Land of the Rising Sun

Somehow in many of my travels, Japan have never been on top of my bucket list. This was despite the fact that many friends who have holidayed there numerous times and have raved to me about it. This year, I decided to make a family trip to the Land of the Rising Sun. I decided on Osaka after reading up about favourite holidaying places in Japan.

As this is my first trip to Japan, I had to research on activities, attractions, food and places to stay. Frankly, the only thing that I knew about Japan was the disastrous Atomic bomb which fell on them during the war years. In planning ahead, I visited JTB Office at Amoda Building in KL to purchase my rail passes. The staff at JTB is extremely helpful and I also made some inquiries and obtain their services to try and reserve bus seats to Shirakawago. Unfortunately, due to peak season, all reserved seats were fully booked months ahead.

Every travel I had, there are always surprises. This time, I found out ahead that my night flight would land at 9.45 pm and JR office closes at 11.00 pm! The last train from the airport is at 11.30 pm. and at the Osaka loop line, I had to changed train twice to get to my destination. A flight delay or not reaching the right platform on any of those occasions would leave me stranded at the train station. Should that happened, my only back up plan was to hail a cab and pay through the nose. Japan have one of the most expensive taxi fare in the world.

Come the day, Yvonne, Valen and I were on our flight for a week vacation that starts on 28.12.18. I had to prep them that we are going to have an Amazing Race situation upon disembarking, so no dilly dallying. What a way to start a holiday!

 This is my voucher to exchange for my train pass. I had bought two pass for each person in Malaysia before coming here. It is meant for foreigners and is sold outside Japan. One is for the Takayama-Hokuriku Pass and the other the JR West. Each is valid for 5 days usage and cost RM500.00 per voucher.

 This is the train pass I exchange with my voucher at the JR Office upon arrival at Kansai Airport Station.

This is the other train Pass I exchanged two days later at Osaka Station.

I had viewed the layout plan before coming and when I exited the immigration, I knew exactly where to head for.

I had studied the train lines and with the aid of Google map, I knew which train and which platform I should be at, and the station where I need to switch lines. I must say for commuting by trains, Google Map is an indispensable tool. The multiple train services and multiple lines in Japan can be confusing but Google Map is "live" with current train schedules.

 Here we are at Platform 3, Kansai Station waiting for the last train at 11.30 pm.

 Valen is the only one that came with us, the other two can't take off from work.

 Monkeying around with his hood.

Yvonne relaxing in the train from the airport. 

Valen in the transit train at the Osaka loop line.

The Kansai Airport Rapid train took an hour to reach Tennoji Station where we have to switch to the Loop Line and take the transit train to Kyobashi. At Kyobashi Station, we had to change to the JR Tosai Line and take another train to Osakajokitazume Station, which is one stop away. This is where we screwed up. We could not find our platform as it is a complicated old station. We stopped a commuter to asked for direction. He had just entered the turnstile to catch his last train and was most helpful. In his limited English, he tried explaining to us the way and in the process had missed his last train. Nevertheless, he exited the turnstile with us, guide us out to the streets and showed us in his google map our apartment is "very near", just a km away. Despite me asking him to get a taxi for us, he insist on walking us all the way to the apartment. He even stopped by a convenience store and got us three bottle of warm drinks as it is cold outside. It is already past midnight and the weather is 6°. After about half an hour walk, with our luggage in tow, we reached our apartment and he waved goodbye after seeing that we could get into the apartment ourselves. I couldn't thank him enough.

For someone like me who have not been to Japan before, this pleasant encounter is my first wonderful impression of Japan. This stranger goes out of his way to make sure we arrive safely while we do not know how he goes home after missing his last train for us. And for the coming days, my experience with the Japanese culture has been from one pleasant one to the next.

Our host who stays one apartment below actually waited for us and greets us even though we already had her instructions on self check in.

 This is our small apartment. We were tired after a long day.

 The apartment do not have enough space for luggage bags nor adequate closets. Space is a luxury in Japan.

 In the apartment, the first thing Valen did was to get on his phone hook up on wifi.

The Tatami bedroom is cosy and inviting.

We hit the sack in no time.

Exploring Osaka city.
It is a day where we plan to take it easy after a long day yesterday. We had a good sleep and waking and only woke up late morning.

This is our apartment at Amijimacho.

 It's a quiet area with not much commercial activities. There's a park with a shrine nearby and the beautiful O-kawa River runs along it. Osaka Castle is a short 800 meter walk from here.

