Category Archives: ROW

ROW

July 2 – July 8, 2018

09/07/2018 admin Leave a comment

Sydney (2) – 3150 km (by air)

Traditional Territory of the Gadigal People

During the 4 1/2 hour flight from Darwin we had a stimulating and enjoyable conversation with a young man sitting beside us who was reading (and expounding on) the book, “Thinking Fast and Slow”, by Daniel Kahneman.

We arrived back in Sydney to relatively warm and sunny weather, much milder than it had been before we left. This temperature, around 18 degrees, we are told is more the norm for this time of year.

Our friend Isabel had offered us the use of her apartment while she was away, which we were pleased to accept. We were greeted at the building by Isabel’s friend Helena, with the keys and some homemade soup! 99 Bikes, which we can highly recommend, was close by. Lois wanted new cycle shoes, got helpful advice and the pair she ordered arrived the following day. She also got an adjustable handlebar fitting which one of the workers offered to install, while Paul had one of his disk brake rotors straightened. Everyone was very friendly and accommodating.

Before we had left for Uluru, we had reserved tickets for a performance of “Lucia di Lammermoor” by Donizetti, at the Sydney Opera House. We did not know the opera but it is a great, tragic story, based on one of Sir Walter Scott’s Waverley Novels. The star was surely Jessica Pratt as Lucia, one of the world’s top sopranos. She was born in the UK, but is now Australian and better known in Italy than here, and in fact was only now making her Australian debut. The concert hall is named after Joan Sutherland who was famous for her performances of the same role. The “mad scene” is and was memorable. The tenor Michael Fabiano, playing Edgardo, came a close second.

We did have another issue concerning our bike bags! We had planned to use DHL again, to deliver our bags to Brisbane and hold them until we get there. In preparation, we purchased some corrugated cardboard and packing tape to wrap up the bags from Kennards Self Storage, across the street from Isabel’s apartment. The day before DHL was to pick up the bags, we happened to discover that they do not have a “vacation hold” option in Australia and could only hold the bags for 2 days! We were now at the point of questioning whether we should abandon our bags! However, calmer minds prevailed and we decided to see whether Kennard’s might have some ideas. Indeed, they advised us that we could keep our bags in storage there while we were cycling (for only $47) and that we could arrange for them to picked up there. At their suggestion, we contacted “Pack & Send”. They will collect the bags from the storage locker (we share the combination lock number with them), wrap them and send them to Brisbane when we need them, for a third of DHL’s estimate!

On Friday, we cycled around the harbour and across the city to check back into Mrs. Banks hotel in Paddington. It was a bit of a shock to have to navigate through traffic and crowded sidewalks which are shared with pedestrians! Helen and Wayne arrived from Canada that evening via the UK and Dubai and we missed them when we went to meet them at the airport!

We spent the weekend talking, eating and drinking and doing a little sightseeing, including a trip out to Bondi beach, that stretch of white sand famous for surfing. The waves were not high but there were still many wetsuit-clad surfers out in the breakers, braving the brisk cool wind. On Sunday, we went to Barangaroo for a showcase of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander skills and traditions, as part of the national wide NAIDOC week which celebrates the history, culture and achievements of indigenous people. This years theme celebrates the essential role that women have played – and continue to play – as active and significant role models at the community, local, state and national levels. There were cooking demonstrations, workshops for basket weaving and shell making jewellery, plus shadow puppet making for children. It was very well attended and there was a relaxed, joyful feel about the event. We walked back to Circular Key through the revitalised waterfront and under the Harbour Bridge.

ROW

June 28 – July 1, 2018

08/07/2018 admin Leave a comment

Kakadu – 1107 km (by car)

Traditional owners:

– Kakadu, the Baninji and the Mungguy People

– Katherine, the Jawoyn People

We picked up our rental car, stopped at Aboriginal Bush Traders for takeout espresso and latte, then headed south on the Stuart and Arnhem Highways to Kakadu National Park, approximately 150 kms. We were booked to spend the first night at the indigenous-owned Mercure Kakadu Crocodile Hotel, built in the shape of a crocodile. The design reflects the crocodile’s cultural significance to the local Gagudju people.

Established in 1979, Kakadu National Park is UNESCO designated as a “living cultural landscape with exceptional natural and cultural values”. The park is large, at almost 20,000 sq kms, with an abundance of cultural and natural treasures. We were excited to view numerous examples of elaborate rock paintings, thousands of years old, depicting spirits and stories of creation, humans, fish, animals and plants. The rocky outcrops at Ubirr are especially rich in images. We listened to a talk about the rock images by a knowledgeable young park ranger. Watching the sun set over the Nadab Plain from atop these hills was very special. Around the area of Nourlangie Rock at the base of the Kakadu Escarpment we found more rock paintings with references to creation stories.

There were many birds sighted as well as a number of large Esturine Crocodiles on a lovely early morning cruise on the Yellow Water. We were warned to keep our arms inside the boat! The largest croc we came across was more than 4 metres long.

Again, we heard about the impact from feral or invasive species. Water buffalo were brought from Timor in the mid 1800’s to be raised for leather and horns, but were soon abandoned by British settlers when the venture proved unsuccessful. Overgrazing and trampling resulted in extensive damage to vegetation, river banks and flood plains before extensive culling took place, mainly to eradicate bovine tuberculosis.

The Warradjan Aboriginal Cultural Centre, named after Warradjan, the pig nosed turtle, provided an interesting history of the area and an in-depth description of the life and experience of indigenous people before and after colonization. As with Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, title to the land on which Kakadu Park is situated was transferred to the original inhabitants, the Bininj in the north and Mungguy in the south, and leased back to the federal government. The resorts that we stayed in are owned and controlled by the indigenous owners. This is also true of the Nitmiluk National Park, where we went on a boat tour of Katherine Gorge. There, we saw the smaller and less agressive freshwater crocodiles.

On our drive through the dry parkland savanna, there was little wildlife seen, apart from one wallaby (viewed by Paul only), some feral horses, one feral pig and lots of roadkill. Paul’s list of Australian birds has reached 50!

We arrived back in Darwin in time to catch the (Northern) Territory Day festivities taking place on Mindel Beach. As this (July 1) was also Canada Day for us, we had a dual celebration! This year marks the 40th anniversary of self-government for the NT. We wandered through the extensive and very crowded Mindel Beach Sunset Market of craft stalls and food vendors offering a dizzying array of international cuisine. Choosing fish tacos and fresh juices, we joined many others on the beach listening to bands and as the sun set on the Timor sea. The official fireworks were long and spectacular – apparently 300 tonnes worth! – and unofficial fireworks continued to be lit late into the night. The purchase and use of fireworks in the Northern Territory is only permitted on July 1 and is the only jurisdiction in Australia where it is legal to buy fireworks!

Cahill’s Crossing – note croc on the road!

ROW

June 26 – June 27, 2016

07/07/2018 admin Leave a comment

Darwin (1635 km by air)

Darwin is the ancestral territory of the Larrakia people.

It was a crisp -2 in the desert this morning!

We missed our connection to Darwin as the plane that would have dropped us in Alice Springs hit a bird leaving Cairns. We eventually left Uluru, but then had a 5-hour wait in Alice Springs. Reluctant to spend 60 AUD to take the shuttle downtown and after reading a less than encouraging Lonely Planet review, we read and blogged in the airport instead.

The warm and humid evening air that welcomed us in Darwin reminded us that we were back in the tropics. Year round the temperature fluctuates only between the low 20’s and mid-30’s, although the area is susceptible to cyclone activity in the wet season and heavy monsoonal downpours. Since it’s establishment as a small settlement in 1869, Darwin has been almost entirely rebuilt four times, following devastation caused by the 1897 cyclone, the 1937 cyclone, Japanese air raids during World War II, and Cyclone Tracy in 1974.

Our hotel looked out over the Beagle Gulf, which leads to the Timor Sea. Our first stop the next morning was at the Aboriginal Bush Traders Cafe. Run by local Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, the cafe is in Lyons Cottage, a residence built in 1925 to house executives of the British Telegraph Company and their families. Our breakfast was good espresso, granola and “damper” or baking powder bread. The sweet version was accompanied by local wild peach jam, and the savoury, made with bush dukkah, was served with pickle from local produce. A good example of “bush tucker”! We spent some time admiring the products from artists and community arts centres sold in the adjoining shop.

After making use of the local laundromat where we also chatted with our Victoria family on FaceTime, we headed to the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory. « Defying Empire: 3rd National Indigenous Art Triennial » showed the works of 30 contemporary Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander artists from across the country. The powerful multi-media exhibition, which commemorates the 50th anniversary of the 1967 Referendum that recognised Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as Australians for the first time, deals with issues of identity, racism, displacement, country, nuclear testing, sovereignty and the stolen generations.

Two quite different exhibits detail the devastation of the WWII bombings and Cyclone Tracy. Franck Gohier is a French-born “pop” artist based in Darwin whose colourful works referenced political and social justice issues, such as the WWII attacks as well as the treatment of indigenous people.

We were surprised to learn that, after Japan entered WWII in December 1941, the NT became Australia’s front line. Japanese submarines sank one ship off Darwin the following January and on February 19, 1942 Japan launched the first of 64 air raids, killing more than 230 people. These attacks continued across northern Australia until late 1943 as we discovered later when we drove through Adelaide River, which served as a base for the large allied force based in Northern Australia to counter the Japanese offensive. We also learned there that a group from the Royal Canadian Corps of Signals arrived in Darwin in April 1945. One of their member died of encephalitis and is buried in the Adelaide River War Cemetery.

The story of Cyclone Tracy must still reside within recent memory for many residents. The interactive displays of the city before and after, news footage and a remarkable recording of the sounds during the storm, are riveting. Cyclone Tracy was devastating. Wikipedia recounts that “Tracy killed 71 people and caused more than the equivalent of $4.94 billion 2014 USD of damage. It destroyed more than 70 percent of Darwin’s buildings, including 80 percent of houses, left more than 25,000 out of the 47,000 inhabitants of the city homeless and required the evacuation of over 30,000 people”, Very few of the original style of wooden buildings, on stilts, now remain.

