This is a shame because I have traveled some pretty fine places which should be shared. So jumping back into the game.
Japan
It was as magical as expected. Of course arriving during peak cherry blossom season was a big help, but if ever having the time and the means it is a definite revisit.
Language
Everyone's first question is "how did you get along with the language. Well, not badly at all. English is taught in schools and although most older people may not want to speak to you in English, everyone I encountered tried to help me when I needed help. The iPhone had a handy translator app (went unused) and I packed some cards with important phrases in Japanese that I could use in an emergency (which I recommend if you have a food allergy or any other medical condition) Most signs that you needed to get around were in Japanese and English.
Food
Japan is a culinary treasure.
Now, that is a bit more challenging with food allergies, especially shellfish, which may be hidden in food in some common cooking ingredients such as shrimp paste and oyster sauce. That said, the Japanese understand food allergies so having a pre-printed card in Japanese explaining your life threatening (or not) allergy allows the restaurant staff to prepare your food so that you can eat it safely.
From food truck vendors at the hanami festival in Gion to Hanakamidori - nothing but chicken restaurant in Osaka to the Cafe Du Monde the only time I have had beignets outside of New Orleans - it was a food treat. Of course you can't go to Japan and not eat fish - I had some lovely raw fish as well as some tiny "eat the whole thing" fish - both were spectacular. Freshness is the key to wonderful offerings they have all over Japan.
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The fish is so delicate and fresh it melts in your mouth
My friend and I were traveling together and we ordered one American Style and one Japanese breakfast. They wheeled in this table with a toaster which they plugged in so that you made fresh toast.
Travel
Pack light and use the hotels laundry service if you are going to be on the move. Japan has one of the best rail systems in the world and you can get many places by Shinkashen - but be warned, the train stations can be mazes, especially in Tokyo. Carrying heavy luggage up and down stairs in a train station is not fun. That being said, if traveling all over Japan is the goal, the rail pass is an excellent investment and worth the cost. In Tokyo, get a Pasmo for the subway; the Japanese equivalent of the metro or Oyster card it makes getting through the stations easier (sometimes just to get get from one side to the other).
Hanami
Flower Blooming viewing is taken quite seriously in Japan during the season and with good reason - it is spectacular. If you have only seen pictures, they do not do it justice. Blossoms are everywhere; there are canopies on streets to walk under, rivers are lined, parks are all a-glory. If you want a premium spot under a tree, get out early, good spots go fast. On the weekends, the parks take on a festival environment with food stalls and vendors of all sorts.
Sad, powerful and important visit.
A reminder of how terrible people can be to each other
and how people, no matter how utterly destroyed, can rebuild, restart and triumph.
Take the time to go to the Hiroshima Peace museum as it is hard to envision the absolute destruction when walking around the now vibrant city.
Oh what a beautiful island. Officially named Itsukushima, it is best know for its bright orange "floating" torii gates that were the official entrance to the shrine. The shrine is built over water and depending on the tide, visitors can walk out to the torii gate. Beware the not so wild deer, they like to nibble on anything not nailed down and that may include your clothing or your guide book.
Food lovers paradise; hip and more laid-back than Tokyo, Osaka has all of the benefits of a major city without feeling 'uptight". There is Osaka Castle, torn down and rebuilt numerous times that reflects the historic architecture of the city.
Shitennoji Temple, one of the oldest temples in Japan, juxtaposed with the modern city as evidenced by Umeda Sky Building and Hep Five shopping center - don't miss the Ferris wheel on the seventh floor - great views of the city at sunset.
City of a thousand shrines.The bamboo forest was spectacular, and soothing all at once. The sound is different then fir trees or deciduous tress, but had a similar effect. It is a well known tourist site, but on the recommended list from me.
Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion) - Originally a shoguns retirement home, this building originally on this site became a Zen Temple in 1408. The structure has burned down several times. Overlooking the pond, the current structure was rebuilt in 1955.
Two unusual experiences in Kyoto. The first was at an aforementioned shrine, where a trio of teens wanted a picture. At first I thought they wanted me to take a picture of them, it shortly became clear they wanted a picture of ME with them. Having had a similar experience in China, I obliged. Why might you ask would someone want to take a picture with the American woman wandering alone through the neighborhoods of Kyoto (or on the Great Wall for that matter), because it is unusual there.
Later, when I was wandering through the streets of a neighborhood looking at houses and trying to get to the river (I had a vague knowledge it was that way), I distinctly heard a "Good morning" from across the road.
It seems an elderly Japanese woman with a prize winning rose garden saw this woman wandering through her neighborhood and asked the gardener to find out why I was there. I admired her roses and was provided directions to the "best" cherry blooms to see in the area. About two blocks down the road, I heard the gardener calling me in English again. The elderly woman, sent him to give me two postcards featuring her award winning roses. People might have said I was lost in that neighborhood, but really I was just finding.