 The road leading to Osakajokitazume Station, which is 500 meters away.

Osakajokitazume Station serves the quiet neighbourhood here.

This station is not busy and there is never a rush during our week long stay here.

Here we are outside the Osaka Station.

 It is blistering cold outside as the wind keeps blowing.

 The Osaka train station is huge and there's a mall that was built around the Station City.

Osaka is a large city with a population of 2.6 million.

 There are many shops within the mall.

 We realised later that many shops are conveniently located at all the train station.

There are many food outlets for all type of dining.

At this cold windy outdoor corner, there is a lady busking to a small polite crowd.

Dotonbori District

This is one district that every traveler goes to when they look for street food. We took the train from Osaka city and upon alighting, decided to walk the inner road which is quieter.

It's a back alley but big enough for cars to drive through.

We came across a company having celebration with their workers and were warmly invited for a bite. They were making some Japanese rice dough much like our "muochi".

 This beautiful little shop have the American touch.

The back street is clean and tidy.

 Some are constant suppliers of bakery stuffs.

 The shops are we passed by have nice touches.

 Some like this have a European feel to it.

Ninja prowling the backstreets of Osaka.

 We turn towards the Dotonbori River and head towards the dock.

 It's a nice peaceful section and we hung around here for a while to take some pictures.

 You can see the river is clean and the place spic and span.

Good day to be out here by the river.

The ferries wheel behind is part of the effort to create entertainment along the river.

 Valen still sitting at the steps at the dock.

   There are river cruises, but was not operating when we were there.

 Valen and I having a picture together.

 Yvonne like he picture taken from all sides.

 We are now at the food street section.

 From hereon, the streets are lined with food outlets.

 This is where tourists in Osaka comes to, when search for exotic food to eat.

 The sheer number of people clogging the street is an indication that good food draws the crowd.

 We passed by this building with funny pillars.

 There is a queue at the popular Kukuru Takayoki shop.

 Valen and Yvonne joined the queue.

Takoyaki is one of the popular street food in Japan.

It's a piece of Octopus cooked inside the dumpling.

 Here you go, take the whole piece and eat it.

 It's super hot and will burn your mouth when you put the whole ball in at one go.

Kani Douraku is another famous shop selling crab. You cannot missed this huge signage at this street.

 It is crowded at every shop so we decided to go back lane, away from the tourist sections. We found this shop where there seems to be mostly locals patronising it.

 After 20 minutes wait, we have our table.

 It's a BBQ pork and beef which is part of the buffet..

 In cold weather, we tend to eat more than normal.

 We can keep on topping up to our hearts content.

 But there's only so much you can eat.

 It's our first dinner in Japan and certainly a satisfying one.

 The temperature have been this cold the whole day.

 And the crowd seems to have increased at this hour.

 We have been here since 4.00 pm and thought it's good time to leave when the crowd keeps streaming in.

 You can see only that the food section of the street is full of activity.

As we walked towards our train station, the adjacent streets are brightly lighted up creating a fairy land. We call it a night when we got home to our nice cosy apartment.

Arashiyama Bamboo Forest
Kyoto is only an hour by train from Osaka. There is much to offer in Kyoto but we only plan to visit two sights for the day trip.

The train took us to Saga Arashiyama Station and upon exiting the station, there are adequate signage to show where the tourist spots are.

To access the Bamboo Grove is to walk through this street with some shops.

 The walk through the quaint little village is pleasant.

 Nice umbrella shade outside a shop.

 It's touristy, but not overwhelming. There are souvenirs to pick up here if you want them.

But this is what we came to see.

Apparently it's a natural Bamboo Forest and it's well maintained.

 This short path is actually a private road, meant only for tourist renting a pull cart.

 Valen looking around and is wondering what's the big deal about this place ?

The minute you step into the forest, it's like being transported to another world.

 It's also one of the top attractions in Kyoto.

 The pano trick gives a unique take on this picture.

 Valen again clowning with his shark hood.

Ninja in the midst.

 Yvonne and I prayed for our family and our blessings at the shrine in the forest.

 Taking a lazy stroll back to the train station.

 We passed by some Japanese homes.

 This one is pretty with flowers decorated outside the small porch.

 There is a shrine at this residential area.

Another house at the corner near the shrine.

Fushimi Inari Taisha 
Inari is ten minutes train ride from Kyoto Station and the Inari Station is a short walk to the Romon Gate.

