29 Apr 2024

Our Japan adventure begins!

Our Eternal Japan & South Korea adventure came to a thrilling start in Tokyo! After taking some time to explore this futuristic city, we boarded the Shinkansen bullet train with our bento box lunches. With the train travelling at speeds over 300km per hour, we soon left the high-rise buildings of Tokyo behind and were travelling past small towns and rural farmhouses surrounded by rice paddies. The towering mountains still had plenty of snow on them and the scenery was captivating. There were several stops along the way, but the 2.5 hours passed quickly, and we were soon pulling into Kanazawa Station.

Our first stop was at the Omicho Markets. We had time to explore the array of seafood and fresh produce, including some of the biggest oysters we had ever seen. Next up was the Higashi Chaya district famed for its Geisha and gold leaf products. The timber lattice buildings made us wonder what secrets they hid, and the great range of shops, had some of us buying mementoes, while others tried the gold leaf ice cream or a local sake. After a great afternoon exploring it was time to meet our new home for the upcoming adventure, heading to the port where Heritage Adventurer was waiting for us.

Images © C. Finch, Heritage Expeditions