Travelgal on the move

A previous post of mine – ‘Overtourism or over tourism’, posted March 2024 was my restrained rant on the crowds I encountered on a holiday in southern Italy during 2023. Behemoths berthing at popular cities and spitting out thousands of cruisers to traipse the flagstones along the rustic lanes of ancient villages ready to plunder tiny tourist shops, crowd restaurants and spill out on to pavements and indeed boulevards was what was happening during the Italian summer. And at famous attractions crowds pushed forward for a selfie or for individuals to do peculiar movements for their TikTok accounts. There was crowd fever all over. And I was there. Myself and everyone else visiting was part of the problem.

Despite my observations and critique of over tourism I hit the current epicentre of popular destination du jour last year – Japan!

Wearing my hypocrisy and righteous indignation on my sleeve, I tried to make the best of my holiday and yet again observe as I moved around. We were travelling as a small group and had a guide who was pretty savvy about the best times to avoid the crowd – not every day but we hit many sweet spots before the throng thronged in.

This is a not a blow by blow, day by day account of a splendid holiday in this unusual and beautiful country – just a soft blow by blow persons eye view.

1. Tokyo – it’s a lot! Wander the main shopping streets to grab the first of the modern Japan vibe. I have seen the famous Shibuya Crossing (Shibuya Scramble Crossing) at its neon crazy best at night a while back but this time on an overcast day it just looks like a scramble.

While schlepping around there we found a tiny, tiny slip of a room off a lane that sold coffee. We sat on the two stools offered and waited in a dreamlike state for 20 minutes while the barista chose beans, inspected them, weighed them, blended them, and poured black velvet ever so slowly through paper into a cup. The coffee was divine.

2. Anywhere you are in Japan and you see a tiny doorway, often with a piece of flag-like material hanging over the door, check it out. It could be a coffee or tea shop, a curry house, a noodle establishment, ramen heaven – and depending on the neighbourhood, maybe someone’s house, but hey! Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

3. Tokyo was the beginning of the temple touring- many, many temples in Japan. Set in forests, by lakes – yes, many many. And to Asakusa for a glimpse of Old Tokyo and craft shops along Nakamise Street.

4. While delving into traditional streets, it’s time to have the first soft serve ice cream. Ice cream shops and stalls are everywhere. The Japanese have embraced soft serve with gusto! I even had one in a cone wrapped in gold leaf later in the journey – true! (Manners #1. Do not walk the streets or move around eating or drinking – or smoking. Eating in public is a no no here. Stand outside the shop or find a bench – actually hard to find – to enjoy your ice cream.)

5. The first meal I had at a restaurant in Japan was a Nepalese curry. There is a bit a food multiculturalism here – as well as the ubiquitous Macca’s etc.

6. Which brings me to Konbini! My fave discovery of the decade. Konbini is the name of convenience stores all over Japan. These stores are frequented by locals who can pick up a coffee, a fully packaged meal – fresh or frozen, brilliant sandwiches (egg sandwiches are swoon worthy at Seven- Eleven, soft white bread with mashed eggs and Kewpie Mayo), cleaning products, freshly made cakes, phone chargers, various hair products, fried chicken, umbrellas, socks and perhaps anything to keep you well fed and happy.

7. In order of favouritism of Konbini – 1. Seven- Eleven 2. Lawson’s (which sits in front of Mt Fuji in a famous photo) 3. FamilyMart. Depending on the region you may find more or fewer of the stores, but all are excellent.

8. By exploring all the Konbini you can cut your meals-out budget in half. We ate sandwiches for lunch, and took noodle cartons, salads or other meals into our room on nights when we were too tired to go out into the streets for restaurant foraging. They’re not real big on fruit, so grab it when you see it.

9. Look out for Fried Nana Chicken at Seven- Eleven and Seven Premium; Salad Chicken, tuna and mayo rice balls, around $AU1.50. Microwave ovens and kettles are available if you wish to heat up your purchase. The name Convenience Store has never had a better representation than in Japan – 10/10 Nippon!

10. And on we go. We went to see and not climb Mt Fuji as the cloud gods kept her out of sight, but the surrounding area was lovely. Had a soft serve there to honour the mountain. At the last bite of the cone the mountain made a quick appearance. Lovely.