Later, we had dinner at Yot’s Greek Taverna on the waterfront boardwalk at Cullen Bay, enjoyed a leisurely walk back to the centre, and ended up at an empty cinema watching Steve Coogan and Paul Rudd in « Ideal Home ». We were surprised to find that the tickets were twice what we would have paid in Victoria! Good popcorn, though!

Myilly Point – former Magistrate’s House

ROW

June 23 – 25, 2018

03/07/2018 admin 4 Comments

Uluru and Kata Tjuta – 2180 km (by air)

Traditional territory of the Anangu

The question of what to see in a short time in Australia is daunting. Like Canada, the vastness and diversity of the country make for some tough choices. Even our planned cycle route from Sydney to Brisbane will cover only a small fraction of this island continent. In the end, we decided there were two places we did not want to miss: the “top end” and the “red centre”. With the assistance of Flight Centre, we booked a trip to Uluru and Darwin.

The massive arkose sandstone rock of Uluru, located in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park, is as familiar an Australian image as the Sydney Opera House or the Great Barrier Reef. As with any trips to view such famous landmarks, we wondered if the experience would live up to its billing (and justify flying 1/2 way across the country). We needn’t have worried.

The unique rock formations of Uluru (previously called Ayers Rock) and nearby Kata Tjuta (also known as Mt. Olga or the Olgas) have plenty of pull. Quite apart from their interesting geological origins, these ancient giants radiate a force, palpable as we approached and hiked their bases. One of the biggest draws, and a highlight for us, is to witness the colours change at dawn and sunset, when the rocks glow a deep orangey red. For the Anangu people, who have occupied this part of central Australia for more than 30,000 years, Uluru and Kata Tjuta are sacred, featuring prominently in their creation myths, some of which are depicted in a number of stunning rock paintings. Both sites contain numerous “sensitive areas”, including caves, rock paintings and unusual rock formations, where photography is prohibited.

The unique rock formations resulted from shifting tectonic plates pushing up a river bed (conglomerate) -Kata Tjuta – and an alluvial fan (sedimentary) – Uluru, which had been compressed and baked, around 550 million years ago. The sedimentary layers of Uluru are at an angle of nearly 90 degrees, creating an inselberg. It is estimated that the bulk of the rock formations lays below ground. Very little vegetation is apparent on the surface, apart from black algae where waterfalls appear during the rains. The formations are listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

In 1985, a land settlement agreement returned title to the land of Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park to the Anangu, in exchange for a 99-year lease back to the federal government for the purpose of continuing to administer the park. The park is co-managed by the Anangu and government through a board, on which the Anangu have 8 of the 12 seats; 4 occupied by Anangu men and 4 by Anangu women. The Anangu receive 25% percent of the park entry fees and 7% of the “royalties” from the Ayers Rock Resort (Yulara), a purpose built resort commmnity just outside the park, run by a subsidiary of the Indigenous Land Corporation, a federal agency. An agreement originally made between the Anangu and Prime Minister Bob Hawke that the climb to the top of Uluru by tourists would be stopped was later broken. It has now been agreed that climbing on Uluru will no longer be permitted from October 2019.

We were curious about the extent to which the Anangu were benefitting economically from the huge number of tourists the park attracts. We were told that there has been a significant increase in the number of indigenous people employed by the Resort and a number of the Park Rangers are indigenous, through trainjng programs under the ILC, National Indigenous Training Academy. The Kulata Academy Cafe (where we had great espresso) provides training for Aboriginal Australians in the food service industry. However, we saw only two trainee guides at the museum, and none of the staff working for the largest tour company, AAT Kings, appeared to be indigenous. We read that the local Anangu community of Mutitjulu had protested before a Northern Territory commission into juvenile justice in 2016 that the NT and federal governments have neglected their community and that children are denied basic housing, plumbing, food and healthcare. “The oldest living culture in the world has been kicked to the curb by the government,” stated traditional owner Rameth Thomas. Our hotel encouraged donations to the Mutitjulu Foundation, but we were surprised to see that the funds helped support local women to go to Alice Springs (the nearest town, 465 km southwest) for health screening, something we would have expected to be funded by government.

A tour of the Wintjiri Museum provided a good introduction to the history of the park and its flora and fauna. We also saw a demonstration of “bush tucker” – local plants and seeds – and its traditional uses by the Anangu. This included a sampling of delicious butter shortbread made with wattleseeds. The ciabatta we enjoyed later at dinner was accompanied by “dukka”, in this case a paste of lemon myrtle, macadamia nuts and wattleseed. We passed up the “free range” kangaroo steaks!

There were some bird sightings, although fewer than we had expected. Unfortunately, no emus or mammals were to be seen. A guide informed us that feral cats are a real threat to bird life throughout Australia. According to a fellow tourist from Sydney, areas in that city now fenced off from feral cats have become avian havens. Rabbits, foxes and camels are other invasive animal species, which have had a detrimental affect on indigenous plants and animals. Even the dingo was introduced into Australia, albeit 4000 years ago, becoming a predator of the now extinct Tasmanian tiger. Tasmanian Buffel grass, an example of an invasive plant species introduced 50 years ago to control erosion and for “pastoral purposes”, is wiping out native plants and threatening endangered animals in the park.

ROW

June 15 – 22, 2018

25/06/2018 admin 2 Comments

To Sydney – 9172 km by air

The Gadigal of the Eora Nation are the traditional custodians of the place now called Sydney

What a privilege it has been to travel and cycle in South Korea and Japan, if only to barely touch the surface of these ancient, fascinating and gracious countries. Having a family connection to Korea added a wonderful new dimension to our experience, for which we are so grateful. We look forward to returning, perhaps with our grandchildren?

A taxi van took us and our repacked bikes the 97 kms to Kansai airport, where again we had to go through a challenging check-in! Never before have the bike bags been measured and weighed, resulting in overweight charges. We were able to reduce the extra fees in part by carrying on Lois’ panniers, after frantically transferring various liquids and other toiletries to one of the bike bags. Fortunately, the Asiana staff person was very accommodating. At the last moment, she came running after us asking if we had any lithium batteries in our checked baggage. The answer was yes, which required a bit more un- and re-packing! The transfer in Seoul was tight, but OK, and we settled in for the overnight flight across the Pacific Ocean and Papua New Guinea to Sydney, the farthest south we will have been in the Southern Hemisphere. Our plan is to use Sydney as a base for a few weeks while we wait for our friends Helen and Wayne to arrive from Canada. Wayne will cycle the Sydney to Brisbane leg with us.

We arrived on a beautiful sunny morning, easing the transition from northern summer to southern winter. After our bikes were checked by quarantine officers to make sure we were not bringing in any soil on our tires, we went in search of Aussie espressos. At our VRBO on Karraba Point, we were welcomed by some Sulphur-crested Cockatoos perched on the balcony railing!

While the apartment was bright and modern, with a good view of Sydney Harbour, we soon realized it was quite a hike through hilly residential North Sydney to get to the ferry terminals or any cafes or restaurants. It was also draughty and cold, particularly when the weather suddenly turned decidedly more wintry, with the wind whipping up the sea and the rain streaming down across the water. After several days of returning to a chilly apartment, we cut our losses and moved to a (much warmer) boutique hotel in Paddington.

We did discover good espresso at Thelma and Louise, next to the ferry at Neutral Bay, our way over to the city. We got our first sighting of the iconic Sydney Opera and the Sydney Harbour Bridge when the ferry rounded Kirribilli. We saw people on the climb up over the bridge, but decided that the view from below was good enough.

We were pleased to find that our friend, Isabel, whom we had met in New Zealand, would be in town for a few more days before leaving for an extended trip to London and Geneva. We were able to catch up over a couple of afternoons, enjoying a long walk around Rozelle and Blackwattle Bays and dinner in Annandale. Isabel was very gracious in inviting us to stay at her apartment after we return from the Northern Territory and for allowing our bikes to be stored on her balcony.

Counted as one of the world’s great international cities, Sydney has stunning natural beauty with its famous harbour views, great architecture, superb restaurants, world class galleries and shopping and interesting walkable neighbourhoods. The older gentrified neighbourhoods have preserved attractive Victorian or Edwardian terraced houses, many of which have decorative cast iron railings and ornament, built in the “Filigree” style.

A tour of the permanent collection of the Museum of Contemporary Art gave us a very good introduction to some prominent Australian artists. A very knowledgeable guide concentrated the tour on indigenous art. Her interpretation of the pieces, together with the context of the history of colonization was important to hear.

While the food everywhere has been excellent, two restaurants deserving of particular mention are Tequila Mockingbird and Mejico, offering a sophisticated new twist on Latin American cuisine.

Espresso notes: Good espresso is not hard to come by in Sydney, but of special mention is Campos, served at Thelma and Louise, which was exceptional: 9.0/ 10 & Paddington Grind Raging Bull: 8.9/ 10.

Lois, Isabel, the ANZAC and Harbour Bridges

ROW

Parkinson’s Disease Research in Japan

24/06/2018 admin Leave a comment

Notes on PD research in Japan

The prevalence of PD in Asian countries was assessed as being slightly lower than in “Western countries “ but, with considerable variation in the reported prevalence and incidence of PD, this difference may not be real.

Systematic Review of the Prevalence and Incidence of Parkinson’s Disease in Asia https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/6830454/

In a study in Japan it was concluded that the prevalence of PD had increased but primarily because the population had aged. Differences in prevalence between adjacent areas of the country may have resulted from differences in the methods of investigation.

Changes in prevalence and incidence of Parkinson’s disease in Japan during a quarter of a century https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/19209006/

In relation to physical activity, in one study Public Health Nurses visited, and followed up for more than one year, 438 patients with Parkinson’s disease living in Osaka. The follow-up period averaged 4.1 years, during which 71 deaths were observed. Compared with the exercising group, the non-exercising patients had a hazard ratio of 1.83. That is, in this time frame the mortality experience of those not exercising was much greater.

