Out of the rat race and on the road
Sunday was Kimono Day for the Shiratori Garden (free entry for anyone in a kimono) – so we thought it would be worth a visit. It was a lovely garden, with many lovely Japanese grannies making sure we foreigners got the most out of the experience by giving us fish food so we could feed the coi and pointing out other features of the garden.
How do you choose where to go when you visit a country? Sometimes there’s things that are ‘must-see’ so if you agree, you go there. Sometimes you get personal recommendations. Sometimes you have a half formed idea suggested by a guide book which links with other ideas to visit other sites nearby – and so it was we found ourselves with Nagoya on the Japan itinerary. Mainly, we thought it would be a good place to base ourselves for a few nights to be able to access both the Inuyama Festival and the Magome/Tsumago section of the old Nakasendo Highway. Which it was, and also turned out to be a top town to visit too.
Firstly, Magome to Tsumago. There are very informative tourist information places at both connecting station locations (Nakatsugawa and Nagiso). Even with rudimentary information it’s easy to catch the bus from Nakatsugawa to Magome. On the day we travelled, the forecast said scattered showers in the afternoon. Although it ended up being a bit wetter than that, it was a wonderful day and a recommended experience.
GenXDiary 