The entrance to the two storied Romon Gate.

 Fushimi Inari is the most important shrines among the thousands of them in Japan. It is dedicated to Inari, the Shinto god of rice. Visitors pay respect to this resident deity by making small offerings.

At the back of the main grounds are two parallel rows of gates called the Senbon Torii, which means thousands of torii gates.

It is also the entrance to the hiking trail up the hill.

 The torii gates along the entire trail are donated by individuals and companies.

The donors name are inscribed on the pillars of the gate.

The costs starts at 400,000 yen for a small gate.

 It increases to over a million for the big gates.

 Fushimi Inari has origins dating back to 794 CE.

 The trail leads to the wooded forest of sacred Mt Inari at 233 meters high.

We did not take the hike but was content to be walking under these beautiful gates.

 The Romon Gate was erected in 1589 by a popular leader during the time.

 It has been well maintained and looks as good as new.

 Valen at the Gehaiden, the outer worship hall.

View of the Romon Gate from inside the courtyard.
There are many things to experience in Kyoto, but we only have time for these two attractions.

Shirakawa-Go on 31.12.18

Before coming over, I had tried to reserve the Coach from Kanazawa to Shirakawa-Go village, but it was fully booked months ahead. My only option was to take the train all the way to Shin Takaoka and hop into the local bus. From Osaka, we took The Thunderbird and from Kanazawa, it is the Hokoriku-Shinkansen.

It was a day trip and we had to catch to first train that leaves Osaka at 6.00 am in the morning.

 Valen having his sleep in the train.

 So is mum.

 As we approach Fukui, the landscape changes to white.

 Fukui is on a higher elevation and snow fall starts from this area.

Here we are at the Shin Takaoka Station.

We are early for the 11.00 am train.

There is only one bus heading towards Shirakawa-Go.

You are at liberty to stop at any of the villages along the way.

Right on the dot, our bus arrives and leaves on time.

As the journey to the village is at high elevation, the snow fall here is here is always heavier.

Shirakawago is tucked deep in the mountains and the only access is by road, no rail connectivity.

Here we are at the village upon arrival.

Along the main street of the village.

All the people strolling around are tourists. Good thing is there not too many of them.

There are still residents here although much of it caters to the tourist trade.

This village is a Unesco World Heritage Site since 1994.

The world heritage site consist of three historic mountain villages.

This is the biggest which contained 152 household and a population of 634 people at the time of inscription.

There are 117 buildings identified as heritage buildings to be preserved.

Half of those are the Grasso style buildings like this one. The sharp A roof is designed to ensure snow do not accumulate but falls off the roof easily.

The thick thatched straw roofs provides insulation from the frigid long winter months.

The village dates back to more than 250 years old.

To see the entire village blanketed in snow is magical.

Many would come here just to see and feel this winter wonderland.

The snow is soft and fluffy and Yvonne could not resist digging in.

There are many winter places to go to, but this one certainly ranks higher than most.

We never get tired of strolling around.

Valen frolicking in the snow.

Yes, he is digging in as well.

The cheerful face says it all.

It would be good if his brothers are here to have a snow fight.

It was snowing very lightly when we were walking around.

It would have been lovely experience to stay here for a night.

Planning to come here without reservation is a challenge.

There is no easier or better way to reach this place other than by bus or driving a car.

We had thoughts of not coming here initially but was glad we took the chance.

If we missed this, there is every likelihood we may not come this way again in winter.

You have to be here this time of the year to know it is worth all the trouble.

After enjoying ourselves for two hours, we had to catch our 4.00 pm bus for the return leg. Missing it would mean we may be stranded without any lodging! 😏

That's the temperature this morning at the village.

The bus that took us is comfortable and it even have foldable seats over the aisle when all the regular seats are full. There is a monitor that display where we are and the price to pay at each stop. Ours is fully covered by the JR Rail Pass.

Here we are at the lounge at Shin Takaoka Station.

We still have another 20 minutes before our train arrives. The lounge provide respite from the cold at the train platform.

The train service in Japan is very precise, they will arrive at the exact time.

Here it is, the Hokuriku-Shinkansen bullet train right on time.

Inside the train, it is smooth and quiet. I actually overshot on the way here and was not even aware it had stopped having focus my eyes on the phone.

At Kanazawa, we switched to The Thunderbird.

It's a three hour journey so I began to browse through the photos taken earlier.