Effect of physical exercise on mortality in patients with Parkinson’s disease. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/1519475/?i=213&from=parkinson%27s%20disease%20japan%20rehabilitation

An interesting rehabilitation approach involved “mental singing” where patients suffering from mild to moderate PD underwent a structured music therapy session in which they were trained to walk while singing in their heads. The patients were trained in 7 progressive tasks, with a final goal of walking while mentally singing. Follow-up interviews with the patients indicated that the persons studied, effectively utilized mental singing while walking in their daily lives. The authors noted that the tasks were simple, required no special tools, and could be utilized anytime and anyplace.

Training in mental singing while walking improves gait disturbance in Parkinson’s disease patients. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4242936/#!po=71.5909

The effectiveness of exercise at home was evaluated in another publication. A 2-month home exercise intervention consisting of self-administered exercise by patients (self-exercise), and home visit exercise therapy guided by a physical therapist (home visit exercise), was conducted in 10 home care patients with PD to compare changes in physical function, activities of daily living, and postural status between before and after the intervention. The researchers concluded that guidance in home exercise in home care patients with PD can be effective in making self-exercise a habit, improving range of motion and muscle strength, and reducing the time spent in a supine position.

Effects of Home Exercise on Physical Function and Activity in Home Care Patients with Parkinson’s Disease https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5248606/#__ffn_sectitle

Inpatient rehabilitation was assessed in another piece of work. The conclusion reached was that intensive inpatient rehabilitation was effective even in advanced Parkinson’s disease and that intensive inpatient rehabilitation, together with home and day‐care exercise, might counteract the progressive motor decline in Parkinson’s disease.

Therapeutic effects of intensive inpatient rehabilitation in advanced Parkinson’s disease Yumiko Kaseda, Junko Ikeda, […], and Masayasu Matsumoto https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5248606/#__ffn_sectitle

We could only review articles in English. In looking at the literature on PD in Japan and news reports, the greatest effort seems to be related to drug therapy and surgery.

ROW

June 12-14, 2018 – Days Off

22/06/2018 admin 2 Comments

Kyoto

Earthquake: two days after we left Kyoto and flew from Osaka, a 6.1 earthquake hit Osaka, killing 3 people and injuring more than 100, damaging buildings and infrastructure. The quake was felt in Kyoto.

One of Japan’s best preserved cities, Kyoto was the imperial capital of Japan for over 1000 years until 1869 and continues to display a stately and elegant calm. Described in the Lonely Planet as “old Japan writ large: quiet temples, sublime gardens, colourful shrines and geisha scurrying to secret liaisons”, Kyoto is surpassed only by Rome in its number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites (17), with more than 1000 Buddhist temples and over 400 Shintō shrines. It is also a highly walkable city, with no end of interesting streets, shops, restaurants and cafes.

The city suffered extensive destruction in the Ōnin War of 1467–1477, and did not really recover until the mid-16th century. In the late 16th century, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (to whom we referred previously in relation to the Bunraku performance) reconstructed the city by building new streets to double the number of north-south streets in central Kyoto, creating rectangle blocks superseding ancient square blocks. Throughout the Edo period, the economy of the city flourished as one of three major cities in Japan, the others being Osaka and Edo. It is now part of the huge Kobe-Osaka-Kyoto metropolis of 20 million people.

Three days was too short a time in this historic city and certainly not long enough to see more than a fraction of its cultural riches. With the aid of our trusty Lonely Planet guide, we narrowed the choice to a manageable number, interspersed with ice-cream and tea breaks and browsing in high end shops selling traditional crafts such as Kyoto pottery, lacquerware, folding fans, jewelry, kimonos, dolls and wood block prints. A number of shops offer kimono rental for the day, for those who wish to visit the temples or simply stroll around the city in traditional clothing.

Day 1

Our first visit was to the Kiyomizu-dera Temple, a famous landmark of the city. Said to represent the “favoured expression of faith in Japan”, Kiyomizu-dera Temple was first built in 798, but the present buildings are reconstructions dating from 1633. As an affiliate of the Hossō school of Buddhism, which originated in Nara, the temple has successfully survived the many intrigues of local Kyoto schools of Buddhism through the centuries. The Main Hall (Hondō), which is under renovation, has a huge verandah jutting out over the hillside, supported by pillars. Just below this hall is the waterfall Otowa-no-taki, where visitors drink sacred waters believed to bestow health and longevity. Before we explored the actual temple precincts, we experienced the Tainai-meguri, a space representing the womb of a female Bodhisattva. Holding onto a rope, you walk down a passage in absolute darkness, symbolically entering the “womb”. In the middle you arrive at a source of faint light drawing your attention to a stone engraved with a sacred symbol. Touching the stone is meant to give you good luck. As you emerge back into the sunshine outside, the Tainai-meguri is supposed to give you a feeling of being reborn. Although we didn’t necessarily feel reborn, it was a rather moving experience, a surprise for normally claustrophobic Lois!

The exquisite Kodai-ji Temple was founded in 1605 by Kita-no-Mandokoro in memory of her late husband, Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The extensive grounds include gardens designed by the famed landscape architect Kobori Enshū, and teahouses designed by the renowned master of the tea ceremony, Sen no Rikyū.

Kennin-ji was founded in 1202 by the monk Eisai, and is the oldest Zen temple in Kyoto. The highlight at Kennin-ji is the fine and expansive dry landscape (kare-sansui) The painting of the twin dragons on the roof of the Hōdō hall is also fantastic. Created by Koizumi Junsaku in 2002, the work commemorates the 800-year anniversary of Kenninji’s founding. The painting, which measures 11.4m by 15.7m (the size of 108 tatami mats), is drawn with the finest quality ink on thick traditional Japanese paper. It was created in the gymnasium of an elementary school in Hokkaido and took the artist just under two years to complete.

Day 2

Kyoto’s famed ‘Golden Pavilion’, Kinkaku-ji is one of Japan’s best-known sights. The main hall, covered in brilliant gold leaf shining above its reflecting pond is truly spectacular.

The original building was built in 1397 as a retirement villa for shogun Ashikaga Yoshim- itsu and later converted into a temple by his son. In 1950, a young monk consummated his obsession with the temple by burning it to the ground! The monk’s story was fictionalised in Mishima Yukio’s, The Golden Pavilion. In 1955, a full reconstruction was completed following the original design except that the gold-foil covering was extended to the lower floors.

We then walked to Ryoanji Temple and its Stone Garden, one of the symbols of Kyoto. Founded in 1450, Ryōan-ji belongs to the Rinzai school.The garden, an oblong of raked sand with an austere collection of 15 carefully placed rocks, apparently adrift in a sea of sand, is enclosed by an earthen wall. The designer, who remains unknown to this day, provided no explanation. Although many historians believe the garden was arranged by Sōami during the Muromachi period (1333–1568), some contend that it is a much later product of the Edo period. It is Japan’s most famous hira-niwa (a flat garden void of hills or ponds) and reveals the simplicity and harmony of the principles of Zen meditation.

Day 3

Chiron-In Temple is “a collection of soaring buildings and spacious courtyards” which serves as the headquarters of the Jōdo sect, the largest school of Buddhism in Japan. Chion-in was established in 1234 on the site where Hōnen, one of the most famous figures in Japanese Buddhism, taught his brand of Buddhism (Jōdo, or Pure Land, Buddhism). He eventually fasted to death.

The oldest of the existing buildings date to the 17th century, with the two-storey Sanmon temple gate, the largest in Japan. A sanmon or sangedatsumon (lit. “gate of the three liberations) is the most important gate of a Japanese Zen Buddhist temple. Up a flight of steps southeast of the main hall is the temple’s giant bell, cast in 1633 and weighing 70 tonnes. It is the largest bell in Japan and is rung by the temple’s monks 108 times each New Year’s Eve.

We walked along the pleasant Path of Philosophy or Tetsugaku-no-Michi. Lined with a great variety of flowering plants, bushes and trees, it is a corridor of colour or intense greenery throughout most of the year.

At the entrance to Nanzenji Temple stands another massive Sanmon. Steps lead up to the 2nd storey, which has a great view over the city.

To round off our short stay in Kyoto, we attended an ancient tea ceremony at Camellia, an old Japanese house just off Ninen-zaka. The Japanese tea ceremony has many names in Japanese: Chanoyu, sado or ocha. It has a long history of a thousand years and has ties to the tea traders in China. Japanese monks first brought back tea leaves during the Chinese Tang dynasty (618 – 907 AD) and only used them in their temples for religious services. A priest called Myoan Eisai spread the belief that green tea could be used for medicine and by drinking it regularly you were ensured good health. Samurai in particular followed this practice and spread its popularity. Later, Sen no Rikyu, called the father of the tea ceremony, added more significance and rituals by making powdered tea (matcha) so others could enjoy it. His focus on aesthetics became well known and heavily influences the tea ceremony that we know today. The ceremony was explained in English and then performed simply and elegantly by the host. As the first guest to enter the room, Lois was presented with the ceremonial cup of matcha. We were then each given a cup and a bamboo whisk to make our own cups of frothy matcha.

Coffee Notes:

Arabica Kyoto Higashiyama – Coffee (Macchiato 8.25/ 10)Onibus beans: blend of Brazil Guatemala Ethiopia at Cafe Len (9/ 10)

ROW

June 11, 2018 – Day 99

14/06/2018 admin Leave a comment

Osaka to Kyoto (49 km by bike)

We took the cycle path described on the
Cyclekyoto.com website, which essentially follows the banks of the Yodo and Katsura rivers to Kyoto. While It was not that easy to follow in places and the dozen or so motorcycle barriers were tedious to get through, overall it was a pleasant, quiet and easy ride. When we lost the trail near Kyoto, we conveniently came across a bakery! We met another bicycle tourer repairing a puncture, a Ukrainian living in Germany who had been cycling around Japan for five weeks. He observed that the path that we were on was the best that he had come across. Even on secondary roads he had found the traffic very heavy, similar to our experience.

The Garmin surprised us by directing us to our hotel (Sunroute) through attractive narrow streets, which was a good introduction to the city! We had an excellent meal in a Lonely Planet recommended tofu restaurant, Tousuiro, one of the many dishes of which was their specialty, cold oboro tofu.

