How Japan Bought Me: A Futuristic Game To The Paths of Samurai And Geisha

For years, Japan has been attracting travelers from all over the world. For many it is a place of stunning beauty and something unknown, for others it is an exotic destination that they would love to visit if only it were a little closer. In photographs and on the screen, we often find ourselves enchanted by Japanese landscapes, peaceful temples in forests, but also tall buildings with neon signs and lights. However, in addition to all that visual splendor, there is something else – a sense of the unusual and exotic, and a rhythm of life that is significantly different from ours.

Japan has always fascinated me, visiting Japan was always an idea that ended with no opportunity , primarily because of the belief that the organization of this endeavor requires a lot of time and money. I have been interested in their culture for a long time, I love everything related to samurai, geisha, their nature, and I believed that Japan is a completely different universe from the one we are used to. That’s why three Japanese cities had to be on my list this year – Tokyo, Kyoto and Osaka.

Tokyo is a fascinating city, and it took me a few days to get around it properly. Fortunately for us foreigners (and theirs, too, obviously) is that their metro is perfectly organized and allowed me to easily move around the city. Trains arrive every five minutes, and exactly to the second, which makes Tokyo very convenient for tourists who want to visit as many of its corners as possible. It’s hard to say exactly what you should visit in Tokyo, because each neighborhood is special and offers something completely different. Shibuya, perhaps the most famous part of Tokyo, offers an incredible shopping experience, complete with a legendary pedestrian crossing. Akihabara, also known as the electric city, is an amazing part of the city where tall buildings are decorated with neon signs and anime posters, while on the streets you can see a mountain of people who have an anime lifestyle, or enter a futuristic gaming universe in the so-called. to the Sega building (GiGo). Akihabara may represent Tokyo in the best possible way, every street in this metropolis looks like a street that fell out of some ultramodern game. The Okachimachi area and the Ameyoko Ueno market, ideal for local specialties, are close by, while Ginza, with its nearby TeamLabs amusement park, offers unforgettable experiences.

At the biggest intersection of that city, there are two small connected alleys, Omoide Yokocho, where we felt the authentic Tokyo life. These alleyways, one meter wide, are full of small food inns. Those inns, like most other Japanese restaurants, are so narrow and only consist of a bar where the food is prepared and a few places along the bar where you sit down, order what you want to eat, pay and go. This is a city that never seems to sleep, and a city where you can live to see what the future looks like. From the viewpoints of Tokyo Skytree or Shibuya Sky there is a spectacular view of this metropolis. Tickets for the former can be picked up on the same day and are worth every yen.

But the modern and futuristic is never the only reason for visiting Japan, at least it wasn’t for me. Their culture and history also attract a large number of tourists. Although Kyoto is the right address for this, a bit of old Japan can be seen in Tokyo as well. Apart from the Royal Palace, a huge complex of gardens and parks, where you can see the foundations of the former royal (imperial) palace, there are few places like Asakusa. Asakusa is perhaps the most famous tourist area, where visitors from all over the world walk around dressed in kimonos and geisha and samurai costumes. There is also the famous Senso-Ji temple, which is also a must-see.

Tokyo completely won me over in six days, and thanks to the organized public transport, it gave me the opportunity to return to the places I liked the most, such as Shibuya, Akihabara and Okachimachi. The parks are truly impressive, perfectly landscaped and symbols of Japanese care for nature, as well as the discipline and cleanliness of the city that I believe cannot be seen in any other city in the world. The streets are impeccably clean, everyone is waiting in lines, and the public toilets are indescribably neat, clean and futuristic.

However, since the reason for my trip is old Japan and its history, Kyoto was the second city on my list. The fastest train in the world (shinkansen) takes less than two and a half hours from Tokyo to Kyoto and costs around one hundred euros each way. Kyoto is not a place for walking around downtown, but for exploring temples, walking through Gion, where geishas worked, and visiting bamboo forests. Therefore, having a plan in Kyoto when what to visit and what day is very necessary. Nijo Castle, the former seat of the samurai, is a place that immediately impressed me. Apart from the beautiful gardens that surround it, entering the castle offers a glimpse into the life of a samurai. Although filming and photography are prohibited, walking through the wooden, one-story structure with low ceilings creates a special experience. There you can also find out why wooden floors are designed to creak like the soft chirping of birds, and what it was for.

Kyoto is also home to some very impressive temples, including Kyomizu-dera, which has the most spectacular view ever, and Kinkaku-Ji, also known as the Golden Temple. Entrance fees to the temples are symbolic. I must not forget Fushimi Inari, the temple that is perhaps the most popular among tourists. Fushimi Inari is located on the edge of Mount Inari, and a thousand tori gates lead to the very top of the mountain.

Visiting the temples in Kyoto is what makes this trip unforgettable. They are scattered, and public transportation is not as organized as in Tokyo, so planning was necessary. One day I headed to the Arashiyama bamboo forest, about twenty minutes from Kyoto, and felt the true meaning of clean air. If you turn right at the end of the Arashiyama trail and walk for about fifteen minutes, you will reach Adashino, a less visited bamboo forest where you can take even better photos because it is less known among tourists. And in Adashino there is a beautiful temple surrounded by moss and thousands of stone tombstones from the 8th century. Another break from visiting the temples was a walk through Gion, a part of the city known for its geisha. Geisha culture was born here, and today they are the biggest symbol of this city. Thanks to a good plan, we also visited Nara, a small town 45 minutes from Kyoto, famous for the Todai-Ji temple, the largest wooden building in the world, and a fifteen-meter tall Buddha statue. Nara is also famous for the deer that roam freely in the streets, and after the walk, have a drink at the hidden but very authentic tea house Salon Naramachi.

When the active days in Kyoto were over, the third and last stop was nearby Osaka, from where we flew back. An ideal place to end your trip. Although Osaka is a city of millions, it is possible to visit it in two days, because all the main attractions are located in the center, near Dotonbori Street. Dotonbori is one of the few streets that made me let out an exclamation of admiration, and I believe the fact that I happened to be there during sunset only contributed to that, as the panorama is spectacular.

You know how it goes – when you visit a place you like, you often think you’ll be back. But many of those places remain only on the plans, because you’d rather invest the money in another trip. Japan is not one of those places. I will definitely be back, and a new tour is already well planned. But I’m extremely glad that I decided to visit these three places and that on my own, because I had complete freedom to move where and as much as I wanted. But next time, Tokyo and Osaka will be on my list. Tokyo is a crazy city, and Japan is simply an amazing country. I have no other words.