By 8am, we were packed onto our coach from Yatsugatake Royal Hotel heading for....
Sashimi (Japanese: 刺身, pronounced [saɕimiꜜ]; /səˈʃiːmiː/) is a Japanese delicacy consisting of very fresh raw meat or fish sliced into thin pieces.
Soon, I was beaming with happiness. What I saw made all the losses I've had so meaningful because better things were in stored for me.
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| Sakura...in full bloom! So so beautiful |
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| Cherry Blossom aka Sakura...closed up shot |
Needless to say...I know my wasabi. The ice cream had rich creamy milk, slightly sweet and obviously tasted of wasabi but, not overwhelming....*lick lick* This will be our 5th ice cream in 3 days since we i.e my sis-in-law; Karen & I arrived in Japan.
Incidentally, most food in Japan is either sweet or salty (in the extreme sense) hence, it kept us (entire tour group) puzzled that Japanese can live up to a century! If I were to stay on in Japan, I would definitely be a diabetic in no time and will be popping pills to reduce my hypertension (since I do have a family history-both diabetes & hypertension). FYI, no chili served in any restaurant ya. Yes...no chili sauce, bird's eye chili, red chili, green chili or jalapeno...No, Nyet, Boh!
FYI, wasabi thrives in fresh spring water that flows endlessly. A root plant just like carrots. The wasabis are planted in between small sized rocks and not sand as they need constant flow of fresh spring water to grow.
Mind you, these wasabi ain't cheap. 1,000yen (RM33.70 based on 0.0337) for a stem about 5-6 inches in length! WHOA!! Hmmmm...I start to wonder if the ones we have back in Malaysia are genuine or mixed with flour...hmmm....
Next stop, Shirakawago Village a well preserved UNESCO world heritage site. You get to view old farmhouses with steep roofs resembling two hands folded in prayer. By the time we reach here, it was very cold and raining. Many couldn't take photos because....they were shivering in cold and was unable to stabilize their cameras!!! Yet this dork is able to do a stunt! Heyyyy...I did say I'm nuts, didn't I? Anyway, I've never been a normal person but I do have a grounded hunk at home that brings me back to 'earth'.
Final stop for the day was Hirayu Water Fall - 64 meters drop is featured in Japan's top 100 water falls and amongst the top 3 in Hida.
It was freezing cold by now, windy and raining at the same time. We are, fortunate or unfortunate, have experienced 4 seasons in just 3 days! AMAZING! Fall/Autumn too? And why not? Did you know that the Sakura is so fragile that each time a strong wind blows, the petals just fall off...awesome to see them scattering and floating with the wind...good experience. Hence, it is a MUST to visit Japan between late March and early April to witness these wonderful natural beauty that lasts only for a short period.
It was difficult to stay out long as it was pouring, windy and was freezing cold. Some brave souls like me walked up to get a closed up shot of the waterfalls while the senior citizens stayed on the coach to keep warm.
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| On the way to Hirayu Waterfalls |
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| Ski slope at Hirayu Waterfalls |
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| Hirayu waterfalls in background, too mushy to walk any further |
And, I took a pix of the friendly waitress that was assigned to take care of our needs. She took a few pictures with the others in the tour group in serious straight face but when it came to me...this was what she did automatically....I guess it takes one to recognise the other...ehhehehehehee...afterall...birds of a feather flock together...no? *flap flap*
Small township, nothing much and we were afraid to explore more than a block from the hotel as there weren't many street lights. So we shared our 2nd can of beer for the night to keep us warm and me in perspiration!! We had our first can the night before.
If you have missed out of on the 1st & 2nd days in Japan, do check out the following blogs :
1) Day 1 : http://superbiker48.blogspot.com/2013/04/tokyo-city-tour-kobe-beef-4-april-2013.html
2) Day 2 : http://superbiker48.blogspot.com/2013/04/tokyomt-fujiyatsugatake-5-april-2013.html
My take out from today :
- I like smaller towns. As Japan is hilly & mountainous, I noticed that a lot of their townships are build on flat lands surrounded by mountains. Not many on highlands.
- Generally, Japanese are honest, diligent & hardworking people.
- I learnt that Japanese are very proud of their language. The map given to tourists at Shirakawa-go Village was all in Japanese!! Hey! How do you expect us to move about? Here's one example :
- Food is either sweet or salty. Nothing in between nor sweet and sour nor spicy.
- Again, I simply love their clean toilets. 3 days here and numerous toilet breaks, I only witnessed 1 unkempt toilet that stank a tad.
- The tour group and Karen can certify that I can truly withstand a whole lot of cold. During the entire trip, I rarely adorn my jacket and was merely wearing summer clothings in Japan. Hmmm... No wonder Rocker57 calls me "Polar Bear" and said that I should live in a fridge whenever I complained of feeling hot back home.... it seems to make more sense now......
- Although our guide Ricky speaks fluent Japanese after having 'resided' in Japan for over a decade, his general knowledge of Japan's culture, heritage, etc is surely lacking as he has yet again shared more of Singapore & his family whom he misses very much. Siggggh.
いつも幸せ滞在
Itsumo shiawase taizai
"stay happy always" in Japanese
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