11.Another thing. Rest stops along the way are very different to the servo we stop at in Oz for a toilet. No! You get a rusty key hanging off a plank of wood to go to the dunny. The ‘rest’ location along the highways in Japan are grand building with supermarkets, restaurants, and rest rooms housing the finest of the electronic toilet bowls, washing bowls, makeup mirrors and they are soooo clean.

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12. I love the advanced toilets in Japan, same, same but slightly different offerings, but back in Oz I long for the instruction panel that takes me to the heated seat, the friendly bidet, the cheeky warm water spray, the oscillating spray dry. The smart toilets interact with me as I press the buttons . . . What a joy! And there is a special button to hit that plays music to drown out any disturbing noises you may make . . . And speaking of noise Manners #2. Don’t guffaw and laugh loudly as it’s bad manners here. No noise or talking heartily on public transport – try and be unobtrusive. This is not always possible as we are bigger and more obvious that most of the Japanese populace. And even though it’s the unspoken rule – check out the noise levels of a bunch of school kids around the soft serve ice cream stall!

13. Oh, yes. Sightseeing, gardens, temples, shines. Many many and all so worthwhile to spend time reflecting, viewing, learning. Takayama, once the bustling hub for artisans, farmers and merchants has districts that preserve the traditional aesthetic of the Edo period. Kanazawa is an important city in this region and boasts historical attractions including restored residences. There are modern museums here but the boss beauty here is Kenroken, one of Japan’s ‘ three best landscape gardens’. Considered the best by many – it is lovely. Another thing: no flowers in these gardens, call me a savage but I do like a bloom or two to break up the green.

14. On the walk up,the hill to Kenrokuen Garden there are a few tiny shops that sell cute (Kawai) souvenirs and. . . .gold leafed wrapped soft serve ice creams. This district, Kanazawa is home to 99% of all gold leaf made in Japan.

15. And thinking about kawai – cute, there are cat images, emblems and signage all over the place, and how many cats did I see? One during the two week trip. Even in cramped Cat Alley in Onomichi, all I spied was a few little cat murals, stone cat statues – kawai – and two barking dogs. But this funny run down area boasts some cool cafes and bars.



16. Onomichi is a small town in the prefecture of Hiroshima. I don’t have much to say about Hiroshima. Now a modern city on Honshu Island, there are only a few buildings ( not sure why they would be called monuments), surviving after an atomic bomb was dropped on the city in 1945. There is the Genbaku Dome that was left standing near ground zero. The horror of the fatal day has been physically concreted over. But to gaze at the photograph images of the aftermath – people and buildings is a terrible reminder of war at its worst. And I found out that Kyoto, due to its historic value, was dropped from the list of target cities for the atomic bomb. Countless temples, shrines and priceless structures – and people survived – that’s the true definition of cherry picking choosing targets.

17. Popped in to Takamatsu in the Kagawa Prefecture, known for its excellent udon noodles. We joined a workshop to try and make our own noodles by hand. Yeah. Pretty much big fun but ended up dipping my rather chubby noodles into broth expecting a gourmet treat – I’ll continue eating at the noodle bars – arigato.

18. I’ve barely touched the surface of our visit to Japan. We did hit the hot spots: Kyoto – sublime temples and many a geisha – but seeing them get hassled by tourists, mostly young, really shits me about my fellow Aussies. Leave them alone and be nice; the White Heron Castle on the way to Okayama; 1000 Tori Gates to walk through – these are structures found at the entrance of Shinto shrines. Miyajima Island is home to the Itsukushima Shrine dedicated to the gods of the sea and storms. It is located 200m from the shore – quite a serene sight. The hillside shrine of Fushimi Inari-Taisha sports 10,000 Tori gates that cascade down the slopes of Mount Inari. (Arrive there around 6.30 am before the thundering hordes arrive which start to pack in around 9.30am.)

19. And when you see crowds, it’s not all foreigners (gaijin) visiting, it’s the thousands of Japanese being tourists in their own country. School holidays – and nobody can move. And while we are on the subject of crowds, just think of all the rubbish they can pollute the streets with! No! There is NO Rubbish on the streets, everybody takes it home with them or finds, if they’re lucky a public communal bin. You will not see a trash/garbage bin anywhere – so don’t even think of doing a sneaky litter – you will be fined and shamed.

20. That’s quite enough for this post. Next one we’ll talk about my fave city, Osaka, three-star hotel peculiarities, the Gold Pavilion, trying to buy cool clothes when you’re size 14 . . . . And much more. Until next time, Sayonara.