Japan: Nara and Ryokan
On Saturday morning, Anna, Kosuke and I enjoyed a traditional Japanese breakfast at home. Kosuke made a delicious miso soup and we also had natto (fermented beans- good for digestion) and rice. Then we were off for the day! We traveled out to Nara to see the famous deer that roam about. It was fun to be in a touristy area and see the different vendors, shops and cafes intended for a diverse audience. We picked up some beautiful daifuku with fresh fruits inside soft mochi and nosed around a bakery that had an amazing window display. Obviously ready for lunch at that point, we stopped at the café that enticed our palates most. I must admit, it was a decadent stack of chocolate-banana pancakes that really drew me in, but I had no intention of having that for lunch, since we had daifuku to enjoy later. I got a Japanese burger, which is very much like meatloaf and I strained my ears to hear what sounded an awful lot like Austrian German coming from our neighboring table.
We made our way deeper into Nara and suddenly- voila!! There is a deer. Oooh and another one! Deer everywhere! Wandering the sidewalks, begging for the deer crackers sold by vendors, acquiescing to tourist pats… They were so used to people, completely unbothered by our presence. We ventured further, toward one of the more famous temples, and there they roamed about as well.
We made our way back to the train for our voyage deeper into Nara to Yoshino, where we had a reservation at a ryokan, recommended by Kosuke’s father (aka Otousan). Yoshino is VERY famous for sakura (cherry blossoms), which was clear from the many, many beautiful trees, not quite in bloom but all over the beautiful mountain that we saw from the shuttle from the station. It was still very beautiful, even in the cloudy weather and so lovely to be out in the mountains.
A ryokan is kind of a bed and breakfast, but with an onsen. In addition to our beautiful tatami room (we were greeted with some delicious teas and little tea biscuits and then changed into our yukata, or spa uniforms) and trips to the onsen (in the evening, the ladies got the outside onsen with a mountain view!), we also had the most amazing dinner and breakfast! Kosuke loves high quality food, so it was really fun to see his excitement for the menus. There was a chicken soup that cooked as we sat and started on the little salads and sashimi, which was mind-blowing. All the different textures of the fish and squid and tofu, not to mention the flavors! I can still feel and taste the squid as I type this a few days later. I had never experienced anything like it! Then we cooked some veggies and beef ourselves- this beef was QUALITY. My oh my. Meanwhile, we were brought rice, an egg custard (be not fooled, there were mushrooms, shrimp and chicken inside! Who knew that custard was so versatile?) and miso soup.
We headed back to our room and I was a goner by 8:30. Between the jetlag and the onsen bath, Anna and Kosuke had to wake me up to get me properly under the covers. I slept like a rock until 1:30am and managed to fall back asleep afterwards. Progress!
The next morning, Anna and I headed to the onsen again before breakfast, so we could see what had been the men’s onsen the day before. It was not as exciting as our mountain view the night before, so we were content to have spent more time there then. Then we were off to our fancy breakfast: miso, rice, egg, salmon, eggplant salad, tofu soup, pickles and kinako-dusted mochi. I love a good breakfast, and this was a VERY good breakfast! Not to mention that it was a beautiful, sunny day. Hooray!
We waltzed our way back down the mountain to the train in the morning sun, enjoying the beautiful buildings and trees along the way. We managed to catch the early train so that we could ride into Osaka and not be too late for Anna and Kosuke’s church service. A sermon translated on the spot is definitely a test for the jetlag brain, but I managed to stay awake. It was really nice to see the service and meet some folks that are part of that community.
We skipped the fellowship time to bring our things back to the apartment, a 10-minute walk away, and then had some coffee before heading back out for a fried chicken meal with the church to celebrate graduations (which happen in March) and life transitions (moving away) of members of the church. It was really fun to see Anna interacting with people she was meeting for the first time, and to see Kosuke hanging out with the foreign guys.
Afterwards, Kosuke and I went to the grocery store and I got to ask questions to my heart’s content as we walked through aisles of snacks and sweets, but best of all was walking through the meat and produce sections. There are so many things that I have never seen or heard of before and the fish selections are incredible. All of it being so fresh and such good quality. You wouldn’t believe the sushi and sashimi prices. It is great to have this time talking to and getting to know Kosuke and being able to laugh as I discover so many new things in his home country. He was also a great sport, choosing some of the things that I found so enthralling for the evening’s menu, deciding how he would put them together.
Kosuke cooked a wonderful meal for us to enjoy at home- clams, mushrooms, ramen made with the fish stock of the fish heads we found. He is a great cook! We were all pretty tired then after the full weekend, especially Marie in her still jet lagged state. But it was a wonderful weekend!
Marie on the Road
