Japan has long been a country I’ve wanted to visit, I think since I read that Giles Milton book based on the first Englishman who landed here.

Well, it finally happened, and the weeks have flown by in peaceful, measured, sashimi strides. We have already covered significant ground in geography and nutrition seeing a nice cross section of the country from Tokyo to Nagano and over to the Mount Fuji area and now the Izu Peninsula (where that first Englishman landed!) some hours south of Tokyo.
The landscape is breathtakingly beautiful and incredibly varied. Japan is a land shaped by ongoing tectonic plate action. Volcanoes still erupt. It is the land of the onsen, the futon, the tatami mat, sushi, sashimi, takoyaki and okonomiaki and enduring  traditions which are completely alien to most of us westerners. It seems to me that Japanese life effectively combines ancient tradition and modernity. Politeness reigns, even kids in the park respect turn taking. Consideration dictates the rules, it is a good thing in my mind. People here are so so friendy and kind.

We did a word map of Japan in our second week here. Cleanliness and politeness ranked high. The food is ‘Oy-sheee!!’ and is really so delicious. We’ve had passing families laugh at our stacked ‘yama’ (mountains) of empty sushi plates at the restaurant. The food is seriously fresh, oftentimes raw and so good. I could live here! Another place I could live!  As usual for the most part we gravitate towards the most isolated parts of the countryside which probably has given us a singular view of Japan.

Everything is beautifully presented, first impressions seem key. If there were a Yang to this Ying (or Ying to that Yang?), it would be the endless layering of plastic packaging. Biscuits come in packs of two! Even on entering a shop from the rain, umbrellas are encased in a plastic layer for the duration of one’s visit, on exit this plastic is discarded. Hot fresh corn on the cob at a market, comes wrapped in… yes you guessed it. More Plastic.
Going back to volcanoes, we spent a wonderful 5 days gazing at Fuji-san, which also happens to marks the spot where no less than three intercontinental tectonic plates collide and move and overlap. The result is an incredibly verdant landscape which is sheer joy to behold and experience.  Rich soils, lots of mountains and many with huge craters, lava cliffs and mossy rocky volcanic forests, ice caves and water everywhere, lakes, rivers, waterfalls. Click through on this link to see pictures of our time at Kawaguichiko with the Oda family.

Japan is an ideal destination for us, endless opportunities to get lost up mountains and forests that seem to roll on and on , empty and wild despite the 126 million people who live in this country that seems not a whole lot bigger than the UK. I guess they are all in the ultra modern ultra densely packed, fast cities of Nippon.

Our next destination with the Oda family 50km south from lake Kawaguchi on the Izu peninsula we can still see the enormous snow covered Fuji clearly from the top of a lesser (and private) volcano right by the seaside town of Ito.

Izu Peninsula photos

Hot springs abound in this volcanic spot, where literally a dozen volcanoes can be identified in the local area. Our hostel is amazing, a converted Ryokan (traditional Japanese Inn) with it’s own onsen! We are in heaven! All of us soak every day and sometimes, more than once a day. It is so relaxing, re-energizing and refreshing, the waters naturally infused with wholesome minerals. I am beginning to understand why the Japanese are so long lived.

When we are not bathing there is the beautiful Jogasaki coast to explore and the mountains around Ito and of course the local private volcano, not to mention our slightly sad looking local black sand beach and of course yama of sushi, kakigoori and hydrangea and blueberry icecreams. Oy-sheeeee!

I have so incredibly enjoyed our travels here in Japan. Meeting up with our dear friends the Oda-san family for this first third of our Japan time has enriched every moment spent with the joy of being together again. The Edmonds children and the Oda children played like old friends reunited, with such a joyful intensity the whole 2 weeks we were together, making parental oversight quite un-needed. The Oda-san have welcomed us like family, we have so quickly felt at home and at ease in this beautiful land, so new to us.

If time with family friends has ranked especially high for us, so have our brilliant farmstay experiences in Miyama and Takeoka farms, where we have had the opportunity  to connect with strangers, that are now also dear to us. These experiences will form a whole separate entry!

Much time has already passed since meeting the Odas at mount Fuji, the Izu Peninsula and Ito, and we’ve had many wonderful experiences since. There will be many more blog entries to come from The land of the rising sun.