.
...but there were a lot of railway tracks, buildings passing by and wonderful beautiful nature as we made our way from Nagoya to the National Heritage Site of Nikko...and already I am thinking we should have had a few more days here and can I come back in autumn when those oranges and red colours are in full colour, especially around Kirifuri Falls which was pretty but would be spectacular in autumn. We left Nagoya Station reasonably early and with JR Rail pass in hand (thank goodness for the pass because this trip alone would have cost Y10500 /$117 Aus) and a bento box (got to be grateful for long train journeys to appreciate those bento boxes)
and headed towards Tokyo Station where we changed trains for the Utsunomiya where we changed again, this time for the JR Nikko line.
We had arranged for a pick-up for the hotel at 3pm but got here an hour earlier than expected so we decided to just wander around the town until it was time to meet the owner of the hotel we are staying out.
Nikko is a pretty town, a bit bigger than I had thought it would be
, but I guess it needs to be as it is a tourist town with the national park and all it's walking trails and all the shrines and I imagine in the height of the season, spring for the cherry blossoms and autumn for the fall foliage it would be absolutely packed because it would be so beautiful around here. It is now and most of the trees are bare, Nikko's cherry blossoms will come in later than others in the south,
We are staying at the cutest little guesthouse called Nikko Teddy Bear House which is about a 7min drive outside of Nikko,
which is run by Charles and Yuki, they are both fascinating people and he has some very interesting stories to tell.
Charles advised us about a waterfall that was in walking distance of the hotel, (although he dropped us off at the top of the hill and sent us in the right direction to
find Kirifuri 'falling mist' falls. After being on a train all day it was nice to get out into the fresh air and enjoy the countryside and a walk around a small bit of the Kirifuri Ranges.
There are a lot of trails around here, including one that led us to an observation deck and we were very happy to be the only people around enjoying the place.
We didn't stay out for as long as we could have because it was getting late, it's colder than it has been all trip and we were getting hungry and we had the promise of a home cooked meal waiting for us back at the hotel. There are very few restaurants around here unless you head back into Nikko (one near the observation deck but it isn't open off season )but you can get a meal at the hotel, and Charles made us a great Caribbean curry (which was a nice change from what we had been eating) and after our walk we were ready for food.
(It is about a 20-25 minute walk
from the observation deck and when you get closer to the hotel you can see it is in an idyllic setting, amongst the trees with a babbling brook running past it , and it is easy to picture it surrounded in mist, which would be so enchanting)
The hotel is comfortable and homely. a little bit kitsch but I would definitely stay here again if I am ever back in Nikko (although some people would say it was dated but I was okay with the decor as it felt like you were staying in someone's home.)
We are going to be having an early night as it is going to be a busy day tomorrow as we get our last full day of site-seeing in, because it's nearly time to leave Japan and I want to make the most of it.