A very weird and loud cuckoo clock outside in the garden woke us up at 6.30am. Neither child stirred. I was very jealous!
The paper walls in this ryokan meant that I had heard someone going to the toilet in the night, but other than that it really wasn’t too noisy. We opted for an 8am breakfast and it soon became clear that everyone else went for 7.30am. This meant that we got half an hour of peace after they had all gone downstairs and so subsequently forgot to wake up Mila. Poor child was dragged out of her bed and to the table in less than 5 minutes! Even she conceded that breakfast was excellent. It was a shame that the home-made yoghurt was clearly off and the children mourned the two little blueberries drowning in what would soon be cheese.
I stayed out of the way with he children while Keith packed the rucksacks again. This time we had to rearrange to make Mila’s as light as possible. Her t-shirt must have shifted yesterday after I put her sun cream on as she has burnt the side of her neck and it is very sore. She was very brave and managed to carry her pack all day with that special smile/grimace to make sure you are reminded of exactly how brave she is being.
While Keith had been packing, I had read about a certificate you can get for walking from Magome to Tsumago from the local tourist information. I checked with the host and got a stamped slip from her to take to get the certificate. You pay 150 yen (Just over £1) for a certificate produced on wood and it goes towards the upkeep of the path. The Japanese gentleman who organised it for us was very serious and wanted to do his job very well.
Keith went off to get our first Japanese Geocache while I took the kids to the bus stop. Some other foolish tourists were waiting on the right side of the road in full sun. We sat in the shelter on the wrong side. The bus driver still let us on. Shade is key in this heat.
Catching the bus to Nagiso allowed us to level up in our skill at public transport attribute. So proud.
We had to wait almost a hour to catch the train to Nagano in a waiting room with no air con, only to nearly miss it because someone decided to go and get a pocket monster. Grrr.
Due to the anxious attention of the lovely station lady we did make it (there was a little running involved) and spun our seats around once more to enjoy a peaceful trip to Nagano.
We had another wait at Nagano station for our first bullet train to Kanazawa. There was no time to get bored though as this waiting room had air conditioning AND karaoke on a massive TV. Mila almost combusted when she found actual sandwiches in the food shop! Real food as she put it. Poor abused children. Keith and I stayed slightly more adventurous with unidentified meat products, spicy crispy corn and a pork bento box.
[Note: in case you haven’t noticed… I am obsessed with food. Either I am currently eating or I am planning what I am going to eat next.]
Out patient wait was rewarded with our first close up of the Shinkansen! Keith turned into a proper train spotter and Danny was all ready to start rolling his eyes when he realised that there were men walking around under the platform! I presume for loading or maintenance.
We stood at the right number on the platform and sure enough, our bullet train pulled into exactly the right place. There is hardly any gap (maybe 1″) between the train and the platform and the doors slide sideways into the wall. The whole train looks like a grounded aeroplane as it is so aerodynamic and the pointy nose looks enormous when you see the super smart driver in his white gloves and cap perched at the top.
Needless to say it was quick. It was a bit disappointing that there was no screen telling you your current speed and altitude and what percentage of your journey you had completed. Maybe a suggestion they could take on board?
A lot of the journey seemed to be through tunnels, but then you would emerge (without the ear popping effect we are so used to at home) to the most vivid colous: bright green rice paddies and deep blue skies, even some seascapes with thousands of white horses.
At the end of our journey, we arrived in Kanazawa. The fabulous thing about the detailed itineraries that we are working from is that we know how long each journey is before we set out- including the walk to the hotel. It was crazy hot: 36 degrees and 80% humidity. Yuk. The 5 minute walk was entirely uneventful but left us dripping again.
The hotel is big and impersonal but all the staff seem friendly and speak enough English to be helpful.
We had a little rest and then followed Tim’s suggestion of taking a walk to Kanazawa Castle Park. This resulted in very unhappy children. I think it was hotter than it had been in Tokyo, or at least it felt that way due to the humidity. Once in the park, there was shade under the trees and we plotted a route through this beautiful park.
I tried to record the sound in the trees: cicadas, little chirpy birds and massive beaked scary Japanese crows. Mila was having a moment and had walked on ahead. Keith and Danny kept walking so they didn’t lose her and I found myself alone in the woods with a pair of enormous black and white butterflies. Then I realised that the crows had gathered round me….
I am not kidding when I say there were three in the tree above me, one about 6 feet from the path with his head on one side looking at me like I was food and two on an adjacent branch. Generally I like birds. I decided I would look like prey if I ran (and a big jessy) so I walked briskly to catch up with the rest of my family and cooled down gradually over the next 10 minutes or so.
The clever gardeners had decided to set up some rotating sprinklers on one of the lawns and the children ran straight for them. Danny thought to take his hat off. Mila had a cool head for a while after as hers got soaked. Keith and I were not too serious to join in and felt much better for the next 20 minutes or so until we dried out again.
The park was deserted by this point and announcements were being made about the closing times. Officious gentlemen in fawn uniforms beckoned to us urgently and then smiled and bowed in relief once we were on the correct side of his movable wooden barrier. Keith couldn’t understand how a 2 foot high wooden fence across each entrance would keen anyone out overnight, but then the highly respectful Japanese don’t strike us as being that keen on invading or destroying their local community…..take note Igirisu Jin (English person).
We made our way to the recommended restaurant for the evening: Oink, Oink. They specialise in pork (obviously!) and we chose from the menu somewhat randomly: Keith had a pork steak that was so delicious he forgot to take a photo until he had eaten half of it! I chose a salad just because I could, which was delicious, and the children both had spaghetti and tomato sauce! Red mouths and happy smiles all round once they had carbed up.
It was a strangely very quiet walk back to the hotel, but that might have had something to do with the huge fireworks display north of the station. We couldn’t find out anything about it and as it didn’t start until we were back in the hotel and into our hotel-supplied, beige pyjamas, we didn’t go out to investigate. I discovered that I could see the reflection of some of them in a shiny building from the end of the corridor in the hotel.
Speaking of the weird brown pyjamas, imagine my delight when Keith put his on and we realised that they were the same size for me and him. How the children laughed and how strange that the cameras all seemed to disappear at the same time?!?