KYOTO TO HIROSHIMA

The Shinkansen ride from Nagoya to Kyoto was short.  The hills were similar to the past few days.  Colors for sure.

Kyoto Station is big and beautiful.  Our Granvia Hotel is located in the station.

We asked the tourist office what was the one best scene today for Fall colors, and she recommended Tofukuji Temple, a short Nara JR Line train ride of one stop.  Our hotel is in the background.

The colors around Tofukuji (pronounced:  TOW - FUKUJI) were indeed spectacular:

Yes, a yellow maple tree.  We had some time, so continued on the JR Nara to Nara, where we were greeted by two Blue-bar Pigeons:

We did not want to catch a bus to see the Nara colors, so just walked around, where the highlight was a large daikon:

No executive club for us at the Granvia, so I just bought some tri-toro (o-, chu- and akami), Italian soup, butterfish and two kinds of musubi, with beer and red wine:

My first room meal on this trip.  It was wonderful.  Tomorrow, on to Hiroshima.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 42 to 28,164, another all-time record.

-
Tropical Storm Kammuri, earlier projected to head towards Taiwan, is now projected to make a SUDDEN left turn to the Philippines.  Winds are up to 70 MPH.

-

NAGOYA TO KYOTO

We arrived at Nagoya Station where the Shinkansen pretty much dropped us off at the entrance to our hotel, the Marriott Associa.  We learned that all castles, shrines, museums, etc., in Kyoto (and all of Japan) are closed on Mondays. 

The lobby is already decorated for Christmas.  I joined some ladies in kimono for a photo.  It's a large hotel with 52 floors.  Most Marriotts around the world now have M Clubs, where they do serve some basic food stuffs, but charge for alcoholic beverages.  However, the staffer checking us in mentioned that drinks are generally available all the time in their Concierge Lounge. 

I fantasize a lot, as for example this blog site, but sometimes my dreams are too large:  Blue Revolution, SETI, Laser Fusion.  Every so often my imagination is not creative enough.  I never imagined a hotel executive club could be so generous and fulfilling.  The Concierge Club at the Marriott here is the best there is in the world, better than the Club Lounge at the Ritz Carleton Tokyo or the Sheraton Tower Saigon or the Beijing St. Regis.  Kind of reminded me of the Lufthansa First Class Lounge in Frankfurt, where there is a wall of champagne of your choice, a dozen kinds of nuts, a kitchen to serve you German dishes and more.  Then they drive you in a Mercedes sedan to the plane.

First, when I walked into this Concierge Club, we were virtually alone, so we had a pick of a view table.  Walked up to the bar, and you could serve yourself:  a wide variety of liquors, with more fruit exotics than I've ever seen, plus a refrigerator of numerous types of beers, sakes and shochus.

What concerned me was that this was about the 6th time I had stayed here's, but I'd swear I'd never before seen this incredible room.  So I asked, and it turns out their Club was on a higher floor once and only earlier this year moved to this dazzling room.

Originally, only popcorn, cookies and exotic-flavored meringues, but with time came the afternoon tea set, then the appetizers...finally dinner items.

Went back to the room for a couple of hours and returned for the next servings:

A Japanese whiskey was added to the Ballantine scotch, and at night the place was filled.

That was not it, for one of the attendants advised us to return for the Japanese breakfast set.  We did, and, as enhancements we had Nagoya red wine and sake:

Best traditional Japanese breakfast ever for me. And that was not all, for the honey you use was collected from a beehive:

Have you ever experienced anything like the above?  And all for free.  Next, Kyoto.

-
Tropical Storm Kammuri has formed east of Taiwan and seems headed straight for our Diamond Princess itinerary track.

Kammuri is moving along at 16 knots.  The Diamond Princess can move at 22 knots.

-

TOKYO TO NAGOYA

We arrived in Shinjuku, took the Yamanote Line to Ebesu, then walked to the Tokyo Westin.  It was early in the afternoon, so we found our way to Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens.

The garden was originally developed by the founder of the Mito branch of the Tokugawa clan, Yorifusa (right).  In the early stage of the Edo period, the site in 1629 during the reign of Mitsukuni (below) became the residence of Shoguns.  During this timeframe Chinese enhancements were introduced, and the name Korakuen is derived from a text that says:

Worry before all worries in the world, and enjoy after all enjoyments in the world.

Note sure what that really means.

Korakuen is noted for Maple now, Camelia in the early Spring, Cherry Blossoms in the later Spring, followed by Iris japonica, then Wisteria.  Water lilies in the early summer,  Lotus in July.

Note that bird

On the way back to the Tokyo Westin I noticed this lady on a spiffy motorized wheely.  It swiftly moved along like a motorcycle, but could be converted into a pushable wheelchair.

I'm going to have to look into this for my imminent use at 15 Craigside.  At the Ebesu Station we walked by this soba shop that has been there was 25 years.  Never went in, but I did, finally, and had a soba bowl:

I didn't realize that I had not taken a photo of my meal until the very end.

Dinner was at the Tokyo West in Executive Club:

Morning and breakfast:

Another gargantuan breakfast because I wasn't planning to eat until the next stop, the Executive Club as the Nagoya Marriott Associa Hotel at the train station.  It was raining in Tokyo when we left

The scene was cloudy until just moments before the possible appearance of Mount Fuji, and golly, the sky turned blue and I had a most unique and spectacular encounter with Japan's most symbolic site.  You need to be watchful from about half an hour from the Shin-Yokohama Station.  The view comes in four segments, 15 minutes of on-off appearances, with the below taken in sequence:

What an extraordinary experience.  Your imagination can go berserk on how best to describe this spectacle of Mount Fuji.

You want something even more marvelously incredible?  Return tomorrow for the latest in my "beyond my wildest dream experiences," this one occurring in Nagoya.

-