We started off our last full day in Tokyo visiting Ginza once again. Then it was off to celebrate darling Rupert's 2nd birthday at Ueno Park - the biggest in Tokyo - along with hundreds of Japanese families and other tourists. Despite Kev's earlier plan to visit to the Zoo, instead he went to see Ueno Lake and attended a free rock concert while I visited the Metropolitan Art Musuem. Earlier we both spent some time exploring the Tokyo National Museum which was very impressive. One of the musuem's four main buildings was closed due to building work to make it [View Full Entry]

---

---

Our man in Tokyo - aka Ross - met us at Tokyo station a few minutes after our Shinkenson pulled in - I was talking on the mobile phone to him one minute and the next minute he was there with us!! After cuddles all round the three of us headed off to our hotel in Ginza - advertised as an 'elegant and stylish city where a retro-modern atmosphere still lingers in the air'. As it's autumn here, the sun sets not long after 5pm and it seems to get dark very quickly so by the time we headed off to [View Full Entry]

---

---

From one Atomic bomb devastated city to another! We caught the train to Hiroshima and, as in Nagaski, we arrived around midday so left the bags at the Dormy Hotel and headed off to the Peace Park less than five minutes walk away. Although we visited Hiroshima two years ago, and had spent time exploring the Peace Park area, it's somewhere you almost feel drawn to. The Hiroshima Peace Park, a large park in the centre of the city, consists of the A-Bomb Dome, Childrens Peace Monument, Rest House, Peace Memorial Museum, International Conference Centre, National Peace Memorial Hall, Memorial [View Full Entry]

---

---

When our train arrived at Nagasaki station the only bit of history we knew about the place was that the second atomic bomb was detonated there on 9 August 1945. At the time I was two months short of my second birthday and Kev was a babe in arms at not quite six months old. Now that we are about to leave we know a lot more about this fascinating city. Arriving at our hotel around midday, since our room would'nt be ready until 3pm, we left the bags there and headed off to discover a little bit of Nagasaki. It [View Full Entry]

---

---

Like the ancient city of Kyoto which for most of its history was the Imperial capital of Japan, Nara was once itself the Heijo-kyo national capital from the year 710. It then grew to become a centre of culture, politics, art and crafts. Any of you film buffs thinking of traveling to Nara might consider doing so to be there between 25-29 August 2010 for the Nara International Film Festival. What do you think Carol - go for it? As I write this we're speeding along on a JR train from Kyoto to Nara and like all Japanese trains it left [View Full Entry]

---

---

Well the honeymooners are off again - this time back to Japan. After a nondescript flight we stood on terra firma once more at Osaka Kansia airport much to my delight! As Cole Porter said in one of his songs “Flying so high in some bird in the sky is my idea of nothing to do” ! Before leaving the airport we hired a mobile phone for the 16 days we'll be here, at a cost of less than $10 - we plan to use it to call Ross in Toyko and Sappy in Hiroshima. Since we're meeting both of them [View Full Entry]

---

---

Anyone with a little spare money who needs a holiday should seriously consider visiting Siem Reap Cambodia - they need tourists! Our taxi driver pointed out all the hotels which had shut recently owing to the global economic crisis - others are partially built and will no doubt be left as is until things improve. So visitors would really be appreciated! And there should be some good bargains on offer. We flew to Siem Reap to visit Angkor Wat and some of the other UNESCO World Heritage sites in the surrounding district. And while you have to 'run the gauntlet' - [View Full Entry]

---

---

Our last morning in Hanoi I got up at 5am - Wayne and Kev decided to stay in bed - and walked down to Hoan Kiem Lake where, at 6am each morning, many people congregate to practise Tai Chi all around the shores of the lake which has the Ngoc Son Temple on a little island in the middle. (Thanks Julie for the suggestion - I wouldn't have thought to do it otherwise!) Music was playing from PA systems - groups of 6-10 people (it seemed to be mostly older men) were standing in line slightly bent forward. Each person was [View Full Entry]

---

---

Yes, we've been on them all but for fun, excitement (and a little bit of trepidation) the motorbike wins hands down!! The train trip was the worst - it was 40 minutes late - then we sat in the station for an hour before finally leaving - but at least it was air conditioned. The great motorbike adventure took place when we were in Hue, a town which originally rose to prominence as the capital of the Nguyễn Lords, a feudal dynasty which dominated much of southern Vietnam from the 17th to the 19th century. With the short time we had [View Full Entry]

---

---

Kev once again proved himself to be a genious managing to fix the camera with the use of my tweezers so all's well in that regard! After a hearty breakfast - Kev had the Cramble Eegs - our first job was to find the Lifestart Foundation which turned out to be about five minutes walk from the hotel. It was good to meet some of the woman who work there and buy some of the handicrafts they make. Lifestart Foundation was started by a Melbourne woman, Karen Leonard who wrote the following: "A small group of local women living with challenging [View Full Entry]

---

---