Nagano was the home of the 1998 Winter Olympics. It's a smaller city in the Northwest of the main island Honshu.
We found our way to Tokyo station and waited a few minutes for a Shinkansen bullet train for the rather speedy trip through mountains and tunnels. I dozed through much of it while Yo enjoyed the scenery.
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| Waiting for the Shinkansen at Tokyo Station |
The Shinkansen really is amazing. I never tire of it. The ride is silky smooth... none of that typical train "clackity clack" racket. You can set a glass of water on your seat tray and it won't even show a ripple. Despite moving along the rails at over 175 mph, it feels like you aren't even moving. Below are two of the six varieties of Shinkansen trains. All of them travel at nearly 200 mph.
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| Two Shinkansen prepare for departure |
One of the great things about the Shinkansen is that for a trip of several hundred miles, you simply show up at the station, buy a ticket, and ten minutes later you are on your way. No worrying about schedules or reservations. It's like taking a bus only easier. And it's cheap. A trip of nearly 300 miles can cost as little as $15 per person.
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| At Nagoya Station |
On our arrival at Nagano station, we bumped in to some guys from Pittsburgh who were bike touring. They pointed us in the direction of a huge Buddhist temple several miles up towards the mountains. We set out that direction on foot.
Along the way, we encountered a young lady that was dressed head to foot in what I thought looked like an elaborate Mary Poppins outfoot, except entirely black. Pointy heeled shoes, ankle length dress, purse, gloves and a large floppy hat.
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| Dude Alert! |
Upon closer inspection, however, it was a dude!! A male, a man, a guy. He had enough of a five-o-clock shadow on his face that it was absolutely certain this was not a woman. Too much.
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| Now that's nonconformist! |
We love to wander... when we see an interesting alley we wander off, oblivious to our intended destination. We always get rewarded with stuff like this ten foot high statue:
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| Nagoya is littered with shrines, statues and ancient relics |
We stopped at a nice noodle shop for a quick lunch. Yo got her wish of dining while sitting on the floor. She has been quite adventurous about using chopsticks, even though I tease her about her technique.
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| Simple noodles... so satisfying |
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