By Nancy Dorrans
Why go all the way to Japan and not make some time for Tokyo? That was my question. So, I asked a few adventure travel friends to tag along with me to Tokyo, before we headed north to Hokkaido for our ATTA (Adventure Travel Trade Association) World Summit.
And so began three action-packed days and nights navigating our way around the many districts, parks, shrines, customs, towers, restaurants, train stations, food, temples, fortunes, neighborhoods, currency, sake, clubs, and ancient trails around Tokyo. Everything in Japan is cute, efficient, and amazingly different. With the help of Google Translate and our new friend Tony Everitt (also attending the summit) we were ready, so to speak, for Tokyo and the surrounds…
Hike Hakone – Tokyo’s Ancient Roads
Tony, originally from New Zealand, has lived in Japan for about fifteen years and is fluent in Japanese. He is fascinated by Tokyo’s ancient roads connecting the main centers across the country. Through his active tour company Hike Hakone Hachiri he offers both day and multi-day historic cultural hiking tours along these routes.
I contacted him ahead of time to see if he was available to help us navigate Tokyo. He graciously and excitedly replied. Upon arrival I was to collect my bags and make sure to get to an ATM for some Japanese Yen to buy a Pasmo subway card. “The machine only takes cash. Same for the Sim Card.”
He directed me on which train car and direction to take. Then he met me at the Aomonoyokocho station and guided me to the hotel. Whew. I had just flown fourteen hours non-stop from Newark… luckily, the adrenaline was kicking in.
Tony found a small local restaurant near the train station, helped us order our dinner, and tried to explain what we were eating and drinking.
Then we were on our own for the rest of the very long, late evening… What jet lag? No time for that when you’re with Nick from SA Expeditions/Peru and Gonzalo from Chile Nativo/Patagonia.
With more Sake, Sapporo beer, Japanese Whiskey… we bounced around the subway and made our way to the Neverland Club in Shibuyu.
How could I still be standing let alone dancing well past midnight? Nick hailed a taxi and somehow we made it back to our hotel… It was a bit like the late-night scene from the movie, “Lost in Translation.” Bill Murray sleeping in a cab with the lights of the city reflecting…
Ancient Roads, Here We Come…
Next morning, I visited the Tokyo Tower with another friend from Maine attending the conference. Later, we were joined by Kristen Gill, adventure travel writer and photographer from U.S. and Baja, Mexico, for more frolicking through our Shinagawa neighborhood.
Day three and Tony had put together an abbreviated half-day version of the Hakone hike for us this afternoon. Now the four of us braved the subway at rush hour to visit Senso-Ji Temple, a “when in Tokyo must see” colorful Buddhist Temple in Asakusa.
There I drew an Omikuji (fortune) for a small fee out of a cylinder. I didn’t know what I was doing but followed the lead of a few others around me. Searching the correlated number, I received my fortune. It was “Dai-Kichi,” or “Excellent luck.” YAY! Good news. The fortunes get worse from “Dai (excellent luck)” to “Sho (small luck),” and the one ranked below Sho is “Kyo” which means the worst luck. If you receive Kyo or low rank fortune, you tie that fortune to a tree, so the worst luck stays with the tree and doesn’t follow you around.
Past the gate of the Temple is the Nakamise-dori, one of Japan’s oldest shopping streets with close to a hundred stalls selling everything from samurai swords to souvenir fans and matcha green tea ice cream. By this time, it was quite hot. So we ducked into a small cafe for a Biru and tempura break!
We then headed back to the trains to find Tony and rode the Bullet train to our hike along part of the giant cedar clad ancient road.
Now a Japan Heritage area and a much quieter, reflective side of Japan. Here the trees are Gods.
Teatime
We rested at the Amasake Chaya Teahouse and enjoyed some Amasake, a fermented rice energy drink. This tea house has been serving travelers crossing these mountains for over four centuries.
Mr. Yamamoto, the thirteenth-generation manager of the tea house, met with us and told stories of the men that carried travelers by palanquin, “a portable cart that is mounted on two poles and carried at each end on the shoulders of porters.” He sang the song they would sing to help pass the time on their journey.
As we hiked that ancient road, I couldn’t imagine carrying – or being carried – up and over the cobblestones. Oh, the stories this ancient road could tell.
Japan was starting to sink into my bones… and this was just the beginning of my adventure!