And this being the last day of the year, I started creating e greeting cards while in the train.

It's wonderful to be able to share your holiday picture in a greeting card.

I had downloaded some greeting cards from the App Store and incorporated the photos taken earlier.

I sent this greeting to my sister in Alexandria and she exclaimed "where on earth are you"?
Many have been to Shirakawa-Go, yet many have not heard about that place.

We are certainly glad to mark the end of 2018 at a beautiful place in Shirakawa-Go.

Hiroshima - 1.1.19
Today is the first day of 2019 and to celebrate the new year, we took a train to Kobe. The idea was to dine in a nice restaurant and Kobe beef is what we have in mind. We only found out upon arrival that most of the business outlet is closed including the restaurants as Japanese observe New Year's Day holiday. Disappointed with that, we decided to visit Hiroshima which is one of my must do in this trip. The journey via the Nozomi Shinkansen is only an hour from Kobe.

Upon arrival, there is a shuttle that takes us to the historical sight, also covered by the JR Pass.

After alighting from the shuttle, we walked towards the site where this iconic structure is situated..

This building is a stark reminder to humanity on the destruction of war.

Instead of calling it a war zone or Hiroshima Ground Zero, the Japanese government named this place "The Hiroshima Peace Memorial".

The Genbaku Dome is the only reminder of the tragic ending of WW2.

The Hiroshima Peace Memorial is accorded a World Heritage Site on 7.12.1996 and seeks the abolition of nuclear weapons from the earth.

The wefie that creates a smile in a solemn environment.

This picture is taken at the corner and elongated slightly via pano feature of the phone.

The Aioi bridge about 200 meters away from the Dome was the original target of the Atomic Bomb.

The bomb had exploded 600 meters directly above this building which used to be a Trade Exhibition Hall.

The beautiful Ota River masked the tragedy that takes place 73 years ago.

Those born after the war may know of the tragedy but do not feel the pain.

Further down the river is another beautiful bridge.

Just to the left before the bridge is a Memorial Tower in memory of 10,000 students who were killed by the Atomic Bomb.

The view of the Ota River towards the Aioi Bridge.

The structure showing two hands facing skywards with the flame in the middle. This is The Flame of Peace which has been burning since being lighted on 1.8.1964. It will continue to burn until the world is rid of nuclear weapons.

This Memorial Hall is a must if you want a glimpse of the tragedy.

Inside is essentially bare with only pictures and narratives.

A section of the wall displayed the list of identified civilian casualties of the bomb.

 At 8.15 am 6.8.1945, the atomic bomb was dropped from the US B-29 Bomber called Enola Gay.  It exploded 600 meter above Hiroshima generating a heat up to 4,000⁰ and instantly vapourised 80,000 civilians. Another 40,000 died 3 months later from exposure to the bomb.

 Hiroshima was a thriving city before the bomb. It was strategically chosen by the US forces who had intent to inflict maximum damage and casualties due to it's compactness. It would also need to be horrible to send a message to the other would be powers.

 The flattened surface of Hiroshima immediately shows the horrifying destructive power of the Atomic Bomb.

  In an instant, a city is wiped off the map.

This is the before and after picture of the trade exhibition hall.

At the exit, there is a Visitors book of which I penned my thoughts.

It came straight from the heart.

Yvonne and Valen having a look at what I had written.

We walked over to the other side of the river to the Peace Memorial Park.

This area is so peaceful and nice with the cool weather. I took a long look at the dome and tried to imagine the horrors of those people in the building when the bomb came down on them.

This is the Children's Peace Monument in memory of children that perished resulting from the after effect of the bomb.

Yvonne ringing the bell at the monument.

The bridge towards Heiwa Odori.

At the corner is a quaint little Italian restaurant which we wanted to dine there but the tables have all been reserved.

We walked towards Hondori Shopping Street on the left.

This is a happening area in Hiroshima but being a New Year's Day, many stores are not opened.

Instead of waiting for the shuttle to take us back to the station, we decided to take a walk even though it is close to 2 km away.

Along the main road, we came across several police cars with the siren on and police officers were seen together in one spot.

As we came closer, it is only a hobo they are surrounding. Japan must have a very low crime rate that to tackle a hobo, there are so many police cars and officers doing the job. I think a crime free society leaves them with not very much chance to see action.

In no time, we were at Hiroshima Station and on board the Nozomi Shinkansen headed towards Osaka.

