Our next stop was Hiroshima, heading the furthest south in our journey so far. It was a quick 60-minute Shinkansen ride from Okayama, and a tram (or street car as they are called) ride from Hiroshima train station to our apartment. The Airbnb apartment was just over the river from the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, … Continue reading Hiroshima – Days 44 – 46
Our one night stay in Okayama was to visit Kōraku-en, one of the Three Great Gardens of Japan. We had passed through Okayama several times, and it was Okayama where we picked up and returned the hire car for our trip to Iya Valley. But this was our first time stopping and having a look. The city … Continue reading Korakuen Garden – Day 43
For our final full day in Osaka the kids felt it was their turn to choose. And so we headed off to Round 1 Stadium, a large entertainment complex that has 10-pin bowling, darts, indoor sports, arcade machines and karaoke. Karaoke was also one of the to-do things on my list, and so I agreed … Continue reading Kids Day in Osaka – Day 40
On Friday morning we headed to the Osaka Museum of Housing and Living. On the 8th floor of the museum which also houses government offices, an 1830s Osaka neighbourhood has been re-created with shophouses, drug stores, an old-style sentō (public bath) and more. We each got an English audio guide and could walk through the … Continue reading Osaka Housing and Plaza – Day 39
After a full day at Uinversal Studios we were all glad to have a quiet day, and had a lazy day at the AirBnB apartment. It’s been another good AirBnB experience, with the only issue being the unreliable wi-fi connection, especially as we are keen to finalise the remaining weeks of our schedule that have … Continue reading Quiet day in Osaka – Day 38
The highly anticipated day to visit Universal Studios Japan (USJ) had arrived – or more accurately, the day to visit the Wizarding World of Harry Potter which happened to be eat Universal Studios. The alarm went off at 5:30am to give us time for breakfast before leaving the apartment by 6:15am to arrive at the … Continue reading The Wizarding World of Harry Potter – Day 37
Today we checked out of Kyoto and headed to Osaka, with tickets to the Gamba Osaka vs Vegalta Sendai soccer match that started at 4pm. It was another rainy travel day, so we caught a taxi from the apartment to Kyoto Station – learning the Japanese word for station from the taxi driver: eki. We … Continue reading Osaka Gamba – Day 34
Today we said goodbye to Nana and Papa who headed back from Kyoto to Tokyo and then few back to Adelaide via Cairns. After pancakes for breakfast we all caught the bus into Kyoto Station, to have a look around the shops before they caught the Shinkansen to Tokyo and the Narita Express to Narita. … Continue reading Kyoto Pottery – Day 33
For our third day in the Iya Valley region we decided to drive to one of the main cities of Shikoku: Kochi. We had read that there is a castle worth visiting – one of the few castles surviving in its original form. Also on Sundays, the Main Street is closed with an open-air market … Continue reading Day Trip to Kochi – Day 6
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