Japan Trip Highlights

• Shinkansen (bullet trains). They are fast (250 km/h), punctual, convenient, frequent, and spotless. Why can't we have them at home?
• Kinkakuji (Temple of the Golden Pavilion) in Kyoto.
• Walking inside a dense cloud in Owakudani (the highest point of the Sounzan-Togendai ropeway in Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park).
• Kobe beef meal at Itoh Dining in Kyoto. The beef melts in your mouth after chewing it 2-3 times. Amazing!
• Osaka Aquarium (especially the large tank of Pacific Ocean fish and octopi) and eating sweet fluffy ice afterwards.
• The A-bomb dome and peace museum in Hiroshima.
• A private tour of the Kamigamo shrine in Tokyo and speaking with the priest.
• Visiting the great Buddha and feeding assertive deer in Nara.
• Visiting the International Manga Museum in Kyoto.
• Visiting the Hama Rikyu garden in Tokyo.
• Visiting the Sanjusangendo Hall in Kyoto with its 1001 Buddhas and 28 guarding deities.
• Attending the show in Kyoto's Gion corner.
• Watching the tuna auctions in the busy Tsukiji fish market in Tokyo.
• Watching the English version of the 6th Harry Potter movie in Tokyo.
• Visiting the Tamozawa Imperial Villa and its garden in Nikko.
• Visiting the Nijo-jo castle and the shogun's palace (Ninomaru Palace) in Kyoto.
• Visiting the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka (near Tokyo).
• Buying realistic fake plastic food models in Tokyo's Kappabashi-dori.
• Buying handkerchiefs in a Tokyo department store.
• Eating a tofu meal in Ryoanji Yudofuya restaurant while seating on mats around low tables and watching the pond (near Ryoanji temple in Kyoto).
• Youth watching in Tokyo's Harajuku on Sunday.
• Getting pampered in the hotel. New slippers and nightgowns every day.