 It was after midnight when we arrive at Kyobashi Station. Most of the eateries were closed but we decided to have some Ramen at the only food outlet inside the station.

This is what we saw for the last few days and wanted to try it out.

 There are no chairs and meant for commuters in a rush. Such outlet is common at the stations.

 At this hour, there are not many commuters left.

 Even though this is the last train, we were not anxious having now become "expert" in commuting by train.

Playing with the fish eye lens.

We were the only ones at the Kyobashi platform at 12.00 midnight on 1.1.19. This is the platform we could not find on our first day of arrival. It is located in a weird side of the building which can be missed easily for commuters new to this place.

Kuromon Ichiba Market.
After a late outing yesterday, we decided to take it slow today and visited only two places today.

 We woke up to a "not so cold" day this morning.

 This is our destination, the popular Kuromon Ichiba Market.

 There are more than a hundred stores selling groceries, food and eateries.

It had it's early beginning as a market in the 1900s when fresh fish traders set up shop here.

 Today, it has evolved into a favourite foodie place for tourists from around the world.

Despite it's popularity, it remains a modest local market as seen in this plastic tent to shield customers from the cold.

 This is the stall I was looking for, the popular Blue Fin Tuna.

Before coming here, my friend Chiap Chan had sent me the above picture saying "mati mati also you must try the blue fin tuna"! This is the same stall he came and ate before.

 All the cuts are so tempting but the price are stiff.

 If the place is popular, it is evident by the crowd that gathers around it.

And into the queue we go.

 This is the most popular combo at 2,000.00 Yen.

Nice.

Not exaggerating, but the first taste of it is heavenly. Have not tasted anything like it before.

 So good, that Valen make sure he ate every bit of it.

This is our next stall, owner cutting and cleaning scallop with bare hands in cold freezing water.

 The wife does the grilling.

 It is cooked with steam still coming out from the grilled shell.

1,500 Yen for a scallop.

 This is it, tempting.

 Yummy, another wonderful street food.

 This stall is selling grilled lamb and squid.

 We ordered one of each.

 It come out steaming hot.

 This is much cheaper at 1,300 Yen for both.

 The mutton taste so so, nothing special.

So is the squid, it is normal, nothing special.
I guess after tasting the first two dish, everything else tasted bland.
Was a good food adventure this morning.

Osaka Castle.
Osaka Castle is just 800 meter walk from our apartment. When it's near, you tend to take things for granted and not visiting it first.

Like this beautiful O-Kawa River running along the side of our apartment.

 After staying here the last few days, this is the first time we explore our own backyard.

 One look at it and you know it is a beautiful landscape area for recreation and exercise.

 You could jog all along the river and over to the Osaka Park.

I would have love to stay in this place if I'm a resident in Osaka.

 Good for dating too.

 View from the approach road, the most popular landmark of Osaka is visible all around it.

 On the left behind the high rise is where we stay and on the right is the Osaka Castle with it's park around it. All rivers in Japan are so very clean.

 Outside the Castle Wall.

 The park itself is also an attraction, but to the locals, it is a good place to jog or enjoy the open space.

 Yes, jump at every landmark every country you go too.

 We are in no hurry to be inside the wall.

 The moat with the high embankment.

 This castle is built by a powerful feudal lord during turbulent times about 450 years ago.

 Ninjas on the move.

Nara
Our last town to visit for the trip is Nara. The only thing I knew about Nara are the deers which I saw so many photos on FB from friends postings.

 We still have some food to and prepare those for our breakfast.

It's noodles and eggs with some ingredients.

After breakfast, we took a leisurely walk to our Station. This fine dining restaurant is just next to our apartment.

It promises to be a nice cool day today.

 Our train at Osakajokitazume Station.

We are beginning to enjoy commuting by train.

Here we are upon arrival at the Nara JR Train station

 Just across the road is a neat street with wide pedestrian walkway that will take you to all the attractions.

You can have a choice of  train, but many choose to walk in these pleasant environment.

About a kilometer walk, the Kokufu-ji Temple is on the left.

Here we do the Chozu, the act of cleaning and purifying before stepping into the temple and doing prayers.

 Praying at an auxiliary shrine in the compound.

There is a short queue for people who wish to say a prayer or two.

 I queue up and say my prayers when it;s my turn.

 And so is Yvonne, saying her prayers be blessed for good health and happiness.

 The five storied pagoda at the temple grounds.