Tofu and green peas in shape of a maple leaf; blue cherry tomato and vinegar

Fried tofu in sweet and spicy sauce with rice

ROW

June 10 – Day Off

13/06/2018 admin Leave a comment

Osaka

We had our morning espresso at Bogart’s, looking out on one of the canals and listening to recordings of familiar songs sung Hawaiian style, accompanied by a ukulele!

We spent the morning at the National Museum of Art, viewing an excellent exhibition, “The Myriad Forms of Visual Art”, comprising 196 works from the collection presented in 19 themes. In addition to many Japanese artists (almost all new to us), including Jiro Takamatsu, there were works by Moore, Warhol, Picasso, Ernst, Newman, Giacometti, and Lichtenstein (his “Water Lilies with Japanese Bridge” is wonderful), among others.

The afternoon was devoted to an introduction to Bunraku, a sophisticated form of traditional Japanese puppet theatre founded in Osaka in the beginning of 17th century. Bunraku, like Kabuki, often depict stories based on adaptations of scripts with similar themes. Classic tragic love stories, heroic legends and tales based on historical events are popular. The show at the National Bunraku Theatre was billed as a performance for beginners and included an introduction to the almost life-size puppets and the work of the puppeteers. All but the most minor characters require three puppeteers, who perform in full view of the audience, generally wearing black robes. In the National Bunraku Theatre, the main puppeteer, omozukai, is unhooded. Bunraku synchronizes narrative recitation, shamisen music and puppetry in performance. The chanter or “Tayu” and the shamisen player are off to one side. The Tayu chants and sings the story and also voices the puppet characters, changing his speech and intonation to express different genders, ages, and social ranking. The theatre had a revolving platform for the chanter and shamisen player, which rotated bringing replacement musicians for the next scene.

We had been informed that there would be no English audio guide, but the program précis helped enough for us to get a sense of the proceedings. The main performance dramatized an incident in the late 16th century in which the samurai and general Akechi Mitsuhide overthrew his lord, Oda Nobunaga, and then is himself struck down. The performances were incredible and the ranges of emotion expressed, astounding. The shamisen player complemented the narrator precisely. Surprisingly, you get pulled into the performance on stage and almost forget about the chanter.

In Osaka, regular performances in July and August start at 11am and are in three parts ending around 8:40 pm!

ROW

June 9, 2018 – Day 98

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Hyogo (Kobe) to Osaka (35 km by bike)

Kobe and Osaka are one large conurbation and the best route we could find was to follow National Route #2 all the way. This is a busy road, but because it goes through a built up area, sidewalks are continuous. Even though we were separated from the vehicular traffic, we still had to contend with multiple stop lights, pedestrians and other cyclists, which made progress slow and tiring. At one large intersection, there were no lights or crosswalks but there was a subway with elevators!

Leaving the route to look for a coffee/ pastry shop open on a Saturday morning, we instead found Caracol, a charming tea shop with great scones. Later, Paul pulled up on the sidewalk for a drink of water. Glancing at the shop beside him, he saw it was an optician and there in the display window were pairs of Clic reading glasses. Paul’s current pair, bought in France in 2014, and which had been repaired once already by Chris with glue, were now being held together by electrical tape: serendipity indeed!

ROW

June 8, 2018 – Day 97

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Himeji to Hyogo (Kobe) – 59 km (bike)

A “breakfast set” which is frequently available in cafes includes one or two eggs, usually boiled, but occasionally poached, a thick slice of toasted white bread, a small salad and coffee (or, this morning, good espresso and latte.)

The first section of the route recommended by the Japan Cycling website, was primarily a sidewalk/ bike trail beneath the Sanyo Shinkansen tracks. Running near industrial sites along the shore, it was useful but not particularly pretty! Later, the route joined a much more scenic path along the seaside into Akashi. Light rain continued for much of the ride (the thunderstorm came later in the evening) and it was warm. After Akashi, we rode on sidewalks alongside National Route #2 into Hyogo, a suburb of Kobe.

Dinner was excellent! We found a French restaurant with a young Japanese chef/owner trained in Orleans. He spoke little English, but some French, and so we managed well together. He was really accommodating and designed a meatless menu for us – marinaded salmon, green salad, potato soup, pan fried bream and café gourmand, with very good decaf espresso. As seems to be the custom, the owner waved goodbye to us from the doorway when we left.

In 1995, Hyogo, the prefecture of Kobe, suffered a 6.9 earthquake which caused 6400 deaths and a great deal of structural damage. High rise buildings constructed after new codes were introduced in the 1980’s survived intact, but older traditional wooden houses with heavy tiled roofs, built to withstand typhoons, collapsed. The UN Hyogo Framework for Action, which came out of a meeting in 2005, is designed to build resilience of nations and communities to disasters.

ROW

June 7, 2018 – Day 96

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Tonosho to Himeji (33 km bike and 47 km ferry)

Soon after leaving Tonosho, we stopped at “Mother’s” again for brewed coffee, toast and that very good orange spread. The ride from there to Fukuda was great, although increasingly hilly around the coast (except for one long tunnel with a separate bike lane), which meant we would be cutting it close to make the planned 11:40 ferry. This wasn’t a problem, as the ferries run every two hours, but, of course, it became a challenge! A couple of kilometres from Fukuda, we decided that we had missed that sailing, but as we rounded the last corner and sped down towards the harbour, the boat was still there. We motioned that we wanted to board and Paul ran to get tickets, with 3 minutes to go before departure! After we cleared the ramp, it was raised and we left! It was a pleasant 1 hr 40min ride to Himeji and then an easy 6 km bike to our hotel.

The main reason for staying in Himeji was to see Himeji Castle. Himeji-jo, the largest and most visited castle in Japan, is regarded as the finest surviving example of prototypical Japanese castle architecture. It was registered in 1993 as one of the first UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the country. The castle is frequently known as Hakuro-jō or Shirasagi-jō (“White Egret Castle” or “White Heron Castle”) because of its brilliant white exterior and supposed resemblance to a bird taking flight.

The original castle was built in 1346, replacing an earlier fort built on Himeyama hill. Significantly remodelled as Himeji-Jo by the regent Toyotomi Hideyoshi in the late 16th C, the castle was an important part of a network of feudal fortresses created throughout Japan to ensure the kingdom’s continued unification. Between 1601 and 1609, Ikeda Terumas demolished and completely rebuilt and expanded the castle and added three moats. Unlike many other feudal castles in Japan, Himeji-jo was preserved to the present in its original form.

The most impressive aspect is the wooden construction, built on top of stone foundations. The castle was extensively restored in the 20th C, owing to some subsidence from the 6000 tonnes (6 million kg) structure. We climbed (carrying our shoes as required) five storeys to the top from where there is a commanding view of the city.

Wildlife Note: wild monkeys crossed our path and barked at us on the road near Fukuda.

ROW

June 5th, 2018 – Day 95 and June 6th – Day Off

10/06/2018 admin 2 Comments

Takakamatsu to Tonosho (Shodoshima)(15 km by bike & 26 km by ferry) (33 km by bike)

We had been encouraged to visit Shodoshima by Alix’s cousin, Andy, and it looked like it might be a fun place to cycle. It turned out to be a great choice (thanks, Andy!). Shodoshima is the second largest island in the Seto Inland Sea (and one of the first islands born to the gods in the creation myth of Japan). The name literally means “small bean island”, which apparently refers to the Azuki bean, but today would more fittingly refer to the soy bean as the island has traditionally been a producer of soy sauce. It is now is even better known for its olive plantations, introduced in 1910, the island’s Mediterranean climate making it an ideal place for growing olives.

Boarding the ferry for the hour long sailing to Shodoshima was a pleasure after our struggles on the trains. Our bikes were not only secured with wooden blocks behind the wheels, they were also carefully secured by ropes with protective cloths over the frames! This was all done for us, while we watched in admiration (and thoughts about frantically securing our bikes on BC ferries!)

We had booked a room at the ryokan Tanku Hotel Kairo, which we found perched on top of a hill. We appreciated the view later, if not the steep road up! The hotel was rigid about check-in time, so we dropped our bags and headed (back down) for lunch at a local ramen restaurant. The noodles and boiled egg were very good. We sat outside overlooking the sea and Angel Road, a string of small islands joined at low water by sand bars. After lunch, we walked along Angel Road just before the tide came in.

As the forecast for the next day was for rain, we decided to cycle a few kilometres out of Tonosho to Nakayama to visit the Lonely Planet recommended “thousand rice fields” – multiple terraced rice fields, irrigated by spring water and believed to have been built between the 14th and 17th centuries. There, we also discovered an active traditional thatched Kabuki theatre, one of only two surviving from the Edo era. Kabuki is classical stylized Japanese dance drama, but unlike major Kabuki shows, the actors, narrators, makeup artists and stage carpenters of the Shodoshima theatres are all local residents. In the costume storage house, 350 scripts and 720 costumes are stored and available for use.

Arriving back at the hotel, we discovered that dinner had to be reserved ahead of time. So, it was cheese and crackers again, plus some local green olives we had bought when we stopped for ice cream, which we ate on our tatami mat sitting area looking out over the sea.

It did rain the next day, but was limited to intermittent light showers so didn’t interfere with our sight-seeing. The Japanese rainy season, tsuyu, begins between the end of May and mid-June, depending on the region. On the way up to the Olive Garden another cycle tourer caught up with us. We had noticed him on the Shimanami Kaido, going in the other direction. He lives in Wellington, NZ and was on a two week vacation. Like us, he was taking advantage of ferries to avoid cycling on busy highways.

The Olive Garden is where the island’s olive growing activities are celebrated. Since the early 20th C Shodoshima has been a top producer of Japanese olives and olive oil, and has earned the nickname “Olive Island”. We left our bikes and wandered through the groves and took photos of play structures designed by Japanese American sculptor and landscape artist, Isamu Noguchi. The gift shop was replete with foods and other products made using olive oil. The olive chocolate was delicious!

