Combining the last two days together since the last day was mostly flying home.

Today we headed back to Hikone to visit my ancestral hometown of Hinatsu (日夏町). I had never been here before, so of course I was feeling a bit apprehensive. For me today was that moment of a reality check to make sure I wasn't dreaming.


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Today we were supposed to travel north to Amanohashidate, but the overnight rainstorm was so bad, we decided to spare ourselves the hassle and bumped up our Osaka trip!

We didn't really go sightseeing in Osaka, so this post is pretty brief.

It was mostly for shopping, foodage, and R&R. However, we did visit the Instant Ramen Museum in Ikeda.


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Today we set out for Hikone on Lake Biwako! I was really excited because after touring Hikone castle, Grandma would take me to my great-grandparents' hometown in Hikone's southern province! … or so that was the plan, but things didn't quite work out. XD ( Read more... )

Today was mostly an R&R day due to the extreme burnout from the week. Mom wanted to go to Arashiyama, since she had never been on the boat trip. Sachiko also mentioned it would be extremely hot today, but that didn't deter us. Grandma didn't want to go out into the sun, so she went shopping on her own.


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Today we would head to our final destination, Kyoto, where part of my family lives. The morning was filled with mostly touring Koyasan's sights, then a 3 hour train ride to Wakayama, into the Osaka Loop, then to Kyoto Station… not an easy trip to say the least. Thankfully, my relative Sachiko was generous enough to invite us over for dinner the ( Read more... )

Today we said our last good-byes to Kumano and made our way to the heart of Shingon Buddhism, Koyasan. Koyasan, or Mt. Koya, was founded by the priest Kobo Daishi (aka Kukai), in the 6th century. The mountains today host many temples, along with Okunoin, the most important graveyard in Japan.


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Today we planned to visit the other 2 of the 3 grand shrines of Kumano. Though Nachi and Hayatama Taisha were located along the sea, and therefore easier to access, Hongu Taisha was located far-inland near Kii-Tanabe. There are no trains inland, meaning we would have to take a bus from Shingu to Hongu-cho.


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Today was a relatively packed day, leaving little time for lazing about. Today we'd first head to Futami to see the infamous Husband and Wife rocks, then head to Toba to see Mikimoto Pearl Island (and buy some pearls!), and finally, if time permit, visit Ise Jingu's Geku.


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Today was our departure day for Mie prefecture and the beginning of our trek down the Kii peninsula. Our first stop was Ise city, home of Ise Jingu, the most important shrine in all of Shinto that houses Amaterasu Omikami.

Since part of the day would be lost from traveling to Ise, we decided to just go to Ise Jingu's Naiku.


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