 Kokufu-Ji is a Buddhist Temple with very big compound.

 The temple was established 1,300 years ago by the Fujiwara family, the most powerful aristocratic clan during it's time.

 The temple is a complex of huge halls, a museum, pagoda, and many shrines housed in various size buildings built at different period.

 Deers are a protected animals in Nara. It is the symbol of Nara city.

 Folklore has it that one of the deity appeared on a white deer. From that belief, deers were then treated as sacred animal. Killing a deer is punishable by death.

 After WW2, the divine status is stripped and deers are then classified as national treasures and protected until this day.

 The huge area is pack with tourist and locals.

There are street stalls serving food and business is brisk.

 Many looks tempting and we tried out this one.

 It looks good, but it's just fried eggs sunny side up on a piece of cracker.

 This stall also draws some crowd.

We tried this one.

It's fried sweet potatoes and tasted real good when hot.

 We were heading towards the Kasuga Taisha Shrine and was shocked to see the number of people lining up towards the temple.

 Once you are in the midst, you cannot forward and it's not easy to turn back. So you are caught and have to be patient. Everyone here seems to have that virtue!

 The crowd is a mixture of locals and tourist trying to get into the temple.

 The entrance is controlled to make sure the temple is not sardine packed. It took us half an hour to get into the temple.

 This is the crowd inside the temple.

 At the main temple, various prayer items are available for those who wish to pray.

The first 3 to 5 days of the New Year, Japanese goes to the temples to pray and get their blessings.

 Majority who buy prayer items are the Japanese, but there are some Asian tourist who also partake in the prayers.

 With such crowd, there is nothing much you could do as tourist and move along.

At the corridor of the temple.

 Some sort of almanac to guide you when seeking divine protection.

 We exited the temple to this village house nearby.

 It look rustic and there are some eateries here too.

 We continue walking back to the direction where we first came from.

  At the other end is the train station, about a km away from here.

 Some of the shops are still close since New Year's day.

 The shops at this entire stretch serves tourists.

 There are more people than when we walked by two hours ago.

 That shop on Valen's left sells the popular Muochi.

 We bought a box and try out. It is as good as any homemade muochi.

Yvonne seems to be fascinated by this pig.

Nara is a compact little town. There are many temples, botanical gardens, parks, museums, halls and recreational facilities located in one huge area within walking distance of one another. Visitors like to spend a day here enjoying the many gardens and beautiful landscaping. Like the locals, you can also do some prayers and receive god's blessings. It's good for the soul.

Homeward Bound.
All good things must come to an end. Whilst there are more that we would like to see and do, but come the final day, we still have to pack and  get ready to leave for home. Our flight departs only at night, but we have to check out by 10.00 am. Our nice host apologised for not able to accommodate our request for late check out as they have other guests checking in. They have to cleaned up the place for them.

And so, we rely on our trusted Google Map to guide us on the train to take us to the airport.

 As we exited the platform, we passed by the JR Office that we went to on the day of  our arrival where we change our vouchers for the train pass. It is so conveniently located, and so are other train company offices. Japan train services are operated by multiple companies.

 A walk across is the terminal building to do our checking in.

 I always wrapped up my bags to feel a bit more secure.

 The checking in process is smooth although we have to wait a few hours for the counter to open.

 But the airport is like a mall and have enough to keep you occupied.

 Like this Pokeman wall where we saw many travelers taking photographs.

Pokemon still has it's appeal worldwide especially with the sensational Pokemon Go game that send everybody to the streets for the hunt.

When you still have some spare cash, there are enough temptations to make sure you do not leave without buying some Japanese delights.

We have our meal at this nice fusion restaurant that serves good Teppanyaki beef. The quality of food everywhere in Japan is consistent, be it at the airport, mall, street or any food outlet.

At the plane I had a chance to reflect on the trip. My experience have been a fantastic one, starting from the very first day on arrival when a kind Samaritan walked us all the way to our apartment, bought us drinks and in the process missed his last train home. Throughout our holiday, we encounter courteous people everywhere we go. In the train, the Marshall or conductor will bow to all passengers before they discharge themselves from the coach, and even in the plane. The streets are clean, orderly and tidy, rivers have clean clear water and recreation parks are everywhere. The rubbish are properly segregated and even bottles are rinsed before being discarded. This is the country everyone loves to come to.
Before coming here, I could not find any reason to be here. But that has changed now, I will be back again this year.