On the way back, we stopped at The Style Shop Mother’s on another citrus fruit and olive farm. The restaurant served really wonderful freshly squeezed juice from local Hassaku oranges. It is a citrus hybrid, orange in colour but grapefruit in size. The taste was more bitter than an orange. In the shop, we sampled their olive oil, including a dressing blended with mandarin oranges. Unfortunately, they do not ship out of Japan!

In between the farm visits, we stopped in Sakate, where the air was heavy with the fragrance of soy sauce. At a small manufacturer, we sampled a local soy sauce on its own and one mixed with garlic olive oil. Then, we went on to the Marukin factory where there is an informative display about the 400 year-old history and production of soy sauce on the island. Finally, we had soft-served soy sauce ice cream, which is salty and surprisingly good. On the way back, we missed the turning where we had planned to also sample local plum ice cream!

Dinner at the hotel was another excellent multi-dish meal, served ryokan style, including rice with fish cooked in an iron pot at the table.

Paul is reading American anthropologist Ruth Benedict’s book, The Chrysanthemum and the Sword (a recommendation by Rory). Benedict’s study was commissioned by the U.S. government after WWII to aid in understanding Japanese actions both during and after the war. While it has been criticized by some as being too narrow and definitive, it remains a useful introduction to Japanese culture. Benedict describes the ethical code requiring extreme repayment of obligations and drastic renunciations. However, she observes that the Japanese consider physical pleasure good and worth of cultivation. “One of the best loved minor pleasures… is the hot bath”. Soaking in our separate (male and female) outdoor onsen, with the rain gently falling, we would agree!

ROW

June 3, 2018 – Day 94 & June 4 – Day Off

06/06/2018 admin Leave a comment

To Takamishu (140 km by train)

After the wonderful Shimanami Kaido, we were even more keen to avoid cycling on heavily trafficked roads, which ruled out riding across Shikoku or attempting to cycle to any of the 88 temples on the Shikoku Pilgrimage. Instead, we opted to take the train to Takamatsu, with a view to cycling on the island of Shodoshima. This, of course, meant spending a couple of hours at Imabari Station dismantling and packing up our bikes. We did a better job than last time fitting them into the Rinko bags, but still had to lug the bags and panniers into an elevator and onto the platform. Misunderstanding the instructions from the ticket collector, we were waiting at the wrong end of the platform and had to rush to the other end to get onto the right carriage after the conductor had blown the whistle to leave. While we jumped on with our bicycles and some panniers, the conductor loaded the other panniers on further down the train. After we departed, Lois went looking for the panniers and met the conductor bringing them to us. Paul was in the process of battling to get the bikes parked behind the back seats as instructed, but the conductor indicated he would put them in the corridor, much to our surprise. Obviously, on his train that was OK!

We spent a day in Takamatsu visiting what remains of the 16th C Takamatsu Castle and the Ritsurin-Kōen gardens. We chatted with our Victoria family on FaceTime while we were beside the castle’s surviving seawater moat, the site of an annual swimming race in honour of an age-old chivalrous tradition. The city’s light rail system took us to within 500 m of the Ritsurin-Kōen gardens, designed in the mid-1600’s as a strolling garden for the regional feudal lord. Said to be the among the most beautiful in all of Japan, the exquisite gardens feature lakes, bridges, islands, landscaped hills, tea rooms and pavilions, set amongst 1400 carefully trimmed black pine trees. We took tea in the Higurashi-tei which dates from 1898, sitting on tatami mats. (The 17th C Kikugetsu-tei tea house was closed). At the water source, two men were cleaning algae from the stones, in order maintain the pristine looking stream.

Returning to the hotel to reassemble our bikes, we then went for an early dinner at Ofukuro, a washofu (local eating house). Like a tapas bar, a number of prepared dishes were on the counter. We chose egg and tofu, deep-fried snapper, eggplant, and spinach, followed by rice and egg miso soup. Later, we relaxed (separately) in the hotel’s onsen and rotemburo (open-air bath) and (very hot) saunas.

ROW

June 1 & 2, 2018 – Days 92 & 93

05/06/2018 admin 1 Comment

Onomichi to Imabari (77 km over two days)

To Setoda:
Our friend Helen B sent us an article the other day from the May/June copy of I Fly Magazine, describing the Top 5 Bike Holidays. Two of them we had done: La Route Verte in Quebec (the section from Montreal to Rivière-du-Loup ) and Land’s End to John O’Groats in Britain. We can now tick off a third on the list, the Shimanami Kaido. It certainly ranks up there with the other two – the cycling was excellent, the scenery stunning, and the weather perfect.

The Shimanami Kaido is a 78 km bike route that winds across six islands in the Seto Inland Sea, between Honshu and Shikokū. The islands are connected by the Setouchi Shimanami, a chain of 7 enormous bridges (3 suspension bridges are among the longest in the world) linking Onomichi with Imabari. The recommended cycle route (there are other routes on the islands) is generally flat, apart from the long, gentle climbs up to the bridges, and can easily be done in a day. We decided to break it up and spend a night on the islands to extend the experience. There are also a number of interesting sites to visit along the route.

Cyclists are advised to avoid the first bridge, so after espressos and croissants at the Cycle Hotel, we boarded the small ferry that makes the 7 minute crossing between Onomichi and Mukouijima. The cycle route took us through quiet villages and larger industrial towns, past vistas of sandy beaches, islands, forested hills and citrus groves. The roads were quiet and usually had bikeable sidewalks. On the bridges, we cycled on dedicated cycle paths, although one of them was shared with motor scooters, which meant for one unnerving moment!

We stopped for a late morning ice cream (the sea salt and milk was very good) at Dolce, an obligatory stop for travellers, and then udon with shrimp in Setoda. In the afternoon, we visited the Hirayama Ikuo Museum of Art. Ikuo was a local painter who travelled widely, exploring the influences brought to Japan via the Silk Road. The gallery had an attractive tea room where we had fresh lemonade from local lemons and Chrysanthemum tea, and bought some lemon cakes. We then climbed up to the Kousanji Temple, built in the 1940’s by an industrialist, in honour of his mother. He later also became a priest to further repay a debt of gratitude to his mother!

Our guest house, Setoda Private Hostel, was right on Sunset Beach. While somewhat rustic and with shared shower facilities, it had an onsen (indoor hot bath with water from geothermally heated springs), which we were able to use privately. The bath, beach and the sunset were all lovely. Over a dinner of fried fish we chatted with a couple from the Vaud region in Switzerland.

To Imabari:
Breakfast at the hostel was traditional, with fish, rice, miso soup, egg and green tea. We did not find coffee until later, when Paul happened to notice a COFFEE sign along the seashore. Lois went in search of the proprietor of the guest house, who served us good brewed coffee on the patio, and, much to our surprise, cheese on toast! The 73-year old clearly enjoyed talking to her guests and sat with us, using Google Translate to ask us questions and tell us about her family and her various guests. We also shared information about Canada, our offspring and families and showed her photos. She was fascinated when Paul found an old photo of her guesthouse on Google Maps. We tried various ways to forward the photo to her, but without success. While we were sitting there, a Black Kite had perched on a sign across the road. Paul was intrigued when the proprietor tossed out some food for the bird which swooped down and swiftly retrieved it. We were a bit reluctant to leave that patio on the ocean and that very nice lady, who gave Lois a hug when we said goodbye!

Later in the day, at the top of one hill

we chatted with a group of cyclists from Singapore and Taiwan. Apparently, Singapore is working to improve cycling infrastructure on the island.

Too soon, we were on the last bridge onto Shikoku, at Imabari. At the recommendation of our hotel, we ate at Yuki restaurant, where we had another memorable meal. With the help of another customer, we settled on “no meat” and a price for the meal (we were asked our budget!) We then received a stream of delicious and interesting dishes. The first was raw octopus which was actually OK! The broad bean tempura was the highlight for Paul. Then came tuna and amberjack sashimi, abalone with rice, white fish tempura, eggplant, miso soup, lotus root, a whole Rock Fish each and then green tea sorbet. The sea cucumber we mostly left untouched! We were both drinking draft beer and Paul was treated to local Soju (made from lotus root) by another other diner. It was strong! On leaving, the proprietor and her son, who was the chef, came outside to say goodbye. The restaurant is named after her 88 year old mother, Myuki, whom we were told still rides around on a bicycle.

Coffee note: very good Brazilian/Ethiopian blend espresso (8.5/ 10) at the Hotel Cycle in Imabari.

ROW

May 31, 2018 -Day 91

03/06/2018 admin Leave a comment

Takehara to Onomichi (38 km by bike)

The town of Takehara styles itself as the “Little Kyoto of Aki”, having a well preserved old town, including 120 buildings remaining from the late Edo period (17 to 19th centuries), when the city flourished as a centre of the salt industry. The Special Historical District of old warehouses was selected as one of Japan’s “100 Most Scenic Towns”. After an early breakfast in a charming cafe (egg set for Paul, waffles for Lois, and good siphon coffee), we cycled through the atmospheric old town before the shops opened.

The area is popular with makers of Samurai movies. Takehara is also known for a more infamous reason. An island just off the coast was the site of the Japanese Imperial Army’s poison gas factory during the Sino-Japanese war and WW2. It is now overrun by rabbits which, according to some sources, were used to test the poison gas and then set free at the end of the war.

The ride today was much better. There were sidewalks on most of the route (#185), few hills and the traffic was light, apart from a short stretch on National Highway #2. Most of the time we were by the sea. It was a misty day, but the forecasted rain held off.

Just cycling into Onomichi, we noticed a “brasserie” where the table d’hôte was a multi course meal with a white fish and shrimp option for the main course. Sitting there, sipping our Perrier, we could have been in a cafe in Paris (apart from the bowl of rice which came with the meal!) Supper was cheese and crackers in our room, looking out on the harbour and Mukoujima island. Just close to our hotel is the boutique Hotel Cycle. At $300 a night, it was beyond our budget, but we enjoyed wandering through the complex. There is a valet service for your bicycle and very chic surroundings. The coffee shop and bakery serve espresso and croissants, so that will be our first stop in the morning!

