji my legs were tired but still it didn't seem like much in comparison at all. Also at the Togoshu Shrine was a really nice five storied pagoda. That was basically on the way into the shrine and graveyard. Next I worked my way over to the Futarasan Shrine then to the Iemitsu Taiyuin Temple and Iesmitsu's graveyard.
That was the majority of the world heritage park. When I got through that I worked my way down the hill and found a bunch of shops that had restaurants in them and decided I would eat lunch as it was past 12:30. By the way I got into Nikko before 10am though I am not completely sure of the timing. The place had the plastic mockups of their food outside but I was handed a menu with a few pictures and little English. I chose something that looked like a tomato based stew as a set menu. It had the stew, a side of some sort of sushi and a tiramisu for dessert. I also ordered a Kirin draft beer as well. The sushi, as it was served with wasabi and I was told where the soy sauce was, was interesting. It was a thin almost papery product but all rolled up. It did have a faintly fish flavor but I really have no idea what it was. The stew was basically a watery tomato based soup with some form of maybe leafy vegetable, asparagus small bits of chicken, onions, tomatoes and noodles. I was also instructed to add extra Tobasco for more spice (so I did). The stew was actually awesome. I was sort of disappointed when I was done because I wanted more. The noodles were cooked perfectly as were the vegetables and it just tasted really good. I am glad I ordered it. After the soup I had the tiramisu and it was also quite good though it was a small piece compared to what you would get in America. It is probably better that way.
After lunch I headed further down the road to the Nikko Tamozawa Imperial Villa. This was a former Imperial vacation home that was constructed originally in the 1800s but was added to over time. One part of it was even moved from a different location and rebuilt into the villa. The place was huge and sprawling. The only way you could get a full picture of it is from the air. Otherwise it is spread out too far and surrounded by trees and garden all over the place. Entry allows you inside and in the gardens as well. It was obviously restored over time in some areas but there was a lot of original stuff too. The varying architecture on the outside was obvious but inside a lot of the differences from section to section were more subtle. It took a long time to get through all the rooms they allow you to go through. The let you up to the second floor of one area but not to the third unfortunately. Still I think the visit was well worth the 500 yen I paid to get in. The garden grounds are also very nice if only for the opportunity to get some pictures of the back side of the villa which looks a lot more interesting than the front entrance. From there I headed back towards the main World Heritage site and picked up the last 2 temple and shrine, the Hongu Shrine and Kannon Do which also had a three storied pagoda. There was absolutely no one in these sites when I went for some reason. They are off the beaten path of the area but are definitely on the maps. After that it was back down the street I came up to the train station. Being downhill it was a little easier. I think the local line runs fairly often so I was able to get on a train back to Otsunomiya pretty much right as I got there and only had to wait a few minutes before it departed. From there I was able to book a green car seat on a nearly full train back to Tokyo station. Then it was back onto the Keihen Tohoku line (it arrived first again) to Hamamatsucho where I got into the room to clean up from the sweat and all that.
Marina and I had been messaging during the day a little and we ended up meeting for dinner in Hamamatsucho. I have no idea what the name of the restaurant was but it is a place that is supposed to specialize in sashimi which is the sushi that involves only the pieces of raw fish and no rice (for those that do not know). It was a small place that I have passed a couple dozen times in my life already. Apparently a lot of her friends recommended the restaurant to her but she had never tried it before. She did all the ordering. I had a couple Suntory Premium draft beers to go along. They served an appetizer of radish and cuttlefish which was pretty good though the heavy soaking of soy on the radish was a bit much for me. Marina ordered some fried chicken bits because she thought that it would be something else. Still it was good. Then we also got a sashimi order for two which had tuna, fatty tuna, red snapper, mackerel, sardine (fresh), scallop and either squid or cuttlefish, we couldn't decide. Along with that she ordered a tofu dish that was in a broth of fish roe. All of the food was very good and the fish was very fresh. I was surprised how much I liked the tofu thing too. During dinner we made our plans for the next day. She has an issue with her leg so we decided not to go to Ishinomaki as we orginally planned but instead will go to an onsen. After dinner was over I headed back to the room for some well deserved rest.
The pictures from today can be found here.
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