Could we ever escape the overwhelming crowds of Kyoto? Would the attractions on the edge of the city, in Arashiyama, be less busy? Not really as it turned out because, let’s face it, it’s a district that boasts some of the city’s most picture-perfect destinations. However, we did find peace and quiet in Okochi Sanso,…
Tag: City breaks
Japan: The train to Kyoto
Our stay in Takayama was over and it was time to head to Kyoto, the historic heart of Japan and the climax of our fortnight-long trip. Takayama had made for an interesting diversion, offered a taste of a smaller Japanese city, but three days was enough. Indeed, people we’d met there were surprised we’d stopped for so…
Japan: A traditional folk village
It was our last day in the Gifu city of Takayama, and we decided to go traditional. Or rather to spend a few hours in a tourist attraction that recreates the past. The Hida Folk Village is some way out of town, hidden by trees and a bit of a trek away from our hotel through the…
Japan: A tour of historic Takayama
At first sight Takayama looks much like any other Japanese town or city, with lots of post-war development that lacks any real charm or character. Perhaps understandably, the priority after the devastation of the Second World War was putting roofs over heads rather than architectural quality. Perhaps too, the Japanese prefer practicality and resilience rather than…
Japan: The bullet train and a stop in Takayama
Tokyo is an insane city. I’ve never experienced anything quite like it. It’s fascinating, noisy and chaotic, futuristic, colourful and creative, but I didn’t warm to it as much as I thought I would. As we departed the Hilton Hotel in the heat and made our way on the courtesy bus to Shinjuku station on…
Exploring Tokyo’s gardens
Tokyo may be one of the biggest cities in the world, full of gleaming towers and urban sprawl, but it also has many glorious gardens. And the best Japanese gardens are, without doubt, among the best gardens to be found anywhere in the world. They’re designed to reflect the natural landscape and the spirituality of…
Touring historic Tokyo
Japan is notorious for its earthquakes and I’d wondered several times, with varying degrees of apprehension, what would happen if one struck during our stay – especially at night while we slept high up in a hotel tower block. We finally experienced one during a visit to a historic site in Tokyo. Or rather everyone but me…
A shrine and the bright lights of Shibuya in Tokyo
We’d always known that Japan was going to be a cultural and linguistic challenge for a pair of Englishmen. And while we’d end up bemused by much in Tokyo during our first full day of exploring the city, at least we could go to breakfast in our Hilton Hotel confident that we’d conquered the punishing jet…
Japan: Narita, Tokyo and a dreadful case of jet lag
Flying from Heathrow to Tokyo’s Narita airport is tough. It means 11 hours stuck in a metal tube with minimal exercise and aircraft air-con, which always leaves me feeling as if every last drop of moisture has been sucked out of my body. But at least we had a better experience than most. Thanks to…
Verona: A city with a view
I’ve never been a fan of Shakespeare, nor have I immersed myself in his Romeo and Juliet. Verona is the home of the lovers and the Montagues and Capulets, and the city milks it to death. Tourists descend in their thousands on Juliet’s balcony and tomb, and a bust of Shakespeare is on show in…
Verona: A Roman survivor
Italy may change but some things remain resolutely the same. The food is great, the architecture is awe-inspiring and the locals can’t resist a shiny puffer jacket. On our first evening in Verona, nursing a beer in a touristy but quiet bar in the Piazza Bra, there were plenty of puffer jackets on display. Veronese and…
Italy: A weekend in Bologna
Bologna, the capital of Italy’s Emilia-Romagna region, is home to the oldest university in the Western world, incredible food and a wonderful cityscape of terracotta-roofed buildings. But there are other features of the city that don’t feature so prominently in the guidebooks, not least the amount of graffiti. Perhaps it’s something to do with Bologna’s history…
A walk on Bergen’s mountains
Bergen’s unpredictable weather delivered snow on our second day in town. Admittedly there was just a dusting around our hotel, but we could see that the mountains that encircle the harbour were covered with the stuff. So we decided to visit them after a hearty breakfast. Graham was suffering from a heavy cold while I…
Norway: A weekend in Bergen
Our first visit to Norway ended up being part city break in Bergen, part winter sports holiday in the mountain resort of Geilo. Bergen lies on the west coast, little more than an hour away from London. We’d climbed out of Heathrow on a clear February evening, the sun setting in the west, but landed…
Athens: Plaka and the hills
After the arid months of summer, Athens becomes a city of green hills in autumn. And we spent our second full day in the city exploring one of them – Filopappos Hill. Not that I had much energy in the morning thanks to a grotty night of sleep. Our hotel, the Herodion, was proving to…