ROW

May 30, 2018 – Day 90

02/06/2018 admin 2 Comments

Hiroshima to Takehara ( 13 km bike and 39 km car)

We had a brief panic this morning, when, just after starting out for the nearby Cafe di Espresso, Lois had a sharp, burning pain under her right kneecap when flexing her knee, virtually making it impossible to cycle. She had had occasional twinges in Korea after we had been pushing our bikes up very steep grades (or from cycling against the wind), but it had not been this intense. Lois, fearful of potentially derailing the cycle trip just after having restarted, decided (and Paul concurred) on a 3-pronged approach: ice, double strength Ibuprofen and a support bandage. To our surprise, this (plus a good latte) seemed to relieve the pain and we, also relieved, set off on National Route (highway) #2. Our plan was to follow the #2 and then the Prefecture Road #34 to Takehara, as per the route suggested by Japancycling.org. We were a little concerned that there were no details about the route on this website, nor had we found any blogs describing cycling in this area. However, it was going to take us where we wanted to go, i.e., Onomichi.

Cyclists in Japan use the sidewalks, many of which are pedestrian and cycle paths, and this morning they were crowded with cyclists, many of them students in school uniforms, racing to school. It was a bit unnerving, as no one seems to necessarily stick to one lane, or slow down significantly when coming towards you, and, as Japan has left-hand drive, this compounded our uncertainty. Lois decided that the best strategy was to adopt the Phnom Penh approach – don’t hesitate and keep moving! Once we were out of the city, the sidewalks disappeared and we soon found ourselves ascending on a narrow two-laned highway, with no, or very little, hard shoulder. Worse, the #34 turned out to be a heavily-used truck route. It was a scary and unpleasant couple of hours.

Our friend Alix had put us in touch with her cousin, Andy, who lives in Kumano, a suburban town in the hills just above Hiroshima. As Kumano was on the #34, we had arranged to meet Andy for a quick visit. Speeding downhill into the town we were surprised to see Andy (the only Caucasian) looking out for us on the highway, with his rescue dog, Charlie. Andy was clearly surprised to see us as well and that we had survived the highway! He invited us back to his home where we had an enjoyable visit, drinking tea and chatting, mostly about Japan, and meeting two of his children when they returned from school. When we suggested that it was time to get back on the road, Andy insisted on driving us and our bikes the rest of the way to Takehara in his minivan. He clearly did not think that the #34 was a safe cycle route. Having to agree with him, our protests were weak and we very gratefully accepted the ride.

ROW

May 29, 2018 – Day Off

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Miyajima and Hiroshima

Our visit to the island of Miyajima was a soothing contrast to yesterday. The island is replete with Shinto and Buddhist shrines, pagodas and parks, beautiful scenery and a peaceful ambiance. One of the icons of Japan is the torii leading to the Itsukushima Shrine, which we were able to view at high tide.

Miyajima has been considered a holy place for most of Japanese history. In 806 AD, the monk Kōbō Daishi ascended Mt. Misen and established the mountain as an ascetic site for the Shingon sect of Buddhism. As a sacred island, worshippers to the shrine could not land on the island, but were required to enter the temple through the torii – by water, or, at low tide, by foot.

In the main Itsukushima Shrine (1168), we happened upon a Shinto marriage ceremony. It was very quiet, apart from the low chanting of the priest and occasional pipe music.

We climbed up to the Tahoto Pagoda (1523) the five-storey pagoda (1407) and the Senjokaku Hall (1587) (pavilion of a thousand mats). Then, we sampled the local delicacy- manju, and very good espresso (Miyajima Coffee 8.25/10).

Dinner back in Hiroshima Tempura Tenko was noteworthy. The delicate and mouth-watering vegetable and seafood tempura was served individually right from the fryer and cut up and presented in front of us, together with directions as to use salt, lemon juice or miso. Even the squid was exceptionally tender and tasty!

Wildlife note: osprey fishing close to the torii

Food notes: Hiroshima Okonomiyaki – savoury pancake cooked on an iron hot plate with egg , vegetables including cabbage, and noodles with meat or seafood.

ROW

May 28, 2018 – Day Off

31/05/2018 admin 1 Comment

Hiroshima

It was an emotional day, spent contemplating the horrors experienced by the people of Hiroshima on August 6, 1945, when, at 8:15 a.m., an atomic bomb was dropped on the city’s busiest downtown commercial and residential area. That area is now covered by Hiroshima Memorial Peace Park, a beautiful space designed for the purpose of promoting peace and to honour the memory of the 70,000 people who died immediately from the consequences of the intense heat, blast and radiation and a further 70,000 who died later. The names of all the known victims of the bomb are inscribed in the Cenotaph, while the Atomic Bomb Memorial Mound contains the ashes of thousands of unclaimed or unidentifiable victims. Radiation led to further suffering of those who survived. About 1 in 10 of the dead were Koreans in Japan “for various reasons”. This phrase used in the Museum actually includes forced labour and so called “comfort women”. Non-Japanese could not obtain medical care after the attack nor assistance for the long term consequences of exposure until 1980.

The Children’s Peace Monument, a statue of a girl with outstretched arms with a folded paper crane rising above her, was poignantly strung with hundreds of tiny origami cranes made by children around the world. The monument was inspired by a young girl, Sadako Sasaki, who was two years old at the time of the atomic bomb and is dedicated to all of the children who perished because of the bomb. When Sadako developed leukaemia at 11 years of age, she decided to fold 1000 paper cranes. The crane is the symbol of longevity and happiness and Sadako believed if she achieved that target she would recover. Although she folded 1300, she died within eight months. The Peace Flame is set to burn until all of the world’s nuclear weapons have been destroyed.

In the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, we watched riveting video testimony of people who had survived, looked at personal items left by those who didn’t – tattered clothing, a child’s melted lunchbox, a wristwatch stopped at 8:15 – and saw exhibits that describe Hiroshima before and after the bombings. The museum also documents the development of the atomic bomb and nuclear arms and presents the current status of international efforts to reduce and eliminate the threat of use of such weapons.

The A Bomb Dome is the icon of the devastation. The Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, built in 1915, was one of the few buildings to remain somewhat intact. The bomb was detonated 600 m above the Dome close to a T-shaped bridge which was used as the target.

Three days later, a second bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. Before the bombings, Japan was already developing terms of surrender. People were suffering from the results of fire bombing of major cities with shortages of food and other supplies and evacuation of children to the countryside. In 1946, when the US was occupying Japan, President Truman ordered the establishment of the Atomic Bomb Casualty Commission in Hiroshima, to investigate the after effects of the atomic bomb. A-bomb survivors had high expectations that the Commission would treat their illnesses, but the body only performed examinations and research.

Japanese were again affected when fishers were exposed to radiation from nuclear tests in the Pacific in 1954.

ROW

May 27, 2018 – Day 89

30/05/2018 admin 1 Comment

Fukuoka to Hiroshima

Packing up our bikes for the train to Hiroshima, we decided that Rinko bags are designed for bikes without mudguards or back racks, both of which had to come off for the bikes to fit. We did end up with two reasonable packages that got us past the ticket barrier. There were no trolleys to be found at the station, so we had to do things in relays. We had purchased tickets for the green car as we had read that it has space behind the last seats for oversized luggage, ie, bikes; otherwise we would have had to lug our bike bags and panniers to the rearmost carriage. A guard kindly helped us get our panniers on board and position the bike bags (permission is required for luggage to be placed anywhere but the upper luggage racks). The Shinkansen (bullet) trains are really fast and we were in Hiroshima in just over an hour. Two taxis were needed to get to the hotel, each with one bike and one person!

The view from our room is of the Peace Park and the Atomic Bomb Dome.

ROW

May 26, 2018 – Day Off

29/05/2018 admin Leave a comment

Fukuoka

The bike bag saga continues! We intend to travel by train from Fukuoka to Hiroshima, where we will begin cycling to Kyoto. In order to take a bicycle on a train in Japan, it must be in a bag to protect the train and other passengers from any grit or grease. According to the blogs, every bike store in Japan sells Rinko bags. That is not strictly true, but we did find a choice at Y’s Cycles. The problem was that we could not read the labels and the staff were unable to communicate with us in English. We managed to find some information on the web and chose what seemed appropriate.

The rest of the day we spent with Rory and Sofia -lunch at the vegetarian cafe, Rota; a stop at the Fukuoka Contemporary Art Gallery, where we met the sculptor Hiromitsu Aramini and saw an exhibition of pieces he had done 20 years ago, modeled on his three children; and visits to the Suikyo Tenmangu and Kushida-jinja Shinto shrines (there was what appeared to be a baptism ceremony going on in the latter) and the Tōchō-ji Buddhist Temple, with its 10.8 metre high 30 tonne wooden Buddha. Although the temple dates back to 806 AD, the Buddha was carved in 1992. We also wandered through the peaceful grounds of the Shōfuku-ji Zen temple.

Dinner was an amazing affair. We had intended to go to the Fish Man, but finding it booked up, we decided to try another izakaya restaurant nearby, Hakata Suzuro. While the term “izakaya” is used to describe a casual tapas bar-type establishment, the dinner we ended up having was much more than tapas. It was a lavish set meal with multiple courses, including tiny shellfish, a meat stew with potatoes, carrots and onions; red snapper sashimi and raw octopus; cooked sea bream in a broth with tender Asian eggplant; various other vegetables; rice; seafood and vegetable tempura (including delicious lotus root), miso soup; smoked eggplant; finishing off with yuzu ice-cream and green tea. Sofia and Lois had a glass of chilled dry Sake, which came overflowing into small wooden boxes. The fact that Rory has some facility in Japanese helped us understand what we were eating (and to avoid the dish containing some sort of animal organs!). As we were leaving, the mother of the family business brought out her husband, the chef, and the son, one of the servers, to say goodbye and pose for photos.

ROW

May 25, 2018 – Day 88

27/05/2018 admin 2 Comments

Busan to Fukuoka

One of the lessons we have learned in cycle touring is that “it’s never over until it’s over!” Often, this means that just when you think you’re getting near the end of a ride and beginning to anticipate that glass of wine or warm/cool shower, another hill suddenly materializes! In this instance, it was in getting ourselves and our bikes from Korea to Japan.

