Tucked into the spectacular and historic 17-acre Chinzan-so Gardens, this luxurious hotel combines impeccable service with beautiful and large rooms.
Monthly Archive for October, 2008
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Japan’s most famous building, Kinkakuji or the Golden Pavilion, is set in a beautiful strolling garden.
A heritage spa in a spectacular ocean-side setting, Ryokan Tadaya is a traditional Japanese inn that features a classic one-story hiraya layout stretching toward Nanao Bay. Since its establishment in 1885, the inn has been run by the same family for five generations, offering visitors soothing open-air baths located just 2 meters from the sea, delectable seasonal cuisine and the peace of mind adjacent to the area’s breathtaking natural beauty.
The sumptuous cuisine is prepared with fresh ingredients supplied generously by the farmers and fishermen of the nearby Noto Peninsula. The ever-changing menu features seasonal specialties, including sea bream in spring, rock oyster and abalone in summer, matsutake mushroom in autumn, and snow crabs and yellow tails in winter.
The various types of guest rooms each have a distinctive mood and focus on comfort and relaxation. While “Tsubaki An” rooms showcase the restrained beauty of classic Japanese design known as wabi, “Rikyu” rooms are based on early 20th century Taisho-style architecture that offers spacious interiors, luxurious furniture and ocean vistas. Situated in an outlying building that overlooks the bay, the rooms will make visitors feel enveloped in the arms of the ocean.
Japan’s old capital for many centuries, Kyoto retains to this day the nation’s greatest and most glorious concentration of cultural treasures featuring grand palaces, shrines and exquisite gardens. The fact that Kyoto was mercifully exempt from bombings during the Second World War has bequeathed the city a wealth of its cultural heritage – shrines, temples and traditional arts and crafts.
Day 1
Kyoto
Lunch at a restaurant specializing in ‘tofu’
Visit the historic Sanjyusangendo Hall
Accommodation: Tawaraya
Day 2
Kyoto
Visit the serene Ryoanji rock garden
Visit the landmark Kinkakuji temple
Lunch at a restaurant specializing in ‘yuba’
Enjoy the grandeur of the Imperial Palace
Visit Nijo Castle
Accommodation: Tawaraya
Day 3
Excursion to Nara
Transfer to Nara
Visit the five-story-pagoda Kofukuji Temple
Visit the gigantic Todaiji Temple
Lunch at Restaurant Noh
Visit the magnificent Kasuga Shrine
Accommodation: Hyatt Regency Kyoto Guest Room
Accommodation: Hyatt Regency Kyoto Guest Room
Day 4
Kyoto
Experience calligraphy and the tea ceremony
Lunch at a cozy Italian restaurant
Stroll around the Nishikikoji District
Accommodation: Hyatt Regency Kyoto Guest Room
Accommodation: Hyatt Regency Kyoto Guest Room
Day 5
Last Day
Transfer to Kyoto Station
Just as ceramics made in China are called, “chinaware,” lacqureware pieces made in Japan are often called “japan.” This is a testament to the fact that lacquerware plays a significant role in arts and crafts in Japan. Dating back to more than 600 years ago, Japanese lacquerware is famed for its coating techniques combined with ornaments on the surface using gold dust and seashells, which strongly characterize each artist.
Wajima lacquerware, which Ishikawa Prefecture boasts about, is of the highest grade in Japan, renowned for more than 100 layers of urushi lacquerware coated on the surface and meticulous polishing repeated numerous times. Producing a lacquerware piece is a painstaking process; it takes between 6 months to a year.
A lacquerware piece going through about 100 steps of its production process is not only beautiful but also practical for daily use. Even if you pour hot soup into a Wajima lacquerware bowl, you can easily hold the bowl as the wood and the lacquer coated on the surface help moderate the heat, unlike plastic ones. The Real Japan can arrange for you to gain exclusive access to some workshops and galleries of distinguished craftsmen for you to observe live how they produce a masterpiece.
Tea was introduced into Japan in around 800 from China. Today tea plays a significant role in everyday life for pure relaxation. In a formal style of tea ceremony that has gradually developed since the introduction of tea, various etiquettes and rituals are taught in going through each stage of the ceremony. It has had a close connection with Zen Buddhism in its developing process, reflecting the spirit of Zen in various aspects.
You will experience each stage of a tea ceremony until you reach the final stage of savoring a delicious cup of Japanese green tea in either a Japanese room or a special tea ceremony room. When entering the room, you will be warmly greeted by your host and be invited to eat a delicious Japanese sweet. While you are savoring it, the host will carefully and skillfully prepare a cup of tea by grinding tea leaves using a primitive stone mill. Then she will dilute the powder by hot water to make it drinkable.
Tea ceremony clearly embodies hospitality of each host and is reflected in their room; a hanging scroll on the wall, flowers arranged beautifully in a vase, tools for tea-making. We recommend you spending the most relaxing time in a peaceful room filled with an ambiance of Japan and explore the spirit behind the ceremony.
The art of flower arranging, Ikebana is said to have originated from early Buddhist flower offerings. Also known as kado, or the “way of flowers,” Ikebana is intertwined with manners and etiquettes, and has over time established itself as a unique Japanese art. Nowadays Ikebana has been divided into many schools with each one differing in their ways of presenting flowers. What differentiates Ikebana from Western flower arrangement is that Ikebana considers how the arrangement looks from only one direction.
Although not much emphasis was placed on vases and low shallow containers in arranging flowers in its early stage, their role has grown very important over time, resulting in a close relationship with pottery. As presenting flowers strongly reflects Japanese cultural aesthetics, it would be interesting to compare it with Western aesthetics.
One of the most famous sushi restaurants in the world, Sushi Kyubei Ginza is known as a celebrated venue where Rosanjin, a renowned gourmet and potter, used to visit. Not to mention the impeccable quality of sushi, Sushi Kyubei Ginza offers you an opportunity to pamper yourself in Japanese aesthetics as it harmoniously combines meticulous designs with a traditional method of Japanese architecture.
Worth seeing in the restaurant are the art of sushi-making by the experienced chefs as can be seen in their skillful use of knives, and artistically presented suhi materials. You will surely enjoy every aspect of your dining experience from the quality of sushi, its presentation and well-mannered and friendly chefs.
A gourmet sushi restaurant, Matsumoto is situated in the posh and bustling Gion district. You can sample delectable Edomaezushi, the most typical form of hand-formed sushi that originates in Edo, the former name of Tokyo, in the 18th century. Trained himself at one of the most renowned sushi bars in Shinbashi in Tokyo, the chef opened his own shop in Kyoto when he was just 32. You are sure to be impressed by the harmony of moderately vinegared rice perfectly blending with rice in your mouth.