It started well. Our extraordinarily helpful hotel (Best Louis Hamilton) arranged a van taxi to take us to the International Cruise Ship Terminal, where we were booked on the fast (3-hour) walk-on ferry to Fukuoka. The first challenge was in getting to the departure level, one floor up from our drop-off point.The elevator we were waiting by kept arriving full, with many young mothers and babies in strollers coming up from the parking lot heading to a baby exhibition on the top floor. Luckily, we were eventually rescued by a guard who directed us to another less-used elevator. As we joined the queue of people checking in with Beetle ferries, we noticed the staff directing concerned looks at our two bike boxes perched on a trolley. They rushed over to ask what we were carrying and promptly told us we could not take our bikes on the ferry and that we should take another boat! When we protested that our hotel had checked with the company and that, at any rate, there was no other boat going to Fukuoka, they inspected and measured the boxes and asked us to wait, presumably to see how full the boat would be. 1/2 hour later, we were told that we could not board as the boxes were too big. We asked whether we could bring our bikes if they were in bags, but the answer was still no. The bikes were too big!

Plan B was to look at the later overnight ship to Shimonoseki, between Fukuoka and Hiroshima. This would mean bypassing Fukuoka, which we were a bit reluctant to do as we were meeting friends from Vancouver. Lois returned to report that our challenges were increasing – she was told that we could bring our bikes on their ferry but could only “ import” the bikes into Japan if we had a plane ticket to leave the country again! We did not think that this was either correct or feasible.

We decided to try plan C. Paul called Korean Air to book a flight leaving at 5:55 pm. It was now 3:00 and the airport was a 30 minute cab drive away. It was after 3:30 by the time the reservation was completed and neither of us was very calm at this point! Then we had to get back downstairs and try to find a taxi big enough to transport us and the bike boxes to the airport. Unusually, the waiting cab drivers were indifferent and seemed to be amused at our plight. When we suggested that we might take two cabs, this did not seem possible. A call to the Best Louis Hamilton Hotel (they will get an excellent Trip Advisor review!) was in order. 45 minutes later, a van arrived to pick us up.

We arrived at Busan International airport just before 5. We could have kissed the Korean Airlines official, who assured us that we could check our bikes. She also suggested that we could avoid some excess baggage costs by taking Lois’ panniers on as hand luggage and strapping Paul’s larger panniers together to make one checked bag. When we asked whether there were plastic bags to better protect our bikes, she directed us to a baggage packing service one floor up. The three young people at the packing service could not have been more helpful, cheerful and efficient. 30 minutes and a lot of bubble wrap later, we were on our way again downstairs to drop off the boxes and panniers. As we were heading towards the departure gates, we were called into a room where our bike boxes were being x-rayed. They had discovered that Paul had inadvertently left a small compressed air canister in with the bike tools! That was sorted out and the boxes were taped up again. Time was marching on, but luckily the flight was delayed by 15 minutes. So, on through security where a small wrench and Allen key longer than the 10 cm limit (just), were found in Paul’s bar bag! We really did need these tools to reassemble the bikes and said so. It was now 5:45! To our surprise, the security officials called a representative of Korean Airlines who came and inspected the offending articles, removed them and took them away. We were told we would get them back on deplaning! We were shown the envelope and given another baggage claim ticket as we boarded the plane, just in time!

The short flight and immigration in Fukuoka was smooth. While we were waiting for our checked bags, two attendants appeared pushing our bike bags on a trolley together with the envelope with the two tools – service indeed! The Japanese customs agents did search one of Paul’s bags and we had to wait for the bikes to be x-rayed again and then we were thanked for our cooperation and we were in Japan! Once outside, we were able to hire two taxis, one for us and one for the bikes, with no problem. At our hotel we were just going up to our (very tiny) room with bikes and panniers in tow when the receptionist came running after us to say we were bring upgraded to a larger room!

After all this, it was a relief and pleasure to be able to meet Rory and Sofia for a walk through downtown and dinner at a charming Nepalese establishment in

Tenjin.

ROW

May 23 & 24, 2018 – Days Off

24/05/2018 admin 2 Comments

Busan

Our stay at Haeundae Beach did not permit any beach time, alas. The first day was rainy, so we spent the time doing laundry and planning ahead. We did have pleasant strolls along the beach front, however. Yesterday, we took the subway into the city to tour the high-end Lotte Department Store and Jagalchi fish market. We recalled the lively atmosphere of the market from when we had visited with Chris, in 2009. There is a an overwhelming abundance and variety of fish and seafood to choose from, all so attractively displayed. The vendors will cook for you to eat on site. We chose fresh grilled pollack, which was served with rice and banchan.

As much as we would have loved to spend more time in the market and shopping, we were preoccupied with acquiring bags to pack up our bikes for the ferry to Japan. With the help of our hotel, we had learned that the overnight ferry onto which we could have ridden our bikes does not start up again until May 30. The available faster boat requires that our bikes be packed as cargo. We searched for Japanese “Rinko” bags, but they do not seem to be available here or would have to be ordered. At the fourth bike store we visited, we were given discarded cardboard bike boxes. We don’t know whether these will be acceptable at the ferry terminal. Standing out on the street, waiting to flag down a cab to take us and the two boxes back to the hotel, Lois was skeptical that anyone would stop. Happily, a helpful taxi driver pulled up, instructed Paul to get in the back seat and then promptly wedged the two boxes in on top of him, much to the amusement of Lois and the driver!

Parkinson’s Disease Note:
Our efforts to contact officials in South Korea to discuss rehabilitation programs and PD were ultimately unsuccessful. Nor have we come across any studies on this aspect of PD.

One study concluded that the the prevalence of PD in South Korea is similar to that of Western countries (Prevalence of Parkinson’s disease in Korea. Seo WK, et al. J Clin Neurosci. 2007). Another study showed that major difficulties experienced by PD patients were physical (67%), psychiatric (60%) but severe difficulties were also experienced socio-economically; 52% in patients and 49% in caregivers, especially among patients in their fifties (58%) and those with their spouse (65%) as caregivers. The topmost need was the need to pay for new treatments for PD (62%), followed by relief of costs for other treatment (38%) and a family support system (31%).
(J Mov Disord 2017; 10(3): 109-115.
Patients and Their Caregivers’ Burdens for Parkinson’s Disease in Korea
Jong SB et al).
Also of note is that in one study, ninety-four (76%) patients in South Korea had used complementary or alternative medicine (CAM). The mean cost of CAM paid by patients (out-of-pocket costs) was 102.3 US Dollars (USD) per month, while medical costs of treatment for PD paid by patients (out-of-pocket costs) averaged 72.8 USD per month. The spectrum of CAM use included oriental medicines (76.6%), traditional food (44.7%), non-prescribed drugs (31.9%), traditional therapies (7.4%), massage (7.4%) and behavioral therapy (7.4%). The author suggested that the results show that a high proportion of Korean PD patients employed CAM, associated with high costs and serious side effects in some patients, although not having access to the complete article it was not possible to get an explanation for this statement (Use of complementary and alternative medicine by Korean patients with Parkinson’s disease.
Kim SR, et al. Clin Neurol Neurosurg. 2009).

ROW

May 22, 2018 – Day 87

22/05/2018 admin 2 Comments

Yangsan to Busan (31 km by bike and 2 hours on the subway)

It is Buddha’s birthday today, a fitting end to our Korean cycle trip which we began on the anniversary of Paul’s accident in Italy. It has been really good to be back on our bikes on what has been the best cycle route of our trip! Kudos to the South Koreans for creating and maintaining such an impressive cycling infrastructure!

As we pedaled along the estuary of the Nakdong, the path became busier with road cyclists sporting the latest high tech gear, young men zipping by on scooters and segways, local cyclists and walkers, all out enjoying the national holiday. The calm of the countryside receded as we were soon surrounded by motorways, the riverside lined with tightly packed high rise apartments in the outskirts of South Korea’s second city.

We found the final certification centre at the Nakdonggang Estuary Weir. Although the cycle route is known as “Seoul to Busan” the end point of our 576 km ride was km 0! We savored the moment with a few other travellers, although in the busy plaza of the Nakdong River Cultural Centre, it was difficult to know how many, if any, of the other cyclists milling around had been on the cycle route.

While waiting for advice about how best to get through the city of Busan, we looked at an interesting exhibition there about the development of the flood defenses and the path. Though mostly in Korean, we did glean that the investment of 15 trillion KRW (18 billion CAD) had saved more than three times as much in flood damage prevention.

An official at the centre advised us that, as it was a holiday, bikes were allowed on the subway and that we should consider that option to reach our hotel in the Haeundae Beach area, approximately 30 kms. It took a couple of hours travelling, finding elevators and the right tracks and changing lines. Although the carriages were crowded at times, everyone was very polite and accepting of our bicycles and panniers. We met three English teachers on the train, including two from Canada!

On the way to dinner, we walked along the beach and past large sand sculptures, part of the Haeundae Sand Festival. Our meal at the tiny Italian restaurant, Lable, was exceptional. The restaurant is operated by two young Korean chefs, one who had trained in Sydney and Paris and the other in New Zealand.

We will stay in Busan close to the beach for a few days as we plan the next part of our journey.

ROW

May 21, 2018 – Day 86

21/05/2018 admin Leave a comment

Hanam-eup to Yangsan (43km)

Our breakfasts have consisted generally of yoghurt, purchased the night before from a mini-mart, instant Quaker Oats and Dorset Meusli, (that we happened to find in Gumi after finally depleting the Terra Breads Granola). As no espresso stops showed up on the route map today, we made espressos with our travelling Wacaco Minipress, a prized gift from our children.

Today’s ride was short and peasant, despite a bit of a headwind. The temperature was perfect. The path stayed close to the river, passing small villages with some traditional style houses, fields of barley and many greenhouses. We were again impressed with the cycling infrastructure, with long sections built out over the water. At one point along one of these sections, we noticed a sign referring to part of an ancient stone roadway still visible on the edge of the cliff. We think it was from the Josean Dynasty, but the Google translation of the sign did not appear reliable. As usual, passing cyclists almost invariably bowed and said hello (kyeseyo) and occasionally yelled out “hwaiting” an encouragement, which is apparently a Konglish misuse of the English word “fighting”. We responded appropriately.

Entering Yangsan, we discovered Blackup Coffee, where we enjoyed a second cup of good espresso (8.0/10). A local soft tofu restaurant near the hotel served us sizzling hot pots of tofu and vegetables, accompanied by rice and side dishes of kimchi and other local vegetables. The chef came out and smiled and thanked us for enjoying what she had prepared for us!

Tomorrow, we will arrive in Busan, the end of the cycle through Korea.

Video: Gimhae Nakdonggang Rail Park. Interesting use of the old bridge!

ROW

May 20, 2018 – Day 85

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Cheongdeok-myeon to Hanam (58 km)

We were a bit optimistic in assuming that the trail was all “downhill” after the summit at Ihwaryeong Pass. Although we are following the Nakdong downstream, there are places where the path leaves the easy embankments and goes up into the hills. These roads are often extremely steep, forcing us to push our bikes.

When we started out this morning, It was bright and sunny, the path was flat and we were expecting to cycle the 30 kms to Namji for coffee at the Paris Baguette by 10. But, the path soon veered off into the hills again and put paid to that idea. Today, the inclines were long and steep or short and even steeper. When we finally did arrive at the Paris Baguette, we were disappointed to find they had neither tables, nor a proper espresso machine!

The rest of the afternoon was slightly easier, but we were getting tired by the time we got to Hanam-eup.

We should note how indispensable the Naver and KakaoMap apps have been. We got these on Shinyoung’s advice and would have been lost without them. In Korea, Google Maps is next to useless. This evening, using Naver, we found a local restaurant that serves only Chueo-tang -loach soup, a specialty of this region. Made from the fresh water pond loach, the soup is flavoured with chilies, garlic and mint or perilla powder. Served with rice and side dishes, it was delicious.

ROW

May 19, 2018 – Day 84

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Daegu to Cheongdeok-myeon (67 km)

There were a lot of weekend cyclists on the path from Daegu. With a great tailwind, we sailed along, keeping up a good pace ahead of what appeared to be a local cycling club, all dressed in yellow shirts. We passed each other a few times throughout the morning. When we were asked our ages at the top of one of the two really steep hills, the younger cyclists were impressed! Their oldest member, a 67-year old man, seemed pleased that we three “oldies” were all holding our own! We also met another cyclist who had spent a year at U Vic as a prof.

The path was good although there were a number of steep climbs, the first with an incline of 12%. It appears that a tunnel is being built to replace this part of the trail, but unfortunately, it is not yet complete. The second long climb went below and then through and above a Buddhist Temple. As we struggled up, we could hear the chant of prayers being broadcast. It was calming for a short time!

Earlier, we had also passed the 17thC Dodong Seowon Confucian Academy, one of five built to pay tribute to a particular Confucian scholar of the Joseon Dynasty.

When we stopped for the day, we happened to find another motel catering to cyclists. So again, our bikes had their own locker. As we were told that the few restaurants served only meat dishes, supper was ramen noodles from a small shop, prepared by the proprietor and eaten outside with kimchi, courtesy of the restaurant next door.

Video: near the Buddhist Temple (Paul in the distance)

ROW

May 18, 2018 – Day Off

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Daegu

A 90 minute local bus trip took us from Daegu up into the mountains of Gayasan National Park where the Haeinsa Temple complex is located.

A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the temple contains a number of national treasures, including a three-story stone pagoda, a stone lantern, paintings of Buddha and other figures, and the oldest known wooden statutes of Buddha in Korea. But, Haeinsa’s most famous national treasure is the Tripitaka Koreana (the Goryeo Buddhist canon). The Tripitaka, which represents the three divisions of Buddhism: the Sutra (scriptures), Vinaya (laws) and the Abhidharma (treatises), has been preserved on more than 80,000 carved woodblocks, which took 16 years to complete. According to our “Smart Tour Guide” app, it is believed that for the 11 th century Korean Buddhists, “the project of carving the Buddhist scriptures was their only defense to protect their country against a formidable enemy via their spiritual and cultural superiority”.

After the first set was destroyed by Mongol invaders in 1232, a reconstructed set was completed in 1251. From carefully selecting appropriate wood from wild cherry or Korean pear trees, then soaking it in brine and boiling it in salt before drying it, to locating and constructing a sophisticated repository, the techniques involved are complex and the artwork intricate. The woodblocks are housed and preserved in a 15th-century hall which, due to it’s ingenuity, also has UNESCO World Heritage designation. We could see the carved texts through wooden slats in the building.

In September 1951, North Korean soldiers were conducting guerilla warfare in the Haeinsa area. UN forces were ordered to bomb Haeinsa but Kim Young Hwan, the leader of the Air Force’s pilots, worried about the loss of the Haeinsa Tripiṭaka Koreana, did not obey the command.

Lunch:

ROW

May 17, 2018 – Day 83

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Gumi to Daegu (48 km)

The river path was lovely but it was hot (around 30oC) and humid and we had a headwind, so we we were glad to finish the short ride. We are staying in Daegu for a couple of nights to visit Haein-sa Temple, which houses the Tripitaka Koreana, or Goryeo Buddhist canon, one of the world’s most significant Buddhist sacred texts.

After checking in to the cute February boutique hotel, we took a cab into the city centre to

explore Daegu’s historic herbal medicine market. One long street was filled with traditional medical pharmacies and shops selling a huge variety of plants – roots, bark, leaves and powders – and animal parts, including antlers. We were too late for the Museum of Oriental Medicine, where we would have learned the uses of these products and had an opportunity to participate in hands-on experience programs.

By chance, we happened upon the Mido Tea Shop where we enjoyed cups of ssanghwa-tang, a traditional medicinal beverage made from many types of root, cinnamon and liquorice.

For dinner, after we could not find a restaurant recommended by Lonely Planet, we stopped at a small Vietnamese restaurant and had shrimp fried rice (the only dish without meat!) and Hanoi beer.

Coffee notes: Cafe de Botton: best espresso in Korea so far 8.5/ 10

ROW

May 15, 2018 – Day 82. May 16 – Day Off

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Nakong-ri to Gumi (37 km)

The Four Rivers cycle path system is a small part of a massive rivers restoration project began in 2002, to provide « water security, flood control and ecosystem vitality ». We have pedaled many kilometres along extensive flood barriers, past artfully designed weirs, huge tracts of well organized agricultural land, parks and wetlands, underneath motorways and into cities like Gumi, that are home to plants of industrial giants like Samsung and LG and dominated by multiple high rise apartment blocks.

It is hard to imagine that only 65 years ago, this land was devastated. The Korean Peninsula had been under brutal occupation by Japan from 1910 until 1945. Following the Japanese surrender at the end of WWII, Korea was then occupied and divided by the Allied victors, the US and USSR. During the ensuing Korean War, armies representing north and south ( or east and west) battled their way across this land a number of times, destroying much of the existing infrastructure – roads, bridges, government buildings, including 50% of the houses. Civilian casualties were estimated to be 2.7 million. For those who managed to survive, most were destitute. At the end of the 1950’s, South Korea’s GDP per capita was less than $100. Life expectancy was around 54 years. In one generation, by what is referred to as the Miracle on the Han River, the South Korean economy has grown to become the 11th largest in the world, with a GDP per capita of $39,276. Today, South Koreans can expect to live at least 82 years. An emphasis on access to education has been a critical aspect of South Korea’s success story. In 1945, only 5% of Koreans had post-secondary or equivalent qualifications. By the 1990’s, this number was over 90% for South Koreans.

Over the past two days and evenings, the air was filled with the unnerving and deafening roar of fighter jets. We assumed this was a normal exercise, and not, we hoped, an escalation of tensions on the peninsula. We later read on CBC that North Korea had suspended talks with the South over US and South Korean air combat drills described as a “provocative military ruckus”. From the ground it certainly did not seem like a peaceful exercise!

Today, we met some fellow bike tourists, Lynn and Dave, from Bristol. They have been travelling since last year through Europe, Indonesia and Japan, and are now cycling/camping from Busan to Seoul.

Although the blogs and guide books don’t recommend the industrial city of Gumi, we have found a decent hotel and will take a day off to do laundry and, hopefully, avoid the worst of the thunderstorms forecast.

We thought that the server had mistaken our order when the Margarita drink arrived, but it was complimentary and the Margherita pizza followed soon after!

ROW

May 14, 2018 – Day 82

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Mungyeong to Naktong-ri (49 km)

It was a hot day for cycling (around 31oC). We had hoped to do around 80km today to Gumi, but a wrong turn and the climbing temperature resulted in many stops and sapped energy. At the Sangponggyo Bridge, we joined the Nakdong River, the longest river and longest cycling path in Korea. The path was good but it soon divided and we learned later that we had taken the less good route. This involved a long climb up from the river, which was so steep we couldn’t push our bikes fully loaded, so had to wheel our bikes up and then return for our panniers. We know that we miss a lot not reading Korean and today we felt this more than ever as there may well have been warnings. The detour did, however, offer us really good views of the river and a tour through Gyeongcheondae Terrace Park (meaning “Even heaven was taken aback by its beauty”) with its charming sculptures. We ate our sandwiches in the lovely grounds of the Sangju Museum. When we eventually rejoined the main path, we passed by a 17th C Confucian Academy and through farmlands of newly-seeded rice fields.

We decided to stop near Sangju and look for a pension or motel, not expecting much in the small village. By chance, we found a motel which caters to cyclists. Our bikes have individual lockers for the night! The local restaurant served us delicious seafood noodles which was the non-meat alternative. We did not eat the baby octopus!

Historical note: Mungyeong was the site of a massacre of unarmed people accused of being communist sympathizers. In 2011 the Supreme Court eventually agreed to reparations.